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Brian Dietzen on Co-Writing an ‘NCIS’ Episode Honoring David McCallum: ‘The Ritual of a Memorial Is Something I Wanted Everyone to Be Able to Share’
Brian Dietzen talks about co-writing an 'NCIS' farewell episode for Ducky in honor of David McCallum, a few months after the actor's death at 90.
When McCallum died in September, it fell into Dietzen’s real-life lap to become something of a grief examiner, as he took on the duty of co-writing a farewell salute to Ducky — and to David — along with one of the series’ longtime executive producers, Scott Williams. For many longtime viewers, Ducky’s memorial will be, well, tearducty, as elder fans, especially, remember not just McCallum’s two-decade run on the top dramatic series of the 21st century but a lifetime of roles stretching back to the actor’s star-making 1960s co-lead part on “The Man From UNCLE.” In this catch-up, he discusses wanting to provide both the audience and himself some catharsis with the double-duty on this episode… and what’s up for Jimmy Palmer beyond the current grief, with the show having the formerly bumbling character as one of its most solid rocks two decades into a historic run.
Or read this on Variety