THREE HOURS OF THE CONDOR

THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR (1975)
dir: Sidney Pollack

THREE HOURS OF THE CONDOR
Cracked #132, May 1976
a: O. O. Severin (John Severin)

Joe Turner (Robert Redford) works for the “American Literary Historical Society”, a front for the CIA. Their job is to read books for the CIA to find plots in spy novels. Joe's secretary is Janice Chong (Tina Chen). They are being watched by Joubert (Max von Sydow)

The second panel refers to Redford's earlier movie The Candidate.

Joe goes out for lunch and comes back to find everyone in the office has been killed. He tries to phone the main headquarters and they want his code name (Condor) and even more information.

Other TV and movie cops and spies make cameos throughout. On this page alone, here's Columbo, James Bond, and Al Pacino as Serpico.

Joe is being chased and told he's being chased and is told by deputy director Higgins (Cliff Robertson) he is in danger because he was the only one of the literary division to survive, and to go meet agent Wicks in an alley where he will be brought to safety. Since he doesn't trust or know anyone outside his office, Joe asks that Wicks bring someone they both would know. When they do, Wicks brings that witness and then shoots him for knowing that much. Joe realizes he's in even more danger and hides in a store where he spies on customer Kathy Hale (Faye Dunaway).

Joe kidnaps Kathy at gunpoint and makes her bring him to her apartment.Meanwhile, at headquarters, the CIA, led by Wabash (John Houseman) investigated who Turner is. At Kathy's home, Joe kidnaps her, and he reveals who he is, and they become lovers. (This is how seduction worked back then, kids).

Even as far back as 1975, kids wouldn't know about Robert Culp and Bill Cosby in I Spy.

A mailman comes to Kathy's apartment to deliver a package while she's in the shower but turn out to be a hitman after Joe, who outsmarts him. He realizes Joubert is the assassin behind everything and demands Higgins reveal what he knows, but Higgins won't say anything.

Kathy has been helping Joe uncover the plot but then suddenly has to leave. There was really no need for her to be in the movie except that they needed a female co-star, I guess. Joe manages to steal equipment from the phone company and reveals the plot himself, tracing calls to reveal that Lionel Atwood (Addison Powell) is behind everything that has happened. He goes to Atwood's home, and finds out Joe's department was eliminated because they could uncover secrets. Joubert comes in to assassinate Joe but instead kills Atwood. Joubert was impressed by Joe's cunning and suggests he goes into hiding and become an assassin himself.

Later, Joe meets Higgins in Times Square and holds jim hostage at gunpoint, making him walk a few blocks. The reason he's doing so is to take Higgins to the outside of New York Times office and tell him he's blown the cover off the whole operation and revealed it to them.

This was a time when investigative journalism was big and the next year Redford himself would make it sexy with All the President's Men.

THREE DAYS OF THE CONJOB
Sick #109, April 1976
w: Fred Wolfe (Paul Laikin)
a: Jerry Grandenetti

I guess the guy in the last panel is supposed to be the Cliff Robertson character, but he doesn't have a mustache.

A postage due joke here too. I doubt the writers consulted with each other unless it was the same one.

Bonnie and Clyde are also in a car in the city. Somehow Faye Dunaway is in two places at once.
Yet another Burt Reynolds/Cosmo joke. Whip Inflation Now was an attempted slogan of President Ford.