Original Air Date: February 13, 1966

Directed by: David Alexander

Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains spoilers for this episode!

Synopsis: Uncle Martin (Ray Walston) must rescue Tim (Bill Bixby) from the clutches of the evil spy organization CRUSH and criminal mastermind Butterball (Larry D. Mann).

Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): Uncle Martin tries to track Tim down with mental telephathy audio, which leads him to a dark alley. A gray tabby cat stands upon an old crate meowing as Martin approaches.

Martin pauses to converse with the cat, explaining that he’s trying to find his friend.

The show makes a direct reference to their obvious parodying of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. when Martin answers the cat’s next question with, “No, we are not filming a new cloak and dagger spy series for television!”

When the cat meows again, Martin’s frustration grows. “I don’t care how corny the dialogue sounds to you,” and asks the cat to stop interrupting.

Moments later we rejoin Martin in the alley after his signal to Tim has been cut off. The cat jumps off the crate and starts meowing at a nearby wall.

The cat starts pawing at the wall. “I don’t care how many pastramis on rye you smell in there,” Martin begins, then realizes the cat is giving him a clue. “Thanks, buddy,” Martin offers as he uses his finger to open a secret panel. Both he and the cat enter the building but in the next shot the cat is nowhere in sight and Martin has walked into a trap.

Final Mewsings: Does this mean the cat was a CRUSH operative all along?

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