‘Scarecrow and Mrs. King’ Star Bruce Boxleitner Recalls The Time ‘A CIA Agent Tried to Recruit Me’
This month, the cast of Scarecrow and Mrs. King reunited at The Hollywood Show in Burbank, California, sitting down for a panel discussion with fans to talk about their characters. Fans were thrilled to see Kate Jackson and Bruce Boxleitner together again; they sat on the panel next to each other, with Boxleitner endearingly wrapping his arm around Jackson.
Joining them were Martha Smith, who played agent Francine Desmond, a tough, hard-nosed (some might say “bitchy”) agent who fought hard to earn her place alongside Boxleitner’s Lee “Scarecrow” Stetson, the suave, 007-style operative whose looks and charm helped him navigate trouble. Also on the panel were Jackson’s TV sons, played by Greg Morton and Paul Stout.
Credit: Mike Pingel
During the panel, Smith and Boxleitner disclosed their almost-real ties to the CIA.
At one point, a fan asked if any of the cast had ever wanted to be a real-life spy. Smith was quick to jump in: “Can I go first? Undercover, baby!”
Smith then shared her own CIA-related story: “At one of our wrap parties — I don’t remember which year — we had two bona fide CIA agents show up. Bruce and I were having a cocktail and eating our little mini-sandwiches when they approached us, dressed in suits, handing out business cards — real agents! I was so excited. I thought, ‘This is my moment. I’ve been waiting my whole life for this. I can go! I can seduce people in other countries and get secrets!’
Credit: Mike Pingel
‘So, these guys came to talk to us, and I thought this was a really good opportunity … but they weren’t interested in me at all. They liked Stetson! We won’t go any further with that story because it’s top secret. But that really happened, right, Bruce?’”
Boxleitner agreed but had his own CIA story to tell.
Back in 1986, Boxleitner became the new face of Lauder for Men fragrance and skincare products. His first ads debuted in November of that year, with Lauder branding him as “masculine, wholesome and a family man.”
Boxleitner told the crowd: “A CIA agent tried to recruit me during the Estée Lauder campaign. I think I was in Chicago on State Street — there was a line of fans out the door, and I was supposed to stand there and hand out products. This woman walked up to me — seriously — and whispered in my ear.”
“I said, ‘What? Are you kidding me?’ And she said, ‘No. Here’s my card. We have a field office here … we’d be happy to talk to you.’ I was stunned. I said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’ I just dismissed it — then she disappeared into the crowd.”
Credit: Mike Pingel
Smith went on to say that, in her version, Boxleitner really did become a CIA agent, traveling the world under the guise of selling perfume — wink-wink. Boxleitner also mentioned, “I once heard actor Kurt Douglas say that he thought actors would make the perfect undercover agents because they were invited into the halls of everywhere. They could walk into any room they wanted and talk to anybody they wanted.”
There was no confirmation at the end of the panel that Boxleitner or Smith ever did dip their toes into the CIA. The case is definitely: Top Secret!
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