Donald James Yarmy, known professionally as Don Adams, was an American actor, comedian, and director. He was best known for his television role as Maxwell Smart (Agent 86) in the NBC/CBS comedy series Get Smart (1965–1970). He was also well-known for voicing the titular character of the animated series Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales (1963–1966), and was the original voice of the titular character of the cartoon series Inspector Gadget (1983–1986), as well as reprising this role in Inspector Gadget Saves Christmas and Inspector Gadget's Field Trip.
For Disney, he voiced Principal Hickey in Pepper Ann, as well as Brain in the 1999 live-action film adaptation of Inspector Gadget, a nod to his voice role as the titular character of the animated series, which marked his final appearance in voice acting before his retirement in 2000.
Yarmy was born in Manhattan, New York, a son of William Yarmy and his wife, Consuelo (née Deiter) Yarmy. His father was of Hungarian Jewish descent and his mother was Irish-American. Donald and his brother Dick Yarmy were each raised in the religion of one parent: Don in the Catholic faith of their mother and Dick in the Jewish faith of their father. The brothers had an elder sister, Gloria Ella Yarmy (later Gloria Burton), a writer who wrote an episode of Get Smart. Dropping out of New York City's DeWitt Clinton High School, he worked as a theater usher. He later remarked that he had "little use for school."
Late in 1941, he joined the United States Marine Corps. Yarmy reported to the First Training Battalion in New River, North Carolina, and then was assigned to I Company of the Third Battalion, Eighth Marines in San Diego. In May 1942, Yarmy's unit was transported to Samoa for further training, and then participated in the Battle of Guadalcanal in August 1942 in the Pacific Theater of Operations. Contrary to urban legend, he was not wounded in combat, but did contract blackwater fever, a serious complication of malaria, known for a 90% rate of fatality. Yarmy was evacuated and then hospitalized for more than a year at a Navy hospital in Wellington, New Zealand. After his recovery, Yarmy served as a Marine Drill Instructor in the United States, holding the rank of corporal. He was an expert marksman and was noted for his competence.
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- He was considered to voice Shere Khan in The Jungle Book.[citation needed]
