PATRICK MACNEE AVENGES HIS `AVENGERS' PAST

PATRICK MACNEE AVENGES HIS `AVENGERS' PAST

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (Wireless Flash) -- It looks like former "Avengers" star Patrick Macnee is avenging crime in real life. The 77-year-old actor has spent the last two years in court fighting video pirates who were selling bootleg copies of the original "Avengers" TV series. The low-tech pirates pointed a cheap video camera at a TV screen to record the shows. Amazingly, the poorly copied tapes were sold in video stores and even aired on the A&E Network until executives were notified that the shows were illegal. The fight was worth it because a judge recently awarded Macnee with exclusive video rights to the series -- but Macnee has no plans of retiring on his newfound cash. He says he'll continue to narrate audio books because, in his words, "It allows me to work without inflicting my fat face on the public." Macnee's book, "The Avengers And Me" (TV Books) has just been released in paperback.

CONTACT: Patrick Macnee, *****; Arrange with Jacqueline Green; LA; (310) 859-7055