Was Gary Seven a Timelord?

[cigarman]

In the old Star Trek episode "Assignment Earth" we are introduced to Gary Seven, an agent from "the future", with companions, a "sonic screwdriver", and a mission to protect the timeline.

Sound familiar?

Perhaps Gary Seven is a Timelord CIA agent.

The episode was written in 1967 or 1968. Doctor Who started in 1963, and was on his second generation during the time Assignment Earth was broadcast.

Could Gary Seven be the American version of The Doctor?

[Ordovician]

If only the entirety of Fury from the Deep had survived and we could see when exactly the Doctor uses it: otherwise, it's unclear whether the sonic screwdriver can be called a British or American invention. Fury from the Deep, the first story in which the screwdriver appeared, was also the very one that was on television at the time of Assignment Earth.

[jay042]

It was Doctor No more than Doctor Who that was the influence on Gary Seven. They were playing up the idea of a sci-fi James Bond with the character. And while the Second Doctor did use the Sonic Screwdriver, it was the Third and Fourth Doctors that made it the iconic element of the show.