Mannix

He's not as fabulously wealthy as Amos Burke,nor famous as Jim Rockford or Columbo,but few television detectives have remained and beloved and under the radar cool as Mike Connors' Joe Mannix. The television series "Mannix" was the return of the private eye detective shows and this was a reply to the domination of the weekly espionage shows that were all over the place during the 1960's. Created by the team of Richard Levinson and William Link under executive producer Bruce Geller and associate producer Barry Crane along with producers Wilton Schiller along with Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts(whom wrote scripts for some of the episodes)and under the executive in charge of production Herb Solow and Douglas S. Cramer for Desilu/Paramount Television,"Mannix" produced an astounding 194 episodes-all in color for CBS and ran for an impressive eight seasons on the network from September 16,1967 until April 13,1975. The theme music was composed by the great Lalo Schirfin(one of the all time television theme greats).

"Mannix" is one of the great detective shows of all time and here's why. One,you had some very good writing and excellent camera work in both angles and continuity. The other,right from the start however,Mike Connors emitted broad-shouldered,Everyman solidness. Mannix solves his cases with his brains,his gun,and his fists. He was an all-purpose detective. In season one of "Mannix"(and from the debut episode),the intital concept of the series was intriguing from the start: a high-tech investigative agency,Intertect,headed by Joesph Campanella(the boss Lew Wickersham)possessed all the tools to analyze and fight crime,except one;a P.I.'s instincts,that ability to play hunches and make correct decisions by 'gut feeling'. So they hired the best veteran private eye in the business,Joe Mannix to take the cases and solve the crimes. Mannix utilized his services whenever the 'human touch' was required,while backing him with all their resources. While the Intertect episodes were often imaginative,and Connors and Campanella had good chemistry,fans were tuning in each week to watch Joe Mannix solve cases,deal with crime and mysteries and take on the baddies despite being beaten,tortured,drugged or worse managed to emerge victorious. With his chiseled features and thick jet black hair,Mannix was a hero attractive enough to appeal to women,yet tough enough to keep men watching as well despite being fiercely loyal to his Greek heritage.

However,Campanella and Intertect were dropped by the second season. Mannix left the firm at the start of the 1968-69 season and set up shop as a private investigator,accompanied by a secretary,Peggy Fair(Gail Fisher,in one of the first roles on a drama series for a African-American actress),the widow of a cop. With aid from his 'buddies' on the force(Robert Wood,Jack Ging,and "Brady Bunch" patriarch Robert Reed who played Mannix's superior Lt. Tobias),Mannix would take on cases as simple as petty theft,to unsolve murders,blackmail,while still taking his share of abuse each week. Over the course of eight seasons,Mannix was shot 17 times,knocked unconscious 55 times and was drugged 12 times. "Mannix" proved to be a winner in the ratings too,nominated for several Emmys and it was producer Bruce Geller's most successful show after the huge runaway success of "Mission:Impossible". In 1970,actress Gail Fisher became the first black actress to win the Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Peggy Fair on "Mannix"(beating out Barbara Anderson of Ironside and Peggy Lipton of The Mod Squad),and was nominated for four Emmys,winning once and 3 Golden Globe Awards(she won in 1973 for Best Actress)and in 1971.

THE BEST EPISODES: Season One of its debut episode "The Name is Mannix",and episode 13 of the series "A View of Nowhere" were impressive. Seasons 2 thru 4 were brilliant,while the last few episodes of its last two seasons(season 7 from the 1973-1974 season,and the final season 1974-1975,season 8)were action packed and fill to the hill with excitement. The success of "Mannix" would open the door for a whole new generation of 'gumshoe detectives' to follow,from "Hawaii Five-O",to "Columbo","Ironside"(which premiered that same year-1967), "Dan August","MacMillan and Wife","Banacek","Kojak","Baretta","Cannon", to "Barnaby Jones","The Rockford Files",and "Policewoman".

As a child growing up "Mannix",was the family get together hour on Saturday nights after either "Mission: Impossible", or "The Carol Burnett Show",which was on the CBS network. "Mannix" may have some of the usual PI fare,but it was like no other detective show ever! He may go beyond the limits to solving a case,but in turn he kicked major butt!!! Mike Connors was the PI who was always sufficient in doing what he had to do,but in some cases,ended up getting either in fights or shot at every once in a while. The camerawork on the show,as well as visual effects,and locations were a standard,and it raised the quality of it definely. There was a twist in every episode to see who done it,or got away with murder, which is lead by the assistance of his secretary Peggy(played by Gail Fisher,who won an Emmy for her work on the series back in 1969),who herself ended up in great danger,and it was always Joe Mannix to the rescue to save her from some craze stalker,drug pusher,or killer. The show's theme song is a classic by Lalo Schifrin,who also composed the theme to Mission:Impossible as well.

It still comes on in re-runs on TV Land,but was the action packed show(and one of the most violent ever for television) on Saturday nights for the CBS network, which ran from 1967-1975.

Despite over thirty films to his credit, Mike Connors will be best remembered for his television work. In 1959, he created a sensation as the undercover agent with the hidden gun behind his back, in "Tightrope", and in 1967, at 42, he introduced one of the most popular detectives in television history, "Mannix".

The initial concept of the series was intriguing; a high-tech investigative agency, Intertect, headed by Joseph Campanella, possessed all the tools to analyze and fight crime, except one; a P.I.'s instincts, that ability to play hunches and make correct decisions by 'gut feeling'. So they hired the best veteran private eye in the business, Joe Mannix, and utilized his services whenever the 'human touch' was required, while backing him with all their resources.

While the Intertect episodes were often imaginative, and Connors and Campanella had good chemistry, CBS quickly realized that the program's fans were watching because of the rugged Mannix, who, each week, despite being beaten, tortured, drugged or worse, managed to emerge victorious. So Campanella and Intertect were dropped by the second season, and Mannix returned to more traditional digs, accompanied by a new secretary, Peggy Fair (Gail Fisher), the widow of a cop. With aid from his 'buddies' on the Force (Robert Wood, Jack Ging, and "Brady Bunch" patriarch, Robert Reed), Joe Mannix would take on cases as simple as petty theft, to unsolved murders, while still taking more than his share of abuse each week.

With his chiseled features and thick jet-black hair, Mannix was a hero attractive enough to appeal to women, yet tough enough to keep men watching, as well. Fiercely loyal to his Greek heritage and many friends, a sucker for a 'hard luck' story, and with a well-stocked (and used) medicine cabinet, the series 'fit' like a pair of well-worn, comfortable shoes, and audiences quickly developed a viewing habit that would last seven more seasons, until 1975. The success of "Mannix" would open the door for a whole new generation of 'gumshoes' that followed, from "Cannon" and "Barnaby Jones", to "The Rockford Files" and "Magnum, P.I."

It is a heritage that Mike Connors can be proud of!

I've recently been watching DVDs of "Mannix" and although I have enjoyed it, it's become clear that the earlier episodes are the best. By season three and four, the show lost some of its zing, though it was still better than the average show.

Season one is unusual. Joe Mannix is NOT a private eye like he would be for the remainder of the series. Instead, he's an agent working for Intertech--a high tech detective agency operating more like a corporation. His boss is played by Joseph Campanella and there is always tension between him and Mannix. When season two premiered, Mannix was no longer with Intertech. Instead he's privately employed and he's got Peggy as a receptionist. This is how it continued through the remainder of the series. And a few things that remain constant--Joe regularly gets the crap knocked out of him and is often knocked out (though more so in season one and two) and he doesn't particularly like women...or at least he doesn't trust them.

My advice is see season one and two and then decide if the show is worth continuing. I'm on season five and still have a bit to go until I finish.

Mannix was one of the top private eye shows of all time. Mike Connors did a great job in the role, and the writers always strove for creative plots that stretched the genre.

It was a rare series that never got old. The last few shows in the series were as good as the first few shows.

In the first season, Mannix worked for a high tech agency, and was the maverick among their investigators.

They decided to move him out on his own, which eliminated some very interesting character struggles, but also introduced the wonderful Gail Fisher as his secretary, Peggy. She was worth losing the Intertec character conflict.