Played by the tough Mike Connors, Joe Mannix is a private detective working for Inertect and despite the fact that he is working for a large company he definitely likes to do things his own way much to the chagrin of his boss Lew Wickersham (played by Joseph Campanella).
Created by Richard Levinson and William Link, who would go on to create Columbo and Murder She Wrote amongst others, Mannix is high quality indeed. Guest stars in the first season include Tom Skerritt, Karen Black and Neil Diamond of all people!
At the start of the second season Mannix struck out on his own, taking a small office on the first floor of the building in which he lived (17 Paseo Verde). Helping him was his secretary, Peggy Fair. Her husband, a friend of Joe’s and former police officer, had been killed in the line of duty.
Lt. Adam Tobias joined the cast as Joe’s friend and contact on the Los Angeles police force. Mannix seemed to have a fondness for high-speed car chases and knuckle sandwiches in fact this modern-day Sam Spade managed to get into more fist-and gunfights per episode than any other character in television history.
Broadcast in the UK from 13 February 1971 and then again 14 November 1980 – 19 October 1983
production details
USA / CBS – Paramount / 191×50 minute episodes / Broadcast 16 September 1967 – 13 April 1975
Creators: Richard Levinson, William Link, / Music: Lalo Schifrin / Producers: Ivan Goff, Ben Roberts / Executive Producer: Bruce Geller
cast
MIKE CONNORS as Joe Mannix
GAIL FISHER as Peggy Fair
JOSEPH CAMPANELLA as Lou Wickersham
ROBERT REED as Lieutenant Adam Tobias
WARD WOOD as Lieutenant Arthur Malcolm
LARRY LINVILLE as Lieutenant George Kramer
JACK GING as Lieutenant Daniel Ives
