Trivia / Mannix

• Acting for Two: Arlene Martel plays twin sisters in "Murder Revisited" - the gentler twin Muriel is caught running from the scene of that episode's murder - both Muriel and her forceful twin Valerie insist she's innocent. She is. And Valerie didn't do it either.
• Actor-Shared Background: The producers decided that Mannix needed more of a background for the episode "Return to Summer Grove", where a case brings him back to his hometown and a bittersweet reunion with his estranged father (played by Victor Jory). Specifically, they needed to give him a nationality. Mike Connors, a proud Armenian (his real name was Krekor Ohanian), suggested that they make Mannix Armenian just like him, and so they did! ^note Interestingly enough, Connors played a private detective named Krekor Ohanian in a TV movie he made after Mannix with many of the same behind-the-scenes crew, "The Killer That Wouldn't Die", a Pilot Movie for an unsold series called Ohanian.
• Alan Smithee: The "Blake Ritchie" who wrote "The Solid Gold Web", "A Pittance Of Faith", "Search in the Dark" and other episodes is Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts.
• Cast the Expert: In the episode "Lifeline", Lou Rawls played a nightclub singer wanted for murder.
• Fake Nationality: German-born Eric Braeden played a Russian government attache in "Woman in the Shadows".
  • None of the "Australians" in "Harlequin's Gold" are played by actual Australians most are American or British - American actress Karen Steele easily wins the "Worst Accent Of The Episode" award.
• No Stunt Double: In the climax of "Fly, Little One" with disturbed child Dana (Pamelyn Ferdin, 10 years old at the time) standing on a table on a highrise's balcony and threatening to fly off, it really was her on the table throughout^note She did have someone holding her ankles in some shots obviously. It caused a mob to gather on the street below who might not have known it was for television. This also violated the CBS standards and practices rule against showing anyone under 18 in mortal danger, let alone putting the actress in said danger, but it was allowed because Mannix was for mature audiences anyway.
• Only Barely Renewed: CBS was going to cancel the series after the first season. Lucille Ball used her power and influence to convince them to renew it for another season with the assurance that changes would be made. In the second season, Mannix was changed into a more hard-boiled independent private detective. The changes worked, and the series became a big hit running for eight seasons.
• The Other Darrin: Albie Loos was played by Joe Mantell in his 1968-69 appearances. When the character returned in the 1973 episode "Search for a Whisper", Milton Selzer took over the role.
• Recycled Script: The Season 1 Episode "Skid Marks On A Dry Run" and the Season 6 Episode "Search For A Whisper" are the same plot and in some cases nearly word for word the same episode.
• Recycled Set: "Hardball," the last episode of the series, uses a barely redressed The Brady Bunch house set.
• Screwed by the Network: An oddball case where a competing network ended up screwing the series over. After Season 8; it was generally expected that Mannix was going to be picked up for the fall of 1975. However, Paramount ended up making a deal with ABC (which was in the midst of a fruitful long-term partnership during the 1970s) to have reruns of the series airing as part of ABC's late-night lineup opposite The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on NBC and CBS' The Late Movie. Unfortunately for Mannix; Paramount neglected to tell CBS of their plans; resulting in CBS executives changing their minds and having the series canceled.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Robert Stack turned down the role of Mannix.
  • The role of Peggy Fair was intended for Nichelle Nichols, but she was forced to withdraw due to her commitment to Star Trek: The Original Series.
• You Look Familiar: John Colicos played a total of seven unrelated characters over the course of the series.

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