Fistfights. Cars careening off cliffs and exploding. Running on a
bridge. Dodging a helicopter. The dune buggy roll. Iconic
convertibles. Signature sports jackets. 17 Paseo Verde. L.A. at its
coolest-and then there was Peggy. For generations, throughout the
world these have brought a smile to the face and a single word to mind
-- Mannix. With such style up-front, the substance behind the
character of Joe Mannix has been overlooked-until now.
Mannix ran on CBS-TV from 1967-1975 during the Golden Age of
Television, the last production of Desilu (the legendary studio owned
by Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz) following Star Trek and Mission:
Impossible. It was syndicated in over 70 countries during its first
run, won Golden Globe and Emmy awards, and innovated the concept of
the personalized crime-fighter. Star Mike Connors, who embodied his
alter ego, wanted Joe Mannix to have emotion, a departure from type.
And Now, Back to Mannix is not a TV log book, or even a behind the
scenes book, but a behind the myth book, making the case that some TV
characters have singular power to make societies and individuals
better, interspersed with discussion of the richness of character,
symbolism, and scenes in the series. The book includes a Foreword by
Mike Connors and a Prologue by David Breckman, writer and co-executive
producer of the highly successful USA series, Monk.
JoAnn M. Paul, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Computer
Engineering at Virginia Tech. Her childhood hero was shot, drugged,
poisoned, beaten, tortured, and dumped down hillsides to be left for
dead. Nothing could have prepared her better for life.
