Mike Connors, who portrayed the title character in the long-running CBS series “Mannix” has died. He was 91.
His son-in-law, Mike Condon, says the actor died Thursday afternoon at a Los Angeles hospital from recently-diagnosed leukemia, according to the Associated Press.
Mannix debuted on CBS in 1967 and ran for eight years. Viewers were intrigued by the smartly dressed, well-spoken Los Angeles detective who could still mix it up with thugs. Episodes normally climaxed with a brawl. Connors once said that until Mannix, TV private investigators were hard-nosed and cynical, while Mannix got emotionally involved in his cases.
According to Hollywoodreporter.com:
Connors was a former basketball player for legendary coach John Wooden at UCLA. Mannix, the last series from Lucille Ball’s and Desi Arnaz’s famed TV company Desilu Productions, aired for eight seasons from September 1967 until April 1975. The hit series featured a memorable score from jazz great Lalo Schifrin and starred Connors as a noble Korean War veteran who leaves a large Los Angeles detective agency to strike out on his own.
According to Variety.com, Connors most recently made a guest appearance in 2007 on “Two and a Half Men.”
