Mannix
Dark So Early, Dark So Long
TV Flash files “Dark So Early, Dark So Long” as the first listed hour of season 5 — Mannix (1967–1975) on CBS, season 5, episode 1, aired 1971-09-15, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S05E01: listed hour 99 of 194 in the Mannix guide, first listed hour of season 5. It aired 1971-09-15 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “Overkill” (S04E24). Next is “Cold Trail” (S05E02).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
A woman kills an intruder who she claims is blackmailing her, and hires Mannix to prove it.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Dark So Early, Dark So Long sit in the Mannix guide?
S05E01 is listed hour 99 of 194 — first listed hour of season 5, season 5 episode 1.
When did Mannix S05E01 air?
Dark So Early, Dark So Long aired 1971-09-15 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Where should I start?
Independent-practice Mannix hours — Connors taking the punch, Fisher as Peggy Fair — are the classic brand. The early corporate-detective setup is a different on-ramp if you want to see the format shed its first skin.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Joe Mannix took punches, climbed fire escapes, and ignored doctor's orders — Bruce Geller's private-eye engine of pure physical stubbornness. Mike Connors made the bruised P.I. a weekly ritual; Gail Fisher's Peggy Fair was a landmark Black woman regular in detective drama. No whisper-soft neo-noir — just motion.
The body is the plot. Joe Mannix took punches, climbed fire escapes, and ignored doctor's orders on CBS's *Mannix* (1967–1975; 194 episodes), Bruce Geller's private-eye engine of pure physical stubbornness. Mike Connors made the bruised P.I. a weekly ritual. Gail Fisher as Peggy Fair was a groundbreaking Black woman in a major dramatic supporting role, with Emmy recognition to match. Early corporate-detective framing gave way to freer solo ops. Eight seasons of fistfights later, the suit was torn but the brand…
Filed against
- Mike Connors as Joe Mannix
Mike Connors’s Joe Mannix took punches, climbed fire escapes, and ignored doctor’s orders — Bruce Geller’s 1960s private-eye engine of physical stubbornness, Gail Fisher’s Peggy Fair as a landmark Black woman regular in detective drama.…
- Gail Fisher as Peggy Fair
Gail Fisher made Peggy Fair a landmark regular on Mannix — Bruce Geller's bruised private-eye engine, Mike Connors ignoring doctor's orders, a Black woman at the detective-drama desk when the form still pretended otherwise. No white-glove…