Mannix (TV Series) A Choice of Victims (1974) User Reviews

Just who was the intended victim here?

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 17 April 2017]

This episode of "Mannix" explores the world of phonies, as the private eye goes to work for an actress whose husband is blown up in her car!! Of course, she needs to find out who did it but also if the bomb was meant for her, as there could then be subsequent attempts. This episode you'll see Mannix working around the studio backlot as well as learning all sorts of dirt about people...who's sleeping with who, how used to be a professional call-girl, and much more. There's even an appearance by the famous gossip columnist, Rona Barrett, as herself! Filled with dirt, twists and intrigue, this is a fun episode.

There is one problem with the show and I doubt if many folks back then would have realized it. But, because I have DVDs of all the episodes I recognized that one of the chase scenes was lifted from the previous season. It also, unnecessarily, had Mannix destroy a car for this scene....his third of the show!

That's show biz!

[Guad42 · 8/10 · 3 March 2022]

An actress' husband is blown up in her car. The actress, Laura Harris (Karen Jensen), thinks she is the target. Joe takes her case. He interviews the chauffeur and finds out he took the husband to see another woman on a regular basis. Joe goes there and meets Janet Malone (Sharon Hugueny), the girlfriend of the husband. She didn't even know he was dead. Joe also meets the director of the show Tom Andros (Vincent Baggetta) at Janet's place. Outside the two men get shot with a shotgun from by a passing car. Joe's car takes the blast in the windshield. Joe goes back to the office and Lt Ging is there to tell him Laura Harris was a call girl in Vegas. Joe goes to his old friend, Rona Barrett for all the gossip. She is making her second appearance in the series as herself. Joe has an intel network second to none. He learns the Harris husband had girls everywhere and Tom Andros has a girlfriend himself, Ginny Freeman (Gail Kobe). Joe follows the wife and learns she is paying another guy's rent, Hal Carter (Lucas White) (Yes, it is a complicated case.) Joe then gets run off the road by our old friend, Charlie Picerni as Ed Plummer. Joe gets to Laura Harris and saves her from an OD on pills. At the hospital, Joe meets To's girlfriend Ginny Freeman. She admits she knows Tom is chasing other girls like Janet and Laura. Tom shows up and interrupts Joe and Ginny as he is upset over Laura near suicide. From a doctor, Joe learns Laura Harris is two months pregnant. The dead husband was overseas for months during that time so who is the father? Joe and Lt Ging think Laura's suicide note is a phony. Joe is called to see Ginny at the theater. Ginny tells Joe a BS story about the suicide but Joe ties Ginny to Ed Plummer because Ed did dirty work for Ginny's late husband. Ed is behind Joe with a gun. Of course, Joe gets the drop on Ed because he always gets the drop on any character played by Charlie P. A gunfight ensues and Joe shots Ed. Ginny tried to kill Laura with a car bomb because she thought Laura was carrying Tom's baby. Turns out the baby was the husband's as he had returned to town briefly during his long trip. It was all for nothing.

In the epilogue, Laura tells Joe that Ginny and Ed made her take the pills and the guy who was getting rent money from Laura was blackmailing her over her former life as a call girl. He has since skipped town. All the blanks are filled in.

One minor complaint - since Ed is the shotgun shooter from the passing car early in the episode at Joe and Tom, why would he endanger Tom like that since he is the reason Ginny is doing all this?

The many cast members are good. Gail Kobe is great as an older woman trying to stay young. You can tell Rona is enjoying the screen time. Stanley Adams is onboard as Chip. Not sure why. His job seems to be to hang around Joe's office and loan Joe his car so Joe can go over a cliff in it and wreck it. A light moment in the show is Joe telling him that.

Joe gets paid and all is well. This is a drawn-out story with lots of red herring but ties up well at the end. Recommended viewing.

SORRY, THE BOMB WASN'T MEANT FOR YOU?

[tcchelsey · 9/10 · 30 November 2022]

Who was really meant to get it? Such is the mystery surrounding an actress named Laura (played by Karen Jensen) whose husband was blown up with the turn of a key.

This is a neat story about Hollywood after dark, replete with all the secrets and phonies. It turns out that Laura's husband had quite a few ladies in his life, but he was killed in "her" car. Mannix takes the case, especially since he lives around the corner and digs up a lot of tabloid stuff on lots of plastic people.

Jensen had just finished a co-starring role in the short lived series, BRACKENS WORLD, starring Leslie Neilson. It had a similar dark Hollywood theme, so no surpirse she turned up here.

Popular actress Gail Kobe (as Ginny) is also one of the residents along the Sunset Strip. Kobe later became a successful tv producer for soap operas. Surprise guest is none other than gossip columnist Rona Barrett, playing herself and having a good ole time. This was Rona's second appearance on the show, having appeared in "The Falling Star" back in 1968. Barrett guest starred in a few movies and tv shows in her career, also THE ODD COUPLE following this episode.

A super gag has scowling character actor Stanley Adams playing a chump named Chip (get it?) who loans his car to Joe. Not a good idea with lots of winding roads around town... And as another rewiewer noted, Joe gets paid, but he does owe Chip a new set of wheels, right?

All in all an interesting trip through the Paramount backlot (where MANNIX was filmed) and another appearance of the old BRADY BUNCH living room. Written by John Meredyth Lucas, who probably picked up a few ideas from the local gossip in Hollywood. Why not?

SEASON 8 EPISODE 12 remastered CBS dvd box set.

One of the very first episodes that immediately got me hooked!

[barnettjoshua-70531 · 10/10 · 9 May 2024]

A few years ago, I remember watching bits and pieces of this episode and it immediately got me hooked on the series.

So today, I re-watched it and what can I say, it isn't a bad episode. This episode, to me is very classy and made well, especially the beginning.

I love the two suits Mannix wears in the show, they look great!

The footage of the show looks very great, nice High Definition look.

But, the only issue I have with the episode is the car chase, I found that very unnecessary and it didn't even fit well with the tone of the show. Other than that, it is a favorable episode. Highly recommended!