Mission: Impossible (1966–1973)

An elite covert operations unit carries out highly sensitive missions subject to official denial in the event of failure, death or capture.

Stars:

Greg Morris, Peter Lupus, Peter Graves

Won 3 Golden Globes. Another 14 wins & 37 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Greg Morris	...	Barney Collier (171 episodes, 1966-1973)
Peter Lupus	...	Willy Armitage (159 episodes, 1966-1973)
Peter Graves	...	James Phelps (143 episodes, 1967-1973)
Barbara Bain	...	Cinnamon Carter (78 episodes, 1966-1969)
Martin Landau	...	Rollin Hand (76 episodes, 1966-1969)

Storyline

Jim Phelps is the head of a super-secret government agency ("Impossible Missions"), and is often given secret anonymous covert missions to attempt; quite often they are unmasking of criminals or the rescuing of hostages. He picks his team depending on which tasks need to be done. One thing is vital on an Impossible Mission: the mission must be carried out in entire secrecy, often relying on high-tech equipment and elaborate deceptions.

---

Plot Keywords:

mission | deception | gadget | tape recorder | famous opening theme | 

---

Taglines:

Failure impossible.

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 September 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Misión imposible

Filming Locations:

Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Desilu Productions, Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

50 min 50 min (168 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

Even though Rollin, Cinnamon, Paris and Willie were somewhat famous for their various professions outside of their work with the IMF, no one ever recognized them during any IMF missions, even the ones they undertook within the United States.

---

Goofs

In almost every episode someone has to pick a lock. They insert the pick, wiggle it a few times and open the door. To actually open a lock you must also rotate the cylinder just as you do with a key. For this you would use a second "L" or "Z" shaped pick to exert pressure while you moved the pins with the first pick. This is never done.

---

Quotes

[repeated line]
Voice on Tape: As always, should you or any of your IM force be caught or killed, the Secretary will disavow any knowledge of your actions. Good luck, Jim. This tape will self-destruct in five seconds.

---

Crazy Credits

Many episodes end with a freeze-framed pan-and-tilt shot of the IMF team's getaway vehicle, with series creator Bruce Geller's credit superimposed over the shot.

---

Connections

Referenced in Hustle (1975)

User Reviews

There'll never be another show like that!

I fondly remember back in the late sixties and early seventies anxiously awaiting and then enjoying each episode of "Mission: Impossible", from the opening montage to the final credits. As far as I know, no other show has (before or since) come up with anything as clever as the opening montage, where certain clips from that week's episode were shown as the theme song played, before the showing of the pictures of the stars of the show. It was always fun for me to try to pick out the scenes as the show progressed (they always looked more dramatic in the montage than they did in the actual episode). The shows were always well written and the cast did an excellent job of portraying a crew that were all good at their jobs and that even enjoyed their jobs, dangerous though they were.

And the music! Lalo Schifrin's music was excellent!