Photo Of The Day: Mike Connors On 'Tightrope'

"Tightrope" was a drama that aired on CBS from September 1959 to September 1960. Produced by Russell Rouse and Clarence Greene, the series starred a pre-"Mannix" Mike Connors as an undercover agent named "Nick" who was assigned the task of infiltrating criminal gangs. One gimmick of his character was that in addition to a gun he carried in a shoulder holster, he also carried one in a special harness in the middle of his back. Inevitably the bad guys (and sometimes the good ones) would search him and miss the second hidden gun. In the trades, that's known as "sure-fire plot resolution."

"Tightrope" was the only TV project by Rouse and Greene, who gave television a try after writing and producing a string of classic 1950s "film noir" movies, including the 1950 film "D.O.A." and 1951's "The Well," which earned them an Academy Award nomination.

While "Tightrope" was only a modest success in the U.S., it was popular enough in Mexico that a record company released a single featuring Connors singing the theme song in Spanish.

In 1967, Connors was cast in his most popular television role, as private investigator Joe Mannix. The series ran until 1975.