control left him without a job shortly thereafter. The incident did not involve primetime programming at CBS, but instead involved the late-night network offerings of the other two major networks at the time. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was the overwhelming ratings leader in the period for NBC. ABC had been a distant third in the battle during the 1970s after replacing The Dick Cavett Show with a wheel series referred to as Wide World of Entertainment. Looking to improve its ratings against Carson and The CBS Late Movie, which CBS was airing at the time, ABC began contacting production companies in an attempt to purchase rebroadcast rights for various series. At the time, ABC and Paramount had a fairly successful relationship that was starting to build. ABC took advantage of that and approached Paramount with an offer to purchase the rights to rebroadcast older episodes of Mannix as part of their late-night lineup, which they agreed to do. CBS was unhappy with the move, as Paramount had not informed them of what they were planning to do. The idea of having one of their series airing on a competing network, even if it was only in reruns, turned the tide of opinion against Mannix, as CBS felt viewers would stay away from the newer episodes airing on their network since they could watch the series on a competitor. Thus, when CBS released its schedule a few days later, Mannix was not a part of it. Connors found out about the cancellation through a phone call, with a reporter contacting him asking for comment. Connors said in a later interview, "I felt so lost when it was over." Mannix's automobiles The automobile was a focus of Mannix's professional life, and he had several of them as his personal vehicle in the eight-year run of the series. Those were: Season one – 1966 Mercury Comet Caliente convertible (pilot episode: "The Name Is Mannix"), 1967 Mercury Comet Cyclone convertible (one episode only: "Skid Marks on a Dry Run"), 1967 Ford Galaxie 500 four-door hardtop, then a 1967 Ford Fairlane 500 four-door sedan after the Galaxie got shot up – both were Intertect company cars (one episode only: "The Cost of a Vacation"). In all other season-one episodes, Mannix drove a 1967 Oldsmobile Toronado customized into a roadster by George Barris, builder of TV's Batmobile from the 1960s Batman ABC series, since