Box set: Mission: impossible Impossible: The Original Television Series
Barcode 032429349927

Mission: Impossible: Season 5
Desilu Productions (1970)
TV Series  /  Drama, Adventure, Thriller, Crime, Action
In Collection
#1872
0*
Seen ItYes
IMDB   7.9
1380 mins USA / English
DVD    US - TV-PG
Lesley Ann Warren Dana Lambert
Leonard Nimoy Paris
Peter Graves James Phelps
Greg Morris Barney Collier
Bob Johnson Person on Tape
Peter Lupus Willy Armitage
Sam Elliott Doug Robert
Mark Russell Agent
Marco Lopez Man at Airport
Tom McDonough William Cabot
James Sikking Corrigan
Peter Mark Richman Dr. Paul Tabor
Tony Giorgio Meerghan
Arthur Batanides Valenkoff
Vic Perrin Base P.A. announcer
George Sawaya Officer in Warehouse
Bart La Rue Agent #6
Raven Grey Eagle Minor Role
Charles Fogel Seance Guest
John S. Ragin Butler
Director
Barry Crane
Reza Badiyi
Virgil W. Vogel
Gerald Mayer
Producer Barry Crane
Bruce Geller
Bruce Lansbury
Laurence Heath
Writer Bruce Geller
Arthur Weiss
Harold Livingston
Ed Adamson
Cinematography Ronald W. Browne
Musician Benny Golson
Robert Drasnin
Lalo Schifrin
Robert Prince


This 7-year series chronicled the adventures of the Impossible Mission Taskforce (IMF), a team of government spies and specialists who were assigned "impossible missions" by the unseen "Secretary". Although the cast varied over the years, the main characters included The Team Leader (Dan Briggs the first season, then Jim Phelps the other six), The Techno-Wizard (Barney Collier), The Strongman (Willy Armitage), The Master of Disguise (first Rollin Hand, then The Amazing Paris), and The Femme Fatale (Cinnamon Carter, Casey, Dana Lambert, Mimi Davis). The series is best known for its opening mission assignment (conducted by a pre-recorded tape), the leader's selection of mission agents from a dossier, the opening briefing, the intricate use of disguises and a typical "mask pulloff" scene near the end of most episodes, and the relative lack of characterization of the characters.
Episodes
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    9/19/1970  1.  The Killer
The IMF is up against a contract killer who makes decisions at random at the last minute to ensure his moves are unpredictable. As Barney stands in for the intended victim, the IMF must prepare for every eventuality to get close to the killer, thwart his plans, turn him against his client and stop their killing spree.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    9/29/1970  2.  Flip Side
Mel Bracken is one of the largest distributors of illegal drugs on the West Coast. Pharmaceutical magnate Cameron legally sells drugs to a middleman's laboratory in Mexico who then smuggles it to Bracken in Los Angeles. In order to expose the operation the IMF forces Cameron to deal directly with Bracken on U.S. soil.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    10/3/1970  3.  The Innocent
Barney has been captured infiltrating an enemy laboratory in the Middle East. To make matters worse he has been exposed to the chemical weapon being manufactured at the lab. Phelps devises a plan to rescue Barney and destroy the chemical. However, in order for the mission to succeed the IMF needs the assistance of a computer genius who wants nothing to do with the plan.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    10/10/1970  4.  Homecoming
This time it's personal as Jim returns home to uncover who is killing his childhood friends; with the aid of the rest of the IMF team of course. But what will be worse, the death of another friend or finding that a friend is the killer.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    10/17/1970  5.  Flight
The IMF must thwart a coup attempt to be triggered by a presidential assassination. The team apprehends the coup leader and employs an elaborate ruse to convince him to reveal the killer. But government security forces uncover the operation and capture Dana. So begins parallel games of cat and mouse with dire consequences for the losers.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    10/24/1970  6.  My Friend, My Enemy
While en route to rendezvous with the IMF in Switzerland, Paris is captured by a team of enemy agents, brainwashed, and programmed to kill his control: Phelps. While the enemy team creates a scenario which will trigger Paris' programming, the IMF must figure out exactly what has happened to their fellow agent to save his career and life.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    10/31/1970  7.  Butterfly
The MI team must exonerate an American businessman framed for the murder of his wife and marked for death in Japan. Undercover in the guise of various masters of Japanese art forms they dupe the true killer into confessing.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    11/7/1970  8.  Decoy
Brother and sister Alexi and Anna Kerkoska want to defect, and give the U.S. a list of government officials sympathetic to the West. Although Anna believes that the defection is genuine it's really a trap set by Alexi and Police Chief Petrovitch. They hope to get the list and embarrass the West in one fell swoop. Despite the trap the IMF must rescue Anna and recover the list. Meanwhile during the course of the mission Phelps and Anna begin to develop romantic feelings for each other.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    11/14/1970  9.  The Amateur
A wannabe spy in an eastern European country happens upon an operation of the MI team. But, in a clever twist, as this amateur's dreams of becoming a super sleuth turn to greed the MI team manipulates him and government security forces to accomplish their mission and their escape.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    11/21/1970  10.  Hunted
A picture perfect extraction mission in a white dominated African country goes suddenly awry when an interrogator arrives unexpectedly. A well disguised member of the MI team is wounded but is aided by an angel of mercy with a secret past and reward seeking friend. As their fondness for each other grows, Paris serves as an all too convincing decoy while the rest of the team searches for their lost comrade.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    11/28/1970  11.  The Rebel
Government security forces surprise the MI team during a routine information exchange with insurgents. Dana and two rebels are captured including the rebel who, unknown to government forces, has the secret "notebook." Jim has a plan but the rebels are skeptical. With the possibility of a traitor in their midst and the help of a local priest of uncertain reliability, the MI must rescue the captives before they break under torture, before the security forces uncover the notebook and before the rebels take matters into their own hands.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    12/12/1970  12.  Squeeze Play
A drug kingpin, not long for this world, is preparing to turn over his heroin empire to his heir apparent. Paris and Dana go undercover to turn the kingpin against his heir and convince him that Paris is the better candidate to trust with the secrets of his organization.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    12/19/1970  13.  The Hostage
Paris's cover identity as a wealthy and influential American proves a bit too convincing. He is kidnapped and held for the ransom by rebels demanding the release of three of their comrades. The government agrees to cooperate in Jim's plan to rescue Paris only if he will capture one of the rebel leaders. But the rebels are very careful.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    1/2/1971  14.  Takeover
The IMF team is charged with bringing down a political manipulator who intends to use a group of student protesters with deadly effect to elevate his political puppet to higher office. Dana is a double threat posing as the puppet's daughter while infiltrating the protesters. Jim play's king maker to manipulate the manipulator.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    1/9/1971  15.  Cat's Paw
A high tech organized crime group comes to the attention of our favorite IMF team following the murder of Barny's brother. To bring down the organization and the corrupt police captain allied with them Jim turns to his tried and true technique; infiltrate, sow distrust then wait for the fireworks.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    1/16/1971  16.  The Missile
The IMF fool two foreign agents into gathering intelligence on a bogus missile guidance system. However, the mission is interrupted when a psychotic kidnaps Dana before she can give Phelps the details of the enemy agents' plan to kill him.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    1/23/1971  17.  The Field
An adversary nation launches a nuclear weapons platform into orbit. To make matters worse, the weapon's control station is on an impregnable island. That can only mean it's time for Jim to find a way to slip Barney into the station to sabotage the weapon.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    1/30/1971  18.  Blast
Jim and Dana infiltrate a group of bank robbers, but the IMF's real target is the mysterious leader of the group who uses the thieves' booty to fund anti-American revolutionary activities. Natural conflicts in the robbers' personal agendas play right into Jim's hands.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    2/6/1971  19.  The Catafalque
In one of the IMF's most audacious plans yet, the team blatantly frames their victim and attempts to snatch the body of a deceased leader literally from under the noses of the honor guards. It's all part of Jim's plan to infuriate an official into revealing a sensitive document the US government wants to get its hands on.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    2/20/1971  20.  Kitara
Government forces in a racist African country have captured Kitara, the leader of the revolutionary forces, and will torture him to death in their effort to find the gold bullion he has hidden. To rescue Kitara and secure the gold, Jim plans to manipulate the security official interrogating him. What better way to manipulate a racist than to turn him into what he least wants to be and turn his own forces against him?
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    2/27/1971  21.  A Ghost Story
Barney exploits his technical wizardry to convince a neo-fascist that his son, whom he murdered, wants to be exhumed and cremated. It's all part of the plan to obtain the secret nerve gas formula his son developed before a certain eastern power gets their hands on it. But like any good ghost story, nothing and no one is what they seem.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    3/6/1971  22.  The Party
Eastern Bloc agent Alexander Vanin is serving time in a federal prison for espionage. Using auto-hypnosis he has blocked all information about the location or contents of a microfilm list he hid just before he was arrested. Vanin's wife is the only person who can remove the mental block and the only one Alexander will confide in. The IMF stage a welcome home party at Vanin's embassy (which has been cleverly vacated) to reunite husband, wife, and the top secret roll of microfilm.
    Seen it: Yes   60 mins    3/17/1971  23.  The Merchant
Jim pulls a "James Bond" letting himself be captured so he can become beholden to arms dealer Armand Anderssarian who can get Jim released. A classic start to an IMF con. Meanwhile Paris, Barney and Dana gamble on Anderssarian's poker compulsion to bring his overextended debt situation to a crisis. But there's a wild card in the deck; Anderssarian's ditsy mistress who is jealous of the attention he's giving Dana and has a knack for doing the wrong thing at the worst time.
Edition Details
Series Mission: Impossible
No. of Discs/Tapes 1
Personal Details
Links IMDB
TheTvDb.com