Which company financed and produced the first two seasons of the original TV series?

Desilu Productions financed and produced the first two seasons of the original Mission: Impossible television series.

Created by Bruce Geller, the series premiered on CBS in 1966 as a sophisticated espionage drama about the Impossible Missions Force. Desilu, the production company founded by Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball, handled the show during its early period and helped establish its distinctive mixture of elaborate schemes, disguises, gadgets, and taped mission briefings.

The company’s involvement is especially notable because Desilu also produced other landmark television programs, including I Love Lucy and Star Trek. During the second season, Paramount became increasingly involved, and the production company changed to Paramount Television for the remainder of the original run.

That transition explains why some references associate the series with both studios. The usual quiz answer for the first two seasons, however, is Desilu Productions. Four Star Television, QM Productions, and Filmways were separate television companies, not the credited early producer of Mission: Impossible.