Joseph Sargent began his career in the 1950s as an actor in live TV dramas and second-rate syndicated series, and quickly decided to move behind the cameras. He subsequently became one of the most celebrated TV directors of all time, with sporadic big screen outings.

Sargent's desire to work and not "sit around" developing properties made him a TV producer's dream in the 1960s when he helmed episodes of "The Invaders", "Star Trek", "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." and other series. He jumped to the big screen with "The Spy in the Green Hat" (1966), a feature version of TV's "The Man From U.N.C.L.E."