Sometimes actors play their roles so well that, as an audience, we can't seem to separate them from their roles. Even trailblazing actress Gail Fisher, who broke barriers in Hollywood, found herself explaining how she was different from her most-known part.

Fisher portrayed Peggy Fair on the television show Mannix. The character was a secretary, and the actress brought a lot of importance to the role. She gained two Golden Globes and an Emmy award for it. When people saw her, they thought she was like Peggy in real life.

In an interview with Daily News in 1972, Fisher talked about how much people would identify her with the character. "One of the problems with playing a role like Peggy Fair for four seasons is that people identify you with the character and expect you to be that way," she said.

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The actress thought it was a significant role, but something about Peggy Fair wasn't her style. "While I think Peggy is a very nice girl, she is not for me. For example, she wears dresses, while I happen to love pants, suits, boots and lots of jewelry."

How she felt personally about the character's style didn't affect the importance of the role, though. She added, "Of course, Peggy is a very efficient secretary to Mike Connors, and it's a great role. At the Salute to Working Women Conference in St. Louis, I was chosen as 'Working Woman of the Year.'"

The award was presented to her by Julie Nixon Eisenhower. "Guess that proves that all that coffee I make for Joe Mannix on the show plus my other girl Friday chores are both real and important to our large audience," the actress said.

Fisher was known for taking disadvantages and turning them into advantages. She credited "faith, hard-working and the will to win" for helping her stay focused and get ahead.

Peggy Fisher was one of the roles that resulted from her staying focused, but when she wasn't in front of the camera and on set for Mannix, she was Gail, and Gail only.