MURDER, SHE WROTE: THE CLASSIC MURDER (TV)
Summary
One in this murder mystery series about an unassuming Maine mystery writer turned sleuth named Jessica B. Fletcher who uses her professional insight to help solve real-life homicide cases. In this episode, Jessica spends time with a young editor, Sally, and accompanies her to the country-style restaurant owned by her wealthy father Buck. Jessica meets the rest of the family, including Aunt Janine, Uncle George and brother B.J., and Buck seems unconcerned when George reminds him that the restaurant's finances are being investigated, instead reminding George to ship one of his automobiles off to a classic car show. Jessica then meets the restaurant's "phony psychic" Marika, hired to bring in customers, learning that she previous helped to solve murders with her "skills." Buck heads home early and is surprised by the housekeeper, Mrs. Oates, and elsewhere, Janine and George fight about his flirtation with a waitress. In the morning, Mrs. Oates finds evidence of Buck having had a late-night date, but he himself is nowhere to be found. B.J. calls Sally and tells her that their father is missing, and Jessica accompanies her back to the family home. B.J.'s childhood friend—and Sally's crush—Sergeant Tom Jarrow, questions Carl, the driver, who maintains that Buck was home alone all night. Janine fears that Buck is dead, and George and B.J. argue about company finances, with B.J. revealing that $150 million has recently been shifted into separate accounts in a highly suspicious fashion, though George denies that Buck would ever put the family in jeopardy.
Marika arrives and implores a somewhat skeptical Jessica to work with her, then performing a psychometry session and dramatically stating that Buck is indeed dead. Carl seems highly uncomfortable with the process, but Marika continues her psychic reading and describes how Buck was shot by an unseen intruder while in bed and his body hidden down a well, adding that someone in the bathroom secretly witnessed everything. B.J. tells Tom about a real oil well nearby, though expresses doubts that Buck is dead, and Jessica questions Marika about her past work with Scotland Yard. She then examines a map of the property and locates a cistern, but when she examines it along with Sally and Tom, they find Marika's dead body within, not Buck's. They guess that she was having an affair with Buck and was the witness in the bathroom, and Carl admits that he knew of their relationship and denies killing anyone, but is arrested nonetheless. Sally fights with B.J. when he suggests that Buck is faking his death in order to abscond with the stolen money, and Janine and George argue about her brother's fate. George assures Sally that Buck will soon return, but Jessica makes a call and learns that Marika was arrested in the past for blackmail.
They then find Buck's dead body in the garage, seemingly confirming Carl's guilt, but Jessica recalls Buck's comment about the classic car show and learns that the car's destination was changed from Pasadena to Rio de Janeiro. Tom comforts Sally, and the shipping company calls to report that the car needs to be inspected for authenticity before being sent to the show. Jessica and the others then catch George in the act of removing the stolen money from the car, and she explains how he killed Marika when she attempted to blackmail him after witnessing him shooting Buck. He admits that he has been embezzling the money for years and that Buck was about to turn him in, planning to escape to South America and become wealthy and powerful like his brother-in-law. Tom arrests him and Sally plans to head back to New York City with Jessica, but Tom says that he will be coming as well to take Jessica's class, and he and Sally finally make a love connection. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: December 6, 1992 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:47:20
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:46292
- GENRE: Drama, mystery/suspense
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, mystery/suspense
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV series, 1984-1996
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Angela Lansbury … Executive Producer
- Al Kraus … Coordinating Producer
- Bruce Lansbury … Supervising Producer
- Mark A. Burley … Supervising Producer
- Robert E. Swanson … Supervising Producer
- J. Michael Straczynski … Producer
- Todd London … Co-Producer
- Vincent McEveety … Director
- Peter S. Fischer … Created by
- Richard Levinson … Created by
- William Link … Created by
- Robert Van Scoyk … Writer
- Jeff Sturges … Music by
- John Addison … Theme Music by
- Angela Lansbury … Cast, Jessica Fletcher
- John Di Aquino … Cast, Sgt. Tom Jarrow
- Michael Knight … Cast, B.J. Wilson
- Louise Latham … Cast, Mrs. Oates
- Natalija Nogulich … Cast, Marika Valenti
- John Rubenstein … Cast, George Foster
- Rita Taggart … Cast, Janine Foster
- Wayne Tippit … Cast, Buck Wilson
- Jessica Tuck … Cast, Sally Wilson
- Stephen Liska … Cast, Carl Graham
- Charles Hoyes … Cast, Phil
- Julian Barnes … Cast, Inspector Moss
- Lisa Melilli … Cast, Waitress
- Anthony S. Johnson … Cast, Deputy