MURDER, SHE WROTE: DEATH GOES DOUBLE PLATINUM (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 visits her friend, blind musician Desi Ortega, as he plays with his band, assisted by sound technician Sam. Desi is then summoned to a meeting with Max Daniels, which worries his pregnant wife Amy. Max, a former criminal-turned-businessman, forcefully tells Desi that he wants to be his record producer, but Desi refuses, having already signed with Alex Lebron. Max talks to his henchman, Tomas Aguilar, a former friend of band member Luis and former flame of his sister Patricia's, wondering how they can prevent the band's single from succeeding, and they end up paying several music stores not to promote the album. Tomas appeals to Patricia, offering to buy Alex out and saying they are "fated" to be together, but she refuses him, as she is now engaged to Alex. Jessica meets with producer Wilson Sloane, inviting him to hear the band, and Luis thanks her for her help. Max arrives to repeat his offer and is again rejected, and someone attempts to run Desi and Amy over with a car.
Amy begs Desi to agree to Max's demands, annoyed at his "macho pride." Jessica asks her friend Lieutenant Esposito about Max's criminal history and learns he has hired an "out-of-town mechanic" for a job, and Alex receives a call summoning him to a meeting with a so-called entrepreneur, who is really Max's hitman. Tomas then calls Patricia and tells her about the plot, and she unhappily gives in to his sexual advances in exchange for his calling off the hit. Max arrives to hear Desi's band play and meets Jessica, noting that Wilson previously helped send him to prison. Patricia returns and declines to explain what happened, though Tomas angers Alex with his suggestive comments and Max threatens Tomas for preventing Alex's death. The lights briefly go out during one of the band's songs, and Tomas is then found dead, stabbed with an ice pick during the momentary blackout. All of the band members deny killing him, though they all acknowledge having motive. Patricia confesses her liaison with Tomas to Luis, and when he goes to Tomas' apartment to destroy the evidence, he is caught by Lieutenant Esposito and arrested.
Max informs Alex about his near miss with the hitman and again offers to be his "silent partner" in the music deal. Patricia worries that Alex's pride will cause him to end things with her over the Tomas incident, but Jessica reassures her that she is blameless. Esposito then reveals that Patricia's prints were found on the ice pick, however, and she is arrested. Jessica talks to the others and asks Desi to search his memory for any strange sounds at the moment of the murder, and he recalls a noise like Velcro tearing. Jessica searches for clues and realizes that Sam's lighting board was marked with glow-in-the-dark tape, and that he tagged the back of Tomas's chair with it and killed him during the ten-second blackout. Sam admits that he did it for Patricia, whom he loves, having overheard Tomas' comments about her to Alex, and the family is saddened but appreciative of his sentiment. Later, the band hears that Max's hitman has been caught and Wilson has agreed to market their album, just as Amy goes into labor. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: January 7, 1996 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:45:43
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:46297
- GENRE: Drama, mystery/suspense
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, mystery/suspense
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV series, 1984-1996
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Angela Lansbury … Executive Producer
- David Shaw … Co-Executive Producer
- Al Kraus … Coordinating Producer
- Bruce Lansbury … Supervising Producer
- Mark A. Burley … Supervising Producer
- Tom Sawyer … Producer
- Laurence Heath … Co-Producer
- Todd London … Co-Producer
- Jerry Ludwig … Co-Producer
- Peter S. Fischer … Created by
- Richard Levinson … Created by
- William Link … Created by
- Anthony Shaw … Director
- Philip John Taylor … Writer
- Steve Dorff … Music by
- John Addison … Theme Music by
- Angela Lansbury … Cast, Jessica Fletcher
- Jason Bernard … Cast, Wilson Sloane
- Robert Clohessy … Cast, Max Daniels
- Nick Corri … Cast, Alex Lebron
- Rosana DeSoto … Cast, Iza Decalde
- Ramon Franco … Cast, Sam Desoto
- David Labiosa … Cast, Tomas Aguilar
- Jacqueline Obradors … Cast, Patricia Decalde
- Maria O'Brien … Cast, Lt. Abbe Esposito
- Tony Plana … Cast, Desi Ortega
- Marco Sanchez … Cast, Luiz Decalde
- Amy Stock-Poynton … Cast, Amy Ortega
- Ray Young … Cast, Culligan
- Dee McCafferty … Cast, Hitman