MATLOCK: THE BLUES SINGER (TV)

Summary

One in this legal drama about Ben Matlock, an expert yet unconventional lawyer and his experiences both in and out of the courtroom.

Terry Maslin, a successful rock and roll star, recognizes a street performer as blues singer Eddie "Cougar" Haynes, a major star in the 1950's and 1960's who mysteriously disappeared. Terry quickly takes an interest in the aging singer and takes him over to his mansion, where they run into Terry's mother Lorraine, who doesn't seem to appreciate Eddie's presence. He explains that for years he was a member of the highly successful band Dreams, but they split up and now he works in music production. While Eddie makes himself comfortable, Terry speaks with his former band mates outside, and they quickly get into a heated argument before Terry throws them out. Once they leave, Terry tells Eddie that he plans to write him a song as a sort of gift; by attaching Eddie's name to the song, he'll be able to live off of the royalties for years. An unknown woman briefly observes them before leaving.

That night, Eddie leaves Terry's house to go sleep in his usual spot in the park, as he doesn't wish to run afoul of Lorraine again. The unknown woman, lounging outside, bids Eddie farewell. Terry goes inside and pauses at the foot of his stairs to listen to his walkman. Someone sneaks up behind him and clobbers him in the back of the head, killing him instantly. Lorraine arrives soon thereafter and discovers Terry's body. The police find Eddie in the park and arrest him, finding Terry's gold watch and several other valuables in Eddie's bag. Matlock is called in to handle the case and immediately agrees when he hears Eddie's name, as he heard Eddie play in a club many years ago and appreciates his music. Eddie explains to Matlock that he became homeless as a result of alcohol abuse and a jail sentence he served for assault against a club owner. Eddie insists that he didn't kill Terry, and that he didn't steal anything either. He elaborates on what he was doing at Terry's house, and that the only people who knew he was there were Lorraine, the band, and the unknown woman. Matlock believes Eddie's innocence.

In court, Matlock agrees to let Eddie stay over at his house since he has no means of support with which to pay his bail, nor does he have any other place to go. Matlock and Michelle inspect Terry's house and meet Lorraine, who is convinced that Eddie is guilty. She cannot identify the woman who was at Terry's house that night, as Terry would see a number of different women from week to week. At home, Matlock plays guitar alongside Eddie and talk about his upbringing. The next day Matlock visits Terry's former band mate Paul Chiarro in a studio, where he is in the midst of writing and recording music for his next solo album. He explains that the band's argument was over the suggestion that the band go on a reunion tour; Terry refused since he owned the publishing to the band's music and had thus become very rich, obviating the need for a tour. Paul had hoped that the tour would also help him promote his solo album. He also cannot identify the woman who was at Terry's house on the night of the murder.

Meanwhile, Michelle speaks with the band's former drummer, Keith Morrissey. Like Terry, Keith has no want for money, and claims he wanted to go on tour mostly to alleviate his boredom, as he had performed very little in the three years after the band's breakup. He explains the reasons behind the band's breakup: Paul's wife left him for Terry, although the ensuing relationship lasted only a matter of weeks. The emotional strain on Paul carried over to the rest of the band, causing them to split up. Michelle begins to suspect that Keith thinks that Paul is responsible for Terry's murder. Matlock brings Eddie to Terry's house, hoping to jog his memory about the unknown woman who was there that night. With Eddie's help, Matlock locates a woman's sweater in Terry's room and the two of them make off with it. Later, Matlock visits with the remainder of Dreams as they plan a memorial tour in honor of Terry. He speaks with one of them, Dennis Johnson, alone in a sound booth, although unbeknownst to him Paul and Keith listen in with the recording equipment. Dennis reveals that unlike his fellow band mates, he is broke due to his severe gambling addiction. He credits Terry for trying to help him overcome his addiction.

Michelle speaks to a woman named Suzanne Cullen, whom she believes is the one who was at Terry's house on the night of the murder. She is identified via her laundry mark on the sweater that Matlock found, although Suzanne denies that she was there or ever having met Terry. Michelle pressures her to testify in court, threatening to deliver a subpoena. Later, Matlock and Michelle attempt to do just that, but Suzanne's roommate Gillian informs them that Suzanne has fled the country. She explains that Suzanne comes from a rich family who would not approve of her association with Terry, and she left the country to avoid any trouble. Michelle realizes that she may have pressured Suzanne too hard. That night, Matlock plays more guitar with Eddie, lamenting that he couldn't get Suzanne to appear in court. Eddie starts playing the song that Terry was writing for him, and Matlock recognizes the tune, providing him with a vital clue to solving the case.

In court, Matlock calls Paul up to the stand. He establishes Paul's history with Terry and the nature of their friendship, as well as the incident with Paul's wife which caused the breakup of the band. Matlock produces Suzanne's jacket as evidence, bearing the name of the studio where Paul is recording his solo album. He gets Paul to admit that he gave it to Suzanne as a gift, and Matlock posits that she was his girlfriend who left him for Terry in a manner similar to his wife. Furthermore, Matlock claims that Paul was jealous of Terry, and saw Eddie's presence as an opportunity to murder him and pin the blame on someone else. To prove this, Matlock asks Paul to play the song that he was playing on the day Matlock questioned him on a piano, establishing that Paul had played the song for no one else, and that no one in the court could possibly identify it. However, Paul is shocked when Eddie is able to play along on his guitar. Matlock puts it to the court that this is only possible if the song is in fact the one Terry was writing for Eddie, and that Paul stole it just after murdering Terry; he deduces that after the band was thrown out, Paul returned later that night after Terry had finished the song and perpetrated the murder, stealing Terry's valuables and planting them in Eddie's bag to frame him. The jury acquits Eddie of his crimes. The episode ends as Matlock and Eddie perform blues together in a local bar. Commercials deleted.

Details

• NETWORK: NBC
• DATE: May 9, 1989 8:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 0:48:03
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: B:22582
• GENRE: Drama, legal
• SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, legal
• SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1986-1992; ABC, 1992-1995
• COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

• Fred Silverman … Executive Producer
• Dean Hargrove … Executive Producer, Created by
• Joel Steiger … Supervising Producer, Writer
• Richard Collins … Producer
• Jeff Peters … Producer
• William S. Kerr … Associate Producer
• Leo Penn … Director
• Brownie McGhee … Music by
• Dick de Benedictis … Theme Music by
• Steve Tyrell … Music Direction
• Andy Griffith … Cast, Ben Matlock
• Nancy Stafford … Cast, Michelle Thomas
• Julie Sommars … Cast, A.D.A. Julie March
• Kene Holliday … Cast, Tyler Hudson
• Joe Seneca … Cast, Eddie Haynes
• Bonnie Bartlett … Cast, Lorraine Maslin
• Elyssa Davalos … Cast, Suzanne Cullen
• Brendan Hughes … Cast, Paul Chiarro
• Charles McCaughan … Cast, Dennis Johnson
• John Allen Nelson … Cast, Terry Maslin
• Mark Rolston … Cast, Keith Morrissey
• Brownie McGhee … Cast, Himself
• Suzanne Cortney … Cast, Gillian Burns
• Bob Ellis … Cast, Truck Driver
• Albert Hall … Cast, Asst. D.A. Corbalis
• Will MacMillan … Cast, Sheriff Guerney
• Glenn Morshower … Cast, Policeman #2
• Richard Newton … Cast, Judge Cooksey
• Ryan Sands … Cast, Policeman #1
• Lonny Stevens … Cast, Engineer
• Ray Templin … Cast, Piano Player
• Walter Wood … Cast, Foreperson