MURDER, SHE WROTE: FILM FLAM (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 Boyce Brown in Hollywood. The film "Cry of Destiny," for which Brown served as executive producer, is being screened for the first time -- and excitement has been brewing. The film's original director, Austin Young, died mysteriously twenty years earlier, and fans have been anticipating the film's completion for years. Without Boyce's knowledge, his partner Carson Robbins has been arranging a secret deal to sell a print of the film for illegal distribution. Boyce is heard telling his daughter Elaine that a piracy scandal would ruin the film. Before the screening, Boyce encounters a major problem when Austin Young's daughter Audrey shows up with a lawyer, claiming full rights to "Cry of Destiny" -- and threatening to cancel the release. Secretly, Audrey is in cahoots with Fritz Randall, another senior member of the film's production team. The screening goes on as planned, and it is a huge success. When Angela stops by Fritz's house the next day, however, she finds him dead. The police suspect Elaine of the murder, and Jessica begins investigating. Other witnesses and suspects she must consider include Darryl Harding, a young actor who has been living secretly in an abandoned studio lot; Joan Kemp, the has-been former child actress who starred in the film many years ago; and Hank Duncan, another plotter in the piracy deal. Eventually, Jessica figures out that Fritz's death had something to do with his research for his new book. When she finally puts all the pieces together, the murderer is the last person anyone expected. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: February 19, 1995 Sunday 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:47:14
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:46419
- 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
- Tom Sawyer … Producer
- Laurence Heath … Co-Producer
- Todd London … Co-Producer
- Anthony Shaw … Director
- Peter S. Fischer … Created by
- Richard Levinson … Created by
- William Link … Created by
- Donald Ross … Writer
- Bruce Babcock … Music by
- John Addison … Theme Music by
- Angela Lansbury … Cast, Jessica B. Fletcher
- John Astin … Cast, Fritz Randall
- James Caviezel (See also: Jim Caviezel) … Cast, Darryl Harding
- Mike Connors … Cast, Boyce Brown
- Kim Darby … Cast, Joan Kemp
- Stacy Edwards … Cast, Elaine Brown
- Richard Libertini … Cast, Carson Robbins
- Howard French … Cast, Manheim
- Justin Lord … Cast, Lloyd Nader
- Richard Dano … Cast, Scotty
- Paulo Andres … Cast, Delivery Boy
- William O'Leary … Cast, Hank Duncan
- Gregory Sierra … Cast, Lieutenant Gabriel Caceras
- Cali Timmins … Cast, Barbie Lippin / Sgt. Barbara Warshaw
- Kerrie Keane … Cast, Audrey Young