Production Information[]
Production Number: | |
Aired: January 24th, 1988 | |
Written By: R. Barker Price | |
Directed By: Anthony (Pullen) Shaw | |
INSERT EPISODE SCREENSHOT HERE | |
Created By: Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson & William Link | |
Executive Producers: Peter S. Fischer | |
Producer: Robert F. O'Neill |
Summary[]
Jessica visits her niece Carrie Palmer's husband Leonard Palmer, who actually forgot his own anniversary date, being an obsessively comets-devoted astronomy researcher at the Astro-Physics Institute where director Russell Armstrong and high-profile, high-maintenance careerist scientist Dr. Thor Lindquist who insists they attend the reception they hold to land a Defense contract Leonard disapproves of. That night Leonard is seen rushing out without signing out or closing up his computer-programmed telescope, which is manually pointed at a 30 mile-away vacation house owned by Armstrong, focused at the corpse of Drake Eaton. The house was lent to Carrie Palmer, who admits she had an affair with Drake. Jessica agrees to ghostwrite a book for investigating police sergeant Kettler to get access to all the data, while Leonard is fired to avoid image damage. Conflicting statements from Leonard and Carrie make them the obvious suspects, yet Jessica suddenly concentrates on the programming of the telescope.
Trivia[]
Jessica's niece Carrie and her husband, Leonard Palmer, are introduced.
This is the second time Karen Grassle, of Little House on the Prairie (1974) fame, has been cast. She appeared as Christine Stoneham in Murder, She Wrote: Murder in a Minor Key (1987).
This is the second time Dean Jones has been cast. He appeared as Marcus Boswell in Murder, She Wrote: It's a Dog's Life (1984).
This is the second time Marcia Rodd has been cast. She last appeared as the victim in Murder, She Wrote: Keep the Home Fries Burning (1986) .
This is the third time George DiCenzo has been cast. He also appeared as victims in Murder, She Wrote: We're Off to Kill the Wizard (1984) and Murder, She Wrote: The Perfect Foil (1986)
Victim: Drake Eaton
Killer: Madeline DeHaven
Cause of death: Gunshot
Motive: They were romantically involved and he was going to dump her for Carrie Palmer.
Starring[]
Regular Cast[]
Angela Lansbury as Jessica Fletcher
Recurring Cast[]
Guest Stars[]
Dean Jones as Leonard Palmer
Kate McNeil as Carrie Palmer
Marcia Rodd as Madeline DeHaven
Jeffrey Tambor as Russell Armstrong
Karen Grassle as Fay Hewitt
Steven Ford as Drake Eaton
Robin Gammell as Dr. Thor Lundquist
George DiCenzo as Sgt. Kettler
Kirk Thornton as Forensic Man