User Reviews

When the story begins, a mobster (John Marley) is working with some writer to do a tell-all book about his 'friends' with the mob. Naturally, his old mob associates don't want such a book to get printed...and they're looking for Albert Felix in order to kill him. Unfortunately, when they do find Felix, he manages to escape...but his writer friend is killed.

When the writer vanishes and his daughter hadn't heard from him, she contacts Barnaby and he spends much of the episode following clues to learn where Felix is...because Felix should be able to fill in the missing pieces.

This is a pretty good episode...and I liked the final showdown as Barnaby is uncharacteristically tough! Well worth seeing just for this!

This was one of forty-nine! -episodes Walter Grauman skillfully directed, probably because he and Buddy Ebsen made a good team. Grauman was noted for having an excellent memory and an eye for detail. It shows here.

This is also one of six stories turned in by William Keys, all about a gangster, called Albert Felix (played by noneother than John Marley) who is actually writing a tell all book and naming names. Now that's original, though had this been real life he'd be six feet under long time ago. The mob old timers naturally want to put an end to his writing career, but instead of killing him they murder his ghost writer instead.

Barnaby is hired by the writer's daughter to bring the killers to justice, but there's also the matter of tracking down Felix. And yes, I agree with the last reviewer, Barnaby has a bit more "spring" in his step, again thanks to director Walter Grauman. They must have had a few laughs over this, because you couldn't picture Barnaby Jones as a tough detective, although he was a skilled marksman with a gun.

Always a treat to see Elizabeth Allen, who guest stars. She began her career as a Ford Agency model and got her tv break as the "Away We Go!" girl on Jackie Gleason's tv show. Peter Mark Richmond is also perfectly cast in this episode. John Marley is always spot on as a gangster, who would next co-star in WC FIELDS AND ME, featuring Rod Steiger. Marley again played the owner of a movie studio --but did not get the horse's head in his bed this time (as he did in the GODFATHER).

Watch this for some truly excellent acting on everyone's part. SEASON 4 EPISODE 18 remastered color CBS dvd box set.