Murder, She Wrote
(1984–1996)
Jessica goes to the races to watch her niece ride the winning horse but then the horse's disagreeable owner is murdered after a dispute.
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Title: Dead Heat (24 Nov 1985)
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Cast
| Episode cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Angela Lansbury | ... | Jessica Fletcher | |
| Priscilla Barnes | ... | Vicky Gallegos | |
| Ramon Bieri | ... | Pat Phillips | |
| Jack Carter | ... | Cliff Carpenter | |
| Lonny Chapman | ... | Jack Bowen | |
| Carole Cook | ... | Christine Carpenter | |
| Norman Fell | ... | Vince Shackman | |
| Linda Grovenor | ... | Tracy MacGill | |
| Clu Gulager | ... | Mike Gann | |
| Bert Rosario | ... | Carlos Gallegos | |
| Roy Thinnes | ... | Lt. Ted Misko | |
| Derrel Maury | ... | Cookie Milford | |
| Tom Dreesen | ... | Ernie | |
| Alex Rebar | ... | Guzmann | |
| Robert Ellenstein | ... | Mr. P | |
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Plot Summary
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Storyline
Under instructions from big boss Tony, local mobster boss Vince Shackman leans heavily on race horse trainer Mike Gann to settle his gambling debts by fixing a race, which takes quite a lot, including making a Panamese illegal jockey be replaced 'sick' by greenhorn Tracy Macgill, a niece of Jessica, who made a stop-over on the way to San Francisco to see her debut. When Tracey is arrested for the tranquilizer gun murder of Jack Bowen, Jessica fears the police won't solve the case and takes crash courses in betting and running a stable while investigating everybody involved, including unethical betting by the track security chief... Written by KGF Vissers
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
24 November 1985 (USA) See more »Filming Locations:
Stage 29, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA See more »Company Credits
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Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
StereoColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1
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Bookie #1: Separately, it's peanuts, Vince. Put it together, and we're chokin'.
Bookie #2: How did we know Mike Gann was bettin' all over town?
Vince Shackman: I can add.
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(uncredited)
Traditional Bugle Call
At start of horse race.
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Did You Know?
Trivia
The title refers to the results of a race where the first two contestants across the finish line are so close together that a winner cannot be determined. See more »Goofs
When Jessica leaves the cab, as she arrives at the hippodrome, the cab starts to move on and some movie crew and the camera are seen reflected in the car's windows. See more »Quotes
[first lines]Bookie #1: Separately, it's peanuts, Vince. Put it together, and we're chokin'.
Bookie #2: How did we know Mike Gann was bettin' all over town?
Vince Shackman: I can add.
See more »
Soundtracks
First Call (Call to the Post)(uncredited)
Traditional Bugle Call
At start of horse race.
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Jessica arrives at a race to watch her niece Tracy take part in her first race. At the last minute experience jockey Carlos gets sick, prompting owner Jack Bowen to switch Tracy from an outsider to eventual winner Anchor's Ahoy. After the race celebrations groom Cookie alerts Jessica that Bowen is dead, Tracy is arrested.
It's a fun episode, definitely one of the lighter ones, it contains a superstitious comedy couple, a funny carrot scene, and of course Cookie's comedy wig. The story is a little messy, we go from gangsters to fixed races, it doesn't really hang together too well.
On the whole it's well acted, even the gangsters manage to be fairly restrained in their performances. It baffles belief how she has yet another niece in yet another county, but Linda Grosvenor is rather good as Tracy.
It's not a bad watch, it's just one I wouldn't seek out too often. 6/10