Murder, She Wrote

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Murder, She Wrote
End of opening title sequence for Murder, She Wrote.
Format	Mystery, Procedural drama
Created by	Peter S. Fischer Richard Levinson William Link
Starring	Angela Lansbury William Windom Tom Bosley (1984–1988) Ron Masak (1988–1996)
Theme music composer	John Addison
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	12
No. of episodes	264 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	[Angela Lansbury Peter S. Fischer Richard Levinson William Link David Moessinger
Running time	60 Minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	CBS
Original run	September 30, 1984 – May 19, 1996
Chronology
Related shows	The Law & Harry McGraw

Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for twelve seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series, The Law & Harry McGraw.

In February 2007, on the ABC daytime talk show The View,^[1] Lansbury announced that she hopes to make another Murder, She Wrote TV movie in the near future, if her son, Anthony Shaw, can find a suitable story.^[2]

Contents 1 History 1.1 Origin 1.2 Premise 2 Cast 2.1 Regular cast 2.2 Recurring cast 2.3 Guest stars 3 Episodes 4 Awards 5 Novels 6 DVDs 7 International syndication 8 References 9 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Origin

Debuting September 30, 1984, Murder, She Wrote, TV's longest-running mystery series, starring the character of Jessica Fletcher, might never have come about had producers Richard Levinson and William Link enjoyed success with their TV series Ellery Queen. That series folded after a single season, but Levinson and Link were still committed to the concept of a bestselling murder mystery novelist who solved real murders when not at the typewriter. By changing the gender of their protagonist from male to female and transforming the character from a good-looking, absent-minded young pedant to a middle-aged down-to-earth widow, the producers were able to parlay their 'mystery writer/amateur detective' premise into a 12-year hit for CBS.

The title comes from Murder, She Said, an adaptation of a Miss Marple novel by Agatha Christie. While not appearing in the aforementioned film, Angela Lansbury herself did play Miss Marple in The Mirror Crack'd, and the character of Jessica Fletcher is thought to be based on a combination of Miss Marple, Agatha Christie herself, and another Christie character, Ariadne Oliver, who often appears in the Hercule Poirot mysteries.

[edit] Premise

The show revolved around the day to day life of a retired English teacher who, after being widowed in her early fifties, becomes a very successful mystery writer. Despite fame and fortune, Jessica remains a resident of Cabot Cove, a cozy coastal town in Maine, and maintains her links with all of her old friends, never letting her success go to her head. Exterior shots of Cabot Cove were filmed in Mendocino, California.

Her one eccentricity is an insatiable curiosity, especially whenever murder rears its ugly head - which it does with great regularity. The mystery term "Cabot Cove Syndrome" was eventually coined to describe the constant appearance of dead bodies in remote locations.

In most episodes, Jessica somehow becomes entangled in a murder investigation. The police are almost always willing to arrest the most likely suspect, but Jessica invariably feels that the so-called guilty party was innocent. Carefully and methodically piecing the clues together and asking astute questions, she always manages to trap the real murderer - who, given the series' "special guest star" policy, was often played by a famous film or TV personality.

Jessica's relationship with law enforcement officials varies from place to place. Both sheriffs of Cabot Cove resign themselves to having her meddle in their cases. However, most detectives and police officers do not want her anywhere near their crime scenes, until her accurate deductions convince them to listen to her. Some are happy to have her assistance from the start, often because they are fans of her books. With time, she makes friends in many police departments across the U.S., as well as a British police officer attached to Scotland Yard.

In 1991, newly appointed executive producer David Moessinger and producer J. Michael Straczynski were brought aboard in an effort to shore up ratings. They moved Jessica to New York, and revitalized the show, bringing it back into the top ten from the mid-thirties where it had fallen. It was Straczynski who made her an instructor in writing and criminology, and is widely held to have most emphasized her role as a working writer, with all the deadlines and problems involved in that profession. Although deciding enough was enough, Angela was furious that the network moved the show from its rating winning Sunday slot to Thursdays, up against ratings monsters such as Friends. Unsurprisingly, ratings sharply fell, and the network canceled the show not long after. In an attempt to soften the blow, the network signed up for some TV movies, four of which followed.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Regular cast

• Angela Lansbury as Jessica Fletcher (1984−1996). The show was originally conceived as a vehicle for Jean Stapleton, who had just finished a nine-year run on All in the Family; when Stapleton decided she didn't want to commit to another television series, the role was offered to Lansbury. Doris Day was offered the part afterwards, and also declined. Lansbury was the only actress to appear in all 264 episodes.
• William Windom as Dr. Seth Hazlitt (1985−1996), the local doctor of Cabot Cove and one of Jessica's best friends.
• Tom Bosley as Sheriff Amos Tupper (1984−1988), Cabot Cove's sheriff at the start of the series. Tupper later retires and goes to live with his sister.
• Ron Masak as Sheriff Mort Metzger (1988−1996), a former NYPD officer who takes Tupper's place as sheriff in the mistaken belief that he would be living in a more peaceful place. In one episode he was shown as a cheap store owner in New York City who was in trouble with the law and was trying to get out of trouble by selling his business.

[edit] Recurring cast

• Michael Horton as Grady Fletcher (1984–1995), Jessica's not-so-lucky favorite nephew, who (through no fault of his own) always seems to get in trouble with the law. After many romantic disasters, he gets married later in the series. In real life, Horton is married to actress Debbie Zipp, who played Grady's eventual wife, Donna Mayberry. The two had been married for many years before working together on Murder, She Wrote.
• Jerry Orbach as Harry McGraw (1985–1991), an old-school private investigator who becomes friends with Jessica. Orbach was popular enough to garner his own, short-lived spinoff series in 1987, The Law & Harry McGraw.
• Len Cariou as Michael Hagarty (1985–1992), a British MI6 agent of Irish origin, who would appear when Jessica least expected him to drag her into a dangerous case. Cariou had previously starred with Lansbury on Broadway in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street as the titular character.
• Richard Paul as Sam Booth (1986–1991), the genial, ineffectual mayor of Cabot Cove whose main campaign promise is that he will do nothing.
• Julie Adams as Eve Simpson (1987–1993), the Cabot Cove real estate agent with a great love for men, both single and married, and the hobby of gossiping. She is a good friend of Jessica.
• Keith Michell as Dennis Stanton (1988–1993), a former jewel thief turned insurance claims investigator, who always solves his cases using unusual methods, and sends a copy of the story to his friend Jessica afterwards.
• Wayne Rogers as Charlie Garrett (1993–1995), a disreputable private investigator who usually gets into trouble and needs Jessica's help.

[edit] Guest stars

Many famous or soon-to-be-famous actors have had guest spots on episodes of Murder, She Wrote. These include George Clooney, Courteney Cox, Neil Patrick Harris, Kate Mulgrew, Leslie Nielsen, Joaquin Phoenix and Nana Visitor.

During the run of the series there have been two "special guest stars", both from the crossover episode "Magnum on Ice". These were Tom Selleck and John Hillerman starring as their Magnum, P.I. characters Thomas Magnum and Jonathan Higgins respectively.

[edit] Episodes

For several years, the show was the longest-running mystery show on television. In total, there were 264 weekly episodes, including the two hour feature-length pilot episode, "The Murder of Sherlock Holmes". However, the pilot is now aired as two separate episodes during syndication.

Many of the episodes took place in either Jessica's hometown of Cabot Cove or in New York, but her travels promoting books or visiting relatives and friends (of which she seemed to have an endless supply) led to cases throughout the world.

Beginning in season six, Lansbury cut back her appearances. A handful of episodes purported to be stories "written" by Jessica, or submitted to her by friends. She would introduce each episode, but generally disappear until the end, when she would wrap up the story. Other sleuths, such as reformed jewel thief turned insurance investigator Dennis Stanton, retired spy Michael Hagarty, and down-at-heel private eye Harry McGraw, took center stage. These episodes became known as "bookend episodes". Viewers, however, didn't like Jessica's frequent absences, and the "replacement detective" policy was eventually dropped.

[edit] Awards

Murder, She Wrote received numerous Emmy Award nominations. Angela Lansbury herself holds the record for the most Emmy nominations for outstanding lead actress in a drama series with twelve, one for each season. She never won, which is also a record.

Group	Award	Year(s)	Won
Emmy Awards	Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Angela Lansbury)	1985−1996	No
	Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (John Addison)	1985	Yes
	Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Bruce Babcock)	1993, 1995	No
	Outstanding Costume Design for a Series (Alfred E. Lehman)	1986	Yes
Golden Globe Awards	Best TV Series - Drama	1985, 1986	Yes
	Best TV Series - Drama	1987−1990	No
	Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series - Drama (Angela Lansbury)	1985, 1987, 1990 & 1992	Yes
	Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series - Drama (Angela Lansbury)	1986, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993 & 1995	No
Edgar Awards	Best Episode of a TV Series ("Deadly Lady")	1985	Yes
	Best Episode of a TV Series ("The Dead File")	1993	No
Screen Actors Guild Awards	Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series - Drama (Angela Lansbury)	1995	No

[edit] Novels

In keeping with the spirit of the TV show, the author credit for a series of official original novels, written by Coffee, Tea, or Me? writer Donald Bain, is shared with the fictitious "Jessica Fletcher".

Gin and Daggers (1st edition) (1989) Manhattans and Murder (1994) Rum and Razors (1995) Brandy and Bullets (1995) Martinis and Mayhem (1995) A Deadly Judgment (1996) A Palette for Murder (1996) The Highland Fling Murders (1997) Murder on the QE2 (1997) Murder in Moscow (1998) A Little Yuletide Murder (1998) Murder at the Powderhorn Ranch (1999) Knock 'em Dead (1999) Gin and Daggers (2nd edition) (2000) Trick or Treachery (2000) Blood on the Vine (2001) Murder in a Minor Key (2001)

Provence - to Die for (2002) You Bet Your Life (2002) Majoring in Murder (2003) Destination Murder (2003) Dying to Retire (2004) A Vote for Murder (2004) The Maine Mutiny (2005) Margaritas and Murder (2005) A Question of Murder (2006) Three Strikes and You're Dead (2006) Coffee, Tea, or Murder? (2007) Panning For Murder (2007) Murder on Parade (2008) A Slaying in Savannah (2008) Madison Avenue Shoot (2009) A Fatal Feast (2009) Nashville Noir (2010)

[edit] DVDs

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has released the first 10 seasons of Murder, She Wrote on DVD in Region 1 and Universal Playback has released them in Regions 2 & 4. The remaining seasons are expected to be released soon.

[edit] International syndication

Aside from its original run on CBS, Murder, She Wrote has been syndicated in many countries around the world, and continues to be to this day.

Country	Channel(s)	Title	Translation	Language
Australia	Network Ten, TV1,Channel Seven	Murder, She Wrote		English
Austria	ORF	Mord ist ihr Hobby	Murder is Her Hobby	German dubbed
Belgium	VTM, VIJFtv	Murder, She Wrote		English, Dutch subtitles
Brazil	Universal Channel	Assassinato por Escrito	Written Murder	Portuguese dubbed
Bulgaria	Fox Crime, Diema	Убийство по сценарий	Murder by script	Bulgarian dubbed
Canada	Vision TV	Murder, She Wrote		English
Canada: Quebec	TQS	Elle écrit au meurtre	She writes on the (subject of) murder	French dubbed
Chile	Canal 13	Reportera del crimen	Crime Reporter	Spanish dubbed
Croatia	HRT	Ubojstvo, napisala je	Murder, She Wrote	English, Croatian subtitles
Czech Republic	TV Nova	To je vražda, napsala	Murder, She Wrote	Czech dubbed
Denmark	DR 2	Hun så et mord	She Saw a Murder	English, Dutch subtitles
Estonia	TV3	Mõrv sai teoks	Murder Became True	English, Estonian subtitles
Finland	YLE TV1	Murhasta tuli totta	Murder Became True	English, Finnishsubtitles
France	La Cinq, TF1, TV Breizh	Arabesque	Arabesque	French dubbed
Germany	ARD, RTL, Super RTL, TNT Serie, kabel eins	Immer, wenn sie Krimis schrieb, Mord ist ihr Hobby	Whenever She Wrote a Crime Novel, Murder is Her Hobby	German dubbed
Greece	Star Channel	Η συγγραφέας ντετέκτιβ	The Detective Writer	English, Greek subtitles
Hungary	Viasat 3	Gyilkos sorok	Murderous Lines	Hungarian dubbed
Ireland	RTÉ One	Murder, She Wrote		English
Israel	HOT Israel 10	'''''	Murder With A Stroke Of Her Pen	English, Hebrew subtitles
Italy	Rai Uno, Fox Crime	La signora in giallo	The Mystery Lady	Italian dubbed
Japan	NHK, Mystery Channel, LaLa TV, Chiba TV, Gunma TV	Jessica obasan no jikenbo	Aunt Jessica's Case Files	Japanese dubbed
Kuwait	KTV 2	Murder, She Wrote		English, Arabicsubtitles
Lithuania	TV3	Džesika Flečer	Jessica Fletcher	Lithuanian dubbed
Mexico	Universal Channel	La reportera del crimen	The Crime Reporter	Spanish dubbed
Netherlands	RTL 8	Murder, She Wrote		English, Dutch subtitles
Norway	TV3	Jessica Fletcher	Jessica Fletcher	English, Norwegian subtitles
Philippines	GMA Network, RJTV 29	Murder, She Wrote		English
Portugal	RTP 1	Crime, Disse Ela	Crime, She Said	English, Portuguese subtitles
Romania	Pro Cinema, TVR 2	Verdict: Crima	Verdict: Murder	English, Romanian subtitles
Russia	НТВ, Домашний	Она написала убийство	Murder, She Wrote	Russian dubbed
Slovakia	Markíza	To je vražda, napísala	Murder, She Wrote	Slovak dubbed
Slovenia	Kanal A	Umor je napisala	Murder, She Wrote	English, Slovene subtitles
South Africa	TV1	Murder, She Wrote		English
Spain	TVE, Calle 13, Antena 3	Se ha escrito un crimen	A Crime has Been Written	Spanish dubbed
Spain: Catalonia	TV3	S'ha escrit un crim	A Crime has Been Written	Catalan dubbed
Spain: Galicia	TVG	Escribiuse un crime	A Crime has Been Written	Galician dubbed
Sweden	TV3	Mord och inga visor	Murder and not Melodies	English, Swedish subtitles
Turkey	TRT 1, Star TV, Kanal D	Cinayet Dosyası	Murder File	Turkish dubbed
United Kingdom	ITV, BBC Two, Alibi	Murder, She Wrote		English
United States	Hallmark Channel	Murder, She Wrote		English
Uruguay	Monte Carlo Televisión	Reportera del crimen	Crime Reporter	Spanish dubbed

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Murder, She Wrote at the Internet Movie Database
• Murder, She Wrote at TV.com
• The Murder, She Wrote Wiki

v • d • e Murder, She Wrote Cast Angela Lansbury · Tom Bosley · Ron Masak · William Windom  · Michael Horton · Jerry Orbach · Len Cariou · Keith Michell · Guest stars Characters Jessica Fletcher Media Episodes · TV Movies · DVD releases Other Cabot Cove · Mystery Theatre · Corymore Productions · The Law & Harry McGraw