Ghost Writer

Episode Number: 30
Season Number: 2.12
Air Date: 12/24/1981
Writer: Caroline Elias
Director: Ray Austin
Producers: Rick Weaver, Andrew Schneider
Exec Producer: Donald P. Bellisario

Guest Stars

Patch Mackenzie (Virginia Fowler), Elisha Cook Jr. ("Harold Farber"), Jon Lormer (Barker), Alan Fudge (Arthur), Ed Sheehan (Emerson White), Louise Lewis (Mrs. Ballard), L. Christian Moore (Oscar)

Episode Brief

Magnum is hired by an attractive "ghost writer" who is writing a biography of eccentric millionaire Harold Farber - whom she has never met in person, communicating only via phone - when all her notes on Farber are stolen, in an attempt to stop the book ever being written. Meanwhile, T.C. has landed himself a highly lucrative, but shady, piloting job delivering chemicals to a high-rise, but the building he is making the deliveries to turns out to be at the center of the mystery.

Rating

7.8

(51 votes)

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Notes

¹ Screen legend Elisha Cook Jr. plays eccentric millionaire "Harold Farber". Elisha will later play the reccuring character of Icepick, starting with Season Four's "Distant Relative" (4.4). In 1970, he guest starred with Tom Selleck in the TV movie The Movie Murderer, one of Tom's first film roles.

² The script for this episode was written by Caroline Elias who appears to be the same person as Magnum P.I. hair stylist Carolyn Elias. This is her first and only screenplay to receive an IMDB credit.

³ Patch Mackenzie (Virginia Fowler) is without a doubt one of the most beautiful lead guest stars to grace the screen on Magnum P.I.!

⁴ This episode originally aired on Christmas Eve (the only Magnum episode to do so), yet there is no Christmas theme to it at all.

⁵ Magnum says he has a "very strict policy about not having relationships" with his clients ("it just wouldn't be professional"). He will break this "strict policy" several times in future episodes!

⁶ The location used for the "Maunalua Bay Resort" (Virginia Fowler) was filmed at a private residence on Hanapepe Place, near the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve Park. This same exact setting was used in Season One's "All Roads Lead to Floyd" (1.13) for the "Pyramid Pool Party" scene. (Noted by Sam and rubber chicken)

⁷ Magnum's gun is again verbally identified as a ".45". The gun prop is actually a Colt Government Model 9mm Parabellum.

⁸ The dinner table conversation between Magnum and Virginia at the guesthouse regarding his service in Naval Intelligence is interesting not only for its content but also for how it was filmed. The table view was effectively filmed "though the guesthouse wall" and over the kitchen sink; bottles are visible in the scene foreground. This shot makes for a refreshing guesthouse view angle. (Noted by J.G.)

⁹ T.C. again mentions that he charges Magnum $100 an hour for chopper service, triple that if he's shot at. (Noted by Mike Barnes)

¹⁰ The scenes involving Harold Farber's office building, including the climactic rooftop fight scene, were filmed on location at the Honolulu Municipal Building in downtown Honolulu. (Noted by Sam and rubber chicken)

¹¹ Alan Fudge (Arthur) will guest star in Season Five's "Murder 101" (5.8).

¹² During the scene where Barker is faking a heart attack, one of the men watching on the security camera comes in and picks up Barker to carry him away. Barker's glasses fall on the floor, but no one bothers to pick them up. They remain on the floor as they all walk away.

Quotes

¹
Magnum: I was in the Navy. Career man, Navy all the way.
Virginia Fowler: What happened?
Magnum: I started asking myself a lot of questions...
Virginia Fowler: And?!
Magnum: I'm still asking.

²
Magnum: I have this very strict policy about not having relationships with my clients, anything else just wouldn't be professional. (Narration)

³
Magnum: With my forty-five nuzzling his ear, I expected the guy to take us to his employer...

⁴
(Magnum is conning Rick into helping him)
Rick: Alright, I'll do the favor, but let's get one thing straight, I'm not gonna put on ANY dumb disguise. I'm not playing garbage men, delivery men, sewer men, any other kind of men, is that clear?
Magnum: Of course.
(Cut to next scene, where Rick is dressed as a liquor store delivery man, delivering "muscatel for the penthouse")

Flubs

¹ When Magnum, Virginia and Mrs. Ballard are stuck in the room with the impostor Harold Farber the security camera is on the ceiling, yet when we see the security guard watching on the monitor the shot on the monitor is far too low down to be taken from the ceiling-mounted camera. It's looking at Magnum sideways on.

² When Magnum and Rick discuss Virginia Fowler's Magnum biography at the King Kamehameha Club, the sounds mismatch the action, and food magically shape-shifts! When Magnum says, "All right, all right, if I tell you will you do me the favor?" the sound of Rick crunching a potato chip is loud and clear...except Rick is eating a sandwich! When Magnum says, "I'm even including an item about you, old buddy," Rick's sandwich magically turns into a potato chip...and then back into a sandwich! When the scene was edited, the dialog was matched but the sound effects and food were not. (Noted by J.G.)

³ At Harold Farber's office building, Magnum and the senator's wife take the elevator to the penthouse floor. But, they get off on the 4th floor (as seen on the elevator door)! (Noted by John Kosowski Jr.)

⁴ Just before the bad guys open the door to the room where the real Harold Farber is frozen, the letters on the door are reversed! The film was somehow "flipped" in post-production. (Noted by eeyore)

⁵ When T.C. lands the helicopter on the roof of Farber Industries Tower during the final shootout, he exclaims, "Sometimes I hate being right." As with an earlier scene in this episode, the film image was reversed or flipped in post production; T.C.'s Da Nang cap wording is a mirror image and he is sitting on the wrong side of the helicopter. (Noted by J.G.)

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