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Tran Quoc Jones

Episode Screen Caps Episode Number: 93
Season Number: 5.9
Air Date: 11/29/1984
Writer: Chris Abbott
Director: Russ Mayberry
Producer: Reuben Leder
Exec Producer: Donald P. Bellisario

Recurring Characters
Jeff MacKay (Jim "Mac" Bonnick), Kwan Hi Lim (Lt. Tanaka), Deborah Pratt (Gloria), Carmella Barut (Carmella)
Guest Stars
Roland Harrah III (Tran Quoc Jones), Rick Lenz (Dick Hasley), Terry Kiser (Dennis Redfield), Robert Tessier (Enforcer), Glenn Pinho (Dan)
Episode Brief
Magnum finds himself surprisingly attached to his young client, a small Vietnamese boy who lost his mother and whose only hope in the world is to find his missing G.I. father.
Rating
7.8(37 votes)Rate Episode
Notes
1 This is the sixth "T.C.-centric" episode of the series, following "Thicker than Blood" (1.12), "Past Tense" (3.5), "A Sense of Debt" (4.8), "Paradise Blues" (4.15) and "Under World" (5.5).

2 The Kahala Hilton is used as a filming location for the King Kamehameha Club for the third time. It was previously used in "Echoes of the Mind" (5.1 & 5.2) and "Mac's Back" (5.3).

3 This is Roland Harrah III's (Tran Quoc Jones) first credited screen role. Tragically, he committed suicide in 1995 at the age of 21.

4 In the opening scenes there is a man wearing a baseball cap that says "VT-21". VT-21 is a U.S. Navy training squadron nicknamed the "Red Hawks", based at NAS Kingsville, Texas. V stands for fixed wing, T stands for training. (Noted by N1095A)

5 On Magnum's hat rack, the rarely seen red Detroit Tigers "away cap" (worn only once in "Squeeze Play") and the red University of Southern California cap (also worn only once in "Squeeze Play") can be spotted. The USC cap will also be seen on the hat rack in the next episode "Luther Gillis: File #001" (5.10). (Noted by N1095A)

6 The palm frond hat that "Mac" is wearing at the pinapple stand appears to be the same one Higgins made during his stay on "Frenchman's Island" (with Magnum, T.C. and Rick) in "Operation: Silent Night" (4.10). (Noted by N1095A)

7 Famous Hollywood tough guy actor Robert Tessier appears as an enforcer. Tessier lead a very interesting life. He was born in New England in 1934 of "Algonquin Indian descent". He served as a paratrooper in the Korean War (earning a Silver Star and Purple Heart), worked in the circus as a motorcycle dare devil, and was an "accomplished furniture maker" who made pieces to give to his co-stars. His most famous role was that of the head-butting street fighter "Jim Henry" in the infamous 1975 Charles Bronson film Hard Times, which also featured Magnum P.I. stunt coordinator and stunt man Bob Minor (in a small role).

8 T.C. wears a couple of new baseball caps; an L.A. Raiders cap and San Francisco 49'ers cap.

9 The scene towards the end, with Magnum and T.C. swapping documents for Tran Quoc, was filmed at "Little Round Top", a scenic location on Round Top Drive in the hills above Honolulu. (Noted by IslandHopper)

10 "Mac's" pineapple stand scene was filmed at Dukes Lane (often referred to as "Dukes Marketplace" in tourist maps), near the famous International Marketplace, next to the Waikiki Business Plaza and across the street from the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center. (Noted by Tim)

11 T.C.'s girlfriend Gloria (Deborah Pratt, then wife of series co-creator/exec producer Donald P. Bellisario) is seen for the fourth and final time. This is also Deborah's last appearance on screen, but she will still be involved in the show, as a writer ("Little Games" and "Little Girl Who").

12 Local Hawaiian singer/guitarist Glenn Pinho ("The Soul of Hana") makes a brief appearance as Dan, the extortion enforcer. Glenn is famous for his smooth, powerful voice.

13 Higgins entered military school at the age of 7 on the "rainy, windswept coast of...". Based on everything else we know about him, this has to be England.
Quotes
1
Higgins: This lad, this mere child, is your client?
Magnum: Well, in a manner of speaking, yes.
Higgins: How on earth do they find you?
Tran Quoc: The Yellow Pages.
Higgins: Of course, I should have guessed.

2
T.C.: You know, when I was a kid I used to be afraid of the dark. I used to think there were monsters up under my bed. So you know what? I started talking to 'em... trying to get them to go away. You know something, they did.
Tran Quoc: ...After the Americans left, my mother took me to live with their family. And we hide away. One day some men came and took her away. I heard shooting and I ran after her. But they killed her. They killed her because she had married my father. They said that she was working for the Americans and that she was a spy.
T.C.: I wish I could undo that for you.
Tran Quoc: I thought... if I came to America, all these bad thoughts would go away. You know what I think, maybe they never will.
T.C.: Well, maybe they won't, but you won't think about them all the time. I hardly ever think of the scary times back there anymore. But when it gets really bad, and I think, "I made it through that didn't I?", well, I can make it through anything.

3
(To Politician Dick Hasley)
Magnum: Wait a minute, wait just a minute! You make this nice little speech, full of understanding, full of compassion, and then you go right back to where you started - People should have listened to me, I was right! Well, don't try to convince us that you're such a wonderful person, because you had the courage to stand up for what you believe in. Convince yourself, cuz in my book it can't compare to the kind of courage it took to go over there and get shot at!
Flubs
1 At about 4:00 in, when Magnum, T.C. and Rick are discussing Robin Masters' political fundraiser for Dick Hasley at the KKC beach bar, the bottles of liquor lined up behind the bar suddenly change (at 4:12) to the bottles with the green pourers that were just on the other side of the bar! (Noted by jetranger)

2 A minor editing flub occurs towards the end, as Magnum and T.C. roll down the hill at "Little Round Top". Magnum's VM0-2 hat falls off after he tackles T.C.. The hat lands several feet away, but then a quick closeup cutaway shot brings the hat much closer on the ground to Magnum and T.C.. The quick cut makes it seem like the hat jumps back up the hill!


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