J. "Digger" Doyle (1.17)

[mauimudpup]

Thanks. Ya its that line that just made me think that all his other properties likely have interesting folks. Makes me wonder if that could have made it as a spinoff.


And how did the bad guys decide to go to Hawaii instead of one of the other three possibilities. Maybe I just missed that.

[Steve]

Just caught this episode again on a local Chicago station. I know this is probably due to my middle-aged, overactive hormone and still infatuated with Erin Gray mind of mine, but I always found it interesting that Tom Selleck and Jackie Ray divorced shortly after this episode. I always pictured Jackie walking in on Tom and Erin "studying lines" together.........LOL!

Steve
Chicago

[lutherhgillis]

In response to the flub:

" After "Digger" cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. (Noted by IslandHopper)"

According to the later episodes where Magnum pieces together that Higgins is really Robin and the other guy is a hired actor "with a voice like Orson Welles and a body like Truman Capote", it explains how Higgins could get a 7 second call from "Robin" and then give 61 seconds of dialogue in order to explain. Higgins knew the whole story from the beginning.

It raises the question however, that wouldn't Higgins have also known that the tapes were hidden in plain view along with Jefferson Starship, Blondie, and Styx in Magnum's quarters?

The series as a whole required us to abandon all logic but isn't that what TV is all about?

Good day.

[IslandHopper]

In response to the flub:

" After "Digger" cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. (Noted by IslandHopper)"

According to the later episodes where Magnum pieces together that Higgins is really Robin and the other guy is a hired actor "with a voice like Orson Welles and a body like Truman Capote", it explains how Higgins could get a 7 second call from "Robin" and then give 61 seconds of dialogue in order to explain. Higgins knew the whole story from the beginning.

It raises the question however, that wouldn't Higgins have also known that the tapes were hidden in plain view along with Jefferson Starship, Blondie, and Styx in Magnum's quarters?

The series as a whole required us to abandon all logic but isn't that what TV is all about?

Good day.

I don't believe that Higgins is really Robin Masters, and I don't believe the show ever resolves this question. In fact, in Resolutions Part II, Higgins tells Magnum at the end that he "lied" about being Robin Masters. We have discussed this question several times in other threads.

As I have said in a previous post, the main reason why I would say Higgins is not Robin Masters is because of the episode, "J. Digger Doyle." In that episode, the bad guys were trying to steal Robin's tapes of his newest novel. Robin even came to Hawaii and was picked up by TC in his chopper in order to retrieve his tapes from Magnum. If Higgins was Robin Masters, wouldn't he have known where the tapes were? Magnum said that Robin had given him the tapes for safe keeping. Why would Higgins have gone through this elaborate charade of the tapes kept in Magnum's guest house if he was really Robin, especially considering that there were bad guys willing to kidnap and kill in order to get the tapes. Would Higgins have willingly endangered Magnum, TC, Rick and himself and exposed them to automatic weapons and possible death merely to perpetuate this charade? I don't think so.

In a previous post, James brought up the episode of "Bird Man Of Budapest," which also negates the possibility of Higgins being Robin Masters. In that episode, Robin's former teacher was coming for a visit. If Higgins was Robin, he would have known right off that she was an imposter. I don't think that Higgins would have gone through this charade either, especially considering that the woman, who was not Robin's teacher, but a Soviet agent trying to kill the birdman. Again, this involved possible death to TC, Magnum, and Higgins, which I'm sure Higgins would not have allowed to happen.

Therefore, I still believe the flub relating to Higgins' 7 second conversation and subsequent 61 second dialogue is not only a flub, but a shocking flub. Higgins is not Robin Masters.

[grundle]

I Jefferson Starship, Blondie, and Styx

And also Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart!

[A P Leyland]

Watched this one last night with the kids. Really enjoyed it. Some excellent interplay between the characters (Rick & TC especially), and some very good characterisation (Magnum acknowledges that it would be childish to engage in a race with Digger - and does it anyway!), the magnificent rescue of Higgins scene and Magnum's brilliant way of shutting him up ("Mum's the word, lads"). Good use of all characters (including Robin!) and for a guest character I liked Digger and would have liked to have seen her again. Some lovely scenery as well (and I don't just mean Erin Gray!).

Andy

[JonnyDaytona]

This episode is all about Erin Gray in that blue and red bikini. Some of you don't realize what kind of psycho-sexual hold this woman had on young impressionable minds around this time...from Buck Rogers to Silver Spoons.

Oh man....yes. I watched that again the other night and remembered the huge crush I had on her in the late 70's early 80's. She still looks good, I can't believe she's damned near 60!

[J.J. Walters]

At one time, the tennis court appears to have had a practice wall on one side...



I don't recall ever seeing this again, so they must have taken this down at some point.

[golfmobile]

Going back to our discussions of the estate grounds and demographics of where the buildings were in the story and are in actuality, looking at Digger's sketch of the property (shown in the April 25, 2007, post here):



We know this makes no sense based on where everything really is, but it really makes no sense, even in the show, because, as based on this sketch, when one enters the property and drives in on the driveway, one would go past the guesthouse before getting to the main house!! That never occurred, of course. And this also defeats all those episodes where Magnum and others walked back through the walkway to the right (as you face it) of the main house to go to (or come from) the guesthouse, which one wouldn't have to do based on this sketch layout.

So based on that picture:



The gatehouse is shown MUCH farther from the road than (1) it really is and (2) than it was ever shown as being in the show. Now, the two buildings on the lower part of the sketch may be labeled incorrectly, but if one is the guesthouse where TM lived, what's the other? Was a boathouse ever seen? But still NEITHER would be accessed by walking out to the right and in back of the main house. And no building but the gatehouse is passed when driving up the driveway. If this were the case, there would be no reason for TM to ever drive up to the main house -- he'd just stop and park by the guesthouse.

I guess not a lot of thought -- or follow-up -- went into the use of the Eve Anderson estate and how it would play out over the years on MPI. But once the "powers that be" knew the show was renewed for its seven-year contract, then some consistency should have been thought of by SOMEONE!!

(I'm posting this in the Digger Doyle episode section because this is where the sketch was shown -- and the only time something like this was ever seen, isn't it? If James thinks it should be moved to the estate thread, that's fine with me.)

golf

[rubber chicken]

golf - yeah, that drawing just plain doesn't work. It served it's purpose in that episode though. Even without seeing the estate today in google maps, I think viewers would have realized there's no way that could have been right. It's still a neat artists rendition though.


James - I didn't recall seeing the wall, but I looked around in a few episodes and found it still there.

Here's another picture from J. "Digger" Doyle which shows the right side of the wall.


I also found it in Beauty Knows No Pain ( 1.18 ) (15:37)


And Mixed Doubles (3.10)

[J.J. Walters]

Indeed golf, it's a head-scratcher. Nothing makes sense. It's just more evidence that some kind of teleportation must have been used on the estate!

rubber chicken, thanks. It appears that I've missed "the wall" in several episodes! Jez, after watching hundreds of scenes on the estate, you think you know the place inside and out. And then one day you find out there is a friggin' large cinder block wall, virtually in the middle of the lawn, that you've somehow missed!

If "the wall" is still around in the later seasons, I might just .... I don't know, scream "mystical", or something!

[rubber chicken]

I didn't recall it either, and I pause the dvd while watching an episode to study every detail of the estate. I must have known it was there at one time. The solution I think is to watch even more Magnum P.I. hehe.

Can I confess something? I'm only one third finished with season 8... Ahh, there, feels good to get that off my chest. I've been spending my "Magnum time" looking for locations mostly, which leaves less time for the actual show. That's also why I don't post here as much as I used to. Plus I got a 40" LCD HDTV recently and for me, Magnum P.I. just isn't the same when viewed digitally. I like watching on normal CRT TVs, which are much more appropriate. But now the old CRT is in another room with less comfy seating. All this has totally messed with Magnum viewing!

[golfmobile]

James:

If "the wall" is still around in the later seasons, I might just .... I don't know, scream "mystical", or something!

No . . . . THAT is the order of the universe!

RC,

This is where your laptop comes in -- just pop your MPI DVDs in the drive in it, and you can carry it with you wherever . . . . with headphones/earbuds, you can put it on your chest and lie in bed with Magnum (okay, I'm waiting for the quips to THAT I just set myself up for).

golf

[J.J. Walters]

golf, I think the guesthouse and main house should be switched. This would better explain why Magnum turns right after going through the covered passageway. It, of course, doesn't explain all those scenes at the lanai where the beach/ocean is a stones throw away!

But now the old CRT is in another room with less comfy seating. All this has totally messed with Magnum viewing!

LOL!!

[MikePisciotta]

[quote="IslandHopper"]Additional Flubs for J. "Digger" Doyle:

2. This Flub is one of my favorites. After J. Doyle cons her way into Higgins' study and pulls the gun on Magnum and Higgins, she uses the red telephone to call Robin Masters. After a brief conversation with Robin, she hands the phone to Higgins, who speaks to Robin for 7 seconds. From Higgins' 7 second conversation with Robin, Higgins launches into a 61 second, detailed dialogue about the attempt on Robin's life, StarGuard, J. Doyle, Robin's plan to pick-up all of his tapes from one of his estates, etc. During Higgins' dialogue, Magnum interrupts Higgins briefly, but then Higgins continues with his dialogue. The question is: How could Higgins have gotten 61 seconds of very detailed dialogue from a 7 second conversation with Robin? This scene requires you to abandon all logic. I love it.


I believe that Higgins was on the phone with Robin when Magnum first walked into the room after returning to the estate with Digger. Maybe that is why Higgins seemed so rushed and flustered when Magnum was trying to talk to him.