Mr. White Death (3.9)

Rate, review & discuss the episodes from the third season

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How Would You Rate This Episode?

10 (Perfect!)
3
3%
9.5 (One of the Best)
14
14%
9.0 (Excellent)
15
15%
8.5 (Very Good)
33
33%
8.0 (Pretty Good)
23
23%
7.5 (Decent)
5
5%
7.0 (Average at Best)
1
1%
6.5 (Not So Good)
3
3%
6.0 (Pretty Bad)
0
No votes
5.0 (Just Awful)
4
4%
 
Total votes: 101

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Bes
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#46 Post by Bes »

Great episode; One of series 3's best.

Borgnine is a legend. I have a signed copy of his autobiography. Must read that soon; I've had it for yonks!

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.45caliber
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#47 Post by .45caliber »

A top 20 episode I think. I was going to give it an 8.5 but the father son reunion at the airport, plus the ending with TM negotiating with "Punky" and the "not today line", put it over the top so I gave it a 9. Loved it! Maybe I shoulda given it a 9.5

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#48 Post by Bes »

Watched this one again. Definately a classic episode IMO. I can't remember what I rated it, but it deserves at least 9 if not 9.5.

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#49 Post by Sinjin »

Ernest Borgnine elevates this to an above-average episode. I can't imagine any other actor pulling this off; he brings instant credibility and likeability to the role.

There are some classic funny moments at the expense of Higgins... and I thought for sure his nickname was going to be "Puddinhead!" And also Rick, who gets punched in the face multiple times (ouch). It's actually pretty funny.

Pro wrestling was a popular "sport" entertainment in Hawaii in the 60s-70s, so a wrestling-themed episode was appropriate if not expected. I was never a big fan myself, but I remember evenings as a kid watching my grandmother yell at the tv. I believe she truly thought they could hear her too. It was great seeing Lord "Tally Ho" Blears in a cameo as the referee. He was a wrestling icon in Hawaii.

Linda Ryan (Cora the secretary) once again plays the villainess (The Big Blow). Always a treat to see her. Margie Impert makes her first appearance as Miss Jones, the Hall of Records Clerk. She does a phone bit with her cheating boyfriend Ray that is too funny.

This episode is also worth watching for the flubs. Magnum's sudden and inexplicable change of clothes at 28 min is a great catch. It's not clear whether it's the same day or the next day and Magnum's dialog only confuses things. The woman looking out from the office window is another good catch.

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#50 Post by J.J. Walters »

Lovin' the episode review Sinjin. They are well-written and insightful.
Higgins: It's not a scratch! It's a bloody gouge!

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#51 Post by rubber chicken »

J.J. Walters wrote:Lovin' the episode review Sinjin. They are well-written and insightful.
Agreed. Thoughtful and positive. Your references to classic movies and books are particularly interesting to me.

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#52 Post by SignGuyHPW »

As a long time fan of professional wrestling and as someone that's worked in the industry I enjoyed this one. A large number of TV shows in that era had a "wrestling" themed episode and Magnum PI's was not too bad at all. It had some of the classic Magnum traits that combined together to make it really enjoyable such as action, comedy, mystery, and great dialouge.

As a fan of wrestling and of Magnum here's some things that were *wrong* with the episode that viewers that didn't follow wrestling likely wouldn't have noticed:
~In the early 1980s Hawaii was still a full time wrestling territory and was ran by Peter Maivia's widow. The likelyhood that there'd be a small show ran in a bar in that time frame would be small, but for Mr. White Death to have gone from that show to the main arena for a major match in under a week would not have happened.

~When Mr. White Death helps Magnum, Rick, and TC in the hall way fight he unmasks himself. A masked wrestler from that era would never, ever have taken off his mask where he could be seen by fans. Besides hiding his identity from the mob (I'm guessing) the mask would also hide Earl's true age from the fans so they'd not think of him as some older guy wrestling against much younger men. This was a pretty common practice then.

~Earl saying he was going to make $500 for the one match would've been a rough guess. Wrestlers were paid based on the gate and what posistion the card.

~Earl being so open about the true nature of the buisness to people not connected to it would've not have happened. It's kind of surprising that they were that open during the episode considering when they filmed it.

~The names of the holds used were all fictional. However, the hold that Earl had on Magnum was a form of the sleeper hold which can be a legitamate hold used to render someone unconscience. If it was applied correctly then Magnum wouldn't have been sitting upright and talking after it was released. It was actually more accurately depicted by Rick who wasn't in the hold, but took a simple back body drop which may have knocked the air out of him, but shouldn't have done more than that.

~The set up to catch the mobsters wouldn't have happened like that. Wrestling in the early 80s was far more closed to the public than it is now and it's unlikely to have been like that even today. Outsiders were not going to be allowed entry into the backstage area/locker rooms. The other wrestlers on the card and/or the promoter would have had them arrested or just physically thrown them out themselves.

~Lord James Blears had a really long career in wrestling. It was a couple of years after this episode that he was actually an announcer for the AWA promotion during its run on ESPN.

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#53 Post by Sir Fearing »

Does anybody know the name of the song right at the beginning of the episode?
Half a world removed from England

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#54 Post by KingKC »

Any appearance by Ernest Borgnine and any episode where Higgins is called Punkie can't be all that bad!!

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#55 Post by MagnumILWU »

Just watched this on Encore! One of my favorites! Brings back good memories. Got me to try sushi, which wasn't as popular in the early 80's, as it was later to become! Just a nice, fun, little episode, the kind I really like! All the main characters, a great guest star, Ernest Borgnine! I enjoy the fun early episodes, so much more than the later, serious one! To me, that's what magnum was all about!
"pickled egg please"

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#56 Post by karolis »

IslandHopper wrote:2. As Magnum is leaving the "Hall of Records" for the last time (just after he gives Ms. Jones his handkerchief for the second time), you will see a woman in jogging shorts and jogging shoes walking up the steps of the Hall of Records and she is turning to the right as Magnum is coming out of the Hall of Records from the left. As Magnum is coming out look at the window which is in between the woman in jogging gear and Magnum. You will see a woman come to the window and look out as if looking to see what is going on. Obviously I don't know for sure, but it seems that she is aware that something is going on and TS is in the building, and she is looking out to get a glimpse of TS. I would imagine from her reaction that she probably worked in the building or was there on some business unrelated to the filming and saw what was going on and was curious. She definitely is not an extra, because her actions are deliberate and obvious. :shock:
Better resolution screenshot:

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IslandHopper wrote: 3. The scene where Earl is showing TC the "Tazmanian Tiger Dance" you can tell that the guy on Earl's shoulders is Bob Minor (TC's stunt double), not only by his face, but also by the belt worn by Bob Minor, which is a darker brown than the belt worn by TC (Roger Mosley).
Screenshot:

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IslandHopper wrote: 4. You can also tell that the guy being twirled around on Earl's shoulders (Earl's stunt double) is not Rick, but his stunt double. Rick is wearing black boots with large heels (as you will see in upcoming scenes with Earl and TC after Magnum arrives back at the estate a few minutes later), however, the guy on Earl's shoulders is wearing what looks like black sneakers with a flat rubber soles which are a different color, have a distinctive tread, and heel-less. You will also notice the sole of the stunt double's shoes when the stunt double falls face first after being dropped by Earl.

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Rick's double can be seen later - he has different hair than Rick:

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IslandHopper wrote: As a side note, TC is seen wearing his Atlanta Falcons hat in the guest house with Magnum, Rick and Higgins after Earl leaves and just before they go to nab Cora. This is not a flub, but it is curious since TC was not wearing the hat while outside. This is the same hat that made a magical appearance in the episode "Faith and Begorrah" (season 3), which was a flub.
Screenshot

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IslandHopper wrote: 6. As Phil is walking toward Earl at the Airport, you will see "Dole" Pineapple boxes to Phil's left. Some of the boxes have what looks like white tape covering a portion of the "D" in Dole in an attempt to make it look like a different brand, i.e., "Cole." However, one of the boxes does not have the white tape covering the "D." Regardless of the tape covering the "D", you can still tell very easily that they are "Dole" Pineapple boxes. Just as Phil stops briefly, you can see a Skycap in the background carrying a "Dole" box. The "D" on the front of the box has the white tape to make it look like "Cole", but the "D" on the side of the box is not covered by the tape and clearly says "Dole."
Screenshot:

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J.J. Walters wrote:
IslandHopper wrote:3. The scene where Earl is showing TC the "Tazmanian Tiger Dance" you can tell that the guy on Earl's shoulders is Bob Minor (TC's stunt double), not only by his face, but also by the belt worn by Bob Minor, which is a darker brown than the belt worn by TC (Roger Mosley).
Yep, good 'ol Bob Minor. You can also easily identify him towards the beginning of the episode, during the backstage brawl at the wrestling club.
Screenshot:

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Jay-Firestorm wrote:
* When Earl is showing T.C. and Rick various wrestling moves, and carrying each in turn on his shoulder, it is quite clearly a double for him in several shots. (But there is a shot of him picking up Rick where it is actually him!)

* …In the same scene, when Rick falls to the ground, it is clearly a double.
Screenshot:

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Donuts ensucrats wrote:Ernest Borgnine looks like a devil wit this strange eyebrows!! :evil:
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Rutledal wrote: Also a "2 for the price of 1" flub. In the scene when Earl has Magnum in the death grip "for real", and T.C. and Rick comes to help. Well when he throws Rick over his head Earl, seen from behind at this point, loses his hat. Clearly revealing a stunt double with much darker hair than Borgnine. That's the first flub. The second ocurs seconds later when the shot changes and Earl's hat is where it used to be, prior to falling of.
Screenshots:

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Magnum's shirt seems to have some dirt (bottom left):

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Coops present: check

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Poor Rick:

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Season 3 Top up to this episode:

1. Black on White
2-3. Did You See the Sunrise?
4. Flashback
5. The Eighth Part of the Village
6. Past Tense
7. Ki'i's Don't Lie
8. Mr. White Death
9. Foiled Again

Not my favourite episode of this season... But i liked Ernest Borgnine as i'm a little Airwolf fan.

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#57 Post by jeffran »

I'm working my way through season 3. I've seen this one a few times, and I think enjoyment of this episode is highly correlated with enjoyment of professional wrestling. I skipped it this time around - perhaps the only episode where I do so.

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#58 Post by ENSHealy »

MR. WHITE DEATH
Hawaiian shirts: 1 blue with white flowers
Island Hopper shirts: 0
Body Count: 1 Sal Marchese
Shirtless: 1
Little Voice: 1
I know what you’re thinking: 0
When I write HTBAWCPI: 0
Investigator corrections: 1
Magnum injuries: 0
Higgins musings: 2
4th wall breaks: 1
Negotiations: 1
Famous guest stars: 1 Ernest Borgnine
Magnumometer: 10

Potential magnumania usernames: Mr White Death, Corky Bostwick, Punky.

Fun episode to watch. Just a couple thoughts:

After going to all the trouble of setting up the mob hit men to get them out of the way so father and son could reunite, why the heck did they schedule the flight so that the two only had about a minute together. I'm sure it was due to episode length problems rather than the needs of the story, but there was plenty of room earlier in the episode to cut some fluff to make more time (I personally found the "wrestling moves scene" with Earl, TC and Rick to be unnecessary and/or too long, but I'm not a wrestling fan) or they could have scripted it so that the reunion was longer (perhaps at the estate) but just wasn't actually seen on screen.

And who puts bumper stickers on rental cars? TM references the "rental" the mob goons were in was covered in "dumb stickers." Is that a Hawaii thing, they put local attraction bumper stickers on the rental cars, or is this just a script flub? I would think you'd want rental cars to be as non-descript as possible. I've always been puzzled by the fact that Colorado rental cars have red "fleet" license plates, which makes them stick out like a sore thumb. You might as well put a sign on the car that says, "I'm from out of town, come take my stuff."

But again, these are quibbles with what otherwise was a fine episode.

CRUCIAL CONVERSATIONS

Magnum: l admit the whole morning was a major inconvenience. Being a private investigator entails a lot of this kind of procedure. It's not all screeching tires and glamorous ladies, and l still had that warm feeling about the whole thing.

Higgins: I say, your face is even more blank than usual. Did you encounter some difficulty in locating Earl's son?
Magnum: Yes. I mean no. Well, I'm... I mean, I don't know.
Higgins: Well put.

Higgins: Well, I must say it does present an interesting dilemma. I remember once when the regiment was stationed in Rangoon...life was quiet, peaceful, tranquil, until Lieutenant Hilton-Thorpe was transferred in. Then it became a ghastly and depressing business, I can tell you.

Magnum: Except my little voice was telling me that's a cop-out. You can always try just one more thing. The car was a rental and the guys in it had to be out-of-staters. l can tell because of all the dumb stickers plastered on it like, ''I'd rather be riding a mule on Molokai.'' So l figured it wouldn't be much of a problem losing a couple of bozos with six hours' worth of jet lag on their minds. But then, on the other hand, why bother? As near as l could figure it, there was only one way they could have been put onto me in the first place.

Magnum: Hi, Punky.
Higgins: Magnum...don't you ever call me that again.
Magnum: Gee, Higgins, it's so cute the way Earl says it. Puddinghead, Corky, all the lads. And you. Punky.
Higgins: Magnum.
Magnum: (Giggles) Higgins, it's so quaint. I mean, nobody's called Punky anymore.
Higgins: If you persist in this...
Magnum: The tennis courts for two weeks, the hot tub for three, and the wide-screen TV for the weekend.
Higgins: Absolutely not.
Magnum: OK. Punk...
Higgins: Mag... All right.
Ensign Healy
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"I woke up one day at 53 and realized I'd never been 23."

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#59 Post by K Hale »

ENSHealy wrote:
And who puts bumper stickers on rental cars? TM references the "rental" the mob goons were in was covered in "dumb stickers." Is that a Hawaii thing, they put local attraction bumper stickers on the rental cars, or is this just a script flub? I would think you'd want rental cars to be as non-descript as possible. I've always been puzzled by the fact that Colorado rental cars have red "fleet" license plates, which makes them stick out like a sore thumb. You might as well put a sign on the car that says, "I'm from out of town, come take my stuff."
Maybe in the 1980s they did. I don't recall touristy bumper stickers on rental cars from that era but I was a kid/teen so I may have just not noticed. They DID used to put company logos on rental cars, such as the green "E" for Enterprise, but in the past 10-20 years or so there was a rash of robberies related to rentals (your alliteration of the day) and that practice has fallen completely off the radar. Rentals today look just like any other car.

The dialogue in this episode is outstanding...
Higgins: I say, your face is even more blank than usual. Did you encounter some difficulty in locating Earl's son?
Magnum: Yes. I mean no. Well, I'm... I mean, I don't know.
Higgins: Well put.
This cracks me up every time.
Higgins: Well, I must say it does present an interesting dilemma. I remember once when the regiment was stationed in Rangoon...life was quiet, peaceful, tranquil, until Lieutenant Hilton-Thorpe was transferred in. Then it became a ghastly and depressing business, I can tell you.
I want to hear more about Lt. Hilton-Thorpe!!! :(
Magnum: Hi, Punky.
Higgins: Magnum...don't you ever call me that again.
And the way he squares up to Magnum when he says this. :lol: :higgins:

Punky. You’ve got to love it!
I didn't realize you were so addicted to pool.
It's not pool.
Billiards.
Snooker!
Snucker.
SNOOKER!

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Re: Mr. White Death (3.9)

#60 Post by No need to know! »

Seen this episode so many times, and i just noticed something. Maybe mentioned before. But when Magnum and Earl arrives at Earls cheap hotel just after they ate that sushi. Surely that is not Borgnine getting out of the Ferrari, and i really doupt that it is Selleck aswell? Their stunt doubles maybe?
Onion´s extra?

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