In New York City, Jessica Fletcher has been roped into appearing on a cooking show hosted by Chef Bernardo Bonelli–although it’s a bit unclear as to why she has agreed to do the show. It seems to partly be in order to promote one of her novels; but at the same time it seems she is also doing it as a favor to a young woman who has invested the inheritance she got from her recently deceased grandmother into Chef Bernardo Bonelli’s business.
Just the facts:
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Click to reveal the victim
The first victim was chef Bernardo Bonelli; the second victim was gangster Paul Avoncino!Click to reveal the killer
It was Jeannine Bonelli, a part owner of Bonelli’s restaurant!Click to reveal the weapon
The first victim was killed with a boning knife; the second victim was killed by a gunshot!Click to reveal the location
The first victim was killed in the kitchen of Bonelli’s restaurant; the second victim was killed in his car just outside Bonelli’s restaurant!Click to reveal the motive
The killer wanted majority ownership of the restaurant!Click to reveal the major clue
It was the allergy medicine commercial and the fact that the killer always teared up around cilantro!Cast of characters:
- Sal Landi as Sal Randazzo, a muscle man and driver working for a local gangster.
- John Saxon as Bernardo Bonelli, the host of a cooking show who is about to open up his own restaurant. This is Saxon’s third and final appearance on MSW; he previously appeared in “A Very Good Year for Murder“.
- Bobby Di Cicco as Philip Bonelli, Bernardo’s nephew who is helping set up Bonelli’s restaurant. This is Di Cicco’s second and final appearance on MSW.
- Heidi Swedberg as Lorna Thompson, an investor in Bonelli’s restaurant who has invited Jessica to appear on his cooking show.
- Liza Snyder as Jeannine Bonelli, Philip’s wife.
- Michael Brandon as Alex Weaver, the station manager for Bonelli’s cooking show.
- Valerie Wildman as Diane Weaver, Alex Weaver’s wife and a restaurant critic who hosts her own show “Dining with Diane”.
- Nick Corri (now known as Jsu Garcia) as Manuel Ramirez, Lorna’s boyfriend and Bernardo’s assistant on his cooking show. This is his first of two appearances on MSW.
- Rachel Bailit as the Stage Manager at the TV station.
- Tony Lo Bianco as Paul Avoncino, a gangster who is sabotaging Bonelli’s restaurant in order to force the owners to make him partner in the restaurant. This is Lo Bianco’s second and final appearance on MSW; he previously appeared in “The Skinny According to Nick Cullhane“.
- Gene Ross as the Desk Sergeant at the police station.
- James Ingersoll as Timothy Milner, attorney for Paul Avoncino.
- Fran Bennett as Detective MacKenzie, in charge of the investigation.
- Lew Saunders as Policeman, standing guard outside the restaurant. This is Saunders’ second and final appearance on MSW; he previously appeared in “The Mole“, also as a policeman.
- Tiffany Terry as the Drip-Stop Girl in the allergy medicine commercial.
Final thoughts and other trivia:
Just as in the last few episodes, Jessica’s recent bestseller, The Uncaught, is mentioned again. This time, we learn that the plot involves a lamb and vegetable risotto dish that is poisoned with cyanide. However, unless the plot involves multiple murders, this appears to contradict what we learn in “Murder at a Discount“, which suggests that the main murder in the novel is staged to look like the result of a burglary.
One last thing I wanted to point out are the names of some of the people who call Jessica following her appearance on Bonelli’s cooking show. She first gets a call from Mona–who might be the same person as the owner of Mona’s Diner in Cabot Cove in the Season 3 episode “Crossed Up”. The second call she gets is from Edna, who may be one of a number of other Edna’s that Jessica has previously mentioned (e.g. in “Sticks and Stones”, “Harbinger of Death” or “The Taxman Cometh“).
Murder, She Watched 