Recently, I discovered nightly re-runs of the TV show “Murder, She Wrote” on the Hallmark Channel. This may seem an odd viewing choice for a 30-something, but I have fond memories of watching this show, when it first aired. Week after week, my grandmother and I would watch and try to figure out the mystery. Sometimes we were right, often we were not, but most of all, we had fun watching together. I vividly remember that at the end of each episode, grandma would announce, to nobody in particular, “Oooh, that was a good one!” The memory of her proclamation still brings a smile to my face.
In case you’ve never see it, “Murder, She Wrote” starred acclaimed actress Angela Lansbury (who many of the younger generation may simply know as the voice of ‘Mrs. Potts’ in the 1991 Disney film “Beauty and the Beast”). Lansbury played former high school English teacher turned best-selling mystery writer Jessica Fletcher. Everywhere Jessica went, someone bit the dust. Of course it would then be up to Jessica to solve the case! Sometimes Jessica’s nephew Grady joined in on the act, but it was always Jessica who came up with the final solution.
“Murder, She Wrote” ran for 12 seasons on CBS. From 1984-1996, fans watched as Jessica outsmarted the bad guys (and often the police) to solve a variety of murders all over the globe. Jessica Fletcher was right up my grandmother’s alley. She was a senior citizen heroine, an oddity then and now on network TV. Jessica was also a ‘homey’ kind of sleuth. She never drove and was often seen tooling around on her bicycle down the streets of her rustic home town, Cabot Cove, Maine. Jessica was also exceedingly polite. She excused herself before speaking out of turn, and she usually asked permission to become involved in the cases she was solving, even when it was obvious that the police desperately needed her! Heh Heh
Watching now, I see that Murder, She Wrote as more than a mystery show. A quick check on IMDB details the great work of Angela Lansbury, who, improbably, was nominated for an Emmy 12 consecutive years without ever winning, though she did win a Golden Globe in 1984. I also take note of the large number of known actors and actresses the show featured. Watching reruns I have caught: Norman Fell (Mr. Roper,) Florence Henderson (Carol Brady,) and Tom Bosley (Howard Cunningham.) Those who would rise to fame after their time on “Murder, She Wrote” include a young Courteney Cox (“Death Stalks the Big Top”, 1986) and “Will and Grace” star Megan Mullaly (”Coal Miner’s Slaughter”, 1988.)
Unfortunately, a few weeks after I rediscovered my interest in “Murder, She Wrote”, our family was dealt a crushing blow. On a sunny day, this past June, we lost my grandmother after 97 wonderful years of life. She went quietly and peacefully after a long battle with dementia.
These days, of course, my nightly viewing of “Murder, She Wrote” is more than just an interesting walk down memory lane. As I watch Jessica tool around Cabot Cove, or sleuth around in the Soviet Union, I think back upon all of the good times I spent with my grandmother. And, when the episode is over, and Jessica has solved the case, I sometimes silently say: “Oooh! That was a good one grandma! That sure was a good one!”
-nylons73
I’m so sorry for the loss of your grandmother this summer. I can really identify with this whole entry, though. Reading your post was like seeing my own experiences put down into words! I too, used to watch this show with my grandmother. She passed away five years ago this December, and I recently discovered the Murder She Wrote reruns on cable. I watch them occasionally, sometimes even DVRing them, and it makes me feel closer to my grandmother and her memory.
Thanks for writing a post about something that really strikes a chord, in a most unexpected way!