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# 017 <1.17> Penultimate Questions Tentative titles:
Edited scene: The pool segment in Hawaii was originally longer and was cut short in post-production after Lance introduces himself to Mark and Dave as Melissa's husband. The scene originally continued with Dave (the blond guy) stating, "I'd say you've got yourself a problem, pal...", and then both guys moving away as Lance is asking Melissa what she thinks she is doing. Shrugging innocently, she replies, "Making friends...", and Lance clenches his teeth in suppressed rage. The fact that the blond guy's only line was cut away in post-production also explains why THOM MATHEWS was billed co-star in the end credits — which would have been unusal for a silent bit. Early script drafts contained an act 1 day scene with Chase in his Tuscany County Building office, discussing with medical examiner Cook why no autopsy was performed on Jason's body although the statutes would have required one in the case of an accidental death. Cook explains that the cause was obvious, Angela was very upset, and Sheriff Tobias used his discretion not to ask for an autopsy. Since this scene delivered no new facts, it was omitted in order not to be repetitive.
In early script drafts, the scene order at the beginning of act 2 was different. The act was supposed to open on Chao-Li finding Melissa eavesdropping at the door of Angie's study in the Falcon Crest Victorian Mansion before the scene cuts to Angela and Turk's conversation in the study where Apollo is in his perch in the background. In the final version of the episode, the scene order was changed; it started with Angela and Turk before showing Melissa eavesdropping in the foyer, with the voices from inside the study audible through the pocket doors. The change in the segments' order created a much more interwoven dynamic of the scene. It remains a mystery why Apollo was dropped from the final version though.   The picture in Chase's office at the Tuscany County Building is the same prop that was on the western wall in the living room of the Gioberti House until # 012. It is even still in the same frame.
 Uncredited stand-in GORDON HODGINS appears as an extra again — this time in his usual rôle as a Tuscany Valley gentleman, who is at the Tuscany Valley Hospital.Compare # 182 for a list of appearances throughout the series. For details about GORDON HODGINS, compare # 001.
 As visible particularly well in this episode, the Tuscany Valley Hospital interiors are a multi-purpose set, which was redressed from various previous uses: It was the New York Police Department in # 001 (albeit filmed from across; screen grab 1) and the San Francisco Police Department in # 009 (screen captures 2 and 3). Particularly the area with the reception desk (blue arrow) is completely identical. The part where the wired glass windows were installed for the police stations was replaced with wall and door elements in the hospital set (green arrows).  As visible in this episode, the Tuscany Valley Hospital interior set consists of one corridor, whose ends are very short — with a fork on a 90-degree angle at each end. When Julia accompanies Douglas as he is discharged, the illusion is created that she walks along one of the halls with him and the male nurse. When they round the corner, it appears that she is walking along another hallway. While they appear to go down two separate corridors, it is actually the exact same one for both shots. This is obvious based on the location of the oxygen flask (yellow arrow) and the water fountain (red arrow). They are both in the exact same positions respectively. Jason's pickup truck (including the steering wheel), a 1962 Chevrolet C-10, was taken to the junkyard of the Lomax Wrecking Company after the faked accident in # 001, as it is revealed now.The filming location for the Lomax Wrecking Company is Aadlen Bros. Auto Wrecking in Sun Valley, CA. Deleted scene: The director's cut contained a scene with Emma and Chao-Li before the segment when Emma is coming down the stairs in the Falcon Crest Victorian Mansion, suitcase in hand, determined to leave. In the scene deleted in post-production, Emma is hurriedly packing her suitcase in her rooftop studio, but surprised to see Chao-Li standing in the doorway when she wants to leave. He says Angela sent him to ask if she is going to have dinner this evening. Emma replies that she will go to San Francisco because she has a non-stop flight to Paris from there since she wants to get as far away from Falcon Crest as she can get. She demands Chao-Li get the car and take her to the airport. When he hesitates, Emma reminds him that he knows why her mother keeps her locked up in the attic and coerces him into following her wishes by threatening to expose his part in Jason's faked automibile accident to Chase — something she could not do if she is in France. The expression on Chao-Li's hardens, and he leaves. The producers felt that playing dirty was not suitable for Emma's nature, so the scene was removed. Consequently, towards the end of the remaining scene with Emma sneaking down the staircase with her baggage, Angela's original line to Julia ("Chao-Li said she threatened to tell Chase everything.") was dropped.   The picture on the northern exterior wall in the Falcon Crest Victorian Mansion dining room — to the right of the windows when looking north from inside the room — is visible for the first time in this episode. The artwork is "Two Sisters" (alternate title: "On the Terrace"), an 1881 Impressionist style painting (oil on canvas) by PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR (1841 – 1919). Compare # 022 for the painting's new place in the dining room in season 2.As with all artwork in the Victorian Mansion, it remains unanswered throughout the series if they are originals or if they are meant to be reproductions. The original of the aforementioned artwork is located at the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago, IL.  Mistake: When Melissa opens Chase's office door at the Tuscany County Building, her hand knocks from the inside, but there is no sound at that moment. It is not until after the frame cuts to Chase, who has already begun looking up at her that the knocking effect is audible. It seems the sound effect added for the knock was timed wrong and came a second too late.Edited scene: While Melissa is at Chase's office at the Tuscany County Building, a few frames were removed in post-production. In the original scene, Chase asks Melissa — after she mentions that she just saw Cole — why he did not come with her, and she replies that he has not been too happy with her lately; Chase then rhetorically asks: "Can you blame him?" Melissa's aforementioned line (which was to be heard as she is standing across from Chase, the camera filming the both from behind her left shoulder) was replaced in post-production with her looped line: "He said you might be able to help me." That line was part of the cut frames, too, but the original audio was not usable for the specific moment the producers finally wanted it to be heard.   Chase and Sheriff Tobias meet near the Hendricks Builders Supply Company in Tuscany after Turk comes out of Caroline's Coffee Shop.The filming location is the corner of Bakman Avenue / Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood, CA; the company for building materials, which used to be there in those days, by the way, had the same name in real life. The identification code of Sheriff Turk Tobias' police car is 3760.   The remains of Jason's pickup at the Lomax Wrecking Company are different from the picture car used in the series première (screen grab 1). Months after filming # 001, LORIMAR did not have a destroyed vehicle like the one that went over the cliff in the show's début, so they filmed a junk Chevrolet C-10 they found at the junkyard filming location, which is a 1964 – 66 model — in contrast to what Lomax says (he refers correctly to the original model year Jason drove, 1962). The difference between the model years is visible in the frame around the headlights and the grille. Also compare # 018 for a third picture car as Jason's vehicle.Inconsistency: Lomax tells Chase some Chinese guy bought the steering wheel of Jason's truck "this morning". Chao-Li, however, was at the junkyard the day before. The reason is that the scene with Chao-Li and Lomax was actually meant to take place on the same day. It was only in post-production that this segment was moved from its original position in act 3 to act 2. The producers missed to have Lomax's line looped to amend it. Edited scene: The segment with Julia and Angela in the enology lab at the Falcon Crest Winery Building was initially longer. It started with Julia sipping some white wine while performing a titration test. Her hand suddenly slips as she knocks a clamp stand and a rack of beakers off the lab counter, sending them crashing to the floor. She reacts with a disappointed giggle as Angela enters, reproaching her with drinking. Julia defends herself, saying she is just nervous about the prospect of becoming a grandmother. When Angela says that this is not unexcpected since a child is a natural by-product of marriage, Julia is somewhat frustrated by the term "by-product", expressing her fear Angela would keep the baby under her thumb. "You could always lock it up with Emma, I guess," she adds. This part was cut off in post-production, just like many other hints at Julia's alcoholism in the early seasons. Historic allusion: Lomax mentions a Sherman tank in his conversation with Chase. The M4 Sherman a.k.a. Medium Tank M4 was the most widely used medium tank by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. Edited scene: The director's cut of Maggie and Douglas' phone conversation contained two more lines: Douglas says that he hopes Chase seeing the district attorney is not a ploy to get his hands on Falcon Crest, and Maggie replies that they are making it on their own, without Falcon Crest or any help from Angela. This part of the dialog was removed in post-production.
Jason's truck ran over the embankment on the Old Vineyard Road.   The coroner's inquest about Jason Gioberti's death takes place in courtroom 2 of the Commissioners Building; it is part of the Municipal Court in the Tuscany County Courthouse complex.The filming location, a brick building, is part of the previous El Monte Courthouse in El Monte, CA, a part of Greater L.A. It houses the El Monte Police Department nowadays (compare the right photo, which was kindly donated for this website by Captain DAN BUEHLER from the El Monte Police Department).
  This episode marks the first appearance of uncredited extra GAYLE FRANK, an American actress who worked as an extra in many productions during the 1980's. Since she owned a steno machine, which she brought to the set, she was primarily cast as a court reporter in hundreds of episodes of various 1980's TV series, including "Hardcastle & McCormick", "L.A. Law", "Jake and the Fatman" and, of course, countless "Matlock" cases. During that era, she became known in the entertainment industry as the "stenographer queen".She plays the court reporter in Jason's inquest in this episode and will appear as said stenographer in many episodes and occasionally at various social events in the Tuscany Valley. Compare # 215 for a list of appearances throughout the series.
 Uncredited extra ERNIE TATE appears in this episode again as the mustached Tuscany Valley doctor with graying hair — this time entering another courtroom behind Emma and Douglas at the Tuscany County Courthouse.Compare # 124 for a list of appearances throughout the series. For details about the extra, compare # 004. Deleted scene: Emma desperately runs from the courthouse in the episode cliffhanger. Everyone is panicking for their own reasons. Lance starts to run after her, following Angie's orders. Emma stumbles, and before she can recover, Lance is upon her, taking her firmly by the arm, leading her to Angela's Mercedes-Benz 600, which is parked outside. Chase, who arrives also, wants to talk to her, but Lance pushes her into the limo. Angela, Julia and Phillip join them in the car, leaving a frustrated Chase and the other Gioberti family members behind. The scene was filmed, with MARGARET LADD in the more dangerous parts replaced by stunt double SIMONE BOISSEREE, but removed in post-production. ← Previous episode... → Next episode... |
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