Murder, She Wrote (1984–1996): Season 12, Episode 17 - Something Foul in Flappieville - full transcript

Darren's Pound Dog show is threatened with cancellation until he promises a character based on one of Jessica's characters. But as the various people involved want part of the merchandising rights, Darren winds up promising benefits he can't deliver. And when one of them winds up dead, Darren is arrested for murder.

Tonight on Murder, She Wrote.

Inspector Le Chat.

A million kids don't watch
Saturday morning television

'cause your little Flappie
doesn't look like Cindy Crawford.

Hey, Pound Dog is as
funny as he ever was.

I hope to choke
on a bone if I ain't.

We're not renewing the
show for next season.

Not until I see the
white of your contract.

What choice do you have?

If I were a volcano,
I'd be spewing lava!

I'm Happy Bunny. Yes, you are.



Curiosity killed the cat.

So the puppet is the killer.

You said it, I didn't.

I have a feeling my husband
suspects something already.

- You got this wrong.
- Robbie, no!

Gosh, you're
incredible! Oh, thanks.

Thank you.

Yeah.

I hope your bribing works.

Introducing Inspector Le
Chat and Reginald Raccoon!

My Goodness, they
must be here someplace.

This is definitely a mystery.

Clumsy, watch
where you are going.

I don't have eyes back there. Why
don't you watch where you're going?



Aha! I see a clue.

A clue? A clue.

I will prove you stole
Mademoiselle Happy Bunny's jewel

in the dining car of the
Flappieville railroad train.

Listen, bozo, I haven't
eaten in a week.

I was loose as a goose
asleep in the caboose.

Just a moment, Monsieur Raccoon.

How do you explain that
ketchup on your hand?

I have it! I have it! Voilà!

Le Chat, inspector
extraordinaire,

I have caught you, how
you say, red-handed.

Curses! Foiled again!

Wonderful!

Thank you! Thank you very much!

What'd you think?
Pretty fun, huh?

Yeah!

Love the raccoon! Yeah!

Is that really ketchup
on the raccoon?

That was really good, except the
Inspector sounds like Pound Dog.

Yeah!

Yeah. No.

Oh! You guys really
know how to hurt a guy.

Oh, bravo. That was very funny.

Oh, thank you so
much, Mrs. Fletcher.

They're just charming.

Stevie.

Hi, Mrs. Dorow.

Stevie, hi. How are you? Good.

Guys. I'm sorry I'm late.
The traffic was impossible.

Darren, did I miss
the entire thing?

Yeah. Well, I'll forgive you,
even though your husband won't.

Oh, he forgives me.

See you later, Stevie. Bye.

"Bye, Stevie." You know him?

- Everybody's a critic.
- The kid has a point.

How was lunch with the
girls at La Gorgonzola?

It was great.

Uh, Jessica.

Arvin, you and I have the
only two keys for this, okay?

It's locked every night.

If I'm not here, it's
your responsibility.

You got it,
Mr. Crosley. All right.

Can't be too cautious where
toy companies are concerned.

They're not above ripping off a new idea
even before it's off the drawing board.

So, I'm so glad you all
love my new character.

Darren, the character came
from a story Jessica created

for her grandnieces and nephews.

Give me a break,
Robbie, will you?

I was simply saying that it is a
privilege to bring her creation to life.

And a worthy addition
to Flappieville he is.

Jessica, I noticed you
making some notes.

Uh, yes. There were a
couple of things, actually.

The Inspector's
demeanor and his costume.

You see, I always
pictured him more elegant.

Debonair perhaps, you know?

Excellent. I'll put you
together with Helena McKenna.

Oh, good.

And Jason. Don't forget Jason.

And Jason Cardino.

He's one of the bright, new
young helpers here at Flappieville.

Now I figure on a rollout
schedule of six to eight months

for the new Inspector
Le Chat Show.

It's the best Flappie
we ever made.

Excuse me! Are we maybe
forgetting about good old Pound Dog?

Darren, it's time to
hang Pound Dog up.

Let him retire to the Smithsonian,
along with Charlie McCarthy and...

Pound Dog is as
funny as he ever was.

Couldn't put it
any better myself.

Darren, about the
Inspector's voice...

I hated it, too.

Listen, pal, you just stick
to building the toys, okay?

Putting on the
show is my domain.

Hey, we have to invest a
fortune to launch Le Chat Toys.

That entitles us to a say...
Guys, guys. Come on.

We've always done our
best work in collaboration.

That was a long time ago.

Darren, it seems to me
that the Inspector's voice

is a little too much
like Pound Dog's.

What? No, he sounds
nothing like him.

I mean, Pound Dog
is a good old boy

from Elvis Presley country
down Memphis way.

Now, Inspector Le
Chat is a Frenchman

with an eye for
the femme fatale.

I'm losing it here, you
know, and I am late, okay?

I hope you're happy, Robbie. I'm
coming unglued because of you.

Jessica, I think the Inspector Le Chat
has the potential to become a classic.

You know, you saw
all that in my story.

I really only thought of it as a
way to amuse a few children.

The Inspector's a winner.

Wish I felt the same
enthusiasm for the puppeteer.

Darling, isn't it time you
make your peace with Darren?

That would take
major surgery, darling.

Got a meeting with
my department heads.

If we're gonna get Le Chat
online six months from now,

we've got to start
the wheels turning.

This project, it seems to
be touching some sore spots.

Yeah, I'd hoped that
it would heal them.

Darren and I were an
item a long time ago.

Before you and I met, Jessica.

They were best friends and
when Robbie and I fell in love,

well, that sort of put an end to
the friendship between the guys.

Oh, Jessica.

We used to have
such fun together.

I was hoping that this project might
help us get back to the way it was.

You know, Robbie and I
haven't been able to have a child.

And now there's
this extra stress.

But I... I can't help feeling that there's
something else on Robbie's mind,

something that he's not saying.

It's ugly! Like nothing
goes with anything else.

I mean, have you ever seen a
frumpier costume in your life?

Shh! Helena can hear you.

I don't care.

No wonder the Pound Dog
ratings have dropped to a new low.

All right. Why
didn't I think of that?

A million kids don't watch
Saturday morning television

'cause your little Flappie
doesn't look like Cindy Crawford.

Jason, I'm having trouble
with the controls on this one.

It keeps me from doing
any of my subtle movements.

No problem.

Hmm.

Kim, I was just wondering

if maybe we could, I
don't know, have dinner

or see a movie or
something tonight.

Oh, I'd love to.
But I'm kind of busy.

See you.

Bye, Kim.

Watch out for that one.

The only person she
thinks about is herself.

Thanks for the warning, but right
now I prefer to trust my hormones.

That's really a bad idea.

But who am I to give
advice on such matters?

Gus.

I hear that everybody really
loved the little Inspector.

Oh, yeah.

And Kim was saying that Darren
said pretty nice stuff about me.

Yeah. Yeah.

And Jason, Darren was wondering
if you've signed your contract yet.

No, not yet.

Is there a problem with
it? Why? Should there be?

No! No, I'll take
a look at it for you.

Not that I'm that
good at legalese.

I'll take care of it, Gus.

Hey, put that down.

Hey, Jason.

I didn't mean any harm. I was
just checking out the new fellow.

Arvin, you're not
supposed to touch any of

the Flappies, especially
not the Inspector.

Okay, okay, I've got
it. No offense intended.

You okay, Inspector?

All is well.

Or it will be soon.

And now, by popular request,
here's Happy Bunny with a poem.

I think that I shall always hop
whenever I spy a carrot-top.

Oh, well, that's
my all-time favorite.

Look, Darren, I don't
know how to say this, but...

No, no, no. I know, I know.
It's silly stuff, you know.

But, hey, it's supposed
to be silly, right?

I mean, and the kids
still love it after 14 years.

Well, not enough
of them anymore,

according to the ratings.

Look, Darren, there's no
way to say this except to say it.

It's time to pension
off Pound Dog.

We're not renewing the
show for next season.

Aw, no.

I thought I owed you the courtesy
of hearing it from the source.

No, man. No!

Okay. Okay. You know
what? You are absolutely right.

Now, what we need to do

is to find some way to put
new life into the old pooch.

Well, see, there's the problem,
see? It's old and... And tired.

You know, I cannot believe
how in sync we are on this.

No! Really. Really. You know, I
was gonna lay this on you next week,

but, um, well,

I have created a
great new character.

Inspector Le Chat.

See, he's this French cop, right?
And his new beat is Flappieville.

Well, that's a little different.

Yes, yes, it is different.

It is different and
it is big-time funny.

Now, I was gonna surprise you
and, you know, fold the Inspector

into the Pound Dog
series, you know.

I get the kids yelling
for more and then boom!

Spin him off into his own show.

So the network won't have to
spend the money on a new pilot.

Exactly my thinking.

And, just in case I don't
have your attention here,

the character is based on
a book by Jessica Fletcher.

Yeah, the famous mystery writer.

She just happens to be in town
doing an educational special.

Really?

I like her stuff. A lot.

So, CDs, books, games,
toys, clothing, software.

Big promotional
possibilities here, right?

All plugging the show.

And theoretically you could
be on the air this season?

Hey, you tell me the light is green and
Le Chat debuts six weeks from today.

I'll need to see
something and fast.

Absolutely. You will have
final sketches and a storyboard.

Okay. Good.

And for God sakes, please, find
someone else to do the voice, huh?

All the characters on
Pound Dog sound like you.

Get someone good.
Get Nattie Holt.

Sure, yeah. Someone
like Nattie'd be great.

Not someone like. Get Nattie.

Anything else?

Look, Darren, I'm
not gonna lie to you.

You're still more
dead than alive.

So, what do you think?

Oh, I like it much better.

You were right. The wardrobe
changes really go with his sophisticated,

Parisian personality. Yes.

Helena, I really love
this new costume design.

It's terrific. It's almost exactly
the way I imagined the Inspector.

You know, you're both not
only very good, you're very quick.

Thank you. Thank you.

Well, I'd better get back to work
before all this praise goes to my head.

See you.

I should have the
costume ready by tonight.

Thanks for dropping by, Jessica.

Oh, I'm so glad I did.

I really love this
feeling of participating.

It's something that I often miss
when I'm home working alone.

Well, hold on to that
participatory feeling,

because I'm gonna run and
get the fabric I'm gonna use.

Can you stay a sec? Oh, sure.

Can I help you?

Oh, well... Mrs. Fletcher.

I'm Arvin Bucknell, Security.
I didn't mean to disturb you.

Oh, that's quite all right.
Helena will be right back.

We were just looking at
some costume sketches.

Oh, that's okay. I
won't bother you.

Not at all.

Hi, baby.

I'm trying to work
here, Kim, okay?

Sorry.

It's just that I think I should have
something to say about the look of

my puppet's
costume and Helena...

Look, okay, okay, okay. I
will talk to Helena, okay?

Okay. Okay.

Is this gonna take long?

I can come back. No. No.

We've gotta talk, all right?
Excuse me for one sec.

Do you think Kim's got
some kind of hidden agenda?

I mean, she always just
sort of seems to be around.

Maybe it's your magnetic charm.

Yeah.

Look, you know
if Nattie's in town?

Why would I know that?

It's been five years
since she divorced me.

Yeah. And you've been trying
to get her back the whole time.

Look, I talked to her agent
and she said she's booked.

Oh, I don't think she'll
ever work for us again.

Yeah, well, you better
see to it that she does.

I need her for the
voice of Le Chat.

Wait a minute. A new voice
for the Inspector? Now?

Darren, what is going on?

Look, don't worry
about it, okay?

Just get her for the home team.

What about Jason?
He sign his contract yet?

No. No. Evidently, he's
got some problems with it.

Maybe the kid's
smarter than I was.

Did I ever say I was perfect?

I'm in a pressure
cooker here. We all are.

Pound Dog's gonna die unless I can
deliver Nattie to the network by tomorrow.

Wait... Wait a minute.

Wait, what's Nattie got
to do with Pound Dog?

Well, to keep the old pooch alive, I
had to give them Inspector Le Chat.

He's gonna be Pound
Dog's new co-star.

Darren. Darren!

I know. I know, okay?
Just get her for me.

Please? I'll do what I can.

Thank you.

You wanted to see
me, Mr. Crosley?

Yeah. Yeah. Arvin,
come here, would you?

Listen, I've got a special
assignment for you.

What's that, sir? Well, um...

I need you to keep a close
eye on somebody for me.

Who do you have in mind?

Order in the court! Order in the
court! All rise for Judge Le Chat.

Darned if it ain't the
old Inspector himself.

Hear ye. Hear ye.

The case of Flappieville
versus Darren Crosley.

Pound Dog, take the stand.

Your Honor, what we've got here is
history repeating itself all over again.

Darren's gonna hog all the
money and take all the credit

like when he stole me from
my creator, Gus Hayward.

And now he's gonna do it to
your creator, Jason Cardino.

Are you certain of your
facts, monsieur le dog?

I hope to choke
on a bone if I ain't.

The court has
reached a decision.

I find Darren Crosley
guilty as charged

and sentence him to 100
years in the electric chair.

Make that 200 years.

And now, here he is in person,

the new and improved,
streamlined crime-fighter

from Paris, France,
Inspector Le Chat.

He's absolutely perfect.

You know, the changes
really work, Jason.

Thanks, Mrs. Fletcher.

Jason, do me a favor, would you?

Have Kim run these over to
Parker Foreman at the network.

Thanks. Ah!

Still one small change.

Voilà! Good. I like it.

You know, I am so knocked out by what
that kid has done for our little Inspector,

I am gonna bump his share of
the merchandising from 2% to 5%.

Well, I think that's very
appropriate, Darren,

because I saw some of the
early conceptual sketches of his

and they are outstanding.

Oh, yeah! And, Jessica, as sort
of an expression of my gratitude

for your immense contributions,

and as kind of a bonus inducement
for signing your contract right away,

I'm upping your
percentage from 20 to 30.

Oh, well, that's very
generous of you, Darren.

Is there any particular reason
why I should need inducement?

Well, I suppose I ought to tell
you about this little conversation

I had with the network.

It kind of affects
our scheduling plans.

You know, with regard to when Inspector
Le Chat actually having his own show.

Um...

Hello.

Who might you be?

I'm Happy Bunny. Yes, you are.

On The Pound Dog Show. I
work the puppet and do the voice.

Oh! My name's Kim Swofford.

Kim. Parker Foreman.

Hi. Hi.

You know, you're one of the
few bright spots on the show.

Oh, thanks. Mmm.

I try to keep her sexy.

You know what they
say about rabbits.

Uh-huh.

Oh, please, have a seat.

Did I hear a rumor that you have
something going with Darren Crosley?

Oh, no. Nothing serious. Oh.

But he's a fabulous
talent, isn't he?

That's why I'm here.

With the new Inspector
Le Chat drawings.

Oh, please, show
me more, Miss Bunny.

Kim.

How about tomorrow?

Oh, no. No, I don't think I
could possibly get away.

I have a feeling my husband
suspects something already.

Well, Mary, you're gonna
have to make a commitment.

I know.

I could speak to
him if you'd like.

No. No, please.

I'll deal with it.

Soon, I promise.

You have been so understanding.

Please just bear
with me a little longer.

Of course.

Thank you.

Robbie Dorow! Congratulations!

I just saw the revised
sketches of Inspector Le Chat.

Looks to me like you and
Darren are riding a winner, huh?

Well, I guess we'll
know by next fall.

Next fall.

Don't they tell you anything?
We're talking next month.

Oops!

They're after me again.

Huh! Ciao.

That was a fun story, Daddy.

Did you like it?

Your story put
Daddy to sleep, Leroy.

Ha! That's nice.

Tomorrow night we'll tell
him about The Cat in the Hat.

Children, aren't you in bed yet?

Yes, Mother!

Move over, Daddy.

That was right on
the money, Nattie.

Do you wanna hear the playback?

I'm happy if you are.

You haven't changed.

Still the woman of 1,017 voices.

And I can say no in all of them.

You can tell that
to Darren Crosley.

You can name your price.

The network says it's gotta
be you or forget the new show.

Parker Foreman
is a fan of yours.

What do you get out
of it, a pat on the head?

Oh, so I'm not aggressive.

Maybe that's why you
grew up to play with dolls.

Nattie.

I tried like hell to be
the man you wanted.

But I'm just me.

Oh, Gus.

So, you think that I will be the
good Inspector Le Chat? Huh?

Okay, did you make
the deal with Nattie Holt?

Yeah. Good.

Here's my deal.

I'll keep you on the air for the rest of
this season, plus a pick-up for next year

as the new Inspector Le
Chat/Pound Dog Show.

Oh, that is great, Parker.
You are gonna love the...

I talk, you listen.

I get half the
merchandising royalties.

Wait. The network wants half?

No. Look, not the
network. Listen.

Me, personally. 50%.

Games, toys, videos, everything.

I'll give you the number of a
bank account in the Caymans.

And, of course, this will
just be our little secret.

Half? I mean, there are
other people involved.

Robbie and...

Hello! We're not
negotiating here.

Take it or leave it.

Yeah. Yeah, okay,
fine. You got a deal.

Really? Oh, one more
thing, for the non-record,

this meeting never took
place, hmm? See you.

For the non-record, this
meeting never took place.

Oh, dear. Making the Inspector
part of The Pound Dog Show

and putting it on
the air so soon...

I don't think Robbie's gonna
be very happy with any of this.

Well, I'm afraid
Darren has seen to it

that we don't have
much of a choice.

Well, I should have
expected something like this.

Darren always means well,
but somehow, invariably,

he manages to shoot
himself in the foot.

Along with a lot
of other people.

I'm amazed I have
any toes left at all.

Lord knows what other
commitments he's made.

Jessica, Darren wanted to get your notes
on the revised Pound Dog/Le Chat script

before we messenger
it over to the network.

We're really under the gun here.

Of course. I'll
read it right away.

I'll call you as
soon as I'm finished.

Okay. Thank you. Oh, and Gus.

I wonder if you could
check on something for me.

Sure.

Upset? Do I sound upset?

If I were a volcano,
I'd be spewing lava!

Look, you wanted Inspector Le
Chat on the air. I made it happen.

Plus I got you an extra 10 points
on the merchandising to boot.

That may satisfy Jessica,

but my understanding
was a show of his own,

timed to start just before the Inspector
Le Chat toys and games hit the stores.

Darren, the Inspector could have
been the biggest thing in television.

Instead, you turned him into a
straight man for a worn-out fleabag!

Hey, hey, just watch it, okay?

Look, so Le Chat'll spin off into his
own show a year or so down the line.

I mean, is that so bad?

You sold something
you don't own.

Under terms you didn't have any right
to approve without consulting with me,

considering I own the
merchandising rights!

Oh, man, you had me
going there, Robbie.

Yeah. Lunch is on me tomorrow.

Okay. Bye-bye.

That Robbie's
quite a kidder, huh?

You wanna take
these upstairs for me?

Yes, sir. Thanks.

He hung up on you, didn't he?

You know, Nattie, when
you first walked into my office,

I thought to myself, "Now, there
is just the woman I wanted to see."

What a coincidence!
Because I was thinking,

"Here's the guy I said I never
wanted to see again as long as I lived."

Hmm.

That's funny. But you're still
committed to the project, right?

Not on paper.

I was thinking that we could
settle the terms right here and now.

30% of the merchandising
royalties could go to Gus and Jason

and then another 10% for me.

Or I'm out of here.

But Nattie...

And you know what? If it
could come out of your share,

that would make the
deal that much sweeter.

Wow. You really know how
to kick a guy where it hurts.

Yeah. Well, get ready.

I want Gus to executive produce,

run of the show, all
episodes, no cut-off.

Ouch! Okay. Fine.

All right, now that the
pleasantries are out of the way,

when can you
meet with our staff?

Not until I see the
white of your contract.

You know, Mary and I've got an
anniversary coming up next week.

Yes. Mary mentioned it.

Seven years, isn't it? Uh-huh.

The seven year itch.

People usually think
that's a guy thing, but...

She's having an affair, Jessica.

Are you sure, Robbie?
I've seen them together.

Oh, I'm sorry.

I don't know...

It all began to change when we
lost the baby and the doctors said

she couldn't have any
more children six years ago.

I guess neither of us
ever really got over it.

I've been kind of
distant, buried in my work.

Jessica, I... I don't...

I don't wanna lose her.

Look, all I'm saying is, just, you know,
try and take it a little easy on Kim, okay?

Oh, that pain in the
cottontail prima donna.

She's demanded so many
changes in Happy Bunny's costume,

you'd think she was
wearing it herself.

Yeah. Well, I heard
her side of the story.

Oh, don't tell me. I
already know the plot

and who plays Wicked
Witch of the West.

Okay, fine. All right. Hey,
do you know where Jason is?

Yeah. He had an appointment.

With his lawyer. To
go over his contract.

Oh, terrific. That
is just terrific.

Arvin?

Just making my rounds, sir.

Darren, is there
anything I can do to help?

No. I wish there was.

Look, Gus, I appreciate

your gathering this
information for me so fast,

but I think I'm writing
it down incorrectly.

All right. Let's
go over it again.

These are the slices of the
merchandising pie for Inspector Le Chat.

Nattie gets 20%. Plus my 30%.

You know, she brokered
33% for me and Jason.

Plus 30% for Robbie.

Yeah. And that adds up to...

113%.

You're kidding. Uh-uh.

That's not even counting
Darren's usual 40%.

Whatever made me think
this was gonna be fun?

Darren?

Oh, Jessica.

Thank God you're here.
I... I found him like this.

It's Arvin, the security guard.

He must have surprised a thief
trying to steal Inspector Le Chat.

Marty, make sure you get
some pictures from the other side

so we can get that
perspective as well, okay?

Mr. Crosley. Can I
show you something?

Man, it looks like it was
jimmied open with a meat cleaver.

Actually, it was
a pair of scissors.

Yeah, our perpetrator wasn't somebody
who was looking for a paper clip.

Lieutenant, it looks to me
like the work of an amateur.

Ah. You're the mystery maven.

Well, I'm just a bewildered cop.

Who has keys to this
locker, Mr. Crosley?

Only Arvin and I.

Arvin. What was
so valuable in there?

Him. He's gonna be the
new sensation with the kids.

And some highly
classified drawings.

Well, he's still here,
so are the drawings.

You sure there wasn't
something else? Whoa! Whoa!

Looks like we have
the murder weapon.

Lieutenant Spevak, something over
here you might like to take a look at.

Yeah, it looks
like blood, all right.

What do you know? So
the puppet is the killer.

Better not tell my kid.

113%? I really gave
that much away?

Mmm-hmm. I mean, what do
you plan to do if Inspector Le Chat

is a huge success?

I don't know. Go
directly to jail, I guess.

Jessica, I just wasn't
thinking, you know?

I wanted so badly for it all to
happen, to work out for everybody,

and now, Inspector
Le Chat, Pound Dog...

I've really blown it, haven't I?

Maybe not.

What do you mean?

I mean, I might be willing
to take a smaller share.

And maybe if you
talk to the others...

That's it! I'll just be... I'll
just be up front about it and...

Oh, boy! There's Nattie.

She hates me and...

And Gus. I don't know, Jessica.

Darren, what choice do you have?

So you're saying I gotta start
acting like a grownup, huh?

You said it, I didn't.

Now, you're sure
that this is all of it?

Oh. Yeah, absolutely.

And thanks, Jessica.

I'm just gonna throw myself at
their mercy and hope for the best.

Hey, gang, sorry I'm so
buried in work over here

that I can't make it over there
for your focus group session,

but on behalf of the network, I
want to wish us all the best of luck

on your latest public
unveiling of Inspector Le Chat.

Hey, the focus group is only
a half a dozen kids, Parker.

Hopefully the first
of millions, Darren.

Oh, by the way,

I want to tell you all how shocked I was
about last night's unfortunate happening.

It was very unsettling,
Mr. Foreman.

But things are beginning
to level out over here.

Thanks to some
very forgiving people.

May I ask you, are you satisfied

with the recent
modifications to the Inspector?

Oh, absolutely, and I
was just coming to that.

I've been running the sketches
past everyone over here.

They're just crazy
about that little fellow.

The new changes
are j just great.

Trench coat,

moving his magnifying
glass to his left hand.

Love the bowtie.

Now he just seems to have

the right amount of
sophistication, don't you think?

Listen, give me a call when you have
some results from the focus group session.

Bye.

Parker, you just got
a special delivery in.

From who? I don't know.

There's no return address on it.

Hmm.

Thank you. Okay.

Howdy! Give a listen to this.

I get half the
merchandising royalties.

Not the network.
Me personally. 50%.

Games, toys, videos, everything.

I'll give you the number of a
bank account in the Caymans.

And, of course, this
will be our little secret.

Another thing,
for the non-record,

this little meeting
never took place.

Well, you'll be hearing
from me, partner!

In the meantime, why don't you
start breaking open your piggy bank?

Very funny, Darren.

You snake.

You filthy reptile! Stop!

You, sir, are under arrest.

Arrest? Arrest.

And thank heavens,
the Flappieville Express.

She is right on time.

Yup, Inspector Le Chat,
thanks to your deductive powers.

Detective Powers? Who is he?

I was told that I am the
only gendarme in Flappieville.

And this is The Pound
Dog/ Inspector Le Chat Show,

barking off till next time.

Terrific, I have to admit it.

Did you see the
children's faces?

And Nattie's
voice, it's perfect.

Darling, this is Stevie.

He wants to tell you what
he thinks of Inspector Le Chat.

He was really funny. A lot more
funny than dumb old Pound Dog.

You said it, kid.

I've got to talk to Darren.

If he'll swear to firm up design
today, no more changes. Darren.

Bye, Stevie. Bye. See you.

Caitlin, let's go.

Mr. Crosley, can I talk
to you for a second?

Well, you know, Lieutenant,

you have picked a
singularly inconvenient time.

Yeah, well, it'll have to do.

You know, it turns out that the
flatiron was the murder weapon.

Uh-huh.

Well, the thing of it
is though, that the...

The fingerprints on the
handle were all smudged.

Except for one set.

They were nice and clean.

Yours.

Yeah. Well, I can...
I can explain that.

You see, when I came into the
design room and found Arvin's body,

well, I picked up the flatiron.
Probably a dumb thing to do.

Well, that's a very natural
reaction, Lieutenant.

Probably not as dumb as
you're gonna think I am now.

I'm placing you under
arrest for murder.

What? Why would I kill Arvin?

I mean, he was a
perfectly nice guy.

Murder victims frequently are.

Several of your
employees have stated

that you had words with
him on several occasions.

Jessica, this is totally nuts.
I mean, I didn't kill anybody!

Come on, buddy. Let's go.

Hi, Mr. Foreman. Remember me?

Oh, yeah. Of course.
Kim, the Happy Bunny.

Look, any other time
I'd be tickled to see you,

but I'm expecting someone. Kind
of a touchy business thing, so...

Don't mind. I know.

You know what?

I sent you the
excerpts from the tape.

Please.

Pound Dog's voice was on it,

so I figured that it was
Darren or maybe Gus.

Mmm-mmm. I spliced together bits of
Pound Dog's voice from some old shows.

So, I assume you and
Darren are in this together.

Uh-uh. It is blackmail.

I'm kind of scared here.

Well, it's about time.

I mean, you know me, I can usually
talk my way out of any tight spot,

but this cop Spevak,
he's a pretty hard sell.

Darren, Lieutenant
Spevak theorized

that Arvin Bucknell
stumbled over evidence

of a less than ethical
deal that you'd made.

Yeah. I never should've told him
about the goof-up with percentages.

Yeah, well, somebody would have.

I just don't get this
whole business with

the iron and the bloodstains
on the Inspector Le Chat Flappie.

Well, I think I can
understand that one.

I mean, suppose the killer's
hand was inside a Flappie.

Yes! And that was the hand
he used to hold the flatiron.

Which would account for why the
fingerprints were smudged on the handle.

But what I don't understand is
who jimmied the locker and why.

I mean, Inspector Le Chat and all the
other drawings were left behind after all.

What was Arvin doing
in the design room?

Well, maybe he caught the killer

in the act of trying to
break into the locker.

But how did the killer get in?

Well, maybe they
forced Arvin to let them in.

Jessica?

It just doesn't want to add up.

Are you sure there wasn't something
else of great value in that locker?

Here you go.

Hey, I wanna talk to you.

I've seen you and my wife
together and it's gonna stop, now.

Mr. Dorow, you got this wrong.

Robbie, no! Please, don't.

Oh, great. You're
here to see him, right?

No, I... This is Terry Fusco.

I'm not here to see him,
I'm here to see Stevie.

Stevie. Who's Stevie?

Robbie, I was hoping
that he would be our son.

Mr. Dorow, your wife and I
have been working together.

I'm a social worker
specializing in adoptions.

Stevie's a foster child...

Mary, for God sake, I thought...

Darling, I know how touchy
you've been about children.

I wanted to bring you
around to the idea gradually.

I thought you were the one
who never wanted to talk about it.

This Stevie... How long
has this been in the works?

Well, we're still in the
initial stages, Mr. Dorow.

Frankly, my biggest concern was,

well, whether or not
you'd welcome the boy.

You met him. At
the focus groups.

That's Stevie? The one who
thought Pound Dog was dumb?

Yes. Yes.

That's my kind of kid.

Good news? Could be. Mmm-hmm.

Oh, you know, I almost forgot.

Before, there was
another call for you.

Oh! No name. Nah. It's
just the guy at the network.

Fiji calling.

What?

The travel brochure
on Kim's clipboard.

Okay. You see, you're
losing me, Mrs. Fletcher.

What does that mean?

I'm not quite sure.

But I am almost certain that
Darren is still holding something back.

Something that'll make
everything a lot clearer.

You know something?
Curiosity killed the cat.

Ah, mademoiselle. Welcome
to Flappie's late show.

Well, what is this,
some kind of joke?

Oh! No, no, chérie.

Would you like to
tell the Inspector

what you know about
Darren Crosley's tape cassette

before you leave on your
little vacation to the south seas?

How do you know
about my travel plans?

Kim, Darren finally told
me about the audio cassette.

The one you stole from the
locker in the design room.

That was the motive for
the murder of Arvin Bucknell.

Murder?

Mrs. Fletcher, you are way crazy

if you think I had
anything to do with that.

Oh, but you had a
great deal to do with it.

After the murder, I noticed a
travel brochure on your clipboard

with a phone
number written on it.

Lieutenant Spevak
called the travel agency

and they said that you'd booked
a very expensive deluxe tour,

but hadn't paid for it yet.

You told the travel agent that you
expected to have the money very soon.

Well, I've been saving up.

Not according to
your bank balance.

The phone number you jotted on
the brochure was Parker Foreman's.

You intended to blackmail
him with the tape cassette.

I don't know what
you're talking about.

Yeah. You were always
skulking around my office,

looking for stuff.

Actually, I thought
it was kind of cute.

Sort of reminded me of myself.

Ambitious and pushy.

So what toy company did
you make the deal with?

Does it matter?

I made a copy of the
key with that in mind.

But when I found
the tape and played it,

I realized that I had something
that was worth much more.

But you've got to believe
me, I didn't kill Arvin.

Ah, evening, all.

I do believe you, Kim.

You took that tape,

but then someone
else came looking for it.

Mr. Foreman, I
believe that was you.

I'm sorry, you're losing
me, Mrs. Fletcher.

Kim phoned and invited
me to a run-through.

Well, I'm afraid that that was Nattie,
the woman of 1,017 voices, imitating Kim.

Really? At your
suggestion, I gather.

You were the person threatened
by the existence of that tape

and you assumed that Darren
was going to blackmail you with it,

so you killed
in order to get it.

I was just gonna use it to
try and keep you honest.

But you discovered that
the tape was already gone.

What you didn't learn till
later was that Kim had taken it.

It's fascinating. Sounds like a plot for
one of your mysteries, Mrs. Fletcher,

but there's just...
Just one major hole.

You see that there's no
way you can prove any of this.

Ah, but there is.

Mr. Foreman, you told us
you'd been at the murder scene.

No, no, no. Forget it.

I haven't been in this
building in months.

Not true.

When you spoke to us from your
office, the morning after the murder,

you commented on the change
that we'd made on Inspector Le Chat.

Moving his magnifying
glass to his left hand...

Now that particular change

was made after the
sketches were sent to you.

The only way you could have
known that the magnifying glass

was in the Inspector's left hand
was if you were here that night.

And if we need any more, I
guarantee our lab boys will be able to

find traces of your
skin inside that dummy.

Huh.

You know, when I left you
on the street that day, I just

happened to look back and I saw you
take the tape recorder from your pocket.

I had to get my
hands on that cassette.

I tried to bribe the
security guard to show me

where Darren kept his valuables,

but, oh, no. He was
way ahead of me.

You see, he had played
the tape for himself

and he was gonna
put the squeeze on me,

so yes, I did put my hand
inside that ridiculous puppet

and I slugged
him with a flatiron.

I got rid of one blackmailer.

Unfortunately, not the other.

Jessica, by the time you're back
in New York, we'll be in Hawaii.

Where our son is going to teach
Robbie how to fish and relax.

Don't worry. It's easy.

So, I understand there's all
sorts of changes in Flappieville.

And all good.

Inspector Le Chat has been
given his own show next year.

And thanks to the fresh
ideas of Jason and Gus,

The Pound Dog Show has
been renewed for another season.

Stevie, how do you
like your new home?

It's great, Mrs. Fletcher.