Take a Left at the Altar

Air Dates: 13 Oct 1987, (19 Jul 1988?)

Synopsis:

Maddie continues her stay with her parents in Chicago, but she isn't speaking a word to anyone. She hasn't called anyone at Blue Moon, which is causing Agnes to lose sleep and is leaving David feeling frustrated and alone. Moreover, she hasn't talked to her parents, who are becoming increasingly suspicious, especially her father, that she is not just vacationing but actually running away or hiding from something.

In the middle of David's frustration, Bryant Wilbourne brings a case to Blue Moon. Bryant's sister Jackie was going to be married, but her fiancé, Craig Mullens, an airline pilot, never showed up for the wedding and disappeared without a trace. Bryant wants to hire Blue Moon to find him.

After some hunting, David and Bert do find him – and his wife and children – living in Phoenix, and they discover that his real name is not Mullens, but Craig Gerardi. David and Bert conclude that he had been leading Jackie on, perhaps with the intent to marry her as a bigamist, but had decided at last that he couldn't go through with it. The next thing we know, Bryant has killed Craig in a fit of rage over what he has done to Jackie. But of course, things are not always what they seem....

Notable incidental scenes to watch for in this episode include:

• Bert's collection of beepers, and his concern for David

• Maddie's heart-to-heart with her dad ("There was a a time, whenever you had a problem, the first person you'd come to...." "That hasn't changed.")

• The chase in the biplane ("Fly like you've never flown before!" "That shouldn't be difficult – I've never flown before!!")

• David's letter to Maddie ("I'm miserable and I want you to come home.")

Directed by Sam Weisman

Written by Karen Hall

Guest Stars:

Memorable Dialog and Additional Links:

• See Christine Graves's Moonlighting Madness page for this episode.

Music:

• At the start of the episode, "The Wedding Song" written by Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary in 1971.
• During the chase scene at the end, instrumental versions of Flight of the Bumblebee, Man on the Flying Trapeze, and Wild Blue Yonder.
• It's been reported to me that this episode uses music which approximates Bernard Herrmann's score to North by Northwest, and which was first used in the episode North by North DiPesto. Reportedly this music appears during the airplane chase, and is intended to remind the viewer of the airplane chase in that film. Much to my own regret, I'm not familiar enough with Herrmann's score to be able to confirm this report.
• While Maddie is reading David's letter at the very end, when he mentions holding a staff meeting in the office, Limbo Rock by Chubby Checker, first used in the episode My Fair David

Notes:

• Like last week's episode, the irony of Wilbourne's case is the way it mirrors David's and Maddie's relationship by involving the disappearance of a loved one. To underscore this irony, in this episode MacGilicuddy reveals that his wife (whom he married last season) has left him. As Bert observes, "It seems like everywhere you look these days, someone's leaving someone else."

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Date of last change: 16 December 2000

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