Jessica is spending her holidays with an old friend, Lloyd Marcus. His daughter is found murdered in her house, and her husband, Donald, becomes the prime suspect.

Season 2, Episode 22: If the Frame Fits (April 13, 1986)

Jessica stops by the house of a friend, Lloyd Marcus, to review a manuscript for him. However, the murder of Lloyd’s daughter Julia takes place immediately, as JB is the angel of death, or at least knows him.

Who’s in it, outside of Angela Lansbury?

Ellen Davis is played by Deborah Adair, who was in The Rift.

Donald Granger is Christopher Allport, who was in Invaders from Mars and Jack Frost. 

Binky Holborn? That’s John de Lancie, the Q!

Police Chief Cooper is Cliff Gorman, Lt. Andrews in Angel. 

Frank Tilley is Gordon Jump! WKRP is all over Murder, She Wrote. And Mildred Tilley? That’s Audrey Meadows!

Lloyd Marcus, who started this trouble, is Norman Lloyd, who was in Jaws of Satan and Amityville: The Evil Escapes and directed several episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Sabrina Marcus is played by Andra Millian.

In more minor roles, Forbes is Aubrey Morris (who was in The Wicker Man), Anne Schedeen (Kate Tanner from ALF) is Julia Granger, Michael Morgan plays a young man, Russell is a waiter, and Lorenzo Gaspar is a doctor.

What happens?

Lloyd Marcus quit advertising to be a mystery writer. I get it, Lloyd. He needs Jessica’s help, and just when she’s ready to tell him to go back to working in the ad biz, one of his expensive paintings gets stolen. While Jessica is in town, she’s taken to the country club, which is filled with snobs.

Lloyd has a rough life. His daughters, Julia and Sabrina, continue to fight over Julia’s husband, Donald, while Julia drinks through brunch. Then there’s the wild Binky Holborn, who everyone thinks is with Ellen Davis, who is really with Donald. All these rich people! JB can’t wait to get back to Cabbot Cove.

Jessica does like Binky, though, and the two make fun of Lloyd’s script together. Oh Lloyd. The fun stops when he gets home and finds his daughter Julia dead, holding a button with the letter D. Lloyd is sure it’s Donald who did it.

Who did it?

Lloyd changed the crime scene to implicate Donald, but he didn’t do it.

Binky is the art thief, but he didn’t do it.

So yes, it was Donald, even though Lloyd set him up. He really did it. And Sabrina thought that she could finally be with him, not knowing that he had killed her sister.

Who made it?

Director Paul Lynch also made Humongous and Prom Night. Writer Philip Gerson wrote 37 episodes of the show.

Does Jessica get some?

Nope. I think she was happy to get a new queer friend in Binky, who is delightful.

Does Jessica dress up and act stupid?

No. Come on!

Was it any good?

Yes, this is a fun episode!

Any trivia?

This is the second time Audrey Meadows has been on the show.

Give me a reasonable quote:

Jessica Fletcher: And do you remember The Horror of Harrow House, with the lurid bloodstains on the doormat?

Lloyd Marcus: Don’t knock it. It sold half a million copies in paperback. Schlock, pure and simple, but very effective.

What’s next?

Season 3 starts with a two-part episode. When Jessica’s niece receives a silver leprechaun from someone who has been presumed dead for years, our heroine looks for the mysterious gift giver, who should be dead.