Murder, She Wrote: A Story to Die For


4:00 pm - 6:00 pm, Sunday, July 19 on WCBS Start TV (2.2)

Average User Rating: 7.84 (112 votes)
My Rating: Sign in or Register to view last vote

Add to Favorites

About this Broadcast
-

A Story to Die For

Jessica investigates the murder of a Russian who wrote an exposé about the KGB.

2000 English
Mystery & Suspense Crime Drama

Cast & Crew
-

Angela Lansbury (Actor) .. Jessica Fletcher
Richard Crenna (Actor) .. Warren Pierce
Kathryn Morris (Actor) .. Patricia Williams
Daniel Dae Kim (Actor) .. Everett Jay
Steven Culp (Actor) .. William Bassby

More Information
-

No Logo
No Logo

Did You Know..
-

Angela Lansbury (Actor) .. Jessica Fletcher
Born: October 16, 1925
Died: October 11, 2022
Birthplace: London, England
Parentimage: http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/2/Open/Getty/Angela%20Lansbury/94392417.jpg
Imagecredits: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images Entertainment
Trivia: Angela Lansbury received an Oscar nomination for her first film, Gaslight, in 1944, and has been winning acting awards and audience favor ever since. Born in London to a family that included both politicians and performers, Lansbury came to the U.S. during World War II. She made notable early film appearances as the snooty sister in National Velvet (1944); the pathetic singer in The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945), which garnered her another Academy nomination; and the madam-with-a-heart-of-gold saloon singer in The Harvey Girls (1946). She turned evil as the manipulative publisher in State of the Union (1948), but was just as convincing as the good queen in The Three Musketeers (1948) and the petulant daughter in The Court Jester (1956). She received another Oscar nomination for her chilling performance as Laurence Harvey's scheming mother in The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and appeared as the addled witch in Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971), among other later films. On Broadway, she won Tony awards for the musicals Mame (1966), Dear World (1969), the revival of Gypsy (1975), Sweeney Todd (1979) and, at age 82, for the play Blithe Spirit (2009). Despite a season in the '50s on the game show Pantomime Quiz, she came to series television late, starring in 1984-1996 as Jessica Fletcher in Murder, She Wrote; she took over as producer of the show in the '90s. She returned to the Disney studios to record the voice of Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast (1991) and to sing the title song and later reprised the role in the direct-to-video sequel, The Enchanted Christmas (1997). Lansbury is the sister of TV producer Bruce Lansbury.
Richard Crenna (Actor) .. Warren Pierce
Born: November 30, 1926
Died: January 17, 2003
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, United States
Parentimage: http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/2/Open/Getty_Images_406/Person/274712/GettyImages-97435148.jpg
Imagecredits: Gregg DeGuire/WireImage/Getty Images
Trivia: American actor Richard Crenna started out as a radio performer at age 11, demonstrating an astonishing range for one so young. The momentum of his career was unaffected by an army hitch and time spent earning an English degree at the University of Southern California. But even though he was by then in his twenties, Crenna found himself still playing adolescents, notably squeaky-voiced high schooler Walter Denton on the radio comedy Our Miss Brooks. That he was able to play characters of virtually any age was overlooked by movie and TV casting directors, who could see Crenna only in callow-juvenile roles. After making an excellent impression as ballplayer Daffy Dean in the 1953 film Pride of St. Louis, for example, Crenna wasn't cast in another film until the 1955 movie version of Our Miss Brooks--in which, at 29, he was Walter Denton once more. The following year, Crenna decided "to sorta let Walter Denton die," and took a decidedly mature role in the sleazy exploitation film Over-Exposed (1956). It was a fully grown Crenna who took on the role of Luke McCoy on the Walter Brennan TV series The Real McCoys, which ran from 1957 through 1963 and which gave Crenna his first opportunities as a director. After McCoys, Crenna found himself facing potential career standstill again, since it seemed that now he was typed as the rubeish Luke McCoy. This time, however, the actor had impressed enough producers with his dogged work ethic and the range displayed in guest-star appearances. In 1964, Crenna was cast in a prestigious TV drama For the People as assistant DA David Koster, and though the program lasted only one season, Crenna was firmly established as a compelling dramatic actor. Still, and despite solid Richard Crenna film performances in The Sand Pebbles (1966), Body Heat (1981) and The Flamingo Kid (1985), the actor has never completely escaped the spectre of Walter Denton. Crenna was able to conjure up the old adenoidal Denton voice on talk shows of the 1980s and 1990s, and in the action-film spoof Hot Shots: Part Deux, the actor, with an absolute straight face, portrayed Colonel Denton Walters!
Kathryn Morris (Actor) .. Patricia Williams
Born: January 28, 1969
Birthplace: Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Parentimage: http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/2/Open/Getty/Kathryn%20Morris/86468999.jpg
Imagecredits: Charley Gallay/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
Trivia: Held in warm regard by Xena-philes for her role as the vulnerable villain Najara in the popular fantasy adventure series Xena: Warrior Princess, actress Kathy Morris sports an impressively eclectic resumé, appearing in everything from television's creepy Poltergeist: The Legacy to such dramatic roles as The Contender (2000).Morris was born in Cincinnati, but grew up traveling constantly and living a Partridge Family-esque existence with her close-knit family/bandmates from the age of five. Though she would spend time in such geographically diverse climates as Brooklyn, TX, and the cold of Connecticut, it was with her early experiences in the spotlight that Morris found the most fulfillment. Seguing into theater after her youthful experiences on the stage, she began to refine her acting skills and soon made the decision to pursue a professional career as an actress. Laboring through countless hours of free work and waitressing in the years she spent launching her career, Morris finally got her break when cast alongside Mark Harmon in the made-for-television film The Long Road Home in 1991. Making her feature debut opposite 15-minute rap sensation Vanilla Ice in Cool as Ice the same year, Morris appeared in more made-for-TV movies (Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All [1994]) and low-budget thrillers (Sleepstalker [1995] and The Prophecy II [1998]) in the following years, Morris began to truly gain momentum in 1997 when she was cast in television's Pensacola: Wings of Gold and the aforementioned Xena: Warrior Princess. Never having been the athletic type, Morris left most of the fantastic swashbuckling of her sympathetic villainess in the physically demanding Xena to stunt doubles. After appearances in The Contender and the nuclear war thriller Deterrence (2000), Morris leapt into her biggest film yet with her role in Steven Spielberg's A.I. (2001). Spielberg also cast her in his next film, 2002's Minority Report, playing Tom Cruise's estranged wife.In 2003, Morris returned to television in the CBS series Cold Case. Playing Philadelphia Detective Lilly Rush, Morris was the lead in the show, which ran for seven seasons. After Cold Case wrapped in 2010, she played the small role of Billy Beane's (Brad Pitt) wife in the Oscar-nominated film Moneyball (2011), but her scenes were ultimately cut from the movie. In 2013, Morris appeared in the Hallmark Channel's TV Movie The Sweeter Side of Life.
Daniel Dae Kim (Actor) .. Everett Jay
Born: August 04, 1968
Birthplace: Pusan, South Korea
Parentimage: http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/2/Open/Getty/101278/170306966.jpg
Imagecredits: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
Trivia: A handsome, chiseled actor of South Korean origins who labored for over a decade onscreen before officially landing his breakout role in the hit ABC series Lost, Daniel Dae Kim got his start with bit roles in such popular shows as Beverly Hills 90210, Angel, and 24 before turning heads as the only non-English-speaking passenger to be stranded on a mysterious island paradise inhabited by psychic smoke monsters and malevolent "Others."Born in Pusan, South Korea, and raised in New York and Pennsylvania, Kim earned his B.A. from Haverford college before briefly considering a career in law. It was a fateful early-career appearance on an episode of Law & Order that spurred the burgeoning actor to ditch the courtroom and take to the stage, with subsequent roles in Romeo and Juliet and A Doll's House providing all the encouragement Kim needed to continue developing his craft. Later, after earning his M.F.A. through the Graduate Acting Program at New York University, roles in such high-profile television hits as Seinfeld, Ally McBeal, The Practice, and Party of Five came fast and furious. Though additional appearances in such features as The Jackal and For Love of the Game showed big-screen promise as well, it was on the small screen that Kim seemed most comfortable. Increasingly prominent roles in Angel, Enterprise, ER, and 24 hinted at something big in Kim's future, and with the turbulent descent of Oceanic flight 815 that something big came crashing down in a very big way.A virtual phenomenon from the very first episode, Lost proved the kind of television series capable of literally starting its own mythology -- and Kim was directly at the center of the firestorm from the very beginning. Cast as the son of a poor fisherman who eventually married into one of Korea's most powerful crime families, Kim proved a captivating presence on the show and was voted one of People Magazine's "Sexiest Men Alive" in 2005. Though Lost would indeed prove to be Kim's bread and butter, the actor continued to appear in features (Spider-Man 2, Crash) as well as branching out into the increasingly lucrative world of video-game voice-overs (24: The Game, Saints Row). Somehow, in the midst of his wildfire success, Kim has even found the time to keep his passion for the theater alive by appearing in a New York stage production of Chekhov's Ivanov.The actor appeared in 2008's critically acclaimed film The Andromeda Strain, and in the sixth and final season of LOST, which aired in 2010. Kim joined the cast of the Hawaii Five-O shortly afterwards. In 2011, Kim joined Kellan Lutz and Samuel L. Jackson in the action thrller Arena.
Steven Culp (Actor) .. William Bassby
Born: December 03, 1955
Birthplace: La Jolla, California, United States
Parentimage: http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/2/Open/Getty/Steven%20Culp/52383064.jpg
Imagecredits: Kevin Winter/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
Trivia: A seasoned dramatic actor who brought an extensive theater background to his work in film and television, Steven Culp was born in La Jolla, CA. When he was young, his parents divorced, and Culp moved with his father, a naval officer, and his two sisters to Virginia. After high school, Culp studied English literature at The College of William & Mary. On advice from his professors, Culp transferred to the University of Exeter in England, and while in London, he became acquainted with a group of student actors. Culp soon developed an interest in the theater, and when he returned to the United States, Culp transferred to Brandeis University, where he majored in acting and theater arts. After graduating, Culp began working in off-Broadway and regional theater, and was first seen by a national audience in 1983 when he earned a role on the daytime drama One Life to Live, which lasted for a year. In the late '80s, Culp was relocated to California and began working regularly in television, while still working in theater as often as his schedule would allow. Culp made his TV-movie debut with a small role in 1988's Lincoln. His big-screen debut came a year later, in the movie Gross Anatomy. In 1995, Culp was cast as Special Agent Clayton Webb in the made-for-TV movie JAG. A year later, the movie was spun off into a weekly series, and Webb became a recurring character, developing a loyal fan base among the show's viewers. The same year the JAG series debuted, Culp was cast as Robert F. Kennedy in Norma Jean and Marilyn, a drama produced for HBO about the life and career of Marilyn Monroe. Culp's strong performance as Kennedy (as well as his chiseled good looks) was impressive enough that in 2000, Culp was cast again as RFK, this time in the Cuban Missile Crisis drama 13 Days. When he isn't busy with film and television commitments, Culp still performs in live theater and is a member of the artistic committee of the Interact Theater Company of North Hollywood, CA. Culp is married with two children. He likes to play the guitar and writes fiction in his spare time. Culp worked steadily through the 2000s and made appearances on the television series' Ally McBeal (2000), Murder She Wrote (2000), Desperate Housewives (2004), and The Traveler (2007).

Before / After
-

Elementary
6:00 pm