Mathnet

This article is about the American television show. For the Russian web site, see All-Russian Mathematical Portal.
Mathnet
Genre Crime-Drama
Developed by Janette Webb
George E. Swink
Written by David D. Connell
Jim Thurman
Directed by Charles S. Dubin
James F. Golway
Karl Epstein
Jesus Salvador Treviño
Bill Schreiner
Starring Beverly Leech (1987–1990; 19 episodes)
Joe Howard (1987–1992; entire series)
Toni DiBuono (1991–1992; 11 episodes)
James Earl Jones (1987–1988, 1991; 5 episodes)
Emilo Del Pozo (1990–1992; 16 episodes)
Mary Watson (1987–1990; 13 episodes)
Bari K. Willerford (1990–1992; 16 episodes)
Opening theme "Danger Ahead"
Composer(s) Gerald Fried
John Rodby (Conducted and arranged by)
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 5
No. of episodes 30
Production
Location(s) Los Angeles (1987–1990)
New York City (1990–1992)
Camera setup Film (Principal Photography)
Videotape (Post-Production)
Single-camera setup
Running time Varies
Production company(s) Children's Television Workshop
The Webb Organization
Turtleback Productions
Release
Original network PBS
Picture format 480i (SDTV)
Audio format Mono (1987–1990)
Stereo (1991–1992)
Original release January 26, 1987 (1987-01-26) – October 23, 1992 (1992-10-23)
Kate Monday (Beverly Leech) and George Frankly (Joe Howard)

Mathnet is a segment on the children's television show Square One Television, of which five seasons were produced (1987–92). This parody of Dragnet featured mathematician/detectives at the Los Angeles Police Department who solved mysteries using their mathematical skills. There were two main characters: detectives Kate Monday (Beverly Leech) and George Frankly (Joe Howard). Mary Watson also had a regular role as the duo's technical analyst, Debbie Williams. The third season had the show's setting moved to New York City. Beginning in the fourth season, Kate Monday was replaced by Pat Tuesday (Toni DiBuono). James Earl Jones played a recurring role as Chief Thad Green. He also briefly appears in season 4 and indicates he knows Pat Tuesday. When the duo was transferred to New York, Captain Joe Greco (Emilio Del Pozo) became their new boss and undercover NYPD officer Benny Pill (Bari K. Willerford) became their semi-regular backup support.

Development and Production

After a successful first season, production began on six new episodes for the second season. By the time production ended on the third season and its six episodes in 1989, Beverly Leech (Kate Monday) left, and was replaced by a new character named Pat Tuesday, played by Toni DiBuono. Production on the first six episodes with the new character commenced in 1990, and ended in 1991, in time for Square One TV's fourth season. Production on the final season and its five episodes began taping in 1991, and the last episode aired in 1992.

During production, the background music also changed. Originally, it had a synth score. But gradually, as the series progressed, it was replaced with an orchestral score.

The building where Mathnet was filmed in Los Angeles is located on 6045 York Boulevard. It now houses a museum about the LAPD.[1][2]

Premise

Each segment of the series aired on one episode of Square One, a production of the Children's Television Workshop aimed at teaching math skills to young viewers. Five segments made up an episode (one for each weekday), with suspense building at the end of each segment. A Mathnet comic briefly appeared in 3-2-1 Contact.

Both Mathnet and Square One went off the air in 1994 (it was rerun until then after the final 1992 season was completed), reappearing from 1999–2003 on the cable television network Noggin, a joint venture of Nickelodeon and CTW. However, only 65 episodes were leased by the Noggin network. Mathnet segments also aired on Phred on Your Head Show (one of Noggin's original programs).[3]

Math and science

Real principles of math and science, and mathematical tools used by the detectives to solve crimes include:

Guest stars

A number of well-known actors made guest appearances on this show. Among them were Edward Winter, Eve McVeagh, Yeardley Smith, Dick Wilson, William Windom, James Karen, Kenneth Mars, Henry Jones, Kevin McCarthy, Madge Sinclair, Geoffrey Lewis, Russell Johnson, McLean Stevenson, Dick Sargent, Jack Riley, Marcia Wallace, Estelle Harris, Tammy Grimes, Arnold Stang, Paul Dooley, Maddie Corman, John Michael Higgins, Jayne Meadows, Bob Arbogast, Melba Moore, Weird Al Yankovic, John Moschitta, Jr., Wayne Knight, Al Lewis, and Betty Buckley. In addition, real life L.A.P.D. officers, Sam Salazar and Steve Fellman, have also appeared as themselves, and did head writers, David D. Connell and Jim Thurman, as various characters (sometimes together). Sometimes, only Thurman's voice would be heard.

Home video release and reruns

In 1991, GPN released five episodes from the first two seasons on VHS ("The Problem of the Missing Baseball", "The Trial of George Frankly", "The Problem of the Dirty Money", "The Case of the Missing Air", and "The View from the Rear Terrace").

Around the same time, select PBS stations combined parts of an episode to air in primetime. This was done primarily for seasons 3-5 (New York City era), although at least one omnibus from the Leech era was also broadcast. These versions were re-edited so that they would come in at just under an hour long, featured other segments from Square One TV as "commercials", and newly created end credits, among other differences. Two of the primetime airings were also commercially released as VHS tapes from Republic Pictures in 1992 ("Despair in Monterey Bay" and "The Case of the Unnatural").

Episode list

Season 1 (1987)

Number
in series		 Number
in season		 Title Directed by Original air date Production code
11"The Problem of the Missing Monkey"Charles S. DubinJanuary 26–30, 198711031–11035
A gorilla named Grunt escapes from the zoo, while a suspect dressed as a gorilla is being used to frame Grunt. With the help of a gorilla handler (Yeardley Smith), the Mathnetters eventually find Grunt (whom they mistakenly believe to be the suspect) climbing the Hollywood Sign. Later they apprehend the suspect at the zoo.
22"The Problem of the Missing Baseball"Charles S. DubinFebruary 2–6, 198710540–10760
Pilot episode. (Filmed in 1985.) A very important baseball has to be found at a house, but the house has been stolen by a helicopter. The house is eventually located, and the baseball is found in the fireplace.
33"The Problem of the Passing Parade"Charles S. DubinFebruary 9–13, 198711011–11015
A parade was to be featured until the main attraction, Steve Stringbean, gets kidnapped. Stringbean tries to communicate the kidnapper's phone number to the Mathnetters in a short piece of music in a proof-of-life message left on an answering machine. He is later found in a musician's house.
44"The Trial of George Frankly"Charles S. DubinFebruary 16–20, 198711021–11025
A security video appears to show George robbing a bank. He claims that he was on vacation at that time, and needs proof to back his claims that an imposter stole his identity. During the trial, George exposes the imposter.
55"The Problem of the Dirty Money"Charles S. DubinFebruary 23–27, 198711051–11055
Tons of excavated dirt are being stolen from construction sites. As it turns out, a fortune stolen from a "Sphinx" (Brinks) armored truck many years ago was buried in the dirt. The prime suspect has died in jail, but his partner is eventually located.
66"The Mystery of the Maltese Pigeon"Charles S. DubinMarch 2–6, 198714081–14085
In a clever spoof of The Maltese Falcon, Maureen O'Riley puts a valuable bird sculpture from Malta on display at a museum, but it disappears without a trace. A young Maltese man who belongs to an ancient society helps Mathnet find the truth.
77"The Problem of the Trojan Hamburger"Charles S. DubinMarch 9–13, 198711041–11045
A clown is reported abducted, while a diamond is stolen by a thief who used a secret trick to get in and out. The clown finds his way home. The Mathnetters find that the clown actually staged the kidnapping to steal the diamond.

Season 2 (1988)

Number
in series		 Number
in season		 Title Directed by Original air date Production code
81"The Case of the Willing Parrot"Charles S. DubinSeptember 19–23, 198820030–20034
A talking parrot named Little Louie uses a Fibonacci call for solving a mystery on finding a deceased celebrity's inheritance. A thief is also looking for it as well. The parrot goes missing but is found at the suspect's home. This is the only episode that does not show the suspect's apprehension.
92"The Case of the Great Car Robbery"James F. GolwaySeptember 26–30, 198820010–20014
20,000 cars have been stolen over a two-month period. Kate and George investigate and meet a teenage girl whose mother's car was also stolen. The cars are eventually found after the Mathnet crew rent a car to use as bait for the car thieves. They lead the Mathnet crew to a chop shop and apprehend the owner as he is crushing the rental car.
103"The Case of the Deceptive Data"Charles S. DubinOctober 3–7, 198820340–20344
"Mike Pliers" asks Kate and George for some help on why his high rated show got unexpectedly canceled. After visiting viewers who are part of the survey, the ratings devices are discovered to be altered to make it seem as if the show's replacement is being watched.
114"The View from the Rear Terrace"Charles S. DubinOctober 10–14, 198820320–20324
In this spoof of Rear Window, George investigates seemingly harmless pranks at banks on his own, while Kate is at home with an injury. Kate's neighbor is making bombs, though George doesn't believe her at first.
125"The Case of the Missing Air"Karl EpsteinOctober 17–21, 198820020–20024
Kate and George need to figure out the common factors to a chain of robberies, in which the thief was talking like a duck. The thief turns out to be a controversial radio talk show host who robs stores that pulled their ads from his station.
136"The Case of the Map With a Gap"James F. GolwayOctober 24–28, 198820000–20004
Kate and George go out to the desert with a young cowboy, to find a buried treasure of gold, using the help of angles and mirrors.

Season 3 (1990)

Number
in series		 Number
in season		 Title Directed by Original air date Production code
141"The Case of the Ersatz Earthquake"Jesus Salvador TreviñoJanuary 15–19, 199030001–30005
A psychic predicts on when, where and the exact time an earthquake will strike, but the detectives find out there was a trick to making the ground shake. After this case, the netters move to New York City.
152"The Case of the Swami Scam"Charles S. DubinJanuary 22–26, 199030011–30015
Kate and George begin their first assignment in New York City, where retired lawyers are being scammed by a Swami who claims to have the right predictions of horse races and lotteries.
163"The Case of the Parking Meter Massacre"Charles S. DubinJanuary 29–February 2, 199030021–30025
The city's parking meters are being abused and cut off. In a departure for the series, there were two suspects who were not affiliated with each other. One suspect simply stole the entire meters and the other suspect was looking through quarters, searching for a small valuable object mixed in among them.
174"The Case of the Unkidnapping"Charles S. DubinFebruary 5–9, 199030131–30135
The main star of the broadway musical "Anything Went" gets kidnapped. But it was revealed that the kidnapping was a hoax to steal money from the show and to frame her co-star, who happens to know Kate when they were in college.
185"The Case of the Strategic Weather Initiative"Charles S. DubinFebruary 12–16, 199030031–30035
A weather plane gets stolen and Kate and George try to find answers to where the plane might have landed.
196"The Case of the Masked Avenger"Charles S. DubinFebruary 19–23, 199030081–30085
The Masked Avenger is being used by the mob to make him throw his wrestling match.

Season 4 (1991)

Number
in series		 Number
in season		 Title Directed by Original air date Production code
201"The Case of the Unnatural"Jesus Salvador TreviñoSeptember 30–October 4, 199140121–40125
A baseball prospect is kidnapped and replaced by a mechanical imposter. The real player is eventually found and the robot's creator is apprehended.
212"Despair in Monterey Bay"Jesus Salvador TreviñoOctober 7–11, 199140101–40105
The Despair Diamond from the "Trojan Hamburger" case is stolen again, this time by a gentleman thief.
223"The Case of the Calpurnian Kugel Caper"Jesus Salvador TreviñoOctober 14–18, 199140071–40075
A counterfeiter is ruining the monetary unit of a tiny Monaco-like kingdom ruled by a teenager. The ruler would rather be a game show host than a king, evident by his desires to be one and his obsession with the genre.
234"The Case of the Galling Stones"Bill SchreinerOctober 21–25, 199140111–40115
Pat Tuesday is suspected of stealing a expensive bracelet. But then, she & George find out that there's more to this mystery than a stolen bracelet. Finally they learn that a dictator of a small country framed Pat and stole jewels for an icon.
245"The Case of the Poconos Paradise"Charles S. DubinOctober 28–November 1, 199140091–40095
Vacationers to the Poconos and other places are being robbed. A woman who owns a mail company in Bayonne, New Jersey is the suspect.
256"The Case of the Purloined Policies"Charles S. DubinNovember 4–8, 199140081–40085
Someone is bankrupting an insurance company with an old-fashioned insurance fraud. A bike gets stolen and a new one had to be made. Finally, the chief manages to find the culprit by identifying his handwriting.

Season 5 (1992)

Number
in series		 Number
in season		 Title Directed by Original air date Production code
261"The Case of the Mystery Weekend"Bill SchreinerSeptember 21–25, 199250021–50025
Pat & George goes to an old house to attend a "Mystery Weekend" game. They soon found out that they walked right in to a real mystery, as six guests get kidnapped one by one.
272"The Case of the Smart Dummy"Bill SchreinerSeptember 28–October 2, 199250231–50235
A ventriloquist's suitcase containing one of two dummies was switched with another containing $1,000,000.
283"The Case: Off the Record"Bill SchreinerOctober 5–9, 199250011–50015
A record company was producing hit records... ALL BAD! Pat & George go undercover as a music band to find out what's going on.
294"The Case of the Bermuda Triangle"Jesus Salvador TreviñoOctober 12–16, 199250251–50255
A young girl with the help of the netters goes on a treasure hunt to try to clear her old relative's name.
305"The Case of the Piggy Banker"Bill SchreinerOctober 19–23, 199250241–50245
Pat's friend, the daughter of a clown claims her father is accused of embezzlement at the Bank of Legume and it's up to the netters to clear his name and find out who really did do it.

References

  1. ↑ Los Angeles Police Museum
  2. ↑ "Actual Location". Google Maps.
  3. ↑ "Square One TV Episode 211". TV.com. Retrieved 3 July 2012.

External links

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