Can I just say how much I LOVE these movies. Tom Selleck plays a great police chief, and I love that all the other actors return to play their characters. I wish this would becomes a series. And I hope there will be more in the future.
shareSo good to see Tom Selleck in something that suits him as well as this series does. I've heard he made some slight changes to Parker's novels and when they were explained to me I liked him all the more.
Its a real pity - and opportunity missed, if you ask me - that no networks are doing what they did in the seventies. For some years there were rotating prime time crime series, usually three, that would air in succession. You'd have Series A one week, Series B the next, and Series C the third week, then they'd repeat. It allowed extra time for each to film and most of them ran 90 minutes, so they were really more like movies. That's how Peter Falk's "Columbo" series got popular. A modern equivalent would be if the three CSI series each shared a time slot and took turns, so one week you'd have "CSI", the next "CSI:NY", and the third "CSI:Miami".
And this was all before VCR's. Nowadays, with digital recording looming in everyone's future, it would be great to see this kind of scheduling revived and I think the Jesse Stone series would be a great candidate for such a thing. I don't think easing into scripts that aren't written by Robert Parker is inherently bad, if they hire writers who understand the characters as well as they did for the old Spenser series with Robert Urich, bless his soul.
Of course the real treat would be for someone to script and film a Magnum tv movie. Why CBS never had any interest in doing that with one of their biggest hits is an ongoing puzzle.
They're planning to make a theatrical "Magnum: PI" film with Matthew McConaughey in the title role. Selleck wants nothing to do with it, and with good reason judging from the rumors. They want to make Magnum a real clown.
I'm not so sure either Tom Selleck or his wife would want Mimi Rogers as the seductive lawyer hot for Jesse to return soon. She's an ex-girlfriend of his and the parting was not very amicable from what I've heard.
I'll never understand why they canceled "Las Vegas." Selleck improved the show immeasurably. I think it was because of the writer's strike. It ruined a lot of shows with continuing plot lines.
I am getting really anxious for the next Jesse Stone TV movie to come out. I hope it won't be the last. This is Selleck's best fit since "Magnum:PI." If they had put him in films like this, instead of stupid light comedies, his movie career might have taken off.
Obviously, they may not have been honest, but neither Selleck nor Rogers appeared to be upset about working together on Stone Cold, based on their (brief) commentary on the DVD.
My dad also heard about another Jesse Stone in the works after "Thin Ice", so if that's true, it would be encouraging news.
Money is money and they're both professionals. There's a big difference between not being happy about something and being upset. I hope what your dad heard about more Stone telefilms was right.
shareI think Tom Selleck would have the power to work (or not work) with anyone he chose. So I'm fairly certain that he wanted to work with Mimi Rogers, who was great as Rita Fiore. I think that the producers may have made a decision to film "new" stories from Parker at this point, mainly because his newer Stone novels have Jesse hooked up with Sunny Randall. I dont think they want to bring that relationship into the TV series. I could be wrong tho.
shareI don't think he "wanted" to work with her so much, as he was "willing" to work with her. I don't think he has cast approval privileges these days. They broke up years ago, so no doubt any animosity is long past. I was just is curious, considering the circumstances. It was unusual in that Rita came on pretty strong and very fast to Jesse, whereas in the Robert Urich "Spenser" show, she (played by Carolyn McCormick) wasn't that type. Jesse turned her down anyway.
I admit I've fallen behind on character developments. Who's Sunny Randall? What would be the problem with her? She's not the woman killed off earlier in the TV movies is she?
He is executive producer of the Stone series, so yes, he would have the authority to work with who he wanted to. And we are all glad he did work with Mimi as she was great.
As to Sunny Randall, shes a character from another Parker series. Stone and Randall have a relationship in one of these stories and then it leads to a story with Stones wife. If you notice in the TV movies. Stones ex is only a phone character that we never see and I dont think they want to change that. It adds to Stones isolation and mystery.
Thank you for the information. As I said, the breakup was long ago so any animosity (and there was some) is probably long past. I wouldn't call Mimi Rogers' performance "terrific" but she did a good job. I used to watch "Spenser for Hire" with the late Robert Urich and I don't remember Rita Fiore ever coming on so strong to a man before. Actually, the character was kind of prudish. They were developing a romance between Rita and Spenser until the actress playing Spenser's old girlfriend Susan came back and "poof" she was gone. I don't recall if they ever explained what happened to Rita.
shareThe break up would have had to happened prior to 1986. She starred in one of the episodes during the first season of Magnum which occured during 80-81 season. They both got married around the same period. 20 years of distance could cause you to forget any unpleasant memories.
shareGood point. You're probably right. His current marriage has been very successful.
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