Quantum Leap Episode Guide at Al's Place - One Strobe Over the Line

"One Strobe Over the Line"

Leap Date:

June 15, 1965

Episode Adopted by: Sherdran <aka> Eleiece

Synopsis:

As a high-fashion photographer, Sam leaps in to keep a model from overdosing on a combination of pills and alcohol.

Place
Leap Date
Project Date
Name of the Person Leaped Into
Songs
Music Artists
Project Trivia
Sam Trivia
Al Trivia
Al's Women
Al's Outfits Worn in the Episode
Miscellaneous Trivia
Kiss with History
Writers
Director
Producers
Crew
Broadcast Date
Guest Stars
Guest Cast Notes
Guests who appeared in other Quantum Leap episodes
Cast members who have passed away
Personal Review
Best Lines
Best Scenes
Say what? (things in the episode that make no sense)
Quotable Quotes
Awards

Place:
New York City, NY

Leap Date/Day of the Week:
June 15, 1965/Tuesday

Original Airdate/Date of the Week:
October 19, 1990/Friday

Name of the Person Leaped Into:
Karl Granson

Songs/Music:

"Stop in the Name of Love" - The Supremes
"You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
"Locomotion" - Little Eva

Background music:

In the restaurant scene, when Sam goes to take the phone call, the background music is used later in 'Piano Man'; it's the same song/melody Sam ends his set with before talking with Lorraine.

Sam Trivia:

Remembers he had two cats, Donder and Blitzen, when he was growing up on the farm.

Also, while he's walking Edie around, he remembers the Tri-County Fair at Wicksberg.

Al Trivia:

We learn that in the 60s he used to visit photographer buddies in New York when they were doing fashion shoots.

Miscellaneous:

Cigars - 1 scene (with Sam in Granson's apartment).

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Magazines mentioned that Granson worked/had worked for: Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Life.

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Real high-fashion models mentioned (and pictured): Cheryl Tiegs.

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The black and white movie Sam was watching in Edie's apartment was 'Double Indemnity' starring Fred McMurray (later of 'My Three Sons' fame) and Barbara Stanwyck (she later starred as Victoria Barkley in the TV series 'The Big Valley').

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The drugs Helen put in Edie's coffee: Black Beauties (uppers), and 'Doors & Fours' (downers).

Al's Outfits Worn in the Episode (5):

First (in Karl Granson's apartment) - Pinkish-red pants with co-ordinating belt, similar colored leather vest, white shirt w/open collar, and silvery-white shoes.

Second (at the fashion shoot {with the harem theme}) - Golden-bronze jacket, complementing patterned shirt, gold tie and medium gray pants. Since Al's feet weren't seen in this scene, my guess is that if his shoes were co-ordinated with the outfit (the jacket specifically) they would have been gold. However, they also could have been black or gray.

Third (in Edie's apartment when she's starting withdrawal) - Black pants, vest and shoes, a very dark blue shimmery vest and a wide, patterned co-ordinating tie.

Fourth (at the outdoor shoot where Helen puts the drugs in the coffee): Brown suit with a black shirt, brown paisley tie, and, dark shoes.

Fifth (last scene of episode) Dark pants and vest, vivid orange shirt and white tie with narrow diagonal stripes.

Sam's Outfits Worn in the Episode (4):

First (the leap-in) - Tight white pants, white shirt, unbuttoned almost to the waist and the sleeves rolled up mid-forearm, black belt with silver buckle, and black boots. Next two scenes, at Edie's apartment and then Karl Granson's apartment, he also wore a black leather jacket.

Second (the restaurant scene then at Edie's apartment again) - Black suit and shirt, white rosebud boutonnière and black boots. Same outfit, sans the boutonnière and black boots in the kitchen scene; in the TV watching scene, just the black pants and white undershirt.

Third (the wrestling/bedroom scene) - Black pants.

Fourth (the last scene of episode) - light blue-gray checked shirt, white jeans, black belt and black boots.

Writer: Chris Ruppenthal

Producers:

Co-Executive Producer(s):Deborah Pratt and Michael Zinberg

Supervising producer(s): Harker Wade and Robert Wollerstorff

Producer: Chris Ruppenthal

Director: Michael Zinberg

Regular Cast:
Scott Bakula as Sam Beckett; Dean Stockwell as Al Calavicci.

Guest Stars:

MARJORIE MONAGHAN (Edie Lansdale) -

Starring Roles:

Rescue 77 (1999)
Space Rangers (1993)
H.E.L.P. (1990)

Guest Starring Roles

Becker(1999)
JAG (1997)
The Sentinel (1997)
The Pretender (1996)
Deadly Games (1996)
Star Trek: Voyager (1995)
L.A. Law (1993)
Law & Order (1990)

Big-screen credits include:

Sorcerers (2001)
Regarding Henry (1991)
Nemesis (1991)
Bonfire of the Vanities (1990)

TV Movie/Mini-Series/Special Roles:

Aftermath: A Test of Love (1991)
Jack Reed: A Search for Justice (1994)
The Warlord: Battle for the Galaxy (1998)

SUSAN ANTON (Helen Le Baron) -

Big screen credits:

Options (1989)
Lena's Holiday (1990)
The Boy Who Loved Trolls (1984)
Cannonball Run 2 (1984)
Spring Fever (1981)
Goldengirl (1979)

Some of Susan's starring roles:

City Guys (1997)
Stop Susan Williams (1979)

Her guest starring roles include:

City Guys (1997)
Baywatch - (1992 - 1994)
The Larry Sanders Show (1993)
Baywatch - Jackie Quinn - The Tower (1993)
Dangerous Curves (1992)
Circus Of The Stars (1991)
Blossom (1991)
Night Court (1990)
The Famous Teddy Z (1989)
Murder, She Wrote (1986 & 1989)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1988)
Hotel (1987)
Mr. Belvedere (1987)
American Bandstand (1981)
The Midnight Special (1980)
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1978)
Switch (1977)
Serpico (1976)

Film credits other than big screen or TV include:

Slimatics 2: Aerobic Dance Workout (1990)
Slimatics 3: Stress Free Workout (1990)
Slimatics 1: First Steps to Fitness (1989)

KRISTOPHER TABORI (Byron) -

Some of Mr. Tabori's directing credits include:

Chicago Hope
D.C.
Hack
Judging Amy
McKenna
Picket Fences
Providence
Push
Raven
Sleepwalkers
That's Life
Acting Appearances

As an actor, some of Mr. Tabori's starring roles include:

Last Summer In The Hamptons (1995)
Marilyn & Bobby: Her Final Affair (1994)
Cluedo (1990)
The London Embassy (1987)
Girlfriends (1978)
The Glass House (1972)
Chicago Story (1982)

Guest Starring Roles other than Quantum Leap:

Sliders (1996)
seaQuest DSV (1994)
Murder, She Wrote (1994)
Jake and the Fatman (1991)
Designing Women (1990)
Murder, She Wrote (1989)
Tour of Duty (1988)
Murder, She Wrote (1984 & 1985)
The Streets of San Francisco (1975)
Cannon (1974)

DAVID SHEINKOPF (Mike, Karl Granson's assistant) -

Guest Starring Roles

Diagnosis Murder (1998)
JAG Vanished (1997)
Ned and Stacey (1995)
Party of Five (1994)
Ferris Bueller(1990)
Falcon Crest (1989 - 1990, recurring role as Danny Sharpe)

Film credits:

"Newsies" (movie musical - 1992)

ROBERT TRUMBULL (Frank - he's the guy in a blue suit that has some silver/gray in his hair close to his face) -

Big screen credits:

"Undercover Brother" (2002)
"Six Degrees of Separation" (1993)
"Sudden Death " (1985)

Mr. Trumbull's guest starring roles include:

"Now and Again" (1999)
"Spin City" (1996)
"Law & Order" (1993 & 1994)
"Alcoa Theatre" (1959)

Co Starring Roles:

"Columbo" (1991)

Other TV credits:

"Another World" (Day Player)

JOHN ACHORN (Irv - in the last outdoor photo shoot scene, he stands to Susan Anton's right; Kris Tabori and Robert Trumbull are to her left, respectively) --

Some of his film credits, big screen & TV movies, include:

"I Don't Know Jack (2002)
"Loved" (1997)
'Til There Was You (1997)
Victim of Love: The Shannon Mohr Story (1993) (TV)
Born Yesterday (1993)
Murder Without Motive: The Edmund Perry Story (1992) (TV)
Fever (1991) (TV)
Book of Love (1990)
From Hollywood to Deadwood (1989)
Shakedown on the Sunset Strip (1988)
Ray's Male Heterosexual Dance Hall (1987)
"The Judge" (1986
"Night of the Comet" (1984)
"The Incredible Shrinking Woman" (1981)

Notable TV guest appearances

"Minor Adjustments" (1995)
"Murphy Brown" (1988)
"Night Court" (1984)
"The Golden Girls" (1985)
"St. Elsewhere" (1982)
"Voyagers!" (1982)
"Faerie Tale Theatre" (1982)

NIGEL GIBBS (Waiter) ---

Nigel's film credits include:

Cast
Dark Blue (2003)
Dragonfly (2002)
American Pie 2 (2001)
The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (2000)
City of Angels (1998)
The Truth About Cats and Dogs (1996)
Up Close and Personal (1996)
Devil in A Blue Dress (1995)
Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994)
Ghost in the Machine (1993)
An American Summer (1991)
Pump Up the Volume (1990)

Some of his Guest Starring Roles

CSI (2003)
The District (2002)
Hang Time (1999)
Dharma & Greg (1998)
The Pretender (1997)
Diagnosis Murder (1996)
Seinfeld (1995)
Models Inc. (1994 & 1995)
Sisters (1994)
Roseanne (1992)
Homefront (1991)
Murder, She Wrote (1990)

Co Starring Roles

Judging Amy (2001)
The West Wing (2000)

LAURENCE McNEILL, III (Nubian Guard) - The only acting credit I was able to find for Mr. McNeill was his appearance in this episode of Quantum Leap.

DAN McCOY (mirror image of Karl Granson) - Likewise for Mr. McCoy; the only acting credit I was able to find was his appearance in this episode of Quantum Leap.

Guest Cast Notes:

Marjorie's appearance on Q.L. was one of her first television appearances.

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Marjorie is 6' tall, which probably helped her get the role of Edie Lansdale (average height for fashion models is (preferably) between 5'10" and 6').

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At one time, Marjorie Monaghan was being considered for the role T'Pol in the new Star Trek spin-off, 'Enterprise'.

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Marjorie's first acting experience was as Snoopy in a high school production of 'You're A Good Man Charlie Brown'.

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Her first professional acting experience was in a summer stock Equity outdoor drama production of 'Tecumseh!', based on the life of the Native American leader, playing Tecumpese, the sister of the lead character.

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Marjorie is also trained in the art of theatrical combat and weaponry.

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Susan Anton is a former Miss California and was the second runner-up in the 1970 Miss America Pageant.

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In 1976 Susan Anton became a household face when she was named as the Muriel Cigar Girl and appeared in a numerous advertisements.

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Susan was a frequent headliner in "The Great Radio City Spectacular" at the Flamingo in Las Vegas, NV (where she lives) until it closed in the summer of 2000.

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At the age of 19 David Sheinkopf landed the role of Danny Sharpe on TV show 'Falcon Crest'.

Personal Review:

Sometimes life is so hectic and demanding, constantly crowding in on us, that we get lost, losing sight of what's real and what's really important to us. That's what happened to Edie in the original history; she got caught in the undertow and was pulled under. But with Sam's help she got a second chance to learn that it's never too late to stop and take a long, hard look at herself. She got that precious second chance to do what she needed to do, and to change what needed to be changed in her life, in order to get started back along the path to, to paraphrase Mr. Shakespeare, "To her own self be true." This episode may not be in my 'top ten favorite list of QL episodes' (a misnomer if ever there was one) but I always enjoy watching 'Strobe'.

*G* And that wrestling on the floor/bedroom scene still makes my pulse beat faster every time I watch it. ;-)

Best Scene:

Is there any doubt? It's the wrestling for the pills/bedroom scene, of course!

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(Sam is asleep on the couch. Edie sneaks out of the bedroom to search for some pills. She eventually finds some in a sugar bowl in the kitchen cupboard. Just as she's about to take the pills, Sam suddenly grabs her arm.)

Sam: "Give me the pills!"

Edie: "I don't have any!" (She struggles to get away from him but Sam hangs on tight.)

Sam: "Give me the pills! ... Edie...Edie...."

Edie: "NO! Let go! Let go! Let go!"

(They struggle around the living room for the pills. They stumble; Edie falls backward. They continue to fight for the pills. )

Sam: Give me the pills. Come on, stop it! Stop it! Give me the pills!"

(In her desperation to get the pills, Edie bites Sam's hand then tries to get away from him. But she stumbles against him and they fall to the floor. Sam wrestles with her, finally pinning her down.)

Sam: "Stop it! Stop it!"

(Edie stops and just lays under him, panting heavily for a few seconds before kissing him.)

Edie: "Umm... kiss. Kiss."

(She wraps her arms around Sam and kisses him hard. For a few seconds Sam responds then...)

Sam (breathless): "No. No, you don't want this."

Edie: "Yes...I do."

Sam (breathless whisper): "No, you don't."

(He rolls away from Edie, laying beside her, still breathing hard; his left arm is caught slightly under her right shoulder. Edie taunts him as she jerks her shirt down.)

Edie: "What's the matter? Don't you want to do it? Or can't you? Maybe you don't like girls."

(Sam reacts to Edie's last scathing comment. He catches his breath, then gets up, grabbing her up in his arms and carries her into the bedroom. He dumps her on the bed, tosses her legs out of the way then yanks her into a tight embrace and kisses her passionately. Then his self-restraint reasserts itself, and he releases Edie, pushing her hands away as he steps back from the bed.)

Sam (still breathlessly): "Go to sleep."

(Sam turns and moves out of the bedroom.)

Best Line:

Sam, breathlessly, to Edie: "Go to sleep."

Quotable Quotes:

"Don't worry, Karl. Lions don't eat photographers. They give them indigestion." .... "Though I understand they do nibble on the slow ones from time to time." (Helen Le Baron & Byron to Sam)

"Did you get to her face yet?" ... "I'm working on it." (Sam & Al exchange in Karl's apartment)

"Yeah, yeah, a shark in nylons." (Sam to Al)

"You gotta be careful doing that. ... That's what I always tell myself." (Sam to Edie about Wooster, then himself)

"This is great, Al! It's like painting with people." (Sam to Al at the 'harem theme photo shoot)

Say what? (AKA things in the episode that make no sense):

The way the episode is done, June 15, 1965 is figured to be a Thursday; it wasn't. I checked a perpetual calendar; that date fell on a Tuesday. So if June 15, 1965 was a Tuesday, and Edie dies 3 1/2 days (actually 5 1/2 from the leap-in date) later on Monday June 21, 1965, then what happened to Friday and Saturday?

If the writer(s) had bothered to check a perpetual calendar, (hopefully) they would have at least changed the leap-in date to June 17, 1965 so that the sequence of days would follow naturally through to that Monday. Or, at the very least, they could have changed Al's line from '3 1/2 days' to '5 1/2' days'. But, as "Strobe" was filmed, this is how it goes:

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Sam leaps in - Late afternoon, Tuesday, June 15, 1965; he gives Edie a ride home after the shoot wraps for the day, interacts with her & the cats. Later he goes to Karl Granson's apartment.

Next day, Wednesday June 16, 1965 - Sam has the photo shoot (the harem theme) where he interacts with Edie (periwinkles). Later that same evening,
Sam goes to dinner with Edie, Helen, Byron and the clients. Still later that same night, he gives Edie a ride home, this time interacting with her about the pills. They talk and he stays with her to help her over the pills.

Next day, Thursday, June 17, 1965 - Edie wakes up to find Sam cooking bacon in her kitchen. This is the day and night of the paranoia, the wrestling scene, and the bedroom scene.

But then there's that three-day gap from Friday to....

Monday, June 21, 1965 - Edie comes wandering into the kitchen wrapped in a towel (and one over her hair); Sam tells her, "You slept through Sunday. This is Monday, and we've got a big shoot today."

We know what happened on Sunday (Edie slept), but what happened to Friday and Saturday?

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A lesser 'say what?" was in the scene with Sam and Edie talking about the things she's going to get for her family. Sam says, "Your dad's getting the combine, your sister's going to school, but you never said what you're getting for your mom." But, when Edie first brought the subject up, she never mentioned a sister. Obviously this was a point of re-writing that didn't get cleaned up.