J. “Digger” Doyle (1981)
Tom Selleck and Erin Gray in Magnum, P.I.
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Thieves are attempting to steal tapes of Robin Masters’ new book. Magnum joins forces with security expert J. “Digger” Doyle to prevent the theft. Part of the history of the Haiku Stairs are true. It was a low frequency radio antenna and radio station build during WWII. The Haiku Radio Station was commissioned by the USN after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941. The proposal was approved in 1942. When Digger jumps from the truck after she and Higgins find T.C. treed by Zeus and Apollo, she is brandishing a hand gun in her right hand. When she arrives at the tree she no longer has the hand gun and both hands are on her hips.
J. “Digger” Doyle (1981)
Tom Selleck and Erin Gray in Magnum, P.I.
This episode served as a pilot for a spin-off series starring Erin Gray, but a series was not ordered. Erin Gray was born in Hawaii. The mountain stairs seen in this episode actually do lead to a former Navy installation. Known as the Haiku Stairs and Stairway to Heaven, the 3,000 step path was a popular hiking trail for many years, until the endless flood of parked cars in the neighborhood below forced the state to shut it down. Although a million dollars had been spent in renovation and land for a prospective parking lot had been identified, the state voted in April, 2024 to remove the steps.
J. “Digger” Doyle (1981)
Tom Selleck, Erin Gray, John Hillerman, and Stewart Moss in Magnum, P.I.
This is the most notable of several episodes that contradicts the theory that Robin Masters may be none other than Higgins himself. (NOTE: The Higgins-might-be-Masters was just a running joke in the last season. It wasn’t meant to be taken seriously.). Until now the layout of the Robin Masters estate has been vague. In this episode a map is displayed. This is the first episode where T.C. calls Higgins “Higgie Baby”. When dictating his resignation Higgins states his full name as Jonathan Quail Higgins III. With the notable exception of a ruling monarch, the British do NOT generally name their offspring as Blah Blah [numeral] or even Blah Blah Jr. That is an obvious Americanism. Magnum:[a drugged Higgins has been rambling with one of his stories as Magnum carries him on his back up the side of a mountain] Higgins, SHUT UP!
Lisa is played by Jacquelyn Ray, who was Tom Selleck’s wife at the time this episode was done.
Tom Selleck and Wendy Girard in Magnum, P.I. (1981) Magnum: [narrates] This was one of those days I wish I’d listened to my mother and studied to be an orthodontist. Looking into someone’s mouth has got to be better than staring death in the face.
Wendy Girard in Magnum, P.I. (1981)
The Woman on the Beach (1981) with Tom Selleck, Judith Chapman, and Larry Manetti in Magnum, P.I. (1981)
The Woman on the Beach (1981) with Judith Chapman in Magnum, P.I. (1981) Judith Chapman’s appearance in this Season 2 episode on October 22,1981 came within 7 months of her first appearance in Season 1 “The Black Orchid” which aired on April 2, 1981.
The Woman on the Beach (1981) with John Hillerman in Magnum, P.I. (1981)
Tom Selleck in From Moscow to Maui (1981)
John Hillerman and Allan Rich in From Moscow to Maui (1981)
Tom Selleck and John Hillerman in From Moscow to Maui (1981).
Higgins: It is eminently satisfying, Magnum, to know that as a result of this, a few heads will roll in Moscow. You know, when I was in Vienna, the Soviets tried to recruit me as an agent. Unbelievable crude, I came home one night to find a naked woman in my bed. I knew immediately she was Russian. They use stainless steel (taps his teeth)
Higgins: instead of gold.
Tom Selleck in From Moscow to Maui (1981)
John Hillerman in From Moscow to Maui (1981). The camera Higgins uses to photograph his battle model is a Canon with the name obscured by black tape. The camera model appears to be an A-1.
Larry Manetti and Roger E. Mosley in From Moscow to Maui (1981)
Magnum: Oh, come on, TC, is it too much to ask to get my slides right side up?
TC: Not a problem, not a problem, not to worry. I forgot what a nasty C.O. you can be…
Tom Selleck and Jeff Pomerantz in From Moscow to Maui (1981). The Soviet defector was based on a real life event. In 1976, a Russian pilot flying a MiG-25 defected from the Soviet Union by landing his aircraft in Japan. This was a major coup, as the MiG-25 was thought to be the most advanced fighter aircraft in the world. When the aircraft was examined by the American military engineers, they were dumbfounded by how backward it actually was. They were astonished that the Soviets were still using vacuum tubes instead of solid-state electronics. The pilot became an American citizen and spent the rest of his life in the U.S. The truck used by the Soviets toward the end of the movie had the company name “Naida League” and the promotion of “Burials at Sea” painted on the sides and back of the truck. In Greek mythology, the Naiads are a type of female spirit, or nymph, presiding over fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks and other bodies of fresh water. Naiads were associated with fresh water, however the Oceanids were associated with saltwater. Therefore, a more proper company name to be associated with burials at sea would be Oceanids, or some such variation.
