Quincy's Wedding Part 1 starts off with an elderly couple (real life couple John McIntyre and Jeanette Nolan) in a rest home dramatically feuding with each other as the staff are trying to host their 65th Wedding Anniversary party. Meanwhile, Dr. Hanover (Anita Gillette) is in the midst of preparations for her quickly approaching nuptials to Quincy, who is perfectly happy letting her handle all the arrangements. To assist in this effort, Hanover hires a wedding planner with a military background who is played with good humor by the fabulous Carole Cook.
When the elderly husband dies, everyone assumes that it was from natural causes and old age until his widow comes forward to the police claiming that she was responsible. Her claim is met with skepticism by all until she mentions detailed information about a drug that her husband was on and the procedure by which it was provided to him by the nursing staff. This captures the attention of Quincy and makes him reconsider taking another look at the body for any indications of foul play. As he becomes more engrossed in this case, he begins missing appointments with Hanover and the wedding planner leading his future wife to be increasingly frustrated with him. There is also a subplot of Quincy selling his beloved boat upon the insistence of Hanover who refuses to live there once they are married.
I would say that the highlight of this episode for me is the guest stars and their performances. Fans of Jeanette Nolan get to see her engage in various attention-seeking antics and play opposite her actual husband with the two of them really going at it by screaming at each other and hurling nasty insults. I would imagine they must have had a lot of fun doing this. Another positive is that there is a murder investigation featured in this episode and not the advancement of a social issue, unless you count the old adage of an independent man needing to settle down and abandon all the things he likes in the process of getting married to be a social cause.
I also find the wedding aspect of this episode to be that much less enjoyable because there is absolutely no chemistry whatsoever between Jack Klugman and Anita Gillette. Combine that with how similar their characters are in terms of outspokenness, stubbornness, etc. it is just difficult to get behind them as a couple and it feels like there is always something lacking in their scenes together. I see Quincy pairing best with a strong, quieter, supportive type that would talk him off the ledge and offer a counterpoint to help balance things out. Unfortunately the Hanover character was not written this way and the casting was very lazy in that they simply brought back the same actress who played his first wife in flashbacks.
My final note is on the sale of Quincy's boat and the dialogue between him and Hanover that they need the proceeds from the sale in order to buy a house. This is so ridiculous considering that they are supposed to be two successful doctors getting married later in life with no obligations among the two of them in terms of children to support, exes, etc. and the audience is made to believe that they can't buy a house on their own without the sale of that modest boat? What a joke!
When the elderly husband dies, everyone assumes that it was from natural causes and old age until his widow comes forward to the police claiming that she was responsible. Her claim is met with skepticism by all until she mentions detailed information about a drug that her husband was on and the procedure by which it was provided to him by the nursing staff. This captures the attention of Quincy and makes him reconsider taking another look at the body for any indications of foul play. As he becomes more engrossed in this case, he begins missing appointments with Hanover and the wedding planner leading his future wife to be increasingly frustrated with him. There is also a subplot of Quincy selling his beloved boat upon the insistence of Hanover who refuses to live there once they are married.
I would say that the highlight of this episode for me is the guest stars and their performances. Fans of Jeanette Nolan get to see her engage in various attention-seeking antics and play opposite her actual husband with the two of them really going at it by screaming at each other and hurling nasty insults. I would imagine they must have had a lot of fun doing this. Another positive is that there is a murder investigation featured in this episode and not the advancement of a social issue, unless you count the old adage of an independent man needing to settle down and abandon all the things he likes in the process of getting married to be a social cause.
I also find the wedding aspect of this episode to be that much less enjoyable because there is absolutely no chemistry whatsoever between Jack Klugman and Anita Gillette. Combine that with how similar their characters are in terms of outspokenness, stubbornness, etc. it is just difficult to get behind them as a couple and it feels like there is always something lacking in their scenes together. I see Quincy pairing best with a strong, quieter, supportive type that would talk him off the ledge and offer a counterpoint to help balance things out. Unfortunately the Hanover character was not written this way and the casting was very lazy in that they simply brought back the same actress who played his first wife in flashbacks.
My final note is on the sale of Quincy's boat and the dialogue between him and Hanover that they need the proceeds from the sale in order to buy a house. This is so ridiculous considering that they are supposed to be two successful doctors getting married later in life with no obligations among the two of them in terms of children to support, exes, etc. and the audience is made to believe that they can't buy a house on their own without the sale of that modest boat? What a joke!
