An Act of Violence (27 Apr. 1983)

Director:

Michael Braverman

Writers:

Michael Braverman, Glen A. Larson (creator),

Stars:

Jack Klugman, Garry Walberg, John S. Ragin

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Klugman	...	Dr. R. Quincy, M.E.
Garry Walberg	...	Lt. Frank Monahan
John S. Ragin	...	Dr. Robert Asten
Val Bisoglio	...	Danny Tovo
Robert Ito	...	Sam Fujiyama
Joseph Roman	...	Sgt. Brill
Edward Grover	...	Dr. Schoenbeck (as Ed Grover)
Anita Gillette	...	Dr. Emily Hanover
Danna Hansen	...	Nurse
Brad Gorman	...	Fox
Guy Sartee	...	Garfield
Leoda Richards	...	Vivian
James Cord	...	Attendant
Jimmy Joyce	...	Man
Filip Field	...	Lab Technician

Storyline

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Crime

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Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 April 1983 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Glen A. Larson Productions, Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

"This time Quincy is the other guy!" An OK moral episode.

Quincy M.E.: An Act of Violence starts as seventy-two year old Vivian Chalmers (Leoda Richards) is attacked, robbed & beaten to death by two teenage thugs. Los Angeles coroner Quincy (Jack Klugman) is called in, Lt. Monahan (Garry Walberg) says they have a 'crib job' on their hands. Shocked by the level of violence Quincy goes into detective mode to catch her killers, after visiting her apartment looking for forensic clues Quincy becomes the victim of a crib job himself. Quincy is robbed & badly beaten which leaves him with several cracked ribs & plenty of bruising, but while the physical scars may heal in time the emotional ones Quincy has suffered from the attack may take a lot longer as being the victim of a violent crime changes his personality...

Episode 22 from season 8 this is probably the last half way decent Quincy episode before it finished since the last two Whatever Happened to Morris Perlmutter? (1983) & The Cutting Edge (1983) are both awful. Written & directed by Michael Braverman An Act of Violence follows the recent trend of Quincy episodes & tackles a serious moral issue, what makes An Act of Violence better than the majority of season eight is that it's a message that is still relevant today as it points out that although a victim of crime's physical scars may heal their mental & emotional ones may not. Luckily for Quincy he has a psychiatrist for a wife & a homicide detective for a mate so he's got it made really but not everyone is so fortunate! Then there's the fact that the story actually revolves around Quincy himself rather than have him set a storyline up for someone else & then disappear from the episode, the fact that he has to use his medical & forensic skills & expertise on himself to catch his own muggers is a neat idea as well. There's also an unintentionally hilarious moment at the end when Quincy faces up to the guy who mugged him (who never changes his clothes) & Quincy who is a 60 plus year old man roughs up a mid 20's killer!

Most of the time these Quincy episodes haven't dated too badly but in the case of An Act of Violence there is a part early on as Lt. Monahan attends a crime scene wearing what looks like a bright yellow cardigan! Is that how all homicide detectives dressed back then? There is also a sequence in An Act of Violence in which Quincy is beaten up, I must admit I've always liked the guy & felt a little sorry for him at this point even if the scene was quite funny in a dated early 80's sort of way. An Act of Violence was the last appearance for Danny the bar owner in Quincy since the character doesn't feature in either of the two remaining episodes. One also has to say that I was surprised when Monahan mentioned the term 'crib job' to Quincy & he seemed puzzled like he had never heard of it before & Monahan has to explain what it means, I say I'm surprised because back in season three there was an episode actually called Crib Job (1978) which obviously dealt with the issue.

An Act of Violence is at least watchable & better than a lot of the generally awful season eight, at least it has a strong relevant storyline where Quincy is in the thick of the action. Worth a watch for fans of the series.