Category: Lonely Hearts

Captain Ethan Cragg

Captain Ethan Cragg (Claude Akins) is one of Jessica’s Cabot Cove friends. He is very protective of Jessica, and has a warm, but combative, relationship with the Cabot Cove Sheriff, Amos Tupper.

Captain Cragg runs Cragg’s Charter Services from his boat out of Cabot Cove. He comes to the rescue by land (S1 E7: “Hit, Run and Homicide”) and by sea (S1 E2: “Deadly Lady”). When he’s not volunteering for the Coast Guard or helping the Sheriff, Ethan’s hobbies include fishing, softball, and arcade games.

Unfortunately, Ethan only appears in Season 1. His character is more or less replaced by Dr. Hazlitt later in the series. I wish this wasn’t the case, I really like the character of Ethan. I feel like there is room in Jessica’s life for more than one gruff but well meaning gentleman at a time. Plus, Ethan has a certain… Gorton’s Fisherman appeal that I miss in later seasons.

Hello and Welcome!

For reasons unclear to me, this is by far my most popular post. Welcome to Murder She Wrote, She Wrote! If you are seeking Captain Cragg, I hope you’ve found what you were hoping for.

Here are some more posts featuring the good captain:

Murder, She Wrote Episodes featuring Ethan Cragg

Cabot Cove Posts featuring Ethan Cragg

Ethan Cragg in Good Company

Edmund Gerard

Edmund Gerard (Peter Graves) S1 E6: “Lovers and Other Killers”

Edmund Gerard is the Dean of Students at Sequoia University, a major university in Seattle, WA. Edmund was friends with Jessica and Frank before they were married. Both he and his secretary, Amelia, hint at the possibility of a pairing between Edmund and Jessica now that they are both widowed. Jessica wishes only to remain friends, which is fortunate, because it turns out that Edmund is the kind of man who has affairs with married subordinates.

Stephen Earl

Dossier

Stephen is the patriarch of the Earl family and has strained relationships with most of his daughters. He is lately, and possibly regretfully, retired from his cosmetics empire.

As a widower, Stephen can relate to Jessica’s grief over the loss of her husband. He shows an interest that might have grown into more than friendship if he hadn’t met with an untimely end.

Appearances

S1 E2: “Deadly Lady”

Preston Giles

Dossier

Preston Giles (Arthur Hill) is the founder of Coventry House, the publisher of Jessica’s first novel, The Corpse Danced at Midnight. Preston has a shady past. He claims to have been framed for crimes he didn’t commit, after which he escaped prison and assumed his current identity. In April, 1984, he murdered Dexter Baxendale and Caleb McCallum to protect this secret. He is in love with Jessica Fletcher.

Appearances