|
# 014 <1.14> House of Cards
 The grounds of Falcon Crest where Emma meets Chase on the dirt road and the hills near the Gioberti Estate where Lance and Melissa are riding are actually located in Malibu Creek State Park (formerly Fox Ranch) in Malibu Canyon. The same area was used to shoot the scenes at the Gioberti Family Cemetery and at the Gioberti Estate in # 012.The vinyeard at the Gioberti Estate (where Melissa sees Cole) is a grassy area on a hill where the crew specifically installed prop vines.   ANA ALICIA takes over the rôle of Melissa Agretti after the character was played by DOLORES CANTÚ in # 011.Actress SELA WARD also auditioned for the part and was head writer BOB McCULLOUGH's favored applicant; the other casting committee members, however, outvoted him.
 The interior set of Lance's bedroom in the Falcon Crest Victorian Mansion is the same as the set of Angela's (featured in # 002 and 005) and of Julia's (# 005) bedrooms as well as of the guest bedroom (compare # 001) — an easy way to cut down production costs. The set is just propped with different furniture and filmed from different angles to portray the various bedrooms.LORIMAR's original blueprints of this set and many others are available for DFCF members in the Show – Production Office – Filming Locations – Movie Studios – Interior Sets section. Julia tells Lance her relationship to Tony was the only one she ever had. Inconsistency: In season 3, it will be revealed Julia had an affair with Carlo Agretti; in season 5, it will be revealed she had a relationship with Dominic Rossini.
Product placement: Cole buys Steer compost.   This episode marks the first appearance of uncredited extra PAUL VAN. He is an American actor, who appeared as an extra and in minor speaking rôles in many TV series and movies in the 1970's and 1980's. Although he was not a crew member of "Falcon Crest" and had no long-term contract with the show, but — like most atmosphere persons — was hired on a day-to-day basis for filming through an extras casting agency, he practically became a colleague to the group of regular stand-ins and extras because he was on the set so often during seasons 1 through 9.With only a few exceptions, he portrays in nearly all his scenes a distinguished, mustached doctor (surgeon) who works at the Tuscany Valley (Memorial) Hospital / Queen of the Valley Hospital (beginning in # 014). On rare occasions, however, he plays a few other rôles from time to time, too, appropriately dressed, of course. In the current episode, he appears at the nusery where Cole and Melissa are shopping. Compare # 227 for biographical details about PAUL VAN's primary minor rôle and a list of all his appearances throughout the series.
 Emma is being examined at the Hayden Clinic, a psychiatric clinic. Inside joke: The clinic is named after JEFFREY HAYDEN, who directed # 008.The filming location for the Hayden Clinic was a mock Tudor building on Hollywood Way in Burbank, close to gate 4 of THE BURBANK STUDIOS (now WARNER BROS. STUDIOS). The building was demolished in 1998, and a new small office building was erected in the same place.  Uncredited stand-in GORDON HODGINS appears as an extra again. He appears as a Tuscany Valley gentleman (like in his first appearance in # 009) — passing by the Hayden Clinic this time.Compare # 182 for a list of appearances throughout the series. For details about GORDON HODGINS, compare # 001. The original choice for the name of Dr. Banning, Emma's psychotherapist, was Dr. Bellows. Real-life allusion: Emma mentions SIGMUND FREUD.
The filming location for the scene with the Porsche — and Angie's arrival in her Mercedes-Benz 380 SL — is in Malibu Creek State Park (formerly Fox Ranch); see above.
  Mistake: In the scene in Melissa's Porsche in front of the Agretti Residence, Cole's head is in different positions in subsequent frames filmed from different angles.Again, this is the typical mistake caused by the particular close-up filming technique — check # 001 (Chase and Maggie at the Gioberti Family Cemetery) for details.   Another mistake of that kind can be discovered in the scene with Melissa and Vickie at the dance studio: The position of Melissa's hand, holding her bag, is different in subsequent frames filmed from different angles.  The dance studio where Vickie and Melissa are in class together is a business building on West Riverside Drive in Tolcua Lake, CA. 10124, as seen above the front door in the scene, is the real street number. At the time of filming, this used to be a real ballet school.
Original script drafts contained a scene towards the end of the episode with Chase reciting from one of Jasper's old letters to Maria Gioberti in Italy (one of the papers she gave Cole in # 008), dated Aug 20, 1951: "Today Angela won the war she has waged on Jason's wife Jacqueline ever since he brought her here twelve years ago. Jacqueline fled during the night, taking with her their young son, Charles, who we call Chase... The final version of the episode, however, did not make use of this scene. The writers' original idea of the backstory with a stroke for Jasper's character, which enabled Angela to win almost tyrannical control over her father's life and fortune, was completely abolished. Instead, the viewers were led to believe that Angela and Jasper got along very well and that he voluntarily left all major business decisions to her sharp mind. Also, other episodes finally referenced July 1950 as the time when Jacqueline left the Tuscany Valley with Chase. ← Previous episode... → Next episode... |
Shortcuts to this episode's
