Crane vs. Crane
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| Frasier episode | |
|---|---|
| “Crane vs. Crane” | |
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 19 |
| Guest star(s) | Donald O'Connor (Harlow Safford) |
| Writer(s) | David Lloyd |
| Director | Philip Charles MacKenzie |
| Production no. | 40571-068 |
| Original airdate | 9 April 1996 |
| Episode chronology | |
| ← Previous | Next → |
| "Chess Pains" | "Police Story" |
"Crane vs. Crane" is the title of the nineteenth episode of the third season of the American television sitcom Frasier.
Contents |
[edit] Main cast and characters
Kelsey Grammer - Frasier Crane
David Hyde Pierce - Niles Crane
John Mahoney - Martin Crane
Jane Leeves - Daphne Moon
Peri Gilpin - Roz Doyle
[edit] Plot outline
Crane vs. Crane is a unusual episode of Frasier, as it sees the brothers competing against each other on a professional level. Successful businessman Harlow Safford is now 78 and showing signs of senility, so his son tries to get him committed. Despite Martin feeling that the son is just trying to get at the family fortune, Niles is asked to speak as an expert witness to Safford's insanity.
The next day, a member of Safford's legal team visits Frasier at work, and asks him to meet Safford and try to get his brother to change his mind. The old man's house has a fireman's pole, a giant model railway and lollipops on demand. He explained that he wants to make the most of his health while he still can, and give something back to the world that has been kind to him.
The case is on Court TV, and Frasier suspects that Niles is desperate for attention and publicity and that this is clouding his judgment. To Frasier, the behaviour of Harlow is joie de vivre and a childlike innocence, and he decides to speak against his brother in the court case.
On the day of the trial, Frasier is asked to speak first. As he is giving his speech, Safford shows major signs of insanity, and begins acting as if he were a train conductor, stamping Niles' notes as if they were a ticket, and then walking around telling people of the "train's route." Resigned to defeat, Frasier tells him "I think I know where your next stop is going to be." Niles is not happy either - he was right, but nobody heard him be right.
[edit] Trivia
- The episode's title parodies the child custody drama Kramer vs. Kramer.
