Oscar Poole & Tracy Doyle (Eye to Eye)

Created by Rich Eustis and Michael Elias

Overweight, dumpy, almost-retired private eye OSCAR POOLE is more than happy spending the rest of his days drinking and hanging out at O’Malley’s Bar. Until his former partner’s daughter, young (or at least younger), sexiy and slightly flaky Tracy Doyle, shows up and asks him to look into her father’s suspicious death.

Surprise, surprise! It’s murder!

Naturally the mismatched pair team up to crack the case. And before you can say “series,”, they’re off and running, as partners in a private detective agency, solving murders every week. Well, every week for six weeks.

The premise sounds suspiciously like Robert Benton’s 1977 feature flick, The Late Show, but without the casting of Art Carney or Lily Tomlin (or the writing of Benton) , this one lasted only half a dozen episodes.

Though the premise did allow one good (ie: groan-inducing) episode title. The premier episode was “The Dick and Tracy,” which has got to counting for something.

TELEVISION

• EYE TO EYE
  (1985, ABC)
  6 60-minute episodes
  A Skorpios Production with Warner Brothers
  Created by Rich Eustis and Michael Elias
  Writers: Michael Elias, Rich Eustis, Julie Friedgen, Alan Rosen
  Directors: Roger Young
  Produced by Steven A. Vail
  Starring Charles Durning as OSCAR POOLE
  and Stephanie Faracy as Tracy Doyle
  Guest stars include James Cromwell, Salome Jens, Bibi Besch, Sam Anderson, Walter Briggs, John Calvin, Adam Carl, Nancy Everhard, Eric Laneuville, Rita Taggart, Gary Riley, Harry Caesar, Harold Pruett, Constance Forslund, Mike Gomez
  • SEASON ONE
  • “There Dick and Tracy” (March 21, 1985)
  • “Singing the Blues” (April 4, 1985)
  • “The Suicide” (April 12, 1985)
  • “Dumb Death of Blonde” (April 11, 1985)
  • “A Crossword Puzzle” (April 18, 1985)
  • “Hide and Seek” (April 25, 1985)

Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.