The Snoop Sisters

I remember the Alice Cooper episode very well. He sang "Sick Things". Quite an unexpected treat for young Cooper fans.

I remember watching this series and loving it. I especially remember an episode where Alice Cooper guest starred and sang on stage. "Ëat My Thing", I kid you not. I was 13 years old at the time and it blew my mind. Of Course I probably misheard the words. Nobody believes me when I tell them. He was also wearing a skeleton suit when he sang. My kingdom to see that again, or get at least a confirmation that I in fact saw what I swear I saw. Anyway I am eagerly awaiting this series on DVD. I won't be holding my breath though. There were scads of other cool guest stars and ran along with other series like McCloud on the Tuesday Latenight Mystery Show.(?).

Long before Angela Lansbury brightened TV screens as the mystery writing sleuth of "Murder, She Wrote," Helen Hayes, the first lady of the American theater, joined forces with film veteran Mildred Natwick to solve crimes as "The Snoop Sisters," one of four rotating segments during the second season of The NBC Wednesday Mystery Movie.

"The Snoop Sisters" had rather obvious roots in Agatha Christie's Miss Marple mysteries but also tried to be a senior citizen revamping of "McMillan and Wife," which was the product of the same producers. Hayes and Natwick are delightful, but for obvious reasons a show starring two aged performers lacked the slam-bang action that viewers might have preferred in the cop heavy atmosphere of the 1973-74 TV season.

Lacking the wit or clever plotting of "Columbo," this series never got off the ground. Even a guest appearance by then red-hot rocker Alice Cooper in one episode failed to enliven the proceedings. After four 90 minute episodes, "The Snoop Sisters" joined the rest of The NBC Wednesday (and at midseason, Tuesday) Mystery Movie segments ("Banacek," "Tenafly," and "Faraday and Company") on the trash heap of cancelled programs.

I remember watching this show as a wee tot with my grandfather and it stayed with me for decades. Rediscovered it a few years ago on DVD and shared the experience with my mother shortly before her passing. She had never seen them and loved them as much as I did.

The Snoop Sisters was part of the rotating wheel of mystery movies that aired on Wednesdays along with Banacek, Tenafly and a few others. Despite being the most critically acclaimed of this lot and with both lead actresses snagging Emmy nominations (with one of them winning), only Banacek featuring a humorless George Peppard was chosen to continue.

The Snoop Sisters are Ernesta and Gwendolyn ("G"), played by the First Lady of the Stage Helen Hayes and the glorious Mildred Natwick. Ernesta is a bestselling mystery writer and Gwendolyn functions as her assistant. Both of them end up embroiling themselves in various murder mysteries, much to the consternation of their police detective nephew Bert Convy and frazzled chauffeur Lou Antonio.

The show is actually ahead of its time and was obviously the precursor for the later success of Murder She Wrote. Hayes and Natwick have a sparkling chemistry and every moment with them is a delight. The steady roster of stars from the Golden Age making guest appearances - including Walter Pidgeon, Geraldine Page, Vincent Price, Paulette Goddard, Jill Clayburgh, Art Carney, etc. - is also a plus.

I am a sucker for shows which feature older people who have a zest for life and don't act like the grim reaper is perched on their shoulder. Watching Hayes and Natwick banter, run scams, outwit murderers and keep ahead of the police is wonderful. Their light touch with the comedy and the precise plots are highlights.

A show in definite need of rediscovery. Most people have never heard of it, but those that do invariably think highly of it.

"The Snoop Sisters" starred Helen Hayes, Mildred Natwick, Lou Antonio, and Bert Convy. Unfortunately, it never attracted an audience. Like the later, much better "Ellery Queen," it was about ten years too early. The golden ager TV boom - the breakout hits "The Golden Girls" and "Murder, She Wrote" didn't happen until a decade later.

"The Snoop Sisters" sported some fabulous guest stars and was silly as all get-out. Because it was forced into a 90-minute time slot, it seems slow. The obviousness of the murders on "Murder, She Wrote," didn't stop it from becoming a hit, however, so it's unlikely that was the real problem with "The Snoop Sisters." Like MSW, it relied heavily on style instead of substance and taken on that basis, it was an entertaining series.

With formidable and adorable stars like Hayes and Natwick, it's a shame that this series appeared on TV when it did. Timing, as they say, is everything.