He died at his home from prostate cancer in 2008. Aside from his wife, Cheryle Higgins, whom he married in 2001, Mcdonald was survived by a sister, two sons, three stepsons and grandchildren. His first marriage ended in divorce. [2] Bibliography [ edit ] Irwin Maurice "Fletch" Fletcher series [ edit ] Fletch as an obstacle/opponent/facilitator (all at the same time) of the press in any shape is just a lot of fun. His instincts, training, and inclination is to dig into a story, find the facts on his own, and run the story. His new job is to feed information to reporters, keep them from doing any fact-finding on their own, and to hide aspects of the story. It is so fun to watch him struggle in this role.

a b Liane Bonin (2003-08-13). " 'Fletch' Lives". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2008-01-10 . Retrieved 2007-02-17. D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1sted.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874. Additionally, the film was also the next-to-last to be released by Universal on the HD DVD format, March 11, 2008, and later released on Blu-ray disc on June 2, 2009. [ citation needed] Legacy [ edit ]The getup he uses as “Gordon Liddy” in Fletch is repurposed as “Billie Jean King,” named after the famous former tennis pro, in Fletch Lives. 5. The televangelist Jimmy Lee Farnsworth is played by actor R. Lee Ermey. Fletch the book is a pretty good dialogue-driven mystery. Fletch the character is a smooth talker, a man not afraid to tell bold faced lies to get the information he wants. While he shares the dry deliver of Chevy Chase from the movie Fletch, he's no Chevy Chase. There are no shots of Fletch falling down, no acting like an idiot, no Doctor Rosenpenis. The I.M. Fletchter of the book is a much darker character, a Vietnam vet who treats people like crap and throws cats out of seven story windows if the mood strikes him. He also shares a sleeping bag with a fifteen year old junkie on the beach. Yes. I’ve seen your tax forms. Visually, they’re ugly. In fact very offensive. And their use of the English language is highly objectionable. Perverted.” Fletch watches Stanwyk making a suspicious briefcase exchange with Chief Karlin, but is unable to deduce the nature of their meeting. When he is chased by LAPD officers lying in wait at his apartment, Fletch goes into hiding, returning to Provo. Posing as an insurance investigator, he interviews Stanwyk's parents, learning that Stanwyk has been married to another woman for eight years; his bigamous marriage to Gail allowed him access to her vast wealth. Michael Ausiello (2007-04-23). "Exclusive: Zach Braff Bails on Fletch! Plus: Scrubs to ABC?". TV Guide . Retrieved 2009-10-03.

He can be seen wearing a McGovern/Eagleton ’72 presidential campaign t-shirt after his first night in Belle Isle. The McGovern/Eagleton presidential bid was ultimately unsuccessful, but it’s still notable: The Democratic National Committee Headquarters were broken into during that campaign year in what would later be known as the Watergate Scandal, which was orchestrated by G. Gordon Liddy (one of Fletch’s aliases). 8. The synth score for Fletch Lives was done by German musician Harold Faltermeyer. What about differences in the plot? Like I was saying – I was surprised about how much the story followed the book. There were character differences... Book Fletch's editor was named Clara. He was actually kind of mean to her. She reported up to Frank who was basically both of their's boss. In the movie they morphed Clara/Frank into a character named Larry (played by Geena Davis). Movie Fletch was a lot nicer to Larry than Book Fletch was to Clara. I'm pretty sure Fletch couldn't cut it in today's society... he would constantly have to go to EEO training and getting fired. Aside from that... there's still an Alan & Gail Stanwyk, a Fat Sam, Creasy, Gummy, and police chief Karlin. What about Mr Underhill? The guy Chevy charged all those amenities to? In the book he was Mr. Underwood. It's funny the things they change in movies.The film revolves around Los Angeles Times reporter Irwin M. "Fletch" Fletcher, who is offered a large sum of money by a millionaire to kill him, claiming he has a terminal cancer prognosis and suicide would invalidate his life insurance policy. Fletch becomes suspicious when he discovers the man is not ill; when he continues to investigate, his life is threatened. Have you ever met someone whose sense of humour is funny, but also deserving of a punch in the face? Then you've met Fletch! His off-colour comments and sarcastic wit make for an amusing read. I personally enjoy people who are like Fletch. George Carlin might have squirmed hearing some of the verbally offensive jousting I do with my friends. A sequel film, Fletch Lives, came out in 1989; this one used an original story instead of adapting one of McDonald's novels. There was a raw spot behind the girl’s left ear. It had had time to neither swell nor bleed. There was just a gully with slim blood streaks running along it. Her hair streamed away from it as if to escape.

Schorn, Peter (May 1, 2007). "Fletch (The "Jane Doe" Edition)". IGN. Archived from the original on July 12, 2009 . Retrieved 2009-04-17. A follow-up to Fletch Lives had been discussed in the 1990s at Universal Studios. During his association with Universal after the production of Mallrats (this was because Gramercy Pictures, which released Mallrats, was co-owned by Universal), Kevin Smith expressed interest in doing a third "Fletch" film as a sequel starring Chevy Chase, but it never came to fruition. In June 2000, it was announced that Kevin Smith was set to write and direct a Fletch film at Miramax Films, after the rights to the books, which Universal Studios had owned, reverted. [30] At the time, Miramax co-head Harvey Weinstein expressed the hope that a new Fletch series would be "Miramax Films' first-ever series." [ citation needed] Good morning,” Fletch said. “As the governor’s press representative, I make you the solemn promise that I will never lie to you. Today, on this bus, we will be passing through Miami, New Orleans, Dallas, New York, and Keokuk, Iowa. Per usual, at midday you will be flown to San Francisco for lunch. Today’s menu is clam chowder, pheasant under glass, roast Chilean lamb, and a strawberry mousse from Maine. Everything the governor says today will be significant, relevant, wise, to the point, and as fresh as the lilies in the field.” … At one point, inspired by a conversation he has with Fletch, Wheeler has a moment of statesmanship (a no-no for a candidate, Fletch is told) where he talks about the ways that technology is connecting the planet and helping share information in ways unthinkable generations earlier, and talks about how it will increase in that way. Essentially predicting the Internet as we know it. Granted, it’s a more utopian vision of the Internet rather than the dumpster fire it frequently is. But Wheeler/Mcdonald has a vision for what today is in a way that no mystery writer in 1983 should’ve. Additional pressure comes from Fletch avoiding the two attorneys chasing him for alimony for each of his ex-wives.Fletch investigates the murder in the way he does best—by talking to people and interviewing them without their realizing it and making phone calls. I just love watching him work. It’s an intricate problem and Fletch’s solution is quite clever. Naturally, Dan John Miller had nothing to do with any of my problems, he does a great job as usual. Fletch jumps to action and gathers a lot of information (as only he can) before the police really even know what’s going on, including an in-depth interview (that doesn’t look like one) with the widow. He then whisks Moxie away to the home of a business associate in Key West, to keep her out of the spotlight while he can do some digging into both of her problems. Jonathan Bing; Claude Brodesser (2000-06-29). "M'max, Smith fetch 'Fletch' for franchise". Variety . Retrieved 2007-02-17.