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Little Prince

Littleprincetitle

Season
Episode
11 (11th overall)
Airdate
December 14, 1984
Repeat Airdate
April 26, 1985
TV Rating
TV-14 D
Writer(s)
Director
Guest Stars
Previous Episode
Next Episode

"Little Prince" is the eleventh episode of Miami Vice's first season. It premiered on December 14, 1984, and was rerun on April 26, 1985.

Summary[]

A wealthy businessman's son may be the key to stopping his father's other investment -- drug dealing.

Plot[]

In a rundown part of Miami, Gina and Trudy are posing as junkies looking for a fix when they encounter Luther, a dealer and a pimp who promises to "take care of" them; he leads them down a maze of side alleys to a drug den in a run-down building, where he offers to buy them what they need, asking that they "do for Luther" in return. Unfortunately for the two Vice cops, their backup, in the form of Switek and Zito, loses them in the alleys. Realizing the danger Gina and Trudy are in, they call on Crockett and Tubbs for help, who in turn track down Royco, "Miami's favorite junkie", for the location of the drug den. The bust goes down just in time to save Trudy from having to shoot heroin. The man running the drug den is so high he leaps out of a window to escape, falling to his death in the street below.

At OCB, they squad learn that one of the junkies they have arrested is Mark Jorgenson, Jr., son of wealthy Miami market trader Mark Jorgenson, Sr.. As this is Mark, Jr.'s second offense in eight months, they apply the pressure, hoping to find out the names of his dealer and the dealer's supplier. They almost succeed, but just as he is about to sign the plea bargain, his father's lawyer bursts in with a court order securing his release. After Mark, Jr. leaves the room, Tubbs laments how rich kids like Mark are only into drugs because they are hurting so badly inside. Meeting with Castillo afterwards, Crockett insists Mark, Jr.'s status could help them bust otherwise untouchable dealers who will be only too happy to be seen rubbing shoulders with a man of his standing. The Lieutenant agrees, and instructs Crockett and Tubbs to start rattling the kid's cage.

Crockett (as Burnett) checks out the upper-class scene, watching the Jorgenson men playing polo. Afterwards, he meets Mark, Sr. and his current partner, a much younger woman named Mary McDermott. Back at the Jorgenson home, Mary finds Mark, Jr. strung out on drugs in the bathroom; upset by his condition, she tries to talk to him, but he is too high to even hold a conversation. Mark, Sr. arrives home and dismisses his son's drug use. Later, Mark, Jr. finds his father conducting business over the phone on the lawn. His father informs him that if he agrees to a six month rehab program, his sentence will likely be suspended. Despite Mark, Sr. promising him that his stint in rehab can be delayed so that he can finish school and the polo season, Mark, Jr. refuses to go.

Trudy pulls Mark, Sr.'s file and finds that he has been investigated by financial conduct authorities around the world, including the IRS, the Swiss Bank Authority, the FTC and the SEC; the SEC built a large and complex insider trading case against him, but when Jorgenson found out he took the commission to court for harassment and won. She also reveals that Mark, Sr. has been keeping some rather shady company, including cocaine financiers. Realizing he is likely a money launderer, Tubbs goes to review the SEC's wiretap tapes and learns of a warehouse where he keeps his "inventory". Piecing clues together from the tape, the Vice cop finds the warehouse, sneaks in, and locates a huge stash of cocaine, worth approximately $75 million on the street. He calls in Crockett and Castillo, and they put the warehouse under surveillance, the entire Vice squad taking shifts on the stakeout. Meanwhile, Crockett does a records search to see who owns the building, turning up nothing but a long list of holding companies. Finally, Gina and Trudy see several suited men and Mary enter the warehouse, and the team moves in to bust them.

Tubbs tries to talk Mary into giving up Mark, Sr. while he drives her back to OCB, but she lawyers up. At the Jorgenson home, Mark, Sr. tells his son about Mary's arrest and how he has to distance himself from her to protect his business reputation. Disgusted that his father would abandon her, Mark, Jr. volunteers to go see Mary in his stead. As Metro-Dade clean up at the warehouse, Castillo informs Crockett and Tubbs that he now has enough evidence to secure surveillance and wiretaps on Mark, Sr., and compliments them on their bust. Crockett then gets a call on his car phone telling him that that Mark, Jr. is at OCB; he asks them to hold him until he gets there. In the interrogation room, Crockett and Tubbs explain to him that Mary has been running his father's drug deals for him, acting as a middleman so that Mark, Sr. can distance himself from any illegal activity. Mark refuses to accept what they are saying and storms out, going to collect Mary from jail with Jimmy, his father's limo driver. Jimmy drops Mark, Jr. off at home, and as he drives away with Mary he locks the doors; Mark, Sr. watches them go from his mansion's window.

Metro-Dade later find Mary's body under a freeway bridge. Castillo has Mark, Jr. brought to the scene to learn the truth about his father -- a move that an angry Crockett considers heartless. Despite his shared disgust, Mark, Jr. agrees to see his father again, this time wearing a wire. At their home, Mark, Sr. is upset and guilt-ridden about what happened to Mary. He confesses to his son that he has only been hard on him because he wanted him to be tough like the Jorgenson men before him, but that secretly he always admired his sensitivity and rebellious nature. Finally, Mark, Sr. admits to having had Mary killed, leading his distraught son to rip open his shirt and reveal the wire. The police move in and take Mark, Sr. away, despite his son's pleas; Crockett tries to comfort Mark, Jr. but he runs from the scene, not interested in anything the Vice cop has to say. Some time later, he is seen hitchhiking his way out of Miami.

Cast[]

Guest Stars[]

Co-Starring[]

Uncredited[]

  • Ken Ceresne as Polo Game Spectator
  • Jody Wilson as Researcher

Notes[]

  • This is the third of three consecutive episodes (along with "Glades" and "Give a Little, Take a Little") that open with establishing shots of the seedy areas of Miami, many of which are located in the South Beach area before the revitalization that took place there during and after Miami Vice was on the air.
  • Tubbs refers to Mark, Sr. as "voted most likely to be Robert Vesco in high school". Vesco (1935-2007) allegedly committed securities fraud and escaped prosecution by fleeing to countries that refused extradition (Costa Rica, Cuba etc.). He was never put on trial in the US for his crimes, but Cuba did sentence him to 13 years in jail in 1996 for similar offenses. He died in prison in November, 2007.
  • This is one of several episodes that does not end on a freeze frame.
  • When Switek lets Crockett & Tubbs know they lost Trudy & Gina in the opening, you can see Tubbs shaking his head in frustration, possibly still a little unhappy they also lost Joey Bramlette in "Glades" and had to "clean up their mess".

Goofs[]

  • When Trudy is talking to Castillo in his office while wiping the junkie makeup off her face, the movement of her lips do not match what she is saying.

Production Notes[]

  • Working Title: "White Bread"
  • Filmed: November 7, 1984 - November 16, 1984
  • Production Number: 59515
  • Production Order: 12

Filming Locations[]

  • Gino's Italian Restaurant, 1906 Collins Ave, Miami Beach (opening scene Gina/Trudy walking on street)
  • 101 SW 12th Ave, Miami (Crockett/Tubbs spot Royco)
  • 1435 Collins Court, Miami Beach (Crockett/Tubbs catch Royco)
  • Crandon Park , Key Biscayne, GPS 25.709320, -80.154926 (polo match)
  • Crandon Blvd, Key Biscayne, GPS 25.725083, -80.152615 (Tubbs/Mary car drive)
  • 42 W. Star Island Drive, Star Island (Jorgenson mansion, house demolished in 2014) [1]
  • Miami Rescue Mission, 916 N. Miami Avenue, Miami (stakeout of drug warehouse - now gone)
  • south side of NW 9th St between N Miami Ave and NW 1st St (drug warehouse - now gone)
  • Task Electric, 511 SW 3rd Avenue, Miami (Crockett/Tubbs/Castillo walk to car)
  • SW 3 Ave under I-95, south bank of Miami River, Miami (Mary MacDermott's body is found)

Music[]

Todd_Rundgren_-_Tiny_Demons_(_Miami_Vice_video_by_StevenMighty_)

Todd Rundgren - Tiny Demons ( Miami Vice video by StevenMighty )

Tiny Demons by Todd Rundgren (By StevenMighty)

Jan Hammer Music[]

  • "Runaround" (polo match)
  • "Little Prince" (throughout episode)
  • "Payback" (Mark and Mary talk in limo)

Quotes[]

  • "They're gonna pay this guy a million dollars NOT to play football next year" -- Crockett reading sports article on stakeout
  • "I want to see a lawyer! You're gonna need a coroner!". -- Crockett to Royco trying to find out where Luther is
  • "It's what it is, pal. You're going to do everyday of six months, just for the possession alone. By the time you get out, you'll be the volleyball, get my drift"? -- Crockett to Mark Jr. in the interrogation room.
  • "I don't give a damn if you're Bailey and Belli, who the hell do you think you are to bust in here?!" -- Crockett to Mark's Lawyer
  • "I've seen guys in the Bronx, Lower East Side, strung out, slammed down. They got a thousand and one reasons to want to escape and a thousand and one nights of learnin the ropes. But the saddest thing is an uptown junkie. They're only into it because they hurt so much inside." -- Tubbs to Crockett describing seeing rich kids like Mark Jr. doing drugs in New York
  • "Just because he's money doesn't mean he's not dirty!" -- Tubbs to Trudy about going after Mark Sr.
Season 1 Episodes:

"Brother's Keeper" (Pilot) "Heart of Darkness" "Cool Runnin'" "Calderone's Return (Part I)" "Calderone's Return (Part II)" "One Eyed Jack" "No Exit" "The Great McCarthy" "Glades" "Give a Little, Take a Little" "Little Prince" "Milk Run" "Golden Triangle (Part I)" "Golden Triangle (Part II)" "Smuggler's Blues" Rites of Passage "The Maze" "Made for Each Other" "The Home Invaders" "Nobody Lives Forever" "Evan" "Lombard"

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