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TV Media Weekly | February 9 - 15, 2019 By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: Who owns the classic Mus- tang that Conrad drove on "Matlock"? A: No one seems to know what happened to Conrad McMasters' (Clarence Gilyard Jr., "Walker, Tex- as Ranger") red, mid-'60s Ford Mustang convertible, his hiding place for many a stakeout and other investigative tasks for his friend and employer, Ben Matlock (Andy Griffith, "The Andy Griffith Show"). Presumably the last known owner is Dean Hargrove Produc- tions, which produced "Matlock," but even that's not certain — cars, particularly rare ones, are often rented to productions by private owners. I don't even know which is the case with this particular Mustang. When the Conrad character joined "Matlock" in 1989, the car would have been about 24 years old. That's old, but Mustangs, being classics, were better preserved than many, and so weren't exactly rare at that point. The lack of information about Conrad's car can be chalked up to the fact that the car isn't a particu- larly iconic piece of Matlock mem- orabilia. Q: Is the show "Barney Mill- er" in syndication? It seems it would play well with today's audience. A: You can catch Capt. Barney Miller and his squad of mis- matched detectives at various weird hours on the schedule, if you look hard enough. It's a fitting state of affairs for a show about people doing good work at odd hours and generally flying under the radar. For example, Sundance TV has lately been filling up its early morning hours with mini "Miller" marathons. You can also catch it on the WPIX schedule and the An- tenna TV. The series is (rightly) considered a classic, and so it comes and goes from the schedule. If you haven't seen it on your dial lately, it'll quite likely show up soon. If you can't wait that long, there's always video. Shout Factory, a distribution company doing great work in bringing modern- classic comedy to DVD, released in- dividual seasons of the show, as well as a boxed set containing all eight (plus the first season of the spinoff "Fish"). The show's been off the air a long time — nearly 37 years, in fact — but you're right in thinking that it tackled issues that remain timely — big issues like diversity and, of course, law and order. Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Hollywood Q&A By Andrew Warren TV Media I t's that time of the year! Love is in the air, and with Valentine's Day upon us, chef Bobby Flay is embrac- ing two of the things that he loves most: fantastic food and the thrill of competition. This week's episode of "Beat Bobby Flay" is all about choco- late, that most decadent of foods and a classic Valentine's Day treat. Airing Thursday, Feb. 14, on Food Network, the epi- sode finds culinary personali- ties Valerie Bertinelli ("Valerie's Home Cooking") and Alton Brown ("Iron Chef America") struggling to choose between two chefs eager to challenge Flay to a culinary showdown. Challenger David Lebovitz is an acclaimed pastry chef for whom working with chocolate is second nature, but he's met his match in Ryan Scott, a jack of all trades who is more than capable of putting a savory spin on the tasty ingredient. As in all episodes of "Beat Bobby Flay," the two chefs go head to head in a cookoff, with Bertinelli and Brown deciding which one of them gets to throw down with the show's namesake. Flay has long been Food Net- work's most recognizable culi- nary battler. He first rose to fame during his appearance in the Japanese version of "Iron Chef," and was one of the origi- nal chefs chosen to be an Iron Chef in "Iron Chef America." He previously starred in "Throw- down! With Bobby Flay," which saw him challenge chefs to see who could make the better ver- sion of their specialty dishes. "Beat Bobby Flay" definitely has elements of "Throwdown," especially in the second round where the chosen chef finally gets to, well, throw down with Flay. Unlike in the first round, in the second it's the challenger who gets to decide what dish both Flay and his competition must cook, and the judges taste both dishes blind, without know- ing which chef cooked which. Even with the cards stacked against him, Flay wins far more often than he loses. He isn't just a great chef, he's also an in- credible competitor who relish- es the rush of the challenge. Chocolate can be a tricky ingre- dient to work with, but if any- one can handle it, it's Bobby Flay. Catch the new episode when it airs Thursday, Feb. 14, on Food Network. Two new challengers aim to beat the master 10 | Cooking this week Moore's Home Health 2 x 2" Family Health Clinic 2 x 1.5" White Lilies N Paradise 2 x 1.5" Bobby Flay as seen in "Beat Bobby Flay"

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