Mathnet-- The Problem of the Trojan Hamburger

Mathnet first season, seventh mystery.
From Square One TV episodes (1987)
Thanks to Tony DuMont for the original episodes:
• Video Part 1
• Video Part 2
• Video Part 3
• Video Part 4
• Video Part 5

[@saturnotaku]

It only took 30 more years for the misfortune of the Despair Diamond to wear off from the Cubs.

[@jeffwoods9816]

This shows is so old the Rams left for 20 years and have returned.

[@rebeccahowe8927]

Kate: "Were you a good athlete as a kid, George?" George: "I don't remember." (tries to get fancy picking up the phone, fails miserably) "Probably not." Joe Howard FTW.

[@coolbluelights]

The quality of this video is abysmal but i'm just happy to see it at all

[@DrCrow13]

"I've never heard 'balloon' conjugated before" 😂 This show is hysterical. An under-the-radar gem for sure.

[@DrCrow13]

"Probably not.": I was laughing out loud. 😂 This show was pure genius... and, as much as I loved it, I did not appreciate that as a kid.

[@MrCherryCola]

The arrest was so dramatic, I was on the edge of my seat. It was hard to believe a nice man like that could commit suck a crime.

[@Garrettk41]

Kenneth Mars has done a lot of notable things, including two of Mel Brooks's best movies. And furthermore, he isn't the only Little Mermaid voice in this. Ben Wright, who played Hives Bottomly, was the voice of Grimsby, the prince's elderly advisor.

[@michaelglickman1300]

Wright also voiced Roger Radcliffe in "One Hundred and One Dalmatians."

[@snoopy64116]

What kind of car do you have? Green! LOL That's cracked me up ever since I first saw it in 1987!

[@michaelglickman1300]

Of course, Kenneth Mars and Ben Wright aren't the only Disney actors to appear in this episode. Similarly, Madge Sinclair, who played Amelia Airliver, also voiced Queen Sarabi in "The Lion King." In addition, James Earl Jones, who played Mathnet chief Thad Green, also was in "The Lion King" as King Mufasa. Also, Jonathan Freeman, who played the director Joshua in "The Case of the Unkidnapping", was also the voice of Jafar in "Aladdin."

[@Garrettk41]

Not only that, Jones and Sinclair also played a royal couple onscreen in "Coming to America".

[@michaelglickman1300]

@@Garrettk41 Exactly.

[@jessicare5331]

I forgot all about this until just now

[@jhillst]

"Amsterdarn." I didn't even catch that joke when I was a kid.

[@seanadams3551]

Amsterdarn. That was clever.

[@trevorbrown_artist]

“Two sets of books for the accountant.” #🤨

[@sunsetradioasmr7344]

Warning: This episode contains spoilers for the film Citizen Kane, haha :)

[@joypopoola6115]

Mathnet! Enough with the Los Angeles Rams references I just lost the team here in in St Louis a month ago!

[@CoolDude-lp7tf]

This show was made in 80s

[@DimeraFan28]

Man, I Miss This Show So Much. I wish that The Hub would put Square One TV On It's Network. I Wonder where the cast of Square One TV (that is if their still alive) (and the cast of Mathnet If They're still alive too) Is now?.

[@michaelglickman1300]

Both Reg E. Cathey and Emilio Del Pozo (Capt. Joe Greco) are deceased.

[@dustbunee2007]

29:15-My mom always thought that was funny, but the joke just went over my head.

[@kerenchairezwork3005]

hahahahahaha

[@XYZ-rk8un]

We love you George 😍🥵🥵😏😏

[@jadedrakerider]

Haha, databases. That used to seem like space age stuff.

[@MrCherryCola]

Sean Muray, sorry about that. I guess I wasn't paying attention to what I was typing.

[@lafcursiax]

Oh wow, I had completely forgotten this one!

[@antonspivack3928]

At 41:51 the half-cup of coffee appears to be in the wrong place.

[@jhillst]

I wonder how they explained this to the kids at the birthday party.

[@Garrettk41]

The Chicago Cubs used to own the Despair Diamond? Well, I've heard of baseball diamonds, but this is ridiculous.

[@DreamDancer82]

Ever see "The Great Muppet Caper?"

[@frameofmind7813]

It was a joke about why the Cubs never made it to the World Series.

[@Garrettk41]

Sure.

[@Garrettk41]

You know, Kenneth Mars and Henry Jones have done something else together too (technically it's the only thing they did together since they share no scenes here). I'm talking about "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid". Mars plays a marshal trying to organize a posse to capture the title characters, but he's interrupted by Jones, who distracts the villagers with the bike he's trying to sell. Perhaps that's why he did what he did- for revenge! You think? (snickers)

[@drewconway7135]

Henry Jones had such a long and prolific career, but I will always remember him from the movie Nine to Five.

[@taxpayertaxpayer6569]

fascinating discussion of how hot air ballooning works.

[@tate22000]

Thank you thank you thank you

[@moilar7985]

it looks a little fuzzy, but still cool!

[@Dogefish81]

Mrcherrycola I think you mean "such a crime" not "suck a crime" or something like that

[@OneWeirdDude]

I agree with MrCherryCola when he said the suspect seemed too nice to do it. It confused me as a child.

[@JDjade1]

OneWeirdDude Charade?

[@OneWeirdDude]

JDjade1 Pardon? What "charade"? (P.S. Please use a + sign or an @-sign.)

[@JDjade1]

For a person to act nice while still being a criminal. For the PS, I didnt even type in a name, so that should not have shown up.

[@OneWeirdDude]

Yeah, well, I'm just saying that's an easier way to get my attention sometimes - even though, in this case, it didn't matter since I wrote the original.

[@IsoscelesKramer]

Lot of Citizen Kane references in this one!

[@danieldrattell8418]

Amelia Airliver instead of the real Amelia Earhart (pronounced AirHeart). LOL. didn’t get the joke until now.

[@JohnSmith-zq9mo]

So this is where the idea for Numbers came from.

[@corsairsofnarshaddaa]

"I've never heard 'balloon' conjugated before" -Frankly It's lines like these they just don't write any more.

[@trevorbrown_artist]

Madge Sinclair was so beautiful. #😘

[@ghariiscool]

I'm watching this on 1-15-24 Lol @ george talking about the rams not choking Ironically they lost in Detroit yesterday

[@owenpeterson]

What puzzles me about this is that it was never said why Hans Ballpeen wanted to steal and cut the Despair Diamond in the first place? He seemed like he had a life in which committing acts of crime was out of the question for him.

[@NickCMedia]

owenpeterson He wanted to sell it.

[@midorimikan1]

Wow it was the clown guy!

[@gurlygamers]

Green car... XD LOL!

[@DimeraFan28]

@Vahan Nisanian, Don't forget that Kenneth Mars Also Did The Voice Of King Triton On "The Little Mermaid" (The Tv Series Not The Saban One), and also The Voice Of LittleFoot's Grandpa In "The Land Before Time" Movies and TV Series.

[@canadiancatgreen]

she does not know much about cars? yet she knew all that info?

[@vanni9283]

Wait a minute...How did the thief get into the estate? :/

[@OneWeirdDude]

In the hamburger. It was a Trojan horse.

[@vanni9283]

Hmmm...

[@OneWeirdDude]

Notice the human-shaped hole in the burger.

[@jhillst]

I'm not sure how a man of Hans's size could have squeezed into that tiny space, though. And also, after Hans took the gem, how did he make it outside the building in order to fly away in the balloon? The guards would have still noticed him whether he entered or exited the doors...unless maybe he floated away through a skylight?

[@vanni9283]

They said he had a parachute.

[@craigclermond8001]

am sure hell learn plenty skills in prison

[@yennisopheialestaris.h335]

What is his skill, mathneters?

[@Garrettk41]

None of the guests in this episode are still alive. Kind of surprising.

[@ghariiscool]

🙏🏾

[@gosnooky]

Amsterdarn :)

[@VahanNisanian]

I still can hardly believe that is the voice of King Triton as Hans Ballpeen.

[@CrazyChipmunk78]

Back when tv was actually with a dam

[@PhillyMotoXTS]

0:17, clearly not filmed after Super Bowl 53 lol

[@MrGabeanator]

ice

[@VahanNisanian]

The synth score from the first two seasons of "Mathnet" could be dramatic and intense at times, and it shows, especially at 43:56. The orchestra score that replaced it afterwards, doesn't sound as intense and dramatic to me.

[@colleen4ever]

Fun Fact- that's the actual Dragnet theme, no parody! Jack Webb's estate gave PBS permission to use it.

[@joshmg25]

What I don't get is, how come the wife wasn't arrested? It seemed like she was in on what he was doing.

[@frameofmind7813]

I thought she was as dumb as a box of rocks.

[@GamingDelight]

She wasn't. Until her husband was apprehended, she had no knowledge of his thievery nor the diamond. She spent much of the episode believing Hans was kidnapped. Not necessary to charge her with accessory to burglary (or anything at all).

[@gregjanover741]

313 keeps popping up

[@VanillaLimeCoke]

That’s interesting. Because it kept popping up for me when I was a young tyke. Especially the time 3:13pm

[@williamwebb9041]

1:14 rotfl