TV Flash
All episodes Season 1 S01E05 1977-10-22 60 min 1970s ABC

The Love Boat

Help! Murder! / Isaac the Groupie / Mr. Popularity

TV Flash files “Help! Murder! / Isaac the Groupie / Mr. Popularity” as hour 5 of 245 in the TV Flash guide — The Love Boat (1977–1986) on ABC, season 1, episode 5, aired 1977-10-22, 60 min.

From the desk

How this hour is filed

This leaf is S01E05: listed hour 5 of 245 in the The Love Boat guide, hour 5 of 25 in season 1. It aired 1977-10-22 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “Message for Maureen / Acapulco Connection / Gotcha” (S01E04). Next is “The Joker is Mild / First Time Out / Take My Granddaughter, Please” (S01E06).

The Love Boat — Help! Murder! / Isaac the Groupie / Mr. Popularity (S01E05)

Catalog log

Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.

In "Help, Murder," Denise and Bret (Michele Lee and David Groh) are a married couple getting away from their three kids for the first time. When Bret and cruise director Julie McCoy get together to plan a surprise birthday party, Denise gets the notion her husband is playing around and planning to dump her at sea. James Sheldon directed the script by Ben Joelson and Art Baer. Isaac (Ted Lange), the bartender, falls head-over-heels in love with Roxie Blue (Diahann Carroll), a glamorous star traveling incognito in "Isaac the Groupie." Roxie and Isaac have a good thing going until the sophisticated lady realizes the relationship is much more than a casual affair.

Viewer FAQ

Where does Help! Murder! / Isaac the Groupie / Mr. Popularity sit in the The Love Boat guide?

S01E05 is listed hour 5 of 245 — hour 5 of 25 in season 1, season 1 episode 5.

When did The Love Boat S01E05 air?

Help! Murder! / Isaac the Groupie / Mr. Popularity aired 1977-10-22 and is listed at 60 minutes.

Do I watch in order?

No. It is a multi-story guest-star anthology with a regular crew. Sample any cruise; Stubing's ship is the constant.

In the series

Why this series still plays

Filed by Lana Reyes · Red Carpet Reality · Show package

Gavin MacLeod's Captain Stubing hosts three guest-star storylines a week while Julie, Doc, Gopher, and Isaac keep the Pacific Princess meddling. Aaron Spelling cruise-ship anthology as comfort franchise: formula as feature, theme as furniture. Bon voyage, subtlety — the cameo sport still photographs.

The first image is white: uniforms, rails, Pacific soft-focus, and Gavin MacLeod's Captain Merrill Stubing hosting three guest-star storylines before the dessert cart. ABC's The Love Boat (1977–1986) turned cruise vacation into Aaron Spelling's floating hit factory — nine seasons, 245 episodes, formula as feature. Lauren Tewes's Julie McCoy, Ted Lange's Isaac, Bernie Kopell's Doc, and Fred Grandy's Gopher never age out of meddling. Jeraldine Saunders' nonfiction about cruise life inspired the premise; Wilford…

Open the The Love Boat package · Season 1 hub

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Also in season 1

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