Monk/Mr. Monk and the Actor

Mr. Monk and the Actor
Season 5, Episode 1
Airdate	July 7, 2006
Written by	Hy Conrad & Joe Toplyn
Directed by	Randy Zisk
Stream
← 4x16 Mr. Monk Gets Jury Duty	5x02 → Mr. Monk and the Garbage Strike
Monk — Season Five

Mr. Monk and the Actor is the first episode of the fifth season of Monk, and the sixty-second episode overall.

Starring: Tony Shalhoub (Adrian Monk), Traylor Howard (Natalie Teeger), Jason Gray-Stanford (Lt. Randall Disher)

and Ted Levine (Stottlemeyer)

Special Guest Star: Stanley Tucci (David Ruskin)

Guest Starring: Susan Ward (Michelle Cullman), Andrea Bogart (Actor Playing Disher), Greg Grunberg (Jack Leverett)

with Peter Weller (Actor Playing Stottlemeyer)

and Stanley Kamel (Dr. Kroger)

Co-Starring: Angel Oquendo (Garage Attendant), Carrie Chason (Actor Playing Natalie), David Mersault (Director), Lara Black (Young Female Cop), Margot Boecker (Pretty Police Woman), Michael Earl Reid (Orlov), Rob Swanson (Desk Sergeant), Tom Ohmer (Sergeant Lyman)

Plot Overview

A woman is killed because she was videotaping herself seducing married men. The killer then kills a pawn store owner accidentally while he is trying to replace a watch that he left at the crime scene. He had met the girl, Michelle, at a club and they had a sketch taken and painted onto the wall of the club. He went back to the club and smashed the wall in and made it look like part of a burgulary.

Meanwhile Monk is being studied by method actor David Ruskin who will be playing Monk in a movie. Ruskin begins to take on the personality of Monk and throws a fit on the set because the crewmembers are all wearing their hats different ways. Natalie learns that Ruskin has a history of becoming obsessive about parts. Ruskin goes to see Monk to find out why it is that Monk is the way he is. He finds out about Trudy and the way that she was killed. Ruskin goes to a car dealership where the killer of Michelle works, and mistakenly thinks it is the killer of Trudy. He acts like Monk, but the real Monk has to come in and talk him down.

Notes

• This episode had an average of 5.1 million viewers on its first airing. This was the highest rating ever for an hour long scripted program for basic cable.

Arc Advancement

• Dr. Kroger is impressed with Monk because he is planning on going on vacation and stay in a hotel by himself. He tells Monk that is making progress.

Trivia

The Show

• Goof (Continuity): When Ruskin threatens Leverett in the car dealership, the gun keeps changing between cocked and uncocked in different shots.