Question of the Day - 04 October 2013

Here's a continuation of yesterday's answer, identifying popular TV series that have staged at least one episode in Las Vegas.

We left off in the "Friends" era and, while we would hate to be accused of short-changing our readers, when our latest search of possible candidates for inclusion yielded no less than 986 potential contenders (which included movies and reality shows that we were unable to filter out), we had a rethink and decided to include here only the most notable or more bizarre examples, excluding the likes of multiple episodes of "Beverly Hills 90210," whose producers evidently couldn't get enough of Sin City.

Hence, what follows makes absolutely no pretense at being comprehensive, so if there's something we missed out which you really feel should be included, please drop us a line and we'll keep using that "Update" feature.

• Quantum Leap "Stand Up - April 30, 1959" Season 4, Episode 21 Aired: 5/15/92 Sam leaps into Dave Parker, one half of a stand up comedy act while they are on stage at a Poconos resort. Sam knows nothing of the routine and they're bombing badly until a waitress, Frankie Washarskie, jumps up on on stage and ad libs them out their predicament. She desperately wants to be part of the act and is actually in love with the other half of the comedy act, Mack MacKay. All of their lives get a little more complicated when a mobster offers them a contract to perform at his club in Las Vegas.

• Melrose Place "Love Reeks" Season 3, Episode 8 Aired: 10/31/94 Chris proposes marriage to Jane and she accepts in which he urges her to drive to Las Vegas for a quickie wedding. Sydney learns about this and knowing that the two-faced, sociopath Chris is just a gigolo after Jane's money, she tips off Michael and Kimberly about it in which they follow Jane and Chris to Vegas to break it up.

• Dharma & Greg "A Fish Tail" Season 5, Episode 11 Aired: 4/12/01 Dharma refuses even a white lie against her parents, so she makes Greg tell Abby he and Edward are going fishing -- a rare habit -- to her, plain murder and cause for divorce. After Dharma's desperate attempts to stop him Greg confides in her that the men in fact don't fish but go to Las Vegas. Now Dharma tries to learn from Pete what they do in Vegas...

• Six Feet Under "The Trip" Season 1, Episode 11 Aired: 8/12/01 David, Nate, and Brenda go to Vegas for a funeral directors' meeting where Nate informs Gilardi he knows what the arsonist's motive was, David meets Keith under unpleasant circumstances just after being caught with a male prostitute, and Nate and Brenda have an equally unpleasant encounter with Billy though have different opinions on how best to deal with it.

• Family Guy "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein" Season 3, Episode 22 Aired: 11/09/03 After hearing about the good jobs his friends' lawyers and accountants are doing, Peter becomes fixated on the idea of Jews as mathematical and legal geniuses. Hoping to give Chris a chance for a better future than he can provide as a Catholic, Peter decides to have his son convert to Judaism at a quickie Las Vegas Bar Mitzvah in order to turn him smart.

• The O.C. "The Strip" Season 1, Episode 26 Aired: 4/28/2004 The Cohen men, along with Ryan and Caleb set out to Las Vegas for a bachelor party. Meanwhile, the girls are having fun with their own adventures.

• Arrested Development "Righteous Brothers" Season 2, Episode 18 Aired: 4/17/05 Michael thinks it's time for George Sr. to leave the attic where he's been hiding as a fugitive. George-Michael helps his girlfriend Ann stage a protest against the American remake of the movie Dangerous Cousins, which turns out to be a big hit for Maeby. Tobias falls for Kitty, and learns that his "cease and desist" with the Blue Man Group has been lifted, and they ask Tobias to come to Las Vegas for an audition.

• Weeds "Last Tango in Agnestic" Season 2, Episode 3 Aired: 8/28/06 Nancy literally loses her lunch when she realizes that Peter knows she is a drug dealer, but Peter assures her that he's OK with it; he does something with Nancy in Las Vegas that proves beyond a doubt that she can trust him with her secrets.

• The O.C. "The Earth Girls are Easy" Season 4, Episode 8 Aired: 12/28/06 Ryan has a New Years Eve surprise for semi-girl-friend Taylor, a trip to Las Vegas, while she went for sexy lingerie. Spoiled, moody Summer rages at 'immature' Seth for having made no particular festive plans; after encouragement from dad, who has urgent court business himself, his plan B is to beg eternal last resort Ryan to take them along.

• Bones "The Woman in the Sand" Season 2, Episode 8 Aired: 11/08/06 A trip to Vegas to identify a body is complicated when a more recent body is found nearby.

• The Sopranos "Kennedy and Heidi" Season 6, Episode 18 Aired: 5/13/07 Tony travels to Las Vegas to tell an old friend of Christopher news about him.

• Two and a Half Men "Prostitutes & Gelato" Season 4, Episode 24 Aired: 5/14/07 In an effort to bond with Alan and Charlie, Evelyn's new boyfriend invites them on a trip to Vegas with all the frills.

• The New Adventures of Old Christine "What Happens in Vegas Is Disgusting in Vegas" Season 4, Episode 14 Aired: 1/21/09 Christine and Barb give New Christine a bachelorette party in Las Vegas, where New Christine lets all of her previous inhibitions go. Meanwhile, Richard, Matthew, and Richard's brother spend Richard's bachelor party playing laser tag.

• Nip/Tuck "Giselle Blaylock & Legend Chandler" Season 5, Episode 22 Aired: 3/3/09 Sean does not know that the seductive Teddy has a double life as nurse 'Dixie Collins' in Las Vegas, and is carrying on a tryst of her own with the sleazy Dr. Harlan Frank -- who is also unaware of her double life in L.A -- not to mention her homicidal tendencies.

• The Big Bang Theory "The Vegas Renormalization" Season 2, Episode 21 Aired: 4/27/09 Thinking he needs to do something fun to get over Leslie, Leonard and Raj decide to drag Howard to Las Vegas for a weekend getaway. Once there, Leonard and Raj learn that it will take more than just fun they can conjure up to get Howard out of his depression.

• Two and a Half Men "The Immortal Mr Billy Joel" Season 8, Episode 5 Aired: 10/18/10 Charlie is off to Las Vegas, allegedly to enjoy some time without Alan and Jake, but in fact for discrete cosmetic surgery. Alas, regular patient Ma also checked in there.

• The Mentalist "The Crimson Hat" Season 4, Episode 24 Aired: 5/15/12 After leaving the CBI, Patrick appears to be down and out in Las Vegas. But it is really part of his master plan to make Red John think he has given up on trying to catch him.

This is the QoD that will NEVER be concluded, as each time we revisit the subject, more historic episodes are suggested, in addition to the flow of new shows. Here are some more shows we've been informed about by a reader: "The first one is another episode of 'The Beverly Hillbillies.' It's Episode 33 ,Season 3 -- Production Code 3-33 (aired June 9, 1965) called 'Jed, the Bachelor,' in which Granny walks to Las Vegas and ends up with quite a story to tell. Then, there were at least two ABC Shows that had a scene where characters from the different shows meet up at a crap table in Las Vegas (the shows were aired on the same night -- February 26, 1997). These were 'The Drew Carey Show' (Season 2, Episode 18) called 'Drew Gets Married,' and "Coach" (Season 9, Episode 15) called 'Viva Las Ratings,' in which Luther travels to Vegas for an Elvis-memorabilia auction."