Grant Unto Him Eternal Rest his body works differently from other people". The executives were bemused by an incomplete story where one of the main characters was dead, but commissioned the series soon after receiving the full script. In retrospect, Linehan and Mathews noticed that the plot was very similar to that of the "Fawlty Towers" episode "The Kipper and the Corpse". Despite being fans of the show, they only noticed the parallels afterwards, and would likely have abandoned the episode if they had seen them earlier. Kevin Sharkey, who plays the black Donegal priest, was a friend of the writers', and was brought in
Thornton Kipper Big Ten Conference. He also recorded two victories during the 1950 College World Series and made the All-Star team. Together with catcher Bob Wilson, Kipper formed one of the Big Ten Conference's top batteries. Dynie Mansfield was Kipper's college coach and mentor. After graduating in 1951, Kipper was signed by the Phillies. In a three-season career, he went 3–4 with 35 strikeouts and a 5.27 ERA in 55 appearances, including three starts, one save, and 99.0 innings of work. Following his majors career, Kipper pitched in the Kansas City Athletics minor league system. He also played for the Magallanes team