Review of Salvage

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Salvage (1955)
Season 1, Episode 6
A Fine, Unsung Actress
18 January 2009
Pity poor Lois Williams (Gates)—she's at wits end. Depressed and out of work, she's blamed by everyone for the death of Dan Varrel's brother. Worse, Varrel (Barry) is one tough mug, no one to mess with, and now he's out of jail and blaming her. So why not just give up, let him put her out of her misery. Please do it, she tells him, which is what we expect him to do as an act of revenge. But, surprise, surprise, he doesn't. Instead he does everything he can to help her out of her misery. Now it looks like he's rewarding her for killing his brother. So, what's going on with this guy?

My real purpose here is to point out what a wonderful little actress Nancy Gates is. Scope out those early scenes where she's an emotional wreck. She's convincing as all get out. Remember, nobody in 1955 expected these transitory half-hours to still be shown 50 years later. That's one reason many actors didn't try so hard for episodic TV. But Gates delivers in spades, even in the later scenes where she's bubbly happy. It's that emotional gamut that lends what force there is to this half-hour. She may not have been the prettiest girl in Hollywood, but she is surely among the many fine unsung actresses.
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