Outstanding.
Believe it or not, this wild episode, perhaps the best of the entire series, may have actually been inspired by cigarette lighter commercials on tv at the time. Which lighter could last the longest?
William Jerome Fay, frequent writer for Hitchcock, cooked up this camp episode, which made him famous. Peter Lorre, having fun with his brooding character, plays Carlos, an impulsive gambler who has gone to the next level.
He has a devious wager, proposed to young Steve McQueen, who he has taken a fancy to. One of his fingers hangs in the balance, depending IF he can successively light a cigarette lighter so many times in a row. Get It? If he loses the wager, McQueen loses a finger. And considering Carlos is an ace gambler, there's also a chance for a re-match, should McQueen lose, allowing him to gamble with more fingers! Can you believe this?
This story must have given Hitch a chuckle or two, especially with his old friend Peter Lorre.
This will keep you literally glued to the screen, and the posturing of McQueen's hand on a desk, ready to be chopped, is something to see. Veteran character actress Katherine Squire is perfect as Lorre's wife, who reveals the sad truth about his little "addiction". Wait for the ending.
Peter Lorre, who had a great sense of humor, must have relished this assignment and it has become one of his most requested tv appearances.
SEASON 5 EPISODE 15 (1960) Remastered CBS dvd box set. 5 dvds. Released 2012. You may want to get the box just for this one.
Believe it or not, this wild episode, perhaps the best of the entire series, may have actually been inspired by cigarette lighter commercials on tv at the time. Which lighter could last the longest?
William Jerome Fay, frequent writer for Hitchcock, cooked up this camp episode, which made him famous. Peter Lorre, having fun with his brooding character, plays Carlos, an impulsive gambler who has gone to the next level.
He has a devious wager, proposed to young Steve McQueen, who he has taken a fancy to. One of his fingers hangs in the balance, depending IF he can successively light a cigarette lighter so many times in a row. Get It? If he loses the wager, McQueen loses a finger. And considering Carlos is an ace gambler, there's also a chance for a re-match, should McQueen lose, allowing him to gamble with more fingers! Can you believe this?
This story must have given Hitch a chuckle or two, especially with his old friend Peter Lorre.
This will keep you literally glued to the screen, and the posturing of McQueen's hand on a desk, ready to be chopped, is something to see. Veteran character actress Katherine Squire is perfect as Lorre's wife, who reveals the sad truth about his little "addiction". Wait for the ending.
Peter Lorre, who had a great sense of humor, must have relished this assignment and it has become one of his most requested tv appearances.
SEASON 5 EPISODE 15 (1960) Remastered CBS dvd box set. 5 dvds. Released 2012. You may want to get the box just for this one.