User Reviews

I can't say that it's a personal favorite, but this is definitely one of the better written hour-long episodes of the Hitchcock series. It takes an interesting turn after our attention is diverted from the idea that Robbie Cory (Rees Vaughn) embezzled two hundred thousand dollars from his family run bank. After going missing briefly, Robbie returns to confront his stepfather Ralph Manson (Michael Rennie) about the stolen money, with evidence that points directly to Manson as the thief. I will say that the scene in which Ralph accidentally chokes Robbie to death didn't seem very credible, in as much as Robbie didn't defend himself aggressively at all; the younger man should have offered some kind of resistance with his adrenaline pumped up. Be that as it may, the panicking Ralph Manson formulated a suicide scenario complete with a statement implicating Robbie in the theft of the money from the bank. When he's suddenly caught in the act by wife Nora (Phyllis Thaxter), the poor woman falls down the stairs and into a state of paralysis that leaves her mind fuzzy about the events that just took place.

Compared to the stoic roles Michael Rennie usually portrays, his demeanor in this story is pretty frantic, ever keeping an eye on his wife recuperating in bed, but with the intention of doing her in before she regains consciousness to implicate him in his crimes. He might have gotten away with it too, if not for the alert manner of home aide nurse Jean Dekker (Natalie Trundy), whose bedside manner included an almost telepathic-like link with her patient. Nora's shock at what her husband was about to do caused her to scream out in fright, thereby bringing son George (Jim McMullan) and nurse Dekker to the rescue.

Rather surprising for this viewer were the undisguised Hitchcock's (you'll have to see him) comments following the story. For once he made no reference to the expected arrest and punishment of Ralph Manson after the story was over. In this case it would have been rather obvious to the viewer, and there was no need to elaborate on it.

Suspenseful and yet too similar to an earlier film Hitchcock did in 1941 *Suspicion" with Cary Grant with a similar M. O. milk to the suspecting bride Joan Fontaine. The twist was getting rid of a recent bride by a suave character Grant. Where as 1963 was actress was under a nurse care that prevent the spouse killing his wife by having added a higher dose to be coaumed as a overdose that would have otherwise killed her. Kind of interesting that Hitchcock used this similar sensario 22 years later in his Alfred Hitchcock Presents "Long Silence"! Equally suspenseful as in 1941 but with a different cast of characters! With the wife fully aware of her husband's to erase her life.

I tuned in to catch that fine actress Phyllis Thaxter. Oddly she doesn't have much to do verbally since her character, Nora, is paralyzed because of unscrupulous husband, Rennie. Still, Thaxter's role requires that she express strong emotion through carefully controlled motions, which she does admirably. Anyway, there's some suspense in how Nora will escape her husband's murderous intent since she's confined to a bed. Because she knows he killed her son Robbie, he has to silence her before she possibly regains memory and speech. Her mental cries (voice-over) for help to the nurse and other son add to the suspense as we suffer with her desperate frustration.

Oddly the aristocratic Rennie as the husband is required to be a rather inept criminal. He goes through a number of emotions not usually seen from such a generally aloof performer. All in all, it's a fairly effective woman-in-danger entry. Plus, it's from the pen of that Twilight Zone favorite, Charles Beaumont.

When the story begins, it appears as if Nora's son, Robbie, embezzled $200,000 from the bank where he worked. However, late that night, Robbie arrives and confronts his step-father, Ralph (Michael Rennie), as Ralph apparently stole the money and made it look like his step-son did it. During this confrontation, Ralph accidentally kills Robbie...and then strings the body up to make it look like he took his own life. As he's typing a fake note to explain away Robbie's death, Nora catches Ralph! She then slips down the stairs and is badly injured...so badly injured that she's unable to respond in any way. For now, at least, Ralph is in the clear....but what if Nora ever comes out of it? And, if she does, won't Ralph just get rid of her, too?

This is among the very best of the one hour episodes for two reasons. While it was an hour, the show had great pacing. Sure, they drug out the story...but it didn't feel that way because they kept the tension mounting. Additionally, you really find yourself on edge as the show progresses...and I give most of the credit to the director, who did a great job keeping the story going at such a lovely pace and with such a tough mood.

****SPOILERS**** With her son Robbie,Rees Vaughn, on the lamb suspected of embezzling his bank of $200,000.00 he grief stricken mother Mrs. Nora Cory Mason, Phylis Thaxter, fears the worst, in that Robbie won't let himself be taken alive, and suffers a nervous breakdown. It's later that Robbie unexpectedly shows up at the Manson Mansion and confronts his step dad Ralph Manson, Michael Rennie, with the fact of him being the one who embezzled the Cory, his natural father, bank and framed him for it. Attempting to keep Robbie from telling the police, and even worse his wife Nora, Mason accidentally chokes,with an illegal choke hold according to the New York City Police Department regulations, Robbie to death making him now not only an embezzler but murderer as well.

Panic stricken and trying to cover up his crime Manson after hanging the already dead Robbie starts to type up a suicide note with Robbie admitting to embezzling the family bank and killing himself for doing it. That's when Nora, who heard the typing from her bedroom, shows up and finds out what her ungrateful husband, who's been living off her money for years, did and in a state of shock falls down the stirs leaving herself completely paralyzed!

****SPOILERS**** In trying to make sure that she doesn't recover and be able to talk Manson stays by Nora's bedside 24 hours around the clock to make sure that she doesn't open her mouth about what he did. That arouses suspicion by the nurse Jean Dekker, Natalie Trundy,who starts to feel that there something very odd about Manson's overly protective actions for Nora that really has nothing to do with her recovery. As things turn out Manson's insistence to be with Nora every hour of the day and night soon backfires on him. That's when Nora starts to recover her health as well as voice & memory of that tragic evening. With Nurse Dekker now realizing what a creep Mason is she, after being excused by Manson, burst into Nora's bedroom and catches him in the act of trying to suffocate her. Which not only saves Nora's life but has her son George, after Manson clobbered Dekker, come to her rescue and put an end to his crazy charade of being a caring and loving husband.