Kraft Suspense Theatre; Are There Any More Out There Like You?; Katherine Ross; Peter Helm, Adam Roarke, Robert Ryan

(Click here for other recent reviews of Season 1 episodes.)

Season 1, Episode #5

Are There Any More Out There Like You?

Original Air Date - November 7, 1963

Setting/Time - Present-day small towns in California.

Plot/Review/Discussion -

The plot of this episode was similar in an important way with Hero for Our Times. The main character faced a choice - a choice between right and wrong. We suffer with him as he agonizes over that choice. His final decision resolves the plot.

The main physical action of the plot takes place in the beginning, when four college students are involved in a car accident that kills a pedestrian on Christmas Eve. All of them had been drinking. Afterward, they won't reveal to the police which one was driving. The father of one of them is the main character. He faces the choice as to whether to cross a legal line in order to protect his daughter and her friends. He does not know who the driver is any more than the police do, but he is tempted to break the law to keep the police (and himself) from finding out.

The father's agony is made worse by his revulsion at the carefree attitude of his daughter and their friends. They make wisecracks, they wear smug expressions, enjoy playing their flutes and show no respect for the law, the victim or anything else. The father wants to help them, but their attitude makes him very reluctant.

The title of the episode is a question the father asks one of the students when he realizes how little they care about what they have done and the man who died. The student's answer indicts an entire generation. That exchange brings the subsequent five decades of U.S. history suddenly into focus. That exchange turns this episode's writer into a prophet.

Cars - The students drive a 1963 Ford Galaxie as they hit and kill the pedestrian. The father drives a 1963 Chrysler Imperial. As in Hero, the action scene with the car does more than simply provide action. It sets the stage for the larger plot to follow.

Actors -

One of the students is played by Katherine Ross, in her second role (according to IMDB.com). She remains active today. Her most famous roles came in The Graduate and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, in which she took part in one of the most famous musical scenes in movie history (with Paul Newman).

The father was played by Robert Ryan, who acted from 1940 through his death in 1973. Ryan was a veteran of Zane Grey Theater, Alcoa Theatre, Goodyear Theatre and Playhouse 90. He played John the Baptist in King of Kings (with future KST star Jeff Hunter).

Peter Helm played another student. He later starred in the KST episode "Operation Greif," during KST's second season.

Star Trek connection -

This episode's Star Trek connection is Adam Roarke, who played another of the four students. About a year after this episode aired, Star Trek's original pilot episode, "The Cage," was filmed (the film would finally air as part of another episode in 1966). Roark played part of the bridge crew for KST actor Jeff Hunter's Captain Pike.

A Hero for our Times; Kraft Suspense Theatre; Lloyd Bridges; Ralph Senensky

Season 1, Episode #4

A Hero for Our Times

Original Air Date - October 31, 1963

Setting/Time - A modern city - most likely San Francisco (judging from the opening shot).

Plot/Review/Discussion - This episode is a favorite of mine. This episode made me think of "class" with respect to KST for the first time. The setting was cosmopolitan. The music was smooth. The men all wore suits and hats and drove big, late model cars. The women acted like ladies - even when their behavior was not so ladylike.

The plot makes one think. The main character faces a choice. The suspense revolves around what choice he will make.

The main character is a successful business executive with a wife and a mistress. While staying at his mistress' apartment one evening, he witnesses a murder next door. It becomes apparent quickly that the police will charge the wrong man and that the main character is the only one that knows the mistake. He faces a choice between coming forward to save the innocent suspect or staying silent to protect his own secret. The plot becomes more complicated when the main character faces a possible promotion to his high profile company's board of directors. For him to come forward and reveal an affair would be professional suicide in 1963.

We watch him struggle with his dilemma as he hides his secret from his wife and co-workers. Modern dramas feature several plots in one episode, thus implying a short attention span on the part of the audience. While KST features one plot per episode, this plot results in numerous conflicts. In "Hero," we see the courtroom drama, the hero's professional situation and his marriage all in turmoil as a result of his dilemma. KST made the most of this story.

To me, watching a man face such a choice provides better drama than simply waiting to find out whether he will win a gun battle or survive an operation or wondering who he will sleep with this week.

The drama becomes even more real when one thinks of modern politicians who have gone to great lengths to deny affairs - even to the point of letting innocent people die. The title of the episode turns out to be more of a commentary on our times instead of praise for the main character.

Miscellaneous - This episode is unique because there is now more information about this episode than most other KST stories. Director Ralph Senensky has provided his own commentary plus generous film clips from "Hero" at the Ralph's Trek blog:

Except for a car chase sequence later in the script, this was a very talky script that was reminiscent of the live television dramas from the decade before. And it certainly owed a debt to REAR WINDOW.

The car chase Senensky refers to provides more than a mere action break. The resolution of the car chase was an important plot point and made the "hero's" moral choice more stark. Spoiler alert - Don't watch Senensky's clips if you don't already know the ending.

Senensky also writes of unexpected difficulties arising from one of the earliest uses of color on television in this episode.

Actors

Lloyd Bridges plays the main role. The internet bios I have seen for Bridges ignore his KST role.

Dabbs Greer played the innocent suspect. Senensky's blog contains much information about his career.

Berkeley Harris played the defense attorney. Despite having many speaking lines, his role is uncredited at IMDB.com. Many of the IMDB.com cast listings are incomplete for KST. (I believe this is starting to change with the show's newfound popularity on RTV.) Harris also played in 2 other KST episodes, which are credited at IMDB.com.

update 7-2-10 - after seeing the episode on RTV again (for the first time in two years) I noticed David Lewis, playing the first of 2 KST episodes. [IMDB.com apparently leaves out 4 major characters from this episode. Click here for my discussion and speculation of KST characters being ignored on that type of website. IMDB also left out Victor French as the murderer and William Bramley as the DA.]

Cars - In addition to this episode's focus on the hero's internal struggles, it does feature the proverbial car chase. In the car chase, Lloyd Bridges drives a white Lincoln (@ 1962-1964). He is chased by the killer in a 1963 Mercury Monterey. Senensky does not remember filming this sequence and speculates that they may have used stock footage from another movie or show. I have my doubts. The 63 Mercury was a fixture on KST. The same car appeared earlier in this episode. The car was practically new (as was the Lincoln). The producers would have had to have re-used very recent footage for Senensky's speculation to be correct.

Star Trek Connection - The Star Trek connection in this episode is the director, Ralph Senensky. He directed several episodes of Star Trek, including "This Side of Paradise," "Metamorphosis," "Obsession," "Bread and Circuses," "Is There in Truth, No Beauty," and "The Tholian Web." He provides extensive commentary and film clips on these episodes at his blog.

Senensky also directed episodes of, inter alia, The Fugitive, The Waltons, Ironside, Mission Impossible and Route 66.

Here is a clip of the opening theme (copied from Senensky's blog). This clip is more complete than the clip I uploaded here.


update - 7-2-10 - Another Star Trek connection is William Bramley, as the Prosecutor. Bramley later played in the season #2 episode, "The Jack is High," also directed by Ralph Senensky. Bramley played the most prominent policeman in Star Trek's "Bread and Circuses," also directed by Senensky.

The End of the World, Baby; Kraft Suspense Theatre, Peter Lorre, Gig Young, Katherine Crawford, Nina Foch

Click here for the previous review.

Season #1, Episode #3

The End of the World, Baby

Original air date - October 24, 1963

Setting/time - The Italian Riviera in the present. This episode is one of three (in addition to Rapture at Two-Forty and Knight's Gambit) that took place on the Mediterranean Riviera. All of these Riviera episodes featured wealthy people with time on their hands and either living in elegant housing or driving expensive cars (or both).

Plot/Review/Discussion -

Katherine Crawford stars as the daughter of an independently wealthy American woman (Nina Foch) who is looking to leave her husband (Crawford's father) for a playboy sculptor (Gig Young). The plot gets complicated when Crawford's character falls in love with the same sculptor without her mother's knowledge. You will never be sure whether Crawford is acting in her own best interest or simply to protect her father.

What makes this plot enjoyable is that it is not simply a good v. evil story. It is not simply a case of the hero/heroine escaping danger. The plot is strong because the characters are forced to make decisions. The suspense occurs where the audience does not know which choice the character will make and what the consequences will be.

The plot is strengthened as we explore the art of Young's character and the immaturity of Crawford's character. Crawford's character struggles as she is pulled from all directions - (1) her loyalty to her father, (2) her new feelings for the sculptor and (3) her need for maternal comfort (despite keeping secrets from her mother) as the situation spins out of control.

Much of the story takes place in a centuries old Italian castle known as Fini del Mondo ("The End of the World.")

Actors

Katherine Crawford makes her first of three KST appearances with this episode. She is the daughter of Roy Huggins, a writer and producer of several KST episodes (although not this one). She appeared in numerous popular shows from the early 1960's through the mid-1970's. The photo below is from The Fugitive.

Katherine Crawford




Gig Young starred in TV and movies for nearly forty years, including such examples as an uncredited appearance in 1941's Sergeant York and one of the more famous episodes of Twilight Zone. He won his only Oscar for his role in 1969's They Shoot Horses, Don't They. He apparently committed a murder-suicide with his wife of 3 weeks in 1978.

Nina Foch starred in TV and movies for nearly 65 years. Her most famous role was probably 1960's Spartacus, in which she starred with, inter alia, future KST star John Gavin.

Peter Lorre died nearly six months after this episode aired.

The Case Against Paul Ryker: Parts I and II; Kraft Suspense Theatre; Vera Miles; Peter Graves;

Season #1, Episodes ## 1 and 2
The Case Against Paul Ryker, Parts I and II

I have never seen this two-part episode, as it has not been broadcast on the RTV network during the recent syndication run. Check this post for speculation about episodes that have not aired recently.

Original air date - October 10, 1963, part I - October 17, 1963, part II

Plot/review/discussion

I will fill this part in if I ever actually see this episode.

Miscellaneous

This episode spun off a new series, Court Martial, that aired in 1965-1966.

Both parts of this episode were rebroadcast in February 1968 as a TV movie named Sergeant Ryker.

Actors

This episode is typical of KST. By checking the IMDB.com entry for this episode, you will find actors with decades of history in television and movies. Most of the actors in this episode starred from the early 1950's through the 1990's - in everything from Gunsmoke through Murder, She Wrote and much more.

Vera Miles played a major role in this episode. Her most famous role previously was in Psycho, where she played opposite John Gavin, another future KST actor. Her career spanned five decades.

Other notables included Lee Marvin in the title role and Peter Graves in his pre-Mission Impossible days. Graves' role probably contributed to the decision to rebroadcast this episode as a TV movie in 1968 (during the height of Mission Impossible's popularity).

Francis De Sales made two of his 4 KST appearances in this two-parter. Walter Brooke made two of his three KST appearances.

Star Trek connection

Don Marshall is the Star Trek actor in this episode, having played Mr. Boma on the episode entitled Galileo Seven.

Click here for the next review.

Kraft Suspense Theatre; Crisis; RTV - Retro Television Network

Episodes of Kraft Suspense Theatre have been running on the RTV network since 2008. The words "Kraft" or "Suspense Theatre" do not appear in the opening credits (or anywhere else). Instead, the word "Crisis" appears as the title of the show.

The show was presented in syndication during the 1970's as "Crisis." I don't know why the title was changed or why RTV does not use the original name.

RTV has shown only about 45 or so of the episodes during that period. I have seen no evidence of more than a dozen of the episodes during the past two years, while others have been repeated many times. It is possible that only certain episodes were syndicated and received the name change 40 years ago - and that only those episodes are running on RTV.

This is just idle speculation, but I wanted to provide at least some possible explanation (or acknowledgment of the name difference) for those who might see the show on RTV.

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click the following for prior discussions of:

the theme music;

connections between Kraft Suspense Theatre and Star Trek;

The cars of Suspense Theatre;

The cars of Kraft Suspense Theatre; 1963 Mercury Monterey Breezeway

It is fun to watch Kraft Suspense Theatre just to see what classic cars will appear in the show. KST is not unique among 1960's programs in this regard. Many shows from that era feature (now) classic automobiles. But many shows had limited budgets with few outdoor shots. Many exterior car shots from other shows featured the vehicle either indoors or in an obviously indoor studio made to look like an outdoor street.

The KST car shots took place outdoors - at least the shots of car exteriors. KST usually avoided the cliched car chase, but found numerous ways to use vehicles to contribute to the drama. Even when the cars were not the center of the drama, they made the action seem more realistic. They also added class to the show.

It seems to me that the 1963 Mercury Monterey was used in many episodes. [I may change my mind about that when I start reviewing individual episodes.] The 1963 Monterey was unique because it had a powered, backwards rear window that could be raised and lowered. The window design was called "Breezeway." The 1963 model was unmistakeable, even if most cars of that era look the same to those of us that grew up in the 1970's.

1963 Mercury Monterey "Breezeway"




From the ad, it appears that one reason for this feature was to allow cigarette smoke to escape from the rear of the car. Based on that possibility, it does not appear that we will see many more cars with the Breezeway feature in the future.

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update - click the following for discussions of:

the theme music;

connections between Kraft Suspense Theatre and Star Trek;

The RTV network and prior syndication.

Kraft Suspense Theatre; Star Trek

Click here for my introductory remarks.

A fun sidenote to many of the episodes of Suspense Theatre is the Star Trek connection. Many of the Suspense Theatre episodes feature actors that later appeared on Star Trek, either as regulars or as prominent (and not so prominent) guest stars.

Some of the episodes feature three or four future Star Trek actors/actresses. I will identify these actors/actresses with each episode review.

Another connection exists with the 1956 movie, Forbidden Planet, which featured multiple Suspense Theatre actors/actresses.

Both of these connections become even more interesting when you remember that Suspense Theatre contained not a hint of science fiction. No robots, no time travel, no spaceships, no aliens.

Those of us that grew up in the 1970's watching reruns of classic Star Trek became accustomed to seeing each of the guest stars solely in his Star Trek role. It is surprising now for us to see these actors in other roles. Many of these actors (the guest stars as well) have become well known more for their Star Trek role than for anything else. Those guest stars that survive make frequent appearances at Star Trek conventions. Many of their other roles are forgotten, even though the Star Trek appearance was often only one of many, many roles in their long careers.

To the extent that there is a renewed interest in Suspense Theatre, modern viewers will gain a sense of proportion about the 1960's and will be reminded that Star Trek was not the only show from that era.