Suspense Television

Help Wanted

"Help Wanted" is an episode that has to be appreciated on its own terms. Is it bad? No. Is it badly done? Yes but that adds to its charm.

Mr. Chester Crabtree is an unemployed accountant who is in trouble. He lives on practically nothing and can't pay his rent. What little money he has goes to the sanitarium that cares for his daughter. His landlady is tired of not getting her money, and she tells him that he has two weeks to pay his rent or leave.

She then reminds him that he wouldn't have to go if he would just send his daughter to a state-run mental facility. If he did, he wouldn't have to pay so much for her care. Mr. Crabtree tells her that he can't do that! He will find a way.

Fortunately, an answer to his problems arrives that same morning. A woman comes to his apartment with a job offer. She won't give him her name or tell him who his employer is, but she offers him $100 a week and an office of his own. It is too good to be true! Mr. Crabtree accepts.

When we next see Mr. Crabtree, he is at his new office for the first time. It is a small office on the very top floor of an office building. There is a huge window overlooking the street, furniture that is bolted down, and a cat in the closet with a note stuck into his collar. 

The note tells him that the cat's name is "Discretion." He is there to keep Mr. Crabtree company, so he won't get lonely and use the phone to make personal calls.

Mr. Crabtree is happy in his new job, and he follows all of his employer's strange rules for six months. When we see him again, he is having a laugh with Discretion about the letter they got in the mail from a charity trying to revive Prohibition. Mr. Crabtree admires their optimism, but he throws the letter in the trash.

Then, he finally meets his employer! Mr. X arrives unexpectedly and dramatically. Now, Mr. Crabtree learns why the furniture is nailed down and the window is so big. Mr. X has set up everything on purpose! He wants Mr. Crabtree to commit a murder for him, and if Mr. Crabtree doesn't, he will take away his job.

Will Mr. Crabtree go through with it? Or will Discretion come to his aid?

"Help Wanted" was based on an original story by Stanley Ellin, and was adapted for television by Mary Orr and Reginald Denham. Robert Stevens produced/directed. Otto Kruger starred as Mr. Crabtree. Also appearing were Douglas Clarke-Smith, Peggy French, George Mathews, and Ruth McDevitt. The name of the cat who portrayed Discretion is not given. This episode aired on June 14, 1949.

"Help Wanted" reappeared during Season 1 of Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1956. Of course, their version makes much more sense, but it lacks the zaniness of Suspense's version. Alfred Hitchcock Present's teleplay was based on the teleplay written for Suspense by Mary Orr and Reginald Denham. Hitchock calls this episode "a brilliant play, sneaky but brilliant."

John Qualen and Lorne Green star. (Radio actor Parley Baer makes a brief appearance as the detective.)

The Murderer

In "The Murderer," a man appears to be guilty of murdering his unfaithful wife. This episode should have been called "Lillybelle" because their next door neighbor is the real star of this show. You'll see why.

Set in the rural town of Jeffreyville, Mr. John Bantreagh discovers his wife's dead body by the side of the road. A deputy from another county, on his way to the courthouse, sees John and stops. John wants to flee, but he can't move. The deputy thinks that the dead woman has been run over, but then he sees the wounds on the back of her head. Clearly, she was murdered. He asks John if his wife ever cheated on him. Did she? Oh yes, she did.

John tells the deputy about what happened last night.... It had all started when he and his wife, Mollie, were on the front porch opening packages that had come in the mail. Mollie was upset because he hadn't ordered anything for her. They were about to have a fight, but just then Lillybelle had sauntered into the picture.

Yes, Lillybelle, the lady who lives in the next house down the road. She was on her way home but had decided to stop and sit for a while. She had tried to get cozy with John, but it didn't work. He didn't take her flirting seriously. Lillybelle told him that if he ever came to his senses about what his wife was really up to -- to come on down to her place.

What Mollie didn't know was that one of the packages John ordered was for her. He wanted the nylon stockings to be a surprise, but when he opened Mollie's lingerie drawer, he got the surprise. There was slinky lingerie in there that he had never seen before! Mollie walked in and explained that she had paid for them out of the leftover grocery money. John believed her. She also told him that she was going out to the library that night -- and that he could put the kids to bed. John agreed, but pointed out that she had already been to the library twice that week. She told him she would be back by 11:00 and left.

After midnight, while John was at home sleeping, he had heard a desperate cry from Lillybelle outside. She was terrified because someone was following her down the road. John went outside and scared off the creepy man in the darkness. John asked what she was doing out on the road, and Lillybelle told him that she was just out walking...and waiting to see what time Mollie would get home.

In the second half of the show, we are back at the scene of the crime with John and the deputy. The deputy asks if Lillybelle could have been making up the accusations about Mollie, that perhaps she is unscrupulous, but John defends her. He hasn't yet told the detective the rest of the story about what happened last night...

When John went into town to look for Mollie, the only place open was the Lunch Wagon across from the library. It was there that he had found out that the library closes at 5:00 p.m. everynight. The other patron in the Lunch Wagon was the same creepy man who had been following Lillybelle earlier in the evening. According to him, Mollie often waits on the bridge for a man in a black sedan.

Meanwhile, Mollie had found out that her husband was in town asking questions. She went home to pack her bags and run, but there was one thing stopping her --Lillybelle! She wanted Mollie to be there when John returned home! Lillybelle tried to block the door, but Mollie pushed Lillybelle to the floor. Spunky and determined, little Lillybelle went after Mollie...

When John finishes telling the deputy everything that happened, he is surprised that he hasn't yet been arrested. The deputy seems to know who committed the murder. Was it John, or Lillybelle, or the creepy man?

"The Murderer" was adapted for television by Tony award winning playwrite Joseph Hayes from a story by Joel Townsley Rogers. Jeffrey Lynn starred as John Bantreagh. Marilyn Erskine played Lillybelle and Eileen Heckart played Mollie. This episode aired on October 25, 1949. It is available on Disc 1 of Suspense: The Lost Episodes Collection 1.

The Third One

"The Third One" features Martin Balsam in a story about a little girl named Jane, who doesn't want to admit to her parents that she was bitten by a rabid dog.

We can't really blame Jane because her parents seem to have problems of their own, particularly her mother. Grace is a woman whose moods swing back and forth...like a swing. She seems to be very annoyed, with her husband, her daughter, her job, etc. Why? Well, it has something to do with being an overwhelmed working mother, but we are never sure. Her husband, Robert, thinks that a nice family vacation will fix everything. Grace tells him several times, "that this won't do any good." Nevertheless, Robert, convinces her with his cheerfulness that everything is going to be great! Grace goes outside to look for Jane so that they can leave on their trip.

We find Jane playing hopscotch with some other neighborhood kids. Suddenly, the kids find something new to play with. It is a funny-looking, growling dog coming towards them. "Here boy! Here boy!" The little girl on the left is smarter than the two stupid boys on the right. She goes over to tell a policeman about the strange dog, but it is already too late. AAaaaaaaahh! Mad dog! Mad dog!

The dog attacks Jane and the two little boys. The policeman, played by Martin Balsam, shoots the animal down in the street. In the post-dog attack pandemonium, Jane is confused. She is hurt and scared, but when she realizes that the policeman will have to inform her parents, she slips away from the crowd. After dealing with the annoying mother of one of the little boys, and then talking to the other little boy, the policeman realizes that the little girl has disappeared! Do they know who she was? No. Do they know where to find her? No.

Jane returns home, but no one is there. She puts a band-aid on her wound, and pretends nothing is wrong when her mother comes in.

Grace asks Jane where she was. Was she playing with the neighbor's dog? Jane tells her mother "No," which is true. Jane wasn't playing with the neighbor's dog, she was attacked by a vicious rabid dog. She just chooses not to mention it because she is afraid her parents will scold her. Their conversation is interrupted by a phone call from her mother's office. Then, Robert comes in and gives Grace another pep talk about how this vacation is going to be fantastic! Grace then notices the band-aid on Jane's arm, but Jane tells her it is just a scratch. Her mom looks at it and doesn't recognize it as anything serious. So, they all go on vacation.

Meanwhile the ambulance picks up the two little boys and the paramedic warns the policeman that he must find that little girl immediately.  She needs to be treated for rabies within the next 24 hours. If not, her chances for survival are slim. The police put the story out to media to try and find her.

When Jane and her parents reach their vacation destination, they seem more or less as tense and unhappy as they were back in the city. Grace picks up the newspaper and reads the article about the missing girl who was bitten by a mad dog. She reads aloud the description of what happens to rabies victims and shudders. Robert mentions that kids are "always getting into some kind of trouble."

The next day, Grace is back on her emotional see-saw. It is too bad that they brought her on this vacation; she sure knows how to throw a wet blanket around. Robert surprises Jane with a radio to replace the one she broke the day before. So now they have a radio, and they can hear the news reports about the little girl the police are trying to find...

"The Third One" aired on November 22, 1949. Margaret Phillips played Grace, Theodore Newton played Robert, and Iris Mann played Jane. This episode is available on Suspense: The Lost Episodes, Collection 2, Disc 1.

Man in the House

"Man in the House" was first presented on the radio show Suspense in 1945. When the story was brought to television four years later, its tone was changed from one of desperation to nervous suspense. The radio version delved into the unhappiness of a mother and daughter trapped by the unfortunate circumstances of their lives and by an intruder in their home. On television, the story was lightened up a little and, oddly, the intruder becomes the most sympathetic character. In the radio version, Emily is a spinster librarian who lives with her invalid mother, and Ted is the man she gave up. On television, they are a married couple separated by the Emily's duty to her mother.

"Man in the House" begins with Ted and Emily, looking forlorn and standing in front of paper background painted to look like an orchard. They are upset. Emily must leave Ted and stay with her mother, who is a sick and unpleasant, old bitty. Her husband wants her to stay with him, but she can't. Emily must sacrifice herself for her mother. She tells Ted that he could come and stay with them, but he points out that they tried that --and it didn't work. So, they part. Ted, a doctor, consoles himself with a cigarette.

Emily walks up to the front door and finds their dog -- dead on the doorstep. When she goes inside, she finds a madman who has tied up her mother! The intruder tells her to cooperate with him and he won't hurt anyone. He explains to Emily that he had to put a gag on her mother because she is obnoxious and complains constantly. As soon as Emily removes the gag, we realize that the intruder is right. This is where we first begin to sympathize with the intruder more than with his two hostages.

The intruder tells them that he has killed before, but that he has escaped from the mental hospital where he was confined. He claims that the things that were done to him there were worse than death or jail. Our sympathy for him increases again because it does sound bad. The intruder doesn't want anyone to find him because he does not want to return to the mental hospital. He has decided to stay with them until he can decide what to do.  The intruder is not worried about anyone unexpectedly dropping by because he knows that no one can stand the old woman.

Emily's mother isn't happy about any of this, so the intruder gives her sleeping pills to make her sleep. Then, he talks to Emily about how they are going to handle the situation. He tells Emily that she must to go to work to avoid suspicion. If she tells anyone about him, he will hurt her mother.

After a very long pause for an Auto-lite commercial, part two opens in the library where Emily works. There are a few teenagers draped over a library table trying to study, and Emily is in the background looking nervous and shelving books. When the teenagers get too rowdy, Emily disciplines them for talking in the library. (Uh-oh Emily, you spoke too soon.) Here comes your husband to have a loud talk with you about how your mother should be put in a home. The teenagers in the library are spellbound by the drama, but Emily soon chases them out. She tells not to come back until they have learned how to behave in a library. That seems a wee bit hypocritical coming from Emily.

Ted tries to talk to her, but Emily has shut down. She can't tell anyone what is going back at the house. Emily has to keep it all inside. Ted says that he can't take the situation anymore. He tells Emily that he wrote her a letter last night, that he now regrets, but that she should be receiving it today. Ted tells her to call him after she reads the letter.

Next we see that the letter has arrived at her house, the madman is reading it to Emily's mother. In it, Ted calls her mother "acid" and a few other unpleasant names. The intruder agrees with Ted. The mother doesn't.

The next day Emily finally goes to her husband's office and tells him what has happened. He grabs a gun from his desk and tells Emily that they are going over to rescue her mother.

"Man in the House" (episode #29) was written by Leslie Edgely and adapted for television by Joseph Liss. The Intruder was played by Alan Baxter. Emily was played by Kim Hunter. Mrs. Barrett was played by Ruth McDevitt. Ted was played by Boyd Crawford. This episode aired on November 29, 1949. It is available on disc one of Suspense: The Lost Episodes - Collection 1.

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For information about the radio version visit www.escape-suspense.com.

Dr. Violet

Neither Collection 1 or 2 of Suspense: The Lost Episodes includes episodes about ventriloquist's dummies or evil dolls, but it does include one about a wax museum.  Even better, it is about a seedy wax museum at an amusement park. It's called "Dr. Violet." Is it scary? Not in the least. Its value is in its weirdness.

The story revolves around the "only animated waxworks in the universe," which is located in an amusement park somewhere in Los Angeles. For seventy-five cents, Dr. Violet will give you a "personally conducted murder tour" of his wax chamber of horrors. His wife is the barker and ticket taker at the front entrance. The sound quality in the first few minutes of this episode isn't good so we only hear some of the gems of her sales pitch. According to her, Dr. Violet is the "foremost expert on criminal psychology in Southern California or anywhere else." Wow! Those are impressive credentials for a wax museum tour guide in an amusement park.

On this day, a nice young couple appears at her booth. They want to see Dr. Violet's museum, but the price is steep. The girl, Lois, is a college student taking a class in abnormal psychology. Mrs. Violet tells her that she can learn more about abnormal psychology from Dr. Violet than she can from college. As we will see, Mrs. Violet is right about that, but not in the way that Lois thinks. Nevertheless, Lois is convinced that his brilliant lecture will help her in school and insists on going in. Her fiance, Art, would rather eat clams and drink beer. They quarrel and she enters the museum of Dr. Violet alone.

Lois joins a tour group that is already in progress. Art then has a change of heart and joins her. Dr. Violet brings the tour to a close, but is then asked about the murderer Clarence Trevor. The exhibit profiling his crimes hasn't been discussed. Dr. Violet explains that Clarence Trevor is a sadomasochist, still at large, who preys on virgins who are just about to be married. He then gives Lois a long, creepy look. Dr. Violet tells the crowd that the criminal justice system is to blame for allowing so many evil deeds to go unpunished, and that society is to blame for that failure.

Earlier in the episode, we saw the police go into the museum but now we find out why. A young woman was murdered in the museum and her body was put into one of the displays. It was so realistic that no one noticed her for five days. The police now tell Dr. Violet that they have to close his museum down for a week.

Meanwhile, Lois and her fiance get into another quarrel. She wants to stay and see Dr. Violet's lecture from the beginning. He leaves and Dr. Violet appears. He begins his lecture, but Lois stops him because she isn't comfortable being the only person on the tour. Dr. Violet goes to the front to see if there are more patrons waiting for the tour. There aren't. The museum has been closed down and the police have padlocked the front entrance, with Lois still inside!

Mrs. Violet then talks Mr. Violet into taking a rest at a local hospital. They seem to be familiar with the staff at this local hospital, but not because Dr. Violet is really a doctor. Mrs. Violet leaves to have her hair done and that means Dr. Violet has some time to kill.

Now, Dr. Violet has young, tender Lois all to himself. He goes back into the museum to show her his favorite exhibit. From that point on, Lois learns a valuable lesson about abnormal psychology, but not the kind that you learn in school.

Dr. Violet, (episode #21) aired on October 4, 1949, and was written by Halsted Welles. His most recent work is the screenplay for the movie 3:10 to Yuma, which is currently in theaters.

Anne Francis, in her only appearance on Suspense, played Lois. You may recognize her from the famous Twilight Zone episode "The After-Hours" (1960), in which she plays a department store patron who runs into trouble with the store's mannequins.

Art was played by Frankie Thomas, Evelyn Varden played Mrs. Violet, and Hume Cronyn starred as Dr. Violet.