Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Don't Come Back Alive (1955)

 

In this episode married couple Frank and Mildred are in desperate need for money. Frank comes up with an idea for Mildred to disappear for seven years. He would declare her dead and they could collect her insurance money. However, he soon finds himself accused of killing his wife. 

This is a wonderful episode. The very premise is intriguing and just the type of dark but fun story, we have already come to expect for this series. Yet the execution is even better. Sidney Blackmer (who would go on to appear in one more episode, The Faith of Aaron Menefee (1962)) is very compelling in the lead role. He adds an even greater intensity to the story as he feels completely real every moment he is on screen. Robert Emhardt (who appeared in six Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes and one The Alfred Hitchcock Hour) is equally wonderful as the detective who thinks that Frank killed his wife. The story is full of very clever little moments that keep one guessing what will happen next. The dialogue is also very smart and well written. The final twist at the end is perfect and there is no better way for such a story to end. Alfred Hitchcock's intro and outro are as great as ever and his dry sense of humor is truly hilarious here. 

This is the first episode directed by Robert Stevenson. Stevenson is best known as a Disney director. In fact, he was one of the studio's finest live action directors, having directed such Disney films as Johnny Tremain (1957), Old Yeller (1957), Darby O'Gill and the Little People (1959), The Absent Minded Professor (1961), Mary Poppins (1964), That Darn Cat (1965), The Love Bug (1969), Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) and Herbie Rides Again (1974) among many others. Stevenson directed seven episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. His other television work includes episodes of Calvacade of America, Gunsmoke, General Electric Theatre and Disney's Zorro. This is the first episode for writer, Robert C. Dennis who wrote a total of thirty episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Dennis was a very prolific TV writer, whose TV career began in the 1950's and ran through the 1980's. TV shows he was written for include China Smith, Mike Hammer, Peter Gun, The Untouchables, 77 Sunset Strip, Perry Mason, Batman, Hawaii Five-O, Dragnet, Barnaby Jones and Charlie's Angels. 

-Michael J. Ruhland