Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Santa Claus and the Tenth Avenue Kid (1955)

 

One would not expect a sentimental Christmas special from Alfred Hitchcock Presents, yet that is exactly what this first season episode is. This episode may feel out of place among other Alfred Hitchcock episodes, but it is a personal favorite of mine and a must watch every Christmas season. 

In this episode, a paroled convict (Barry Fitzgerald), gets a job as department store Santa Claus. When he meets a troubled young boy (Bobby Clark), he decides to help out. 

This is simply a wonderful episode. What makes this episode work so well is the main character. As played by Barry Fitzgerald (who had previously starred in the Hitchcock movie, Juno and the Paycock (1930)), this character is completely believable. He is a hard and cold guy, who is out of his element working as a Santa. He is not good with kids and has a very cynical outlook on life. This episode is also very realistic in the way it presents the change of heart of the character. He is not a completely changed person at the end and there is no guarantee that he is going to reform. Yet he did a good deed and feels the Christmas spirit because of this. This is a very sweet and charming story that never fails to warm my heart. At the same time the rough-edged main character keeps it from ever feel overly sentimental or cutesy. This is especially true because of how great Barry Fitzgerald's performance is. The ending may not exactly be the type of big twist we expect from this show, but it is perfectly heartwarming and charming for this different type of story. 

Hitch's appearances before and after the story are the typical Hitchcock dark and dry humor as he plans to surprise Santa Claus. He is funny as ever here bringing a typical Hitch charm to the Christmas season. 

Hitch's opening lines are "Oh, good evening. I thought I might as well brick this up. I don't expect I'll be using this fireplace anymore. I expect the chimney to be closed very soon. I've, uh, loosened the bricks so they'll fall in if anyone should brush against them on the way down. Santa Claus is always bringing surprises to others. I thought it would be interesting if someone surprised him for a change. I'm rather tired of his tracking soot in here every year. There. Let him "Ho ho ho" himself out of that. At the risk of overburdening our program with the spirit of the season, we have arranged to dramatize a very appropriate story for tonight's divertissement. It is called Santa Claus and the Tenth Avenue Kid."

His closing lines are "You know, he ain't such a bad chap after all. Perhaps his taste in ties has improved. I think I'll give him one more chance. Rest ye merry, we'll have you out of there in a jiffy. And rest ye merry, too. Good night."

 

This is the first of five episodes directed by Don Weis and the second out of eleven written by Marian C. Cockrell. Don Weis was a very prolific television director. TV shows he worked on include I Married Joan, Wagon Train, The Jack Benny Program, The Patty Ducke Show, Batman, Ironside, M*A*S*H, Fantasy Island and Freddy's Nightmares. He also directed quite a few movies including The Affairs of Dobie Gillis (1953), The Gene Krupa Story (1959), Critic's Choice (1963), Pajama Party (1964) and The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966). 

A very memorable but small part in this episode is played by child actress Mimi Gibson (best known for Houseboat (1958) and being the voice of Lucky in Disney's One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)). She plays the first girl in line to see Santa Claus and gets a fun dialogue exchange with our main character. In her book, Working Kid: A Memoir of a Child Actor of the 1950's and 60's, Gibson wrote, "A Christmas show titled, 'Santa Claus and the Tenth Avenue Kid,' and, no, I do not remember him - Darn! He most likely didn't direct that episode. I do remember his daughter Pat from working with her on Playhouse 90. And of course, I worked with Bobby Clark again." She worked with Patricia Hitchcock on a Playhouse 90 episode entitled Rumors of Everything (1958). About Patricia Hitchcock Mimi would write, "Pat was a very funny, young woman who liked to break everyone up. I thought she was hilarious and especially a little scandalous when she talked about girdles. I wanted to be just like her." That episode also featured Barbara Del Geddes, who is best known by Hitchcock fans for her role as Midge in Hitch's movie, Vertigo (1958). About working with Bobby Clark on the western movie, Rebel in Town (1956) Gibson remembered one incident quite clearly writing, "Bobby knew I had a little-girl crush on Ben Cooper [one of the stars of the film] who was so nice to me and handsome. So, Bobby told Ben and I found out. I panicked. It was the first time I had those types of feelings for a guy and an older guy at that. I was so embarrassed I thought I'd die. I cried and cried. Ben Cooper was a true gentleman. He knew how embarrassed I was and just didn't make a big deal or have a little talk with me - that would have killed me. He was just nice and friendly as usual and the whole thing blew over. Darn that, Bobby Clark! (Crush No. 2, a handsome guy!)" 

-Michael J. Ruhland 

Resources Used

Working Kid: A Memoir of a Child Actor of the 1950's and 60's by Mimi Gibson

https://hitchcock.fandom.com/wiki/Santa_Claus_and_the_Tenth_Avenue_Kid

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0508241/

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Guilty Witness (1955)

 

Guilty Witness was the 11th episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and the 3rd directed by Robert Stevens and the third by writer Robert C. Dennis. Robert Stevens and Robert C. Dennis worked together previously on the episode Our Cook's a Treasure (1955). Guilty Witness originally aired on December 12, 1956. 

In this episode grocery store owners Stanley and Dorothy Krane are annoyed by the couple next door constantly fighting. However, they become suspicious, when the husband of that couple disappears. 

 This story may sound familiar to Hitchcock fans as it is quite similar to that of Rear Window (1954). Comparing the two perfectly shows the difference between Hitch's movies and his TV show. The film (which was released the year prior) plays the story in a rather straightforward way, while the episode ends on a huge twist. Unfortunately, this huge twist is the weakest part of this episode. It comes out of nowhere and strains any sense of credibility. After this twist, much of what came before makes much less sense. 

Despite this there is a lot to enjoy before that twist. All three of the stars are fantastic. Joe Mantell (who later appear in one more episode, The Indestructible Mr. Weems (1957)), Judith Evelyn (who had played Ms. Lonelyhearts in Rear Window and would later appear in the episode, Martha Mason, Movie Star (1957)) and Kathleen Maguire (in her first of three episodes) are all very compelling here and make the implausible drama feel quite believable. Robert Stevens direction is sharp and keeps the episode moving at a very fast pace, keeping it from ever getting boring. There is also a good sense of atmosphere and dread throughout. The basic story may feel very familiar but other than the absurd twist ending, everything else works well enough to overlook this. 

This is an otherwise strong episode that is greatly hurt by a weak twist at the end. 

-Michael J. Ruhland

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Case of Mr. Pelham (1955)

 

The Case of Mr. Pelham is the 10th episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and the third directed by Hitch himself. 

In this episode, a man named Mr. Pelham (Tom Ewell) believes that he has a double who looks exactly like him and who is impersonating him. 

This is a truly wonderful episode. From the start it has an odd and uneasy feel to it. As it goes on the sense of mystery and dread is built up perfectly keeping its audience is suspense in a way only Hitch can. With a smart and compelling script, we are made to doubt everything we feel. This is increased by the fact that we never know anything more than our main character does at any time. This easily puts us into his shoes and makes us feel the same puzzlement and horror that he does. While the story is incredibly implausible, in true Hitchcock fashion we are made to believe everything. However, the main reason this episode works is Tom Ewell's (in his only role in this series) incredibly performance. He is truly magnetic here and conveys the dread and emotional uneasy of the character perfectly.

The episode also benefits from a truly terrifying ending that perfectly lives up to the wonderful build up. Since this implausible story feels so real to us, we begin to believe that such a thing could actually happen to any of us. This makes the ending just as horrifying and frightening as anything in a great horror movie.  

The episode also truly benefits from great cinematography John L. Russell (a regular cinematographer on this series and later the cinematographer for Hitch's cinematic masterpiece Psycho). It gives this episode a film-noir type feel that fits the story perfectly. 

The outro with two Alfred Hitchcocks is truly hilarious and presents Hitch's dry but absurd sense of humor in a wonderful fashion. 

This is the third out of 18 episodes to be written by Francis M. Cockrell. Interestingly the two previous episodes that Cockrell wrote were also the two previous episodes that Hitch directed. 

-Michael J. Ruhland

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Long Shot (1955)

 

This marks the 9th episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. It is the second of seven episodes 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. It is also the second of ten episodes written by  Harold Swanton, a very prolific TV writer. His other Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes would include The Long Shot (1955), Portrait of Joycelyn (1956), Coyote Moon (1959), Anniversary Gift (1959), An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (1959), Summer Shade (1961), Museum Piece (1961), Bang Your Dead (1961) and The Twelve Hour Caper (1962) as well as The Alfred Hitchcock Hour episode Body in the Barn (1964). Other TV shows he worked on include The Whistler, Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, Wagon Train, Bonanza and Little House on the Prairie. He also occasionally worked on movies like Disney's Rascal (1969).   

In this episode a compulsive gambler (Peter Lawford) lands in financial debt. He sees an ad for someone looking for a traveling companion to San Francisco. Along the way he decides to change identities with his traveling companion (John Williams). However, this leads to more trouble than he ever anticipated. The opening involves Hitch playing a slot machine that gives him actual fruit. 

This is truly an excellent episode. Though the story has been done before but that doesn't stop this from being compelling viewing. There is a delightfully moody and atmospheric feel to this episode thanks to Stanley Wilson's haunting music and Reggie Lanning's atmospheric cinematography. Many scenes have that cinematic quality that makes this series stand out among many other TV shows of its time. The episode also has some very effectively dark scenes that leave a real sense of unease in the truest of Hitchcock fashion. Also helping this episode work is that Peter Lawford (in his own gives one of the best performances I have seen from him, perfectly capturing the shiftiness of such a character. 

The episode is not perfect however as it can become too talky at times and there is an over reliance on narration. The ending is also too predictable from a show like this which is best known for its shocking twists. 

John Williams as the traveling companion, will be a familiar face to most Hitchcock fans. This was the first of ten episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents that he acted in. However, Hitch fans will know him best for his roles in the Hitchcock movies, Dial M for Murder (1954) and To Catch a Thief (1955).  In Dial M for Murder, he played Chief Inspector Hubbard, a role he also played on stage and in a 1958 television adaption. 

-Michael J. Ruhland 

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Our Cook's a Treasure (1955)

 

This is the second out of 44 episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents to be directed by Robert Stevens, who would also go on to direct 5 episodes of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. This is also the second of 30 episodes written by Robert C. Dennis (it was based off a story by mystery novel writer Dorothy L. Sayers). 

In this episode a man (Everett Sloane) thinks his housemaid (Beulah Bondi) might be a serial killer.  

This episode is very much held together by the wonderful performances by Everrett Sloane and Beulah Bondi. Both of them are very compelling to watch and make this simple story very engaging. The story itself is quite well handled. While the twist is not hard to see coming, this episode does quite a good job of putting us in the place of the main character. We can understand and feel his panic and paranoia growing. It is hard to say that any of us would fall into the same paranoia if we were in his place. Steven's directing is also very strong here. His pacing is perfect, and the episode never once feels dull, nor does it ever really drag. The episode also remains visually interesting throughout with some strong atmospheric shots that enhance the suspense of the story. 

Hitch's opening and closing sequences with him as a wine taster are fine but, in my opinion, not as funny as his best host sequences.   

This was the first of three episodes to star Everett Sloane. Though Sloane had a very prolific career in both movies and TV, he is probably best known for playing Mr. Bernstein in Orson Welles' masterpiece, Citizen Kane (1941). This is the only appearance on the show by Bulah Bondi, a great character actress, whose filmography includes such classics as Make Way For Tomorrow (1937), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Remember the Night (1939), Penney Serenade (1941), Watch on the Rine (1943), It's a Wonderful Life (1948), So Dear to My Heart (1949), A Summer Place (1959) and plenty more. 

-Michael J. Ruhland

Downhill (1927)

 

Hitch followed his first true suspense film (and the biggest financial and artistic success to date), The Lodger (1927), with a college melodrama. 

In this film, Roddy Berwick (Ivor Novello) scores the winning try at an important rugby match in his college. This makes it so that he becomes School Captain. Just everything looks like it couldn't be better for him, he is accused of misconduct by a waitress. In reality the guilty party is his good friend, Tim Wakely (Robin Irvine). Because of this he is expelled and from here his life gets worse and worse. 

This movie was based off a play of the same name. That play was written by David L'Estrange and actress Constance Collier. David L'Estrange was a pen name for Ivor Novello, who would star in the film version (he was also the star of The Lodger). Before Downhill, the two had written a play entitled The Rat. The Rat was a massive stage success and would spawn a 1925 film version which would be directed by Graham Cutts, who had previously directed multiple films on which Hitch had worked as an assistant director. That movie would be such a success that it would give way to two sequels Triumph of the Rat (1926) and The Return of the Rat (1929). Both of those movies were also directed by Graham Cutts and starred Ivor Novello. The play featured a risqué scene in which Novello was seen washing his legs after a rugby match. Critic James Agate wrote, "The scent of honest soap crosses the footlights." This scene would not make it into the movie version, but Hitch does include a scene where Novello is seen naked from the waist up.  

Despite being based on a play, this movie often jumps from setting to setting. You would think that this was a liberty that was taken to make the movie more cinematic. However, that was not the case as Hitch told Francios Truffaut (in the book long interview Truffaut did with Hitchcock), "The original play was written that way." Truffaut was naturally surprised by this statement and Hitch responded, "No, no. It was done as a series of sketches. It was a rather poor play." 

The storyline itself may be melodramatic and a little hokey but for the most part it works. Much of this is due to the main character who is immediately sympathetic and likable, even before his selfless act that sets the story in motion. This is greatly enhanced by Ivor Novello's performance. It is easy to see why he became such a massive star. At times his performance is effortlessly charming and likable, while at other times it has real dramatic weight to it. Regardless his performance is always believable and compelling. Though sometimes the hardships that meet him seem excessive, our emotional connection to this character keeps us invested in the story, even when it is at its most melodramatic. Even with the seriousness of the story, the filmmakers are able to slip in a few comedic moments as well. These comedic moments are well integrated into the story and keep it from feeling too serious or depressing. These scenes are also pretty funny. Incorporating humor into mostly serious stories, would later become almost a staple of Hitch's work and this movie provides a great example of that. However, the real star of this film remains Hitch's visual storytelling. It is amazing that this early in his career, Hitch was already a master of visual filmmaking. The visuals here are wonderful and always simply stunning to look at. Like in all the best silent films, for the most part we can tell what is happening in the story through the visual storytelling alone. In fact, this movie has quite few intertitles for a silent drama. This is very effective and a great example of what Hitch would refer to as "pure cinema." Though Hitch would often dismiss his filmmaking in these early movies, the visual storytelling here, shows Hitch as a master of the medium.

However, this movie does have its flaws. The runtime is simply longer than it needs to be, and the movie can drag at times. The ending also feels really forced and rushed. It simply strains any form of believability.  

Despite its flaws, this is a quite strong movie that tends to go overlooked in discussions and writings about Hitchcock's British movies. 

Many of Alfred Hitchcock's British films feature moments of experimental visual filmmaking that the director would abandon in his later Hollywood work. One such scene takes place in a Paris cabaret. Hitch described this scene to Truffaut. "Yes, I experimented there quite a bit. I showed a woman seducing a younger man. She is a lady of a certain age, but quite elegant, and he finds her very attractive until daybreak. Then he opens the window, and the sun comes in, lighting up the woman's face. In that moment she looks dreadful. And through the open window we see people passing by carrying a coffin." More visual experimentation showed up in the use of dream sequences. About these scenes Hitch told Truffaut, "I had a chance to experiment in those scenes. At one point I wanted to show that the young man was having hallucinations. He boarded a tiny schooner, and there I had him go down to the fo'c'sle, where the crew slept. At the beginning of his nightmare, he was in a dance hall. No dissolve, just straight cutting. He walked over to the side wall and climbed into a bunk. In those days dreams were always dissolves and they were always blurred. Though it was difficult, I tried to embody the dream in the reality, in solid, unblurred images."    

This movie would mark one of the earliest film roles for actor Ian Hunter. In a 1936 issue of Film Weekly titled My Screen Memories, Alfred Hitchcock wrote, "When I was making Downhill I started Ian Hunter on his film career simply because I saw him in a Basil Dean play at the St. Martin's theater when I was casting the film, and he happened to suit one of the roles." In a 1937 article Hitchcock wrote (titled Direction) the director remembered making a scene (that didn't make it into the movie) involving Hunter. In 1926 I made a film called Downhill, from a play by Ivor Novello, who acted in the film himself, with Ian Hunter and Isabel Jean. There was a sequence showing a quarrel between Hunter and Novello. It started as an ordinary fight; then they began throwing things at one another. They tried to pick up heavy pedestals to throw and then the pedestals bowled them over. In other words, I made it comic. I even put Hunter into a morning coat and stripped trousers because I felt that a man never looks so ridiculous as when he is well dressed and fighting. This whole scene had to be cut out; they said I was guying Ivor Novello. It was ten years before its time."

The screenplay is by Eliot Stannard, who had previously worked for Hitch on The Pleasure Garden (1925), The Mountain Eagle (1926) and The Lodger. He would go on to write for Hitch on The Farmer's Wife (1928), Easy Virtue (1928), Champagne (1928) and The Manxman (1929). 

This film's cinematographer was Claude L. McDonnell. He had previously worked on Woman to Woman (1923), The White Shadow (1924) and The Passionate Adventure (1924), all of which Hitch served as assistant director on. He would go on to work on one more Hitch movie, Easy Virtue. 

This movie marked the last film Hitch and Novello made together. MGM hired Novello and the Welsh actor traveled to Hollywood to make movies there. Unfortunately for him, after making a screen test MGM decided that his voice and appearance would not suit a Hollywood star. Instead, they hired him as a script doctor (someone who touches up flawed scripts). During his two years a script doctor, Novello worked on MGM's Tarzan pictures. He even receives a dialogue credit for Tarzan the Ape Man (1932). He opted out of his contract and moved back to England, where he returned to the stage. He would go on to become one of Britian's most successful writers of musical comedies. In 1951 he would die suddenly from a heart blockage at only 58 years old. 

Critics were greatly impressed by the visual filmmaking but found the story very poor. 

You can watch this movie below on YouTube. 

-Michael J. Ruhland

Resources Used

Hitchcock by Francios Truffaut

The Alfred Hitchcock Story by Ken Mogg.

Hitchcock on Hitchcock Edited by Sidney Gottlieb

https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/494936/downhill#articles-reviews?articleId=1325745

https://www.imdb.com/

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Breakdown (1955)

 

Breakdown marked 7th episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and the second directed by Hitch himself. 

In this episode a man (Joseph Cotton) is involved in a bad car accident and becomes paralyzed. However, when he is discovered, people believe that the man is already dead. 

It is a bit strange to think that this episode was directed by Hitch himself. Hitch always argued for what he called "pure cinema," which is where the story is told visually rather than through dialogue. It is true that this episode is television and not cinema, but it still is strange how far this is from pure cinema. You can close your eyes with this episode on, and you could fully appreciate it as if it was an old radio drama. The narration and dialogue tell the whole story without the visuals. 

Despite how this doesn't fully fit into Hitch's usual style of filmmaking, it is a truly gripping episode. The story and writing are top notch. This episode truly puts in the place of Joseph Cotton's character. This is a truly horrifying place to be. Picturing ourselves being in the most terrifying position possible is the type of stuff nightmares are made of. Though there is nothing supernatural here, this is pure horror at its most effective. Joseph Cotton's performance is also excellent, which is incredibly important considering how much of this episode relies on narration. 

Another (and often overlooked) factor to this episode is the lack of a musical score for most of the episode's runtime. When a musical score kicks in during the dramatic finale, the scene is all the more effective because of it. 

Alfred Hitchcock's introduction and outro are hilarious in the typical style of dry Hitchcock humor. Him talking about how reading thrillers relaxes him and get his mind off his work as well as how he is trapped in the TV powerless are Hitch's humor at its best. 

Because of this, despite its reliance on narration and dialogue, this is often considered one of the best episodes of the show. I can certainly see why. 

 

Joseph Cotton had previously played the villainous role in the Alfred Hitchcock movie, Shadow of a Doubt (1943). That film was the one Hitch considered his favorite that he had made. It also provides Cotton with possibly his greatest acting role. Cotton would also go on to appear in two more episodes of this show (Together (1958), Dead Weight (1959)). Cotton is probably best known for his work with another great filmmaker, Orson Welles. He had important roles in what are considered two of Welles' best directorial efforts, Citizen Kane (1941) and The Magnificent Andersons (1942). He also played the lead role in the movie that had one of Welles' most famous acting roles, The Third Man (1949). 

This episode was written by Francis M. Cockrell and Louis Pollock. Cockrell wrote a staggering 18 episodes of this series. He would even direct two of the episodes, Whodunit (1956) and The Rose Garden (1956). On the other hand, this is the only episode Louis Pollack receives on the show. 

Editor Edward W. Williams won an Emmy for his work on this episode. Williams was the regular cinematographer for this series and its follow-up The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. Other TV shows he worked on include The Life of Reily, Suspicion, Ironside and The Invisible Man.  

This episode would later be remade in 1985 for the revival series of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. That remake would be directed by Richard Pearce and star John Heard. 

-Michael J. Ruhland