- #131: "Funeral Fires" (November 26, 1950) Starring: Ben Wright. Story/Script: Charles Israel. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: Pakistan.
Plot: A doctor arrives to help fight an outbreak of plague but the corrupt and apathetic officials block his efforts.
Review: A good drama as the new doctor is pit against seemingly every other white person in town and isn't sure who to trust. It's a little reminiscent of "Red Wine" (see #57). My Rating: 4/5 stars. - #132: "This Side of Nowhere" (December 3, 1950) Starring: William Conrad. Story/Script: Antony Ellis. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: Mexico.
Plot: A woman with $250,000 hires a pilot to get her to Mexico but the plane crashes by a village where the money is a constant problem and never a solution.
Review: There are few adversaries so irritating as those who remain eternally cheerful, happy and seemingly-helpful, as is the case here. Watch out for a surprise appearance by Escape Snake #9! My Rating: 4/5 stars. - #133: "A Passenger to Bali" (December 10, 1950) Starring: John Dehner. Story: Ellis St. Joseph. Script/Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: Indonesia/China Seas.
Plot: A British ship picks up a man who claims to be a missionary; he proves to be a horrific nuisance but no port will accept him.
Review: Speaking of irritating yet friendly personalities, here we have a man who is so, so lucky that he booked passage on the high seas under a stiff-upper lip Englishman who didn't simply throw him overboard. It's a good problem to create tension but the kind of problem that can only exist in a "British manners" scenario. My Rating: 4/5 stars. - #134: "Wild Jack Rhett" (1st version December 17, 1950) Starring: John Dehner. Story: Ernest Haycox. Script: John Meston. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: USA.
Plot: A western town hires an infamous town tamer to clean up crime.
Review: We've finally reached the story that served as something of a pilot for Gunsmoke (along with "Pagosa" which Macdonnell produced for Romance the following year). As I've previously mentioned, it wasn't the first "adult western" to appear on Escape - see "The Pistol" (#90) and "Sundown" (#113). The difference is that Macdonnell would be the one to create Gunsmoke and writer Meston would be among his writing staff (to say nothing of actors like Dehner, Parley Baer, Sam Edwards and Larry Dobkin). And, of course, the other major players of Gunsmoke would be culled from Escape's recurring performers not heard here (William Conrad, Georgia Ellis, Howard McNear). But this isn't merely of historical interest, it's a very good western tale about a man who's basically the old west's Sam Spade (he's not above pretending to be corrupt). My Rating: 4.5/5 stars. - #135: "The Cave" (December 24, 1950) Starring: John Dehner. Story/Script: Antony Ellis. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: England.
Plot: A man recalls a childhood Christmas where he ventured into a cave and found pirates waiting.
Review: A story so gentle it just might... put you to sleep. I do appreciate, however, that although this story is really for children it doesn't talk down to them in the way a children's show like Let's Pretend, so kudos to Ellis on that front. My Rating: 2.5/5 stars. - #136: "The Man Who Could Work Miracles" (2nd version December 31, 1950) Starring: Ben Wright. Story: H. G. Wells. Script: Les Crutchfield. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: England.
Plot: A man suddenly discovers he can perform any deed he happens to think of.
Review: Another funny performance of this script (first done as #54) with Wright reprising his role as the protagonist Mr. Fotheringay. I do prefer this to the 1st version because of one great audio joke - the sequence in which Fotheringay creates a live pheasant by mistake (pheasant noises are heard) then commands it to become a roast pheasant, abruptly followed by the pheasant's dying squawk. My Rating: 4/5 stars. - #137: "Conquest" (January 7, 1951) Starring: William Conrad. Story: Leonard Lee. Script: David Ellis. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: Himalayan mountains.
Plot: A mountain climber is determined to be the first man to reach the top of Mount Everest.
Review: A very good drama, carried by Conrad at his best as the climber who proves himself, yet ultimately chooses to be gracious and humble. A great melding of high adventure with a morality fable. My Rating: 4.5/5 stars. - #138: "A Bullet for Mr. Smith" (January 14, 1951) Starring: John Dehner. Story/Script: Antony Ellis. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: Switzerland.
Plot: A spy is warned of a killer named "Mr. Smith" - who might be anyone, potentially more than one person!
Review: A very average sort of espionage story; they namedrop Eric Ambler but this is nothing like his style (we previously witnessed in #124: "Roulette" that Ellis had difficulty writing about espionage). It wants to be a grim story but doesn't get out of first gear. My Rating: 3/5 stars. - #139: "The Killer Mine" (February 11, 1951) Starring: John Dehner. Story: Hammond Innes. Script: Antony Ellis. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: England.
Plot: A miner desperate for work enters into a criminal operation.
Review: This feels just very average for Escape - it takes a while to pick up speed, which seems to be a recurring issue I'm having with Ellis' scripting. My Rating: 3/5 stars. - #140: "The Follower" (February 18, 1951) Starring: William Conrad. Story: Patrick Quentin. Script: Les Crutchfield. Director: Norman Macdonnell. Setting: Mexico.
Plot: An engineer finds a dead body in his home; he sets out in pursuit of his wife, afraid she's the killer.
Review: Conrad is again quite good although the dialogue is a bit stiff and wordy. My Rating: 3/5 stars.
You can listen to episodes of Escape at the Internet Archive! I'll be back with more next week!
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