Series: Alfred Hitchcock Presents Director: Robert Stevens Producer: Joan Harrison Teleplay: Francis Cockrell Photography: Reggie Lanning Editor: Edward W. Williams Art direction: Martin Obzina Stars: Skip Homeier, Joanne Woodward, Ken Christy, Henry Hunter, Mike Ragan Company: CBS/Shamley Productions Air date: 24 June 1956 Length: 24 minutes Rating: 8/10

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Richard Paine is desperately in debt, and despite applying for work, he fails to improve on his financial situation. With an empty refrigerator and a hungry wife at home, Richard seeks solace at a local bar where he asks Charlie, the barman for some help, but receives none. Richard blames his former employer Mr Burroughs for his predicament and sets out to confront him over money which Richard claims is owed to him. When Richard arrives at Burroughs' home he witnesses him handing over a large amount of money to an unseen person through a window. Richard waits for the unseen person to leave before going to knock on the door to claim the $450 he is owed but before he can do so the lights are turned off. Desperate, Richard decides to climb through the window and break into Burroughs' home. He pries open a box containing lots of money but only takes the amount he is owed. Burroughs catches Richard in the act and telephones the police. The two men struggle and Burroughs ends up being shot dead by Richard in what appears to be an accident. Richard quickly flees and returns home.

The next morning Richard tells his wife he has the money, which he got from Charlie after he won on a horse but when an apartment hunter shows up wanting to see their place it spooks Richard who tells his wife they have to leave immediately and sends her on ahead of him to the bus station to get two tickets to San Diego. Paranoid, Richard gets into a scuffle with a finance company agent who shows up at the apartment when he believes him to be a cop. Richard is shot but manages to lock the agent in a closet before escaping the building and the real police who show up. Richard hails a taxi but during the ride he begins to feel unwell on account of being shot. Then a radio bulletin comes in advising that Richard is wanted in connection with Burroughs' murder. The taxi driver barely has enough time to react when Richard sticks the gun in his face and orders him to pull over. Richard takes the taxi and heads for the bus station where he meets his wife. Before Richard succumbs to his gunshot wounds he learns a starting truth.

Memorable scene X

Trivia • X What the experts say • "The final episode from the first season is decent enough albeit smothered with predictability." ~ Lord Heath.

Skip Homeier Richard Paine

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Acknowledgements: None This page was last updated on: 13 February 2019