Alfred Hitchcock Presents Series 1, Episode 17    Robert Stevens    Robert C. Dennis (teleplay); Lillian de la Torre (story)    Joan Lorring, Carmen Mathews    22 January 1956    24:46 (total) • --:-- (film) • -:-- (Hitchcock)    7/10

The Older Sister

One year after the murder of a married couple, a hard-nosed reporter from the Sacramento Record, Nell Cutts (Polly Rowles), shows up at the house where the crime was committed and wastes no time in interrogating the sister of the woman accused. Nell goes over the details of how the murders were carried out whilst Emma Borden (Joan Lorring) reminds the reporter that her sister, Lizzie (Carmen Mathews) was acquitted of any wrong doing. Lizzie appears and demands the reporter leave. Lizzie retrieves the "lost" murder weapon, an axe, and explains the whole story to Emma. Unfortunately for them both, Nell returns, barges her way into the house and discovers the axe, demands a statement and uncovers the truth. TRIVIA •Based on the 1947 one-act play, "Good-Bye, Miss Lizzie Borden" by Lillian de la Torre.

HITCH'S PROLOGUE (0 secs): X HITCH'S EPILOGUE (0 secs): X SPOILERS Emma Borden is a good liar. She is also a complete crackpot. She was behind the murders but her sister Lizzie was the one who covered for her, despite knowing that Emma was guilty. Though the ending does make one think maybe Lizzie was guilty all along?

IN MY HUMBLE OPINION... It's an all-female cast which is not quite as suspenseful as previous episodes in the series, largely due to the fact the spoiler is given up far too early in the story. The ending was so poorly constructed, with the axe being hidden under a newspaper and the unlikelihood the reporter would just happen to want to read the paper, and the long shot of Lizzie sitting in the chair as the episode ends. Hitchcock's daughter Patricia has a small cameo at the beginning as the maid who leaves the house.

THE CAST (click any image to enlarge)

Miss Emma Borden... JOAN LORRING Miss Lizzie Borden... CARMEN MATHEWS Nell Cutts, the reporter... POLLY ROWLES Margaret, the maid... PATRICIA HITCHCOCK Little singing girl... WENDY WINKLEMAN Woman on the street... KAY STEWART

GALLERY (click any image to enlarge)

Acknowledgements: The Alfred Hitchcock Presents Companion by Martin Grams Jr & Patrik Wikstrom (book) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0508331/ [IMDb] This page was last updated on: 12 February 2022