How could you rate this episode only 4.90. This told a tear jerking tale of how an intelligent well meaning child (played by a very gifted Barry Gordon) was trying desperately to do the right thing and was ignored and rebuked by the police and his father. The fear the police and his father showed toward a law breaking gangster than led to the rejection of his father, disregard for the law, and hero worship of the gangster. Without summarizing the plot the key issues to the youngster's demise after he and his friend witnessed the gangster (Mr Rose) and his cohort beating up a man were:
The police telling him to get lost after he reported the incident.
His father pushing him and calling him a liar.
The gangster slipping him a $20 bill to forget the whole issue (this at a time when a soda would have cost 5 cents). The seen at the end was awfully haunting when his friend told him to give the $20 to his father or else his father would really come down on him pretty hard.
I will always remember his reply - "Just let him. I'll tell Mr. Rose on him. That's what I'll do". He kept on repeating this. Mr Rose was his hero now. His father was a nobody.
The police telling him to get lost after he reported the incident.
His father pushing him and calling him a liar.
The gangster slipping him a $20 bill to forget the whole issue (this at a time when a soda would have cost 5 cents). The seen at the end was awfully haunting when his friend told him to give the $20 to his father or else his father would really come down on him pretty hard.
I will always remember his reply - "Just let him. I'll tell Mr. Rose on him. That's what I'll do". He kept on repeating this. Mr Rose was his hero now. His father was a nobody.