1965's "The Third Day" boasts a fine cast and intriguing Hitchcock-like storyline from a recent novel by Joseph Hayes, author of "The Desperate Hours." George Peppard's Steve Mallory emerges from a river as disoriented as the audience (wide angle lensing for location shooting north of Bodega Bay), checking his ID to find out his name, a full fledged amnesiac who remembers nothing about himself, including how he escaped certain drowning while cafe singer Holly Mitchell (Sally Kellerman) apparently did not. It's quickly established that Mallory is supposed to be a pillar of society, marrying the daughter of Austin Parsons (Herbert Marshall), owner of the local ceramics factory whose employees number over 2000, yet has earned a reputation as a womanizing drunkard with a penchant for using his fists. Wife Alexandria (Elizabeth Ashley, soon to wed Peppard in real life) had been planning to walk out after years of being neglected but is now irresistibly drawn to her 'new' husband, but his greatest ally in the homestead is Aunt Catherine (Mona Washbourne), accepting of Mallory's behavior and filling in the details on his recent past, unlike her son Oliver (Roddy McDowall), eager to sell out the family business to the highest bidder but only if Steve is out of the way. Mallory's looming arrest for possible manslaughter or even murder hangs over his head like an albatross, and it takes 72 hours (hence the title) for everything to clear in his befuddled mind, aided by the suspicious piano player (Arte Johnson) who never let on that he was secretly married to the deceased Holly Mitchell. For a lengthy 2 hour running time the director commendably keeps a steady pace, although the slack climax proves too pat and unbelievable, winding everything up neat and tidy (the picture was quickly forgotten after a modest box office take). Inveterate scene stealer Roddy McDowall typically makes a strong impression as a reprehensible human being, while this was the final role for Herbert Marshall, almost undone with Vincent Price in 1958's "The Fly" as they struggled to avoid hysterics during its finale. Arte Johnson's small stature and established comic persona make him an unlikely villain, but the most unforgettable performance comes from Mona Washbourne, whose devastating putdown of crooked son Roddy McDowall makes for riveting stuff (Mona will be remembered by Peter Cushing fans as the school matriarch in Hammer's "The Brides of Dracula"). Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater paired this with 1958's "The 39 Steps" for an adults only broadcast in 1972, a natural for both Hitchcock suspense and playing the numbers.