Don't Come Back Alive
- Episode aired Oct 23, 1955
- TV-14
- 30m
Frank Partridge and his wife plot to cheat their life insurance company by having her hide out for 7 years and declared legally dead, but an investigator believes Mr. Partridge has murdered ... Read allFrank Partridge and his wife plot to cheat their life insurance company by having her hide out for 7 years and declared legally dead, but an investigator believes Mr. Partridge has murdered her.Frank Partridge and his wife plot to cheat their life insurance company by having her hide out for 7 years and declared legally dead, but an investigator believes Mr. Partridge has murdered her.
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Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSidney Blackmer appears here in one of the first of Alfred Hitchcock's stories, and he will, six years later, appear in one of the last (The Faith of Aaron Menefee (1962)), and of those who appeared more than once, he would have the longest stretch between appearances in the seven seasons of the show.
- GoofsThe logic for their scheme didn't make sense. At the beginning they are talking about how they need money right away, and the wife even says that if they don't pay the rent that week they'll be evicted. But in order to collect the insurance money, they will have to wait for seven years, which does not provide a solution to their need for money right then.
- Quotes
[first lines]
Himself - Host: Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and especially the gentlemen. All of you have, at one time or another, speculated on how it would be to be separated from your wife for a week or a weekend. Ah, but have you ever thought about being away from the little woman for seven years? Oh, you have? Oh, well, in that case, you will be even more interested in tonight's play, called "Don't Come Back Alive." It's a homey little story of intrigue, jealousy, avarice, and fraud. It will follow immediately after this illustrated lecture on the virtues of our sponsor's product.
[looks offstage right, clicks twice]
Himself - Host: May we have the first slide, please?
- SoundtracksIt Came Upon The Midnight Clear
(uncredited)
Music by Richard Storrs Willis
Lyrics by Edmund Hamilton Sears
Sung by carolers outside Vallardi's Restaurant
"Don't Come Back Alive" could have been a good deal better than it was, considering the great title. It is to me not one quite of the worst episodes of the series, but it is in my view a lesser entry of Season 1. It is an improvement over "Triggers in Leash", but is nowhere near on the same level as "Revenge" and "Premonition". "Don't Come Back Alive" does have its good things and just about worth a one time watch, but is let down by the story being rather all over the map.
Starting with the good things, "Don't Come Back Alive" is slickly and atmospherically shot with some suitably eerie lighting that suits the type of story very well. The music has an ominous vibe and the choice to have Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette" as the series' theme tune continues to be a stroke of genius. Hitchcock's bookending is intriguing, this aspect did vary throughout the series' run but it works very well in this episode.
Furthermore, Sidney Blackmer plays his role with intense conflicted edge. Virginia Gregg makes much of little and their chemistry is good. The twist ending wasn't too predictable and was nicely executed.
Which unfortunately cannot be said for most of what came before it. On the whole, the story felt too rushed and comes over as choppy as a result, over-stuffed and the crammed sprawling structure made coherence not a strong suit. Some serious suspension of disbelief is needed, as quite a lot of the story is utter nonsense and this is an episode that really would have benefitted from a much longer length, all of this being the complete opposite of the narratively thin "Triggers in Leash".
Moreover, the script could have had more verve and too often sounds awkward, it fares best in the bookending. While there is a little bit of suspense later, most of the time that aspect was lacking due to being distracted by the far-fetched-ness and the jumping about. Robert Emhardt for my tastes was too smug in his role and came over as annoying.
Overall, watchable but this could have been a lot better. 5/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Jan 26, 2022
Details
- Runtime30 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1