"Night of the Owl," an early Hitchcock hour, toplines Brian Keith as rugged forest ranger Jim Mallory, whose idyllic family is disrupted by the arrival of a mysterious stranger posing as a reverend (Philip Coolidge), who reveals that he and his partner are aware that the Mallorys adopted their eldest daughter, whose real father had ax murdered her mother before hanging himself in prison. The two blackmailers demand 6000 dollars in return for their silence, but things do not go as planned. Both Patricia Breslin ("Homicidal" and "I Saw What You Did"), as Mallory's wife, and blackmailer Philip Coolidge ("The Tingler") were veterans of William Castle fright films. Patricia Breslin soon gave up acting, and later married Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell, with whom she remained for 42 happy years.
14 Reviews
The Pay-Off
sol-kay23 June 2012
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS*** You just can't get any lower then this guy Locke, Philip Coolidge, who's not only threatening to reveal the truth about 14 year old Anne Mallory's, Caludia Carvey, real parents but masquerading around as a man of God, a reverend, in doing it! This filthy swine had found out through Anne's semi retarded and alcoholic cousin Parker, Mike Melin,that Anne's father axed his wife to death and then committed suicide in jail by hanging himself! Now smelling big bucks in his future Locke blackmails Anne's adopted parents Park Ranger Jim Mallory , Brian Keith, and his wife Linda, Patricia Breslin, for $6,000.00 in order to keep his mouth shut and not have Anne find out the truth. A truth that can end up destroying her young and productive, in being a straight A student in high school, life!
With Locke covering all the bases in getting the blackmail money and Jim, who's just itching to ring his neck, having no choice but to hand it over to him it's non other then Locke's drunken partner in crime Parker who screws the works up for him. Feeling that Locke is holding out on him Parker in a drunken rage attacks him and ends up strangling Locke to death before the pay-off by Jim Mallory is even made! You would now think that things got better for Jim but in fact they didn't! He's the number one suspect in Locke's death since he reported his blackmail attempt to the local police before Locke was murdered!
With the barley sober Parker now feeling he's in the driver's seat he in turn blackmail's Jim in giving him just $1,000.00 in blackmail money that's enough cash to keep him stone cold drunk, with cheap booze & beer, for at least the next six months. It's when Jim meets Parker who hiding like a monkey in a tree with the blackmail money unknowing to him Anne followed him in the wood and is confronted by the sneering Parker who tells her the truth about her real parents. To make a long story short this leads to a knock down and drag out fight between Jim & Parker with Parker left for dead in the forest and with a distraught Anne on the verge of having an emotional breakdown in finding out the truth about her real parents!
***SPOILERS*** With the world closing in on him Jim, now suspected by the police in both Locke and Parker's deaths, is happily surprised to hear from Anne in how much she loved him and his wife for adopting her in spite of what her father, a psycho ax murderer, did. And even more surprising is that Parker, Locke's murderer, not only survived being worked over by Jim but that a gold cigarette case was found on him belonging to his partner Locke implicating him in his murder!
With Locke covering all the bases in getting the blackmail money and Jim, who's just itching to ring his neck, having no choice but to hand it over to him it's non other then Locke's drunken partner in crime Parker who screws the works up for him. Feeling that Locke is holding out on him Parker in a drunken rage attacks him and ends up strangling Locke to death before the pay-off by Jim Mallory is even made! You would now think that things got better for Jim but in fact they didn't! He's the number one suspect in Locke's death since he reported his blackmail attempt to the local police before Locke was murdered!
With the barley sober Parker now feeling he's in the driver's seat he in turn blackmail's Jim in giving him just $1,000.00 in blackmail money that's enough cash to keep him stone cold drunk, with cheap booze & beer, for at least the next six months. It's when Jim meets Parker who hiding like a monkey in a tree with the blackmail money unknowing to him Anne followed him in the wood and is confronted by the sneering Parker who tells her the truth about her real parents. To make a long story short this leads to a knock down and drag out fight between Jim & Parker with Parker left for dead in the forest and with a distraught Anne on the verge of having an emotional breakdown in finding out the truth about her real parents!
***SPOILERS*** With the world closing in on him Jim, now suspected by the police in both Locke and Parker's deaths, is happily surprised to hear from Anne in how much she loved him and his wife for adopting her in spite of what her father, a psycho ax murderer, did. And even more surprising is that Parker, Locke's murderer, not only survived being worked over by Jim but that a gold cigarette case was found on him belonging to his partner Locke implicating him in his murder!
Night of the owl
coltras3515 May 2022
A discharged schoolteacher desperate for cash blackmails a happy family. He knows that their youngest daughter is adopted, & comes from a tragic background - her father killed her mother, then himself. The middle-aged couple love raising their daughters in the picturesque Appalachin mountains. The husband, a forest ranger, wants to shield the daughter from taunts and gossip. The smarmy blackmailer keeps coming back for more, so the husband mulls other options and their consequences. Then the blackmailer is found murdered deep in the pines; his accomplice killed him. And now the accomplice is going to continue the blackmailing.
This is a stark, well done episode with some nasty villains, one played by Phil Coolidge and the other played by Mike Kellin. They are not pantomime moustache twirling villains but really mean and callous characters, and that adds to the tension as does the location and atmosphere. The acting was a great - Brian Keith is excellent, depicting the desperation his character feels very well.
This is a stark, well done episode with some nasty villains, one played by Phil Coolidge and the other played by Mike Kellin. They are not pantomime moustache twirling villains but really mean and callous characters, and that adds to the tension as does the location and atmosphere. The acting was a great - Brian Keith is excellent, depicting the desperation his character feels very well.
A Brian Keith Showcase
dougdoepke30 May 2015
At this stage of his career, Brian Keith was one of the most interesting actors around. His squinty low-key manner could express volumes. He seemed made for Westerns, as Sam Peckinpah's authentic but short-lived series The Westerner (1960) amply demonstrates. Here he even dons a cowboy hat at intervals.
In this third series episode, he's a head forest ranger, Mallory, who's being blackmailed by two slimy no-accounts (Kellin & Coolidge). Seems his adopted daughter Anne's (Cravey) real father murdered the girl's mother, then killed himself. Now, Mallory will do almost anything to keep Anne from finding out the truth about her genetic parents. But what's he to do since the blackmailers have covered about every angle. Ranger Mallory amounts to an agonized role that Keith superbly finesses.
There's good suspense as we follow the various maneuverings, though the throttling episode in the forest appears too abrupt to be convincing. Perhaps most notable about this early entry is an ending that departs from the series's defining norm. The wind-up may be facile but still comes across as emotionally fitting.
All in all, the entry is made better by a fine central performance from the underrated Brian Keith.
In this third series episode, he's a head forest ranger, Mallory, who's being blackmailed by two slimy no-accounts (Kellin & Coolidge). Seems his adopted daughter Anne's (Cravey) real father murdered the girl's mother, then killed himself. Now, Mallory will do almost anything to keep Anne from finding out the truth about her genetic parents. But what's he to do since the blackmailers have covered about every angle. Ranger Mallory amounts to an agonized role that Keith superbly finesses.
There's good suspense as we follow the various maneuverings, though the throttling episode in the forest appears too abrupt to be convincing. Perhaps most notable about this early entry is an ending that departs from the series's defining norm. The wind-up may be facile but still comes across as emotionally fitting.
All in all, the entry is made better by a fine central performance from the underrated Brian Keith.
"I never felt special till now, Daddy"
Goingbegging21 June 2021
'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' was such a success, they tried doubling the length - and that was a success too. They didn't double the depth, but they didn't need to. Nobody was expecting an Oscar-winning Hitchcock classic. Just an hour well spent, along with the familiar line-sketch of that unmistakeable profile and a few jokey words of wisdom from the great man himself.
This episode is particularly strong on emotion, but weaker on logic. Brian Keith was always more versatile than he looked - outwardly just the big square-built guy with the friendly smile, but in fact capable of great subtlety, both in facial expression and in speech, often displaying special tenderness in paternal roles, as played here.
His adopted daughter is at a critical stage in her school-work, and Keith is at pains to shelter her from the truth about her real father, who has killed her mother and then himself. A blackmailing duo has somehow learned of this, guessing correctly that it's his tender spot, and wants rather a large payout (for a humble forest ranger) delivered at once. We can't reveal the rest, and most of it is not very surprising anyway. What stands out is the emotional charge between the characters, and the audience too.
One of the villains (Philip Coolidge) has gained entry to the house by wearing a clerical dog-collar, and it's not only Keith who wants to slaughter him; we all do. No face ever provoked such contempt and loathing, except possibly his partner in crime, an infuriating drunk (Mike Kellin) who unsurprisingly falls out with him. All three human types are sharply dramatised, perhaps because the original story was by that undeservedly neglected novelist Andrew Garve.
The daughter looks rather adult for the part, though she was only fourteen at the time. The night-action in the forest is a little too obscure to make out. And the title 'Night of the Owl' seems rather unoriginal, as do the audio-effects of an owl hooting to order, and not even very realistically. Or do the owls hoot differently in California?
This episode is particularly strong on emotion, but weaker on logic. Brian Keith was always more versatile than he looked - outwardly just the big square-built guy with the friendly smile, but in fact capable of great subtlety, both in facial expression and in speech, often displaying special tenderness in paternal roles, as played here.
His adopted daughter is at a critical stage in her school-work, and Keith is at pains to shelter her from the truth about her real father, who has killed her mother and then himself. A blackmailing duo has somehow learned of this, guessing correctly that it's his tender spot, and wants rather a large payout (for a humble forest ranger) delivered at once. We can't reveal the rest, and most of it is not very surprising anyway. What stands out is the emotional charge between the characters, and the audience too.
One of the villains (Philip Coolidge) has gained entry to the house by wearing a clerical dog-collar, and it's not only Keith who wants to slaughter him; we all do. No face ever provoked such contempt and loathing, except possibly his partner in crime, an infuriating drunk (Mike Kellin) who unsurprisingly falls out with him. All three human types are sharply dramatised, perhaps because the original story was by that undeservedly neglected novelist Andrew Garve.
The daughter looks rather adult for the part, though she was only fourteen at the time. The night-action in the forest is a little too obscure to make out. And the title 'Night of the Owl' seems rather unoriginal, as do the audio-effects of an owl hooting to order, and not even very realistically. Or do the owls hoot differently in California?
The interminable and talented Brian Keith
lbkrahn22 October 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Possibly my favorite episode of all of the Alfred Hitchcock Hour episodes, not because there were not flaws in the writing but because Brian Keith makes acting look so effortless. When you watch this episode, very carefully look at Brian Keith's facial expressions! Few actors have such expressive faces and in this role, I actually believed the nightmare Jim Mallory was experiencing was real! In my opinion, Brian Keith's acting ability was often underrated. Always the tough guy, Brian nevertheless could exude heart and soul in any role, whether dramatic or comedic, unlike many other actors of his era.
Philip Coolidge as "Locke" was also chilling. He was so suave at his extortion/blackmail, it seemed like perfect casting. His character was the very epitome of treachery.
My only complaint is some of Linda Mallory's lines. She is rather jealous of Anne and this makes her a bit of a wicked stepmother. However, the ending to this episode makes up for this weak writing. This is a keeper and certainly one of the best in this series!
Philip Coolidge as "Locke" was also chilling. He was so suave at his extortion/blackmail, it seemed like perfect casting. His character was the very epitome of treachery.
My only complaint is some of Linda Mallory's lines. She is rather jealous of Anne and this makes her a bit of a wicked stepmother. However, the ending to this episode makes up for this weak writing. This is a keeper and certainly one of the best in this series!
"I never felt special, until now, Daddy."
classicsoncall4 August 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Overall a fine episode but the little things irritated me. Daughter Anne Mallory's (Claudia Cravey) constant pleas of 'Daddy, Daddy' would have been more appropriate for her younger sister who was introduced early in the story and then dropped altogether. I thought the police strategy would have ultimately worked to capture the blackmailers, especially after revealing how incompetent they both were. In the forest scene when Ranger Jim Mallory (Brian Keith) confronted Odie Parker (Mike Kellin) in the tree, the advantage should have been all for Parker who held the high ground and had the tree for partial cover. Ultimately it all worked out for the Mallory family, with Jim avoiding a potential double homicide arrest, and Anne managing to retain her composure when faced with the truth about her biological parents. It seems all this could have been avoided if the Mallory's had leveled with their adopted daughter earlier, but then, there would have been no story.
KEEP THE NIGHT LIGHT ON, WILL YA???
tcchelsey20 April 2023
Brian Keith and Pat Breslin play the parents of an adopted teenage girl who are being blackmailed. Either pay up or the crooks will reveal that her real father killed her mother and he died in prison. What a Hitchcock mess.
There are some dynamic character portrayals and a real creepy feel, as Keith ( a forest ranger) plays hard ball with some sinister folk in a remote area. Don't miss the lone hooting owl.... And you know that Hitch had to do something with that. Well directed by Alan Crosland, Jr, who took after his famous dad.
Mike Kellen, a terrific dramatic actor who could also pull off comedy, plays one of the blackmailers, slowly going insane. Veteran character actor Philip Coolidge plays his partner, a favorite of Hitchcock for years. Coolidge was a distant cousin of President Coolidge, and there is a family resemblence. He was an excellent actor, and should have gotten bigger parts, as many critics have said through the years. He did have an oustanding role, though, in the cult film THE TINGLER (1959), opposite Vincent Price. Do not miss it.
Brian Keith, as usual, is his rugged self and you really feel sorry for him. This is an extremely well acted and written mystery, one of the early entries in the one hour format which also used more of the sprawling Universal backlot. This was also filmed at the time when the studio was building its famous theme park. SEASON 5 EPISODE 3.
Remastered dvd box set.
There are some dynamic character portrayals and a real creepy feel, as Keith ( a forest ranger) plays hard ball with some sinister folk in a remote area. Don't miss the lone hooting owl.... And you know that Hitch had to do something with that. Well directed by Alan Crosland, Jr, who took after his famous dad.
Mike Kellen, a terrific dramatic actor who could also pull off comedy, plays one of the blackmailers, slowly going insane. Veteran character actor Philip Coolidge plays his partner, a favorite of Hitchcock for years. Coolidge was a distant cousin of President Coolidge, and there is a family resemblence. He was an excellent actor, and should have gotten bigger parts, as many critics have said through the years. He did have an oustanding role, though, in the cult film THE TINGLER (1959), opposite Vincent Price. Do not miss it.
Brian Keith, as usual, is his rugged self and you really feel sorry for him. This is an extremely well acted and written mystery, one of the early entries in the one hour format which also used more of the sprawling Universal backlot. This was also filmed at the time when the studio was building its famous theme park. SEASON 5 EPISODE 3.
Remastered dvd box set.
Did kids really talk like Annie?
RetFireFEMTech12 January 2022
All for the Best
Hitchcoc4 May 2023
When a slime ball posing as a minister shows up at the home of a park ranger, he knows about family secrets concerning an adopted daughter and proposes blackmail. He has a fellow henchman who is a real dandy, a psychotic, who wants all of the action. Anyway, the character played by Brian Keith has to figure out how to get six thousand dollars to pay the evil men. There are trust issues among everyone, but ultimately we are show that it is better to avoid secrets. The young woman playing the daughter in question does a really nice job as an actress. The one scene that just seems stupid is the final confrontation between the father and the blackmailer's partner.
Several Points
CherCee20 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I have *never* underestimated Brian Keith's acting talents! He has always been one of my favorite actors!
Several of the commenters have mentioned the small amount of the extortion/blackmail and how Brian Keith played a low-paid forest ranger. That is true, but don't you think that the extortionists/blackmailers would keep coming back for more? They know that they wouldn't get a lot at a time (but back then, $6,000 was a good chunk of change); however, it would have been an ongoing racket and added up for the bad guys. These guys were not big-time nor big-brained criminals!
Also, the information about the girl's parentage would have been a lot bigger deal back then, but even now the girl's psyche would be affected by this, it would have affected her schooling and grades and the stigma would have stuck on her and affected her friendships (kids can be very cruel). Brian Keith was a good father very understandably wanting to protect his daughter from the trauma of knowing and the rest of the town from finding out and from paying the price of her father's actions.
Jim and Linda were Anne's adoptive parents, *not* stepparents. And, I believe a commenter meant that nobody expected that this episode would be an Emmy-winning (not Oscar-winning) Hitchcock classic, as this was TV and not a movie.
Several of the commenters have mentioned the small amount of the extortion/blackmail and how Brian Keith played a low-paid forest ranger. That is true, but don't you think that the extortionists/blackmailers would keep coming back for more? They know that they wouldn't get a lot at a time (but back then, $6,000 was a good chunk of change); however, it would have been an ongoing racket and added up for the bad guys. These guys were not big-time nor big-brained criminals!
Also, the information about the girl's parentage would have been a lot bigger deal back then, but even now the girl's psyche would be affected by this, it would have affected her schooling and grades and the stigma would have stuck on her and affected her friendships (kids can be very cruel). Brian Keith was a good father very understandably wanting to protect his daughter from the trauma of knowing and the rest of the town from finding out and from paying the price of her father's actions.
Jim and Linda were Anne's adoptive parents, *not* stepparents. And, I believe a commenter meant that nobody expected that this episode would be an Emmy-winning (not Oscar-winning) Hitchcock classic, as this was TV and not a movie.
Night of the Owl
gorimlongbeard27 July 2020
Warning: Spoilers
While the two bad boys (as the brain and the muscle) as well as the father act very well in their roles, this episode suffers from various problems:
5/10
- There isn't a case in the first place. After the blackmail attempt daddy just needs to tell his daughter that she was adopted and under which circumstances ("Honey, we need to talk"). THE END.
- All scenes between the parents and the kids, but especially the scence between the mother and their two daughters are a pure cringefest.
- Even with the blackmail going along the climax in the woods could have been handled so much better. If the daughter just went home as told to do and daddy shoots the remaining bad guy off the tree (could easily plead selfdefence / defence of property as the attacker was armed) all problems would have been solved and the daughter would have never known.
5/10
Solid episode with a few oddities
grahamsigismund30 March 2024
Warning: Spoilers
The daughter, Anne, seems far too old for her age. She is playing a 13 year old girl and her IMDB page lists her as being 14 when this aired, but I would've guessed she was 18 or 19. The character also doesn't act like a normal 13 year old - more like an 8 year old. So you've got a girl who looks like she's in college acting like she's 8. This is a bit cringe.
Also, plot-wise, the father should have just told the daughter about her biological parents from the beginning, as his wife suggested, which would have solved everything.
The blackmailer's sense of urgency is also odd, since he essentially just has one card to play: he has to threaten to tell the daughter if he doesn't get his money, but if he does tell the daughter then he can't get any money. So, I don't think he ever would have told the daughter, since that would just ensure that he wouldn't receive anything. So he's basically bluffing the whole time. Also, how would he go about it? Just show up randomly at her school, go up and tell her? That definitely wouldn't go over well, and he'd likely get arrested.
Other than these peculiarities, this a a very good episode with fine acting and a plot that keeps up the suspense until the end.
Also, plot-wise, the father should have just told the daughter about her biological parents from the beginning, as his wife suggested, which would have solved everything.
The blackmailer's sense of urgency is also odd, since he essentially just has one card to play: he has to threaten to tell the daughter if he doesn't get his money, but if he does tell the daughter then he can't get any money. So, I don't think he ever would have told the daughter, since that would just ensure that he wouldn't receive anything. So he's basically bluffing the whole time. Also, how would he go about it? Just show up randomly at her school, go up and tell her? That definitely wouldn't go over well, and he'd likely get arrested.
Other than these peculiarities, this a a very good episode with fine acting and a plot that keeps up the suspense until the end.
A decent story idea...but the execution is far from perfect.
planktonrules26 April 2021
When the story begins, a conman dressed up as a preacher comes to visit Jim (Brian Keith). He informs Jim that he knows all about Jim's adopted daughter...and how her biological father killed her mother and then himself! Obviously Jim doesn't want the kid to know this...and the creep demands $6000 or he'll tell everyone. And, if Jim considers calling the cops, the conman says he has a partner who will then follow out his orders and tell.
There are a few odd things about the story. First, Jim's just a Forest Ranger...and it's not like he's rich. So, blackmailing him won't be easy or that rewarding. Second, at the end of the story, one blackmailer had killed his partner...and Jim was able to beat this crook on the draw when he tried to pull his gun on Jim. So here is where it gets sloppy. Jim has his gun trained on the punk and could easily shoot him. However, the daughter shows up and there's a lot of arguing...and Jim turns his back to the killer/blackmailer...giving him a chance to get him! This is sloppy....just plain sloppy.
As for the rest of the story, it's not bad...and Keith is very good. But I just expected less loose ends and a plot that would be easier to believe than this one.
There are a few odd things about the story. First, Jim's just a Forest Ranger...and it's not like he's rich. So, blackmailing him won't be easy or that rewarding. Second, at the end of the story, one blackmailer had killed his partner...and Jim was able to beat this crook on the draw when he tried to pull his gun on Jim. So here is where it gets sloppy. Jim has his gun trained on the punk and could easily shoot him. However, the daughter shows up and there's a lot of arguing...and Jim turns his back to the killer/blackmailer...giving him a chance to get him! This is sloppy....just plain sloppy.
As for the rest of the story, it's not bad...and Keith is very good. But I just expected less loose ends and a plot that would be easier to believe than this one.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
