"Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond" Night of April 14th (1959)

Director:

John Newland

Writers:

Merwin Gerard (creator)
Larry Marcus (executive writer)

TV Series:

"Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond" (1959)

Original Air Date:

27 January 1959 (Season 1, Episode 2)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

A young Englishwoman is suddenly wracked by dreams of drowning in the ocean. She is stunned when her fiancée tells her that he has prepared a surprise honeymoon trip for them--they're sailing to New York on the passenger liner Titanic. |

Plot Keywords:

Supernatural | Ghost | Occult | Company Sponsor Name In Title | Telepathy

Cast

John Newland	...	Himself - Host
Barbara Lord	...	Grace Montgomery Farley
Isobel Elsom	...	Mrs. Montgomery
Patrick Macnee	...	Eric Farley
Gavin Gordon	...	Reverend Morgan
Marjorie Eaton	...	Miss Parsons
Jeanne Bates	...	Mrs. Teller
John Craven	...	Harry Teller
Gavin Muir	...	Passenger Describing His Dream
Francis De Sales	...	Dream-Describer's Friend
Alan Caillou	...	Steward
Gilchrist Stuart	...	Ship's Mate (as Gil Stuart)
John Hiestand	...	Drunk
Jack Lynn	...	Ship's Mate

Runtime:

30 min

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Joseph M. Schenck Enterprises

A Tragedy Foretold?

I liked this particular episode of ONE STEP BEYOND because it happened to be based (unlike some of the others that had historical deaths or disasters involved) on material I had actually been aware of - indeed that most students of the Titanic Disaster were fully aware of ever since the classic study by Walter Lord, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, came out in 1955.

Lord's Preface to his book told a story that is true. In 1898 a young writer named Morgan Robertson came up with an idea for a novel about the construction of the greatest ship in the world - a mighty luxury liner for the rich and powerful. It was supposed to be unsinkable. It was over 800 feet long, and could carry up to 3,000 passengers. It was launched and set sail for America in April, and on it's maiden voyage hit an iceberg and sank. The ship's named (due to it's size) was the "Titan". The novel is FUTILITY, OR THE WRECK OF THE TITAN. Robertson's book was not a major best seller - indeed it was forgotten until the sinking of the Titanic brought it back to everyone's attention.

This most famous coincidence of the Titanic Disaster was mentioned at the tail end of the half hour ONE STEP BEYOND episode, when John Newland showed the small novel in the library of the London home he was standing in. There have been attempts to explain Robertson's remarkable series of guesses, the best being done by science and math writer/popularizer Martin Gardiner, who wrote a book about the Titanic and the supernatural. Gardiner concluded that discussions in the newspapers and magazines of the possibility of such super-ship constructions in the 1890s probably influenced Robertson to write his book and to make some logical guesses about the size and passenger potential of these crafts, and of the hubris that would lead to disaster.

Others, as Gardiner pointed out, made similar predictions. One was the newspaper editor and crusader William T. Stead, who wrote a piece in 1893 about a dream he had where he was drowned in the sinking of a large ocean liner. Stead's story was possibly meant to stimulate necessary changes in the antiquated safety regulations of the British Board of Trade, but if so it did not have enough effect to be useful to the passengers (ironically including the unlucky Stead) in 1912.

The episode follows a young couple, Patrick Macnee and Barbara Lord, who are going on their honeymoon on the TITANIC (similar to the unfortunate couple in the play and movie CAVALCADE), and how Ms Lord has a premonition of drowning before she knows that they are booked on the cruise. Others on board have ill-feelings, and later we see people on the mainland do too (in one telling moment, an artist gets up in the middle of the night, and draws a picture of the shipwreck). In the end Lord is put into a lifeboat, but Macnee (we are informed) is lost.

The episode was (despite our prior knowledge of the historic fate of the ship and most of it's passengers and crew) quite exciting - and met the highest standards of this fine series. I don't know if people have e.s.p. or second sight or whatever that gives them an edge in guessing what is going to happen. But for thirty minutes (as always) I suspended my disbelief and accepted the events as true and as mysteriously odd as ever. It was always hard not to like this series, even if you are a skeptic.