Alfred Hitchcock Presents (TV Series) Pen Pal (1960) User Reviews

I quite liked this one...

[professionalfool · 8/10 · 31 March 2015]

super major spoilers

i've just been going thru a marathon of this show. so the 8 rating is in relation to other episodes.

the 'twist' is not tough to figure out when you've watched a bunch of these shows in a row.

the old lady's performance is pretty good. but the investigator and the convict do excellent jobs... enjoyed the acting in this one a lot even tho' the twist was apparent.

the ending, tho', is what makes me rate it high. i was expecting her to announce 'yes i wrote the letters' to everyone, but instead she and her 'lover' have gone back to their relationship without he even knowing the truth and her having turned her lover in so she go back to her lonely life because she couldn't admit the truth.

kinda sad ending.

plus engaging acting.

i liked it.

"You know how rotten lonely you can get in prison?"

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 7 January 2022]

There's a key moment in the story when the twist ending is revealed, and that's when MIss Lowen (Katherine Squire) sits down at her bedroom mirror and primps her face in an effort to look younger. Who would she be trying to impress if not the escaped convict she had been writing to in prison for the past couple of years? Though Rod Collins (Clu Gulager) seemed threatening enough, his actions didn't rise to the level of hurting the elderly woman. Underlying the story is the theme of loneliness experienced by both the man while in jail, and Miss Lowen, who comments on her solitary life with some dismay. This might have been a more interesting episode if Miss Lowen's niece Margie actually was home when Collins broke into their home. Interesting to speculate how that would have turned out.

P. S. You have to take note of Hitchcock's opening monologue for this episode. It has nothing to do with the story, but it's a humorous take on the opposing sides of a baseball game - nine unarmed guys against anywhere from one to four men with clubs! His description is hilarious!

The Trouble With Quibbles.

[mickcsavage · 7/10 · 15 May 2023]

By which I mean the objections raised by other reviewers. They may or may not be valid (and Clu. Gulager, an actor I didn't know, certainly overacts pretty drastically), but when I realised that Stanley Adams - playing the cop - was Cyrano Jones, of Star Trek Tribble fame, who shot himself to death because of 'back pain' (as I discovered from Wikipedia) in 1977, I couldn't watch it dispassionately. Poor sod.

PS. The twist at the end was about as subtle as Clu's acting...enjoyed Hitch and his take on baseball by the way! Even though I'm English too, I'm very fond of the game. Fond memories of cold days at Candlestick Park!

Another excellent episode

[glitterrose · 10/10 · 4 July 2022]

Our story centers on a middle aged lady named Miss Lowen and an escaped prisoner named Rod. Miss Lowen gets a visit from a detective with the warning that a prisoner has escaped and the feeling is this prisoner might be headed to this house because the prisoner had been writing to Miss Lowen's niece. Miss Lowen answers that her niece isn't at home, she's spending time with college friends.

Rod does show up and he's played by the amazing Clu Gulager. He's ranting and raving to Miss Lowen about how life in prison has been for him. He was in there dying but writing to Miss Lowen's niece brought him back to life. He wants to take Miss Lowen's niece and run away with her in order to start a new life. Miss Lowen is the voice of reason as she points out what kinda life is that, always having one eye on the door in case the law's there. Rod insults Miss Lowen. Miss Lowen manages to get on the phone and call the detective so she can alert him that Rod's at the house. Rod's picked up and taken back to jail.

I can't really call this a twist ending because of a scene that occurs earlier in the episode. Although I'll be fair and say it might be a surprise if you're watching this episode on MeTv because I want to say the scene of Miss Lowen looking at her wrinkles gets edited out on that channel. Watching online or on Antenna TV left the scene intact. Anyway, Miss Lowen sits down and writes a letter to Rod. Yes, she's been the one writing him and not Miss Lowen's niece. Although I kinda even question if there was a niece at all. That picture might be of some random girl instead of her niece. Miss Lowen writes she's glad Rod's back in jail but they at least still have their letters to enjoy. Miss Lowen breaks down and cries over Rod as the episode ends.

One can't help but sympathize for Miss. Lowen. She's rather lonely and craves to be loved. But a romance with Rod will never go beyond the letters they write to each other. I realize people might attack Miss Lowen and feel she must be in even worse shape if she's writing to somebody in jail instead of trying to find somebody in her area to build a relationship with. I won't go in that direction because the story doesn't show that backstory. She might've tried to find love and was rejected by everybody but Rod.

Anyway, this is another one of my favorite episodes and I'd highly recommend.

Great story, pulled me in

[ChrisScreenwriter · 10/10 · 19 November 2021]

The two main actors were terrific together in this short story. It was fun to see a young and very handsome Clu Gulager. Didn't guess where the story was going either. Good show!

Not Up to Series Norm

[dougdoepke · 24 June 2010]

Aging Miss Lowen (Squire) has an attractive adopted daughter who's made a romantic "pen pal" out of a guy who turns out to be a convict (Gulager) at a near-by prison. Trouble is he has escaped and the daughter has gone visiting, so the vulnerable Miss Lowen is now alone with an amorous convict on the loose.

Though there is some suspense, much is removed by the fact that we know Rod, the convict, doesn't want to hurt the older lady. So we're left wondering how the predicament will resolve itself. Then too, the action of the cops to leave Lowen alone in the house seems highly illogical. It's actually pretty slender fare, not up to usual Hitchcock norm, with an expected twist you may see coming. It's also among the most cheaply produced—a single parlor room set and three actors. Gulager does a good job impersonating a desperate con, but otherwise it's a highly forgettable episode.

Absolute worst ep of the Hitchcock Presents series!!!!!!!!

[bnelso-23793 · 1/10 · 15 September 2018]

Spoilers Story about a lady visited by an escaped convict with whom she was actually writing to in prison. This set is cheap as another poster pointed out. But that's the least of its problems. This predictable ep has forgettable, miscast performances from start to finish. Stanley Addams (Cyrano Jones in the Star Trek TOS 'Trouble with Tribbles' ep) has quick thankless role as a warning cop. He is the only whatsoever noteworthy actor in this and he flops miserably too. Bad direction hinders it as well. Possible this ep was shot in one day. Avoid!

It's not good when you predict exactly what is going to happen two minutes into an episode.

[planktonrules · 4/10 · 14 April 2021]

The story begins with a police detective arriving at Miss Lowen's home. It seems that a convicted killer escaped from prison and may be coming to see Lowen's niece, who apparently lives with her. Because the convict has no family nor friends, the police think he might come to see the niece because the pair have been corresponding with each other for some time...and they apparently are in love. Eventually, the man does show up...and Lowen has to deal with his learning the niece isn't there.

"Pen Pal" is a story from "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" that could have worked very well but doesn't. This is because the way the show was constructed, it's very easy to predict exactly where the plot is going to go...much more than usual. Had they somehow re-written it, it might have worked well. As it is, it is a disappointment and predictable.

Quite the Pedestrian Episode

[Hitchcoc · 5/10 · 27 May 2021]

While the acting is quite good here, this plot has been done countless times. An escaped prisoner who has been corresponding with a young woman, comes to her house, but she is not home; rather the aunt with whom she lives. While the police come, the guy hides out, threatening the old lady. I won't say any more.