Summer Shade (10 Jan. 1961)

The Kendalls move into their new home in a rural area of Massassuchetts and are concerned that their 9-year old daughter Kate wont make any friends until school starts in a few weeks. ... See full summary »

Director:

Herschel Daugherty

Writers:

Nora H. Caplan (story), Harold Swanton (teleplay)

Stars:

Alfred Hitchcock, Julie Adams, James Franciscus

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Alfred Hitchcock	...	Himself - Host
Julie Adams	...	Phyllis Kendall
James Franciscus	...	Ben Kendall
John Hoyt	...	Reverend
Charity Grace	...	Amelia Gastell
Stewart Nedd	...	The Doctor (as Stuart Nedd)
Veronica Cartwright	...	Judy Davidson
Susan Gordon	...	Kate Kendall

Storyline

The Kendalls move into their new home in a rural area of Massassuchetts and are concerned that their 9-year old daughter Kate wont make any friends until school starts in a few weeks. They're quite pleased when she tells them she's met Lettie another girls her age. They worry however when despite repeated attempts, they never seem to meet Lettie and think that Kate's playmate may be imaginary. The lady from whom they bought the house and who babysits from time to time finds a solution for them in the form of Judy, a 9 year old girl who also needs a playmate. A solution that pleases everyone, even if the girl' s parents don't quite realize what has happened.

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Plot Keywords:

imaginary friend | babysitter | salem massachusetts | ghost

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 January 1961 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Revue Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Shamley Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

User Reviews

Spooky

This one is a rare treat, in that we are presented with three very familiar and very good actors in the leads (Franciscus, Adams and Gordon), and the story is one of the few truly spooky plots used on the old half-hour Hitchcock show. A young family moves into an old house in Massachusetts, where the daughter 9, strikes up a friendship with an unseen playmate. The playmate, it turns out, has been dead and buried a long time and was the daughter. or some relative, of a woman who was hanged as a witch in the late 1600s. Adams as the wife begins to freak out over her daughter's behavior and is desperate to find her daughter a real, flesh and blood playmate. She eventually gets her wish, sort of. If this were done today, it would be a lot darker, in the vein of shows like GRIMM and SUPERNATURAL (in fact, there is a SUPERNATURAL episode set in an old inn with a reasonably similar plot). But I kind of like this more restrained telling. The truth is, dread is never far away, even on the sunniest of days. 1961's THE INNOCENTS, based on Henry James' novella, TURN OF THE SCREW, boasts its scariest scene in a brightly lit sunroom. A must-see.