Everyone else on this board has already commented on the virtually identical age of the two leading players here so I won't mention it (although I just did). But what put me even more off balance were Hitchcock's opening remarks, talking about how teenagers don't listen very well to their parents. So when the program began, I kept wondering why Sylvia Kent (Ann Todd) looked so old to be a teenager. But then it was revealed she'd already been in a broken marriage, thereby rendering moot whatever Hitchcock had to say about the upcoming story. As for the smug and arrogant Peter Kent (Phillip Reed), what did Sylvia ever see in that leech in the first place. The guy had some set shaking down his father in law (John McIntire) for twenty five grand; she should have given him the old heave-ho in the first place. By now in Hitchcock land, it didn't come as much of a surprise to me that Sylvia shot her Dad; she was unstable enough to do just about anything. After it was over, Hitchcock was back again to offer his ubiquitous words of wisdom, but added further ambiguity to the program by referencing a 'Mr. Milton', a character who wasn't in the episode. And if you managed to catch it in the context he stated it, he could have been referring to either John Leeds or Peter Kent; either choice would have made about as much sense.
13 Reviews
"I couldn't have anything that really belonged to me..."
classicsoncall11 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Blatantly miscasted episode
gregorycanfield10 April 2022
I am in complete agreement with all the other reviewers. Ann Todd was less than two years younger than John McIntire. While watching the episode, I wasn't sure of their actual ages. However, Ann Todd was very obviously too old for the role she was playing. And, yes, what about the English accent? Was she supposed to have been adopted? Not according to the flow of the story. McIntire was a good actor, but not believable in this role. Not at all. Even if the "age" and "accent" issues weren't there, neither of these actors were suited to their roles. The irony is that the story is good, but the miscasting of these actors was too obvious to ignore.
Bad, Bad Casting!
CherCee21 June 2022
Bizarre!
adh-0885110 September 2021
I like John McIntire and really wanted to like this, but it was very off-putting watching the daughter - a 50 year old woman - pouting and crying and saying "Daddy" to a man the same age as she was, an indulgent daddy who coddled her as though she were a fragile young teen.
I thought maybe she was brain-damaged, perhaps in an accident, but no such thing. It was all just too creepy and weird. Was it impossible to find an actress at least 20 years younger to play the daughter?
I thought maybe she was brain-damaged, perhaps in an accident, but no such thing. It was all just too creepy and weird. Was it impossible to find an actress at least 20 years younger to play the daughter?
An American dad with a British daughter? How odd.
planktonrules31 March 2021
Ann Todd was a fine actress. However, you wonder why anyone would consider casting her in this episode, as her father is played by John McIntire and he sounds very American and she clearly is English...very English. So, at times while I was supposed to be watching the plot, I found myself wondering WHY they cast the film the way they did! Despite the poor casting decision, the show is pretty good though certainly not among the best of the series' shows.
The show begins with the father planning on going on a trip without his adult daughter (Todd). However, he's apprehensive to go because she has a history of depression and suicidal ideation. So, to set his mind at ease, he visits his daughter's therapist to get his recommendation. And, in the process, you learn through flashbacks about the daughter and her marriage to a god-awful jerk of a man who has since divorced her. What's next? See the show.
The ending to this one is appropriately dark for the series and unlike many dark endings, Hitchcock himself doesn't provide some epilogue which says the person was caught for their evil deeds and punished...a MAJOR shortcoming for many shows.
The show begins with the father planning on going on a trip without his adult daughter (Todd). However, he's apprehensive to go because she has a history of depression and suicidal ideation. So, to set his mind at ease, he visits his daughter's therapist to get his recommendation. And, in the process, you learn through flashbacks about the daughter and her marriage to a god-awful jerk of a man who has since divorced her. What's next? See the show.
The ending to this one is appropriately dark for the series and unlike many dark endings, Hitchcock himself doesn't provide some epilogue which says the person was caught for their evil deeds and punished...a MAJOR shortcoming for many shows.
Ann Todd miscast as McIntire's daughter - they were both born in 1907
jsinaz26 September 2020
This is not a bad episode, but it to me is ruined by the horrendous miscasting of Ann Todd as John McIntire's daughter: they both were born in 1907! All the makeup in the world (and lots was used) and Todd's attempt at being "girlish" and speaking in a higher pitched voice cannot conceal that she is much too old for the role. Maybe it was a favor of Hitch to hire his compatriot (Todd is British).
Hate the ages are getting in the way
glitterrose22 June 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Okay, I do feel this episode is a bit of a copycat with a few slight changes. Take note of the episode that aired slightly before this one where Carol Lynley plays an out of control teenager that resents her aunt because the aunt 'wouldn't leave her alone'. Carol's character kills her aunt and Sylvia kills her father because he wouldn't leave her alone either. Both characters get a bad rap. The aunt in the other episode and the father in this episode are trying their best to look after her niece/ his daughter. No appreciation is shown towards either character. Perhaps viewers might feel the gloves should come off? You want to show out? Go right ahead. Run away from home, become a drunk, marry a man that wants to live off of you, etc. I do feel like both episodes leaned towards being realistic. I feel like there's so many parents or guardians that would still keep trying instead of washing their hands of the person rejecting the help.
Poor Sylvia's dad explained Sylvia wasn't independently wealthy and he gave her an allowance to live off of and he tried to cut that off when Sylvia got together with this guy that wanted to live off her money. But he saw that wasn't working and you can tell he didn't want her to suffer just because he wanted her man to stop living off her money.
Sylvia definitely had her issues and you can see that when she's basically flipping out on him and absolutely not appreciating anything her father gave her. She's taking her anger out on the wrong person. You want somebody to be in your corner. The father loves you, your man absolutely doesn't love you. She's in the wrong for wanting that leech back in her life instead of finding a man that actually loves her for herself. Even one of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour episodes touches base on this theme. Beyond the Sea of Death. Again, you have a lady taking her anger out on her aunt when she should be angry at all the con artist sharks swimming around her in that sea of death.
So let's get to the elephant in the room that has been pointed out in all the other reviews. Can I blame the reviewers for feeling the way they do? Nope. I thoroughly enjoyed the episode but even I get a jarred feeling seeing what's supposed to be a teenage girl with her middle aged father and instead you have an actor and actress that are literally the same age. You're either gonna be distracted by this and can't get into the episode or you're gonna be snarking through the whole episode. I literally don't know why they do stuff like this in these older shows. The actress playing Sylvia has a girlish voice. I wouldn't necessarily say she sounded like a teenager but I suppose if you were listening to this play on the radio, you might say the actress was in her 20s. You absolutely lose that magic at being able to see father and daughter together on the screen and seeing them looking the same age.
I don't want to knock anybody. There's very few people that can be much older and play a younger character. Phyllis Love shows up in an episode in this series and the storyline features her being in love with an older man. Phyllis' character is also supposed to be a teenager and she comes close to pulling it off and the amazing thing is that actress was in her 30s!! She didn't look it at all.
I feel sorta sorry for both main leads in this episode. If others are mocking the age issue in current times, just picture how this actor and actress felt. A job is a job but it's gotta make a person feel foolish at playing a teenager/father of a teenager when they're both the same age.
But again, I did enjoy the episode and that's what I choose to focus on.
Poor Sylvia's dad explained Sylvia wasn't independently wealthy and he gave her an allowance to live off of and he tried to cut that off when Sylvia got together with this guy that wanted to live off her money. But he saw that wasn't working and you can tell he didn't want her to suffer just because he wanted her man to stop living off her money.
Sylvia definitely had her issues and you can see that when she's basically flipping out on him and absolutely not appreciating anything her father gave her. She's taking her anger out on the wrong person. You want somebody to be in your corner. The father loves you, your man absolutely doesn't love you. She's in the wrong for wanting that leech back in her life instead of finding a man that actually loves her for herself. Even one of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour episodes touches base on this theme. Beyond the Sea of Death. Again, you have a lady taking her anger out on her aunt when she should be angry at all the con artist sharks swimming around her in that sea of death.
So let's get to the elephant in the room that has been pointed out in all the other reviews. Can I blame the reviewers for feeling the way they do? Nope. I thoroughly enjoyed the episode but even I get a jarred feeling seeing what's supposed to be a teenage girl with her middle aged father and instead you have an actor and actress that are literally the same age. You're either gonna be distracted by this and can't get into the episode or you're gonna be snarking through the whole episode. I literally don't know why they do stuff like this in these older shows. The actress playing Sylvia has a girlish voice. I wouldn't necessarily say she sounded like a teenager but I suppose if you were listening to this play on the radio, you might say the actress was in her 20s. You absolutely lose that magic at being able to see father and daughter together on the screen and seeing them looking the same age.
I don't want to knock anybody. There's very few people that can be much older and play a younger character. Phyllis Love shows up in an episode in this series and the storyline features her being in love with an older man. Phyllis' character is also supposed to be a teenager and she comes close to pulling it off and the amazing thing is that actress was in her 30s!! She didn't look it at all.
I feel sorta sorry for both main leads in this episode. If others are mocking the age issue in current times, just picture how this actor and actress felt. A job is a job but it's gotta make a person feel foolish at playing a teenager/father of a teenager when they're both the same age.
But again, I did enjoy the episode and that's what I choose to focus on.
One of the worst...
backofthevan1 August 2012
I agree wholeheartedly with the other review commenting on the weird casting. So weird, in fact, that it was impossible to get into this episode after the first few moments. I thought I was mishearing the dialogue when Ann Todd called John McIntire "Daddy". Or maybe it was a case of wife and husband calling each other Mummy and Daddy. Or something. But when it became clear that she was, indeed, playing the daughter of a man only two years her senior, it just got really creepy. Add to that her strong English accent and his American one, with no explanation in the story...
By this time were just aghast at how off-kilter everything was. It was impossible to buy into this story at all because of these discrepancies. Whoever cast this episode must have been drunk or bribed or who knows...
I really enjoy this series and have been catching up with them on YouTube. This one is just preposterous.
By this time were just aghast at how off-kilter everything was. It was impossible to buy into this story at all because of these discrepancies. Whoever cast this episode must have been drunk or bribed or who knows...
I really enjoy this series and have been catching up with them on YouTube. This one is just preposterous.
Odd, very odd
TheLittleSongbird15 November 2022
This low rating and negative review is not being given with pleasure. 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' did have some misfires in every one of its seven seasons, but it also had a lot of great and even outstanding episodes. A few of those being from Herschel Daugherty, his output for the series was inconsistent but he was responsible for two of the series' best episodes "The Creeper" and "The Last Dark Step". Also have liked enough of the work of Ann Todd and John McIntire.
"Sylvia" however is a real misfire. One of the worst 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes and one of the oddest, because of one big thing that has been mentioned already by others. Though that is not the only thing that was not well executed here. It is sad that Season 3, which was up and down but solid enough like the previous two seasons, went very quickly from one of its best episodes in "Together" to a strong contender for its worst and one of the few below mediocre ones.
It is not all bad. Hitchcock's bookending is suitably ironic and dry humoured as one expects from him. The production values are slick enough, with simple but not cheap photography and Todd's wardrobe is suitably elegant.
As expected too, the series' main theme (Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette"), an inspired choice of music suggested by Hitchcock favourite Bernard Hermann, is suitably devillish and among the best uses of pre existing classical music in television.
Unfortunately, so much works against "Sylvia". Absolutely agree with everybody that has heavily criticised the truly bizarre father and daughter relationship that also doesn't make sense, it's meant to be a father and daughter relationship but looks more like an estranged husband and wife one thanks to the non existent age difference (Todd and McIntire look the same age, the latter is about right but Todd is much too old). Performances wise, both have been a lot better with there being too much of a mismatch in acting styles. McIntire is bland and doesn't seem comfortable with his material, while Todd is too melodramatic and tries too hard to look and sound younger than she was. Their chemistry never ignites, too distant and lacking in tension.
Daugherty's direction is too go through the motions like, with none of the dark suspense shown in something like "The Creeper". The story is too thin, goes at a dull pace and lacks suspense and the very problematically done central relationship made it difficult to take seriously. The ending is also not much of one and this reviewer actually to be honest forgot what it was pretty much instantly, which is not a good sign. Season 3 had some ingenious endings but there were a fair share of whimpers and/or far fetched ones and "Sylvia" is one of the whimpers. The script has too much long winded talk and too much of it adds nothing to either the characters or the goings on. Didn't care for either of the two characters, it was clear that one was meant to care for McIntire's but he came over as sometimes too sympathetic to the point of naivety. Whereas Todd's was neurotic and veered on irritating.
Overall, a failure. 3/10.
"Sylvia" however is a real misfire. One of the worst 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes and one of the oddest, because of one big thing that has been mentioned already by others. Though that is not the only thing that was not well executed here. It is sad that Season 3, which was up and down but solid enough like the previous two seasons, went very quickly from one of its best episodes in "Together" to a strong contender for its worst and one of the few below mediocre ones.
It is not all bad. Hitchcock's bookending is suitably ironic and dry humoured as one expects from him. The production values are slick enough, with simple but not cheap photography and Todd's wardrobe is suitably elegant.
As expected too, the series' main theme (Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette"), an inspired choice of music suggested by Hitchcock favourite Bernard Hermann, is suitably devillish and among the best uses of pre existing classical music in television.
Unfortunately, so much works against "Sylvia". Absolutely agree with everybody that has heavily criticised the truly bizarre father and daughter relationship that also doesn't make sense, it's meant to be a father and daughter relationship but looks more like an estranged husband and wife one thanks to the non existent age difference (Todd and McIntire look the same age, the latter is about right but Todd is much too old). Performances wise, both have been a lot better with there being too much of a mismatch in acting styles. McIntire is bland and doesn't seem comfortable with his material, while Todd is too melodramatic and tries too hard to look and sound younger than she was. Their chemistry never ignites, too distant and lacking in tension.
Daugherty's direction is too go through the motions like, with none of the dark suspense shown in something like "The Creeper". The story is too thin, goes at a dull pace and lacks suspense and the very problematically done central relationship made it difficult to take seriously. The ending is also not much of one and this reviewer actually to be honest forgot what it was pretty much instantly, which is not a good sign. Season 3 had some ingenious endings but there were a fair share of whimpers and/or far fetched ones and "Sylvia" is one of the whimpers. The script has too much long winded talk and too much of it adds nothing to either the characters or the goings on. Didn't care for either of the two characters, it was clear that one was meant to care for McIntire's but he came over as sometimes too sympathetic to the point of naivety. Whereas Todd's was neurotic and veered on irritating.
Overall, a failure. 3/10.
Who is Sylvia?
cmontyburns9926 December 2012
Sylvia is too old to be playing the part of a young, beautiful heiress. This is one of the weakest episodes of the series. Other reviews have noted the age of the actors playing father and daughter are way off, barely two years apart in real life. Maybe in 1958 it did not seem as weird since women of today often do a better job of retaining their youth. Looking at "Sylvia" today though, her age is distracting as it is just hard to buy them as father and daughter.
The bigger problem with this episode though is that it moves slowly and really never does go anywhere. The story borrow elements from other Hitchcock and non-Hitchcock related tales (rich family, sad heiress, no good son-in-law etc.) but does not bring anything new to the equation. The ending is out of place. Perhaps a more interesting story is out there if one uses this ending as the beginning of another story. There are better episodes out there and I recommend taking a pass on this one.
The bigger problem with this episode though is that it moves slowly and really never does go anywhere. The story borrow elements from other Hitchcock and non-Hitchcock related tales (rich family, sad heiress, no good son-in-law etc.) but does not bring anything new to the equation. The ending is out of place. Perhaps a more interesting story is out there if one uses this ending as the beginning of another story. There are better episodes out there and I recommend taking a pass on this one.
What's up with the casting?!
jan-6034 February 2011
This episode was almost impossible to get into - the casting was so strange, it was completely distracting. Ann Todd - born 1-24-1909 - plays the daughter of John McIntire - born 6-27-1907. That's right - he had a child when he was only 19 months old!! That must be in the Guinness record book! As if that wasn't weird enough, she has a British accent, and he has an American one. That could have been explained by a family move to England from the States when she was a baby, but nothing like that was mentioned. The actor playing her ex-husband has only one facial expression - "grinning monkey". Who cast these people?? The plot isn't much to speak of either. Skip this one.
Just Didn't Buy It/Freudian Nonsense
Hitchcoc26 June 2013
You have to have at least a little empathy for someone to go on with a story. The two featured people are the guy who used to lead the Wagon Train and his daughter, who for some reason speaks with an affected English accent. She is catty and sullen and looks to be about forty with a little girl voice. Apparently, she has been in some kind of treatment after a divorce from an ugly, self-centered gigolo. The father is seemingly kind and concerned for her. Unfortunately, he has coddled her through all her tribulations (like not having enough money to do whatever she wants). He tries to control her and look after her, but she's so spoiled it doesn't work. She buys a gun, which is a bad sign. The father thinks she may be suicidal. The only thing we wonder about is who is going to get shot. In my opinion, the whole bunch could have booked passage on the Titanic (I would have rooted for the iceberg).
A bit odd indeed
moakin20054 July 2023
Do my eyes deceive me, or is the obvious lack of age disparity make it difficult to move passed the faux pas in order to focus on the plot and possibly enjoy the episode?? Bit odd watching "daughter" wrap her arms around "daddy's" neck and stare lovingly into his eyes. Did Hitchcock really believe his audience would fall for the horrible casting? Well maybe the "it was a different time" crowd may have swallowed this bilge, but not this sap. I like a good thriller as much as the next person, but damn it man! Creepy is timeless.
And in the few remaining characters required to post this comment, what is up with his bland American English, and her Queen's English?
And in the few remaining characters required to post this comment, what is up with his bland American English, and her Queen's English?
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