Murder in Wonderland (30 Dec. 1960)

An accountant working for a notorious racketeer is murdered while talking to Mike Shayne on the phone. Police believe that the man was carrying a list of all of the racketeers business ... See full summary »

Director:

Paul Stewart

Writers:

William Link (teleplay), Richard Levinson (teleplay),

Stars:

Richard Denning, Jerry Paris, Patricia Donahue

Cast

Episode complete credited cast:
Richard Denning	...	Michael Shayne
Jerry Paris	...	Tim Rourke
Patricia Donahue	...	Lucy Hamilton
Herbert Rudley	...	Police Lt. Gentry
Gary Clarke	...	Dick Hamilton
Anthony Caruso	...	Joel Moss
Carolyn Kearney	...	Audrey Allerton
Wesley Lau	...	Jerry Latimer
Al Ruscio	...	Rice
Betsy Hale	...	Mary Anne
Baruch Lumet	...	Tobacco Shop Mgr.
Herbert Lytton	...	Henry Allerton (as Herbert C. Lytton)
Jane Burgess	...	Blonde
Marianna Hill	...	Waitress
Frank Maxwell	...	Lt. Wallace

Storyline

An accountant working for a notorious racketeer is murdered while talking to Mike Shayne on the phone. Police believe that the man was carrying a list of all of the racketeers business contacts, but the only thing the man had in his locked briefcase was a copy of "Alice in Wonderland". Although Captain Gentry finds no evidence that the list was hidden between the books pages, a thug kidnaps Shayne's secretary and orders Mike to steal the novel from the police or else the pretty blonde will be killed.

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Plot Keywords:

kidnapping | bound and gagged | murder | tied to chair | tobacco shop | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 December 1960 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Four Star Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Joel Moss: Tell me, Shayne, why did he call you tonight?
Michael Shayne: He didn't say. He had a bullet in him.
Joel Moss: He was carrying a briefcase with him. What was in it?
Michael Shayne: Sorry to disappoint you, Mr. Moss, but I don't know. Why don't you ask Will Gentry?
Joel Moss: [puts at a burly thung] Shayne, do you want him to do the questioning?
Michael Shayne: He'll get the same answers... when he wakes up.

User Reviews

Gangsters kidnap Lucy

After calling Shayne, a man is shot to death in a phone booth in a tobacco store. Shayne rushes to the store and finds Gentry and other cops there. It seems that the dead man was an accountant for the biggest criminal gang in the state and had a list of names of all the gang associates. But upon opening the accountant's briefcase, all they find is a copy of the book "Alice In Wonderland." Even after the book is examined in the police lab, no coded list of names can be found in the book. Then thugs kidnap Lucy, Shayne's secretary, and tell Shayne that she will be killed unless he steals the book out of Gentry's office and delivers it to him. Using a simple stratagem, Shayne does steal the book which Gentry pretty quickly discovers and puts out an APB on Shayne. While the story moves along at a good pace, the resolution to where the list is hidden is neither plausible nor entirely satisfying. It's amazing that Gentry remains good friends with Shayne given how often Shayne messes about with evidence. The director of this episode was Paul Stewart, better known as an outstanding character actor, mostly in film noir and crime movies.