The Innocent Bystanders (9 Apr. 1962)

Jacob Grant and John Paterson, a pair of Victorian-era bodysnatchers, turn to murder to supplement their income. First they take Grant's visiting sister-in-law, then set their sights on the unsuspecting boarders.

Director:

John English

Writer:

Robert Hardy Andrews

Stars:

Boris Karloff, John Anderson, George Kennedy

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Boris Karloff	...	Himself
John Anderson	...	Jacob Grant
George Kennedy	...	John Paterson
Janet Lake	...	Elsie Evans
Steven Terrell	...	Bruce Evans (as Steve Terrell)
Carl Benton Reid	...	Dr. Marcus Graham
Gale Robbins	...	Mary Jerold
Jean Engstrom	...	Anne Grant
Than Wyenn	...	Vane
Clegg Hoyt	...	Kyle
Clancy Cooper	...	Chief Constable
Anthony Jochim	...	The Beggar
Diki Lerner	...	Little Jamie (as Dikki Lerner)

Storyline

Jacob Grant and John Paterson, a pair of Victorian-era bodysnatchers, turn to murder to supplement their income. First they take Grant's visiting sister-in-law, then set their sights on the unsuspecting boarders.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 April 1962 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hubbell Robinson Productions, National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

Burke and Hare with John Anderson and George Kennedy

An extremely weak entry (no.65, possibly produced by Hubbell Robinson rather than regular producer Willam Frye), this is merely an ultra low budget take on the 19th century story of Burke and Hare, who murdered derelicts and prostitutes and sold their corpses to the medical academy of Doctor Knox (Boris Karloff himself mined this territory in 1945's superb "The Body Snatcher"). Carl Benton Reid plays the doctor (here named Marcus Graham), while the killers are called Jacob Grant (John Anderson) and John Paterson (George Kennedy). Anderson, perhaps best known as the "high pressured" car salesman in 1960's "Psycho," has the showy part, while Kennedy is a one-dimensional disappointment as the dimwitted accomplice. The young hero is played by Steve Terrell (1957's "Invasion of the Saucer Men"), Diki Lerner makes his second memorable appearance on THRILLER (the first was the dummy Hans in episode 41 "The Weird Tailor"), and there is an unbilled silent bit from Harry Wilson, former stand-in for Wallace Beery (and previously seen as a wax figure in "Waxworks"), perhaps best known to genre buffs as the title creature in 1958's "Frankenstein's Daughter." In 1964, THE ALFRED HITCHCOCK HOUR had equally mediocre results with their take on Burke and Hare, "The McGregor Affair."