Hit and Run (13 Feb. 1956)

Dan Mathews must cope with a family's effort to protect an emotionally fragile young woman who fled after striking a pedestrian with her car.

Director:

Eddie Davis

Writer:

Arthur Weiss (screenplay)

Stars:

Broderick Crawford, Eleanore Tanin, Troy Melton

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Broderick Crawford	...	Chief Dan Mathews
Eleanore Tanin	...	Helen Barton
Troy Melton	...	Joe Barton
Margaret Irving	...	Irene Tewell
Bobby Watson	...	Ted Tewell (as Robert Watson)
Harry Hines	...	Mr. Dilling
Morgan Jones	...	Sergeant Corey
Jay Douglas	...	Officer Dorsey
Monty Ash	...	Al (Lab Technician)
Art Gilmore	...	Narrator (voice)

Storyline

Driving immediately after a fight in which her husband Joe hints at divorce, Helen Barton becomes distracted and strikes a pedestrian. She panics and flees to her parents' home, and her strong-willed mother Irene decides to try to protect the emotionally fragile Helen by confessing to the crime herself. Physical evidence found at the accident scene proves that Irene could not be the culprit, so Dan Mathews begins interrogating all of the family members. Helen's father Ted realizes that the charade is hopeless and tells Dan all he knows. He then advises Helen as to the reality of the situation, but her grip on reality remains tenuous. Hoping to somehow belatedly help the victim, Helen returns to the scene, where a witness to the crime refers to her actions as "murder". Although the victim has not actually died, this encounter so upsets the disturbed young woman that she becomes suicidal and threatens to jump off a nearby bridge. Dan finds that he must use guile, warmth, and psychology ...

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 February 1956 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

ZIV Television Programs

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Chief Dan Mathews: All because she wouldn't stop!

User Reviews

An excellent story of panic and remorse

A young woman is emotionally distraught over the thought that her husband may be leaving her and accidentally hits a pedestrian while driving, and thinking she has killed him drives off in a panic. She goes to her parents' home where her father encourages her to call the police but her mother says not to and that she will takes care of it. The mother goes to Highway Patrol Chief Mathews and confesses - a confession that is easily proved to be false. Meanwhile the daughter is becoming increasingly remorseful over what she has done. Everything seems so hopeless that she decides to kill herself. Fortunately, the father has told Mathews the whole story and he is able to find her in time. One of the nice things about this series is that occasionally there's a story about ordinary and good people who get themselves in a terrible mess. The woman's growing anguish over what she has done was so realistically portrayed that it engenders great sympathy for her (and for the father but not the mother). It's one of those stories that any of us can relate to.