Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
One Step Beyond
S3.E31
All episodes
All
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

The Sorcerer

  • Episode aired May 23, 1961
  • 30m
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
77
YOUR RATING
  • Drama
  • Fantasy
  • Horror
In World War One German officer Reitliger enlists the help of Karnak, a man with supposed psychic powers, to find out how his girlfriend Elsa is faring back in Germany. Seeing a vision of he... Read allIn World War One German officer Reitliger enlists the help of Karnak, a man with supposed psychic powers, to find out how his girlfriend Elsa is faring back in Germany. Seeing a vision of her infidelity he gets Karnak to will him back home where he kills Elsa but no one will beli... Read allIn World War One German officer Reitliger enlists the help of Karnak, a man with supposed psychic powers, to find out how his girlfriend Elsa is faring back in Germany. Seeing a vision of her infidelity he gets Karnak to will him back home where he kills Elsa but no one will believe him as the murder was down to an out of body experience and nobody can be in two place... Read all
IMDb RATING
7.2/10
77
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • John Newland
  • Writers
    • Martin Benson(story supervisor)
    • Merwin Gerard
    • Lawrence B. Marcus(executive writer)
  • Stars
    • Christopher Lee
    • Martin Benson
    • Alfred Burke
Top credits
  • Director
    • John Newland
  • Writers
    • Martin Benson(story supervisor)
    • Merwin Gerard
    • Lawrence B. Marcus(executive writer)
  • Stars
    • Christopher Lee
    • Martin Benson
    • Alfred Burke
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 2User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos

    Add photo

    Top cast

    Edit
    Christopher Lee
    Christopher Lee
    • Wilhelm Reitlingeras Wilhelm Reitlinger
    Martin Benson
    Martin Benson
    • Klaus Karnakas Klaus Karnak
    Alfred Burke
    • Schollas Scholl
    Frederick Jaeger
    Frederick Jaeger
    • Johannas Johann
    Gabriella Licudi
    Gabriella Licudi
    • Elsa Bruckas Elsa Bruck
    • (as Gabrielli Licudi)
    Peter Swanwick
    Peter Swanwick
    • Landlordas Landlord
    Joseph Fürst
    Joseph Fürst
    • Judgeas Judge
    • (as Joseph Furst)
    Edwin Richfield
    Edwin Richfield
    • Reitlinger's Subordinateas Reitlinger's Subordinate
    George Pravda
    George Pravda
    • Psychiatristas Psychiatrist
    Richard Shaw
    • German Soldieras German Soldier
    John Newland
    John Newland
    • Self - Hostas Self - Host
    • Director
      • John Newland
    • Writers
      • Martin Benson(story supervisor)
      • Merwin Gerard
      • Lawrence B. Marcus(executive writer)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      This was the first appearance of Christopher Lee (Wilhelm Reitlinger) on American television.
    • Quotes

      Wilhelm Reitlinger: [counting the cartridges from his Luger] Eight... there should be nine. There should be nine! There should be nine!

    User reviews2

    Review
    Top review
    6/10
    The young Christopher Lee makes his American TV debut
    This 1961 broadcast of ONE STEP BEYOND (one of the very last episodes) features a familiar British cast, most of whom were making their debuts on American television. The series supposedly based their scripts on actual unexplainable events, and this one was no exception. Christopher Lee stars as Wilhelm Reitlinger, German officer during the First World War, assigned to finish putting up telegraph poles to increase communications to Berlin in 1915. Martin Benson plays Klaus Karnak, a simple farmer who, it is said, can see into the future and make things happen. Reitlinger is distraught over a letter from his beloved Elsa, and visits Karnak to ask what can be done. Karnak hypnotically permits Reitlinger to instantly travel to Berlin to see her, only to discover her bidding goodbye to another officer. Apparently friendly to the entire regiment, and dismissive of her one-time lover, Elsa is shot down by the jealous Reitlinger, who confesses to the murder, but cannot find anyone to believe him, seeking vengeance against the 'sorcerer' Karnak. A brief, black and white half hour, depending on its cast to pull off a difficult story. As Elsa, lovely Gabriella Licudi had a short career in England, distinguished by a starring role in the forgotten gem "Unearthly Stranger" (1963), where she played the sympathetic alien bride of John Neville. Martin Benson would never again work with Christopher Lee, but would immediately co-star with Peter Cushing in Hammer's "Captain Clegg" (1962). He also appeared in "The Strange World of Planet X" (1957), "Goldfinger" (1964, as the gangster crushed in the trunk by Oddjob), and "The Omen" (1976). Christopher Lee made rare forays into Hollywood prior to his 1976 relocation to America, the first being THE ALFRED HITCHCOCK HOUR ("The Sign of Satan") in 1964, and "Poor Devil," a 1972 TV movie opposite Sammy Davis Jr., a longtime fan of his Hammer classics (in 1966, he turned down the Clock King role, designed to appeal to international audiences, on the popular BATMAN, being replaced by Walter Slezak). He had previously appeared in the 1954 "At Night All Cats Are Gray" episode of Boris Karloff's British-filmed teleseries COLONEL MARCH OF Scotland YARD, syndicated in the US. At this time in 1961, Lee had just married, moving from England to Switzerland, and embarked on a series of Continental productions, mostly in West Germany and Italy, returning to England in 1963, beckoned by Hammer to star back-to-back in "The Devil-Ship Pirates" and "The Gorgon." The multilingual actor adopted an effective German accent for this role, and would actually essay a German-speaking role in an English-language American comedy, "1941" (1979), for director Steven Spielberg.
    helpful•2
    1
    • kevinolzak
    • Jun 8, 2010

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 23, 1961 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • Associated British Elstree Studios, Shenley Road, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Joseph M. Schenck Enterprises
      • World Television Programming
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      30 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • IMDb Answers: Help fill gaps in our data
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies Coming This Summer
    See the full list
    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows to Watch in June
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.