The Paper Killer
- Episode aired Mar 25, 1961
- 1h
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
19
YOUR RATING
Photos
- Director
- Writers
- Eric Ambler(uncredited)
- James Gunn
- Stuart Jerome
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Featured review
Kill the strip or kill the cartoonist
Mickey Rooney guest stars in Checkmate as an old friend and client of Dr. Sebastian Cabot. Cabot remembers him as this meek little man who was a commercial draftsman. Now he's gone a personality change as if he's taken one of those assertive aggressive courses and is now a really boorish behaved individual to all around him.
However Rooney still has a lot of inner demons and just wants out of being a celebrity cartoonist. His strip concerns a romance novel action figure and he wants to kill it and move on as he finds the character taking him over. But some folks have a vested interest and are tired of being treated like doormats. So there's a nice little plot going to either kill him outright or drive him nuts.
It's not too hard to figure out who, but Rooney turns in a compelling performance of a man putting up an obnoxious front that's overtaking the real him.
Also there's a real treat in store when agent Betty Lou Gerson not knowing at first that Doug McClure is a Checkmate operative thinks he's another prospective pretty boy actor. A lot like the real McClure. Gerson not knowing it provides the solution to Checkmate's problems with Rooney.
You should watch this episode for the McClure/Gerson scene in any event.
However Rooney still has a lot of inner demons and just wants out of being a celebrity cartoonist. His strip concerns a romance novel action figure and he wants to kill it and move on as he finds the character taking him over. But some folks have a vested interest and are tired of being treated like doormats. So there's a nice little plot going to either kill him outright or drive him nuts.
It's not too hard to figure out who, but Rooney turns in a compelling performance of a man putting up an obnoxious front that's overtaking the real him.
Also there's a real treat in store when agent Betty Lou Gerson not knowing at first that Doug McClure is a Checkmate operative thinks he's another prospective pretty boy actor. A lot like the real McClure. Gerson not knowing it provides the solution to Checkmate's problems with Rooney.
You should watch this episode for the McClure/Gerson scene in any event.
helpful•00
- bkoganbing
- Feb 28, 2016
Details
- Runtime1 hour
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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