tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post2062976184325442155..comments2024-03-16T11:23:44.620-07:00Comments on A Thriller a Day...: Rose's Last Summer: Season 1 Episode 5John Scolerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15830334036783163702noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-29429188058438281702015-05-22T15:30:52.298-07:002015-05-22T15:30:52.298-07:00Another year goes by as Thriller continues it'...Another year goes by as Thriller continues it's late night run on ME-TV.<br /><br />This episode is good on its own terms--no supernatural element, but some good acting.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-6734531265467539782014-06-18T18:15:42.450-07:002014-06-18T18:15:42.450-07:00How about that. A Columbo episode is well done al...How about that. A Columbo episode is well done along these lines. See “Forgotten Lady.” An aging song-and-dance star is Lt. Columbo's quarry in the fifth season opener. The disheveled detective suspects the actress of killing her wealthy husband to finance her dream, a comeback on Broadway.<br /><br />Sam Jaffe was her ill-fated husband.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-58672209331550246852012-09-30T19:44:02.918-07:002012-09-30T19:44:02.918-07:00I found the plot crazy enough that the police migh...I found the plot crazy enough that the police might be fooled simply because it never occurred to them. It was a little strange, though, that the autopsy mentioned the state of her heart, but not that her hair had been dyed.<br />Also, why do so many wills in mysteries have those weird stipulations? Who wrote the first story about a will with some kind of weird requirement in it?Michael Penkashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09704563727749725196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-88526775539503732502012-08-09T06:50:50.909-07:002012-08-09T06:50:50.909-07:00Not bad. I enjoyed the ex-husband and friend's...Not bad. I enjoyed the ex-husband and friend's determination to find Rose.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-29909941882790352732011-12-02T20:30:05.953-08:002011-12-02T20:30:05.953-08:00I loved Mary Astor (like most of you) and thought ...I loved Mary Astor (like most of you) and thought the piece had a decent score. But the whole plot made no sense. Why didn't Rose realize she'd have no chance of surviving Mama's 65th birthday? Why did the old geezer write that ridiculous will? Why didn't anybody suggest getting Rose off the sauce at the end? Until I read about the novel here, I thought this had been some strange juvenile novel. Please, bring in a ghost--soon!Frank Millernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-9843704736433010882011-08-29T19:42:21.290-07:002011-08-29T19:42:21.290-07:00Maybe I blinked, but I didn't see Percy Helton...Maybe I blinked, but I didn't see Percy Helton in the episode, even though he was in the credits.<br /><br />Things to like about Thriller regardless of whether the episodes dealt with horror:<br /><br />It's in black and white. This automatically connects it with film noir and adds an other-worldly quality. (Numerous modern horror movies would have been more effective in b&w than in color.)<br /><br />You discover familiar faces, whether Clem Bevans, Elisha Cook, Jr., or Jack Carson.<br /><br />There's the nostalgia factor, at least if you'd seen some of the episodes when they first appeared.Steve Walkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-34020214046096810632011-07-10T16:05:32.269-07:002011-07-10T16:05:32.269-07:00This is the last episode on the first DVD and stil...This is the last episode on the first DVD and still no horror. What were the producers of Thiller thinking?<br /><br />I'll add an umpteenth two thumbs up for Mary Astor's acting in this here 'Thriller'. After watching numerous episodes one gets used to samey quality of acting, but when Mary shows up, she indeed outshines all those that proceeded her. <br /><br />Since I wasn't around during the era of filming, most episodes enrich my knowledge of those times. Alcoholism. They actually treated you for it back then? I thought these things were kept hush-hush and only brought to the media's attention when the recently departed Betty Ford founded her facility. <br /><br />Mary's talent helps this entry because I actually cared about what happened to her. Without Mary, this one have been a real dull one. Frank is a likeable guy, but Haley as Rose's ex from year's past seems to be too much of a plot contrivance. That multi-millionaire tycoon just couldn't tame Rose and he never got over her. His acting sure doesn't do a good job of portraying those sentiments. <br /><br />I hate to say it, but I was still interested in the story when Frank and Haley were investigating on the grounds of the Goodfield estate. The Goodfield inheritance scam is pretty contrived, but I'm still following along with interest. Add me to the list of reviewers who a amazed that 65 was the age of human longevity limits back in those days. Hell, my mom is 63 and she doesn't look anywhere near the one foot in the grave look role Rose is playing.<br /><br />Obviously, grandma Goodfield doesn't make it to 65. Rose plays her insurance role and it's time to go. Tempting the old lush with some hooch is a nice trick. So is Rose's fakery of taking the booze bait. Of course it comes down to the chase scene with the Frank and Haley speeding to the scene of a rescue. <br /><br />I was entertained, so One and half Karloffs from me.Hynekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08641908347705520084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-75996645442814474282011-04-29T10:12:27.314-07:002011-04-29T10:12:27.314-07:00I believe I am slowly slipping into a coma. Even ...I believe I am slowly slipping into a coma. Even the opportunity to see Mary Astor on television can't save this one. Another drab, ordinary crime drama from the 1960's.<br /><br />As has been mentioned in previous reviews, what's the deal with all the bed-ridden matriarchs? Did these hags all lose the ability to walk or feed themselves when they turn 60? Was this a result of attending too many Tupperware parties back in the day?<br /><br />I love how Lin McCarthy immediately comes to the far-fetched (but accurate) conclusion that the two women have swapped identities, tells the police, and then finds her in the alley.<br /><br />"1/2 Karloff"... even Boris's brief introductions can't save these episodes anymore.SoSo Cinemahttp://www.sosocinema.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-54787105247157104902011-01-18T07:39:05.238-08:002011-01-18T07:39:05.238-08:00Mary Astor ruled! Other than that, this is another...Mary Astor ruled! Other than that, this is another dismal episode.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-87007910606158741452010-11-23T15:26:54.922-08:002010-11-23T15:26:54.922-08:00It was cool seeing Mary Astor in a TV role. I onl...It was cool seeing Mary Astor in a TV role. I only knew her from The Maltese Falcon and a few other old movies. The ending totally sucks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-40548216702585507552010-09-29T12:58:28.233-07:002010-09-29T12:58:28.233-07:00I enjoyed this episode, especially Mary Astor'...I enjoyed this episode, especially Mary Astor's performance. She played a similar role a few years before on Alfred Hitchcock Presents. She was not nearly as old as the characters she played, but apparently her hard life aged her.Jack Seabrooknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-10035573592605712102010-09-18T19:19:23.360-07:002010-09-18T19:19:23.360-07:00I thought Margaret Millar's unusually spelled ...I thought Margaret Millar's unusually spelled name rang a distant bell, and now I see that it's because she was Mrs. Ross MacDonald. Talk about your power couples! Tom, you're right, the novel's U.S. title would have been better. I'm always amused by such credit errors, like the fact that Bill Shatner's wife in the TWILIGHT ZONE episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" is widely credited as Ruth (the name of screenwriter Richard Matheson's own wife), yet he clearly addresses her throughout the episode as "Julia." Hunh?Matthew Bradleyhttp://bradleyonfilm.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-21794430478759930252010-09-14T07:42:49.286-07:002010-09-14T07:42:49.286-07:00I couldn't find Percy Helton either. The same ...I couldn't find Percy Helton either. The same for George N. Neise, who's also in the credits. Speaking of the credits, the role of "Mrs. Goodfield," played by Mary Astor, is credited on-screen to "Helen Quintal." I thought that might turn out to be Astor's real name or something, but ... no. I wonder who dreamed up that name, and why. This might be one of the few (the only?) THRILLER written by a woman. Originally they planned to call the episode "The Lively Corpse"; that would have been a much better title IMHO.Tom Weavernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-61263529889082518172010-09-10T18:46:47.794-07:002010-09-10T18:46:47.794-07:00My comments from 2007:
Here we have yet another t...My comments from 2007:<br /><br />Here we have yet another typical early "Thriller" crime story.<br />Veteran Mary Astor plays Rose, an aging former film star and current<br />alcoholic who leaves her dreary, boarding-house existence for a new<br />job, one she's particularly vague about – then turns up dead, hit by a<br />car. There's something fishy here, though, and her ex-husband and a<br />friend start poking around for answers. It turns out Rose isn't dead<br />– her new job is masquerading as the wealthy matriarch so that a nasty<br />husband-and-wife can collect their inheritance.<br /><br />Again, like most of the other early crime episodes, this is enjoyable<br />stuff but nothing really special. Worth seeing if you intend to watch<br />the entire series. I did enjoy Mary Astor's sympathetic performance.Aycornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06845846733978252143noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-60378609498048702692010-09-10T16:21:32.448-07:002010-09-10T16:21:32.448-07:00This episode has been occasionally cited as a tota...This episode has been occasionally cited as a total bore, but I disagree. It ain't the "Thriller" that we all know and love by any means, but it's still entertaining. The fact that it's a showcase for a major actress of Hollywood's Golden Age is enough to recommend it, and Mary Astor runs the gamut of emotion quite effectively. <br /><br />Karloff's spoken intro is totally cool and...WHAT'S THIS?.....the first suggestions of the spooky elements that would eventually take over the show?; the great old photos, magazine covers and paintings of Mary Astor from her prime, the creepy doll's face AND---the first appearance of "Thriller's" trademark SKULL, superimposed over the doll's face! <br /><br />Could the network have been pressuring the producers to incorporate at least A BIT of horror into the show, as fleeting an afterthought as this one seems to be?<br /><br />I like the two guys coming together and teaming up to solve the mystery, even though the overall dullness of the show's direction renders their performances pretty lifeless. (I also wondered what was going on between these two manly dudes as they cuddled up in the car on the way to the big rescue).<br /><br />And how about that goofy guy who reveals the info on Goodfield Sr's doll-toy manufacturing past? The pace of the scene was deadly, and I only managed to stay awake by wondering how I might style my own hair to look as bizarre as his.<br /><br />All in all, one of the better crime shows--- an interesting plot that unfolds in a comprhensible way (for crime-show dummies like me), and a stand-out performance by Mary Astor--who convincingly goes from drunk to hopeful to bed-ridden (including her double-duty dialogue with herself in the one scene), to terrfied, pursued victim.<br /><br />2 more observations:<br /><br />I thought it was a real stretch that we believe that Mother Goodfield --- an aging biddie if there ever was one---had not yet reached the age of 65!; 75 or 80 would have been more believable.<br /><br />Also, the credits list Percy Helton in the cast;<br />his scene must have been cut, since I didn't see him anywhere.<br /><br />I would have given this show at least one-and-a-half Karloffs', especially since "Twisted Image" received 2. But I'll get over it. <br /><br />LRHassoBenSobanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-41901460941003735132010-09-10T15:06:56.551-07:002010-09-10T15:06:56.551-07:00Okay Walker, you've got four hours to catch up...Okay Walker, you've got four hours to catch up :> We'll wait here for you. No fair skipping "Worse Than Murder." And welcome!Peter Enfantinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04317575598411394944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3413477571485423494.post-15785678805662807062010-09-10T10:25:42.701-07:002010-09-10T10:25:42.701-07:00I just discovered your great THRILLER project due ...I just discovered your great THRILLER project due to a head's up from Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine blog. I've watched all the episodes over the years thanks to a bootleg set of dvds and I just received the "official" set from amazon.com. I'll be rewatching the episodes along with you and comparing my comments with yours. I see I'm behind 5 episodes but I'll catch up. The early shows were mediocre, or worse, but things improve alot when the horror starts.Walker Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16089880902426182100noreply@blogger.com