The Long Shot 

Heavily indebted Charlie Raymond is hired to accompany a British visitor on a trip across the USA, and looks for a way to take advantage of his employer.

Director:

Robert Stevenson

Writer:

Harold Swanton (teleplay)

Stars:

Alfred Hitchcock, Peter Lawford, John Williams

Cast

Episode complete credited cast:
Alfred Hitchcock	...	Himself - Host
Peter Lawford	...	Charlie Raymond
John Williams	...	Walker Hendricks
Gertrude Hoffman	...	Margaret Stoddard
Robert Warwick	...	Matthew Kelson
Frank Gerstle	...	Police Sgt. Mack
Charles Cantor	...	Tommy DeWitt
Tim Graham	...	Bartender
Virginia Christine	...	Secretary

Storyline

Down on his luck and heavily in debt, Charlie Raymond reads a newspaper advertisement asking for a native Londoner who is willing to accompany a British visitor on a trip from New York to San Francisco. He meets with Hendricks, the man who placed the ad, who agrees to hire him for the trip. As they drive across the country, Hendricks talks and incessantly asks questions about London, as Charlie grows increasingly bored. Charlie is just about to run off and leave Hendricks on his own, when he discovers his employer's reason for going to San Francisco, and sees an opportunity for himself.

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Plot Keywords:

trip | advertisement | confession | flipping coin | golden gate bridge | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 November 1955 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Republic Studios - 4024 Radford Avenue, North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Shamley Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the beginning, Peter Lawford reads an ad in the newspaper and to call the phone number Murray Hill 3-8098. He then goes to the phone and dials the number, but the number he dials is not even close to the number in the listing.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Himself - Host: My last quarter.
[puts a quarter into a slot machine and pulls handle]
Himself - Host: I've been frightfully lucky this evening. Now if they were to invent a machine that I could play using orange seeds and cherry pits I'd be perfectly happy. All the foregoing will immediately seem justified, appropriate, clever. And even dignified, when I tell you that tonight's narrative is about a gambler. It is called "The Long Shot." If you like to bet when the odds are high and the risks great you'll ...

User Reviews

It's a Shifty-Eyed Lawford

Except for the talky middle, the entry holds interest throughout. Englishman, gambler Charlie Raymond (Lawford) is flat broke and fleeing New York from a bookie he owes money to. So he pretends to be respectable by hiring on with English gentleman (Williams) who needs companionship while driving to San Francisco. On the way, Charlie discovers his companion is set to inherit a fortune by simply turning up at an attorney's office in Frisco and verifying his identity. So the wheels start turning on more than just the car.

It's really a Lawford showcase as he manages the shifty-eyed schemer in fine fashion. Catch how subtly he reacts to his companion's endless ruminations on life in London. We know there's more going on than meets the eye since this is Hitchcock. But what. Stay tuned. And, oh yes, don't look for any shapely girls in his male exclusive 30-minutes.