-
-
-
Way Out : Season 1
-
Air date: 31 Mar '61 - 14 episodesWay Out was a 1961 fantasy and science fiction television anthology series hosted by writer Roald Dahl. The macabre 25-minute shows were introduced by Dahl's dry delivery of a brief introductory monologue, sometimes explaining a method of murdering a spouse without getting caught. The taped series began because CBS suddenly needed a replacement for a Jackie Gleason talk show that network executives were about to cancel, and producer David Susskind contacted Dahl to help mount a show quickly. The series was paired by the network with the similar The Twilight Zone for Friday evening broadcasts, running from March through July 1961 at 9:30 p.m. Eastern time, under the primary sponsorship of Liggett & Myers. Writers included Philip H. Reisman, Jr. and Sumner Locke Elliott. The premiere episode, "William and Mary", adapted from a Roald Dahl short story, told of a wife getting revenge on her husband. In "Dissolve to Black", an actress cast as a murder victim at a television studio goes through a...
-
-
List of Episodes (14)
-
Way Out (1961)
-
1. William and Mary
31 Mar '61William Pearl gets the bad news from his doctor: he only has a month to live. Dr. Landy says he can keep William's brain alive in a glass jar, after his body is dead. William never got along with his wife Mary; he was a cheapskate and was mean to her. When William dies, Mary is at home drinking and dancing. William's brain (and the attached eyeball) are coming home to Mary. But William's days of mistreating his wife are over; now she has the upper hand. To prove her point, she blows some c
-
Way Out (1961)
-
2. The Down Car
07 Apr '61John Ventry and Mr. Bayle were Navy buddies; after they got out, they went into business together. Although they were pals, John Ventry wasn't much good at business; in fact, his gambling debts-- which he charged to their company-- almost forces them into bankruptcy. Bayle winds up shooting Ventry, and leaving a phony suicide note next to the body. But Bayle is haunted by Ventry. Bayle is in the top-story office one night when he starts hearing eerie noises and voices; Bayle tries to escape
-
Way Out (1961)
-
3. The Sisters
14 Apr '61Harriet, the older sister, is immaculately neat; Louise, the younger sister, is a slob. (think: ""The Odd Couple"".) They live together in a cliff-house in Maine. Not only does the domineering Harriet impose her tidy housecleaning habits on Louise, she tries to run her life too-- Harriet ""forbids"" Louise to date Paul Marchand. Possessive Harriet tells Louise she doesn't need men-- after all, they are sisters and will have each other forever. One day, Louise lets Harriet fall off the cliff
-
Way Out (1961)
-
4. Button, Button
28 Apr '61The Button referred to in the title is the button that will launch the nuclear missiles in a war. Captain Stone has the key which unlocks the control panel, giving access to the Button. Captain Stone also has nightmares about the nuclear holocaust that would result, should he ever have to push the Button; in his nightmare, his men hold him while one of the sergeants takes his key, and presses the Button, unleashing the nuclear missiles. Captain Stone wakes up, relieved it was all a bad dream.
-
Way Out (1961)
-
5. I Heard You Calling Me
05 May '61Freda Mansfield (an American, age 38) is checking out of a London hotel; she is planning on eloping with her British lover George Frobisher (age 43, who already has a wife, Monica, and kids) and they are going to New York City together. But Freda keeps getting mysterious phone calls from some strange woman, who says that Freda will never run away with George-- Freda is going with her. The strange woman keeps phoning Freda; the caller says her name is Mrs. Rose Thorn, and adds that she is comin
-
Way Out (1961)
-
6. The Croaker
12 May '61Mr. Rana (latin for ""Frog"") is a strange man who has moved into the neighborhood. He gets pestered by a rascally kid named Jeremy Keeler (think: ""Dennis the Menace"") who does stuff like letting pet dogs loose, so he can get a reward from their owners for their return. Mr. Rana raises frogs, and offers Jeremy 25 cents per jar with flies, so he can feed the frogs; Jeremy balks at first, but after Mr. Rana tells him how much mischievous fun he will have knocking over peoples' garbage cans to
-
Way Out (1961)
-
7. False Face
26 May '61Handsome actor Michael Drake has been cast as Quasimodo in a production of ""The Hunchback of Notre Dame."" Drake goes slumming, and at a flophouse picks up a bum with an ugly face; Drake offers him $50 to come to his dressing room, so Drake can copy his ugly face via make-up. Once he has no further need of the bum, Drake dismisses him. Drake is also rude to his costar and girlfriend, Rita Singer. The play is a hit, but there's a problem: after the show, the make-up won't come off! Drake te
-
Way Out (1961)
-
8. Dissolve to Black
02 Jun '61Bonnie Draco's first acting job is a spooky one: she goes to work at a TV studio at night. Bonnie rehearses a scene with Paul, Harry and a murderer. But George the director tells Bonnie she must stay after hours to rehearse more. Everything dissolves to black. Bonnie now witnesses a real killing with a different Paul, Harry and murderer. Now, the murderer pursues Bonnie, and there is another dissolve to black. Next morning, when the cast and crew arrive, there is no sign of Bonnie.
-
Way Out (1961)
-
9. Death Wish
09 Jun '61This episode starts out with the Narrator saying, ""Most men want to kill their wives."" (did I mention ""Way Out"" is a misogynistic series?) And we meet yet another married couple that can't stand each other: George and Hazel Atterbury. They attend a funeral for one of George's coworkers. That night, TV-addict Hazel is talking to her hubby, telling him all about her favorite TV shows, for example, ""The one where they're all gangsters, except the hero... it's very authentic, it's based on
-
Way Out (1961)
-
10. The Overnight Case
16 Jun '61A woman wakes up one morning in a strange bed; beside her is a stranger. He swears he's her husband Bill Clayton, and her name is Norma. She gets hysterical, says her name is not Norma; she must be having another nightmare, and she starts to pack The Overnight Case, which is always a part of this bad dream. She is taken to a psychiatrist. She meets with Dr. Sandham, but when she sees the man she knows is her husband, he doesn't recognize her. Again, she grabs the overnight case and starts t
-
Way Out (1961)
-
11. Hush, Hush
23 Jun '61Dr. Ernest Lydecker just wants peace and quiet, and prefers to putter around in his laboratory. His nagging wife Bernice is a constant source of noise. Dr. Lydecker decides to make his wife the guinea pig for his latest experiment: using special sound waves, he has made mice and chimps docile, so he tries it out on his wife. It seems to work, Bernice becomes quiet and docile. But there is a side effect; now Bernice cannot stand loud noises. She destroys a ringing phone, a chiming clock, a b
-
Way Out (1961)
-
12. Side Show
30 Jun '61Meek Harold Potter is a bookkeeper with a nagging wife Edna, and no life. One night, he goes to a sideshow at a carnival. They show a guillotine, and appear to cut off a woman's head. The main attraction is Cassandra, a headless lady strapped into an electric chair; only the chair is not a method of execution, but the opposite-- 10,000 volts ""keep her alive."" Somehow, telepathically, the headless Cassandra pleads with Harold to stay. Later, the carnival closes for the night. But Harold c
-
Way Out (1961)
-
13. Soft Focus
07 Jul '61Peter Pell is a photographer who has made an amazing discovery: a special chemical that not only retouches photos, but then magically changes the faces of the people in the photos. For example, Peter removes the scars on a portrait of a once-famous actress, making her beautiful again. Peter knows that his wife Louise is having an affair with his assistant Bill Fontaine. So Peter starts working on Louise's photo, using the magic retouching fluid, adding wrinkles until she looks very old. Pete
-
Way Out (1961)
-
14. 20/20
14 Jul '61Harvey Cartwright is a timid little man with a shrew of a wife; he is an encyclopedia salesman. Since he can't see well with his new eyeglasses, he accidentally goes to the wrong address: the Jellifers had not asked about a free trial offer of encyclopedias. Their line is taxidermy, they keep stuffed animals-- like Mahatma, a stuffed viper. At home, nagging wife Stephanie harps that she was better off with her previous husband Stanley, before he died. Harvey only wishes to escape from his aw
-
