Captain James T. Kirk starred in two very good episodes of Boris Karloff's early 60s Thriller series; the whole series is a b&w Gothic masterclass.
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Caution: Some Spoilers Ahead
Before he became Captain James T. Kirk, Global Cultural Icon, William Shatner did guest-starring roles on many early 60s television shows. He was especially active in anthology-type series with a supernatural or sci-fi bent, such as the original Twilight Zone; the original Outer Limits; Alfred Hitchcock Presents; and One Step Beyond.
During this period of his career, he also did two episodes of Boris Karloff’s Thriller, a one-hour anthology series hosted by the great classic horror star, which showcased gothic tales of the macabre. (Not to be confused with the excellent British anthology show of the ‘70s with the same name). The two Shatner episodes are generally considered to be among the best of Thriller’s sixty-seven episodes.
In these early TV guest roles, The Shat was already demonstrating the unique speaking style, verbal tics, and mannerisms that would be parodied so often years later. The dramatic pauses between phrases, the odd emphases on random words, the quick rush of excited verbiage when driving home a point --- these are all on view in the two Thriller episodes listed below. However, they are served with a thinner slice of ham than you might typically see in Shatner’s later roles.
Each hour-long episode starts with a prologue that eventually connects with the main story and a hammy introduction by Karloff, who spoofs himself very well.
The Hungry Glass (1960), directed by Douglas Heyes – A short digression note: one of the great unexpected pleasures of watching vintage anthology shows from the 60s is seeing actors pop up in them who would later portray famous characters on other shows. In this episode, Captain Kirk finds himself in a seaside Gothic horror drama with The Professor from Gilligan’s Island (Russell Johnson) and Ellie Mae Clampett from The Beverly Hillbillies (Donna Douglas).
The Hungry Glass is based on a short story by the great horror writer Robert Bloch, who penned Psycho and years later, two episodes of Star Trek: TOS (Wolf in the Fold and Catspaw). Here, Shatner plays Gil Thrasher, a young, anxiety-ridden husband. not unlike the character he played in his most famous Twilight Zone episode, Nightmare at 20,000 Feet. Gil is a successful photographer married to Marcia (Joanna Heyes), an interior decorator. Later, we find out that he is also a Korean War veteran who suffers from PTSD and recurrent bouts of a tropical fever he contracted during the war.
Gil and Marcia buy an old house, sight unseen, on “Cape Caution,” somewhere in New England. On their first day in town, they stop at a general store to get the key to their house from real estate agent Adam Talmadge (Russell Johnson). There, they meet a couple of elderly locals who say that the previous owner of their house took down all the mirrors inside because they attracted unwelcome “visitors.”
The couple shrugs it off as superstition and invite Talmadge and his wife Liz (played very well by wise-cracking Elizabeth Allen) into their new house for a celebratory drink. Although the house needs a lot of work and the electricity isn’t working, Gil and Marcia are thrilled to see that their new living room has a floor-to-ceiling plate glass window that looks out onto the Atlantic Ocean from a sheer cliff.
The party, however, turns sour when Adam cuts his hand on a broken champagne bottle and Liz swears she sees something creepy reflected in the over-sized front window. The Talmadges leave awkwardly, and the Thrashers settle in for the night. The next day, however, they start feeling increasingly uneasy in the house. Accidents keep happening that involve glass, and Gil finds a mysterious figure of a small child in one of his photographs when he develops it.
Things really come to a head when Marcia opens a locked room full of antique mirrors in the attic and Gil sees a ghostly, beckoning figure in one of them. At that point, Gil collapses, and begins to babble about hallucinations he saw in Korea and other episodes of mental trauma from the past.
Marcia wants to cancel their upcoming dinner party with the Talmadges, but Gil won’t hear of it. He pulls himself together and the two couples have an enjoyable evening, until the women leave to tour the house’s upstairs rooms and Gil and Adam stay below to chat.
Returning to his paranoid manner from earlier in the day, Gil pressures Adam to tell him the true story behind the house. Adam finally admits that he knew the house was rumored to be haunted when he sold it to the Thrashers. He tells Gil that the original owner of the house was a beautiful Victorian belle (Donna “Ellie Mae” Douglas, seen in flashbacks) who was obsessed with looking at herself in the mirror. As she grew older, she shut herself up in the house and stared at her reflection obsessively, until one day she accidentally smashed through a window and died. But, according to the local legend, her attachment to her reflection was so strong that she lived on mirrors and window reflections. Over the years, people in the house would die or disappear when they saw her reflection in glass.
Adam convinces Gil that the story is all superstitious nonsense—until they hear Marcia screaming from the attic room and Gil rushes upstairs to investigate. The final few minutes are startlingly creepy for early ‘60s television.
Shatner handles Gil’s descent into madness pretty well (and would later do the same thing over again in the Twilight Zone), and Elizabeth Allen stands out as likeable Liz Talmadge. Russell Johnson is solid as sensible, methodical Adam Talmadge. Joanna Heyes is a little weaker as Marcia, but still watchable. The black-and-white cinematography by Lionel Lindon is wonderfully moody and affecting.
*Natalie Shaeffer, aka Mrs. "Lovey" Howell, stars in this episode, **The Grim Reaper**, with The Shat.*The Grim Reaper (1961), directed by Herschel Daugherty. Shatner’s second Thriller appearance reunites him with Elizabeth Allen from The Hungry Glass. He also acts opposite yet another beloved character actor from Gilligan’s Island—this time it’s Natalie Schaeffer, aka Mrs. “Lovey” Howell.
The episode was written by Robert Bloch from a short story by Henry Lawlor. Schaeffer plays Beatrice Graves, a daffy, wealthy woman of a certain age, much like Lovey Howell. Unlike Lovey, however, she has earned her money herself, as a successful writer of murder mysteries. She enjoys playing up her macabre reputation (and attracting publicity) by living in a creepy old mansion she’s called “Grave’s End” and driving around in a hearse.
Shatner plays her “straight arrow” nephew, Paul Graves, who is “Aunt Bea’s” only living relative aside from her new boy toy husband, Gerald Keller, a washed-up actor played by Scott Merrill. While Aunt Bea isn’t looking, Gerald lusts after her pretty young secretary, Dorothy, played by Elizabeth Allen--in a much more subdued role than she had in The Hungry Glass. Dorothy, however, only has eyes for handsome Paul.
Paul visits Aunt Bea unexpectedly to check up on her after reading in the news that she’s acquired a famous painting with a macabre history. The painting, known as “The Grim Reaper,” depicts the traditional skeleton with a scythe, and has a reputation for bringing death to its owners.
As the legend goes, the Reaper’s scythe bleeds real human blood whenever someone nearby has been marked for death. Paul urges Aunt Bea to sell the painting, but she won’t hear of it.
When Paul discovers blood on the Reaper’s scythe one evening, he fears the worst for Aunt Bea. And eventually, he’s proven right: soon Bea is found at the bottom of the house’s grand staircase with a broken neck, after a night of heavy drinking.
At the reading of the will, Gerald gets Grave’s End and everything else, and Paul is left out in the cold. However, Gerald isn’t able to enjoy his new wealth for very long, as it turns out that Paul is hiding something also. Shortly after the viewer learns Paul’s secret, Gerald turns up dead—an apparent suicide, according to the police. Dorothy flees the house in terror.
Paul settles in at Grave’s End after Gerald’s body is taken away, but the Reaper has the last laugh in a gruesomely satisfying ending.
Shatner does a good job of playing uptight Paul and Natalie Schaeffer does a good job of playing Natalie Schaeffer. The score for this episode was written by the great Jerry Goldsmith, the musical horror maestro who won an Academy Award for his legendary score for Richard Donner’s The Omen (1976).
The complete Thriller box set is available for a fairly pricey sum. You can see very good versions of almost all episodes, including the two I've linked here, on YouTube.
