FOUR-IN-ONE: ROD SERLING'S NIGHT GALLERY
(The Dead Man; The Housekeeper)
Wed., 10-11 p.m., NBC-TV

Carl Betz in "The Dead Man"

Opening chapter of "Four-In-One: Rod Serling's Night Gallery," sextet of hours dedicated to the bizarre and supernatural, dished up pair of tales with obvious antecedents but produced with imagination and style designed to entertain. If the next five programs sustain last night's style, "Night Gallery" is strong NBC bid in ratings race.

"Dead Man," with Carl Betz, doctor who can cause psychosomatic illness in Michael Blodgett, carries talent one step too far when he suspends life and, because of jealousy over his wife Louise Sorel, unconsciously fails to return young man to the living. Twist on "Monkey's Paw" is that the corpse is allowed to appear, which affords director Douglas Heyes, who adapted story by Fritz Lieber, great chance to dwell on the macabre. Heyes doesn't miss his opportunity, and Betz, Miss Sorel, Blodgett and Jeff Corey as family friend-witness all use appropriate pull-out-all-stops style of acting to show off gothic-type yarn which ends in graveyard.

"The Housekeeper," by Matthew Howard, is witty vignette about husband Larry Hagman replacing chilly personality of wealthy wife Suzy Parker with goody-two-shoes spirit of elderly new housekeeper Jeanette Nolan so he can have inner as well as outer beauty. Happily eschewing sci-fi for incantations, herbs and a frog, he performs his "turnabout" feat, with Miss Nolan's voice used on Miss Parker. Miss Nolan, suddenly the wealthy beauty, opts for divorce, but Hagman has frog at hand and new housekeeper at the ready.

Director John Meredyth Lucas keeps it light. Hagman, employing an Orson Welles style, plays for fun. Miss Nolan treads airily through her part. Miss Parker looks lovely.

Production values in both plays are topflight. Camerawork by William Margulies was excellent. Joseph Alves, Jr.'s art direction was superior. Music by Robert Prince was an asset in both stories.

Jack Laird produced. Rod Serling intro'd stories in gallery set in front of interesting abstracts by Tom Wright. Theme music was by Gil Mellé.

Universal produced in association with NBC-TV.

Tone.

(Daily Variety; December 17, 1970)