Case file: #87-633462-C
Harry Castle: Interstate Transportation of Stolen Property, Fraudulent Checks.
Original air date: 7 November 1965
Inspector Lewis Erskine makes a mistake involving an arrest he made in 1963. This puts him in conflict with an old friend, an attorney in St. Louis. Plenty of treachery here. This situation is also the source of friction between the inspector and Assistant Director Arthur Ward.
Good use of stock footage of St. Louis is a great touch for this episode. This can be determined by the traffic and street lights here. Good use of low-level lighting here. On the whole, an excellent episode with human elements missing in later episodes.
FYI: Trolleys were still being used in this city in 1965! They ended their run on 21 May 1966, and would not run again for 27 years.
References are also made to Hialeah (FL), Saratoga Springs (NY-YEAH!) and San Diego. This was a significant month in Saratoga Springs, because the Convention Center (sadly) burned two days after this episode aired.
- Southern-born Edward Andrews, once again, plays a bad apple. He played that role on The Twilight Zone .
- Bill Kane is credited as William Kane.
- The beautiful Lee Meriwether is again “making eyes” at the good inspector. He does not seem to notice. They are in the middle of a case, along with other FBI staff.
Erskine a Go-Go!
The 1965 FBI Show Tribute Site has a name for when see go-go dancers appear. We call such a moment Erskine a Go Go! It’s one of those absurd things we came up with, but do so knowing about the bureau’s image. The dancers’ presence just seems so funny!
Incidentally, this dance sequence appears again, in episode #31, “The Bomb That Walked Like A Man,” on a black-and-white television screen.
Credits
Directed by: Don Medford
Written by: Oscar Millard
Performer | Role
- John Milford | Harry Castle
- Susan Oliver | Shirley Gregg
- Edward Andrews | Ray Lang
- Lee Meriwether | Joanna Laurens
- Bill Kane (as William Kane) | Doctor
- Don Ross | Janitor
- Barry Russo | Nightclub Owner