BUS STOP: I Kiss Your Shadow and A Lion Walks Among us

Reason, Jenny Maxwell, Fabian

BUS STOP TV series. 

Bus Stop was an hour long 1961 drama series that lasted for one season. It focused on the inhabitants of a small town, including Grace (Marilyn Maxwell), who owns a restaurant or "bus stop;" waitress Elma (Joan Freeman); Sheriff Will (Rhodes Reason); and District Attorney Glenn Wagner (Richard Anderson). Sometimes these people participated in the weekly installment; at other times they showed up briefly or not at all.

The series has not been released on DVD yet, but there are two grainy episodes available on youtube, because these were "special" episodes. "I Kiss Your Shadow" was the 26th and final episode of the series, and it was based on a short story by Robert Bloch. The story concerns a man, Joe (George Grizzard),  whose wife, Donna (Joanne Linville), is killed in an automobile accident. He claims that Donna, who was a bit smothering when she was alive, is now haunting him, and attacks anyone who tries to come between them, including his psychiatrist, who is pushed out of a window. 

Dianne Foster

This episode has become famous because in his book Danse Macabre, Stephen King (who had probably not seen the episode in decades) wildly overpraises it. Children may have found it scary, and there are maybe a couple of creepy moments (and I never read the short story, which may be superior), but I found "I Kiss Your Shadow" to be obvious, trite, and predictable, although well-acted by the above-named, as well as by Alfred Ryder as Donna's brother and Richard Anderson. John Newland was probably tapped to direct this because of his association with the show One Step Beyond.

Anderson also has a large part and is excellent in a controversial episode entitled "A Lion Walks Among Us." which is quite well-directed by Robert Altman. Luke Freeman (pop singer Fabian) is a handsome young psycho who murders a country store clerk and seemingly gets away with it. The person who could have placed him at the scene is D.A. Wagner's wife, Sally (Dianne Foster), an alcoholic who gave Luke a lift. but then ordered him out of the car when he got fresh. 

Young Psycho: Fabian

Luke has a different story, and the defense attorney, Oliver West (Philip Abbott), who is a friend of the Wagner's, has to make mincemeat of the poor woman on the witness stand, a situation that is devastating to her husband. Rhodes Reason also appears in this episode as the sheriff and is fine. As for Fabian, he gives a better performance than expected, and uses his sexy looks and charm to etch an interesting portrait of a nasty psychopath. Dianne Foster is outstanding, especially in the courtroom scenes, and the episode is a stand out. The climactic scene was originally to have been much more violent, but even in this form there was some protest from viewers. Considering the ending of the story, I assume there were repercussions in future episodes.

Verdict: I Kiss Your Shadow: *1/2. 
              A Lion Walks Among Us: ***.