Shotgun Slade (1960)

Shotgun Slade was a show that tried to take elements from a number of already popular shows and combine them into a single series, presumably with the hope of creating a kind of "greatest hits" version of a television show. At the time of its debut, westerns and detective crime dramas were all the rage, so the title character was a cowboy detective in the old west, based in Denver, Colorado. He carried business cards like the popular Paladin of Have Gun -- Will Travel but without the catchy tag line. He also carried a distinctive weapon, like Luke McCain of The Rifleman and Josh Randall of Wanted: Dead or Alive, a shotgun whose top barrel was that of a .32 rifle and whose bottom barrel was that of a 12-gauge shotgun. And the show had a jazzy score like crime dramas Peter Gunn and M Squad. Its strapping title character, played by Scott Brady, was also a cross between the formidable Chuck Connors and the flirtatious Richard Boone. But somehow all these winning features didn't add up to a big hit. The show ran for two seasons and never cracked the top 30 in the ratings.

Part of that failure can be attributed to being a syndicated program that was aired only by stations willing to pay the syndication fee and at whatever time the station chose to run it. In fact, when exactly the program aired is still something of a mystery. Though some episodes from calendar year 1960 have assigned dates according to whoever entered them at imdb.com, others have no date except the year of copyright. And a review of TV Guides from that year provides some apparently conflicting information. For example, imdb.com lists "Lost Gold," episode 38 from Season 1, as having aired on July 5, 1960, but the April 30 Western New England edition of TV Guide shows the following episode, "The Smell of Money," as having aired on May 3, a full two months earlier. It's possible that stations were able to air shows out of order, and it's very likely that they re-ran episodes months after their original showing. Either way, it's probably impossible to nail down a specific first air date for each episode, particularly since some editions of TV Guide list only the show name and not the episode being aired. Of course, other syndicated shows, most notably Sea Hunt, could find success with a haphazard air schedule, but Slade was also hampered by its derivative content.

The show's copy-cat features, however, were merely an attempt to draw in fans of the other shows they were borrowed from because they could be jettisoned for episodes at a time if they didn't fit into that week's narrative. Slade himself, though a detective by trade, would sometimes be hired for other work, such as in "The Spanish Box" where he is hired to transport a gift box to a Lodestone banker and only after the box is switched for one that turns out to be a booby-trap that kills the banker does Slade have to use his detective skills to save his own skin. In "Backtrack" he is hired to transport an embezzler to trial before getting bushwhacked and having to recapture the criminal and his stolen money that has been lifted by a band of train robbers. And he also is not always very good at his job. Again in "The Spanish Box" he fails to notice a man switch identical carpet bags with him after getting off a stagecoach. At the time of the switch, Slade is blithely looking down the road in the opposite direction instead of keeping his eye trained on the bag he is being paid to deliver. His eye for the ladies can also get him into trouble, such as when he is lured to the hotel room of a female stage performer, allowing her accomplice to steal a valuable Stradivarius that he has been hired to protect. These foibles make Slade a more human character, but they hardly inspire confidence in his abilities as a professional.

But what ultimately doomed the series was that the writing and plots just weren't different enough from the other shows being emulated to make Shotgun Slade stand out above the crowd. And with the disadvantages of irregular air times and lack of network backing, the show just couldn't stand up to the competition and folded after two seasons.

The jazz-western theme music and the scores for individual episodes were composed and arranged by Gerald Fried, whose biography can be found in the 1960 post for Riverboat. In an extensive 2-hour 2003 interview that can be viewed at emmtvlegends.org, Fried relates that the idea for a jazz-western score came about as a joke during a cocktail party attended by Fried and Revue Studios producer Jennings Lang. After someone tossed out the idea as a joke, Jennings latched onto it and Fried was given the task of bringing it to life. Coincidentally, Jack Marshall employed a similar approach the same year on his score for The Deputy. Fried's closing theme for Shotgun Slade was given a vocal treatment by Lang's wife, singer Monica Lewis at the end of the episode she starred in, "A Flower for Jenny." This vocal version was pressed on 45 rpm wax but released only as a "complimentary" promo, not for sale, on Bristol Records (Lewis' character in the episode is named Monica Bristol).

Like several other syndicated programs of the era, the DVD releases for Shotgun Slade are somewhat chaotic. There are essentially 15 episodes, all from the spring of 1960, available on various DVD releases by Echo Bridge (which offers all 15 in a 2-disc set), Timeless Media Group, and Alpha Video. There is also one episode from Season 2 available at this time on youtube.com. The print quality of these unremastered episodes is a bit rough.

 

 

 

 

 The Actors

Scott Brady

Born Gerard Kenneth Tierney in Brooklyn, NY, Brady was the son of the chief of New York's aqueduct police force. Brady, called Jerry by his family, grew up in Westchester County, NY and lettered in football, basketball, and track while in high school but dropped out to join the Navy during World War II. He worked as a naval aviation mechanic and earned a heavyweight boxing medal before being discharged in 1946. He moved to Los Angeles where his older brother Lawrence had found success in acting (another brother Edward also became an actor for a while before leaving the profession to become a building contractor). He found work as a lumberjack and taxi driver before being spotted by producer Hal Wallis and given a screen test, which did not go well. Given this setback, he enrolled in the Bliss-Hayden acting school, where he took vocal lessons to rid himself of his thick Brooklyn accent. By 1948 he began getting roles in lesser films like In This Corner before moving up to better fare such as He Walked by Night later that same year. Steady work continued through the 1950s, alternating between heavies and heroes in crime dramas and westerns such as The Model and the Marriage Broker, The Bloodhounds of Broadway, and the cult classic Johnny Guitar. In the mid-1950s he also began appearing in television drama anthologies such as The Ford Television Theatre, Lux Video Theatre, and Schlitz Playhouse before landing the title role in Shotgun Slade in 1959.

After Shotgun Slade's two-year run ended, he continued to work steadily throughout the 1960s and 1970s both in guest spots on TV and in feature films. In the biggest mistake of his life, he turned down the role of Archie Bunker for All in the Family but later appeared in four episodes on the program as the character Joe Foley. In 1973 he scored a recurring role as Vinnie on Police Story, which ran for four years, as well as five appearances on The Rockford Files and significant roles in the films The China Syndrome and Gremlins. Once linked to actresses Dorothy Malone and Gwen Verdon, Brady finally married non-actress Mary Tirony at age 43 in 1967. In 1957 he and roommate/publicist Desmond Slattery were arrested on a narcotics charge when police found a single marijuana butt in their apartment after Brady brought back two women he had met in Hollywood, one of whom turned out to be a police informant. Brady maintained that the arrest was a sting and the charges were later dropped. But in 1963 he was barred from betting on horse races in New York for his association with known bookmakers. In 1981 he collapsed from what was determined to be pulmonary fibrosis and thereafter had to use an oxygen tank. He died four years later at the age of 60 on April 16, 1985.

Notable Guest Stars

Season 1, Episode 23, "The Deadly Key": Vito Scotti (shown on the left, played Jose on The Deputy, Capt. Gaspar Fomento on The Flying Nun, Gino on To Rome With Love, and Mr. Velasquez on Barefoot in the Park) plays fortune hunter Bernard Rejon. Mort Mills (Marshal Frank Tallman on Man Without a Gun, Sgt. Ben Landro on Perry Mason, and Sheriff Fred Madden on The Big Valley) plays adversary Ben Wesley. Ann Robinson (Queen Juliandra on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger and Helen Watkins on Fury) plays Wesley's boss Miss Baxter.

Season 1, Episode 25, "Donna Juanita": Ray Montgomery (Prof. Howard Ogden on Ramar of the Jungle) plays general store owner Ed Raff. Carlos Romero (Rico Rodriguez on Wichita Town, Romero Serrano on Zorro, and Carlo Agretti on Falcon Crest) plays Donna Juanita's right-hand man Mario Gallegos. Howard Caine (Schaab on The Californians and Maj. Wolfgang Hochstetter on Hogan's Heroes) plays syndicate shareholder Pedro.

Season 1, Episode 26, "The Spanish Box": George Kennedy (shown on the right, starred in Charade, The Sons of Katie Elder, The Dirty Dozen, Cool Hand Luke, and The Naked Gun and played MP Sgt. Kennedy on The Phil Silvers Show, Father Samuel Cavanuagh on Sarge, Bumper Morgan on The Blue Knight, and Carter McKay on Dallas) plays bar-room brawler Tex. Donald Murphy (Ben Cabot on The Loretta Young Show) plays mine-stealer Hal Bates. Michael Hinn (Luke Cummings on Boots and Saddles) plays Lodestone Sheriff Fred Hadley.

Season 1, Episode 27, "The Golden Tunnel": Mary Webster (Rachel Verinder on The Moonstone, Jill Reed on Emergency-Ward 10, Anna on Circus, and Sarah Onedin on The Onedin Line) plays gold baron's wife Cora Davis. Dean Harens (SAC Bryan Durant on The F.B.I.) plays her husband's nephew Jim Palmer. Richard Bull (Thatcher on Nichols and Neels Oleson on Little House on the Prairie) plays an unnamed doctor.

Season 1, Episode 28, "A Flower for Jenny": Dianne Foster (starred in Night Passage, The Last Hurrah, and The Deep Six) plays diva singer Jenny Dupre. Robert McQueeney (Conley Wright on The Gallant Men) plays her accompanist Eddie Howard. Monica Lewis (shown on the left, popular singer who starred in Excuse My Dust, Affair With a Stranger, and The D.I.) plays Deadwood dance-hall singer Monica Bristol. Steve Darrell (Sheriff Hal Humphrey on Tales of Wells Fargo) plays the Deadwood marshal.

Season 1, Episode 29, "The Fabulous Fiddle": Ludwig Stossel (appeared in Casablanca, Kings Row, and Pride of the Yankees and played Peter Van Dyne on Ramar of the Jungle and Anton Kovac on Man With a Camera) plays concert violinist Professor Maximillian. Paul Picerni (Agent Lee Hobson on The Untouchables) plays his manager Quinn.

Season 1, Episode 30, "Crossed Guns": King Calder (Lt. Gray on Martin Kane) plays Grover's Bend Marshal Prescott. Sue Ane Langdon (shown on the right, played Kitty Marsh on Bachelor Father, Lillian Nuvo on Arnie, Rosie on Grandpa Goes to Washington, and Darlene on When the Whistle Blows) plays his daughter Lydia. Francis X. Bushman (starred in Romeo and Juliet (1916), Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ, Dick Tracy (1937), Sabrina, and The Phantom Planet) plays newspaper publisher Eckhart.

Season 1, Episode 31, "Sudden Death": Jeanne Cooper (Grace Douglas on Bracken's World and Katherine Chancellor Murphy on The Young and the Restless) plays casino hostess Sally Claymore. Robert Bray (Simon Kane on Stagecoach West and Corey Stuart on Lassie) plays her boyfriend Henry Timmons. Beverly Tyler (starred in The Fireball, The Cimarron Kid, and Voodoo Island) plays fellow hostess Peaches. Alan Dexter (Frank Ferguson on Days of Our Lives) plays casino croupier Wilson. Victor Sen Yung (Cousin Charlie Fong on Bachelor Father and Hop Sing on Bonanza) plays Chinese artist Willy Sing.

Season 1, Episode 32, "Ring of Death": Richard Crane (Rocky Jones on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger Dick Preston on Commando Cody, Sky Marshal of the Universe, and Lt. Gene Plehn on Surfside 6) plays trail boss Joe Keith. Bethel Leslie (appeared in 15 episodes of The Richard Boone Show and played Claudia Conner on All My Children and Ethel Crawford on One Life to Live) plays his fiance Kate Heinie. H.M. Wynant (Frosty on Batman and Ed Chapman on Dallas) plays Kate's real boyfriend Len Sterling. Richard Hale (starred in Abilene Town, Kim, San Antone, Red Garters, and To Kill a Mockingbird) plays Len's father Pike. Denver Pyle (shown on the left, played Ben Thompson on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp, Grandpa Tarleton on Tammy, Briscoe Darling on The Andy Griffith Show, Buck Webb on The Doris Day Show, Mad Jack on The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, and Uncle Jesse on The Dukes of Hazzard) plays local lawman Marshal Berry.

Season 1, Episode 33, "Backtrack": King Donovan (Roger Baker on The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show and Harvey Helm on The Bob Cummings Show) plays embezzler Jason Baxter. Connie Hines (Carol Post on Mister Ed) plays train robber Katy Conroy. Wesley Lau (Lt. Andy Anderson on Perry Mason and Master Sgt. Jiggs on The Time Tunnel) plays train robber Jeb.

Season 1, Episode 35, "Killer's Brand": Ruta Lee (shown on the right, appeared in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Funny Face, and Witness for the Prosecution and played Rona on 1st and Ten: The Championship and Pauline Spencer on Coming of Age) plays ranch owner Lily Cody. Dean Fredericks (Kaseem in Jungle Jim, Komawi in The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, and Lt. Col. Steve Canyon in Steve Canyon) plays her suitor Vance. Robert Anderson (Park Street, Jr. on The Court of Last Resort and Aeneas MacLinahan on Wichita Town) plays rival rancher Steve Willis. Orville Sherman (Mr. Feeney on Buckskin, Wib Smith on Gunsmoke, and Tupper on Daniel Boone) plays former employee Harry Potter. Stafford Repp (Chief O'Hara on Batman) plays the local marshal.

Season 1, Episode 36, "A Flower on Boot Hill": Willie Roerick (Richard Gavin on Another World and Henry Chamberlain on Guiding Light) plays widower Dr. John Brighton. Kathie Browne (Angie Dow on Hondo and was Darren McGavin's second wife) plays Susan Bennett, daughter of the general store owner. Sherman Sanders (appeared as a square dance caller in 17 feature films and an episode of The Andy Griffith Show) plays hotel clerk Sam. Paul Langton (Leslie Harrington on Peyton Place) plays an escaped bank robber.

Season 1, Episode 37, "The Charcoal Bullet": Frank Ferguson (shown on the left, played Gus Broeberg on My Friend Flicka, Eli Carson on Peyton Place, and Dr. Barton Stuart on Petticoat Junction) plays the Spring Oak sheriff. Robert F. Simon (Dave Tabak on Saints and Sinners, Gen. Alfred Terry on Custer, Frank Stephens on Bewitched, Uncle Everett McPherson on Nancy, Capt. Rudy Olsen on The Streets of San Francisco, and J. Jonah Jameson on The Amazing Spiderman) plays bank president Bob Baston. Ned Glass (MSgt. Andy Pendleton on The Phil Silvers Show, Sol Cooper on Julia, and Uncle Moe Plotnick on Bridget Loves Bernie) plays barfly artist Eli Gates. Michael Fox (Coroner George McLeod on Burke's Law, Amos Fedders on Falcon Crest, Saul Feinberg on The Bold and the Beautiful, and appeared 25 times as autopsy surgeons and various other medical witnesses on Perry Mason) plays physician Dr. Miller.

Season 1, Episode 38, "Lost Gold": Bing Russell (Deputy Clem Foster on Bonanza) plays undercover agent Marshal Benton. Alan Hale, Jr. (Biff Baker on Biff Baker U.S.A., Casey Jones on Casey Jones, Sculley on The Texan, and The Skipper on Gilligan's Island) plays Gold Run Sheriff Sloan. Ted de Corsia (Police Chief Hagedorn on Steve Canyon) plays Gold Run Mining boss Ben Douglas. Carleton Young (starred in Dick Tracy (1937), The Brigand, Thunderhead - Son of Flicka, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and played Harry Steeger on The Court of Last Resort) plays undercover investigator Ward. Stacy Keach, Sr. (Carlson on Get Smart) plays mining company employee Hartley.

Season 1, Episode 39, "The Smell of Money": Robert H. Harris (shown on the right, played Jake Goldberg on Molly and Raymond Schindler on The Court of Last Resort) plays Willow Ridge banker Samuel Matson. John Stephenson (Roger Crutcher on The People's Choice, was the narrator on Dragnet 1967, and did the voices for Mr. Slate on The Flintstones, Fancy-Fancy on Top Cat, Dr. Benton C. Quest on Jonny Quest and Luke and Blubber Bear on Wacky Races, to name but a few) plays general store owner Charlie Cummings. Stuart Randall (Sheriff Art Sampson on Cimarron City, Al Livermore on Lassie, and Sheriff Mort Corey on Laramie) plays Willow Ridge Sheriff Walters.

Season 2, Episode 10, "The Laughing Widow": Allison Hayes (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Bat Masterson) plays supposed widow Lorna Parker. H.M. Wynant (see "Ring of Death" above) plays her companion Chris. Paul Baxley (stunt coordinator on Riverboat, The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, T.H.E. Cat, Wonder Woman, and The Dukes of Hazzard) plays their gunman Paul. Ron Hayes (see the biography section for the 1960 post on BatMasterson) plays Pinewood deputy Bob McMiller. Robert J. Wilke (appeared in Best of the Badmen, High Noon, The Far Country, and Night Passage and played Capt. Mendoza on Zorro) plays Pinewood resident Brannagan.

One Step Beyond (1960)

When it comes to 1960s TV series dealing with the strange and paranormal, most viewers remember only The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. But both of these series were preceded by Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, which debuted in January 1959, a full 9 months before The Twilight Zone. One Step Beyond also distinguished itself by basing its stories on actual reported events. Whereas The Twilight Zone was creator Rod Serling's running commentary on human folly in the form of strange, thought-provoking fables, One Step Beyond was an argument in favor of the unexplained at the dawn of the space age, a time when science was seen as a powerful tool for creating a utopian future. One Step Beyond's message was that science can't explain or account for everything, that there are still phenomena that defy reason and scientifically proven explanation.

The show was created by Merwin Gerard, who had first worked with host and director John Newland on the drama anthology series Robert Montgomery Presents. Producer Collier Young was also part of the team who conceived the series and managed it through its 3-year run. According to John Kenneth Muir's interview with Newland, the series was originally going to be called Fantasy and would rotate each week between horror, fantasy, science fiction, and so on, but the creators felt that the other genres had already been covered, so they turned their attention to the paranormal. Newland was an established TV actor and director and his role as the face of the series, the one personality that appeared each week introducing and summarizing each episode, was key in selling the series to ABC. Though Newland admits in his interview with Muir that he himself never had a paranormal experience, the show was very careful to underscore its connection to reality, as Muir notes in his book An Analytical Guide to Television's One Step Beyond, 1959-1961, but did so in a very nuanced way:

"In the case of One Step Beyond, it never made the claim that its dramatizations were 'real' in-and-of-themselves or that it was a documentary. Instead, it argued that its dramatizations were based in fact and that the core concept of these dramatizations (telepathy, precognition, alien abduction, Bigfoot) were valid and worthy of further study."

Newland as narrator would often admit to the audience that the events depicted could neither be proven nor disproven, suggesting, though not saying explicitly, that they were possible. The show made itself more believable by using a light touch, both in avoiding exaggerated claims of veracity and in staying away from what Newland called "phantasmagoric" content, unlike The Twilight Zone. The series also attempted to convince viewers by occasionally featuring the real-life subjects of its dramas at the end of episodes. The real Peter Hurkos is brought on camera at the end of his two-part story, "The Peter Hurkos Story, Part 2" (April 26, 1960), not to swear that the events depicted are true, but to say that he would continue to make himself available for any testing or analysis of his psychic abilities. And the real Margaret North is shown in her wheelchair at the end of "Tidalwave" (August 30, 1960) and asked by Newland if she is a believer in psychic miracles after being saved from a Hawaiian tidal wave by a deaf man who "heard" her calls for help but did not hear the warning sirens blaring from loudspeakers as he drove across the island. Newland tells her he is a believer, too, making it clear that the goal of the series is to convert the viewing audience as well.

Besides these testimonials and Newland's reasonable manner in presenting these fantastic stories, the series also attempts to reassure viewers by showing cases where the paranormal intervenes in people's lives for their benefit rather than their detriment, in contrast to the more recent series that Muir says was influenced by One Step Beyond--The X-Files--which focuses on creepy, threatening, and terrifying examples of paranormal activity. In the aforementioned "Tidalwave," invalid Margaret North is rescued from an impending tidalwave by a man who hears her despite being unable to hear. In "The Peter Hurkos Story, Part 2" Hurkos uses his psychic abilities to help the police catch a serial killer. In "Earthquake" (January 12, 1960), a hotel bellman has visions of the coming 1906 San Francisco earthquake and though he himself does not survive and most who hear his warnings think he is crazy, an elderly couple from Sicily heed his words and are saved when they relocate outside the city before the quake hits. In "Who Are You?" (February 2, 1960) a young girl stricken with scarlet fever overcomes the illness but believes she is another girl from a nearby town who recently drowned; however, her mistaken identity helps the grieving mother of the drowned girl come back to reality and move on with her life. Once the mother adjusts to her daughter's death, the mistaken girl returns to her real identity, too. In "The Trap" (November 15, 1960) lifelong Chicago resident Dom DiNovio begins to experience the sensations of his unknown identical twin Fred Gibbs, who is trapped by a beam in an abandoned mine outside Reno. DiNovio's apparently incoherent babbling identifies the name of Gibbs' lawyer and wife, who are contacted just in time for them to find and rescue Gibbs. And in "Rendezvous" (December 27, 1960) widow Kate Maxwell's dead war hero husband appears beside her in a park when she is about to be attacked by a serial stalker.

Though the overwhelming majority of 1960 episodes depict the paranormal intervening on the side of justice or beneficence, there are a few exceptions to this theme, such as the tale of alien abduction "Encounter" (April 12, 1960) in which a mining company scout leaves behind a terror-filled last communication as he is approached by what is assumed to be an alien spacecraft, then vanishes and is found in the desert hundreds of miles beyond where he could have flown given the amount of fuel in his plane. The vanished scout tells the doctor who finds him that he had been kidnapped but dies of shock without saying where he had been for the 4 days he had gone missing. The doctor says that he had been in the desert only about 30 minutes before being found, leaving us to conclude that the scout had been abducted by aliens without offering us a reassuring alternative explanation. In "The Forests of the Night" (January 19, 1960) three hunters play an ancient Chinese game to while away the hours during a rainstorm, only to have one of them apparently turn into a leopard and then get shot by another group of hunters. And in "I Saw You Tomorrow" (April 5, 1960) American Donald Ainsley Stuart foresees the brutal murder of a woman by her husband while visiting a British estate but cannot stop it because the murder doesn't happen until a year after he leaves. However, more often than not, paranormal intervention is a force for good and a reason to believe in its existence for those looking to be rescued.

 

Despite the show's success and enthusiastic support by its sponsor Alcoa, Newland and Gerard both felt that it had run its course after three seasons and 96 episodes. As Muir documents, Gerard once conceded in an interview that there are really only about 15 different paranormal stories, meaning that the series had repackaged its repertoire several times over just to make it through its three seasons. Despite this, the show was resurrected in 1978 with the original producers and writers, but Newland admitted that the quality was inferior, and it lasted only a single season.

The theme and the scores for most episodes were composed by Harry Lubin. Lubin began his musical career at age 19 playing piano for singer Feodor Chaliapin before moving on to become the musical director at the Irving Palace Theatre in New York the following year. By the late 1930s he had moved over to weekly radio programs, first for NBC, then the Advertisers Broadcasting Company. In the early 1950s he progressed to television, first with The Pinky Lee Show, which remained on the air until 1953. He was then selected as musical director for The Loretta Young Show, which is where he first met John Newland and thus the connection for One Step Beyond. Due to the success of his work on One Step Beyond, Lubin was hired to score the second season of The Outer Limits. He died July 21, 1977 at the age of 71.

The DVD releases for One Stop Beyond are a bit of a mess. The complete first season, all of whose episodes aired in 1959, has been released by Paramount Studios. Many episodes for Seasons 2 and 3 have been released by different companies. Mill Creek has released a 4-disc collection containing 50 episodes scattered through the series' three seasons. Echo Bridge has also released a 4-disc collection containing 20 episodes. And Alpha Home Video has released 13 single discs each containing 4 episodes again scattered amongst the three seasons. There are also many episodes available for viewing on youtube.com and hulu.com. Using the Mill Creek DVD set and supplementing it with episodes found online, I was able to view 36 of the 38 episodes that aired in 1960. The video quality from all three of these sources (Mill Creek, youtube, and hulu) is fairly poor and the episodes are sometimes slightly truncated.

The Actors

John Newland

Born in Cincinnati, Newland began his theatrical career in Chicago, where he performed with a vaudeville group called The Vikings who wore gold capes. After moving to New York, he landed a job with Milton Berle's outfit, performing at various vaudeville houses. After serving in the Army Air Force in World War II, he began his film career in 1946 but considered it a failure after landing only small parts and turned to television by the early 1950s. He had particular success on drama anthology series, making multiple appearances on shows such as The Philco-Goodyear Televison Playhouse, Kraft Theatre, and 37 appearances on Robert Montgomery Presents. His work was good enough to garner an Emmy nomination in 1953. It was while working on the latter series that he also moved to the other side of the camera and took up directing, helming 15 episodes of the anthology before going on to do double duty and acting on The Loretta Young Show. This experience served him well when he was recruited by One Step Beyond creator and friend Merwin Gerard to be both host and director for the series.

After One Step Beyond completed its 3-year run in 1961, Newland's acting career tapered considerably, appearing in only a couple of episodes of Thriller and Dr. Kildare before resurfacing as the host of an attempted comeback for One Step Beyond titled The Next Step Beyond in 1978. But his directorial career flourished: He went on to direct multiple episodes of Thriller, Dr. Kildare, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Bachelor Father, Peyton Place, The Man Who Never Was (for which he also wrote), Harry O, Police Woman, and Wonder Woman, with his last directorial effort being a 1983 episode of Whiz Kids. He passed away January 10, 2000 at the age of 82.

 Notable Guest Stars

Season 2, Episode 17, "Earthquake": David Opatoshu (appeared in Cimarron, Exodus, and Torn Curtain and played Fred Kirsh on Dr. Kildare) plays bellman Gerald Perkins. Olan Soule (shown on the right, played Aristotle "Tut" Jones on Captain Midnight, Ray Pinker on Dragnet (1952-59), and Fred Springer on Arnie) plays hotel waiter Harris. Herb Vigran (Judge Brooker on Gunsmoke) plays a grocery delivery man.

Season 2, Episode 18, "The Forests of the Night": Mark Roberts (appeared in Gilda, It's a Wonderful Life, and Onionhead and played Hildy Johnson on Front Page and Bob and Bill Brannagan on The Brothers Brannagan) plays hunting party member Pete Rankin. Douglas Dick (Carl Herrick on Waterfront) plays hunting party member Alec Brown.

Season 2, Episode 19, "Call From Tomorrow": Arthur Franz (starred in Flight to Mars, The Member of the Wedding, and The Caine Mutiny) plays stage director Kevin Stacy. Margaret Phillips (prominent Welsh stage actress who appeared in A Life of Her Own and The Nun's Story) plays his actress wife Elena. Murvyn Vye (Lionel on The Bob Cummings Show) plays an actor cast as Othello.

Season 2, Episode 20, "Who Are You?": Anna Lee (shown on the left, starred in King Solomon's Mines, How Green Was My Valley, Flying Tigers, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The Sound of Music, and In Like Flint and played Lila Quartermaine on General Hospital) plays grieving mother Helen Mason. Philip Burneuf (Dr. Wickens on Dr. Kildare) plays her husband Carl. Jacqueline DeWit (Ruth Thompson on The Ray Milland Show) plays her caretaker Julia. Mike Keene (Capt. Dan Coffin on Harbormaster) plays her doctor. Reba Waters (Francesca on Peck's Bad Girl) plays 12-year-old scarlet fever patient Laurie Warren. Ross Elliott (Freddie the director on The Jack Benny Program and Sheriff Abbott on The Virginian) plays her father George. Jon Lormer (Harry Tate on Lawman, various autopsy surgeons and medical examiners in 12 episodes of Perry Mason, and Judge Irwin A. Chester on Peyton Place) plays hay wagon driver Joe Fisher. King Calder (Lt. Gray on Martin Kane) plays Police Chief Thompson.

Season 2, Episode 21, "The Day the World Wept: The Lincoln Story": Jeanne Bates (Nurse Wills on Ben Casey) plays Mary Todd Lincoln. Justice Watson (J.W. Harrington on Holiday Lodge) plays Elgin, PA resident Mr. Dayton. Norman Leavitt (Ralph on Trackdown) plays church sextant Noah. Robert Carson (Mr. Maddis on The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show) plays an army sergeant.

Season 2, Episode 22, "The Lovers": John Beal (appeared in Les Miserables (1935), Madame X, Amityville 3-D, and The Firm, and played Judge Vail on Dark Shadows) plays retired Viennese postman Otto Becher. Vanessa Brown (appeared in The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The Secret of St. Ives, The Heiress, and Tarzan and the Slave Girl and played Liz Cooper on My Favorite Husband) plays coffee shop waitress Elsa Schuldorf. Sig Ruman (starred in Ninotchka,  A Night at the Opera, To Be or Not to Be, House of Frankenstein, and Stalag 17) plays her uncle Franz. Irene Tedrow (Mrs. Elkins on Dennis the Menace) plays psychoanalyst Dr. J.H. Sesselschreiber.

Season 2, Episode 23, "Vanishing Point": Edward Binns (shown on the right, starred in 12 Angry Men, North by Northwest, Heller in Pink Tights, and Judgment at Nuremberg and played Roy Brenner on Brenner and Wally Powers on It Takes a Thief) plays suspected wife murderer Fred Graham. Fredd Wayne (Sgt. Bill Hollis on Code 3) plays his nemesis Police Lt. Barnes. Byron Foulger (Mr. Nash on Captain Nice and Wendell Gibbs on Petticoat Junction) plays a judge. Amzie Strickland (Julia Mobey on Carter Country) plays vanished school teacher Agatha Dunlap.

Season 2, Episode 24, "The Mask": Wesley Lau (Lt. Andy Anderson on Perry Mason and Master Sgt. Jiggs on The Time Tunnel) plays rescued Air Force pilot Lt. Harold Wilenski. Luis Van Rooten (appeared in To the Ends of the Earth, The Secret of St. Ives, Detective Story, and Operation Eichmann, was the voice of the King and the Grand Duke in Cinderella, and played Knobby Walsh on The Joe Palooka Story) plays Egyptologist Dr. Brimley.

Season 2, Episode 25, "The Haunting": Ronald Howard (shown on the left, played Sherlock Holmes on Sherlock Holmes, Stephen Britten on Mary Britten, M.D., Wing Commander Hayes on Cowboy in Africa, and Dr. John Dartington on The Lotus Eaters) plays groom-to-be Colin Chandler. Christine White (Abigail Adams on Ichabod and Me) plays his fiance Nancy Lloyd. Veronica Cartwright (starred in The Birds, The Children's Hour, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), Alien, The Right Stuff, and The Witches of Eastwick and played Jemima Boone on Daniel Boone, Molly Hark on Tanner '88, A.D.A. Margaret Flanagan on L.A. Law, Cassandra Spender on The X-Files, Valerie Shenkman on Invasion, and Bun Waverly on Eastwick) plays her cousin Gillian. Cyril Delevanti (Lucious Coin on Jefferson Drum) plays the wedding pianist.

Season 2, Episode 26, "The Explorer": Gregory Morton (shown on the right, played Mr. Wainwright on Peyton Place and Walter Williams on Ben Casey) plays archaeologist Dr. Einar Hanson. Bert Convy (starred in Bucket of Blood, Semi-Tough, and The Cannonball Run and played Lt. Steve Ostrowski on The Snoop Sisters and Neil Townsend on It's Not Easy) plays fellow explorer Prof. Andersson. Ralph Helfer (animal supervisor and handler on countless TV series and movies such as Frontier Circus, Honey West, Tarzan, Daktari, and Gentle Ben) plays their guide Hassim. Jeremy Slate (starred in The Sons of Katie Elder, The Devil's Brigade, and True Grit and played Larry Lahr on The Aquanauts) plays mental explorer Eric Borgner.

Season 2, Episode 27, "The Clown": Yvette Mimeaux (shown on the left, starred in The Time Machine, Where the Boys Are, and Toys in the Attic and played Vanessa Smith on The Most Deadly Game and Shane Bradley on Berrenger's) plays young wife Nonnie Regan. Christopher Dark (Sgt. Al Zavala on Code 3) plays her jealous husband Tom. Mickey Shaughnessy (appeared in From Here to Eternity, Designing Woman, Jailhouse Rock, Don't Go Near the Water, Sex Kittens Go to College, College Confidential, and The Boatniks) plays mute clown Pippo. James Nolan (Inspector Roper on Dante) plays the carnival boss. Paul "Mousie" Garner (Mousie on Surfside 6) plays a carnival performer.

Season 2, Episode 28, "I Saw You Tomorrow": Rosemary Murphy (Margaret Blumenthal on Lucas Tanner) plays British estate hostess Ellie Pelston. Rolfe Sedan (Mr. Beasley the Postman on The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show and Mr. Briggs the Postman on The Addams Family) plays butler.

Season 2, Episode 29, "Encounter": Robert Douglas (starred in The Fountainhead, Kim, Ivanhoe, and Helen of Troy and directed multiple episodes of 77 Sunset Strip, Surfside 6, 12 O'Clock High, and The F.B.I.) plays mining company manager Paul McCord. Michael Forest (starred in Ski Troop Attack, Atlas, and The Glory Guys and was the voice of Capt. Dorai on Street Fighter II: V and Olympus on Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue) plays terrain expert Jacques Boutier. Barbara Stuart (shown on the right, played Bessie on The Great Gildersleeve, Alice on Pete and Gladys, Bunny on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., Peggy Ferguson on The McLean Stevenson Show, Marianne Danzig on Our Family Honor, and Alice on Huff) plays the wife of a missing scout Ellen Rand. Francis de Sales (Lt. Bill Weigand on Mr. & Mrs. North, Ralph Dobson on The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet, Sheriff Maddox on Two Faces West, and Rusty Lincoln on Days of Our Lives) plays physician Dr. Norton.

Season 2, Episode 30, "The Peter Hurkos Story, Part 1": Albert Salmi (Yadkin on Daniel Boone and Pete Ritter on Petrocelli) plays Dutch underground agent Peter Hurkos. John Banner (shown on the left, played Bovaro on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, Hans on The Baileys of Balboa, Sgt. Hans Georg Schultz on Hogan's Heroes, and Uncle Latzi on The Chicago Teddy Bears) plays physician Dr. Molhaus.

Season 2, Episode 31, "The Peter Hurkos Story, Part 2": Albert Salmi (See "The Peter Hurkos Story, Part 1" above) returns as Peter Hurkos. Alf Kjellin (directed multiple episodes of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Dr. Kildare, I Spy, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., The Waltons, and Dynasty) plays research scientist Dr. Lars Lindstrom. Justice Watson (see "The Day the World Wept: The Lincoln Story" above) plays Police Capt. Kibbe. Andrew Prine (starred in The Miracle Worker, The Devil's Brigade, Bandolero!, and Chisum and played Andy Guthrie on The Wide Country, Dr. Roger Helvick on Dr. Kildare, Timothy Pride on The Road West, Dan Costello on W.E.B., and Wayne/Wyatt Donnelly on Weird Science) plays serial killer Walter Bird.

Season 2, Episode 32, "Delia": Lee Phillips (starred in Peyton Place and The Hunters, and played Ellery Queen on The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen; also directed 60 episodes of The Andy Griffith Show and multiple episodes of Peyton Place, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The Doris Day Show, and The Waltons) plays lovesick rich man Philip Wilson. Murray Matheson (Felix Mulholland on Banacek) plays British beach bum Bentley.

Season 2, Episode 33, "The Visitor": Joan Fontaine (shown on the right, starred in Gunga Din, The Women, Rebecca, Suspicion, Ivanhoe, Jane Eyre, and Tender Is the Night and played Paige Williams on Ryan's Hope) plays divorce seeker Ellen Grayson. Warren Beatty (starred in Splendor in the Grass, All Fall Down, Bonnie and Clyde, Shampoo, Heaven Can Wait, Reds, and Dick Tracy and played Milton Armitage on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis) plays her husband Harry. 

Season 2, Episode 34, "Gypsy": Robert Blake (shown on the left, played Mickey in over 30 Our Gang shorts and Little Beaver in 23 westerns, starred in Black Rose, Pork Chop Hill, The Purple Gang, In Cold Blood, Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here, and Electra Glide in Blue, and played Det. Tony Baretta on Baretta and Father Noah Rivers on Hell Town) plays young convict Tom. Johnny Seven (Lt. Carl Reese on Ironside) plays convict Gypsy. Murvyn Vye (see "Call From Tomorrow" above) plays convict Ape. John Kellogg (Jack Chandler on Peyton Place) plays convict Folger. Addison Richards (starred in Boys Town, They Made Her a Spy, Flying Tigers, and The Deerslayer and played Doc Calhoun on Trackdown and Doc Landy on The Deputy) plays the prison warden. Kelly Thordsen (Colorado Charlie on Yancy Derringer) plays a prison gate guard.

Season 2, Episode 35, "Contact": Alexander Lockwood (Judge Baker on Sam Benedict) plays physician Dr.  Otis.

Season 2, Episode 36, "The Lonely Room": Fabrizio Mioni (appeared in Hercules, Get Yourself a College Girl, Girl Happy, and The Venetian Affair) plays lovesick young man Henri Lamont. Carl Esmond (starred in Little Men, Lover Come Back (1946), and Walk a Crooked Mile) plays his landlord Emile. Maurice Marsac (Maurice La Blanche on Our Miss Brooks and Maurice on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays a restaurant maitre 'd.

Season 2, Episode 37, "House of the Dead": Mario Alcalde (Yellow Hawk on The Texan and Chuck Atwell on Peyton Place) plays British officer Lt. Harry Fraser. Laya Raki (Halima on Crane) plays his girlfriend Mai Ling. James Hong (Barry Chan on The New Adventures of Charlie Chan, Frank Chen on Jigsaw John, and Doctor Chen Ling on Dynasty) plays a Hong Kong tour guide. Beal Wong (Grandpa Ling on Bachelor Father) plays a prophetic blind man.

Season 2, Episode 38, "Goodbye, Grandpa": Anna Karen (Mrs. Chernak on Peyton Place) plays poor single mother Nan Wylie. Candy Moore (Angie on The Donna Reed Show and Chris Carmichael on The Lucy Show) plays her daughter Callie.

Season 2, Episode 39, "The Storm": Lee Bergere (George on Hot L Baltimore and Joseph Anders on Dynasty) plays American art follower Joe Bernheim. Donald Foster (Herbert Johnson on Hazel) plays a museum curator. Danny Bravo (the voice of Hadji on Jonny Quest) plays Mexican boy Juanito.

Season 3, Episode 1, "Tidalwave": Dennis Patrick (Paul Stoddard on Dark Shadows and Vaughn Leland on Dallas) plays Navy project engineer Emmett North. William Schallert (see the biography section for the 1960 post of The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis) plays his colleague Dick Webb. Ted Knight (shown on the right, played Ted Baxter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Roger Dennis on The Ted Knight Show, and Henry Rush on Too Close for Comfort) plays civil defense worker Woodruff. Cliff Hall (Horatio Frisby on Johnny Jupiter and the Moose Lodge president on The Jackie Gleason Show and The Honeymooners) plays retired military commander Thomas A. Powers.

Season 3, Episode 2, "Anniversary of a Murder": Harry Townes (shown on the left, starred in The Brothers Karamazov, Screaming Mimi, and Sanctuary) plays adulterous businessman Gerald Simms. Randy Stuart (shown on the right, see the biography section for the 1960 post of The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays his paramour Frances Hiller. Amzie Strickland (see "Vanishing Point" above) plays his secretary Miss Wells. Alexander Lockwood (see "Contact" above) plays his boss Mr. Dickenson. James Maloney (Jim on 21 Beacon Street) plays visiting business contact Tom Cruickshank.

Season 3, Episode 3, "The Death Waltz": Elizabeth Montgomery (Samantha Stephens on Bewitched) plays fickle frontier femme fatale Lillie Clarke. Ed Prentiss (Carl Jensen on The Virginian) plays her father Col. William Clarke. Robert Sampson (Sgt. Walsh on Steve Canyon, Father Mike Fitzgerald on Bridget Love Bernie, and Sheriff Turk Tobias on Falcon Crest) plays one of her suitors Lt. Eustace Fairchild.

Season 3, Episode 5, "If You See Sally": Anne Whitfield (Barbara Harris on Days of Our Lives) plays runaway daughter Sally Ellis. Pat McCaffrie (Chuck Forrest on Bachelor Father) plays a truck driver. Bernard Kates (Lalley on The Asphalt Jungle) plays a bus driver.

Season 3, Episode 6, "Moment of Hate": Linda Lawson (shown on the right, played Renee on Adventures in Paradise, Pat Perry on Don't Call Me Charlie, and Laura Fremont on Ben Casey) plays fashion house assistant designer Joyce Chapman. John Kellogg (see "Gypsy" above) plays physician Dr. Llewellyn. 

Season 3, Episode 7, "To Know the End": Alexander Davion (Phoebus de Chateaupers on The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Chief Det. Insp. David Keen on Gideon, C.I.D.) plays British Army Capt. Harry MacDougall. Noel Drayton (Mr. Hardcastle on Family Affair) plays a British Army investigator.

 

Season 3, Episode 8, "The Trap": Mike Kellin (shown on the left, appeared in At War With the Army, The Wackiest Ship in the Army, The Boston Strangler, and Midnight Express and played C.P.O. Willie Miller on The Wackiest Ship in the Army) plays Chicago husband Dominic DiNovio. Ruth Storey (Sarah Meyer on 87th Precinct) plays his wife Florence. Bert Remsen (Detective Lawrence on Peyton Place, Mr. Pell on Gibbsville, Mario on It's a Living, and Jack Crager on Dynasty)  plays a hospital priest. Francis de Sales (see "Encounter" above) plays Reno lawyer Sam Harkness. Jeanne Bates (see "The Day the World Wept: The Lincoln Story" above) plays his client's wife Edna Gibbs.

Season 3, Episode 9, "The Voice": Robert Lansing (Det. Steve Carella on 87th Precinct, Gen. Frank Savage on 12 O'Clock High, Peter Murphy/Frank Wainwright on The Man Who Never Was, Lt. Jack Curtis on Automan, Control on The Equalizer, and Paul Blaisdell on Kung Fu: The Legend Continues) plays Providence newspaper reporter Jared Corning. Carl Benton Reid (starred in The Little Foxes, In a Lonely Place, Lorna Doone, and The Left Hand of God and played The Man on Burke's Law) plays Providence resident Brian Christopher. Luana Anders (starred in Reform School Girl, Dementia 13, and The Last Detail) plays the owner of a talking raccoon Joan Goss. Les Tremayne (starred in The War of the Worlds (1953), The Story of Ruth, The Slime People, and The Fortune Cookie and played Inspector Richard Queen in The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen) plays investigator Dr. Grimes.

Season 3, Episode 10, "The Promise": William Shatner (starred in The Brothers Karamazov, Judgment at Nuremberg, Kingdom of the Spiders, and The Kidnapping of the President and played David Koster on For the People, Dr. Carl Noyes on Dr, Kildare, Capt. James T. Kirk on Star Trek, Jeff Cable on Barbary Coast, Sgt. T.J. Hooker on T.J. Hooker, Walter H. Bascom on TekWar, Denny Crane on The Practice and Boston Legal, and Dr. Edison Milford Goodson III on $#*! My Dad Says) plays former Nazi bomb defuser Carl Bremer. Lester Matthews (Sir Dennis Nayland Smith on The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu and Fleming Pendleton on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays a British civil defense official.

Season 3, Episode 11, "Tonight at 12:17": Peggy Ann Garner (appeared in The Pied Piper, Jane Eyre, Daisy Kenyon, and Thunder in the Valley) plays expectant wife Laura Perkins. John Lasell (Dr. Michael Shea on As the World Turns and Dr. Peter Guthrie on Dark Shadows) plays her husband Johnny. Gene Lyons (Commander Dennis Randall on Ironside) plays air field owner Sam Blake.

Season 3, Episode 12, "Where Are They?": Richard Devon (shown on the right, played Jody Barker on Yancy Derringer) plays inventor Charles Elton. Addison Richards (see "Gypsy" above) plays a U.S. cabinet secretary. Harlan Warde (John Hamilton on The Rifleman and Sheriff John Brannan on The Virginian) plays scientist Cmdr. Phillips. Joan Tompkins (Trudy Wagner on Sam Benedict, Mrs. Brahms on Occasional Wife, and Lorraine Miller on My Three Sons) plays newspaper publisher's wife Jenny Call. Robert Williams (Mr. Dorfman on Dennis the Menace) plays Chico, CA Marshal Joe Tomlinson. Alan Dexter (Frank Ferguson on Days of Our Lives) plays San Francisco newspaper reporter Mr. Towers.

Season 3, Episode 13, "Legacy of Love": Norma Crane (appeared in Tea and Sympathy, They Call Me Mr. Tibbs!, and Fiddler on the Roof and played Rayola Dean on Mister Peepers) plays fated daughter Marianne Darelle. Charles Aidman (narrator on the 1985-87 version of The Twilight Zone) plays fated husband Norman Bromley. Olan Soule (see "Earthquake" above) plays a train conductor.

Season 3, Episode 14, "Rendezvous": Georgeann Johnson (Marge Bellows on Mister Peepers, Katherine McKay on Our Family Honor, Dr. Waverly on The Colbys, Senator Janet Getzloff on Wiseguy, Charlotte O'Neill on The Trials of Rosie O'Neill, and Elizabeth Quinn on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman) plays widow Kate Maxwell. Donald Murphy (Ben Cabot on The Loretta Young Show) plays bachelor Fred Somers. H.M. Wynant (Frosty on Batman and Ed Chapman on Dallas) plays stalker William Cooper.