Checkmate (1961)

As it moved into the second half of its first season, Checkmate continued in its premise of recounting the exploits of the titular detective agency that attempts to prevent crimes before they happen. But the plots didn't always follow the profiling angle described in our post for the 1960 episodes, and when they did, the results were not always stellar. A case in point is "Hour of Execution" (January 21, 1961), in which a judge receives a threatening anonymous note comprised of letters cut out of magazines and journals warning him that he will be killed unless he stops the execution of convicted murderer Johnny Messico. Figuring out who sent the note is critical in preventing the judge's murder, it would seem, so Sebastian Cabot's erudite British criminologist Dr. Carl Hyatt dispatches youthful Checkmate, Inc. partner Jed Sills (Doug McClure) to buy a copy of every periodical from a nearby newsstand. Then, with the clock of the impending execution ticking, Hyatt has to match typography from the note to that of the dozens of periodicals to construct a profile of the note's author. Needless to say, completing this task in the roughly 12 hours before the execution would be impossible, even with the magic computers of today's crime shows. While third Checkmate partner Don Corey (Anthony George) talks to the convict's brother, his lawyer, a reporter who has championed his innocence, and a police lieutenant, Hyatt is able to zero in on the reporter because the typefaces match those found in a journal on law enforcement, something he would have read for his job, whereas the convict's brother, a short-order cook, would not. However, the reporter did not commit the crime of which Messico is accused. Solving that mystery requires a bit of luck--the convict's brother gets the judge at gunpoint to confess to having an affair with the victim, and when it becomes clear that the judge is now the prime suspect, his sister steps forward and confesses to the crime in order to keep the messy affair quiet. In this twisted web, the profiling effort doesn't solve the mystery or prevent a crime--the threat to kill the judge by the reporter was a bluff. The crime that winds up being prevented is the execution of an innocent man, and this is prevented only by a forced confession that triggers a second confession. The profiling, then, is essentially a canard.

The profiling is again far-fetched and secondary to the main plot in "Laugh Till I Die" (February 4, 1961) in which TV host Danny Whitman is threatened by mobster Frank Marsden for railing on-air against Marsden's intimidation tactics to get an acquittal for his wife's DWI charge. When Marsden sends a hired, out-of-town enforcer to rough Whitman up outside his dressing room, Whitman punches back and gets enough hair and tissue samples on his ring to allow Hyatt to identify the attacker as a man with sandy hair and recent tanning-bed exposure. Corey calls all the local health clubs until he finds one claiming a client matching the attacker's description, and then is able to pay off that club's manager to take away a water glass with the attacker's fingerprints, thereby giving the police what they need to track down his identity. Even though Sills tracks the attacker and is able to warn Corey and Whitman before the attacker makes a second attempt and is then killed by the police, Marsden simply assigns the job to his chauffeur and right-hand man. But the plot takes an unexpected twist because the right-hand man, Jim Ramsey, has a beef with Marsden over the hand of his daughter and winds up double-crossing him with a plan to kill Whitman and Marsden and make it look like they killed each other. Corey is able to find the empty warehouse where the double murder is about to take place through an unlikely connection of getting the cab number that Whitman took to the warehouse, having the cab company give him the cab's destination by radioing the driver, and getting Sills to have Marsden's daughter tell him what property her father owns in that general vicinity. Granted, crime dramas often stretch the bounds of credulity regardless of when they were made, so the fact that Checkmate's plots are not realistic is hardly a serious blemish.

But rather than being merely a crime procedural, the series made attempts to develop the characters of the Checkmate principals, at least marginally. Though it isn't much, we see Corey as the rejected lover in "The Crimson Pool" (November 22, 1961) when Hyatt runs into painter Zoe Kamens at a local art gallery, where she discovers that a copy of a Monet that she had once painted, ostensibly for a wealthy South American collector who couldn't acquire the original and was happy with a copy, is now being offered as the original. Kamens and Corey had once dated, and he still carries the torch for her, even though she married another man, Whit, who is caught up in the Monet forgery scam and winds up getting shot when he tries to break away from the scam ring leader. Corey hopes to rekindle the flame with Zoe after her husband's death, but she puts him off, still obviously distraught over her lost husband and his betrayal of her. In most other episodes Corey comes off as pathologically sincere and upright; this is the only time we see him angry when Zoe lies and recants her story about the forgery after falling for Whit's charm as he tries to get her to play along with another scam. Corey is ready to wash his hands of her, but Hyatt won't let the case drop because he smells a rat.

No fewer than three episodes in 1961 focused on revenge attempts against Hyatt. In "The Human Touch" (January 14, 1961), Hyatt is stalked by his old nemesis Alonzo Pace Graham (Peter Lorre), who makes no attempt to hide his efforts to do Hyatt in for sending him to jail for past crimes. But Graham is a man of refinement not given to blunt shows of force; rather, he prefers to outwit his opponent, as if engaged in a game of chess. He hires an actor to impersonate Hyatt and fire a gun at Corey, leading him on a chase to Graham's estate, where he has Sills tied up to ensure that Hyatt, brought to the house by a henchman impersonating a taxi driver, plays along in his little drama. But Hyatt and Corey are one step ahead of him, and even though they follow his script, either Corey fires back with blanks or Hyatt wears a bulletproof vest because after he pretends to be shot dead and Sills has escaped and captured Graham's accomplices, Hyatt gets up and dusts himself off, showing no ill effects from his supposed shooting.

"Waiting for Jocko" (October 25, 1961) sends ex-convict Edward "Jocko" Townsend to Hyatt's apartment on his birthday with an elaborate plan to have Hyatt blow himself up as revenge for causing Townsend's parole to be denied 5 years earlier when Hyatt diagnosed him as psychotic. Hyatt saves himself, along with Corey and Sills, only by a stroke of luck, having put an alkaline liquid into a bottle marked for acid earlier that day such that when Townsend forces him at gunpoint to mix the ingredients for nitro glycerine and then rigs his lab door so that if he leaves or anyone enters the nitro will explode, nothing actually happens because the mixture is harmless.

And in "The Button Down Break" (October 11, 1961) Hyatt is targeted for revenge by convicted personnel executive Luther Gage, whom Hyatt helped send to prison after extracting a confession from a window-washer Gage bribed to kill a rival executive. This episode marks the introduction of a new character, Chris Devlin, whose connection to Checkmate is not explained, but who is employed by the agency on a freelance basis, in this case to go undercover as a convict and Gage's cellmate to ferret out his plan to escape and kill Hyatt. 

The introduction of Jack Betts as Devlin, who would appear in 5 more episodes during the remainder of the series, was the producers' second attempt to introduce a fourth wheel into the Checkmate lineup, having tried out Donna Douglas as Barbara Simmons, initially Hyatt's research assistant and then Checkmate's secretary, for 4 episodes. Adding a fourth character seems an odd choice, given that, as Dan Jenkins noted in a September 9, 1961 TV Guide profile of Doug McClure, there was already enough competition for exposure from the three principals. In Jenkins' assessment, the veteran Cabot dominated any scene in which he appeared, so it was between McClure and Anthony George to see who would get to play second fiddle. McClure was unhappy with his character in the first 10 or so episodes, saying that he came across as a flirtatious, wise-cracking jerk whom no one would hire for serious detective work. He voiced his concerns to the producers and was given more serious assignments thereafter, but as the show moved into its second season, his character was often pushed to the sidelines for the majority of several episodes. In "Nice Guys Finish Last" (December 13, 1961), he doesn't appear until well into the second half of the episode and only then phoning Corey from New York to report on digging into the background of rogue police Lt. Dave Harker and his nemesis Nick Culley. It's Devlin who gets the choice assignment of convincing Harker to turn himself in after trying to frame Culley for murder, while Sills is figuratively left holding the phone. But McClure needn't have worried about camera time because he followed up Checkmate with a 9-year run playing Trampus on The Virginian and kept working steadily up until his death in 1995. George, by contrast, was relegated to soap operas like Dark Shadows and One Life to Live.

The other major change for Season 2 was that Johnny Williams no longer scored every episode. Though he did still work on the majority of episodes in the fall of 1961, other composers such as Morton Stevens, Marty Paich, and Pete Rugolo (profiled in the 1960 post on Thriller) were brought in to lend a hand.

The complete series has been released on DVD by Timeless Media Group.

The Actors

For the biographies for Anthony George, Doug McClure, and Sebastian Cabot, see the post for Checkmate 1960.

Ken Lynch

Kenneth E. Lynch of Cleveland, Ohio broke into acting on radio, replacing Milton Herman as the voice of The Gargoyle on The Bishop and the Gargoyle in 1940. From 1942-46 he voiced the character Tank the mechanic on Hop Harrigan and later appeared on The Falcon, 21st Precinct, and Gunsmoke. After a single appearance on the TV series Suspense in 1949, he had a semi-regular role as The Lieutenant on the crime drama The Plainclothesman in 1950, but his television career flagged for the next 6 years until he played a policeman on a 1956 episode of The Honeymooners. His feature film career kicked off 2 years later with appearances in Run Silent, Run Deep and I Married a Monster From Outer Space  in addition to 5 other features. That year he also appeared 4 times as Pablo on the TV version of Zorro. In 1959 he appeared as policemen in both Anatomy of a Murder and North by Northwest as well as roles in military pictures Paratroop Command and Pork Chop Hill. He also appeared frequently as lawmen or villains in westerns such as The Rifleman, Lawman, and Have Gun -- Will Travel before landing his next recurring supporting role as Lt. Brand on Checkmate, his last appearance coming in the second episode of Season 2, "The Button Down Break."

But his prolific output would continue into the early 1980s with a filmography containing over 180 credits. In 1963-64 he had the recurring role of Lt. Tom Handley on Arrest and Trial. In 1965-66 he played Lt. Barney Keller on Honey West. And from 1972-77 he played Police Sgt. Grover on 16 episodes of McCloud. All these roles were in addition to 12 appearances on Gunsmoke, 10 on The F.B.I., 9 on Bonanza, and 6 each on The Virginian and Gomer Pyle, USMC. Lynch's last appearance was in the 1983 mini-series The Winds of War. He died February 13, 1990 at the age of 79 in Burbank, California.

Jack Betts

Jack Fillmore Betts, a descendant of U.S. President Millard Fillmore, was born Jersey City, New Jersey. He says he caught the acting bug at age 10 when his mother took him to see the feature-film version of Wuthering Heights starring Laurence Olivier. Under a personal scholarship to Lee Strasburg, he became a member of the Actors Studio in New York and was later cast by Elia Kazan for a touring company version of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. He had several minor parts in the 1953 Broadway production of Richard III and The Firstborn in 1958. The following year he was cast in the role of Page in Sweet Bird of Youth. Around this time he also broke into feature films, appearing in 1959's The Bloody Brood, and television in a production of Ethan Frome on The Dupont Show of the Month in 1960. The following year he secured the recurring role of Chris Devlin on Checkmate, on which he appeared 6 times during the second season. 

In 1963 he played Ken Martin during the debut season of daytime soap opera General Hospital, a genre he would return to again later in his career. After a couple of appearances on Perry Mason and one on Bonanza, he changed his performing name to Hunt Powers in 1964 and appeared in two more episodes of Perry Mason and three of The F.B.I. before signing a contract with Italy's Mega Pictures. He wound up staying in Italy for 6 years and appeared in 17 films, including several spaghetti westerns. While in Europe her also starred opposite Richard Burton in The Assassination of Trotsky and opposite Brigitte Bardot in The Rum Runners. He returned to the States in the late 1970s and was Frank Langella's standby in the Broadway production of Dracula before returning to soap operas as Dr. Wilson Frost on Guiding Light and Dr. Ivan Kipling on One Life to Live. He has stayed active in acting ever since, most notably as Boris Karloff in Gods and Monsters in 1998, as Councilor Brody on the TV series Power Rangers Lost Galaxy, and as Henry Balkan in Spider-Man in 2002. He has also performed his touring cabaret singing act Just in Time in California, Texas, and New York, and has written and directed for the stage, his most recent work being 2013's It Goes Like This.

Notable Guest Stars

Season 1, Episode 14, "Terror From the East": Charles Laughton (shown on the left, starred in The Private Life of Henry VIII, Les Miserables, Mutiny on the Bounty, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Witness for the Prosecution, and Spartacus) plays British Rev. Augustus Wooster. Lisa Lu (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Have Gun -- Will Travel) plays Chinese opera star Wei-Ling. Victor Sen Yung (Jimmy Chan in 13 Charlie Chan movies, Cousin Charlie Fong on Bachelor Father, and Hop Sing on Bonanza) plays Benevolent Society member Han. Weaver Levy (Oliver Kee on Adventures in Paradise) plays would-be assassin Chang. Guy Lee (Charlie Wong on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis) plays an unnamed Chinese boy.

Season 1, Episode 15, "The Human Touch": Peter Lorre (starred in M, Crime and Punishment, eight Mr. Moto movies, The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, Arsenic and Old Lace, and The Beast With Five Fingers) plays Hyatt's old nemesis Alonzo Pace Graham. Frank Gerstle (Dirk Gird on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp and voiced Raseem on The Banana Splits Adventure Hour) plays Checkmate wiretapper Tim. Richard Bakalyan (starred in The Delicate Delinquent, The Cool and the Crazy, Juvenile Jungle, Hot Car Girl, Paratroop Command, and The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes) plays a Graham henchman.

Season 1, Episode 16, "Hour of Execution": James Gregory (shown on the right, starred in The Silencers, Murderers' Row, The Ambushers, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, and The Love God? and played Barney Ruditsky on The Lawless Years, Nick Hannigan on Detective School, and Inspector Frank Luger on Barney Miller) plays Judge Ralph Addison. 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 his wife Abbie. Virginia Gregg (starred in Dragnet, Crime in the Streets, Operation Petticoat and was the voice of Norma Bates in Psycho and the voice of Maggie Belle Klaxon on Calvin and the Colonel) plays his sister Ethel. Barney Phillips (Sgt. Ed Jacobs on the original Dragnet, Lt. Sam Geller on Johnny Midnight, Lt. Avery on The Brothers Brannagan, Doc Kaiser on 12 O'Clock High, Mike Golden on Dan August, and Fletcher Huff on The Betty White Show) plays Police Capt. Holland. Robert H. Harris (Jake Goldberg on Molly and Raymond Schindler on The Court of Last Resort) plays reporter Matt Coleman. Sidney Clute (Det. Simms on McCloud, the National Editor on Lou Grant, and Det. Paul La Guardia on Cagney & Lacey) plays lawyer Leo Cox. Frank Sully (Danny the bartender on The Virginian) plays a delivery boy.

Season 1, Episode 17, "Don't Believe a Word She Says": Mona Freeman (starred in Black Beauty, Mother Wore Tights, Angel Face, and Jumping Jacks) plays wealthy widow Felicia Royden. Robert Rockwell (Phillip Boynton on Our Miss Brooks, Sam Logan on The Man From Blackhawk, Tom Bishop on Diff'rent Strokes, and Wally Overmier on Growing Pains) plays her fiance Ed Matthews. Reta Shaw (Flora McCauley on The Ann Sothern Show, Thelma on The Tab Hunter Show, Mrs. Stanfield on Oh, Those Bells, and Martha Grant on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir) plays her cook Nora Flannery. Norman Leavitt (Ralph on Trackdown) plays a train station agent.

Season 1, Episode 18, "Laugh Till I Die": Dick Shawn (appeared in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, What Did You Do in the War, Daddy?, and The Producers and played Ivan Zolotov on Hail to the Chief) plays TV commentator Danny Whitman. Robert Emhardt (Sgt. Vinton on The Kids From C.A.P.E.R.) plays mobster Frank Marsden. H.M. Wynant (Frosty on Batman and Ed Chapman on Dallas) plays his henchman Jim Ramsey.

Season 1, Episode 19, "Between Two Guns": Jack Warden (shown on the left, starred in From Here to Eternity, 12 Angry Men, and Run Silent, Run Deep and played Major Simon Butcher on The Wackiest Ship in the Army, Lt. Mike Haines on N.Y.P.D., Morris Buttermaker on The Bad News Bears, and Harry Fox, Sr. on Crazy Like a Fox) plays mobster Joe Farrell. Beverly Garland (Casey Jones on Decoy, Ellis Collins on The Bing Crosby Show, Barbara Harper Douglas on My Three Sons, Dorothy "Dotty" West on Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Ellen Lane on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, and Ginger on 7th Heaven) plays his estranged wife Jean. George Wallace (starred in Radar Men From the Moon, Destry, and Forbidden Planet and played Judge Milton Cole on Hill Street Blues and Grandpa Hank Hammersmith on Sons and Daughters) plays his henchman Frankie. Bern Hoffman (Sam the bartender on Bonanza) plays former Farrell associate Stapler. Ed Nelson (Michael Rossi on Peyton Place and Ward Fuller on The Silent Force) plays former Farrell associate Carson.

Season 1, Episode 20, "A Matter of Conscience": Gary Merrill (appeared in Twelve O'Clock High, All About Eve, and Mysterious Island and played Jason Tyler on Justice, Lou Sheldon on The Reporter, and Dr. Leonard Gillespie on Young Dr. Kildare) plays ex-convict Ernie Stone. Josephine Hutchinson (appeared in The Story of Louis Pasteur, Son of Frankenstein, Tom Brown's Schooldays, and North by Northwest) plays his mother. Bruce Gordon (Commander Matson on Behind Closed Doors, Frank Nitti on The Untouchables, and Gus Chernak on Peyton Place) plays his brother Bill. Joan Staley (Playboy Playmate who appeared in Cape Fear, Roustabout, Valley of the Dragons, Johnny Cool, and The Ghost and Mr. Chicken and played Hannah on 77 Sunset Strip and Roberta Love on Broadside) plays nightclub hostess Gloria. 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 retired Police Sgt. Handler.

Season 1, Episode 21, "Melody for Murder": Jimmie Rodgers (shown on the right, popular singer who had hits with "Honeycomb" amongst others and sang the theme song to The Real McCoys) plays pop singer Buddy Robbins. Everett Sloane (starred in Citizen Kane, The Lady From Shanghai, and Lust for Life and provided the voice for Dick Tracy on The Dick Tracy Show) plays his manager Walt Arnell. George O'Hanlon (Joe McDoakes in dozens of shorts with titles that begin with So You Want or So You Think, played Calvin Dudley on The Life of Riley, Artie Burns on The Reporter, and was the voice of George Jetson on The Jetsons) plays his comedian friend Joey Thomas. Harry Lauter (Ranger Clay Morgan on Tales of the Texas Rangers, Atlasande on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, and Jim Herrick on Waterfront) plays his press agent Matt Keeler. Claire Griswold (wife and former student of Sydney Pollack) plays stalker Myra Simon.

Season 1, Episode 22, "Phantom Lover": 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 distraught wife Bess Sironde. 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 her husband Barry. Jeanne Bates (Nurse Wills on Ben Casey) plays his secretary. Herb Vigran (Judge Brooker on Gunsmoke) plays a bartender. 

Season 1, Episode 23, "The Gift": Patrice Munsel (shown on the left, coloratura soprano who was the youngest singer ever to star at the Metropolitan Opera; also hosted The Patrice Munsel Show) plays Hungarian opera singer Lola Tuscany. Abraham Sofaer (starred in Christopher Columbus, Quo Vadis, and Elephant Walk) plays her accompanist Zingari. Frank Albertson (starred in Alice Adams, Man Made Monster, and It's a Wonderful Life and played Mr. Cooper on Bringing Up Buddy) plays her publicist Jimmy Purdy.

Season 1, Episode 24, "One for the Book": Audrey Meadows (shown on the right, played Alice Kramden on The Honeymooners and The Jackie Gleason Show, Iris Martin on Too Close for Comfort, and Maggie Hogoboom on Uncle Buck) plays author Althea Todd. Jocelyn Brando (Marlon Brando's older sister) plays her typist Sarah Talbot. Paul Newlan (Police Capt. Grey on M Squad and Lt. Gen. Pritchard on 12 O'Clock High) plays Jericho Police Chief Ray Terrill. Donald Woods (John Brent on Tammy and Craig Kennedy on Kennedy, Criminologist) plays bank president George Truxton. Sylvia Marriott (Mrs. Brown on Over to William) plays widow Claire Lamson. Norman Leavitt (see "Don't Believe a Word She Says" above) plays a bus driver. 

Season 1, Episode 25, "The Paper Killer": Mickey Rooney (starred in Captains Courageous, Boys Town, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Words and Music, Babyface Nelson, and Breakfast at Tiffany's as well as numerous Andy Hardy movies and played Mickey Mulligan on The Mickey Rooney Show, Mickey Grady on Mickey, Oliver Nugent on One of the Boys, Henry Dailey on The New Adventures of the Black Stallion, and Talbut on Kleo the Misfit Unicorn) plays comic book artist Steve Margate. Dianne Foster (starred in Night Passage, The Last Hurrah, and The Deep Six) plays his wife Edna. William Schallert (see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis) plays his assistant Andy Winston. Dennis Patrick (Paul Stoddard on Dark Shadows and Vaughn Leland on Dallas) plays his lawyer Jack Taggett. Donna Douglas (Elly Mae Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays Hyatt's research assistant Barbara Simmons. Betty Lou Gerson (the voice of Cruella de Vil in 101 Dalmations) plays actor agent Bess Cadwallader.

Season 1, Episode 26, "Jungle Castle": Lee Marvin (shown on the left, starred in The Big Heat, The Wild One, Bad Day at Black Rock, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Cat Ballou, The Dirty Dozen, and Paint Your Wagon and played Det. Lt. Frank Ballinger on M Squad) plays big-game hunter Lee Tabor. Patricia Donahue (Hazel on The Thin Man and Lucy Hamilton on Michael Shayne) plays his soon-to-be ex-wife Kay. Denver Pyle (Ben Thompson on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp, Grandpa Tarleton on Tammy, Briscoe Darlingon 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 his pilot Terry Adams. John Sutton (appeared in Jane Eyre, The Three Musketeers(1948), and The Return of the Fly) plays his guide George Parker. Myrna Fahey (appeared in Face of a Fugitive and House of Usher and played Katherine "Kay" Banks on Father of the Bride) plays his fiance Mary Lou Keyes. Leon Lontoc (Henry on Burke's Law) plays his servant Baji.

Season 1, Episode 27, "The Deadly Silence": Diana Lynn (appeared in The Major and the Minor, The Miracle of Morgan's Creek, and Bedtime for Bonzo) plays deaf/mute teacher Joan Emerson. Dennis Rush (Howie Pruitt on The Andy Griffith Show) plays her student Tommy Lako. Jeanne Bates (see "Phantom Lover" above ) plays Tommy's mother Mrs. Lako. Parley Baer (Mayor Roy Stoner on The Andy Griffith Show, Darby on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Mayor Arthur J. Henson on The Addams Family, and Doc Appleby on The Dukes of Hazzard) plays school-product salesman Harris. Hope Holiday (appeared in The Apartment, Irma la Douce, and Kung Fu Cannibals) plays beatnik Verne. Percy Helton (Homer Cratchit on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays a health club attendant. Clegg Hoyt (Mac on Dr. Kildare) plays assailant Ox. Donna Douglas (see "The Paper Killer" above) returns as Barbara Simmons, now secretary for Checkmate.

Season 1, Episode 28, "Goodbye, Griff": Julie London (shown on the right, popular singer, starred in Nabonga, The Fat Man, and The George Raft Story, played nurse Dixie McCall on Emergency!) plays fashion magazine editor Libby Nolan. Harry Guardino (starred in Houseboat, Pork Chop Hill, The Five Pennies, Hell Is for Heroes, Madigan, Dirty Harry, and The Enforcer and played Danny Taylor on The Reporter, Monty Nash on Monty Nash, and Hamilton Burger on The New Perry Mason) plays her ex-con husband Griff. Simon Oakland (starred in Psycho, West Side Story, and Follow That Dream and played Tony Vincenzo on Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Brig. Gen. Thomas Moore on Black Sheep Squadron, and Sgt. Abrams on David Cassidy - Man Undercover) plays her boss Lewis Bates. Lynn Bari (starred in Always Goodbye, Sun Valley Serenade, and The Magnificent Dope and played Gwen Allen on Boss Lady) plays Bates' wife Marje. Bud Dashiell (half of the folk duo Bud & Travis and a member of the folk group The Kinsmen) plays a flamenco guitarist. Donna Douglas (see "The Paper Killer" above) returns as Checkmate secretary Barbara Simmons.

Season 1, Episode 29, "Dance of Death": Cyd Charisse (shown on the left, starred in The Harvey Girls, Words and Music, Singin' in the Rain, The Band Wagon, Brigadoon, It's Always Fair Weather, Silk Stockings, Party Girl, and The Silencers) plays lead ballerina Jean Caree. John Emery (appeared in Here Comes Mr. Jordan, Blood on the Sun, Spellbound, The Woman in White, and Rocketship X-M) plays Russian emigre Prince Stanislav Zobienski. Carlos Romero (Rico Rodriguez on Wichita Town, Romero Serrano on Zorro, and Carlo Agretti on Falcon Crest) plays underworld operative Arturo Calderon. Addison Richards (see "A Matter of Conscience" above) plays retired police officer Mike Lambeth. Joey Faye (Myer in Mack and Myer for Hire) plays a dry cleaner. 

Season 1, Episode 30, "Voyage Into Fear": Joan Fontaine (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 fleeing socialite Karen Lawson. Scott Brady (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Shotgun Slade) plays private detective Ernie Taggart. Robert Webber (appeared in The Sandpiper, The Silencers, The Dirty Dozen, 10, Private Benjamin, and S.O.B. and played Alexander Hayes on Moonlighting) plays boat passenger Miles Archer. Michael Dante (Crazy Horse on Custer) plays a trumpet player. Noel Drayton (Mr. Hardcastle on Family Affair) plays bird-watcher Archibald Wainwright.

Season 1, Episode 31, "Tight as a Drum": Dan Duryea (starred in The Little Foxes, The Pride of the Yankees, Scarlet Street, and Winchester '73 and played China Smith on China Smith and The New Adventures of China Smith and Eddie Jacks on Peyton Place) plays military school commandant Major Wilson. Dennis Rush (see "The Deadly Silence" above) plays one of his students Freighter. Dabbs Greer (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Gunsmoke) plays blackmailer Henry Creasy. Frank Wilcox (Henry Van Buren on Waterfront, Beecher Asbury on The Untouchables, Mr. Brewster on The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction, and the judge 8 times on Perry Mason) plays school parent Mr. Slocum. Tita Marsell (The Hula Girl on McHale's Navy) plays stewardess Jasmine de Gama.

Season 1, Episode 32, "Death by Design": Eve Arden (shown on the right, starred in Stage Door, No, No, Nanette, Sing for Your Supper, Mildred Pierce, Tea for Two, Our Miss Brooks, and Anatomy of a Murder and played Connie Brooks on Our Miss Brooks, Liza Hammond on The Eve Arden Show, and Eve Hubbard on The Mothers-in-Law) plays fashion designer Georgia Golden. Larry Gates (starred in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Some Came Running, and The Young Savages and played H.B. Lewis on Guiding Light) plays her junior partner Harry Winters. Patric Knowles (starred in The Adventures of Robin Hood, How Green Was My Valley, and The Wolf Man) plays her fiance Bill Foster. Barney Phillips (see "Hour of Execution" above) replaces Ken Lynch as Police Lt. Brand. 

Season 1, Episode 33, "The Thrill Seeker": Susan Oliver (Ann Howard on Peyton Place) plays thrill-seeker Gloria Kenyon. Esther Dale (starred in The Awful Truth, The Egg and I, Ma and Pa Kettle, and Holiday Affair) plays her mother-in-law Mrs. Kenyon. David White (Larry Tate on Bewitched) plays Mrs. Kenyon's lawyer Lawrence Tucker. Paul Hartman (Albie Morrison on The Pride of the Family, Charlie on Our Man Higgins, Emmett Clark on The Andy Griffith Show and Mayberry R.F.D., and Bert Smedley on Petticoat Junction) plays Mrs. Kenyon's house-keeper Nielson. Maudie Prickett (Cassie Murphy on Date With the Angels, Miss Gordon on The Jack Benny Program, and Rosie on Hazel) plays a hotel proprietor.

Season 1, Episode 34, "Hot Wind in a Cold Town": Ricardo Montalban (shown on the left, starred in The Kissing Bandit, On an Island With You, The Singing Nun, and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and played David Valerio on Executive Suite, Mr. Roarke on Fantasy Island, and Zach Powers on The Colbys) plays stuntman Joe Martinez. Norman Fell (Det. Meyer Meyer on 87th Precinct, Sgt. Charles Wilentz on Dan August, and Stanley Roper on Three's Company and The Ropers) plays film producer Shep Stryker. Jerome Thor (Robert Cannon on Foreign Intrigue) plays his brother, film director Mal Stryker. Martin Landau (starred in North by Northwest, Cleopatra, The Greatest Story Ever Told, The Fall of the House of Usher, and Ed Wood and who played Rollin Hand on Mission: Impossible!, Commander John Koenig on Space: 1999, Dr. Sol Gold on The Evidence, Bob Ryan on Entourage, and Frank Malone on Without a Trace) plays small-town simpleton Stoney. Hank Brandt (Leonard Waggedorn on Julia, Morgan Hess on Dynasty, and Dr. Aaron Kranzler on Santa Barbara) plays prop man Ed Waters. 

Season 1, Episode 35, "A Slight Touch of Venom": Keenan Wynn (shown on the right, starred in Annie Get Your Gun, Royal Wedding, Angels in the Outfield, The Absent-Minded Professor, Son of Flubber, Dr. Strangelove, The Great Race, and Point Blank and played Kodiak on Troubleshooters, Williard "Digger" Barnes on Dallas, Carl Sarnac on Call to Glory, and Butch on The Last Precinct) plays former construction magnate Bill Venable. Susan Cummings (Georgia on Union Pacific) plays his romantic interest Countess Johanna. Rand Brooks (played Lucky Jenkins in 12 western feature films and on Hopalong Cassidy and Cpl. Boone on The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin) plays neighbor Edgar Drummond. Forrest Compton (Col. Edward Gray on Gomer Pyle: USMC and Mike Karr on The Edge of Night) plays Venable's house attendant Bernard Milroy. John Fiedler (appeared in 12 Angry Men, That Touch of Mink, The World of Henry Orient, Kiss Me, Stupid, Girl Happy, The Odd Couple, True Grit and played Emil Peterson on The Bob Newhart Show and Woody on Buffalo Bill) plays snake handler Mr. Mitchie. Pat McCaffrie (Chuck Forrest on Bachelor Father) plays a novelty store owner.

Season 1, Episode 36, "State of Shock": Nina Foch (starred in The Return of the Vampire, The Cry of the Werewolf, An American in Paris, The Ten Commandments, and Spartacus and played Madeline on Bull) plays accident-prone Anne Elliot. Warren Stevens (starred in The Frogmen, The Barefoot Contessa, Deadline U.S.A., and Forbidden Planet, played Lt. William Storm on Tales of the 77th Bengal Lancers, and was the voice of John Bracken on Bracken's World) plays her husband and director of the Mountain View Home for the Elderly, Dr. Thomas Elliot. Cheerio Meredith (Love Hackett on One Happy Family and Emma Brand on The Andy Griffith Show) plays Mountain View Home resident Mrs. Rutledge. Clem Bevans (appeared in Sergeant York, Saboteur, The Yearling, Mourning Becomes Electra, and Harvey) plays Home resident Col. Albert Hockley. Jeanne Bal (Pat Baker on Love and Marriage) plays head nurse Yvonne Lurie. Paul Comi (Deputy Johnny Evans on Two Faces West, Chuck Lambert on Ripcord, and Yo Yo on Rawhide) plays Dr. Steve Atwell.

Season 2, Episode 1, "Portrait of a Man Running": Ralph Bellamy (shown on the left, starred in Air Hawks, His Girl Friday, The Wolf Man, Trading Places, and Pretty Woman and played Mike Barnett on Man Against Crime, Dr. L. Richard Starke on The Eleventh Hour, Ethan Arcane on The Most Deadly Game, Harold Baker on Hunter, and was the narrator on Frontier Justice) plays 4-term Governor Tom Barker. Wright King (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Wanted -- Dead or Alive) plays his son Jim. Chester Morris (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Diagnosis: Unknown) plays his campaign manager Albie Dewitt. Patricia Huston (Addy Olson on Days of Our Lives and Hilda Brunschwager on L.A. Law) plays his secretary Anne Winthrop. Lillian Culver (Mrs. Schooner on Dennis the Menace and Barney Fife's mother in one episode of The Andy Griffith Show) plays ardent supporter Mrs. Sara Tuppenny.

Season 2, Episode 2, "The Button Down Break": Tony Randall (shown on the right, starred in Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, The Mating Game, Pillow Talk, Lover Come Back, Send Me No Flowers, and The Alphabet Murders and played Mac on One Man's Family, the narrator and Mr. Weekit on Mister Peepers, Felix Unger on The Odd Couple, Judge Walter Franklin on The Tony Randall Show, and Sidney Shore on Love, Sidney) plays personnel executive Luther Gage. John Zaremba (Special Agent Jerry Dressler on I Led 3 Lives, Dr. Harold Jensen on Ben Casey, Admiral Hardesy on McHale's Navy, Dr. Raymond Swain on The Time Tunnel, and Dr, Harlem Danvers on Dallas) plays prison psychologist Dr. Cooper. Leo Penn (father of Sean, Chris, and Michael Penn, played Dr. David McMillan on Ben Casey, and had at least 87 directing credits including 19 episodes of Ben Casey, 11 episodes of Bonanza, 18 episodes of Marcus Welby, M.D., and 27 episodes of Matlock) plays inmate electrician Allen. Olan Soule (Aristotle "Tut" Jones on Captain Midnight, Ray Pinker on Dragnet (1952-59), and Fred Springer on Arnie) plays window washer Ed Jenkins. Robert Williams (Mr. Dorfman on Dennis the Menace) plays a prison guard.

Season 2, Episode 3, "The Heat of Passion": John Dehner (Duke Williams on The Roaring '20's, Commodore Cecil Wyntoon on The Baileys of Balboa, Morgan Starr on The Virginian, Cyril Bennett on The Doris Day Show, Dr. Charles Cleveland Claver on The New Temperatures Rising Show, Barrett Fears on Big Hawaii, Marshal Edge Troy on Young Maverick, Lt. Joseph Broggi on Enos, Hadden Marshall on Bare Essence, and Billy Joe Erskine on The Colbys) plays fishing lodge owner George Shay. Dorothy Malone (shown on the left, starred in Scared Stiff, Pushover, Young at Heart, Artists and Models, Written on the Wind, Man of a Thousand Faces, Too Much, Too Soon, and Basic Instinct and played Constance Mackenzie Carson on Peyton Place) plays his wife Lorna. Ed Nelson (see "Between Two Guns" above) plays hired hand Gil Stoneham. Lew Gallo (Major Joseph Cobb on 12 O'Clock High and directed multiple episodes of That Girl, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, Love American Style, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and The New Mike Hammer) plays the local sheriff. 

Season 2, Episode 4, "Waiting for Jocko": Jeffrey Hunter (starred in The Searchers, Hell to Eternity, and King of Kings, played Temple Houston on Temple Houston, and turned down the lead role on the original Star Trek after filming the series' first pilot) plays ex-con Edward "Jocko" Townsend. 

Season 2, Episode 5, "Through a Dark Glass": Claire Bloom (shown on the right, starred in Richard III, The Brothers Karamazov, Look Back in Anger, The Haunting, Charly, A Doll's House, and Clash of the Titans and played Sarah Merz on A Legacy, Lady Marchmain on Brideshead Revisited, and Margaret Ellingham on Doc Martin) plays photojournalist Jenna Burton. 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 magazine publisher Simon Oelrich. William Windom (appeared in To Kill a Mockingbird, The Americanization of Emily, and Escape From the Planet of the Apes and played Congressman Glen Morley on The Farmer's Daughter, John Monroe on My World and Welcome to It, Larry Krandall on Brothers and Sisters, Frank Buckman on Parenthood, and Dr. Seth Hazlitt on Murder, She Wrote) plays Boston mob operator Peter Morrell. David Fresco (Albert Wysong on Murder One) plays bartender Reese. Richard Evans (Paul Hanley on Peyton Place) plays blind student Mitch.

Season 2, Episode 6, "Juan Moreno's Body": Diana Lynn (see "The Deadly Silence" above) plays widow Jodi Winslow. Philip Ober (appeared in From Here to Eternity, North by Northwest, and Elmer Gantry) plays her father-in-law Marshall Winslow. Henry Jones (Dean Fred Baker on Channing, Owen Metcalf on The Girl With Something Extra, Judge Jonathan Dexter on Phyllis, Josh Alden on Mrs. Columbo, Homer McCoy on Gun Shy, B. Riley Wicker on Falcon Crest, and Hughes Whitney Lennox on I Married Dora) plays San Felipe District Attorney Ed Thurston. Katherine Warren (appeared in The Lady Pays Off, The Glenn Miller Story, and The Caine Mutiny) plays Winslow housekeeper Mrs. Chadwell. Perry Lopez (starred in Mister Roberts, Taras Bulba, Kelly's Heroes, and Chinatown and played Joaquin Castaneda on Zorro) plays accused killer Juan Moreno.

Season 2, Episode 7, "Kill the Sound": Sid Caesar (shown on the left, starred in It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Airport 1975, The Cheap Detective, and Grease and was a star performer on Your Show of Shows, Caesar's Hour, Sid Caesar Invites You, and The Sid Caesar Show) plays radio DJ Johnny Wilder. Jimmy Lydon (starred in Tom Brown's School Days, Little Men, Joan of Arc, and 9 Henry Aldrich features and played Biff Cardoza on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, Andy Boone on So This Is Hollywood, and Richard on Love That Jill) plays his assistant Ben Roberts. Dianne Foster (see "The Paper Killer" above) plays his boss Phyllis Wood. Norman Burton (Joe Atkinson on Wonder Woman and Burt Dennis on The Ted Knight Show) plays trumpeter Lou Lewis. Charles Seel (Otis the Bartender on Tombstone Territory, Mr. Krinkie on Dennis the Menace, and Tom Pride on The Road West) plays a lighting technician. 

Season 2, Episode 8, "The Crimson Pool": Vera Miles (starred in Wichita, The Searchers, The Wrong Man, The FBI Story, and Psycho) plays painter Zoe Kamens. John Kerr (starred in The Cobweb, Tea and Sympathy, South Pacific, and The Pit and the Pendulum and played Barry Pine on Arrest and Trial, D.A. John Fowler on Peyton Place, and Gerald O'Brien on The Streets of San Francisco) plays her husband Whit. Jacques Aubuchon (starred in The Silver Chalice, The Big Boodle, and The Love God? and played Chief Urulu on McHale's Navy) plays art swindler Erik Nordstrom. Leon Lontoc (see "Jungle Castle" above) plays Nordstrom's house boy.

Season 2, Episode 9, "The Two of Us": Lloyd Bridges (shown on the right, see the biography section for the 1960 post on Sea Hunt) plays construction magnate Howard Gentry. Audrey Dalton (appeared in Titanic (1953), Separate Tables, and Kitten With a Whip) plays his fiance Ann Miles. Paul Langton (Leslie Harrington on Peyton Place) plays one of his architects Andy. 

Season 2, Episode 10, "Nice Guys Finish Last": James Whitmore (shown on the left, starred in The Asphalt Jungle, Them!, Oklahoma!, Planet of the Apes, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Give 'Em Hell, Harry, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Majestic and played Abraham Lincoln Jones on The Law and Mr. Jones, Prof. John Woodruff on My Friend Tony, and Dr. Vincent Campanelli on The New Temperatures Rising Show) plays Police Lt. Dave Harker. Dennis Patrick (see "The Paper Killer" above) plays his rival Nick Culley. Diana Van der Vlis (Dr. Nell Beaulac on Ryan's Hope) plays Culley's girlfriend Hope Reardon. Alexander Lockwood (Judge Baker on Sam Benedict) plays the police assistant commissioner. Milton Seltzer (Parker on Get Smart, Jake Winkelman on The Harvey Korman Show, Abe Werkfinder on The Famous Teddy Z, and Manny Henry on Valley of the Dolls) plays Freddy the wino.

Season 2, Episode 11, "To the Best of My Recollection": Laraine Day (played Nurse Mary Lamont in 7 Dr. Kildare movies, appeared in Foreign Correspondent, The Locket, My Dear Secretary, and The High and the Mighty) plays amnesiac Kit Huxton. Charles Drake (starred in Winchester '73, Harvey, It Came From Outer Space, Bonzo Goes to College, and I Was a Shoplifter and played John Burden on Rendezvous) plays her supposed husband Mark Weston. Bill Bixby (shown on the right, played Tim O'Hara on My Favorite Martian, Tom Corbett on The Courtship of Eddie's Father, Anthony Blake on The Magician, Dr. David Banner on The Incredible Hulk, and Matt Cassidy on Goodnight, Beantown) plays investment agent Pete Canaday. 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 Police Sgt. Lawrence. Robert Brubaker (Deputy Ed Blake on U.S. Marshal and Floyd on Gunsmoke) plays physician Dr. Farrell. Helen Brown (appeared in Danny Boy, Holiday Affair, and Shane) plays private nurse Miss Treadwell. Tyler McVey (Gen. Maj. Norgath on Men Into Space) plays a hotel manager. Jerry Dexter (voiced Chuck on Shazzan and Ted on Goober and the Ghost Chasers) plays an airport ticket clerk.