Too bad we can't watch these instead of reality TV shows.Have watched House For Sale,A String Of Beads,The Island,among others,these three include George Macready,the man you love to hate back in the day.He was downright terrifying in House For Sale with Ida Lupino s his victim(he later said his was one of his favorite TV performances),a total SOB in The Island,who is redeemed after taught a lesson in humility by Niven and the threat of losing his wife to Niven,and String Of Beads with Ronald Colman/Angela Lansbury,Macready/and one of Nigel Bruce's last performances.String Of Beads Macready is a Count who commits a practical joke which leads to all kinds of fun,something I can imagine the actor capable of being a great deal of fun in real life.Love the ending for String Of Beads.These all need to be released to the public,not just a set here and there.Can't wait to watch more episodes.

I especially enjoy Dante's Inferno with Dick Powell. The Four Star Playhouse used the talents of so many stars, and up and coming stars, they are too numerous to count. Dick Powell was always cool, and Dante is the reincarnation of Johnny O'Clock for him. He is the owner of a restaurant and gambling hall in the back room. The atmosphere is one that lends itself to trouble. Murder, robbery, and a variety of women enter the place and Willie is always able to handle all in stride. I love the film noir feel of this show. Dick Powell was always good as the classy, somewhat devious and not so honest man about town. There is a great deal of humor here too, and that makes it all the more enjoyable to watch.

This first television series produced by the company that became Four Star Productions was a surprisingly good, well written and directed show to have been produced on the west coast in the early fifties (the "quality" shows made in those days mostly emanated from New York, while the filmed shows made in Hollywood were mostly children and family fare such as Superman and The Lone Ranger, or else situation comedies). Four Star Theater was an attempt to make a first-class anthology series in Hollywood, and as such it succeeded. There were many outstanding episodes, and some highly gifted people worked on it from time to time, from writers of the caliber of Blake Edwards to such gifted directors as Robert Florey, Robert Aldrich and Tay Garnett. The shows ranged from mysteries to dramas to comedies; one never knew quite what to expect, which was part of the show's charm. I wish that some cable network would-rerun them,--they probably won't, since they're all filmed in black and white--or that they'll be reissued on tape or DVD. It's a show well worth looking for.

Although Ida Lupino was not that interesting to look at, her themes of loneliness and singleness made a valuable contribution to later projects such as 'The Twilight Zone' and 'Thriller'. I can't say that I enjoyed this particular project, or any of her projects leading up to 1959. She was probably a better writer than actress.