Shop Foreman Jake Lippitt wants to fire Max Martinson. He arrived 6 months ago with big plans for new musical instruments, but has produced nothing. Company President Heinkle wonders if Lippitt is afraid his daughter Evelyn might become interested in Martinson.
Heinkle calls Martinson into the office. He says he needs only another 2 months to finish his new instrument. It uses a new principle in the transmission of high frequency sound waves. He says if it is properly used, “it will do more to heal the world’s wounds than any corp of diplomats. Improperly used, it will be more destructive than the H-Bomb.” As I get older, I’m starting to wonder if he doesn’t have that backwards.
When Lippitt claims that 2 violins Martinson built were returned as defective (i.e. did not sound like cats f***ing), Evelyn leaps to his defense. Further, she says her engagement to Lippitt is off. Later she joins Martinson in the workshop. She says Lippitt became bitter after he couldn’t hack it as a concert pianist. She was just looking for an excuse to end the engagement.
Exactly 2 months later, Martinson brings in his new horn to demonstrate to Heinkle. He blows the horn, but there is no sound. A few seconds later, however, there is a musical riff. Whether it is a delayed reaction from the horn, or part of the score, I don’t know. Old Mr. Heinkle gets up and says, “That’s funny, all of the sudden I feel excited! I feel exhilarated and I don’t know why! A moment ago I was dog tired!”
Evelyn eggs him on to blow the horn again. Heinkle gets angry, “Stop it, stop it! Put that horn down!” Martinson explains that the horn communicates emotion, any kind, “whatever emotion the player is feeling.” So Martinson was really bi-polar in the last 30 seconds. Or blowing hot and cold, as they say.
I guess the musical cue was the score because Martinson explains the sound is ultra-sonic like dog whistles which can only be heard by dogs and MSNBC hosts. Heinkle has a great idea. He asks Evelyn to call in Lippitt which seems like a great idea if they can condition him from being such a dick. Bizarrely, however, Martinson decides to instill the emotion [sic] of acrophobia in him. Even more bizarrely, Heinkle goes along with this.
Lippitt comes in and sits down. Hidden on the 6th floor balcony of Heinkle’s office — apparently the violin business used to be YUGE! — Martinson begins blowing his horn. Lippitt gets very tense and anxious. He croaks out, “I’m falling, I’m falling.” Then he falls — sadly, to the floor, not the pavement 60 feet below.
Some time later, Evelyn and Martinson have gotten engaged. There is a banquet that night to celebrate Martinson’s invention and the fact that he is donating it to a committee of scientists. He believes physicists will research the nature of sound, doctors will research emotional disorders, military men will control the morale of thousands of troops. His only stipulation is for it to be used for the benefit of all mankind. More likely, the main tunes it will play will be “Must Buy Coke” and “Vote for ______ [insert corrupt politician name here]”
Martinson goes to the shop to get the horn and finds that Lippitt has broken into his locker and taken it. Lippitt suggests that 2 enterprising men like them could make a fortune with it even if one of them was a parasitic jerk. When Martinson disagrees, Lippitt brains him with a 4 X 4 and steals the horn.
He runs back into Heinkle’s office since this factory only has 2 rooms. Like all businessmen, Heinkle keeps a gun in the office. He pulls it on Lippitt, but the punk knows the old man won’t shoot him as he descends on the fire escape — he might drop the horn and destroy it.
Lippitt looks over the balcony and says, “Look down there. Thousands of people, all ready to be led. And, believe me, I’m going to lead them. Whether there’s one man or an army of men, with this, I can do anything I want!” Except play the piano.
Martinson regains consciousness and comes in to see Lippitt holding the horn. He threatens to drop it if Martinson comes any closer. He blows the horn, transmitting the thought that Heinkle should shoot Martinson. Martinson implores the old man to wake up from the trance. For some bogus reason, Heinkle turns and approaches Lippitt standing on the parapet. This is all is takes for Lippitt to fall backward to his death.
Evelyn assures him he can make another horn, and much more quickly this time. Martinson thinks not, people just aren’t ready for it. Kudos to them on one point: Usually when a sci-fi prototype is destroyed, an invention is strangely unable to be duplicated.
A very simple premise, but the episode is not as egregious as most.
Other Stuff:
- Franchot Tone (Martinson) was really the only one to give a solid performance here. He would later be in a classic episode of The Twilight Zone.
After a devastating plague which has destroyed 99.9% of humanity, Marie Alexander writes, “Journal Entry Day 91. If not for the quarantine that was already in place when the disaster struck, we would surely be dead.” Unexpectedly, a truck pulls into their compound. A man in fatigues and a gas mask gets out of the truck and holds up a sign that says I HAVE VACCINE.
They have a kid in the group. He has another 7 – 15 years left before he reaches his reproductive years, depending on how big a dork he is. Anything, including standard childhood diseases, could take him out. We need babies now! This should be an agonizing decision, but the episode just can’t make me care.
Holly is a little miffed at her boyfriend that she had to spend her birthday with her future in-laws at the restaurant they chose — the Burger Hut.
In her tiny, run-down house, Holly gets dolled up for the contest. She makes herself up every bit as beautiful as Jane, which I predict will not make Jane any happier. It really makes you wonder what the hell Lou used to reel her in. She goes to the studio where Jane has reluctantly returned. Kudos to the director for a nice bit of business here with the contestants all wearing identical purple gowns. The clacking of their heels as they flock up and back on the sound-stage floor is pretty fun. A slightly malevolent look-alike mannequin the background is also effective.
Jane makes herself over as Holly so she can escape from the fun, glamorous, fast-paced, high-pressure life she is living — I guess Holly didn’t have a picture of Lou in her wallet. She writes a suicide note and leaves it for the studio chief. She also takes the time to set a fire before leaving.
She sees the studio head and concocts a self-defense story to explain why she tried to kill Holly. He takes her onto the sound-stage where she sees a mannequin on the floor with a bullet hole between the eyes and a pistol in its hand. She tries to run. The exec stops her. He asks, “Why did you sign the suicide note “Holly”? Was it because that is you too? Who are you now, Jane or Holly?” Jane looks as confused as I am. The titular hitchhiker shows up, but that guy’s never any help.
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge is really kicked around by TV. The 1960s Twilight Zone famously aired a pre-fab French production in order to afford the final season supply of Lucky Strikes for Rod Serling. I assume AHP is just using it to give them time to prepare for the smelly 1960’s which begin in 12 days. At least AHP made an American production of it. No wonder 
A Rebel sergeant (James Coburn) rides up. He says the Yanks are moving closer, all the way to the titular Owl Creek Bridge. Farquhar was a soldier, but lost a leg and a brand new sock in Shiloh. He speculates on blowing up the bridge so the Yanks can’t advance. The sergeant warns him that any civilian caught around that bridge would be “hanged on the spot.”
Tanner goes into the barn where the headmaster’s daughter Amy Hawkline is doing whatever it is that you do to horses. He gives her a line that never works for me, “I’ve been watching you.” Possibly his success is due to him not having a Nikon with a 400mm lens slung over his shoulder.
