Great to have this material back. The tentative plan is to run episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays...I'll also be looking to bring in one of Steve-O's NOIR OF THE WEEK entries at least once a week, probably on the weekend.
THE UNEXPECTED – Split Second – 1952
This is episode 7 from the anthology series, THE UNEXPECTED. The series ran for 37 episodes during 1952. Herbert Marshall served as the show's host who would introduce the episode, and the stars involved.
The episode starts with a man, Neville Brand, jumping off a bridge into the East River in New York. Then the story goes into flashback mode to tell us how Brand ended up going for a dive.
Neville Brand is a man in love. Brand, a low-level bonded messenger, is in love with showgirl Veda Ann Borg. Borg does not give him the time of day because he is always broke. Brand swears to fix that problem soon.
The next day Brand is handed a briefcase by his boss, Pierre Watkin. The case contains 43 grand in cash. Brand is to take it to the firm's bank to deposit. Brand however takes the subway the other way to a small bank. Using a fake name, Brand rents a safety deposit box and pays for ten years in advance. He stashes the cash, then, heads home to hide the box key. He hides the key down in the boiler room of his apartment building.
Brand pays a visit to Miss Borg and tells her that he has come into some cash. Needless to say, while all this is going on. His boss has received notice that the 43 grand never made it to the bank. The Police are called and Brand is soon in cuffs. He admits to taking the cash, but says that he was in turn robbed.
The judge gives Brand 5 years inside. Several years go by and Brand sees an article in the paper that makes him jump. His old apartment block is going under the wrecking ball in a month. A freeway is making its way through the area.
Brand gets on the horn and calls up Miss Borg to come visit him in prison. Miss Borg shows, and Brand asks her to fetch the hidden key from the soon to be demolished apartment block. Brand promises the somewhat reluctant Borg to make it worth her time.
The five years are up and Brand hits the streets. He quickly heads to find Miss Borg and retrieve the key. While Miss Borg may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, she has figured out what the key is for. She wants half the loot. Brand agrees.
They take the key and head for the bank. Brand steps up to the teller, and suddenly stops dead. He has forgotten the false name he used to get the box. He grabs Borg and head back to her rooms. He spends the next day racking his brain for the name. He even goes through the phone book trying to jog his memory.
He hits the bank again to see if there is another way to get to the box. The teller is adamant. No name to match to the signature card, no entry.
By this time Brand is coming completely unglued. Even Miss Borg has had enough of him. She now figures there never was any dough. Brand is at wits end, he just spent 5 years in jail for nothing. He hits the bridge and takes a dive. His life flashes in front of him, and he remembers the name just as he hits the water. He also remembers that he cannot swim.
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