Suspense - The Bullet

In "The Bullet," Elliot Lewis plays an ex-con who is insanely jealous of his wife's success, and Ida Lupino stars as his long-suffering wife. 

As the episode opens, Harry Martin is threatening his wife, Ruth, with a gun. Is it loaded? Ruth knows but Harry doesn't...

Then, we flash back to how their problems started. Harry, just recently released from a three year prison stint, came home to find that his wife, Ruth, was a changed woman. She had taken over his business while he was incarcerated and increased company profits drastically. Now they were able to afford a nice home, new car, a cook, etc.

Harry appreciates her efforts but now he wants her to go back to the kitchen. Ruth doesn't like that arrangement and neither does the company. Harry becomes increasingly hostile and violent towards his wife, until he reaches the point of wanting to kill her.

Will the two of them find a way to overcome their differences? (Who knows? This episode concludes with an awkward ending.) 

"The Bullet" was written by Larry Marcus. Produced by William Spier and directed by Norman MacDonnell. Ida Lupino starred as Ruth Martin and Elliot Lewis played Harry. Also appearing were William Conrad, Hans Conried, John Dehner, and Sidney Miller. This episode aired on December 29, 1949.

.  Download Suspense_1949.12.29_TheBullet

(Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Comments

[Grigs]

CBS Radio Mystery Theatre also had an episode called "The Bullet" that was actually really good. It's totally different from this Suspense episode, which, I'm sad to say, is a good thing.

I did enjoy hearing Ida Lupino and liked her character. The story just seems pointless. I think you were kind by calling the ending "awkward". Oh well, listening to a subpar episode of Suspense is better than watching a reality show.

[M. Sloane]

I wonder if someone had them back out of the two or three really interesting places this episode was headed. Without issuing a spoiler, I'll say there's a point late in the story where a great potential plot twist is set up. At that point the situation fairly bristles with anything-can-happen possibilities. Unfortunately, what does happen is a betrayal of the story's potential. I enjoy Ida Lupino's acting here -- it's impossible not to feel for her. And Elliott Lewis is a perfect heel. The last-minute story wimp out is odd, considering how many spousal corpses this series generated.

[Patte Rosebank]

This script was a rewrite of a script done on "Dark Venture", in 1946, as "A Practical Joke". Though the episode seems to be lost, the script survives.

The main characters are business partners in a construction company, and are played by William Conrad (the tormentor) and Elliott Lewis (his victim). When it was re-written for "Suspense", the characters were changed to a husband and wife, who own a garment company.