Kraft Television Theater 8.16

Patterns

starring Richard Kiley, Ed Begley, Everett Sloane

directed by Fielder Cook

written by Rod Serling

Mr. Ramsey (Everett Sloane), the president of Ramsey and Company hires Fred Staples (Richard Kiley), a young go getter, to work with Andy Sloan (Ed Begley), the only executive left from when Ramsey started the company 20 years prior. It quickly becomes clear to Staples that Sloan is in poor health and doesn't respond well to the sort of pressure that Ramsey likes to apply to his executive staff. Sloan tells Staples that he can’t afford to quit but that Ramsey won’t fire him. Ramsey just makes Sloan’s life miserable.

Fred and Fran Staples throw a dinner party. Sloan doesn’t make it to the party but Ramsey does. Fred learns straight from Ramsey that Ramsey wants him to replace Sloan but that first he has to get Sloan to quit. Staples doesn’t feel good about what he learns but Ramsey doesn’t want to hear it. Fred talks to Fran about it (after Ramsey and the rest of their guests leave) but she doesn’t want to hear about his misgivings either.

Sloan and Staples distribute their report about business opportunities at the next executive team meeting. Ramsey refuses to accept that Sloan had anything to do with it and gives sole credit to Staples. Sloan tries to object but Ramsey shouts him down. Staples tries to back up Sloan but Ramsey won’t hear it. Sloan has a heart attack and dies after leaving the meeting. Staples contemplates quitting but he has a talk with Ramsey. He agrees to stay but Ramsey makes it clear that he won’t be easy on him. 

Thoughts

The story was made into a movie in 1956, the year after this episode aired. I would like to see the movie but I will probably wait a little while before seeing it. Two of the three leads (Ed Begley and Everett Sloane) are also in the movie.

Ramsey's behavior is reprehensible. He tries to justify it and make it look like Sloan's failing health is his own problem. I disagree. There's no justification for treating your employees like that. Staples similarly feels trapped but he likes the challenge, for now. The question is how will he feel in ten or twenty years if he is still working for Ramsey? Will Staples have the wisdom to see that it is time to move on and find a better job?

I was very impressed with this episode. All three of the lead actors were excellent. It is not an upbeat story. It gave me a lot to think about.

Notes

Rod Serling won a Primetime Emmy award for writing the script to this episode. It was one of two scripts for which he was nominated that year. This episode precedes the Twilight Zone (1959) by a few years. It wasn't the first episode of television that Serling wrote but it was the one that made people sit up and take notice.

I don't think that I have seen anything else in which Richard Kiley has appeared. He was also in one episode each of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955), The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and Night Gallery. He was also in one episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

I have also seen Ed Begley in Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) and an episode of The Invaders, 1.12 The Betrayed, among other things. He also appeared in one episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour.

I saw Everett Sloane recently in an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955), 1.08 Our Cook's a Treasure. He appeared in two other episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955) that I have yet to watch. He appeared in one episode of The Twilight Zone (1959).

Elizabeth Montgomery, who later went on to star in Bewitched has a small speaking role as one of the secretaries. 

This was the first of 13 episodes of Kraft Television Theater that Fielder Cook directed. He also directed the movie version of this story.