The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (TV Series) Nothing Ever Happens in Linvale (1963) User Reviews

"Nothing Ever Happens in Linvale"...except murder

[chuck-reilly · 8/10 · 25 April 2008]

Above average Hithcock entry in the hour-long series with Fess Parker playing a good-natured local sheriff going about his normal boring business when he receives a strange complaint from a widow (Phyllis Thaxter). She's convinced that her next door neighbor (Gary Merrill) has murdered his wife. The woman hasn't been seen around the house in weeks and the nosy Ms. Thaxter has noticed some unusual late-night gardening from Mr. Merrill. Parker isn't too worried about these events because "Nothing ever happens in Linvale" to begin with. It's a nice quiet town and he aims to keep it that way.

Phyllis Thaxter, a Hitchcock regular in her day, carries this tale with her combination of emotions ranging from fear to quasi-hysteria. She does her utmost to make sure that old Fess thoroughly investigates the disappearance of Merrill's wife, and all within the boundaries of the law. Unfortunately for her, Fess does his job all too well. "Nothing Ever Happens..." succeeds on the performances of the stellar cast as the plot is mostly standard Hithcock fodder. It's too bad that Parker was typecast too often as a frontiersman (e.g. Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone etc.). He was an excellent actor in his heyday and could actually handle a wide range of roles. He's quite good here as a laid-back sheriff who's a lot smarter than he looks.

Man when you think it's over

[sdot8787 · 9/10 · 31 March 2021]

I thought I knew what was going to happen. Then what I thought was the end happened and I was right! Oh but I was wrong! It wasn't over! Fantastic episode!

Reminds One of Rear Window

[Hitchcoc · 9/10 · 19 May 2023]

I know it is full of plot holes. The whole scheme is knuckle dragging. If the two had murder in mind, it could have been done in a much more creative way. But the whole plot is so much fun. Sometimes too much thought destroys the joy of things. Fess Parker is absolutely frustrated from beginning to end. The plot has him so twisted and turned. But as is the case with people who make things too complicated, there is one thing that will slip them up. I have to admit I fell for the whole thing. I thought perhaps the wife was buried first and then the dog on top of her. He worked a lot out there. I was also ready for a cracked skull from a blow with a shovel. They got me, and I loved it. Also, instead of Hitchcock making up an alternate ending where crime doesn't pay, the episode is wrapped up with a ribbon.

Classic Premise

[dougdoepke · 1 August 2015]

Classic premise—in a sleepy town a wife goes missing while a nosy neighbor spies the husband digging in the back yard. She contacts the sheriff and his eager deputy who investigate. The husband seems cooperative, but is he really. So what's going on and where is the wife.

It's a fine cast—powerhouse actor Merrill as the husband, series favorite Thaxter as the neighbor, and a towering Parker as Daniel Boone, oops!, I mean as the sheriff. Together, they make the storyline doubly interesting. Plus, Merrill didn't have to bother shaving for several days. It's also a classic Hitchcock ending that I didn't see coming. Still, I could have done without the very last twist, which could have been saved for Hitch's epilogue. But I guess that's a matter of taste. Anyhow, the narrative is an imaginative version of a classic premise and should not be passed up.

GET TO KNOW YOUR NEIGHBORS?

[tcchelsey · 10/10 · 31 May 2023]

An excellent story, guaranteed to keep you tuned in. Thanks to master mystery writer Richard Levinson, who wrote some of the best whodunits for COLUMBO and MURDER, SHE WROTE. This was a little show prep for him, and it shows.

As I have noted in the past, the half hour Hitchcock tv shows were in a class by themselves, however, every now and then there would be a dynamic one hour tale. This is one of them.

Gary Merrill (ALL ABOUT EVE, THE HUMAN JUNGLE) also popular on tv at the time, plays a man suspected of burying his wife in his back yard. He claims his wife left him while a nosy neighbor saw the whole thing --kind of, sort of? In steps analytical sheriff Fess Parker, not too fast to put the cuffs on his suspect. You darn well know there's a Hitch twist coming.

Phyllis Thaxter, a series favorite, is quite good here, and perhaps with the best role. Also look for Martine Bartlett playing the neighborhood gossip. Popular "senior actor" Burt Mustin has a bit as a store manager. Parker, shortly after this episode, won the role of tv's DANIEL BOONE, and the rest is history.

The ending is a camp classic if there ever was one.

SEASON 2 remastered dvd box set. 8 dvd box set. 25 hrs length. Released 2016.

One of the best!

[animositisomina35 · 10/10 · 17 March 2024]

This is one of the best episodes this series has to offer. There are many twists and turns and it keeps you guessing right up until the end!

The narrative is a slow burn. Initially, the episode lulls the viewer into a false sense of security with its portrayal of Linvale's idyllic facade. Yet, as the layers peel back, tension mounts, and the viewer is left guessing until the very end. This gradual build-up is punctuated by moments of genuine shock and surprise, showcasing the writers' ability to subvert expectations.

Gary Merrill's performance as the suspected husband is both compelling and unnerving. His portrayal of a man teetering on the edge of sanity adds depth to the narrative, while Fess Parker as the sheriff brings a relatable everyman quality, serving as the audience's eyes and ears in the unsettling situation.

A special nod must be given to the cinematography. The use of shadows, close-ups, and framing creates a palpable atmosphere of suspicion and unease. Even the seemingly tranquil settings of Linvale are imbued with an underlying sense of dread, a hallmark of Hitchcock's visual storytelling.

The episode's conclusion, however, may divide viewers. While it offers a resolution to the central mystery, it does so in a manner that is somewhat abrupt and leaves certain threads dangling. This ambiguity, while potentially frustrating for some, also serves to linger in the mind long after the credits roll - a mark of a truly effective thriller.

Pushing Up Daisies.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 24 January 2013]

Typical entertainment from the series. Phyllis Thaxter, an appealing actress, is one of those nosy neighbors who can't help noticing that the wife of her neighbor, Gary Merrill, hasn't been see for some time. Moreover, Merrill sneaks out at night and digs a hole in his garden, apparently burying something. She calls in the police chief, in the form of what I first took to be a tall leafless trunk of blackjack oak but turned into the affable Fess Parker. Merrill's house is a mess and he himself looks as if he's been doing a lot of urban camping, unshaven, filthy, needing a haircut. Merrill himself is indignant and says his wife went away on a trip.

Prodded by Thaxter, Parker digs up the garden and finds only a buried dog. The dog died a natural death and Merrill admits shamefully that his wife has left him for good, headed for parts unknown, but he didn't want to admit it and be the subject of gossip. The good old days, when divorce was uncommon and conjugal misery prevailed. Merrill lays his cards on the table with stoic resignation, reminding us of Socrates' pronouncement: "By all means, marry. If your wife is good you'll be happy. If your wife is bad you'll become a philosopher."

I don't know. I guess I won't reveal the ending because it came as a bit of a shock to me. So let me end with another little note on Socrates. If anybody knows about "bad wives", it should be Socrates. His own wife, Xanthippe, has entered legend as a venomous bitch.

"Well, what did you expect, a body?"

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 27 October 2022]

What was wrong with these people? I'm talking about Mrs. Logan (Phyllis Thaxter) and unkempt neighbor Harry Jarvis (Gary Merrill). If she hadn't called Sheriff Ben Wister (Fess Parker) in the first place, it's very likely the pair would have gotten away with murder, and no one would have been any the wiser. But Mrs. Logan's constant intrusion into the sheriff's business kept him appropriately on the scene until he inadvertently caught them both disposing of Mrs. Jarvis's body. And what was the point of burying the body in Mrs. Logan's yard, and then finding it necessary to make a switch later on? That just didn't make sense to me. Nor did the entire story once it was over.

P. S. Who else had the thought this could have been an episode of the "The Andy Griffith Show", another popular television series of the era? Replace Andy of Mayberry with Fess Parker, plug in George Furth (as deputy Charlie) for Don Knotts, and you had the makings of a comedic murder mystery looking for a corpse.

This is a really neat episode....until you start to think about the plot!

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 15 May 2021]

"Nothing Ever Happens in Linvale" is a very enjoyable but flawed installment of "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour". It's an episode that really is enjoyable to watch...until after it's over and you realize '....wait a minute...that didn't make sense....and that didn't make sense!!'.

The sheriff in some small town receives a call from a woman who insists she wants to talk with him. Sheriff Wister (Fess Parker) is told by Mrs. Logan (Phyllis Thaxter) that she's seen her neighbor behaving oddly...and she thinks he's perhaps murdered his wife. Well, there's not much the Sheriff can do, as there's no evidence a crime has been committed. However, over the course of the episode, there are some discrepancies in the man's story about the whereabouts of the wife. Did he actually kill her?

This was a pretty enjoyable episode and the twist at the end was pretty neat. But as I said above, when you think about the plot, it really doesn't make any sense. And, to talk about this, I'll have to reveal some spoilers. First, apparently the man DID murder his wife....with the help of Mrs. Logan, his lover! That's cool. But WHY would Logan call the cops and create suspicion in the first place?? Second, apparently the body was initially buried in Logan's yard, not the neighbor's. And, after the police examined where the body was supposedly buried in Harry's yard, WHY would he go back to Logan's yard and dig up the wife and move her to the hole where the police had looked? Why not just leave the body there? This just doesn't make any sense. What if the police returned and inspected the hole again? Which, of course, they did! It just didn't make any sense....and so although I liked it as I was watching, in the final minutes I felt mad that such big plot holes were allowed to stay in the script.

RIDICULOUS!

[skarylarry-93400 · 5/10 · 20 December 2022]

For some reason this requires 600 characters when nobody else has to review with a 600 character review! Why? Anyway, this episode is stupid! Why not just leave the body at her house? The Sheriff already cleared him! Why would she throw over the wall a shovel when he already had one? Why not put the body in his yard in the early morning when the sheriff wouldn't be by. This way the sheriff already would have been there to get the dog. And, none Of this nonsense would have been necessary to begin with! Just leave the body in her yard and NEVER CALL THE SHERIFF...END OF STORY! STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!

Enjoyable, but somewhat silly "plot"

[Ripshin · 19 April 2024]

I always enjoy seeing Thaxter in an episode - she's consistently great. Parker and Merrill are also excellent.

The casting of a few of the supporting characters is weak, particularly Furth as "Charlie." He's too much of a dim-wit. This is often the case when this series has a small town setting. Half the people act like rubes.

The plot, as a few user reviewers point out, is quite idiotic when you really think about it. Why bring attention to her disappearance? Just tell the neighbors she left him. Keep your "story" consistent. Granted, questions would arise, being that the murdered wife was so active in the small community. However, just leave the body where it was originally buried. Give it some time, then get together as a (murdering) couple. Move in Mrs. Logan's house. (That house has appeared in a few Hitchcock Hour episodes.)

I certainly didn't care for the dog/rat poison stuff, but it was apparently necessary for the silly "scheme."

Definitely worth watching. And, no, I did not foresee the ending - that was a surprise.