Classic Horrors Club

Writer | Mel Goldberg
Story | Raymond F. Jones
Director | Don Medford
Air Date | Feb. 29, 1952

“The Children’s Room” is a variation on an earlier episode of Tales of Tomorrow, “A Child is Crying.” That is to say, in the context of the series, it doesn’t feel original. We’ve seen episodes with similar themes, but these two share nearly the same story. Both are about otherworldly children that possess the knowledge and intellect of no other human beings.

Because “The Children’s Room” is less ambiguous and contains more elements of fantasy, I prefer “A Child is Crying.” But we’ve already discussed that one. In this one, Bill (John Boruff) and his wife, Rose (Claire Luce), are concerned about their son Walt (Terry Greene.) Besides normal adolescent growing pains, he begins demeaning his parents and reading books in a unique foreign language.

The book becomes the MacGuffin as Bill goes to the library to investigate. Before his eyes, a “children’s room” (that a librarian claims doesn’t exist) appears before his eyes. Miss Edythe (Una O’Connor) sits behind the desk and explains that in order to see the children’s room, you must be a mutation that “nature demanded because evolution must not stop.”

It’s a shock to learn that Bill is like his son… but not quite. He can’t read the book like Walt can and it explains the next steps for the mutants to prepare for the coming battle. The best scenes are the back-and-forth exchanges between Bill and Miss Edythe, arguing over the fate of young Walt. “You can’t take him away from us!” (Bill) and “You can’t keep him!” (Miss Edythe.)

After a heartfelt family meeting, Walt admits that he wants to stop reading the book. “It’s scary.” So Bill takes it and destroys it. They make plans to run, but Walt says, “They’ll find me wherever we go.” After the high drama, the end falls a little flat. As mentioned, “A Child is Crying” is more impactful. It doesn’t have Una O’Connor, though, so maybe it’s a toss-up between the two. 

Written by | David Davidson
Original idea by | Jim Lister
Director | Don Medford
Air Date | March 28, 1952

Donald Bennett (Walter Brooke) has been distraught for four years since the disappearance of his wife, Paula Martin Bennett (Veronica Lake), a world-famous aviatrix who was supposedly training for a flight across the Pacific Ocean. He’s remarried and claims to have accepted Paula’s fate; however, he spends his free time in front of a short wave radio hoping to hear proof of her death… or life.

When Paula’s attorney, Sam Rutgers (Thom Conroy), unexpectedly arrives, he shares via flashback with Donald, his housekeeper, Anna (Lenore Shanewise), and his new wife, Deirdre (Mary Stuart McDonald) what was really happening before Paula disappeared. With a nice setup and type of reveal, it must have been something sensational right? This is science-fiction… anything is possible.

Unfortunately, for an audience watching 73 years later, the story is neither literally nor figuratively sensational. SPOILER ALERT. The big reveal is that Paula wasn’t training for a terrestrial flight; she was training to go to the moon. Why only the moon when episodes of Tales of Tomorrow have dealt with further reaches of the universe? It’s anticlimactic.

There’s still a glimmer of hope, though. If she went to the moon, she must still be alive. Maybe the crackling sounds on the radio were from Paula herself, reaching out to tell Donald she was still alive. EVEN BIGGER SPOILER ALERT. Nope. The rocket launch failed and she was killed before she even left Earth. “Flight Overdue” spins this in a positive way because…

…at least Donald has peace of mind knowing her true fate and he can continue living the rest of his life with Deirdre, which will certainly make her happier since she’s been complaining for 30 minutes about how her husband is living in the past. For me, it’s a big yawn. More importantly, it doesn’t reflect the title of the series. Even back then, this must have felt like a tale of yesterday.