Hack writer Dick Stenger is responsible for the heavy-handed screenplay for this "Climax!" story, filled with empty dramatic fireworks. The actors performed well, and deserved better material.
It's a very corny and obvious play about scapegoating, told many times before, with better and more relevant story hooks. This version is about a small town with stereotypical small-minded characters who are extremely quick to blame a young boy for starting the deadly fire. Gossip spreads like wildfire (pun intended) and in another context events would be leading up to a lynching. Here instead we get an extremely unconvincing, gimmicky solution to the whodunit mystery in time for a gloomy conclusion.
Bonafide movie star Linda Darnell made her live TV debut here, and is commendably forceful as the boy's mom, who believes in him no matter what. Forrest Tucker makes his smaller role as the big shot real estate magnate who built this town in the first place count, while the rest of the cast is victimized by the writing which makes their characters stock and one-dimensional.
It's a very corny and obvious play about scapegoating, told many times before, with better and more relevant story hooks. This version is about a small town with stereotypical small-minded characters who are extremely quick to blame a young boy for starting the deadly fire. Gossip spreads like wildfire (pun intended) and in another context events would be leading up to a lynching. Here instead we get an extremely unconvincing, gimmicky solution to the whodunit mystery in time for a gloomy conclusion.
Bonafide movie star Linda Darnell made her live TV debut here, and is commendably forceful as the boy's mom, who believes in him no matter what. Forrest Tucker makes his smaller role as the big shot real estate magnate who built this town in the first place count, while the rest of the cast is victimized by the writing which makes their characters stock and one-dimensional.