"Directed by Ida Lupino: Macabre Television."

Ida Lupino.

On June 24 at the Billy Wilder Theater, UCLA Film & Television Archive will salute some of Ida Lupino's directing contributions to TV mystery and horror through the program "Directed by Ida Lupino: Macabre Television," showing the episodes "A Crime for Mothers" (Alfred Hitchcock Presents),  "Guillotine" (Thriller; screenplay by Charles Beaumont, based on a story by Cornell Woolrich), and "The Masks" (Twilight Zone).

de la Torre's "The Older Sister" (1956).

A female reporter pursues an interview with the reluctant sister of Lizzie Borden in the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode "The Older Sister." Carmen Mathews plays Lizzie, and Patricia Hitchcock (daughter of Alfred) plays the servant Margaret. The episode is adapted from the play Goodbye, Miss Lizzie Borden (Suspense radio version, 1955) by Haycraft-Queen author and Edgar nominee Lillian de la Torre McCue (1902–93), who was known for her portrayal of Dr. Samuel Johnson as a master sleuth.

Remembering Phyllis Thaxter: Cheever/Armstrong's "The Five-Forty-Eight."

In "The Five-Forty-Eight," a 1960 episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Phyllis Thaxter, who died on August 14 at age 92, portrays a secretary determined to even the score with her nasty former boss. Based on a short story by John Cheever (for which Raymond Carver wrote a sequel, "The Train"), it was scripted by Edgar winner Charlotte Armstrong.

Lamb to the slaughter.

When people think of mystery, food, and the perfect murder weapon, what frequently comes to mind is Roald Dahl's "Lamb to the Slaughter," which was adapted for Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1958 and starred Barbara Bel Geddes.

Happy birthday, Fredric Brown.

Fredric Brown, Edgar winner for The Fabulous Clipjoint (1947) featuring the sleuthing Ambrose Hunter and his nephew Ed, was born today in Cincinnati in 1906. He was well known for his writings in the pulps, and a few of his works were adapted for the screen: "Madman's Holiday" became the film Crack-up (1946), The Screaming Mimi became a film for Columbia (1958), and "Arena" became an episode of Star Trek. He also wrote for Alfred Hitchcock Presents.