Inner Sanctum Mysteries: The Tell-Tale Heart
Boris Karloff stars in The Inner Sanctum version of the Tell-Tale Heart. However, the dramatization has very little in common with the Edgar Allan Poe story it is based upon.
Boris Karloff plays Simon, who was a musician until he went deaf. His deafness had seemed irreversible until someone referred him to Dr Adair who cured Simon. Now, just six months later, he is ready to go home and the start of the show finds him walking down the winding road from the house on the hill to his home in the village below.
While he is walking Simon meets a man at the side of the road and Simon tells him how wonderful he feels. He can hear the grass growing and the sap rising in the trees and many things that nobody has ever heard before.
The man’s name is Oliver and he is amazed by Simon’s abilities but is not unduly surprised because he too has just been released from the Doctor’s care and, although he used to be blind, his eyesight is now as good as Simon’s hearing.
At Simon’s suggestion, the two men head off together, to an old mill, planning to stay there for a while, until they get used to their new abilities. Simon feels that once they are more accustomed to their talents they will be able to help people.
Simon soon discovers though, that Oliver shares neither his sentiments nor his noble ambition. He is a twisted and bitter soul who only wants to hurt people and Simon soon decides that he must kill his new companion before he can cause any more harm. He does just that and hides the body underneath the floorboards.
This Inner Sanctum dramatization of The Tell-Tale Heart is very different from Poe’s story.
Poe’s story does not reveal the name of the killer. The victim, destined to lie underneath the floorboards, is not identified either. He simply referred to as “the old man”. In Poe’s story, the murder also lacks a concrete motive and the killer is possibly insane. However, true to Poe’s story or not, the Inner Sanctum version does boast a few good twists in the tale and fans of Boris Karloff will love it.
Inner Sanctum Mysteries: The Tell-Tale Heart
(Listen to the Full Episode)
(Listen to the Full Episode)