THE KILLER THAT STALKED NEW YORK - "It Ain't Who You Think It Is" (1950)

 Tonight's Saturday Night Special is a scary movie that was made seventy-one years ago, and should have been mandatory prime time TV viewing last year. The killer is question is not a person, but a seriously contagious virus known as smallpox, and this is a tale of how fast infectious disease can spread!

 

By means of vaccination, small pox was eradicated in 1949, and declared gone forever in the year 1980, but not before it wiped out over 500 million people in 100 years of the not so distant past.

 

 

It all starts with this woman named Sheila Bennet as played by Evelyn Keyes. Not exactly a household name, but Evelyn was in some big movies like "Gone With The Wind," and "The Seven Year Itch."

Sheila has just returned to New York from Cuba where she had picked up some stolen jewels for her boyfriend, but what she doesn't know is that she also picked up a nice ripe case of smallpox, and every person who comes in contact with her is going to get it too!

Sheila's boyfriend is a first-class jerk! The whole time Sheila has been gone, he's been making it with her younger sister Francie Bennet. Francie is played by lovely Lola (The Monolith Monsters) Albright. The sleazebag artist boyfriend's name is Matt Krane and was played by Charles (Tarzan's Savage Fury) Korvin.

 

The bellhop named Danny helps sneak Sheila out of the hotel because the Feds are on her tail, not because of the disease, but because of the diamonds. The actor who plays Danny has a face you can't forget and played in many an odd character over the years. His name is Walter Burke, and he was in two episodes of "The Outer Limits," "The Invisibles," and "The Mutant," and he was also in an episode of "The Twilight Zone" titled "The Big Tall Wish."

 

Okay, here we go.....................No hugs!!! 

This little girl who was a stranger will later die from the disease!

 

Sheila finally makes it back to Matt's arms, and she's a lot more thrilled about it than he is! The funny thing is, the disease acts in strange ways, and a lot of people die from exposure to Sheila before she does, and for some reason, Matt's not getting it either.

 

Wash those freakin' filthy hands! 

Some things have not changed in 70 years!!

 

This guy is more concerned about the spread of the disease than most, because as you can see, he was a survivor, but paid the price with a pock marked face!

Smallpox was an absolutely horrible disease!

 

Jim Backus aka Thurston Howell III or the voice of Mr. Magoo, is the owner of a bar called Willies. He tries to put the make on Sheila, and will end up paying the highest price possible, a tortuous and miserable death from smallpox.

 

Sheila is a one woman wrecking ball, and she doesn't even have a clue. In the meantime, the authorities are in search of whoever started this whole mess, and they don't know where to start! 

 

These two drinking fountain shots just say it all!!
 

 

"The Killer That Stalked New York" has got a great supporting cast that also includes Whit Bissell as Sheila's brother, Sid Bennet. Whit was in some of the most classic monster movies ever, like "Creature From The Black Lagoon," "I Was A Teenage Werewolf," "I Was A Teenage Frankenstein," "Monster On The Campus," and more. He was also in "The Outer Limits" episode  called "Nightmare."

 

This is one incredible shot of a "Frightened City," which was an alternative name for this film.

There are a few differences between this plague and the one we are experiencing today, the biggest being they already had a vaccination since they had been fighting the disease for years. So every time a new case pops up, they immediately send a mobile team in to vaccinate everybody and anybody in the vicinity, but of course, there are doubters!

The breakout swells to a large proportion in a short amount of time, and so the inevitable occurs, and they run out of shots. Not bullshitting around in any way, the Mayor of New York steps in and tells the manufacturing companies to step up the program and get their asses to work 24/7, because they have no time to lose!

 

When they finally figure out who the person is who is spreading the disease, they go all out to find her!

 

Sometimes profiling is necessary and justified...............

 

...........And the police question every blonde in the whole damn city looking for Sheila!

This movie is Amazing! 

Seventy years, and it doesn't feel like we have learned a damn thing!

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