The Dead Alive

Originally Aired: March 9, 1953

Suspense #503, "The Dead Alive," stars Herbert Marshall as Philip Lefranc, an overworked English barrister seeking rest and recovery at a remote American farm. Arriving at the gloomy Meadowcroft estate, Philip finds himself in a household seething with tension. His host, cousin Silas, harbors a dangerous hatred for the farm's overseer, John Jago, even attempting to run him down with a carriage. The dreary atmosphere is relieved only by the presence of Naomi Colebrook, a lovely young woman living with the family, toward whom both Silas and Jago seem to direct troubling attention.

As Philip navigates the hostile dynamics between Silas, his controlling sister Letty, and the surly Jago, he discovers that violence has already erupted between the men. Despite his doctor's warnings to avoid excitement, Philip finds himself drawn to Naomi and increasingly entangled in the household's dark tensions. The stage is set for something terrible to happen in this isolated, brooding place where hatred simmers beneath forced civility.