Ever wonder, girls, how Rhoda Penmark, of "The Bad Seed," might have turned out, if she had made it past puberty? "The Young One," which was shown on "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," back in 1957, and features a baby-faced then 15-year-old Carol Lynley in the role of an enterprising young gal named Janice, offers a fascinating glimpse into this question. And you know who directed it, darlings???? None other than an up-and-comer by the name of Robert Altman!!!!!!!!! No wonder it is so good.
But let me say, first, it was not what I was looking for. What I was specifically interested in was Jerome Bixby's short story of the same title, which I had first read, at age 13, in an Alfred Hitchcock anthology I then owned, called "Monster Museum." I wanted to track it down, and read it again, because it has stayed with me all these years, and I was curious to see if this story had ever been dramatized; from what I can tell it has not, though Bixby is best known for his short story "It's A Good Life," which became the basis for one of, if not the most, outstanding episode on Rod Serling's original "Twilight Zone" series.
"The Young One", which Bixby first wrote in 1954, is a story of unbearable poignancy. It concerns two young boys, one an American (I do not recall if he was named; for purposes here, let's call him Johnny), the other a boy from a family recently emigrated from Hungary. The two boys become friends; I recall when they first become acquainted, the Hungarian boy introduces himself as "Kovacs." When conversation develops, with Johnny explaining Americanisms to the boy, he says, "I'm sorry. I should have said, my name is Bela Kovacs." Bela is taken enough with Johnny, his new found friend, to introduce him to his parents. Which is where a glimmer is given that things are not quite right. The Kovacs insist Bela must be in by the time it becomes dark out; nothing unusual there. They approve of Johnny as a playmate, but, when alone, their approval turns somewhat....carnivorous...as they dwell on Johnny's freshness, his plumpness. Mr. Kovacs intimates nothing must happen here; an indication that they left their home country for very specific reasons.
Those reasons are revealed gradually. What I remember is Johnny becomes curious about Bela's restrictions; especially the one about being inside before dark. So, one day, the two go exploring a cave, and he decides to pretend they are lost. He even takes a flashlight, and dims it, preparing to observe Bela's behavior. It turns from anxiety to outright fear, until the light goes out, and Bela seems to disappear. When Johnny hears a series of animal-like snarls, he becomes scared and remorseful, and goes to the Kovacs, both to apologize, and get help. They are angry at Johnny; saying they do not want to see him anymore. They prepare to go out and search for Bela, when they suddenly notice a small wolf cub, hot on Johnny's heels. Johnny says the "darn thing" must have followed him all the way home. The Kovacs relax, and apologize to Johnny, once ascertaining he saw nothing but the wolf cub, saying he may come anytime and play with Bela.
Johnny goes home. Earlier in the story, the Kovacs talk of "a change" that needs to be controlled, and that when Bela gets older he must learn to control this change. The Kovacs take the wolf cub into the house, and the story ends, with the sentence, "And now, the time has come when we must tell Bela what he is."
You know what that is, darlings!!!! Bela and the Kovacs are a family of werewolves, forced to flee their native country, seeking refuge in America, where, they acknowledge, people are not so ready to believe in them, thinking of them as fictitious creatures. One thing that stands out is the notion, fostered by the Kovacs, that the change is like an impulse; something that can be learnt to be controlled. This is a new take on lycanthropy. The understated way in which Bixby reveals this, and the poignancy of Bela as the different, almost outcast child, through no fault of his own, gives "The Young One" its unbearable poignancy, and raises it beyond a routine supernatural story.
This story may not have been dramatized, but it cries out to be. If only, after the success of "It's A Good Life," Serling's original show had tackled this. Someone out there may; if there are any aspiring filmmakers looking to make an effective short film, I offer no better material than this.
When I first saw "The Young One" title, on "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," and that it was aired in 1957, I hoped for a Bixby adaptation. It wasn't, but turned out to be good, anyway.
Carol Lynley, at the earliest I have ever seen her, plays a young, enterprising girl, named Janice. Janice, whose parents died, has been raised by her mother's sister, Aunt May (played by Jeanette Nolan). Among other things, Janice has entitlement issues; she recalls growing up on a great mansion, being invited to parties; when her aunt reminds her her parents had worked there as servants, she turns on the old lady meanly. Janice, darlings, wants the high life; in some ways she is like a distant cousin of Veda Pierce. She is angelic--and deceiving. Her innocent looks belie the fact she hangs out at shady truck stops, where minors are not allowed. She meets a drifter, played by a pre-"Ben Casey" Vince Edwards, who gets the best line in the show. When Janice, who comes on to him much too aggressively for one her age, asks Tex if he is afraid of her, he replies, "You better believe it, doll baby!" Honey, where do you hear this kind of dialogue any more?????? Fabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
When Janice returns home, her Aunt May confronts her, on the stairs, about her scandalous behavior. Janice screams to be left alone. Next thing, she is enticing Tex home to the darkened house, where Tex thinks he is going to score big time with this nubile Lolita. But, knowing the local police officer is going to check up on her, Janice stages a fight scene between she and Tex, making it look as though he tried to rape her. The officer shows up, Tex makes a bid for an escape, when both discover, by the stairs, the body of a very deceased Aunt May. Janice screams to the officer that Tex killed her; he pushed her down the stairs. The officer is about to buy this, and Tex is visibly scared at going to prison for a crime he knows he did not commit. But then Stan, Janice's string-along boyfriend, comes along, offering to give her her wish of taking her away from all this,. He says he went looking for her, assuming she went looking for Tex, saying he saw Aunt May's body "right where you left it." The jig is up, and Janice loses it, saying she only wanted to be left alone. Well, dolls, now in prison, she will be.
Robert Altman's camera work, combined with superb line readings, make Janice's psychosis especially apparent. Vince Edwards is wonderfully seedy in a Fifties way, as Tex, and Jeanette Nolan scores as the hapless Aunt May.
You have to see this one, girls! For Carol Lynley at her youngest, for Robert Altman at his earliest, and to see what becomes of sociopathic juveniles who mature!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I just LOVED Janice, darlings!!!!!!!!! This is MY role!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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