I've always liked and respected Ida Lupino, but watching her in Beware My Lovely propelled her to new heights in my estimation. The movie — produced by her production company — had me right at the very spooky opening sequence, when Robert Ryan discovers the body of his employer in a broom closet and flees across a rail yard. Soon he comes to the home of a war widow (Lupino) and begins doing odd jobs around the house. When his character, Howard, asks to hang his coat in a cleaner closet, it hit me: this was the same story as "To Find Help," another Agnes Moorehead tour de force from Suspense I had heard years ago on The Big Broadcast (WAMU 88.5)  while driving home from Brooklyn one dark and stormy night. It was so good that I sat in the car outside the house (after a 5 hour drive, mind you) just to find out who played the creepy young man. It was Frank Sinatra.

On screen last night, all things started to play out just as I remembered in the radio play with one or two modifications  to great effect (I kept a wary eye on the dog, for instance). It's a terrific, terrifying, and extremely well-acted film and I recommend it highly.

Coincidentally, seeing this movie only confirmed my feelings about "Sorry, Wrong Number" the radio play versus Sorry, Wrong Number the film, which I watched on YouTube yesterday just to make sure. I can see why people who haven't heard the Suspense broadcast would give the movie high marks — it's scary, gorgeously shot, and well acted; however, as an adaption it comes across (to me) overwrought with unecessary exposition and introducing sympathies that distort the dramatic effect of the original. It is a good movie — just not a good adaptation.

Beware My Lovely is both. Please see it.

I'm going to go ahead and say it...the movie's no good!

Really, don't bother.

I present for your listening pleasure, the West Coast broadcast of "Sorry, Wrong Number," written by Lucille Fletcher and first broadcast on Suspense, May 25, 1943. There was a dramatic flub at the end of the East Coast (first) version, so I am posting the second airing for those of you who have never heard it.

All eight recordings of the radio play are available for download. By 1944, the phone number the desperate woman was trying to reach was changed from MurrayHill 7-0093 to MurrayHill 4-0098. Why? I have not idea, but I find it interesting.

Just want to point out that it's very different from the film. You really want to kill Mrs. Stevenson in the radio version.