The Hitchcock Project-Self Defense by John T. Kelley [6.32]

by Jack Seabrook

One evening, a car pulls up outside a liquor store in a run-down part of town. A tall, handsome man emerges from the car and walks between a few battered garbage cans to the store's front door. On entering, he cheerfully greets the middle-aged woman behind the counter; she appears frightened. He pulls a six-pack of beer from a refrigerated case, approaches the counter, and places a five-dollar bill in front of the clerk, who tells him that she has no change and suggests that he "'take the beer and pay me later.'"

From behind the store's open front door, a young man with a gun emerges and walks toward the customer, whose back is to the young man. The gunman is reflected in a mirror on the wall behind the clerk. Suddenly, the sweaty, nervous gunman sticks his gun in the customer's back and tells him not to turn around. The clerk urges the young man to leave, since he has her money, and he rushes out the front door, pulling it closed. The customer, sweating profusely and looking upset, watches as the clerk takes her husband's gun from behind the counter; she says that she was afraid to reach for it before. She places the gun on the counter and the customer grabs it and runs out to the parking lot, where he shoots at the thief's car as it starts to drive away. After a second gunshot, the car stops. The customer approaches the car and shoots twice more, aiming at the driver. Going up to the car, he sees the young man slumped over the wheel.

Audrey Totter as Mrs. Phillips

This is the powerful scene that opens "Self Defense," an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents that aired on NBC on Tuesday, May 23, 1961. The scene dissolves to the office of police Lt. Schwartz, where the liquor store customer speaks to Schwartz and another policeman named Lou. The man identifies himself as Gerald R. Clarke, single, age 38, who works as a radio engineer at a local station. Clarke asks about the young man, who is identified as 18-year-old Jimmy Phillips; he is badly injured but alive and has no prior criminal record. The second policeman explains that Jimmy's mother is divorced and works as a switchboard operator, while his father is remarried and lives somewhere in New Jersey.

George Nader as Gerald Clarke

When questioned, Clarke explains that he had never been to that liquor store before but had stopped off there to buy beer while on his way to a friend's house to play cards. Schwartz praises him for having "'showed a lot of nerve going after that kid'" and asks Clarke why he took the risk. Clarke replies, "'Because he pointed his gun at me,'" and tells a story about having served in the Army during WWII in France, Belgium, and Germany. He was never on the line and never had to kill anyone, but he once saw a British soldier shot by mistake by a friend outside a bar in Brussels. "'It made me realize how special a loaded gun is when it's pointed at you.'" When Jimmy pointed his gun at Clarke, the ex-soldier thought, "'What makes him think that he can do this to me? And I had to fight back.'" Schwartz tells Clarke that he can leave and Clarke remarks, "'I wish it hadn't happened.'" "'Don't let it throw you,'" says Schwartz, "'A man's got a right to defend himself.'"

Steve Gravers as Lt. Schwartz

Clarke leaves the lieutenant's office and enters a phone booth in the lobby of the police station. While he's inside, a policeman brings a middle-aged woman into the lobby, where she sits on a bench. Clarke emerges from the phone booth, picks up his overcoat from a chair, and the woman addresses him, thinking that he is the police lieutenant. Clarke tells her that he's not a policeman and offers to help, noticing that she is upset. After he hands her a handkerchief to wipe her tears, it becomes clear that she is Jimmy Phillips's mother; she mentions that her son held up the liquor store with an empty gun. Clarke rushes back into Lt. Schwartz's office and asks if the gun was empty, as Mrs. Phillips said. The lieutenant confirms that it was but adds that there was no way for Clarke to have known this. Clarke is visibly upset and Schwartz hangs up the telephone to announce that Jimmy died five minutes ago.

David Carlile as Lou

After the mid-show break, the scene shifts to a cemetery, where Jimmy's funeral ends and Clarke stands near the edge of the crowd of mourners, watching Mrs. Miller wipe her tears. After the crowd has dispersed, Clarke approaches the last man left and learns that he is Henry Willet, who runs the answering service where Mrs. Phillips works. Clarke introduces himself and offers to help, pressing several bills into Willet's hand in order to share the cost of the funeral and insisting that "'I'm not trying to buy my way out of this.'" "'Don't punish yourself too much about this,'" replies Willet, "'he wasn't the angel she likes to think he was... it's his own fault.'"

Jesslyn Fax as Mrs. Gruber, the liquor store clerk

At the radio station where Clarke works, he sees Mrs. Phillips arrive in the lobby and she thanks him for helping to pay for the funeral. She asks if he'll help her "'come to terms with it,'" by talking to her and they agree that they'll meet at his apartment that evening. Later, she arrives at his "'lovely apartment,'" one of several that are "'ringed around the swimming pool,'" and the setting contrasts with the hard life led by Mrs. Phillips and her son. As Clarke makes coffee, Mrs. Phillips mentions having had a long talk with Lt. Schwartz. He admits that he was frightened but insists that he was shooting at the car, not at Jimmy, and he does not remember how many shots were fired.

Selmer Jackson as the priest

Mrs. Phillips points out that he shot Jimmy three times and she asks Clarke why he kept shooting, even after the car had stopped. He explains that he kept firing because he was afraid and he grows more agitated, his voice rising, sweat appearing on his face, telling her that "'You don't know how it feels, having a gun pointed at you.'" She watches him quietly, judging him, as he falls apart. She walks back to the sofa and pulls a gun from her purse, pointing it him and emphasizing that "'This gun is loaded, Mr. Clarke.'" He continues to insist that he was frightened when he shot her son and he breaks down, pleading with her. Finally, she lowers the gun, puts it back in her bag, puts the bag down, and goes to the closet, where she gets her coat and puts it on, all with her back to Clarke.

Bob Paget as Jimmy Phillips

When Mrs. Phillips turns around, she sees that Clarke is now pointing her own gun at her and his face is bathed in sweat. He shoots once and she falls to the floor; he shoots a second time and her body jerks with the bullet's impact. Clarke speaks the show's final line: "'I told you not to point a gun at me.'"

"Self Defense" is the title of this thrilling episode, and the question of whether Clarke acted in self-defense when he shot Jimmy hangs over the whole show. Today, there would be no question that Clarke's actions in following and shooting Jimmy were inappropriate, but in 1961, his character is reassured by two men; both Lt. Schwartz and Henry Willet tell him that he did the right thing and has nothing to feel bad about. The main female character, however, has a different opinion, and she confronts Clarke with questions about why he fired multiple gunshots at Jimmy when the young man was not firing back. It seems clear that Mrs. Phillips has uncovered the basis for Clarke's self-doubt, and when she threatens him with a gun he snaps and responds by killing her.

Alexander Lockwood as Henry Willet

Reviewers on IMDb have suggested that Clarke suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from his wartime experiences, and that may be true, but there is another, perhaps far-fetched explanation for what happens in this episode. George Nader, who plays Clarke, was a handsome, gay actor who kept his sexual orientation from the public during the years he appeared on screen. What if the actions of his character in "Self Defense" are taken as extreme measures to conceal Clarke's feelings of attraction for other men? In the opening scene, young Jimmy pokes a loaded gun (a phallic symbol) into Clarke's back, causing him to have a noticeable reaction. Sweat pours down his face. When he first entered the store, the clerk, a middle-aged woman, looked at him strangely. Does Clarke grab the gun, run outside, and kill Jimmy as a way of pushing his own desire deep below the surface?

In the next scene, at the police station, Lt. Schwartz spends much of the scene watching Clarke with an odd expression on his face, as if he's trying to figure out the man before him. After the funeral, Henry looks at Clarke strangely and Clarke shoves a handful of bills into his hand. Finally, there is Clarke's relationship with Mrs. Phillips. He is 38 years old and she is a few years older; the actress who plays her, Audrey Totter, is attractive, even in a role as an 18-year-old man's mother who is divorced and works at an unglamorous job. Clarke meets her at work and they arrange for her to visit him at his home that evening, but there is no hint of sexual tension between them.

Aiming at the car

That evening, Clarke's home is presented as a classic bachelor pad, one of several that surround a central swimming pool; the apartment is beautiful but there is no suggestion of any female presence. Even when he and Mrs. Phillips are alone together, he is tortured and, the more she questions him, the more upset he gets. Finally, she points a gun at him (another phallic symbol) and he snaps. When her back is turned, he takes the gun and, as soon as she turns around, he shoots and kills her, putting a second bullet into her body as it lies on the floor, not a threat to him at all.

Is the character of Gerald Clarke meant to be a gay man who can't help killing out of zeal to cover up his identity? Far-fetched as the idea may be, one can easily support it by watching the show closely. "Self Defense" is a wonderful half-hour of noir that moves quickly and rachets up the tension until its shocking finale. The teleplay was written by John T. Kelley (1921-1972), who wrote for TV from 1951 to 1971 and whose few movie credits include some dialogue for Planet of the Apes (1968). This was one of two scripts he wrote for Alfred Hitchcock Presents; the other was "Apex." "Self Defense" appears to be an original teleplay; the cover of a copy of the shooting script says that it is either "from his story" or "from the story," but I have been unable to locate any published story.

At Gerald's place

The show is directed by Paul Henreid (1908-1992) who began his career as a film actor. He started directing in the early 1950s and he directed 29 episodes of the Hitchcock show, including "A Little Sleep."

George Nader (1921-2002), who plays Gerald Clarke, served in WWII and then starred in films and on TV from 1950 to 1974. He was in Robot Monster (1953) and he was seen in two episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents; the other one was "Where Beauty Lies." Nader and his partner Mark Miller were close friends with Rock Hudson and inherited the interest from the actor's large estate when he died of AIDS. Nader also wrote a science fiction novel titled Chrome (1987).

Mrs. Phillips is played by Audrey Totter (1917-2013), who had a small part in The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) and a lead role in The Lady in the Lake (1947). She appeared in numerous TV episodes and movies from 1945 to 1987 and was a regular on four different TV series. She appeared in one other episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, "Madame Mystery."

In smaller roles:

• Steve Gravers (1922-1978) as Lt. Schwartz; trained at the Actors Studio, he was on screen from 1950 to 1978, mostly on television, and he appeared in four episodes of the Hitchcock show, including "The Thirty-First of February."
• David Carlile (1931-2006) as Lou, the other policeman who interviews Clarke; his career was mostly on TV from the mid-1950s to the late 1990s; he was on the Hitchcock half-hour seven times, including "A Night With the Boys."
• Jesslyn Fax (1893-1975) as Mrs. Gruber, whose store is robbed; she was on screen from 1950 to 1969 and had small parts in Hitchcock's Rear Window (1954) and North By Northwest (1959), as well as on five episodes of the Hitchcock TV show, including "Coming. Mama" She was also on Batman and she appeared in "Four O' Clock," Hitchcock's TV adaptation of a Cornell Woolrich story in 1957 for Suspicion.
• Selmer Jackson (1888-1971) as the priest at the funeral; he often played small, uncredited roles in film or on TV from 1921 to 1963. He appeared in Hitchcock's Saboteur (1942) and was in six episodes of the Hitchcock show; his last credited role was in "Starring the Defense."
• Bob Paget (1935- ) as Jimmy Phillips; he was on screen from 1955 to 2019 and played one of the auditioning Hitlers in The Producers (1968).
• Alexander Lockwood (1902-1990) as Henry Willet; born in Austria-Hungary, he was on screen from 1952 to 1988. He had small parts in three episodes of the Hitchcock TV show and played minor roles in Saboteur (1942), North By Northwest (1959), and Family Plot (1976).

Watch "Self Defense" online here or buy the DVD here.

Sources:

The FICTIONMAGS Index, www.philsp.com/homeville/fmi/0start.htm.

"George Nader - Alfred Hitchcock Presents - Self Defense - 1961." GEORGE NADER - ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS - SELF DEFENSE - 19, www.rock-hudson-estate-collection.com/scripts/george-nader/george-nader-alfred-hitchcock-presents-self-defense-1961.html. Accessed 4 May 2025.

Grams, Martin, and Patrik Wikstrom. The Alfred Hitchcock Presents Companion. OTR Pub, 2001.

IMDb, www.imdb.com.

"Self Defense." Alfred Hitchcock Presents, season 6, episode 32, NBC, 23 May 1961.

Wikipedia, www.wikipedia.org.

Listen to Al Sjoerdsma discuss "A Little Sleep" here!

In two weeks: "Night Caller," starring Felicia Farr and Bruce Dern!