by Ted Davis
Original Air Date: September 24, 1962
Starring: Orangey
Directed by: Otto Lang
Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains spoilers for this episode!
Synopsis: The criminally inclined Durango Brothers — Calhoun (Jack Elam), Homer (Mickey Simpson), and Obed (Charles Briggs) — are determined that traveling man Cheyenne Bodie (Clint Walker) marries their picky but eligible sister Lottie (Sally Kellerman), who is still on the vine at age 25, but their priorities shift when they learn that Cheyenne is a deputy sheriff hot on their trail for the recent murders they’ve committed.
Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): As Calhoun pours a dose of poison into the breakfast dish intended for Cheyenne, the family cat is nearby on the kitchen counter, watching intently.
Calhoun’s dastardly plot is derailed when Cheyenne doesn’t sit in his expected seat at the table, and the indomitable Ma Durango (Ellen Corby), who rules the roost, is forced to knock the poisoned dish out of Calhoun’s hand to the floor in order to avoid killing Lottie, who would have received the deadly vittles inadvertently. The vigilant cat seizes the opportunity to snag an extra portion of food and ventures a taste of the mess on the floor, then draws back immediately, hissing and yowling, before running away without too much apparent harm.
This is yet another television appearance by members of the Orangey team trained by Frank Inn.
Final Mewsings: It’s about time that a kitty skirted the dreaded Poisoned-Cat-cliché syndrome.
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