Original Air Date: February 22, 1959
Starring: Lassie, Jon Provost, June Lockhart, Hugh Reilly, George Chandler
Guest Starring: Mustard
Directed by: Franklin Adreon
Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for this episode.
Synopsis: The Martin family find a stray cat on the doorstep, soaked through by a rainstorm and with a lame paw. They take the cat in and care for him, calling him Mustard because of his yellow coat. Uncle Martin (George Chandlers) cares for the cat’s paw but Lassie quickly disovers that Mustard is faking his injury for sympathy and coddling. Mustard causes trouble which Lassie ulimately gets blamed for, and finally Timmy (Jon Provost) catches on to the cat’s tricks, but the rest of the family is harder to convince.
Bad Kitty: Not to be confused with Frank Rice of the musical team Mustard and Gravy (whose credits are mixed up with this acting feline’s on IMDb, although we’re sure that Frank Rice was also one cool cat!) this ginger tabby cat has some acting chops, pulling off the role of the villain in this piece with great aplomb. It’s a terrific guest spot as Mustard is the focus of the entire episode and even upstages Lassie, earning Mustard a “cat burglar” kudo as well for such deft scene stealing. The ending when Mustard is picked up by a beautiful woman in a convertible is especially satisfying.
Final Mewsings: Cats can’t live with families that constantly need to be saved by a dog . . . they’d rather drive off with hot women in convertibles.
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