The Evil Touch

Man, this show gave me the creeps when I was a kid but it's been over 30 years since seeing it and it's hard to remember now.

I was a huge fan of 'Night Stalker', 'Night Gallery', 'Dark Shadows' and 'Ghost Story' as well a made for TV movie at that time called 'Don't Be Afriad of the Dark'. 'Night Stalker' is getting on DVD now and I even got a DVD copy of the made for TV movie. Don't know if 'Ghost Story' is on DVD anywhere.

I seem to remember an episode where there were this guy driving on a lonely highway that kept seeing these three zombies that would appear out of nowhere, on the road, or if he stopped for gas. Does anyone remember this episode and more of what it was about? The premise to the story?

Also, anyone hear anything about getting the episodes on even VHS? I'll take what I can get!

D-rock Austin, TX

Not too many people remember this show. It was obviously canceled after one season for reasons unknown. Perhaps no one was watching the show, or perhaps all of America preferred to watch redundant Top-10-Ratings pap such as "ADAM'S RIB", "THE HELEN REDDY SHOW" or "KOJAK".

Whatever the case may be, this show definitely set the format for half hour shows that present stories with "the evil touch". This was an Australian production with British actor Anthony Quayle hosting the show. The opening titles are timeless in their own right. Smoke wafts over the white letters that read "THE EVIL TOUCH" against a dark green background while the sound track provides a soft melody of bongos and pan flutes. This show is SO 70's, it's awesome!

Some of the episodes would feature guest actors. I remember one episode featuring Carol Lynley and Leslie Nielson. Another episode featured Darren McGavin. The premise was very similar to shows of today's standards such as NIGHT VISIONS and TALES FROM THE CRYPT. It used the format of a story told in 30 minutes that had some unusual twist to it, usually resulting in either death or supernatural circumstances.

Surprisingly, not too many television shows from the land Down Under have made it successfully abroad in the U.S. A few shows that have received cult following would be "PRISONER" and "SKIPPY". It's too bad that retro TV stations like TV-Land don't re-run this for old time's sake instead of repeating the same HOGAN'S HEROES episodes over and over.

If anyone sees this show on their TV Guide - please let me know!

Galls me to agree with my expatriot Aussie-Stud cohort on Rhode Island but he is spot on here...THE EVIL TOUCH was classic retro-70's. With weekly US imports such as NIGHT STALKER's Darren Mcgavin, and POSEIDON ADVENTURE/FORBIDDEN PLANET'S Leslie Nielsen (a generation ahead of THE NAKED GUN series) the show offered the late late viewer tales of mystery and imagination to compare with the best of US spook TV at the time.

Hosted by tewwibly bwitish Anthony Quayle this series rocked..albeit for scarcely a season till unimpressive ratings condemned it to a fate worse than re-runs!

If you have the opportunity to catch any of these shows I suggest you take it!

I am proud to say my father was a sound mixer on some or all of the Evil Touch series. I have always thought it to be an Aussie production as his studio was in Sydney. Being only 9 at the time, I was ecstatic to be allowed to sit up and watch every episode with my siblings, 'because Daddy made it'. We practically thought he made the whole show single-handedly!! I have so wanted to see it again. I can ask my father about production etc if anyone is still interested. I will never forget the colored smoke coming up over Anthony Quails "Vincent Price' type face and one line from an episode 'By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea, you're going to die, die, die, die'! Scary for a 9 year old!!! Loved the heart one though. Mmmmm, maybe that's why I am now a nurse! I do remember my father also being involved in an Australia production of a Columbo episode, shot in Sydney. Well, we moved out to the country at 13 so my father's sound mixing days ended then!

I too have fond memories of this show though I recall its budgetary limitations being obvious even by then-contemporary standards.

The lake monster in DEAR BELOVED MONSTER looked like a briefly-glimpsed head of cabbage. But then so did the 'revelatory' 1970s photos from the underwater camera at Loch Ness.

One interesting episode was A GAME OF HEARTS. Darren McGavin plays a heart surgeon who takes a heart from a not-quite-dead donor. He then starts getting chilling phone calls from the dead man. The final scenes have him fleeing through a deserted house with his undead tormentor in pursuit. It was shot in very NIGHT STALKERish style.... substitute the donor, with a black and bloody hole in his chest, with Barry Atwater and you're pretty much there. And the character's name? Gabor Skorzeny. The vampire's name in the NIGHT STALKER TV movie? Janos Skorzeny! Hmmmm..... well imitation is the sincerest form of flattery I guess.

I would certainly endorse another look at THE EVIL TOUCH.