The first time I saw Rip Torn's name, back in the 60's, I thought it was a joke. Not so. Both the nickname "Rip" and the surname were family names, and Rip Torn's talent as an actor was just as legitimate. Only about 25 when this was filmed, Torn plays an arrogant and smack worthy punk who is cruising for a bruising, The acting in this episode is uniformly excellent, with a special nod to Russell Collins and Ray Teal, a man who melts into his characters. Lineups were standard police procedure decades ago (there was even a series called The Lineup in the early 50's) , and Evan Hunter (aka Ed McBain, of 87th Precinct fame) was a master of dialogue, so evident here in the denoument of the lineup. As noted elsewhere, Hitchcock refrained from his usual irony in his finishing remarks and played it seriously straight. Kudos.
Review of Number Twenty-Two
