I just listened to "The Master Computer" (first broadcast on 13 August 1975), and the plot seemed awfully derivative of the films "It's A Wonderful Life" and "Topper."

Fielden Farrington was my great-uncle. That doesn't really qualify me to speak conclusively on this, but I think he'd be appalled if he thought his work could solely be attributed other authors. I think what he would say is that he - like many others - experimented with the concept of how the dead can interact with the living. Since it's obvious that we generally cannot see the dead, but can sometimes observe material interaction, it makes no sense that one author has ownership of these natural facts. There was no "computer" behind the phenomenon of the anomaly of the dead interacting with the living in any story I've read or any movie I've seen. Moreover, at the time this was written, the concept of our living in a "virtual reality" or "simulation" (aka Phillip K. Dick) was only beginning to be explored. I view Fielden Farrington's offering here as being a bit innovative. His sister (my grandmother) told me that Fielden was fascinated with the mysterious and the supernatural. Though the bulk of his work focused on unpredictable, exploitative and potentially sinister (ie: "A Little Game" or the unpublished "The Back House") my bet is that he had fun with this one!

This writer is one of my faves on CBSRMT

A Long Island couple drives all day to reach their home following a Maine vacation. When they return to their hometown, they try to interact with the people that are a regular part of their lives. But, it is as if no one realizes that they are there. They make a phone call and the party on the other end can't hear them. They ring a doorbell and someone comes to the door and can't see them. In every way, it is as if they are not there at all. This quickly grows frustrating and eerie. Then, there's a knock at the door.......

Grace and Harry Clayton return home exhausted from a summer vacation and slowly come to realize that something is very wrong. No one seems to see them or hear them, the utilities to their home have been turned off, and their friends are ignoring them as if they don't exist. What is the answer to this bizzare mystery? This is a disturbing story with a well-done ending. Genre: Mystery

A couple comes home from vacation and finds that all of their utilities have been cut off. Then they find out that none of their friends or coworkers will even acknowledge their existence. Turns out it was a computer error.

Ah, one of those stories where "the hereafter" is run as a beauracracy or business and mistakes are made "A Guy Named Joe", "Always", "Here Comes Mr Jordan", "Heaven Can Wait"... If this was supposed to be a mystery to us, they shouldn't have given it away 10 minutes in. This sort of story annoys me but this one is not badly done with the whole world suddenly unable to see or hear a couple who just returned from vacation.

A couple return from holidays to find people completely ignoring them. No one responds to their questions, no one even acknowledges their existence. While they can answer the phone and open doors, they have no electricity or water. When a man arrives at their door promising to fix everything and that they should come with him but will not disclose the reason for, nor the destination of the suggested journey, the couple balk and refuse to go.

I did enjoy the story but I found the idea of the afterlife using current technology to run things the one part of the story that I didn't like. Otherwise, like I said, it was an enjoyable story.

Kind of interesting for its time. With much real science speculation derived from quantum physics that we may be computer programs ourselves and our world is not analog but digital in nature.The show barely touches the idea but interesting none the less.

So in the logic of this episode, when our two leads are driving their car, can other people see their car moving but just not the driver and passenger?

I like the part about children sleeping like angels.

I rate this episode ★★★★☆ for GOOD. I’ll start off with I enjoyed the most. First up, the cast: Augusta Dabney (as Grace Clayton and Helen), Robert Dryden (as Harry Clayton and Mr. Handy’s Boss), Joan Shay (as Alma Rhodes), Nat Polen (as Pete Rhodes), and Robert Maxwell (as Mr. Handy and Dave Green). Robert Maxwell was good as the polite & generous Mr. Handy. Both Joan Shay & Nat Polen were terrific as the concerned neighbors. But a round of applause for Augusta Dabney & Robert Dryden as the main couple that have become invisible to real world. The way Augusta Dabney shed tears at the 15-minute 40-second mark, she pulled it off outstandingly! Big props to her on that one. Second up, Music & Sound Effects. A lot of dramatic tunes that worked effectively in this mystery tale. Sound effects of traffic noise, car engine, tires screech, post office doors locked, dialing of the rotary phone, soup spoon clinking, water faucet squeaking, fridge door, light switch, door bells, footsteps, birds chirping, customers murmuring, typewriter, buzzer, stew pot lid, crickets, gas pump, phone ringing, hospital elevator beeps, howling wind, and opening of the filing cabinet worked splendidly and helped a lot in every scene. Now comes the 2 reasons why I rated this 4 out of 5 stars. First up, the script. Fielden Farrington wrote amazing episodes for CBSRMT containing Drama & the Supernatural (i.e., #0278-RETURN TO SHADOW LAKE and #0549-THE COLONY). This episode kind of reminds me of the 1988 film BEETLEJUICE where a married couple return home, but are invisible to everyone around them. The ending in this episode was the letdown. Everything else in the story was very straightforward and it was building up to figure out what went wrong. But the finale, regarding a computer glitch on the main characters’ whereabouts and where do they go from there, that was anticlimactic. I was hoping that Mr. Handy would fix the computer glitch and give the Clayton Couple their lives back. Also, what was puzzling in this was their journey in their car. Both Grace & Harry Clayton couldn’t be seen or heard from anybody. But every minor character could see and hear material objects moving. Therefore, the Claytons’ car was moving, so how come no one jumped into the scene and said anything about that?!? That’s one of the few things that Fielden Farrington forget to recognize in his story. Another way to title this, would be “The Clayton Glitch.” The second reason why I rated this 4 out of 5, is the Host. In his Prologue, E.G. Marshall quickly states that this tale is an excursion. In ACT-1, meet our 2 main characters that will encounter isolation and loneliness. In ACT-2, everything is cut off from their lives, followed by discussing Death as the most perplexing mystery of all. In ACT-3, after the finale’s realization, E.G. Marshall decides to pass this story along without questioning for a Resolution for our main characters. In his Epilogue, our Host had no follow up on what happened after the end of this story. Another letdown that could’ve changed for the better. All in all, the storyline was entertaining and the 5 cast members were excellent in their roles. It’s not a Sci-Fi mystery, but a Paranormal one that has that TWILIGHT ZONE feel written all over. Until next time…pleasant dreams.

Depressing. Dull. Dud.

I enjoy the unscoped recordings as they give a historical look at the stations intos and endings that may have been lost forever

The only good thing I can say about this episode is: Oh, for the days when you could get a tankful for $6.

Why where the utilities cut off? It tried to be a red herring but it just ruined the logic why would power and water be cut but phone still work