Reminded me superficially of Isaac Asimov's "Black Widower" series, in that the plot centers around a waiter at a men's club. Summoning the devil and even making a tacit deal with him is evidently easier than is comforting. Demon summoning, supernatural abilities.

Why is Guy Sorel wearing a'Elf' outfit in his publicity photo?

Another tricky title. When I saw it, I thought I was in for a boring historical retelling. But instead it turned out to be a fun story about an elderly servant at a snobbish men's club who tweaks them with mysterious notes that declare incredible events involving the devil, a naked goddess and a trio of tigers are about to take place in their midst. When the predictions start happening, it causes quite a stir. One of the best of the first 40...

Old Wendel got them, or did he? Elspeth Eric wrote this episode as she wrote dozens of others for Mystery Theater. This episode was fantastic. It would seem that the episodes of the seventies were of better quality of those of the eighties.

The pretentious Ralph Waldo Emerson Club members look down upon a man who serves them. He decides to predict some fantastic events that will happen in the club and post them, anonymously, on the message board.

Lots of fun and suspense as an old waiter pays back the insulated rich.

An elderly private club attendant finds that he is able to conjur ghostly figures from his imagination.

Elspeth does what she often tries, but fails: create strong characters. Recommended

Members of an exclusive club, the idle rich, and wildly gullible, are the victims of pranks played by a long-serving, elderly, and disgruntled employee. I found this particularly well written. There were no dramatic plot twists, but the listener takes a few intellectual turns in interpretation.

I loved the doddering old fools they played the rich folk out to be. So clannish, and the think a-like mentality, is subtly played but hilarious if you ask me. The best example might be when in the one scene one of the oldest members asks one of the more respected members, "we don't believe in that, do we?"

I liked the all-star cast in this one...there were at least four and maybe five very recognizeable RMT voices in there and that's usually a treat with a decent script. A little strange (IMO) how they linked the "walls of Jericho" tale from the Bible into this near program's end, but remembering how my friends here have advised us to listen to this it didn't diminish the enjoyability of this episode. I liked the background music each time the announced entities woud appear in the club. The banter between the members (i.e. Ralph Bell and Guy Sorrell) was enjoyable too. At my former job in the Atlanta area, we had a consultant who was Harvard educated and lived in the NYC area. He was so proud of his membership in some Harvard-related book or reading club in the area...I kept thinking of him while hearing this. (And he was an intelligent man who was fascinating to listen to...not meaning to put him down at all.)

I enjoyed this show quite a bit. It was fun waiting to see if the things he wrote about on the note would happen and then waiting to see what he'd come up with the next time. The whole time I wondered why they picked the Walls of Jericho title because it didn't seem to fit in until they explained it at the end. I was nearly convinced I was listening to the wrong episode after not hearing any reference to the title. Shortly after that thought, EG came on and mentioned the title (if I remember correctly). I loved the ending and the explanation of how they were seeing the things mentioned in the bulletin board notes. Very good episode IMO.

This was an interesting tale. I also thought I was listening to the wrong episode because the title didn't seem to fit until it was explaned at the end. I liked how when more details were given in the note that the people seeing them saw the same things, for example, in the first note few details were given so each person saw different colors for the devel's cloak. At the first EG talked about magic. I think that is how many magicians work is by mass suggestion as well as misdirection.

I've listened to this program a few times and though I enjoyed it, I didn't think there was anything spectacular about it. The story was solid and the acting was good but I'm not a huge fan of Elspeth Eric's writing. I say this and yet I thoroughly enjoyed her Glass Bubble program (as recommended by Tina). The main character's demise was a bit tragic given that he was beaten down by the other characters and never saw the justice he sought. One note I made: There were bits of the music that seemed oddly upbeat/comical during portions of the program that I thought a dramatic effect would have been more appropriate.

i thought the acting was up to the usual excellent rmt standards. i recognized several i had heard before. the sound effects were good. good character developement and i liked the music. the one drawback was the leap to mass hypnosis. i couldn't do it. it's like a good sci-fi drama if you can just make that leap of faith the rest falls into place. i don't think i explained that right. for example. in one cbsrmt show i remember the plot had something to do with the bermuta triangle. it was a good show but you have to believe that something strange happens there. when i first heard it i did think something funny was going on but i don't anymore. maybe i'm just getting old and cinical. i hope i spelled that right. i still enjoyed the show. i started feeling sorry for the servant guy but i think he went too far. in the end i guess he went way too far.

Well, I'm nearly a month late for this show of the week but I just had to comment on it because it's one of my favorite episodes. It's a very offbeat, witty little tale and not at all predictable--a breath of fresh air. I found it to be very entertaining, and all the actors were absolutely terrific. And it was a perfect story for a radio play, as we never really saw for sure whether these apparitions appeared or not, despite the various characters' reactions to them. I did think that the death of the old club retainer at the end of the story seemed sad, bitter though he was, and I wondered if it was necessary. I also, like most everyone else, wondered about the title when I first heard the episode, and even after I'd heard the explanation at the end I still thought the connection with the story was a bit tenuous. However, after having pondered these things a bit, I think that both the death and the walls of jericho explanation make sense thematically. I finally realized that the overriding them of this story concerns the idea that if enough people believe something to be true, it makes it so. The majority rules, the minority loses out--hence the death of the old man. It was a sad thing, and not really fair, especially since he was more witty and imaginative than any of the club members, but sad or no, that's just sort of the way the world works. Thematically, his death rings true---if a little shocking, in such a light humorous tale. This story could pertain to a particular society, political regime, or to the religion of your choosing, just as easily as to the stuffy men's club Elspeth Eric gives us. The minority--- the little guy or gal, the oddball, the independent thinker, the creative genius, the visionary, the artist-----these individuals can have it tough, standing in the face of the overwhelming opposition, solidarity, and often the ignorance (or even outright stupidity) of the majority. They sometimes get mown down, like our old retainer in the story. On a deeper level, this play comments on the nature of society, and on human nature. I think Elspeth Eric was wise to cushion this underlying theme in an offbeat, humorous little setting. Like they say, "a spoonful of sugar..." The men's club was, if I may be so bold, a metaphor for society. (Sherwood Schwartz has always said that "Gilligan's Island", as he originally conceived it, was meant to be a microcosm of society and all its stratas. We'll overlook the fact that there were no ethnic minorities on the island--old Sherwood did the best he could. Besides, perhaps their absence in itself is a comment on their status in society at the time; non-existent.) Anyway, I liked this play. The episode was entertaining, kept me wondering and guessing, and ended up working on another level the deeper I dug. 

Alot of fun.

Another episode I finally managed to catch up on! And I must say, I was delighted with this one. In part, because I'm from Boston and I can say I can certainly appreciate the caricatures of the gentlemen in the club. The air of aristocracy in this city is something of mythic proportion, but alas, it is real. I also enjoyed it, because I didn't know where it was going. By the end, it was a wonderfully tied knot that needed no further explaination or investigation. I was happy on all accounts, except of course the death of Drindle. He was served with his desserts, but perhaps to an extreme.

Everyone seems to like this story, but I didn't find it particularly interesting.

Hahaha Love Robert Dryden wouldn't have been as good without him.

4 stars... Nice mix up to have one not about a husband and wife. No commercials.

An enjoyable episode as others have mentioned. I thought the attendant's wife sounded much younger than him and didn't quite sound right in their interactions, but overall a nice listen.

She didn't sounded so young. I thought she sounded like an older woman.

I meant to say she didn't sound so young.

I rate this episode ★★★★☆ for GOOD. What I liked the most, was the Cast: Robert Dryden (as Timothy Drindl), Mary Jane Higby (as Martha and Katie), Ian Martin (as Mr. Higgins), Ralph Bell (as Mr. Cudworth), Guy Sorel (as Mr. Amos Winthrop), and Sydney Walker (as Mr. Ashley). A large cast, yet all 6 of them did terrifically. The leading man, Robert Dryden, stole the show and his character was likable. The way he laughed/chuckled at the 18:47 mark was amusing. In our Host’s Prologue, E.G. Marshall brings up the topic of magic. In ACT-1, quoting English poet Robert Southey’s ballad of “The Devil’s Walk.” In ACT-2, perceiving that minds of men are little. In ACT-3, reciting William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” (Act 1, Scene 5). In the end, the main character couldn’t believe his own magic. In his Epilogue, finish it off with a Bible verse (John 8:32). The only thing that was missing in his narrations, was the Resolution. We know what happened to the main character during the Climax, but nothing else to it. We don’t know happened to the female characters, nor what will happen to the members of the Men’s Club or the Club itself. A mystery we’ll never solve. Anyway, the sound effects of men murmuring at the Club, fire crackling, logs, footsteps, tableware clinking, coffee tray, clock chiming, whistling wind, paper & pen, breaking noises, animal growls, chicken clucking, and furniture being moved, were exquisite for the tale. Music was superb, great variety of tracks that made this story get more peculiar overtime. As for the Script itself, written by Elspeth Eric, it wasn’t comical, but entertaining for a character to have an imagination that ran wild. What puzzled me, other than the unknown Resolution of the minor characters, was the relationship between Timothy Drindl & Martha. Are they married? Are they roommates? Are they partners of some sort? And since she knew that Timothy Drindl had magical powers to let characters come to life, shouldn’t she suggest that he use his powers for good rather than play a game on people? Anyway, something to ponder over. The title is catchy, other suggested titles for this particular tale would be “Poor Old Drindl,” or “Joke Of The Steward,” or “The Devil, The Goddess, and the 3 Tigers.” Tune in to this enjoyable episode. Until next time…pleasant dreams. =0)

I think Martha was Drindl's wife. They acted like an old, married couple. If they hadn't been married, the script would have explained it.

I liked this episode, mostly because the acting was outstanding, especially Robert Dryden, who plays old Drindl perfectly. (Ralph bell wasn't in it enough, imo, lol!) It was a strange story, and I am not sure what it's trying to say. My impression is that it's trying to say that even though Drindl had a right to feel disgruntled at the way he was subtly looked down on by snobs, his own pride and arrogance caused his downfall in the end, and he was no different from the rest of them in his own way. He was actually just as much of a snob himself. However, one isn't sure if Drindl's characters turned out to be real, or if it was only his imagination that killed him in the end. (Spoiler.)

"You really do know everything." "On the contrary, I know very little." "Well, you always seem to know everything." "That's because you know less."

Opinion seems to be divided on the merits of Elspeth Eric's scripts, but I quite liked this quirky offering that takes place in a stuffy men's club. An announcement that impossible things are about to happen creates unwanted excitement for the members!

An interesting episode with definite mystery. Very enjoyable to listen to as it was intriguing. Loved the unique twists and turns in this story. Do miss the full commercials and news.

Not at all what I expected…and that’s a good thing. I really liked this one.