tales of the unexpected about marriage

I read that Roald Dahl biography, and I learned that a bunch of his short stories (for adults) were made for TV under the name TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED. They are 15 or 20 minute shorts. Xander and I watched three. I made the blandest French onion soup. I poured more red wine into it. Maybe I bought the low sodium broth. I may have overboiled it as well. Here are the opening credits:



Anyhow, the first tale reminded me of Four Rooms, remember the part about lighting the lighter ten times in a row or else you lose yr pinky? Remember Four Rooms? Remember when Tim Roth spoke at BU and he brought that traumatizing baby rape movie and he ranted abour reporters?



I just learned from youtube that this story originated with Alfred Hitchcock, The Man from the South, on his TV show. So since the tale of the unexpected had the same name, it was a remake! An American sailor (Sheriff Harry S. Truman from Twin Peaks, younger and more narrow and handsome), his new British paramour, a British dude chillin out and a Spanish dude all sit around the same patio at a resort in Jamaica. The American offers cigarettes around and says his lighter always lights. The Spaniard says, wanna make a bet? I have a Jaguar. If you can light it 10 times in a row, you get the Jaguar. If not, I chop off yr pinky. So they all go to the Spaniard's hotel room, wind-less as it is. And they get set up. He lights it 7 times before Mrs. Spaniard comes in and shuts the whole thing down, it turns out it's not even his car to bet, it's hers, and then they show she only has TWO FINGERS!

The next one wasn't great. It was about old people having affairs together, which is interesting. One rich dude gives his mistress, who's married to a boring dentist, a mink coat-- even though it's a "i can;t sleep with you anymore" gift, she is superpsyched. In order to hide it from the dentist husband, she takes it to a pawn shop to leave it there til the next day. But he finds the ticket with no name or description and insists he cash it in since a pawn shop is no place for a woman, which I had never realized. Then he gets the box and she's all excited but it turns out there's a mink stole, not a coat. She's bummed and thinks the pawn shop dude swindled her but still happy for some mink until she bumps into the dental hygenist who is TOTALLY WEARING HER COAT.

Lastly, remember Colleen from 30 Rock?


She's much younger, I think this is all the late 70s? It looks like it. The acting is all very bad, by the way, and most of the characters are unattractive. Every episode is introduced by Roald Dahl, who, although only in his mid60s, looks frail and sickly under his little writing lap desk. Maybe because the bio made such a big deal of how active he was? But also I guess it made a big deal of how sickly to. We only hear what we want to, right?

Anyway, Elaine Stritch is bad in this as a meek wife who is happy her mean husband is dead. Until she finds out that his brain and one eye is alive and kept by a neuroscientist. Then she insists that her husband should be home with her. This is because she is going to smoke, drink, wear makeup, watch tv and party like he told her not to in his will. And she sets up mirrors so his eye can see the whole thing. She's great as the drunky free fun lady:


That's all I watched of it. Pretty neat.