Tales of the Unexpected (TV Series) Light Fingers (1982) User Reviews

Once you start digging, expect the unexpected....

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 17 February 2016]

Ralph Stackpole lives a life of luxury, enjoying the finer things in life, despite his disinterested wife. His lifestyle paid for by his factory, which produces gloves, but he has a thief at work, someone in his employ is stealing a small amount of gloves, never more then half a dozen, but enough to make Stackpole want to catch the miscreant, he brings in a Private Detective 'Mr Semple.' Prime suspect is designer and young talent Cotter, who's enjoying the freedom of the company. Stackpole and Semple set a trap,

The first thing you notice is the poor camera work, it looks like it was filmed on a hand held camera. It looks and feels at odds with the recent batch of top notch episodes, not just because it was made Stateside, in fact Tom Bosley and the legendary Janet Leigh are great, it just feels a bit uninteresting, a little bit on the slow side. The cast make it enjoyable enough, and the twist at the end is a fun one.

Not bad, 6/10

"I'm going to catch me a thief!"

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 12 November 2021]

This was a cleverly written episode which came with a twist that was a bit out of the ordinary. There's a bit of irony too in the idea that while glove manufacturer Ralph Stackpole (Tom Bosley) was intent on finding a thief within the company's ranks, he didn't give a second thought about confiscating a new pattern that his salesman Cotter (Frank Sinatra Jr.) 'stole' from a business rival. Funny how crooks can rationalize just about anything.

I think the story's ending was telegraphed somewhat with the sour demeanor of Ralph's wife (Janet Leigh), who couldn't even fake interest in her husband's business travails. It all clicked with this viewer the moment the lights went out in Ralph's office and the green glowing hands of Cotter leapt into view. I knew it wouldn't take long to discover that Joan Stackpole was on the receiving end of those luminescent digits. Poor Ralph, if in fact he ever had a wonderful marriage, this revelation would mark the end of his Happy Days.

Happy Days

[safenoe · 7/10 · 28 November 2016]

I enjoy seeing the American episodes of Tales of the Unexpected for the cast alone. One episode had Gary Burghoff from MASH. This one has Tom "Happy Days" Bosley and Janet "Psycho" Leigh, who is also the daughter of Tony Curtis.

This episode also features Frank "Tales of the Unexpected" Sinatra, Jr.

The playoff was unexpected, and quite a twist in the tale. There's some debate on the standard of the American episodes compared to the British ones, but still, any Tales of the Unexpected episode is better than none. I would have loved to have got Roald Dahl's take on the standard of the American episodes.

A private detective comes in handy!!

[coltras35 · 10/10 · 9 May 2022]

Ralph Stackpole runs a glove factory but gloves are being stolen on a regular basis, throwing suspicion on all those employed there, including Cotter, his designer. Henry brings in Semple, a private detective who comes up with a plan to trap the thief and at breakfast Henry explains it to his usually disinterested wife Joan. As a consequence stolen items start to crop up in the most unlikely places.

Excellent episode that stars Tom Bosley as the husband who wants to nab the glove thief and Janet Leigh as his disinterested wife. It's well-paced, suspenseful with a smattering of humour. It all builds up to a grand twist.