Alfred Hitchcock Presents (TV Series) And the Desert Shall Blossom (1958) User Reviews

A mini-Western with a twist à la Hitch

[BWLover · 6/10 · 15 December 2008]

Somewhere in Nevada two old codgers eke out a living, but they face their greatest challenge when a stranger from the East shows up in a broken-down car. The local sheriff advises them to abandon their digs in favor of what we would called "assisted living." But, one of the old men dismisses the notion of being among a bunch of old folks, "just sitting around waiting to die." The other man is none other than "Uncle Charley" (actor William Demarest) seven years prior to his My Three Sons run.

The stranger is played by actor Mike Kellin, who was featured on the New York stage in Rodgers' & Hammerstein's often-overlooked Pipe Dream.

The usual Hitchcock ingredients are here, especially humor, colorful dialog, and serviceable scene music which has been recycled from other similarly light-hearted episodes. And, as per usual, someone meets death.

"And the Desert Shall Blossom" with some fine fertilizer

[chuck-reilly · 7/10 · 23 April 2013]

The prodigious TV and film director Arthur Hiller was almost a fixture on the Alfred Hitchcock Presents series and this was one of his more light-hearted entries. Two old prospectors (William Demarest and Roscoe Ates at their cantankerous best) have been informed by the local sheriff (Ben Johnson in cowboy mode) that they stand to be evicted from their ramshackle hovel in the middle of the desert unless they can prove that they can cultivate something on their land. The good news is that there's a modern old-folks home awaiting them in town and they might even get a decent meal for a change. But the two old partners are resistant to change (they're happy with a steady diet of rabbit stew and a couple of filthy cots) and Johnson is forced to give them thirty days to comply or else. Luckily for the two old geezers, a murdering mobster (Mike Kellin) shows up that evening after his fancy car breaks down in the middle of the desert. After some small-talk, he pulls out his gun and demands that the two fellows either lend him an auto (which they don't have) or figure out a way to fix his car so he can get to Reno to commit more crimes. But Kellin is barking up the wrong tree because no sooner than they realize his threats are real the sooner they decide to turn the tables on him. You don't mess with old-timers like Demarest and Ates, and Kellin finds that out the hard way. When Sheriff Ben reappears a few weeks later to check up on his two charges, he is amazed to find that the old boys have now found a way to cultivate their land. Unbeknownst to him, Kellin's corpse has provided the right minerals to push up some daisies (or rather, roses) just when our two heroes needed them. The host provided the real laughs in this episode by dressing up like a cowboy and telling viewers he was riding into the sunset instead of giving them his usual send-off. You haven't seen anything until you've seen Alfred Hitchcock wearing a ten-gallon hat.

Desert Rats Revenge

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 11 July 2013]

This episode is only fun because of the two old character actors that steal every scene. These two guys have lived on their property in the desert for their whole lives. Now the sheriff comes out and tells them that the Town Council is going to force them into a retirement community. They love where they are, and even if they have little money and eat rabbit stew every day, they would rather keep on keeping on. The sheriff tells them that if they can show the ability to grow something on their land they would be seen as farmers and he would stick up for them. Of course, how dumb is this premise? They have a spindly rose bush and the sheriff says if they can get it to produce roses, he will speak up for them at the next council meeting. Meanwhile a gun toting gangster shows up. He wants to get to Reno and needs help crossing the desert. His car is disabled and he threatens the guys who really have nothing to offer him, other than some directions. He is having none of that. I must have seen this when I was younger, because I remembered what happened. I felt it was a satisfactory conclusion.

"What we need is a miracle."

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 8 October 2021]

Not a whole lot in this episode passes the common sense test, and I won't even go into the ridiculous rose bush challenge that other reviewers have mentioned. My beef is with the thug (Mike Kellin) who barged in on the pair of old timers (William Demarset, Roscoe Ates). He can't get it through his head that the two prospectors don't have the means to lead him out of the Nevada desert to Reno, almost fifty miles away. But he persists anyway, until the code of the Old West kicks in as Tom (Demarest) grabs Ben's (Ates) gun and makes short work of the killer on the run.

It was cool seeing William Demarest and Roscoe Ates in this unlikely team up, in as much as Demarest was never known for appearing in Westerns, while Ates showed up in numerous TV and movie Westerns, going all the way back to the Thirties. He made a slew of pictures as Soapy Jones, sagebrush sidekick to singing cowboy Eddie Dean. In the end, the resourceful duo managed to put Sheriff Jeff (Ben Johnson) at ease over the whole issue of moving to town, as their immediate future seemed to be coming up roses.

A criminal holds a nice couple prisoner and threatens to kill them unless they do as he demands.

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 2 April 2021]

When this episode begins, you see that two old prospectors are living together and have shunned civilization. Instead, they live in the middle of no where and live in a crappy old shack together and are quite happy there. But somehow some local government wants the two old men in a nursing home...which really makes no sense. What makes even less sense is when the sheriff delivering the ultimatum agrees that if the men can actually make something grow, like their withered rose bush, that they can stay there unmolested. Huh?! Oddly, the way out of this mess arrives in the form of a wanted criminal. His car is undrivable and he demands the pair escort him through the desert to Reno. How does this help them in their efforts to get a rose to grow??!!

The acting by William Demarest and Roscoe Ates is by far the best thing about the show. As for the plot, it's silly and trivial and a rather poor episode apart from the acting.

A Bouquet of Roses!!!

[MAYY9 · 10/10 · 31 May 2019]

This was an excellent show. William Demarest and Roscoe Ates were so funny. They loved their freedom and had their miracle. The humor is subtle but hilarious. I'm thankful for the reruns.

Blossoms just about

[TheLittleSongbird · 6/10 · 2 June 2023]

All five of Arthur Hiller's previous episodes are watchable, though only "Post Mortem" really was great. Likewise with all the other eleven episodes that followed "And the Desert Shall Blossom". His output (seventeen episodes altogether) was inconsistent, not unexpected as none of the regular directors for 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' were consistent, but none of his episodes misfired massively or season or series low points. The premise was one of those could go either way ones, but the episode was still seen for the cast and as someone who likes the series a lot.

Seeing it, "And the Desert Shall Blossom" left me a little mixed. It's a fun episode that knows exactly what it's doing in tone, but there are episodes of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' that have much stronger and far more plausible stories. Anybody who likes light hearted are likely to love it, personally am one of those people and the series has plenty of good light-hearted entries. There are also episodes that don't sound appealing, but manage to be a lot more entertaining and suspenseful than they sound and was hoping "And the Desert Shall Blossom" would be one of those. Something it doesn't quite do.

The best aspect is the acting, which is absolutely great. Especially William Demarest, who was clearly having a lot of fun. The chemistry between the actors also entertains. As said, "And the Desert Shall Blossom" takes a light hearted approach and it's executed very amusingly and playfully. Loved the droll irony of Hitchcock's bookending and Hitchcock's wry delivery of it.

Furthermore, the production values are slick and atmospheric, neither overblown or cheap. The theme music is still a classic. The dialogue is entertaining and thought provoking, while not being too reliant on too much talk. It also doesn't come over as dull.

Did, as said, find the story patchy. It sounds quite silly on paper, and in execution not only does it go overboard on the silliness the whole premise is one big stretch stretched to the limit. A lot of it doesn't make much sense and requires some serious suspension of disbelief.

Was disappointed by the ending, which for my tastes was very prematurely predictable and indifferently staged. The music has too much of a recycled quality and despite the light hearted-ness of the episode's tone, there is an offbeat-ness that doesn't always gel.

Overall, decent if unexceptional. 6/10.

Turd Blossom

[Archbishop_Laud · 5/10 · 22 October 2013]

I thought this is one of the weaker episodes in the series.

First, the premise is a little strained: two old-timers have to grow a rose bush within a month to avoid being kicked off their land. The story proper begins when an East Coast crook arrives, needing transportation to Reno, 47 miles away. He flashes money around and bullies them. The problem is, there's practically no tension involved in his scene. What happens, happens. It's there just to set up the ending.

And the twist/joke ending isn't worth it. "It's a muracul," the sheriff says twice, but it plays rather flat (and we could see it coming).