Saki: The Improper Stories of H. H. Munro; 5
- Episode Number
- 5
- Producing Organization
- Granada Television
- Contributing Organization
- Library of Congress (Washington, District of Columbia)
- AAPB ID
- cpb-aacip/512-fn10p0xp7h
- NOLA Code
- SAKI
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- Description
- Episode Description
- The first segment in this episode is Lady Bastables Tiger (originally Mrs. Packletides Tiger). In this segment, Loona Bimberton has once again pulled off a coup, and Lady Bastable is furious. Only by going to India and bagging a tiger can she regain the upper hand. The natives provide an elderly beast, Lady Bastable fires, the lion is dead. Unfortunately it is discovered that Lady B. shot the goat that was tethered as bait. The lion died of a heart attack. Louisa Mebbin, Lady Bastables companion, must be bribed into silence. It is a most expensive tiger shoot. The second segment is The Bag. In this segment, the huntin, shootin, fishin set isnt terribly fond of Vladimir, but Norah thinks hes wonderful. Ever her faith is a bit shaken when it appears that the young man has shot the only fox to be seen in months - and on the eve of a major hunt. Unfortunately no one sees the corpse before he buries it - because Vladimir really doesnt know the difference between the polecat he has shot and a fox. The third segment is The Soul of Laploshka, in which, the tight-fisted snob Laploshka dies shortly after making a grudging two-franc loan to an acquaintance. His restless ghost follows the acquaintance until the two francs are disposed of satisfactorily - given to the deserving rich. The fourth segment is The Philanthropist and the Happy Cat, in which the cat was happier - but then he had killed his sparrow. The young man Veronique has her eye on escaped without a scratch. The final segment in this episode is Louis. This segment is the case of the dog that wasnt. Strudwarden discovers his wife has been using a toy dog - she calls it Louis - as an excuse for getting her own way (Louis would die if he was parted from me for a second). He beats her at her own game and gets his trip to Vienna. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Series Description
- Connoisseurs of the short story have long considered Sakis (Hector Hugh Munro) minute masterpieces among the ultimate examples of the form. The idea of dramatizing them for television probably would have struck most Saki fanciers as insupportable heresy. Yet Granada Television of England has managed, with the help of some exceptionally able actors, to bring some of the stories to life. Each of the eight hour-long episodes contains several stories covering the range of Sakis imagination from driest wit to urbane horror to unbridled hilarity. A basic group of six characters are the nucleus around which the stories develop. These six either are involved in the action of the stories or introduce them as incidents that have happened to people they know. In order to tighten the series dramatically, these six have been substituted for the original characters in some of the stories. For instance, in the first episode Sir Hector (one of the six regulars) is substituted for Treddleford, the Club Liar in A Defensive Diamond. This has only been done in cases where the characters are so similar as to be interchangeable, and it in no way damages the plot or effect of the story. The six starring performers who appear throughout the series are: Martita Hunt as Lady Bastable; William Mervyn as Sir Hector; Mark Burns as Clovis Sangrail; Fenella Fielding as Mary Drakmanton; Richard Vernon as The Major; and Rosamund Greenwood as Veronique Brimley-Bomefield. Saki: The Improper Stories of H. H. Munro was originally recorded on film and produced in England by Granada Television. Producer: Philip Mackie. Stories adapted by Gerald Savory, Hugh Leonard, Edward Boyd. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Broadcast Date
- 1963-00-00
- Asset type
- Episode
- Genres
- Drama
- Topics
- Humor
- Media type
- Moving Image
- Credits
-
-
Actor: Vernon, Richard
Actor: Hunt, Martita
Actor: Greenwood, Rosamund
Actor: Mervyn, William
Actor: Burns, Mark
Actor: Fielding, Fenella
Actor: Panday, Basco
Actor: Staefel, Sheila
Actor: de Bray, Henry
Actor: Wenham, Jane
Actor: Conray, Jean
Actor: Cornwall, Judy
Actor: Kendall, Cavan
Actor: Fairfax, Diana
Actor: Delgado, Roger
Actor: Spenser, Jeremy
Actor: Howard, Ronald
Actor: Downer, Alan
Designer: Lass, Darrell
Director: Flemyng, Gordon, 1934-
Producer: Mackie, Philip
Producing Organization: Granada Television
Writer: Savory, Gerald
Writer: Leonard, Hugh
Writer: Boyd, Edward
Writer: Saki, 1870-1916
- AAPB Contributor Holdings
-
Library of Congress
Identifier: 2412748-1 (MAVIS Item ID)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Copy: Access
Color: B&W
-
Library of Congress
Identifier: 2412748-1 (MAVIS Item ID)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Copy: Access
Color: B&W
-
Library of Congress
Identifier: 2412748-1 (MAVIS Item ID)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Copy: Access
Color: B&W
-
Library of Congress
Identifier: 2412748-1 (MAVIS Item ID)
Format: 16mm film
Generation: Copy: Access
Color: B&W
If you have a copy of this asset and would like us to add it to our catalog, please contact us.
- Citations
- Chicago: “Saki: The Improper Stories of H. H. Munro; 5,” 1963-00-00, Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed May 8, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-512-fn10p0xp7h.
- MLA: “Saki: The Improper Stories of H. H. Munro; 5.” 1963-00-00. Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. May 8, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-512-fn10p0xp7h>.
- APA: Saki: The Improper Stories of H. H. Munro; 5. Boston, MA: Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-512-fn10p0xp7h