MovieChat Forums > Thriller (1960) Discussion > Cheaters

Cheaters

posted 19 years ago by freebreeze217
9 replies | jump to latest

This ranks right up there with "The Hungry Glass" as the scariest of the "Thriller" series. I was around ten years old at the time...still young enough to have the beejeebees scared out of me. "Cheaters" was a double play on words as the people who wore the strange little spectacles discovered betrayal in those close to them. The monster in the mirror, who personified the true soul of the man who dared to look at himself, was so frightening, I had to look away! I would dearly love to have both this episode and "Hungry Glass" to show to my grandchildren.

[–] dandavidd 18 years ago

I couldn't agree more regarding "Cheaters". I was around 10 at the time myself.
I don't remember to much about it accept that the build up was incredible. It was the ole don't do it...don't do it....I had to look away. The show 'spooked' me that bad.

The production of those shows with the violin background was just the right touch. I'm sure there were duds in the line-up, but it was the gems that live to make you wonder - will it spook me again if I try it out. I'm game.

[–] mcfaddensflats 18 years ago

"The Cheaters" is up there with "The Hungry glass" as probably the best episode of the lot. Quite brilliant. The scene at the end where Harry Townes puts on the glasses and looks in the mirror in the old inventors house...well...what he sees is unforgettable.

[–] berserkley 17 years ago

Absolutely on the mark. As I recall, Thriller showed half mysteries and half horror. The horror episodes were the scariest shows on television, and The Cheaters was the scariest of the bunch. I also like the POV shots when Jack Weston wore the glasses and could hear what others were actually thinking about him. They would be all friendly and jovial, then he'd look at them, and their faces would be all sinister and dark. And the ending was a knockout! I had to sleep with the light on for a week! Also, in reference to the music, the music on the entire series was WAY above what was on TV at the time. Was there ever a soundtrack of the original music released?

[–] treeline1 15 years ago

It's really great to see others remember this episode with as much "fondness" as I do. It's the only episode I can remember, but I can still see the man putting on the glasses and and gasping, "the cheaters. THE CHEATERS!"

I recently got "Thriller" from Netflix only to discover it was some British series that couldn't hold a candle to Karloff's show. I'm glad to know it's coming out on DVD next year. We'll all be ordering it, I'm sure!

[–] plwblj 15 years ago

One of the greatest & scariest of all the episodes;

-mby

[–] c7c7c7r 11 years ago

I agree about that 'monster in the mirror'. I was around nine when I saw it and I also had to look away from that face. When the re-run came on, naturally I watched it again--I was fascinated by the whole episode--and I covered my eyes at the end when Harry Townes put on the cheaters--but peeked, and there were those eyes. It was the dude's eyes that scared me.

[–] a_l_i_e_n 10 years ago

The monster in the mirror, who personified the true soul of the man who dared to look at himself, was so frightening,

The faces of the other characters who we see through the glasses were all etched in shadow with malevolent expressions, but the Harry Townes character looked more like he just went through a nuclear blast. I don't understand what that was to supposed to be saying about his true nature.

[–] panson1 8 years ago

Absolutely agree with the other posters, that "The Cheaters" was the best Thriller episode ever!! For years that hideous face at the end haunted me for years as a kid. Holds up well even until this day. The makeup done by Jack Barron was superb!

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

It's nice to read the posts here on this fabulous Thriller episode "The Cheaters". I was 10 years old when this first aired and my mom loved the show so we always watched on Wednesday nights. Seeing Sebastian Grimm's true self in the mirror as he tears up his face was so scary I could hardly watch the screen. I loved watching Henry Daniels making the glasses in the very beginning. And the other stories were really good too; the antique dealer who discovered them in the original desk belonging to their creator, the old fashioned kleptomaniac that purchased the cheaters for 25 cents and the man who threw a party dressing up as Benjamin Franklin. This kind of TV horror was a big deal for the 1960s. Harry Townes is always good in everything. The 2 season DVD box set features commentary full of loads of interesting facts about the episodes.

This story and many others in this series came from a collection of stories called "Weird Tales" and what a gold mine that was! In TV Guide I once read an article asking Stephen King "What Scares You?". His answers were Thriller series: "The Cheaters", Twilight Zone: "Nightmare at 20,000 feet" and something about women in chains lol.