EDITOR’S NOTE: You’ll Never See Me Again was on the CBS Late Movie on January 21, 1976, August 22, 1978 and July 4, 1978.

Many films have been made based on the stories of Cornell Woolrich: The Leopard Man, The Mark of the Whistler, Night Has a Thousand Eyes, Phantom Lady, Rear Window, The Bride Wore Black, Seven Blood-Stained Orchids, Cloak and Dagger and I’m Dangerous Tonight are just a few. This is another, directed by Jeannot Szwarc (The Devil’s Daughter, Jaws 2, Bug, Somewhere In Time) and written by William Wood (Haunts of the Very Rich) and Gerald Di Pego (Sharky’s Machine).

Ned (David Hartman) and Vickie Bliss (Jess Walton) are newlyweds who get into an argument. He shoves her, she leaves, yelling, “You’ll never see me again.” He expects her back that night. She never comes home.

The next day, he goes to see her parents, Will (Ralph Meeker) and Mary Alden (Jane Wyatt). Strangely, he’s never met them before. Yet they can’t answer any of his questions, whether it’s about where their daughter is or about her childhood. Are they even her folks?

The cops start to get the idea that maybe Ned killed his wife. After all, he’s constantly going into a rage. However, the truth is that he blames himself for Vickie leaving. He’s their top suspect, so he has to escape custody and try to find the truth, kind of like he’s trapped in a giallo. The ending? Amazing.

Hartman would go on to host ABC’s morning news show Good Morning America, so for me, he was the man who told me my news before school. It’s disconcerting to see him screaming at people and getting into fights with the police.

In 1986, Juan Luis Buñuel, Luis’ son, directed a UK TV movie based on the same story.

You can watch this on YouTube.