This is not the Frank Capra film and it makes no attempt to be. When I saw Arsenic on Broadway in the eighties, the near stellar cast was wasted by their director, who obviously told them to emulate the actors in the film. The lead, whose name I won't mention out of respect but whose initials are TR (you can look this up) was speaking in Cary Grant's voice and diction and running up and down stairs, like Cary did in the film. The two aunts, played by rather brilliant stage actresses who had made their permanent marks on TV, were made up to look, talk and act like the women in the film. The noted film and TV actor who played Jonathan Brewster was thirty years too old for the role but cast because he looked like Raymond Massey's depiction of the character. The iconic New York performer and acting teacher who played Dr. Einstein did his best Peter Lorre impression. Even though I saw the 1986 staging before I'd seen the 1944 film, the pretension of it still came through. But even through all of that, it was still the play, Arsenic and Old Lace and it couldn't help but be hilarious, unique and compelling.
For this TV version, that I didn't discover until fifty years after its creation, you have to forget all previous Arsenics and just focus on the most inspired bit of casting imaginable. Who better to portray Jonathan, a criminal whose face was reconstructed to look like a near monster, than Fred Gwynne. As much as Fred was said to be proud of his extensive stage work and didn't want to be forever associated with Herman Munster, he clearly saw the humor in this casting and even allowed for a couple of subtle Munster references. Bob Crane, who was known for playing reserved characters with an edge, was said to have had an actual life that was totally outrageous. Putting Bob in the lead, years before most people knew about his personal endeavors, was truly inspired. Helen Hayes and Lillian Gish as Aunt Helen and Aunt Martha: Nothing else needs to be said. Jack Gilford and David Wayne just had to show up for any project to enhance the personality and the humor in the respective pieces. Even in the most serious and somber dramas, Jack and David could open their mouths and make you laugh.
I'm not saying you should forget that you know the Arsenic and Old Lace story before you watch this one. If you're not familiar with the play and/or film, you won't appreciate the beyond brilliant casting in this version. Just don't watch it side by side with Frank Capra's 1944 film and compare them. If you look at this TV interpretation as a separate entity, your only choice will be to love it.
