There are times like this where nepotism is NOT a bad thing.
Director
Montgomery Pittman, writer
Maurita Pittman, and guest star
Sherry Jackson are husband, wife, and daughter, respectively.
Together, they have produced an episode that is both a decent detective story, and one that is very funny.
Perhaps because of her previous child-star experience, Sherry is playing well beyond her real-life seventeen years of age here. This may have been helped by her parent's involvement.
Kookie is becoming as much a vital part of this show as the headline stars. There is a bit where he questions a boy on skates about the disappearance of Carrie. At the end of the bit, the boy pulls out his own comb. Can we say mini-me?
There is also a very funny bit by
Louis Quinn (Pete Roscoe), doing switchboard duty in place of the vacationing Suzanne (
Jacqueline Beer).
Sherry Jackson and
Edd Byrnes will pair again in the season 2 episode
The Texas Doll (1959), and Sherry guest starred in three additional episodes, two of which were written and/or directed by her stepfather.
In addition to having a cameo by
Sugarfoot (1957) star
Will Hutchins, director
Montgomery Pittman and writer
Maurita Pittman also had the same function a year previous in the
Sugarfoot (1957) episode
Hideout (1958).
Aside from her work on
The Danny Thomas Show (1953) as Terry Williams,
Sherry Jackson may be best known as an adult for her role in
Star Trek (1966) episode
What Are Little Girls Made Of? (1966). So it was a little prophetic that when Kookie asks Carrie what type of TV show she would like to star in, at first he says "an oater", slang for the many TV western shows. Then he switches to an "outer space" show. This is seven years before that iconic role as the skimpily-clad android Andrea.
Another "outer space" connection,
Sherry Jackson also co-starred in the
The Danny Thomas Show (1953) with
Angela Cartwright (Linda Williams), who started with the show in season 5. Not only that, but Sherry would have a guest-star role on
Lost in Space (1965) episode
The Space Croppers (1966) as Effra, although she did not have any scenes in common with Angela.
This is one of those episodes that makes me wish this show was available on DVD or Blu-Ray.