None but the Lonely Heart story
Howard Prince is a sociopathic criminal who routinely marries rich elderly widows, then poisons them and leaves them to die while he steals their money. Deciding to murder one more victim before going on the run, he manages to successfully charm Effie Gluckman, who is excited to have his company. Eventually, Howard discovers that someone is on to him, since he soon gets a series of notes from someone that knows what he is doing and warns him to stop, or else risk facing dire consequences. Tom Hanks, who directed this episode, makes a cameo appearance as the video dating service owner. Boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard also makes a cameo appearance as the gravedigger. Directed by: Tom Hanks. Story by: Donald Longtooth.
14 total · 1 choice · 6 major · 7 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| greed for riches | choice | Howard had, it seemed, perfected the art of seducing rich old women, conning them out of their fortunes and murdering them. Not satisfied with a retirement fund of $2,000,000, Howard insisted on seducing one last rich old widow before hightailing it out of the country despite hearing that the authorities were hot on his heels. |
| blackmail | major | It would seem that Howard thought he was being blackmailed. As it were, the ominous messages he received came from an adoring fan who longed to meet Howard. |
| loneliness | major | The story featured two lonely old widows, as the titles alludes to, of independent means who were seduced by the gold digger Howard. |
| murder | major | Howard committed four ancillary murders of people he most likely believed to be the blackmailer. Howard was a serial poison murderer of rich old women that he married first. |
| poison murder | major | Howard was a serial poison murderer of rich old women that he married first. |
| the need for companionship | major | The widow Effie talked of seeking (male) companionship in her old age. She was presumably typical of Howard's other victims in this respect. |
| young and old romance | major | Eligible young Howard used his charms to win the heart of Effie, an elderly widow of independent means. Little did Effie know that Howard was in the habit of marrying rich elderly women, conning them out of their fortunes and then murdering them. |
| coping with sexual dysfunction | minor | Howard feigned to be impotent when he first courted Effie. |
| funeral rite | minor | There was a Christian funeral rite for Howard's wine loving first victim seen in the story. |
| gastronomy | minor | Howard soliloquized about fine wine to his first victim in the story, before administering the lethal poison. |