''Poor Devil'' (1973) is an

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

that served as an unsold

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

of a comedy series. The film was first broadcast on NBC on February 14, 1973.

Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, actor, comedian, dancer, and musician. At age two, Davis began his career in Vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the Will Mastin Trio, which t ...

starred as "Sammy", a demon from Hell who desires a promotion from working in the furnace room.

Lucifer The most common meaning for Lucifer in English is as a name for the Devil in Christian theology. He appeared in the King James Version of the Bible in Isaiah and before that in the Vulgate (the late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bib ...

, played by horror veteran

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a career spanning more than sixty years, Lee became known as an actor with a deep and commanding voice who often portrayed villains in horr ...

, tells Sammy that he must first convince a

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

accountant named Burnett J. Emerson (

Jack Klugman Jack Klugman (April 27, 1922 – December 24, 2012) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. He began his career in 1949 and started television and film work with roles in ''12 Angry Men (1957 film), 12 Angry Men'' (1957) and ...

) to sell his soul. The film also starred

Adam West William West Anderson (September 19, 1928 – June 9, 2017), known professionally as Adam West, was an American actor. He portrayed Batman in the 1960s ABC series of the same name and its 1966 theatrical feature film, reprising the role in ...

Madlyn Rhue Madlyn Soloman Rhue (née Madeline Roche), (October 3, 1935 – December 16, 2003) was an American film and television actress. Early life and education Rhue was born in Washington, D.C., graduated from Los Angeles High School, and studied dr ...

and Byron Webster.Sammy Devil Jr. , VICE United States
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Synopsis

Sammy, a demon in desperate need of a promotion, uses the scanners in Hell—the place looks like Mission Control in Houston—to watch as Burnett (Klugman) makes an inept attempt to rob the safe in the

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...

where he works. Sammy decides Burnett is prime pickings to be recruited for Hell. The Devil gives Sammy a chance, but warns that if he fails he'll be shoveling coal in the furnace room for 1,000 years! He appears to Burnett later that night, literally zapping into his bed next to him, and makes his pitch: seven years of anything he wants in exchange for his soul. At first, Burnett doesn't believe him, but eventually does, and signs the contract. His first wish is for Sammy to steal everything in the department store where he works in one night. This presents a problem for Sammy as his powers are quite limited. He calls a meeting of damned souls in a conference room in Hell and gets ideas from the likes of

Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone ( ; ; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American organized crime, gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-foun ...

and

Blackbeard Edward Teach (or Thatch; – 22 November 1718), better known as Blackbeard, was an English pirate who operated around the West Indies and the eastern coast of Britain's North American colonies. Little is known about his early life, but he ma ...

. That night he drugs the security guard and then his fellow demons clean out the store. As he and Burnett are walking through the store they stop at a jewelry counter and Sammy puts a nice new watch on Burnett's wrist. He also sees someone he knows helping with the robbery—his father-in-law! He says to Burnett, "I won't tell if you won't." Later, as the store is almost cleaned out Burnett has second thoughts. He wanted to punish the company, but realizes that taking all the merchandise will harm the workers, his friends, and so tells Sammy to put everything back! It's not easy, but they manage, and the next day Burnett wishes for a mink for his wife and happily speaks of how he and his wife will spend the next seven years going places and doing things, and then spend eternity together. Sammy breaks the bad news to Burnett: his wife is scheduled to go "up there." Sad and despondent, Burnett doesn't know what to do, and then Sammy asks him for the time. He tells him and Sammy points out that Burnett is still wearing the watch he gave him, which technically means he didn't put everything back from the robbery. As he didn't fulfill Burnett's wish his contract is null and void, and he's free. The Devil then appears, only Sammy can see and hear him, and scolds his lowly demon for letting a soul get away. As Burnett tries to explain to the Dark Lord, he zaps Sammy and himself back to Hell. Later, Sammy is sharing a nice meal with his girlfriend, but then has to get back to work shoveling. In defiance he throws the shovel into the furnace, and Bligh, the Devil's assistant zaps another into Sammy's hands warning him that his 700 year sentence can easily become 800! Sammy gets back to work.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0070555 1973 films 1973 television films 1973 comedy horror films 1973 fantasy films Demons in film The Devil in film Films directed by Robert Scheerer Films set in San Francisco NBC original films Television films as pilots Television pilots not picked up as a series American horror television films 1970s American films 1973 comedy-drama films