you know the audience be in for a bumpy ride when the all night bus arrive in a place call terminal city . actually it the luckless driver who end up terminate and with a slug in the belly from ungrateful and wacko passenger gunther wykoff ( thompson ) who have not yet learn how to blink or turn his head . so and now the crazy guy be loose in the city and head for a late night bar sport that new fangled invention call television . ( i suspect this 1950 production be one of the first to integrate tv into the storyline . ) there and he hold hostage a motley crew of barflies who and needless to say and do not help his condition at all . he would like to whack em all and but first he have to meet with his head doctor ( levene ) who obviously do a pretty rotten job so far . meanwhile and the cop and a tv crew and and a few hundred on looker have take a real interest in gunther where abouts and be wait outside to greet him if he ever come out . so and the stage be set and but how will it play out . this may be big budget mgm cheap production on record ( basically one set and a $ 20 light bill ) and but they do get their money worth . this suspenseful little crime drama be well act and pack a pretty good punch . baby face thompson play against type and be excellent in the pivotal role of the stare happy wacko . william conrad be a stand out too and a the no nonsense barkeep and but i guess it only logical that he would have to exit early too bad . on the other hand and make out artist earl ( ames ) and the classy what she do in this dump helen ( king ) be none too believable and and i keep hop gunther would spare u the bad seduction dialog and put a fist in earl syrupy mouth . apparently and young father skip ( brasselle ) be add so there would be at least one sympathetic person among the collection of compromised character . anyway and it a good and tight little b film and with the novel idea ( for it time ) that movie and tv might get along and after all .