The Veil

The series is hosted by Boris Karloff, who also acts in every episode but one (Jack the Ripper). Episode plots allegedly were based upon real-life reports of supernatural happenings and the unexplained. Ten of the 12 episodes begin and end with Karloff standing in front of a roaring fireplace and inviting viewers to find out what lies "behind the veil". Guest stars included Whit Bissell, George Hamilton, Myron Healy, Patrick MacNee and others. Directors included Herbert L. Strock and George Waggner.

Hailed by critics as "the greatest television series never seen" (according to DVD release publicity), The Veil was never broadcast. Troubles within the studio (and the collapse of a preliminary co-production arrangement with National Telefilm Associates) resulted in production being cancelled after only a pilot and 10 episodes were produced. Hal Roach purchased an additional episode from a British TV studio called Jack the Ripper in an attempt to fill out the series, but the number of episodes was still considered to be too small to justify sale to a network or to syndication.

In the late 1960s, ten episodes were combined to make 3 different feature-length anthology films that aired on late night television. The three films were:

• THE VEIL (features 3 episodes): Vision In Crime, The Doctors, and The Crystal Ball
• JACK THE RIPPER (features 4 episodes): Jack The Ripper, Food on the Table, Genesis and Summer Heat
• DESTINATION NIGHTMARE (features 3 episodes): Destination Nightmare, Girl On The Road and The Return of Madame Vernoy

For many years, it was thought that only those 10 episodes of The Veil had been produced, and that two extra titles cited in references ("The Vestris" and "Whatever Happened to Peggy?") were just "alternate titles". "The Vestris" was a backdoor pilot for The Veil that aired separately as a 1958 episode of ABC-TV's anthology series Telephone Time. (Peggy just disappeared from most video compilations for some unknown reason.)

Those same ten episodes were released on VHS home video in their entirety for the first time in the 1990s, and have subsequently been released on DVD by Something Weird Video. This selection did not include the pilot (The Vestris) or Whatever Happened to Peggy?.

However, in 2008, Timeless Media Group released a two-DVD set of The Veil, retitled Tales of the Unexplained, which included "The Vestris" and "Peggy" for a total of 12 episodes. Any DVD sets titled The Veil still do not include those two episodes for some reason.[1][2]

In 1999, "Lifting the Veil of Mystery", a Tom Weaver article on the making of the series (complete with episode guide), appeared in issue #29 of Cult Movies magazine. It was later expanded into the book Scripts from the Crypt: The Veil (BearManor, 2017) which featured the series' history, scripts of several episodes, interviews with some of the participants, and a chapter on Boris Karloff's career as a television anthology host. Contributors included Weaver, Dr. Robert J. Kiss, and Barbara Bibas Montero, the daughter of the series' creator-producer, Frank Bibas.

There are a total of 12 episodes in the series. There is no actual airing order, since the series never aired. The episode order below is the order used in the original home video and DVD release. (All starring and hosted by Boris Karloff except for Jack the Ripper)

• The only episode in which Karloff does not appear as a character in the story, as well as serving as the host, is "Jack the Ripper"; this episode was produced by a studio in England and was purchased by Hal Roach Studios.
• Karloff's introductions for the episodes "Destination Nightmare" and "Whatever Happened to Peggy?" are set in a study, rather than in front of a fireplace like the others.
• Episodes have been screened at the annual Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in Aberdeen, Maryland.

• The Veil at IMDb
• The Veil at CVTA with episode list