
Overview
Air Force Colonel Kenneth Penmark and his wife, Christine, adore their daughter Rhoda, despite her secret tendency for selfishness. Christine keeps her knowledge of her daughter's darker side to herself, but when a schoolmate of Rhoda's dies mysteriously, her self-deception unravels.
Trailer
Crew
DirectorMervyn LeRoy
WriterJohn Lee Mahin
Cast

Patty McCormack
Rhoda Penmark

Nancy Kelly
Christine Penmark

Henry Jones
Leroy Jessup

Eileen Heckart
Hortense Daigle

Evelyn Varden
Monica Breedlove

William Hopper
Col. Kenneth Penmark

Paul Fix
Richard Bravo

Jesse White
Emory Wages

Gage Clarke
Reginald "Reggie" Tasker

Joan Croydon
Claudia Fern

Frank Cady
Henry Daigle

Frances Bavier
Woman at Dinner Party (uncredited)
Violet N. Cane
Teacher (uncredited)
Vivian Clermont
Mary Beth Musgrove (uncredited)

Shelley Fabares
Margie (uncredited)

Kathy Garver
Rhoda's Classmate (uncredited)

Don C. Harvey
Guard in Hospital (uncredited)

Edna Holland
Saleslady (uncredited)

Dayton Lummis
Doctor (uncredited)
Natalie Masters
Nurse (uncredited)
Part of The Bad Seed - Collection
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Keywords
lightningconfessionchild murdermurderlightning boltpsychoticevil childcautionarymurder confessioncriticalforebodingominous
Details
Budget
$1M
TMDb Votes
262
Added May 14, 2026Updated Jun 4, 2026











