The Telltale Cat

David can't stand Mandy's new cat, Fluffy Face - it steals his chair, drinks from his cereal bowl, shreds his clothes, and may have eaten his pet mouse. So he stuffs the cat in a shoebox, pedals out to Trickle Lake, and sets it adrift, then tells Mandy that fickle cats just wander off. But soon every meow, every cat on TV, every whisker in Whit's End seems to accuse him... is Fluffy Face haunting him from a watery grave? A terrified David breaks down in front of Connie and Tom Riley at the Timothy Center - where he faints, wakes up, and comes face to face with the cat Tom rescued from the lake, alive and sniffing for the catnip still in David's pocket. He brings Fluffy Face home to a delighted Mandy, who calls him the best brother in the world. Then David asks if she's seen his missing pet snake, and Mandy sweetly repeats his own excuse right back to him.

Found on No Album Album NA · 11 episodes

The run See every episode

0434 B-TV: Redeeming the Season A live holiday broadcast from the Odyssey Mall asks whether Christmas customs with tangled pagan and commercial roots can be given back to Christ - weaving in the imaginative tale of a young man named Nicholas who tries to run from wealth and position to find a humble life of faith.

1 of 2 0435 A Look Back As the millennium draws to a close, a nostalgic tour of Whit's End revisits the beloved characters and moments that made Odyssey feel like home.

2 of 2 0436 A Look Back Phil Lollar's retrospective tour of Odyssey revisits its funniest names, the Imagination Station's greatest journeys, and the quiet moments that changed lives forever.

0437a Sunset Bowlawater When a little girl's beloved goldfish turns up dead, a bumbling detective takes the case - but the fish himself has been telling the story all along.

0437b The Long Way Home Desperate to escape her family's new home for a day of fun, a girl works odd jobs all week to earn her way onto a church youth group trip.

0438a The Lyin' Tale A trip to the dumpster leaves Aubrey with a scratch, a crowd of curious kids, and a story that keeps getting bigger every time she tells it.

0438b The Telltale Cat When Mandy's new cat makes David Straussberg's life miserable, his desperate scheme to get rid of it comes back to haunt him.

0439 B-TV: Grace A free downtown lunch giveaway sparks a B-TV broadcast about grace - God's undeserved favor - told through Scripture, comedy, and the story of a farmer's son who trades his inheritance for Hollywood dreams.

0440 I Slap Floor When two kids ask why Whit is home recovering from Odyssey's strangest week ever, Bernard spins a tale of a mysterious returning visitor and a town where everyone suddenly starts acting like their opposite.

0441a What Do You Think? Desperate to know what people really think of her, a girl uses one of Whit's inventions to hear the private thoughts behind everyone's polite words.

0441b Idol Minds While Whit is away for two weeks, the kids of Odyssey turn to Eugene's technology to fill the void - with results no one anticipates.

0442a Two Roads Two boys from the same neighborhood face the same spilled-candy temptation in a school cafeteria - and Whit follows the very different roads their choices set them on.

0442b Sticks and Stones When a former classmate he once tormented returns to Odyssey as a potential business rival, Bart Rathbone launches a scheme to drive him out of town before old scores can be settled.

Featured characters

Minor characters & crew 3 more roles

1 featured character

Harlow Doyle Will Ryan

2 supporting roles

David Straussberg Jeff Ellison Stephen Straussberg Actor Unknown

Made by

Chris Anthony Host Jim Ware Writer Phil Lollar Director Jonathan Crowe Sound Designer

The story

Read the full synopsis 1 min

Harlow Doyle introduces a dark mystery involving David Straussberg and Mandy’s new cat, Fluffy Face. David immediately resents the animal. The cat takes his favorite chair, drinks from his cereal bowl, damages his clothes and carpet, and may even be responsible for the disappearance of his white mouse. Worst of all, its yellow eyes seem to follow David everywhere.

Determined to get rid of Fluffy Face, David buys catnip and traps the cat in a shoebox. He straps the box to his bicycle, rides to Trickle Lake, and sets it adrift. Tom Riley soon finds the soaked animal floating on the water and takes it back to the Timothy Center.

At home, David lies to Mandy and claims that fickle cats often wander away. Then every meow and mention of a cat seems to accuse him. A cat on television, an animal wandering through Whit’s End, and an electronic cat caller at the Electric Palace leave him terrified that Fluffy Face is haunting him.

David flees to the Timothy Center and breaks down in front of Connie and Tom. The many cats attending a conference there overwhelm him, and he faints. When he awakens in Tom’s office, he discovers Fluffy Face alive and eager to retrieve the catnip still hidden in David’s pocket.

David returns the cat to a grateful Mandy, who praises him as the best brother in the world. He considers confessing but decides to wait. Then he asks whether she has seen his missing pet snake. Mandy calmly repeats the same excuse David gave her about fickle animals loving people and leaving, giving him an uncomfortable taste of his own deception.