Robert Bloch

Torture Garden -- Anthology film consisting of four stories bookended by Burgess Meredith as Dr. Diabolo, a carnival barker, who provides four patrons with glimpses into their future.

Torture Garden -- Anthology film consisting of four stories ('Enoch,' 'Terror over Hollywood', 'Mr. Steinway', and 'The Man who Collected Poe') bookended by Burgess Meredith as Dr. Diabolo, a carnival barker, who provides four patrons with glimpses into their future. The final episode in which Poe's spirit is conjured up from the great beyond is especially effective.

In the city of Tristan, where advanced technology works side by side with sorcery, people are under constant threat of demon attack. To protect the defenseless citizens, the Magic Administration Office employs skilled warriors known as Tactical Sorcerists. One day, a half-human, half-demon girl named Kapelteta Fernandez introduces Magic Administrator Nelin Seemonz to the reclusive Tactical Sorcerist Layot Steinberg, a crack shot who fights with a powerful humanoid Mold weapon. Despite his incredible skill at defeating demons, Layot is tortured by the sins of his past, and longs only for death.

A special sideshow torture exhibit has the power, according to showman Dr. Diablo, to warn people of evil in their futures. As skeptical customers are shown the greed and violence they're hiding, one of them snaps and kills Diablo. When they run off, we see the murder to be staged as part of the show. One of the customers has hung around to see this, and wants to make a deal with Diablo, aka the Devil.