The Devil’s Daughter Put the Satanic Panic of Rosemary’s Baby on TV

From 1969 to 1975, ABC put out weekly films. They functioned as TV pilots, testing grounds for up-and-coming filmmakers, and places for new and old stars to shine. Every month, Chloe Walker revisits one of these movies. This is Movie of the Week (of the Month).
Was The Devil’s Daughter a rip-off of Rosemary’s Baby? Well, it wouldn’t be the most unfounded accusation. Maybe “spiritual sequel” would be the fairer term.
The ABC MOTW’s titular spawn of Satan is Diane (Belinda Montgomery); at first, however, she isn’t aware of her terrifying status. In a pre-credits scene, we learn that Diane’s mother, Alice (Diane Ladd), fell in with a bunch of Satanists, was impregnated by the Devil and made a deal to keep the truth from that baby until her 21st birthday. When the Devil comes a-calling on that auspicious day and Alice refuses to let him have Diane, he shoots her dead.
Diane, having been estranged from her mother for as long as she can remember, knows nothing about any of this. We meet her at Alice’s funeral, where Lilith (Shelley Winters), a woman who claims to have been a friend of Alice’s, offers her a room while she waits for the estate to get settled. New in town and friendless, Diane accepts. But as Diane’s stay with Lilith progresses, she increasingly notices things that unsettle her. Eventually, at the advice of a friendly priest, she decides to move in with another young woman instead—a move to which Lilith takes great offense. Nevertheless, Diane stays in touch, and attends a party Lilith throws in her honor.
It’s at this party she learns her true identity, and her fate—she is betrothed to the Demon of Endor! (The one with yellow eyes!) Horrified, she runs fast and far from the Satanic cabal in which she’s found herself… but is there any escaping her destiny?
As with many MOTWs, The Devil’s Daughter boasted an array of talent among its cast and crew. Most notable of all is the mighty Shelley Winters, deliciously cast as the Satanic matriarch who takes Diane under her wing and insists that she stays there (each of her line readings is a perfect, barmy jewel; just listen out for the way she pronounces “gazebo”). Also representing classic Hollywood is Joseph Cotten, who plays Diane’s apparently kindly estate lawyer…