They call themselves the Big Five and a Half. In the aftermath of World War II, six high school students-rich, ambitious, handsome-are groomed for ultimate success by their teacher, Mr. Northcliffe. At their farewell picnic in Mariposa, they plan to throw a splendid reunion in ten years' time on Christmas Day-to see who is the most successful of them all. The day of the reunion finds the Big Five and a Half in disarray-one divorced, one in prison... and almost all of them unhappy. Life has not turned out how most of them had hoped. On Christmas morning, a mysterious man in a Santa Claus suit visits individuals in the group with a tempting treat. It turns out that the Big Five and a Half were groomed well...for ultimate death!

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