python in emacs

[kentandkat at sbcglobal.net]

When I visit a file with extension .py, emacs says "loading
Python...done" and gives me a "Python" menu with options like "start
interpreter" and "eval buffer". When I try to use these options, or
others on the "Python" menu, emacs
says "loading compile...done", then hangs and has to be shut down from
the task bar. The folder containing python is in my PATH and python
works from the command line (and IDLE). Neither the emacs nor the python
directory tree has any spaces in it. I'm using emacs-22.3 on windows
xp and have tried using both python-2.2 and python-3.0 in emacs with the
same problem. Can anyone give me a tip?

Thanks,
Kent.