Tag Archives: Rod Serling

Horror on TV: The Twilight Zone 3.8 “It’s A Good Life”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

 

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Don’t think bad thoughts or Anthony Freemont will turn you into a giant jack in the box!

That’s lesson to be learned from tonight’s example of televised horror. In this classic episode of The Twilight Zone, the citizens of Peaksville always have to be happy or else they’ll be punished by the cruel monster that lives among them. The big twist, of course, is that the monster is just a little boy and sometimes, it’s difficult to predict what exactly is going to upset him.

It’s A Good Life was originally broadcast on November 3rd, 1961.

Horror on TV: The Twilight Zone 5.26 “Living Doll”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Talky Tina
Today’s televised horror is the Living Doll episode of The Twilight Zone. This memorably creepy episode takes a look at what happens when a suburban jerk of a father (played by Telly Savalas) gets into a fight with his daughter’s doll, Talky Tina (voiced by June Foray). Things do not end well for one of them.

Seriously, don’t mess with Talky Tina.

This episode was directed by Richard Sarafain, written by Charles Beaumont, and originally broadcast on November 1st, 1963.

 

Horror on TV: The Twilight Zone 2.3 “The Last Rites of Jeff Myrtlebank”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

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Today’s televised horror is an episode of The Twilight Zone called The Last Rites of Jeff Myrtlebank. It examines what happens when, in the middle of his funeral, Jeff Myrtlebank (played by James Best) suddenly sits up in his coffin and asks what’s going on. Jeff’s friends and family are now torn between being happy to have Jeff back and being worried as they try to figure out what exactly Jeff has come back as. I like this episode, largely because it’s a good example of country gothic and, in many ways, I’m a gothic country girl. Plus, it has a really great ending!


This episode was directed and written by Montgomery Pittman and originally aired on February 23rd, 1962.

Horror on TV: The Twilight Zone 2.7 “The Nick of Time”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

 

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Along with starting each day of October with a horror film here at the Shattered Lens, we’re going to end each day with a horror-themed television show.

While I had previously caught a few episodes of the Twilight Zone during one of the annual holiday marathons on SyFy, I didn’t truly appreciate the show until I first exchanged e-mails with my friend in Australia, Mark. Among other things, Mark expressed a very eloquent appreciation for The Twilight Zone and that inspired me to watch quite a few episodes that have been uploaded to YouTube and Hulu. Along with being an essential piece of television history, the best episodes of the Twilight Zone remain watchable and entertaining 50 years after they were first broadcast.

Considering the esteemed place that the Twilight Zone continues to occupy in American culture, it seems appropriate to feature it during Horror Month here at the Shattered Lens.

We start things off with an episode that was originally broadcast on November 18th, 1960. The Nick of Time tells the story of what happens when two newlyweds stop off at a small town cafe and the superstitious husband (William Shatner) starts to play with a memorably creepy fortune telling machine. Now, I should warn you that, since this episode is not available on YouTube, I’m having to embed it from Hulu. That means that you’ll have to sit through a few commercials but it’s still a good episode.

Enjoy!

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone — “To Serve Man”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

As Halloween comes to a close, so does both horror month here at the Shattered Lens and our series of televised horrors.  What better way to finish out this feature than with one of the best known and most popular episodes of The Twilight Zone?

There’s a lot I could say about To Serve Man but really, all that needs to be acknowledged is that it’s a classic and features one of the best endings ever.

To Serve Man was written by Rod Serling and directed by Richard L. Bare.  It originally aired on March 2nd, 1962.

Bon appetit!

 

 

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone Ep. 1 — “Where is Everybody?”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

With Halloween only two days away, what better time to watch the pilot episode of the original Twilight Zone.

“Where Is Everybody?” was written by Rod Serling and directed by Robert Stevens.  It was first aired on October 2nd, 1959.

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone 2.23 “The Obsolete Man”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

I know that some people will claim that The Obsolete Man really isn’t a horror story but consider this:  What’s more horrifying than a world without freedom of thought or expression?  The Obsolete Man takes place in a world where books have been banned.  As a result, librarian Romney Wordsworth (Burgess Meredith) has been determined to be obsolete and, hence, is now scheduled to be executed.  Wordsworth appears to have accepted his fate but, as the Chancellor (Fritz Weaver) discovers, Wordsworth is far more clever than he originally appears.

This episode of The Twilight Zone was written by Rod Serling and directed by Eliot Silverstein.  It was originally broadcast on June 2nd, 1961.

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone 5.26 “I Am The Night — Color Me Black”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

As a small community prepares to execute a remorseless killer, the sky above the town turns pitch black.  Even as the Sheriff and the town priest try to figure out what’s happening, the town prepares to administer its own version of justice.

Some reviewers have complained that this Twilight Zone episode is a bit too heavy-handed for its own good but it’s actually one of my favorite episodes,  (Then again, I’ve always been against the death penalty and, for the most part, critics only consider a show to be heavy-handed when they disagree with the message.)  While the writing may not be subtle, this is a well-acted episode and, while watching it, you truly do get the feeling that a community is slowly giving into the darkness of hatred.

This episode was written by Rod Serling and directed by Abner Biberman.  It was originally broadcast on March 27th, 1964.

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone 1.6 “Judgment Night”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

In 1942, a German man named Carl Lanser (Nehmiah Persoff) finds himself on board the S.S. Glasgow, a British ocean liner that is heading for New York.  Carl has no memory of how he got on the Glasgow but he knows that he’s been here before and he’s met all of the passengers in the past.  Even worse, he knows that something terrible is going to happen and that he’s powerless to stop it….

The “Judgment Night” episode of The Twilight Zone was written by Rod Serling and directed by John Brahm.  It was originally broadcast on December 4th, 1959 and it serves to remind us that, regardless of what some would claim, there’s nothing more horrific than the senseless destruction of war.

The doll always breaks my heart.

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone 5.25 “The Masks”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

In “The Masks,” a group of greedy relatives gather at the New Orleans home of Jason Foster (Robert Keith).  Foster is on the verge of death and the relatives are eagerly waiting their chance to claim their inheritance.  However, as Foster informs them, they will only get paid if they wear masks that are meant to reflect their inner natures…

This episode of the Twilight Zone first aired on March 20th, 1964.  As written by Rod Serling and directed by Ida Lupino (making her the only woman to direct an episode of the original Twilight Zone), this episode is full of gothic Southern atmosphere and it’s a perfect addition for any Halloween viewing marathon.

Add to that, the masks are really creepy!