Tag Archives: Twilight Zone

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 5.21 — “Spur of the Moment”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

18 year-old Anne Marie Henderson (Diana Hyland) is being pressured, by her family, to marry Robert, a dull stockbroker (Robert Hogan).  However, Anne Marie is still in love with her former fiancee, David (Roger Davis).  As the day of her marriage approaches, Anne Marie suddenly finds herself being chased by a woman in black who yells at her not to get married…

This episode of the Twilight Zone was originally broadcast on February 21st, 1964.  It was directed by Elliot Silverstein and written by Richard Matheson.

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 5.19 “Black Leather Jackets”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Scott, Fred, and Steve may be teenage rebels but they’re rebels with a cause!  And that cause, of course, is to conquer humanity and maybe find a girlfriend.  And, of course, all three of them wear black leather jackets…

This is actually one of the sillier episodes of The Twilight Zone but I like it.  I think any girl who has ever wondered if boys are from a different planet can appreciate this episode.

Black Leather Jackets was originally broadcast on January 31st, 1964.  It was written by Earl Hamner, Jr. and directed by Joseph N. Newman.

Horror On TV: The Twilight Zone 3.2 “The Arrival”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

When Flight 107 out of Buffalo, New York makes a perfect (if unannounced) landing, airport officials are shocked to discover that the airplane has no passengers, no luggage, and no pilots!  It’s up to Grant Sheckley (Harold J. Stone) to solve the mystery but Sheckley has a secret of his own.

This episode of The Twilight Zone was written by Rod Serling and directed by Boris Sagal.  It was originally broadcast on September 22nd, 1961.

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 3.7 “The Grave”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

This is another fun one.

In The Grave, old west outlaw Pinto Sykes is gunned down by a group of townspeople and buried in a lonely grave.  However, before Sykes dies, he swears that if the bounty hunter Miller (Lee Marvin) ever comes near his grave, he’ll reach out of the ground and grab him.  Needless to say, it’s not long before Miller is challenged to put Sykes’s dying words to the test.

This episode of The Twilight Zone was written and directed by Montgomery Pittman.  It originally aired on October 27th, 1961.  Classic western fans will immediately recognize the majority of the cast.

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!

Horror On TV: Twilight Zone 5.19 “Night Call”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

In this poignantly haunting episode of the Twilight Zone, Gladys Cooper plays a lonely widow who starts to receive mysterious phone calls from a stranger.

This episode was written by Richard Matheson (and based on his short story Long Distance  Call) and it was directed by Jacques Tourneur.  Tourneur is probably best known for directing moody horror films like Cat People and Curse of the Demon and he brings a similar atmosphere to Night Call.

Night Call originally aired on February 7, 1964.

Horror on TV: Twilight Zone — “The Howling Man”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Tonight’s offering of Horror on TV is another episode of The Twilight Zone.

In The Howling Man, H.M. Wynant plays a rational man who, during a walk across Europe, finds himself in an isolated monastery.  Wynant discovers a bearded prisoner (played by Robin Hughes) who explains that he’s being held prisoner because he was caught kissing his girlfriend in public.  However, Brother Jerome (played by the legendary John Carradine) claims that Hughes is the devil himself!  It’s left up to Wynant whether to set the man free or to leave him imprisoned…

Written by Charles Beaumont and directed by Douglas Heyes, The Howling Man is a favorite of mine.  Not only does the show establish and maintain an atmosphere of palpable menace but it also features a brilliant ending.

Enjoy The Howling Man.