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.
Tag Archives: Twilight Zone
Horror On TV: Twilight Zone Ep. 123 “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet”
When I first decided to feature old, horror-themed television episodes this month, I knew that I had to include Nightmare At 20,000 Feet.
This is perhaps the most famous episode of Twilight Zone. William Shatner plays a man on an airplane who is both terrified of flying and who has spotted a gremlin out on the wing. As Shatner desperately tries to convince his fellow passengers that he’s not crazy, the gremlin cheerfully goes about his destructive business.
This is one of the few episodes of The Twilight Zone not to have been downloaded onto YouTube and, at first, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to share it. Fortunately, site subscriber and frequent commenter KO tracked it down on Hulu for me and, as a result, we are very happy to present the classic fright fest Nightmare At 20,000 Feet!
This episode was written by Richard Matheson and directed by Richard Donner, who would later direct such films as The Omen, Superman, and Lethal Weapon. It originally aired on October 11th, 1963.
http://www.hulu.com/watch/440824
(Incidentally, originally an episode of Goosebumps was scheduled to be featured tonight. However, the YouTube account that was hosting that video has been suspended. The episode in question was The House of No Return, which many people believe features an early performance from Ryan Gosling. Having seen the episode before it was taken off YouTube, I can assure you that Ryan was nowhere to be seen.)
Horror On TV: Twilight Zone 2.23 “The Obsolete Man”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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!
Through the Shattered Lens 