MovieChat Forums > The Twilight Zone (1959) Discussion > remembering favorite episodes ... too ma...

remembering favorite episodes ... too many

posted 7 years ago by moogie (205)
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They are all good but off hand the ones I remember watching with my mom as a child that frightened me or I just loved were:

"The After Hours" a woman searches a department store for a gold thimble discovering she is only a mannequin on a 1 week leave to be human. - the mannequin's really bugged me and still kinda do today.

"The Eye of the Beholder" A woman born with a horrific facial disorder has agreed to extensive surgery for correction only to discover the doctor's efforts were unsuccessful as she still looks like the beautiful Donna Douglas that she was. - (lucky her, one of the most beautiful women and was always one of the first considered when a film called for one)

"Time Enough at Last" After an H-Bomb wipes out everyone except for him, a bookworm can finally read to his heart's content only to accidentally break his thick glasses ruining his chances forever. - good story, Meredith is good in everything.

"The Silence" an annoying man who talks all the time is given the chance for wealth if he agrees not to utter one word for a whole year. - I remember the scar on his neck really bothered me and that he went to that length for the cash. would you?

"Little Girl Lost" a child disappears from her bed and her parents discover there is another dimension through her bedroom wall. - seeing the dog run in after her and then when the parents reached in to find her the way it looked inside there kind of like a Christmas tree ornament, kind of glowy and it kept moving and turning around sometimes upside down -a great piece of imagination. I was afraid to go to sleep after this one and would feel my wall, marking it with chalk the same way trying to find the opening. totally fascinated.

"Five Characters in Search of an Exit" Five people who awaken together inside a metal enclosure discover they are really only dolls. - loved this one, found it totally fascinating especially the clown who this horrible predicament didn't seem to bother at all. and once Windom finally got out and was picked up and put back in I always felt sad just like the ballerina. great story.

"Stopover in a Quite Town" A couple waking up in a strange home discover they are on another planet inhabited by giants. - baffled by this one as a child but loved it.

"Night of the Meek" Art Carney plays a Santa Clause who is the real thing. Absolutely delightful but who could not love Carney.

"Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up" Passengers from a stranded bus warm up at a near by diner where there was a recent alien scare. - though he looked just a little different, remember thinking the bartender must be Ross Martin when I was little being a "Wild Wild West" fan. loved this story and the 3 armed alien.

"The Fever" I remember that slot machine kept following the guy saying his name over and over and the sound of that gravel and irritating voice "Franklin" finally pushing him out the window. really bugged me.

Did you know that Rod Serling didn't want to be the famous Twilight Zone host that we know him for and is so good at? He wanted to write. I remember seeing him once on a talk show years ago and he was like a little boy with a vivid imagination. Wonderful man.

[–] [email protected] (5854) 7 years ago

Pretty good list. You've included a lot of my favorites except for "Five Characters in Search of an Exit"

Interesting thing about "Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up", the man working the lunch counter is NOT Ross Martin. His name is Barney Phillips. But they DO look so much alike. I've read other comments about how much the two men resemble each other. I've always thought so myself. They weren't exactly model handsome, but they both had very interesting cute faces, I think!

Some of my favorites which always come to mind are The Hitchhiker, Death's-Head Revisited, Young Man's Fancy, The Hunt, Showdown with Rance McGrew, The Howling Man, The Odyssey of Flight 33, and definitely To Serve Man(!).

Rod Serling did indeed have a vivid imagination. He was a very talented writer.

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

Nice to see some love for the unfairly maligned "Young Man's Fancy."

With his studly looks, amazing voice, and timeless air of cool Serling strikes me as someone born to be in front of the camera -- which is why I find it surprising he harbored crippling doubts about doing so.

Where is Everybody?
The Lonely
Walking Distance
Perchance To Dream
And When The Sky Was Opened
Third From The Sun
The Last Flight
A World of Difference
Nick of Time
Shadow Play
Nothing in the Dark
The Dummy
The Midnight Sun
In His Image
Miniature
Number 12 Looks Just Like You

[–] MissMargoChanning (6630) 7 years ago

So many great episodes! and yes! I like Young Man's Fancy as well. There are actually only a handful that I don't care for. Those are the ones that try at humor.
The great thing about so many of these episodes is that they deal with very serious and real issues in fantastic circumstances. Serling managed to get these messages across and past the powers that be in television.
One of my favorites is The Shelter. The good doctor learned about the cost of life and what he and his neighbors were truly like in a life threatening crisis..... it even dealt with bigotry.

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

Comedy -- particularly the broad kind, which was highly popular in "TZ"'s day and remains so in 2017 -- rarely ages well. I often wonder how much better episodes with clever premises like "A Most Unusual Camera" and "A World of his Own" would have played had they embraced a more serious tone.

[–] MissMargoChanning (6630) 7 years ago

You gave me a little food for thought there. A Most Unusual Camera might have been a good one, had they given it a serious tone.
Have you noticed that both episodes with Orson Bean and the one with Carol Burnett are basically the same story? (sorry. Can't remember the titles.... Cavender is coming? the one with Bean escapes me at the moment)
I didn't care for either.

[–] [deleted] 7 years ago

The one with the creature on the airplane wing!

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

How terrifying would it be to be in Bob Wilson's shoes? If he does nothing -- as those on board reassure him is his only course (seeing as they don't believe him) -- there's a good chance the gremlin's probing of the plane's engines will cause Bob and his fellow passengers to die. And if he does something, a likelihood exists as well his efforts could prove every bit as deadly as anything the gremlin has in mind.

[–] [deleted] 7 years ago

I like the part where he puts the window down and then he lifts it back up...!

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

"It isn't there. It isn't there."

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

Yes, when he's given the pillow (and sedative which he doesn't take?) so he can relax and he puts his shade down. You're on the edge of your chair here and as the camera is gradually getting closer and closer to his face, the anticipation is excruciating because you know he's gona look and we all want him too! And no matter how hokey the guy in make-up looked I got scared as a child. So when I see this scene today, I'm not actually frightened but my childhood memories of fear are still just as vivid which I love. Being truly scared as a grown up is hard and it's always so much fun when you actually experience that brief wave of fright from just a film, sometimes being because you've forgotten the scene so you're caught off guard.

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

You can tell Serling was a true "It's A Wonderful Life" junkie since he loved both guardian angel stories ("Mr. Bevis" and "Cavender is Coming") as well as stories about suicidal people who discover their own self worth ("A Passage for Trumpet" and "Changing of the Guard"). I think the latter two variations on Capra's classic work well because both are character-driven and bleak. The former two, on the other hand, have little to offer than the skin-crawling spectacle of true talent like Bean and Burnett trying to breath life into Serling's dead-on-arrival scripts.

[–] [email protected] (5854) 7 years ago

'Mr. Bevis' never was a favorite. Actually I can't remember the last time I saw it. Must've been years ago.

It's true that the comedy episodes haven't aged well although 'Showdown with Rance McGrew' has remained a favorite of mine. 'Penny for Your Thoughts' with Dick York is also a humorous episode that has some charm to it.

'A Most Unusual Camera' ...well maybe if it was more serious or the characters were more likable. They were just so annoying, especially the woman.

AngularTurnip- I forgot to include some of your picks like 'Number Twelve Looks Just Like You, "Midnight Sun' and 'Nick of Time'. I prefer William Shatner's performance in that one over 'Nightmare at 20,000 Feet', although in that one we get so many close ups of his pretty face! As a young man, William Shatner wasn't just handsome, he was kinda pretty! imho

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

Comedy episodes like "Penny" and "Will the Real Martian" work because the humor skirts the in-your-face approach; instead it works in conjunction with the plot, driving it even sometimes, instead of derailing it.

Young Shatner had an almost androgynous beauty one usually associates with the likes of Bowie. Dare I say as easy on the eyes as Pat Breslin might have been Shatner circa 1960 might have bested her in this department.

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

Had to laugh and YES, Shatner is very dreamy. A commentary once stated Shatner plays a creep so well; the monster in the mist, the good husband that turns out to be the murderer or blackmailer. The creep-mode was better known as "Shatnerism": a person of transgressive or unnatural character whose normal appearance allows them to pass unnoticed in the every day world (like Norman Bates lol).

[–] [email protected] (5854) 7 years ago

"androgynous beauty", "dreamy"...yes they all fit the young Shatner! Some actors have a rugged handsome look, but guys like him and a very young Robert Redford (Nothing in the Dark, another favorite of mine), have almost feminine good looks. Not that they looked effeminate, but their features are so delicate.

I avoided dating guys like that when I was young. Who wants a boyfriend who is prettier than you? lol

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

Redford definitely very handsome fair looks, and I place a very young Anthony Perkins and Robert Reed in this category. However as beauty (and taste) are in the eye of the beholder I usually refrain my opinions on this subject but have to add I broke up with a guy in high school that looked exactly like Mel Gibson lol (what a fool!)

[–] [email protected] (5854) 7 years ago

You BROKE UP with a guy who looked like Mel Gibson??? I would have locked him in my closet and only taken him out to play with him. LOL

Mel Gibson, despite a lot of his personal problems, was always my idea of the gorgeous, ideal guy. Had a crush on him from the first time I saw him!

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

Yes, fool that I was, he was just not jelling from my end so to speak. Have always loved faces, love to draw them, paint them and study them - they are all so different, even identical twins you can always find that one little spot that is different. So I used to wonder what was it "exactly" attracted me when sizing up a handsome face to my taste; the light blue eyes, not too big not too small nose, chin shape, etc. And after many years I finally discovered that when a certain amount of space between the bottom of the nose and and the top of the upper lip becomes far enough apart I notice instantly. Strange huh. Now being aware I already know when I'm gona be attracted.
Like with Mel, though difficult at times, I try not to allow personal problems to interfere with my opinions of them as a celebrity. I'd rather just sit back and dream as that's what their job is - to look good for us.

[–] JR-TV (102) 7 years ago

Cavender is Coming is the Carol Burnett episode and Mr. Bevis is the Orson Bean episode.

[–] [deleted] 7 years ago

Frrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrranklin.

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

I wonder if "TZ" coined the killer slot machine ...

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

forgot to mention "The Invaders". as a young girl watching it took me a bit to figure out who was alien.Have always loved Agnes Moorehead: "The Bat" and so perfect as Velma Cruther in "Hush...Hush Sweet Charlotte". I can hear her now "You can't see her she's sick".

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

While IMHO Moorehead's performance in "Invaders" left a lot to be desired, and the pacing too could have used some work, the ending blew me away. Like the ending of "To Serve Man" it's so unbelievably good that it redeems what was otherwise not an especially memorable episode.

[–] Xcalat3 (3748) 7 years ago

very good list.

My favs are in no particular order:
-A Stop at Willoughby
-Five Characters in Search of an Exit
-The Midnight Sun
-Walking Distance
-A World of Difference
-To Serve Man
-Eye of the Beholder
-The Hitch-Hiker
-The Lonely
-The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

Great list, yours are early ones. All of them were good, had to look some up but remembered them instantly once I saw the photos. With Alfred Hitchcock, Thriller and the Outer Limits running at the same time I sometimes get confused where I first saw what ... one of the titles I always thought was a Zone was really a Hitchcock -"The Jar" and it was remade later on. I'm sure everyone remembers this wild one!

[–] [email protected] (5854) 7 years ago

excalat3---Another favorite I forgot about- A Stop at Willoughby! Who hasn't considered just "stopping off" at a place which seems like paradise?

The Monsters are Due on Maple Street- a classic morality tale. Another favorite of mine.

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

"Willoughby" is amazing because it means different things to different people. Personally, I think it's one of the bleakest entries in the series. Others, feel hope knowing Gart finally found peace.

[–] Xcalat3 (3748) 7 years ago

/"Willoughby" is amazing because it means different things to different people. Personally, I think it's one of the bleakest entries in the series. Others, feel hope knowing Gart finally found peace./

I agree its one if not the bleakest episode.

[–] strntz (12225) 7 years ago

I think it would be bleak if we did not see Gart get off the train and walk among the townsfolk.

[–] Xcalat3 (3748) 7 years ago

/The Monsters are Due on Maple Street- a classic morality tale. Another favorite of mine./

first episode I ever saw as a kid in the 80's and immediately became a fan :)

[–] croft_alice (12180) 7 years ago

So many good opinions for this tv show.I will bring the first season and watch it,you all made me curious about this.

[–] strntz (12225) 7 years ago

I can list 20 or more I love, but will only mention one, particularly that I'm posting this two weeks from Christmas:

The Changing of The Guard

Love this episode, one of if not my favorite of the whole series.

[–] moogie (205) 7 years ago

strntz: One of the ones I don't remember so had to watch. Tears filled my eyes while watching this wonderful story and how touching Donald Pleasence was. Wouldn't it be a blessing to catch that glimpse of reassurance that we have made even the smallest difference in our lives somewhere and the hard roads would seem all worth while. Thank you for the reminder. Happy Holiday's.

[–] [email protected] (148) 7 years ago

[deleted]

[–] strntz (12225) 7 years ago

Thanks Moogie, same to you and remember; 'be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity.'

[–] Xcalat3 (3748) 7 years ago

The Changing of The Guard.

very moving episode indeed.

[–] andreaahr (2337) 7 years ago

My favorite episodes are: The Midnight Sun, The After Hours and The Night of the Meek.

[–] AngularTurnip (3337) 7 years ago

Lois Nettleton and Anne Francis are both amazing talents and incredibly easy on the eyes as well.

[–] Jennie_Portrait (804) 7 years ago

Those are wonderful ones. I'd add "The Hunt." Even after you know the surprise of all those episodes, you still want to watch it again and again.

[–] [email protected] (5854) 7 years ago

"The Hunt", I love it!! Always makes me cry for all the dogs which I have loved and lost. Hope I will be with them in the afterlife like Hyder was with Rip.

[–] andreaahr (2337) 7 years ago

I've never seen "The Hunt" episode. I'll have to watch it.

[–] TexasJack (12516) 7 years ago

Midnight Sun is up next on the marathon.