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The Twilight Zone
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The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode (156 in the original series) is a mixture of self-contained fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist. A popular and critical success, it introduced many Americans to serious science fiction and abstract ideas through television and also through a wide variety of Twilight Zone literature. The program followed in the tradition of earlier radio programs such as The Weird Circle and X Minus One and the radio work of Serling's hero, dramatist Norman Corwin.
The success of the original series led to the creation of two revival series: a cult hit series that ran for several seasons on CBS and in syndication in the 1980s, and a short-lived UPN series that ran from 2002 to 2003.
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Encyclopedia
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode (156 in the original series) is a mixture of self-contained fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist. A popular and critical success, it introduced many Americans to serious science fiction and abstract ideas through television and also through a wide variety of Twilight Zone literature. The program followed in the tradition of earlier radio programs such as The Weird Circle and X Minus One and the radio work of Serling's hero, dramatist Norman Corwin.
The success of the original series led to the creation of two revival series: a cult hit series that ran for several seasons on CBS and in syndication in the 1980s, and a short-lived UPN series that ran from 2002 to 2003. It would also lead to a feature film, a radio series, a comic book, a magazine and various other spin-offs that would span five decades.
Aside from Serling himself, who crafted nearly two-thirds of the series' total episodes, writers for The Twilight Zone included leading genre authorities such as Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, Jerry Sohl, George Clayton Johnson, Earl Hamner, Jr., Reginald Rose, Harlan Ellison and Ray Bradbury. Many episodes also featured adaptations of classic stories by such writers as Ambrose Bierce, Lewis Padgett, Jerome Bixby and Damon Knight.
Television history
"The Time Element" (1958)
CBS purchased a teleplay in 1958 that writer Rod Serling hoped to produce as the pilot of a weekly anthology series. The Twilight Zone episode "The Time Element" marked Serling's first entry in the field of science fiction.
Plot
The story is a time travel fantasy of sorts, involving a man named Peter Jenson (William Bendix) visiting a psychoanalyst, Dr. Gillespie (Martin Balsam), with complaints of a recurring dream in which he imagines waking up in Honolulu just prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. "I wake up in a hotel room in Honolulu, and it's 1941, but I mean I really wake up and it's really 1941," he explains, concluding that these are not mere dreams; he actually is travelling through time. However, Dr. Gillespie insists that time travel is impossible given the nature of temporal paradoxes. During his dream, taking advantage of the situation, he bets on all the winning horses, all the right teams and, eventually, tries unsuccessfully to warn others — the newspaper, the military, anyone — that the Japanese are planning a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. His warnings are seen as crazed ravings, and are either ignored or met with physical violence, as he is punched out by an engineer who works on the USS Arizona, after insisting that it will be sunk on December 7th. Jenson's dream always ends as the Japanese bombers fly overhead on the morning of December 7th, prompting him to yell out "I told you! Why wouldn't anybody listen to me?". Jenson finally discloses to Dr. Gillespie that he was actually in Honolulu on December 7th, 1941. While on the couch, Jenson falls asleep once again, only this time, Japanese planes flying overhead shoot inside the windows of his room and he is killed. When the camera cuts back to the doctor's office, the couch Jenson was lying on is now empty, and Dr. Gillespie looks around, confused. Although Jenson had smoked earlier, the ashtray is empty. He looks in his appointment book and finds he had no appointments scheduled for this day. Gillespie goes to a bar and finds Jenson's picture on the wall. The bartender said that Jenson tended bar there, but was killed in Pearl Harbor.
Production
With this script, Serling drafted the fundamental elements that would distinguish the series still to come: a science-fiction/fantasy theme, opening and closing narration, and an ending with a twist. But what would prove popular with audiences and critics in 1959 did not meet network standards in 1957. "The Time Element" was purchased only to be shelved indefinitely, and talks of making The Twilight Zone a television series ended.
This is where things stood when Bert Granet, the new producer for Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse, discovered "The Time Element" in CBS' vaults while searching for an original Serling script to add prestige to his show. "The Time Element" debuted on November 24, 1958, to an overwhelmingly delighted audience of television viewers and critics alike. "The humor and sincerity of Mr. Serling's dialogue made 'The Time Element' consistently entertaining," offered Jack Gould of The New York Times. Over six thousand letters of praise flooded Granet's offices. Convinced that a series based on such stories could succeed, CBS again began talks with Serling about the possibilities of producing The Twilight Zone. "Where Is Everybody?" was accepted as the pilot episode and the project was officially announced to the public in early 1959. "The Time Element" is rarely aired on television and it was only available in an Italian DVD box set titled "Ai confini della realtà — I tesori perduti" until it was shown as part of an all night sneak preview of a new cable channel called TVLand. It was since uploaded to YouTube as six separate videos - , , , , and .
Original series (1959–1964)
Throughout the 1950s, Rod Serling had established himself as one of the hottest names in television, equally famous for his success in writing televised drama as he was for criticizing the medium's limitations. His most vocal complaints concerned the censorship frequently practiced by sponsors and networks. "I was not permitted to have my Senators discuss any current or pressing problem," he said of his 1957 production The Arena, intended to be an involving look into contemporary politics. "To talk of tariff was to align oneself with the Republicans; to talk of labor was to suggest control by the Democrats. To say a single thing germane to the current political scene was absolutely prohibited."
Twilight Zones writers frequently used science fiction as a vehicle for social comment; networks and sponsors who had infamously censored all potentially "inflammatory" material from the then predominant live dramas were ignorant of the methods developed by writers such as Ray Bradbury for dealing with important issues through seemingly innocuous fantasy. Frequent themes include nuclear war, mass hysteria, and McCarthyism, subjects that were strictly forbidden on more "serious" prime-time drama. Episodes such as "The Shelter" or "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" offered specific commentary on current events. Other stories, such as "The Masks" or "The Howling Man," operated around a central allegory, parable, or fable that reflected the characters' moral or philosophical choices.
Despite his esteem in the writing community, Serling found The Twilight Zone difficult to sell. Few critics felt that science fiction could transcend empty escapism and enter the realm of adult drama. In a September 22, 1959, interview with Serling, Mike Wallace asked a question illustrative of the times: "...[Y]ou're going to be, obviously, working so hard on The Twilight Zone that, in essence, for the time being and for the foreseeable future, you've given up on writing anything important for television, right?" While Serling's appearances on the show became one of its most distinctive features, with his clipped delivery still widely imitated today, he was reportedly nervous about it and had to be persuaded to appear on camera. Serling often steps into the middle of the action and the characters remain seemingly oblivious to him, but on one notable occasion they are aware he's there: In the episode "A World of His Own," a writer with the power to alter his reality objects to Serling's unflattering narration, and promptly erases Serling from the show.
First revival (1985–1989)
It was Serling's decision to sell his share of the series back to the network that eventually allowed for a Twilight Zone revival. As an in-house production, CBS stood to earn more money producing The Twilight Zone than it could by purchasing a new series produced by an outside company. Even so, the network was slow to consider a revival, shooting down offers from the original production team of Rod Serling and Buck Houghton and later from American filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola. Their hesitation stemmed from concerns familiar to the original series: Twilight Zone had never been the breakaway hit CBS wanted, why should they expect it to do better in a second run?
The answers to this question began to surface in the early 1980s, as a new generation of writers and directors emerged from the very teenagers who formed the core of Twilight Zone's original audience. First came The Twilight Zone Companion by Marc Scott Zicree, an in-depth look into the history of the series that won critical accolade, a 1983 nomination for the American Book Award and a place on best-seller lists across the nation. Also encouraging were the new numbers from Nielsen and the box office alike.
Despite lukewarm response to Twilight Zone: The Movie, John Landis, Steven Spielberg, Joe Dante, and George Miller's theatrical homage to the original series, CBS gave The New Twilight Zone a greenlight in 1984 under the supervision of Carla Singer, then Vice President of Drama Development. While the show didn't match the enduring popularity of the original, it did develop its own cult following and some episodes — including the love story "Her Pilgrim Soul" and J. Michael Straczynski's "Dream Me a Life" — were widely acclaimed. In a tribute to the original series, the teaser at the beginning of the show has a brief wavy glimpse of Rod Serling.
Rod Serling's Lost Classics (1994)
In the early 1990s, Richard Matheson and Carol Serling produced an outline for a two-hour made-for-TV movie which would feature Matheson adaptations of three yet-unfilmed Rod Serling short stories. Outlines for such a production were rejected by CBS until early 1994, when Serling's widow discovered a complete shooting script ("Where the Dead Are") authored by her late husband while rummaging through their garage. Serling showed the forgotten script to producers Michael O'Hara and Laurence Horowitz, who were significantly impressed by it. "I had a pile of scripts, which I usually procrastinate about reading. But I read this one right away and, after 30 pages, called my partner and said, "I love it," recalled O'Hara. "This is pure imagination, a period piece, literate—some might say wordy. If Rod Serling's name weren't on it, it wouldn't have a chance at getting made."
Eager to capitalize on Serling's celebrity status as a writer, CBS packaged "Where the Dead Are" with Matheson's adaptation of "The Theatre," debuting as a two-hour feature on the night of May 19, 1994, under the name Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics. The title represents a misnomer, as both stories were conceived long after Twilight Zone's cancellation. Written just months before Serling's death, "Where the Dead Are" starred Patrick Bergin as a 19th century doctor who stumbles upon a mad scientist's medical experiments with immortality. "The Theatre" starred Amy Irving and Gary Cole as a couple who visit a cineplex, only to discover that the feature presentation is their own lives. James Earl Jones provided opening and closing narrations.
Critical response was mixed. Gannett News Service described it as "taut and stylish, a reminder of what can happen when fine actors are given great words." USA Today was less impressed, even suggesting that Carol Serling "should have left these two unproduced mediocrities in the garage where she found them." Ultimately ratings proved insufficient to justify a proposed sequel featuring three Matheson-adapted scripts.
Second revival (2002–2003)
A second low-budget revival was attempted by UPN in 2002, with narration provided by Forest Whitaker and theme music by Jonathan Davis (of the rock group Korn). Broadcast in an hour format with two half-hour stories, it was cancelled after one season. The critical and audience reaction to this revival was generally not very good, although reruns continue to air in syndication, and have aired on MyNetwork TV since summer 2008.
Other media
Film
Twilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 feature film produced by Steven Spielberg. It starred Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, John Lithgow and Scatman Crothers.
The film remade three classic episodes of the original series and included one original story. John Landis directed the prologue and the first segment, Steven Spielberg directed the second, Joe Dante the third, and George Miller directed the final segment.
The Landis-directed episode is possibly best known for the helicopter accident that resulted in the deaths of Morrow and two child actors during filming.
Critically-acclaimed actor Leonardo DiCaprio is planning to make a new movie with Warner Bros., as The Twilight Zone is his favorite TV series. However, unlike the first film, which was an anthology feature, it will be a big-budget, SFX-laden continuous story possibly based on classic episodes of the series such as "The Eye of the Beholder", "To Serve Man" or any of the 92 scripts written by Rod Serling, to which Warner Bros. owns the rights.
Music
The original moody title theme for The Twilight Zone was composed by Bernard Herrmann.
The well known Twilight Zone theme that began in the second season was written by avant garde composer Marius Constant.
Other contributors to the music for the original television show are Jerry Goldsmith, Nathan Van Cleave, Leonard Rosenman, Fred Steiner, and Franz Waxman.
Marty Manning released an album inspired by the series in 1961.
The music for Twilight Zone: The Movie was composed by Jerry Goldsmith.
The theme for The New Twilight Zone television series was performed by The Grateful Dead.
Canadian rock band Rush recorded "The Twilight Zone" on their epic 1976 album 2112 and released it as a single.
Dutch rock band Golden Earring's 1982 U.S. hit "Twilight Zone" was inspired by the series. The first chords of the song's opening tune and the hypnotic bass-riff as well as the lyrics are modeled on the original tunes and texts of the series.
Many other musicians have written and performed music based on the Twilight Zone, including:
Average White Band, John Cale, David Dubowski ("To Serve Man"), Iron Maiden, Mekong Delta, Dr. John, John Fahey, Michael Hurley, Manhattan Transfer, Van Morrison, Raymond Scott, Sly & Robbie, 2 Unlimited, The Ventures, and John Williams.
Radio
In 2002, episodes of the original The Twilight Zone were adapted for radio, with Stacy Keach taking Serling's role as narrator.
Literature
Western Publishing published a Twilight Zone comic book, first under their Dell Comics imprint for 4 issues, one in 1961 and 3 further issues in 1962, with the first two published as part of their long running Four Color anthology series as issue numbers 1173 and 1288, and then two further one shots numbered separately in Dell's unique fashion as 01-860-207 and 12-860-210 (numbered as 01-860-210 on the inside) respectively. Western then restarted the series under their Gold Key imprint with a formal issue #1, which ran 92 issues from 1962 to 1979, with the final issue being published in 1982.
Several of the stories would be reprinted in their Mystery Comics Digest, which mentioned the title on the covers. A wide range of artists worked on the title, including Jack Sparling, Reed Crandall, Lee Elias, George Evans, Russ Jones, Joe Orlando, Jerry Robinson, Mike Sekowsky, Dan Spiegle, Frank Thorne and Alex Toth.
In 1990, NOW Comics published a new comic series with using the title logo from the 1985 revival. The publisher made great efforts to sign established sci-fi/fantasy writers, including Harlan Ellison, adapting his story "Crazy as a Soup Sandwich."
Scripts
Beginning in 2001, Gauntlet Press began publishing collections of original scripts from The Twilight Zone by Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, and Rod Serling. A ten-volume signed, limited edition series of all 92 of Rod Serling's scripts, authorized by his wife, Carol Serling, began yearly publication in 2004. Many of the scripts contain handwritten edits by Serling himself and differ in significant ways from the aired versions; most volumes contain an alternate version of a selected script. The script for "Monsters Are Due On Maple Street" has been published into 7th grade reading books in the form of a play.
Graphic Novels
In 2008, students at the Savanna College of Art and Design have partnered with Walker & Co. to create graphic novels based on eight episodes of the series through 2009. The first four (based on "Walking Distance", "The After Hours", "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street", and "The Odyssey of Flight 33") were released in December.
Theater
Live theater productions of the original episodes can be seen in Los Angeles and Seattle, where Theater Schmeater has continuously produced a late night series, "The Twilight Zone — Live" with permission of the Serling estate, since 1996.
In 2005 4 Letter Entertainment produced Will The Real Martian Please Stand Up? in Los Angeles.
Pinball game
In 1993, Midway released a widebody pinball game, Twilight Zone (based on the original TV series). After his Addams Family pinball became the best selling pinball machine of all time, Midway gave designer Pat Lawlor creative control over the game. The game uses Golden Earring's 1982 hit song "Twilight Zone" as its theme song. The game sold 15,235 units.
Video game
A text adventure based video game of The Twilight Zone for the PC and Amiga was also published in 1988 by Gigabit Systems Inc. The game has been panned by players for various problems.
Drama
In November 2008, Little Rock Christian Academy put on the first ever theatre adaptation of The Twilight Zone. The production contained the episodes "The After Hours", "The Shelter", "Five Character in Search of an Exit", "The Obsolete Man", "Midnight Sun", and "The Passersby".
Theme park attractions
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is a theme park attraction at the Disney's Hollywood Studios in Florida, Disney's California Adventure in California and Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris. Tokyo DisneySea, Japan also has a version, but it does not carry on the Twilight Zone theme, due to constraints in copyrights for the Oriental Land Company, owner and operator of the Tokyo parks.
Further reading
- Albarella, Tony, Ed, (2004).
As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts of Rod Serling, Vol. 1. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 188736871XAlbarella, Tony, Ed, (2005). As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts of Rod Serling, Vol. 2. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1887368760Albarella, Tony, Ed, (2006). As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts of Rod Serling, Vol. 3. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1887368825Albarella, Tony, Ed, (2007). As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts of Rod Serling, Vol. 4. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1887368926Albarella, Tony, Ed, (2008). As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts of Rod Serling, Vol. 5. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1934267007Anker, Roger, Ed. (2004). The Twilight Zone Scripts of Charles Beaumont, Vol. 1. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1887368736DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media. ISBN 978-1593931360Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. ISBN 978-0970331090Ramage, Andrew (2004). Forgotten Gems from the Twilight Zone vol.1. Albany: BearManor Media ISBN 1-59393-014-3Ramage, Andrew (2005). Forgotten Gems from the Twilight Zone Vol.2. Albany: BearManor Media ISBN 1-59393-030-5Sohl, Jerry (2005). The Twilight Zone Scripts of Jerry Sohl. Albany: Bearmanor Media ISBN 1-59393-010-0Stanyard, Stewart T. (2007). Dimensions Behind the Twilight Zone: A Backstage Tribute to Television's Groundbreaking Series. Ecw Press. ISBN 978-1550227444Wiater, Stanley, Ed. (2001). Richard Matheson's The Twilight Zone Scripts, Vol. 1. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1887368426Wiater, Stanley, Ed. (2002). Richard Matheson's The Twilight Zone Scripts, Vol. 2. Colorado Springs, CO: Gauntlet Press. ISBN 1887368523Zicree, Marc Scott (1982). The Twilight Zone Companion. First Edition, Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-01416-1. Second Edition (1992). Silman-James Press; ISBN 978-1879505094
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