The Twilight Zone
Genre	Science Fiction
Running time	30 min. (Seasons 1-3,5); 60 min. (Season 4)
Creator(s)	Rod Serling
Starring	Rod Serling (Host)
Country of origin	USA
Original network/channel	CBS
Original run	October 2, 1959 – June 19, 1964
No. of episodes	156

The Twilight Zone is a television series created by Rod Serling. This article traces the history of the show in its original broadcast form, 1959-1964. twilight zone logo (fair use) This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... Rodman Rod Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was a screenwriter, most famous for his science fiction TV series, The Twilight Zone. ... Rodman Rod Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was a screenwriter, most famous for his science fiction TV series, The Twilight Zone. ... CBS (an acronym for Columbia Broadcasting System, the former legal name of the network) is one of the largest television networks, and formerly one of the largest radio networks, in the United States. ... October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... June 19 is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 195 days remaining. ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... This is a list of The Twilight Zone episodes. ... Rodman Rod Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was a screenwriter, most famous for his science fiction TV series, The Twilight Zone. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ...

Series history

Season 1 (1959-1960)

The Twilight Zone premiered the night of October 2, 1959 to rave reviews. "...Twilight Zone is about the only show on the air that I actually look forward to seeing. It's the one series that I will let interfere with other plans," said Terry Turner for the Chicago Daily News. Others agreed, the Daily Variety ranking it "with the best that has ever been accomplished in half-hour filmed television," the New York Herald Tribune finding it to be "certainly the best and most original anthology series of the year." October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Chicago Daily News was an afternoon newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois which published between 1876 and 1978. ... Variety is a daily magazine for the entertainment industry. ... The New York Herald Tribune was a newspaper created in 1922 when the New York Tribune acquired the New York Herald. ...

Burgess Meredith stars in Time Enough at Last.

Even as the show proved popular to television's critics it struggled to find a receptive audience of television viewers. CBS was banking on a rating of at least 21 or 22, but its initial numbers were much worse. The series' future was jeopardized when its third episode, Mr. Denton on Doomsday earned an abysmal 16.3 rating. The show attracted a large enough audience to survive a brief hiatus in November, during which it finally surpassed its competition on ABC and NBC and convinced its sponsors (General Foods and the Kimberly-Clark Corporation) to stay on until the end of the season. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (469x601, 40 KB) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (469x601, 40 KB) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Meredith in 1972s Probe Oliver Burgess Meredith (November 16, 1907 – September 9, 1997) was an American actor. ... “Time Enough at Last” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... When TV viewers or entertainment professionals in the United States mention ratings they are generally referring to Nielsen Ratings, a system developed by the New York City-based firm Nielsen Media Research to determine which shows television viewers watch at what times. ... “Mr. ... Look up November in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... NBC, the National Broadcasting Company, is an American television and radio network based in New York Citys Rockefeller Center. ... General Foods Corporation was a company established under that name by Marjorie Merriweather Post in 1929. ... Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE: KMB) is an American corporation that produces mostly paper-based consumer products. ...

With one exception (The Chaser), the first season featured only scripts written by Rod Serling, Charles Beaumont and Richard Matheson, a team that was eventually responsible for 127 of the show's 156 episodes. Many of the first season's proved to be among the series' most celebrated, including Time Enough at Last, Walking Distance and The After Hours. The first season won Serling his unprecedented fourth Emmy for dramatic writing, a Producers Guild Award for Serling's creative partner Buck Houghton and the Hugo Award for best dramatic presentation. The Chaser is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Rodman Rod Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was a screenwriter, most famous for his science fiction TV series, The Twilight Zone. ... Charles Beaumont (January 2, 1929 - February 21, 1967) was a prolific U.S. author of fantasy and science fiction short stories who frequently wrote for The Twilight Zone TV series and also scripts for such films as The Masque of the Red Death. ... Richard Matheson Richard Matheson (born February 20, 1926) is an American author and screenwriter, typically of fantasy, horror or science fiction. ... “Time Enough at Last” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... “Walking Distance” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... The After Hours is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... An Emmy Award. ... Buck Houghton was a television producer for The Twilight Zone, as well as many other television programs from the 1950s through the 1990s. ... The Hugo Award is given every year for the best science fiction or fantasy stories of the previous year, and for related areas in fandom, art and dramatic presentation. ...

Season 2 (1960-1961)

The second season premiered on September 30, 1960 with King Nine Will Not Return, Serling's fresh take on the pilot episode Where Is Everybody?. The familiarity of this first story stood in stark contrast to the novelty of the show's new packaging: Bernard Herrman's original theme had been replaced by Marius Contant's guitar-and-bongo riff, the Daliesque landscapes of the original opening were replaced by an even more surreal introduction inspired by the new images in Serling's narration ("That's the signpost up ahead"), and Serling himself stepped in front of the cameras for the first time to present his opening narration surrounded by the scenery he was describing. September 30 is the 273rd day of the year (274th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 92 days remaining. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... “King Nine Will Not Return” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Where Is Everybody? could also refer to a Nine Inch Nails song on the album The Fragile. ... Bernard Herrmann (June 29, 1911–December 24, 1975) was a composer, best known for his film scores, particularly for Alfred Hitchcock-directed films. ... Salvador Dalí as photographed in 1934 by Carl Van Vechten Salvador Felip Jacint Dalí Domènech (Catalan) Salvador Felipe Jacinto Dalí Domènech (Spanish), (May 11, 1904 – January 23, 1989) was one of the most important painters of the 20th century. ...

William Shatner and Patricia Breslin in Nick of Time

A new sponsor, Colgate-Palmolive, replaced last year's Kimberly-Clark Corporation and a new network executive, James Aubrey took over CBS. "Jim Aubrey was a very, very difficult problem for the show," said associate producer Del Reisman. "He was particularly tough on The Twilight Zone because for its time it was a particularly costly half hour show.... Aubrey was real tough on [the show's budget] even if it was a small number of dollars." Image File history File links Zonenicktime. ... William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor, author and musical performer who gained fame for his starring role as Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise in the television show Star Trek from 1966 to 1969 and in seven of the subsequent movies. ... Nick of Time is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Colgate-Palmolive Company NYSE: CL is a multinational corporation in the business of the provision of products such as soaps, detergents, and oral hygiene products such as toothpaste and toothbrushes. ... Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE: KMB) is an American corporation that produces mostly paper-based consumer products. ... James T. Aubrey, circa 1959. ...

In a push to keep Twilight Zone's expenses down, Aubrey ordered that seven fewer episodes be produced than last season... and that six of those being produced would be shot on videotape rather than film. Bottom view of VHS videotape cassette with magnetic tape exposed Videotape is a means of recording television pictures and accompanying sound onto magnetic tape as opposed to movie film. ...

The second season saw the production of many of the series' most celebrated episodes, including The Eye of the Beholder and The Invaders. The trio of Serling, Matheson and Beaumont began to admit new writers, and this season saw the television debut of George Clayton Johnson. Emmys were won by Serling (his fifth) for dramatic writing and by director of photography George T. Clemens and, for the second year in a row, the series won the Hugo Award for best dramatic presentation. It also earned the Unity Award for "Outstanding Contributions to Better Race Relations" and an Emmy nomination for "Outstanding Program Achievement in the Field of Drama". “Eye of the Beholder” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... “The Invaders” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... George Clayton Johnson is a science fiction writer most famous for his novel and screenplay Logans Run but also known for his work in television, writing screenplays for such noted series as The Twilight Zone and Star Trek. ... The Hugo Award is given every year for the best science fiction or fantasy stories of the previous year, and for related areas in fandom, art and dramatic presentation. ...

Season 3 (1961-1962)

Susan Cummings and Richard Kiel in To Serve Man

In his third year as executive producer, host, narrator and primary writer for The Twilight Zone, Serling was beginning to feel exhausted. "I've never felt quite so drained of ideas as I do at this moment," said the 37-year old playwright at the time. In the first two seasons he contributed 48 scripts, or 73% of the show's total output. He contributed only 56% of the third season's. "The show now seems to be feeding off itself," said a Variety reviewer who couldn't understand Serling's endless and exhaustive treatment of themes, "Twilight Zone seems to be running dry of inspiration." Image File history File links Toserveman. ... For the heiress convicted of killing her boyfriend, see Susan Cummings Susan Cummings is an American actress of the 1950s and 1960s. ... Richard Kiel as Jaws from two James Bond movies, showing the characters eponymous metal teeth. ... Actors Richard Kiel and Lloyd Bochner in the Twilight Zone episode To Serve Man “To Serve Man” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Variety (linguistics) is a concept that includes for instance dialects, standard language and jargon. ...

Despite his avowed weariness Serling again managed to produce several teleplays that are widely regarded as classics, including It's a Good Life, To Serve Man and Five Characters in Search of an Exit. Scripts by Montgomery Pittman and Earl Hamner Jr. supplemented Matheson and Beaumont's output, and George Clayton Johnson submitted three teleplays that examined complex themes. The episode I Sing the Body Electric could boast: "Written by Ray Bradbury". “It’s a Good Life” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Actors Richard Kiel and Lloyd Bochner in the Twilight Zone episode To Serve Man “To Serve Man” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... “Five Characters in Search of an Exit” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Earl Henry Hamner Jr. ... George Clayton Johnson is a science fiction writer most famous for his novel and screenplay Logans Run but also known for his work in television, writing screenplays for such noted series as The Twilight Zone and Star Trek. ... “I Sing the Body Electric” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Ray Bradbury in 1945. ...

The Twilight Zone received two Emmy nominations (for cinematography and art design), but was awarded neither. It agan received the Hugo Award for "Best Dramatic Presentation", making it the only three-time recipient. An Emmy Award. ... The Hugo Award is given every year for the best science fiction or fantasy stories of the previous year, and for related areas in fandom, art and dramatic presentation. ...

In Spring, 1961Twilight Zone was late in finding a sponsor for its fourth season and was replaced on CBS' fall schedule with a new hour-long situation comedy called Fair Exchange. In the confusion that followed this apparent cancellation, producer Buck Houghton left the series for a position at Four Star Productions. Serling meanwhile accepted a teaching post at Antioch College, his alma mater. Though the series was eventually renewed, Serling's contribution as executive producer decreased in its final seasons. 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1961 calendar). ... Buck Houghton was a television producer for The Twilight Zone, as well as many other television programs from the 1950s through the 1990s. ... Antioch College is a private, independent liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio. ...

Season 4 (1963)

In 1963 CBS contracted Twilight Zone (now sans the The) as a mid-season replacement for Fair Exchange, the very show that replaced it in the fall schedule. In order to fill Fair Exchange’s timeslot each episode had to be expanded to an hour-long, an idea which did not sit well with the production crew. “Ours is the perfect half-hour show,” said Serling just a few years earlier. “If we went to an hour, we’d have to fleshen our stories, soap opera style. Viewers could watch fifteen minutes without knowing whether they were in a Twilight Zone or Desilu Playhouse”. Template:C20YearInnTopic 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ... The first TIME cover devoted to soap operas: Dated January 12, 1976, Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes of Days of Our Lives are featured with the headline Soap Operas: Sex and suffering in the afternoon. A soap opera is an ongoing, episodic work of fiction, usually broadcast on television...

Herbert Hirschman was hired to replace long-time producer Buck Houghton. One of Hirschman's first decisions was to direct a new opening sequence, this one illustrating a door, eye, window and other objects suspended Magritte-like in space. His second task was to find and produce quality scripts. Buck Houghton was a television producer for The Twilight Zone, as well as many other television programs from the 1950s through the 1990s. ... This is not a pipe. ...

For this Twilight Zone once again turned to the reliable trio of Serling, Matheson and Beaumont…. Serling’s input was limited this season: he still provided the lion’s-share of the teleplays, but as executive producer he was virtually absent and as host his artful narrations had to be shot back-to-back against a grey background during his infrequent trips to Los Angeles. Beaumont’s input diminished significantly. Additional scripts were commissioned from Earl Hamner Jr. and Reginald Rose to fill in the gap. This article is about the largest city in California. ... Earl Henry Hamner Jr. ... Reginald Rose (December 10, 1920-April 19, 2002) was an American film and television writer most famous for his work in the early years of television drama. ...

With five episodes left in the season, Hirschman received an offer to work on a new NBC series called Espionage and was replaced by Bert Granet, who had previously produced “The Time Element”. Among Granet’s first assignments was On Thursday We leave For Home, the most celebrated entry of the season. There was an Emmy nomination for cinematography, and a nomination for the Hugo Award. The fall schedule returned to a half-hour format. NBC, the National Broadcasting Company, is an American television and radio network based in New York Citys Rockefeller Center. ... “On Thursday We Leave for Home” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... An Emmy Award. ... The Hugo Award is given every year for the best science fiction or fantasy stories of the previous year, and for related areas in fandom, art and dramatic presentation. ...

Season 5 (1963-1964)

Serling later claimed, “I was writing so much the I felt I had begun to lose my perspective on what was good and what was bad.” At the end of this season Serling had contributed 92 scripts in five years.

Beaumont was now out of the picture entirely, contributing scripts only through the ghostwriters Jerry Sohl and John Tomerlin, and after producing only thirteen episodes Bert Granet left and was replaced by William Froug, with whom Serling had worked on Playhouse 90. Gerald Allan Sohl Sr. ... William Froug is an American television writer and producer. ... Playhouse 90 is the name of a ninety-minute long dramatic television series that ran on CBS from 1956 to 1961. ...

William Shatner stars in Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.

Froug made a number of unpopular decisions, first by shelving several scripts purchased under Granet’s term (including Matheson’s “The Doll”, which was nominated for a Writer’s Guild Award when finally produced in 1986 on Amazing Stories). Secondly, Froug alienated George Clayton Johnson when he hired Richard deRoy to completely rewrite Johnson’s teleplay “Tick of Time”, eventually produced as Ninety Years Without Slumbering. “It makes the plot trivial,” complained Johnson of the resulting script. “Tick of Time” became Johnson’s final submission to The Twilight Zone. Image File history File links This is a screenshot of a copyrighted website, video game graphic, computer program graphic, television broadcast, or film. ... Image File history File links This is a screenshot of a copyrighted website, video game graphic, computer program graphic, television broadcast, or film. ... William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor, author and musical performer who gained fame for his starring role as Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Enterprise in the television show Star Trek from 1966 to 1969 and in seven of the subsequent movies. ... “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Amazing Stories was the name of an American television show put together by director Stephen Spielberg from 1985 to 1987. ... George Clayton Johnson is a science fiction writer most famous for his novel and screenplay Logans Run but also known for his work in television, writing screenplays for such noted series as The Twilight Zone and Star Trek. ... “Nintey Years Without Slumbering” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ...

Even under these conditions, several episodes were produced that are generally remembered, including Nightmare at 20,000 Feet, A Kind of a Stopwatch and Living Doll. This season received no Emmy recognition. Episode number 142, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge—a French-produced short film—received the Academy Award for best short film, making Twilight Zone the only television show in history to win both an Emmy and an Oscar. “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... “A Kind of a Stopwatch” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... “Living Doll” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... An Emmy Award. ... “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ... Academy Awards The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent film awards in the United States and most watched awards ceremony in the world. ...

In late January, 1964 CBS announced Twilight Zone's cancellation. "For one reason or other, Jim Aubrey decided he was sick of the show," explained Froug. "He claimed that it was too far over budget and that the ratings weren't good enough." Serling countered by telling the Daily Variety that he had "decided to cancel the network." ABC showed interest in bringing the show over to their network under the new name Witches, Warlocks and Werewolves, but Serling wasn't impressed. "[The network executives seem] to prefer weekly ghouls, and we have what appears to be a considerable difference in opinion. I don't mind my show being supernatural, but I don't want to be booked into a graveyard every week." Shortly afterwards Serling sold his 40% share in The Twilight Zone to CBS, leaving the show and indeed all projects involving the supernatural behind him until 1969 and the debut of Night Gallery. January is the first month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... Variety is a daily magazine for the entertainment industry. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... Night Gallery was Rod Serlings follow-up to The Twilight Zone, airing on NBC from 1970 to 1973. ...

Trivia

• Rod Serling was not the original choice for narrator. Orson Welles was considered but the producers felt he asked for too much money. The original version of the Twilight Zone pilot, Where Is Everybody? featured Westbrook Van Voorhis as the narrator.

• During the first season, Serling's narrations were off-camera voiceovers—he only appeared on-camera at the end of each show to introduce previews of the next episode.

Orson Welles on the set of Citizen Kane. ... Where Is Everybody? could also refer to a Nine Inch Nails song on the album The Fragile. ...

See also

• The Twilight Zone
• List of The Twilight Zone episodes
• Night Gallery
• The Outer Limits
• The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney theme parks

The Twilight Zone original opening The Twilight Zone is an anthology series created (and often written) by its narrator and host Rod Serling. ... This is a list of The Twilight Zone episodes. ... Night Gallery was Rod Serlings follow-up to The Twilight Zone, airing on NBC from 1970 to 1973. ... Opening titles — 1960s The Outer Limits is a television series from the United States. ... The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, more commonly known as Tower of Terror, is a simulated freefall thrill ride at Disney-MGM Studios in Lake Buena Vista, Florida and at Disneys California Adventure Park in Anaheim, California. ...

References

• Sander, Gordon F. Serling: The Rise And Twilight of Television's Last Angry Man. New York: Penguin Books, 1992.
• Zicree, Marc Scott. The Twilight Zone Companion. Sillman-James Press, 1982 (second edition).

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

The Twilight Zone

• Twilight Zone Cafe A Twilight Zone Message Board