Universal Monster Army

I didnt see anything like this posted so I thought it might be fun. I'm a huge fan of the show as I'm sure many of us here are, so this should be fun!

I couldnt just pick 1, had to go with 3, and it couldve easily been 20! But here are my top 3!

The Howling Man: I think I this was the 1st TZ that I actually payed attention to and  from the horrible howling, to seeing what was released on the world...that story is one of the 1st that opened the gates for me into that genre of entertainment.

The New Exhibit: Whats creepier then a museum full of wax sculptures of serial killers and murderers? Maniquins used to creep me out as a kid..this story is just a good fun scare!!

Night Of The Meek: I LOVE this one! Its certainly the most different TZ in my opinion. The Christmas spirit has crossed over into the Twilight Zone!!...Art Carney blows me away everytime I watch this one, I loved that it had a "happy ending" and this time the "twist" was a pleasant one. As a rule, I usually watch this one the day after Halloween with a glass of wine to both cap off the Halloween season and as a nod to upcomming holliday season...........

Look foward to hearing your favirotes and why!

Hey Lagoon!
I like The Howling Man, also.  I like the Talky Tina episode and all the Jack Klugman ones.  Of course The Cornfield one and all the other Bill Mumy episodes.  The one with the Grandfather's clockI can't remember all the ones I like I'll have to add them as I think of them.

You nailed it for me!  THE HOWLING MAN, I love.  THE NEW EXHIBIT was a major "scare" influence on me as a kid.  It freaked me out for years! 

To Serve Man   was pretty cool

I was NOT allowed to watch TZ when I was a kid, but one night I was able to sneak a peek - it was "The Invaders" and scared the crap out of me I doubt I slept for a week!

The Howling Man had John Carradine as the head of the Order. Classic.
Actually, any episode written by Richard Matheson is going to be classic.


Mike C.

Great thread!

The first ones that come to mind:

- Burgess Meredith as the only surving person who breaks his glasses at the end amid thousands of books. One ending that I still think about.

- Terror at 20,00 feet? William Shatner and the troll.

I was also a fan of the movie as well. Great show, love watching them.

That's easy.. Nightmare at 20,000 feet. That scared the heck out of me as a kid.

Quote from: Tom Smith Monsternut on April 26, 2009, 10:16:37 PM
That's easy.. Nightmare at 20,000 feet. That scared the heck out of me as a kid.

Written by Richard Matheson!  ;D  Excellent tale.

I also love It's A Good Life, based on Jerome Bixby's story. Wish it into the cornfield, Anthony...

Mike C.

 The one with the Talking Tina doll ("I'm gonna kill you"), and the one where Burgess Meredith is the last man with time to read, untill his glasses break.

Dennis Weaver in Shadow Play
To Serve Man
Third From The Sun
The Howling Man...

Oh, who's Hellish idea was this? I love most of them. Is that so wrong?
Dang you to heck, BlackLagoon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On Thursday We Leave For Home.

**SPOILER ALERT**

James Whitmore is the beloved leader of a small colony in the outer solar system but when Earth's authorities arrive (in the C57D, if I recall) to take them all home, he can't handle the promise of obscurity, to the point he actually maroons himself alone, on purpose. Watching him watch the ship depart with all his friends on board, knowing that absolutely no-one will ever, ever return to rescue him from his solitude, haunts me still.

"Kick The Can" and "I Sing The Body Electric"

Quoteit was "The Invaders" and scared the crap out of me

(just to clarify, I meant I happened upon "The Invaders" episode of TZ - Agnes Moorhead vs tiny spacemen not the TV show called The Invaders - pk)

I tried to come up with one favorite, but just couldn't do it.  Besides the two I mentioned above, I really like THE HUNT, JESS-BELLE & THE LAST RITES OF JEFF MYRTLEBANK.

I love all of those!
I forgot about Jeff Myrtlebank and I Sing the Body Electric!  I like the one where these 2 kids have parents that are on the verge of divorce and they swim in their pool and find a place where tis lady "Aunt T" lives.  Cool one.  Just keep naming them, I like them!

Quote from: ChattyLMS on April 27, 2009, 09:54:01 AM
I like the one where these 2 kids have parents that are on the verge of divorce and they swim in their pool and find a place where tis lady "Aunt T" lives. 

The girl in that is Mary Badam, from "To Kill a Mockingbird". Her voice in the scenes with here parents is dubbed by June Foray.

The great thing about the show is that I am struggling to remember a poor one.....

As already mentioned, "Time Enough at Last" with  Burgess Meredith.

(http://inlinethumb48.webshots.com/43247/2387343150100752951S425x425Q85.jpg)

The Fever, (One with the Slot Machine) NIght of the Meek, Invaders, Bewitching Pool, (with the two Kids that Swim to  Aunt T's). The Hunt, (with the Old man and hunting dog  That Drowned) Walking Distance (about the Toy designer that goes back to his Childhood). Man Sorry to go on this long, Hard to pick just one.  :)

I have several favorite from The TWILIGHT ZONE.  My #1 fav is "Time Enough At Last".  "To Serve Man" is right up there.  There were so many fine episodes in this series that watching them again is like finding an old friend.  David

The Talking Tina one. Don't know the title but it's about a guy who wants to go back to a simpler time. Next stop is Willougby!
I'm surprised no one mentioned one I consider a classic. The Monsters on Maple St.

Quote from: Wicked Lester on April 28, 2009, 06:25:14 AM
Don't know the title but it's about a guy who wants to go back to a simpler time. Next stop is Willougby!
I'm surprised no one mentioned one I consider a classic.

"A Stop At Willoghby" (Robert Parish, written by Rod Serling)--Your VERY right in considering this one a classic, if I didnt mention 3 favirotes already I wouldve have mentioned this (and now Im doing it anyway!). This is a great one...I feel bad for this guy everytime, and cant help but smile when he's in Willooghby.....gets me everytime!

Quote"A Stop At Willoghby" (Robert Parish, written by Rod Serling)--Your VERY right in considering this one a classic, if I didnt mention 3 favirotes already I wouldve have mentioned this (and now Im doing it anyway!). This is a great one...I feel bad for this guy everytime, and cant help but smile when he's in Willooghby.....gets me everytime!

Yes, and it turns out that his dead body is picked up by Willowbee funeral parlor.  That poor guy going back to his nagging wife everyday.  I would have been in Willowbee, too!
Bewitching Pool - They got June Foray to do the voice over because her accent was so Southern that it was difficult to understand her. 

Quote from: ChattyLMS on April 28, 2009, 09:16:00 AM
!
Bewitching Pool - They got June Foray to do the voice over because her accent was so Southern that it was difficult to understand her. 

That's a big problem in that episode- June Foray's voice is too recognizable, and because of that, distracting.

It's impossible for me to hear her and not think of The Squirrel.

Quote from: ChattyLMS on April 28, 2009, 09:16:00 AM
They got June Foray to do the voice over because her accent was so Southern that it was difficult to understand her. 

People have been saying that for years, but I don't believe it. Her voice is dubbed only in the poolside scenes with her parents. You don't have any problem understanding here in the scenes with Aunt T., etc. The pool scenes were exteriors, which almost always have looped dialog and the other 3 actors in the pool scenes dubbed their own dialog, so I think that Mary B. just wasn't available at the time of the looping sessions and they got June to do it.

QuoteIt's impossible for me to hear her and not think of The Squirrel

Sorry Monster Bob!  Not Rocket J. Squirrel and her other cartoon credits i think of my favorite girl when I hear her voice  (Get ready because I'm gonna go way overboard on this):
(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g159/chattylms/ChattyCandiCloseup2.jpg)

(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g159/chattylms/777b0205.jpg)

(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g159/chattylms/AAChatty1.jpg)

(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g159/chattylms/ChattyCommunion.jpg)

(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g159/chattylms/BeatnikChatty.jpg)

And don't forget the custom Chatty that my son Neil made for a friend that was a Kiss fan
(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g159/chattylms/ChattyGeneSimmons.jpg)

Nearly every Twilight Zone episode is a classic. My top favorites include--

Eye of the Beholder
Time Enough At Last
The Monsters are Due on Maple Street

and

Occurance at Owl Creek Bridge

... and, oh yeah, WILL THE REAL MARTIAN PLEASE STAND UP?  That third eye kinda freaked me out when I first saw it.

WOW!! I'm amazed at how many people know "Howling Man"!! whenever I try to explain that episode to someone I get a dazed look...yet that has GOT to be all time best "leave you haunted" episode- especially for its religious connotation - cuts to the very core! And just now realizing it was John Carradine - I can finally sleep at tonight -- been wanting to know forever -- I thought it was Peter O'Toole for the longest time but realized it wasn't.

Another all time FAVORITE is "The Printer's Devil" with Burgess Meredith as the devil, Robert Sterling  and Pat Crowley -- creepy!!! the whole concept is unique, and triggers my curiosity to date (headline manufacturing...) and seeing that old Linotype in action and on film is like nothing ever seen before or since - yet another clever TZ "machine" as a main character! I love the crooked cigar & self-lighting schtick, too! a little magic kicked in to drive the point home - that htis was no ordinary human. I still watch my old vhs tape that I recorded over 15 years ago - probably when the SciFi channel started the whole NYEve marathon. I still can't think of a better way to spend New Year's!!

...funny how we are continually ed in portrayals of "the devil" - even in our era of pop-culture

This is another great episode of my favorite television show of all time!

This episode its my all time favorite:
Twilight Zone Episode "Eye Of The Beholder" Clip (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkzwLvVFRSE#)

One of my favorites has been Little Girl Lost.  The parents of a little girl wake up to the girls crying and cannot find her in the house.  After calling a scientist friend, they find the girl have fallen trhough a portal to another dimension.  Also, I don't remember the title but I think it's called The Grave, but Lee Marvin stars as a cowboy coming to a town that is the home of a killer.  The killer is dead but vowed to kill Marvin's character even after death and the other patrons of the saloon bet Marvin's character that he won't go to the grave and stick a knife in it.

Death Ship with Jack Klugman ...  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_Ship_(The_Twilight_Zone) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_Ship_(The_Twilight_Zone))

I remember Little Girl Lost and it really scared me the first time that I saw it.

The TZ episode that was pretty spooky to me was one where a young boy would communicate with his deceased Grandmother via his toy phone.

Quote from: Zackuth on January 06, 2013, 09:28:46 AM
One of my favorites has been Little Girl Lost.

I just watched that episode the other day on Netflix. It's a good one.

I just now finished watching the "After Hours" episode. It's the one where mannequins come to life in a department store. I highly recommend watching it.

Quote from: Paladin on January 06, 2013, 11:03:19 AM
The TZ episode that was pretty spooky to me was one where a young boy would communicate with his deceased Grandmother via his toy phone.

That one is called Long Distance Call. Another great one to be sure.

Long Distance Call. Yes - during the shows final scene there is a downed phone line lying on his Grandmother's grave haven gone down after a storm. Pretty scary.

I would declare my favorite Twilight Zone episode of all time is "A Stop at Willoughby."  It makes me daydream of somehow going there one day myself.

The Mike Wallace Interview featuring Rod Serling (1959)

The Mike Wallace Interview featuring Rod Serling (1959) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpKkHCVbSyw#)

I like the one where Agnes Moorehead is hounded by tiny aliens who turn out to be us!

I'm very surprised no one mentioned "What You Need", "The Masks" and "Will The Real Martian Please Stand Up" - three of my all-time favorites!

The Masks was excellent. Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up is another good one. - Nice call, Woolfman

The Invaders is the show with Agnes Moorehead as the lone victim of the alien robot attack on her farm. No dialogue at all in this episode.

The Lonely, The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street, Changing of the Guard & To Serve Man are also pretty good

A few have mentioned this one; It isn't scary, it doesn't trip your brain, it isn't suspenseful but it's just a great simple story of a man and his dog!

The Hunt

Also The Invaders as always been a fav...among many others!

night of the Meek

eye of the beholder

to serve man....oh hell all of them.

Part of the beauty of the Twilight Zone is how Rod Serling (a genius) was able to pack so much critically acclaimed top-notch content into just 25 minutes. Not many movies can deliver as much as Serling did in such a short time slot. Serling was always able to get to the point and get out without losing the viewer's attention span. Very refreshing to this day.

Recommended reading if your a Twilight Zone fan:   The Twilight Zone Companion by Marc Scott Zecree. I believe it was originally published during the 1980's but I am certain that it can be found either at a book sale or the local library. It's well worth looking into.

It's a bit of a reference book but the author critiques almost every episode.

NO mention of "Death's Head Re-visited"?

"Escape Clause"?

"What you Need"?

and a few others....


Bizarro Jeff

Quote from: Paladin on January 07, 2013, 02:04:55 PM
Recommended reading if your a Twilight Zone fan:   The Twilight Zone Companion by Marc Scott Zecree. I believe it was originally published during the 1980's but I am certain that it can be found either at a book sale or the local library. It's well worth looking into.

It's a bit of a reference book but the author critiques almost every episode.

The Twilight Zone Companion was published in 1984.  Marc Scott Zicree published a second edition in 1992, which is still in print and sells for about $15.  Hopefully he corrected the errors in ed.1.

A more encyclopedic treatment is The Twilight Zone: Unlocking The Door to a Television Series By Martin Grahams (2008) Unfortunately it is out of print and used copies of the 800+ page trade paperback go for upwards of $150!

Fester, that's a tad pricey but it sounds like an excellent book and worth the while.
I may see if my local library has a copy in their network.

I wasn't aware that Zecree's book was so error- filled...

Just watched "Sixteen Millimeter Shrine."  A great episode about an old aging starlet from the 1930s who refuses to let go of her glory days. Sits in a room watching old movies day in and day out. Pretending the modern world doesn't exist. Imagine that. :)


Sent from my iPad Mini using Tapatalk.

Any of them with Burgess Meredith, they were all good!

Quote from: jimm on January 08, 2013, 09:16:15 PM
Any of them with Burgess Meredith, they were all good!

Double agreed!

Night of the Meek ... if not my favorite, it is one of my favorites.  There are so many to choose from!

Man so hard to just pick 3! When I was 12 TZ started airing every evening at 7pm and 11pm on a local UHF and I loved it! The 3 that come to mind first are Nightmare at 20,000 ft with the one and only William Shatner seeing the gremlin on the plane wing, The Invaders with Agnes Moorhead-that one creeped me out, and To Serve Man . We actually read the original story of To Serve Man in english and the aliens are piglike, but ted "Lurch" Cassidy was much creepier!

so many awesome to choose- a few that I list are cool

The Shelter - neighbors encroach on a fellow friend's bomb shelter following news of a soon to come nuclear weapon/ A cool story which exposes people's true colors in a dangerous situation

Night of the Meek - An awesome story about an alcoholic hobo who finds Santa Claus's toy bag, I watch It all the time, so good

Printer's Devil - If I were able to construct a list, It'd most likely be in the top 5/ A man deals with the devil in order to acquire a successful newspaper business/ Burgess Meredith IS so cool as the devil

other cool episodes I can list would be the story with william shatner in the diner, Martin Landau trapped in a hotel while two people try to assassinate him, I'm the night color me black, Night call [where the woman received telephone calls late at night from beyond the grave always spooked me], The howling man, and tons of other awesome episodes as well

When in my younger days I always liked the ones with a "monster" in the episode and as I got older I learned to appreciate ones like "The Shelter".
Now being in my 50's, the ones with some political or human nature issues are more profound to me like "The Obsolete Man" with Burgess Meredith.
Now that one is truly frightening.  Way ahead of it's time as many of the episodes are.

The Twilight Zone is one of the rare TV series where any episode that you view is a good one.
Can't really say that for very many shows in history.

Has anyone mentioned Mr. Dingle, the Strong, The Obsolete Man, The Howling Man, Nick of Time, The Mirror, A Quality of Mercy or Deaths- Head Revisited??

Here's my top 15 in no particular order:

The Lonely (A convict on an uninhabited asteroid is given a female robot for companionship)
Time Enough at Last
And When the Sky Was Opened
I Shot an Arrow into the Air
The Howling Man
The Eye of the Beholder
Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?
Still Valley
To Serve Man
The Little People
Death Ship
Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
The 7th Is Made Up of Phantoms
The Masks
The Brain Center at Whipple's
Third from the Sun
(http://www.freesmileys.org/emoticons/emoticon-monster-003.gif) (http://www.freesmileys.org/emoticons.php)

The Howling Man
Living Doll
To Serve Man
The Grave

And many, many others.

...or "Five Characters in Search of an Exit," one of the most bizarre and disturbing things I've ever seen!

Quote from: neonnoodle on January 25, 2013, 12:01:33 PM
...or "Five Characters in Search of an Exit," one of the most bizarre and disturbing things I've ever seen!

Agreed,very creepy. :o

I SING THE BODY ELECTRIC (because I love "Miss Jo"  aka Josephine Hutchinson)
THE VOYAGE OF THE LADY ANNE  (because I love Gladys Cooper)
THE LOST FLIGHT (hope I have the right title), about the flier from WWI, who lands his plane in the future...

"E"

This is a TZ episode I can relate to in terms of getting lost in the past days of hollywood. Definitely worth a look.

The Twilight Zone Sixteen Millimeter Shrine (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM18RgRboo4#)

In no particular order:

The New Exhibit
The Hitch-Hiker
A Nice Place to Visit
Living Doll
The Jungle
The Grave
The Monsters are Due on Maple Street
Twenty Two
The Masks
The 7th is Made up of Phantoms
Long Distance Call
A Most Unusual Camera
Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?
Spur of the Moment

If I had to pick one favorite, it would be; The New Exhibit

If I had to pick one moment from an episode that scared me the most, that would be the evil woman dressed in all black when she first appeared at the top of the hill on horseback in; Spur of the Moment. It still gives me the creeps when I watch it. Runner-up would be the woman in Twenty Two that says: "We've got room for one more, honey". She freaked me out as well.

Great thread btw.

JP

Quote from: Wolfman on April 17, 2013, 12:49:36 PM
In no particular order:

The New Exhibit
The Hitch-Hiker
A Nice Place to Visit
Living Doll
The Jungle
The Grave
The Monsters are Due on Maple Street
Twenty Two
The Masks
The 7th is Made up of Phantoms
Long Distance Call
A Most Unusual Camera
Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?
Spur of the Moment

If I had to pick one favorite, it would be; The New Exhibit

If I had to pick one moment from an episode that scared me the most, that would be the evil woman dressed in all black when she first appeared at the top of the hill on horseback in; Spur of the Moment. It still gives me the creeps when I watch it. Runner-up would be the woman in Twenty Two that says: "We've got room for one more, honey". She freaked me out as well.

Great thread btw.

JP

I took the easy way out by not listing them in order. Without any further ado, here is my top 10 in order.

1) The New Exhibit
2) Living Doll
3) A Nice Place to Visit
4) The Hitch-Hiker
5) The Grave
6) The Masks
7) The Jungle
8) The Monsters are Due on Maple Street
9) Twenty Two
10) The 7th is Made Up of Phantoms

JP

Because of this thread, I think I'm going to have my own mini-marathon of TZ this weekend. Screw waiting for New Years. lol

JP

The Original Twilight Zone series is probably my favorite anthology TV show, but does anyone enjoy the 80's revival? I enjoy it quite a bit and consider it pretty underrated, not as good as the original, but still good.

SyFy Channel used to air TZ marathons. I don't remember if they still do this though. They seem to have brought in an awful lot of their own programming now..

I remember when Sc-Fi was really cool. They use to play all sorts of cool stuff.

What a great thread!  Choosing a fav. TZ is like choosing your fav. child.  I've watched so many marathons...and have had the entire series on DVD for years now....they just never get old.  I don't recall all of the names of the episodes, but "To Serve Man" will always be near the top of the list...along with Ellie Mae Clampett as the hottie in a world of pig faces...probably "Eye of the Beholder."  You have mentioned just about everything I can recall, but I love the time travel episodes, especially the one with Cliff Robertson where he is traveling west with his family in the 1800s and ends up jumping ahead 100 years to save his son.  Everyone loves Talky Tina and Telly Savalas.  I have a soft spot for "The Changing of the Guard" with Donald Pleasance as an old teacher who is fired and about to kill himself until he is visited by the ghosts of several of his former students.  TZ will always be my fav. tv program...along with Andy Griffith.

Time Enough At Last
Nightmare At 20,000 Feet
To Serve Man
The Invaders
The Howling Man

......and lots more. Geez, this is tough.

What is the episode that had robby the robot?  The old man made him so he would torment his neice ever after his death?  Oh, and what about the one with Charles Bronson and a very young Elizabeth Montgomery as the survivors of some war...and they are enemies?  That one is pretty good.

Nightmare at 20,000 Feet (Shatner)

(http://www.fanboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/nightmare-at-20000-feet.jpg)

To Serve Man (the incredibly nice Richard Kiel)

(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ap7OdTRb37c/UFIrsLULLEI/AAAAAAAAAiA/35u1RzdRo74/s1600/To+Serve+Man+Twilight+Zone.jpg)

Time Enough At Last (with the original Penguin, Burgess Meredith)

(http://dailygrindhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ALL-THE-TIME-IN-THE-WORLD.jpg)

Quote from: Frankenmarx on April 25, 2013, 08:04:47 PM
What is the episode that had robby the robot?  The old man made him so he would torment his neice ever after his death? .

UNCLE SIMON with Cedric Hardwicke, Constance Ford and the eternally old Ian Wolfe!

And how about Lee Marvin standing in for his own robot boxer? 

Quote from: Frankenmarx on April 27, 2013, 06:55:20 AM
And how about Lee Marvin standing in for his own robot boxer?

That one is called "Steel".

Haven't seen Twilight Zone!?  Been awhile?!  Well then check out this deal!

http://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-the-twilight-zone-the-complete-series-dvd-box-set (http://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-the-twilight-zone-the-complete-series-dvd-box-set)

$80.00 for the complete series!

Only one mention of Third From the Sun?  That episode is one of my favorites and it perfectly portrayed the suspense and paranoia of the Cold War.  I also find The Valley of the Shadow to be highly underrated.