November 12, 2024: Our Twilight Zone rewatch concludes with season 5, episodes 33-36!

Season 5, Episode 33, “The Brain Center at Whipple’s”

This episode first aired May 15, 1964.

The original title of this episode was “Automaton”.

The new computer installed at the episode is the same computer glimpsed at the end of “The Old Man and the Cave”.

Forbidden Planet (1956) breakout star Robby the Robot makes his third and final Twilight Zone appearance. According to episode director Richard Donner: “Robby had been on the MGM lot. We redressed him a little, painted him differently, and put another light on top of his head. He was in fairly good condition. In those days studios had great pride in their prop and wardrobe departments, so when you went to get something, there was no problem.”

Actor Richard Deacon, who played Mr. Whipple, attended high school in Binghamton, New York with Rod Serling. Reflecting back on the Mr. Whipple character and his career: “After seeing all he had to do in this show, I wondered what I had done to Rod in school to deserve it. If I didn’t wear glasses and have 40 years of unpaved road on my head, I probably wouldn’t be working at all.”

While I liked the premise, I found the execution dull. We never get a true sense of the factory, and the heart of the story is conveyed through seemingly interminable conversations. Rather than seeing the pivotal scene where Whipple gets replaced, we just hear about it after the fact. The shot of the robot back at the office is funny, but not enough to save this episode.

Season 5, Episode 34, “Come Wander with Me”

This episode first aired May 22, 1964.

Even though this was the third to last episode to air, it was actually the last Twilight Zone episode filmed.

A teenage Liza Minnelli auditioned for the role of Mary Rachel but was so nervous that she blew. Said producer William Froug at the time: “She’ll never make it.”

The role of Mary Rachel went to actress Bonnie Beecher. It was her acting debut. She would later guest on the original Star Trek as Sylvia in “Spectre of the Gun”.

Gary Crosby, who played Floyd Burney, was the son of Bing Crosby. In 1983, he published an autobiography, “Going My Own Way,” detailing the physical and emotional abuse he and his brothers suffered at the hands of their father who died in 1977.

According to episode director Richard Donner: “Gary Crosby’s agent sent him in to us at a time when we were considering someone totally different. He had practically memorized the script before he came into my office. He did a reading for me that was so brilliant that I immediately said “That’s it – Gary Crosby. ” He is a very flexible, very good actor.”

Well, this one was a weird one – and , really, didn’t make a whole lot of sense. Watchable, but Floyd’s rockabilly mannerisms were, in a word, cringe. Makes me kind of sad to think the series will be going out with a whimper.

Season 5, Episode 35, “The Fear”

This episode first aired May 29, 1964.

The original title of this episode was “The Fear Itself”.

This was the last episode Rod Serling wrote for the show.

Actor Peter Mark Richardson, who played Trooper Robert Franklin, had over 500 t.v. appearances to his credit. He reflected back on this episode: “I remember being instructed to shoot in the air at a giant that wasn’t there. To pretend a giant space being was looking down on you was not a challenge. I just looked and reacted naturally. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a bad word about Rod Serling. Hazel Court and I became good friends and we stayed in touch a number of times after The Twilight Zone. I did a lot of television but that was one I enjoyed very much.”

Hazel Court, who played Charlotte Scott, was a Scream Queen of the 1960’s, and a marquee star of Hammer Films. Author Stephen King, perhaps a fan, mentions her in several of his books.

Well, this one was kind of dumb. What kind of alien-concocted plan was that? Had they been successful in scaring the guy, what then? This one felt like an episode written by someone who got drunk watching the superior “The Invaders”.

Our Twilight Zone rewatch ends with…

Season 5, Episode 36, “The Bewitchin’ Pool”

This episode first aired April 19, 1964.

Previous titles for this episode included “The Magic Pool”, “The Marvelous Pool”, and “The Miraculous Pool”.

Writer Earl Hammer Jr. claimed this episode was inspired by Night of the Hunter (1955).

Hammer Jr. once joked: “I hope to this day that my script was not the cause for the shows demise.”

The climax of the episode was repeated off the top of the show because the episode ran short and they needed to fill some time. I didn’t hate it.

There was so much background noise when this episode was shot that the whole thing had to be dubbed. Actress Mary Badham had already flown back
Alabama so voice actress June Foray (of Rocky and Bullwinkle fame) dubbed her dialogue. It is, as someone already pointed out, pretty obvious and jarring. Serling apparently thought it was so bad that he pushed this episode to the end of the season assuming that, by this point in the show’s run, many longtime fans had already tuned out.

Earl Hammer Jr. was not a fan of the actress who played Aunt T, finding her “too cute”. He would have preferred Patricia Neal – who would go on to play Olivia Walton on his series, The Waltons.

The swimming pool featured in the episode was also used in “Queen of the Nile,” and “The Trouble with Templeton”.

Mary Badham, who played Sport Sherwood, had no acting experience prior to landing the role in To Kill A Mockingbird (1962) that earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

WTF? Why do these kids, born of upper-crust L.A. parents speak like country yokels? And why are their parents so miserable to them? And why does Aunt T keep saying her place is really hard to get to but the kids have no problem getting to it…three times?! I thought Mary Badham was solid as Sport but the kid playing her brother was…uh..a little out of his league. Alas, a disappointing end to the show.

Tomorrow, it’s my Twilight Zone Season 5 Top 10 ranking.

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