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Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone debuted in 1959 and is celebrated as one of the most exceptional television series ever created. Blending elements of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, the show is renowned for its masterful use of unexpected endings. Despite multiple revivals struggling to match the original's acclaim, their existence underscores the enduring legacy of Serling’s groundbreaking work.
Discover some intriguing, lesser-known details about the The Twilight Zone franchise, presented “for your approval”—a phrase famously linked to the series, though Serling only used it three times.
10. The Memorable Theme Song Debuted in Season Two
The instantly recognizable “dee-dee-dee-dee” theme of The Twilight Zone is iconic, yet it wasn’t part of the show’s first season. Initially, the theme was composed by Bernard Herrmann, famed for his work on Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960). While eerie, the original score lacked the memorable impact of its successor.
CBS sought a fresh theme, and Lud Gluskin, the show’s music director, enlisted Marius Constant, a composer known for ballet scores, to take on the task. Constant produced two compositions, “Milieu No. 2” and “Étrange No. 3,” which Gluskin combined to craft the new theme. This piece became a defining element of the series. Despite updates in later versions of The Twilight Zone, the iconic four-note guitar riff remains a constant.
9. The Inspiration Behind the Title
The Twilight Zone has become so influential that its name is now synonymous with bizarre and enigmatic scenarios. Serling once explained that he believed he coined the term, only to later discover it was an obscure Air Force phrase describing the moment a plane descends without visibility of the horizon.
Serling might have encountered the term during his time as a paratrooper in World War II. In oceanography, the twilight zone refers to the mesopelagic layer, a transitional region between the sunlit upper ocean and the pitch-dark depths.
8. Hidden References in Walt Disney World’s Tower of Terror
The Imagineering team behind Disney World’s The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror ride recognized the importance of including Rod Serling’s iconic introduction in the preshow film. However, since Serling had passed away years earlier, they creatively used footage from his introduction to the episode “The Good Life” and dubbed his voice with an impersonator to narrate the ride’s unique storyline. Carol Serling, Rod’s widow, personally selected Mark Silverman for the voiceover role.
The attraction is also filled with subtle nods to the series. Guests can spot the shattered glasses from “Time Enough at Last” resting on a pile of books, the fortune-telling machine from “Nick of Time” perched on a library shelf, and the eerie ventriloquist dummy from “Caesar and Me” visible just before exiting the elevator.
7. An Episode That Earned an Oscar
As the original The Twilight Zone series approached its fifth season, Rod Serling faced a creative slump, and the show’s budget was stretched thin. Producer William Froug proposed a solution: acquiring the rights to Robert Enrico’s short film An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge and airing it as an episode. The film was purchased for $25,000, significantly less than the typical $65,000 cost of producing an episode.
The French film, which contains minimal dialogue, was slightly edited and framed with Serling’s introduction and conclusion. By the time it aired on American television in 1964, it had already earned accolades, including Best Short Subject at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival and the 1963 Academy Award for Live Action Short Film. This makes it the only Twilight Zone episode to have won an Oscar.
6. Rod Serling Wasn’t the First Choice for Narrator
While Serling’s narration became iconic, he wasn’t initially considered for the role. Westbrook Van Voorhis narrated the pilot episode, “Where Is Everybody?” but his tone was deemed too formal. Orson Welles was then approached, but his fees were prohibitively high. Serling suggested himself, and despite initial doubts, he delivered a performance that defined the series.
Once Serling took over, he rerecorded the pilot’s narration. In the first season, his voice was only heard offscreen; his onscreen appearances began in the second season. The rerecording also allowed him to correct the opening line, which originally referenced a “sixth dimension” due to a miscalculation.
5. The Legacy of “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” and Its Influence on Air Travel
“Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” stands out as one of the most iconic episodes of the series. It features Robert Wilson, played by William Shatner, who becomes increasingly distressed by a gremlin on an airplane wing. Penned by Richard Matheson, author of I Am Legend (1954), the episode has been adapted twice—in Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983) and the 2019 reboot. It has also been widely parodied, including in The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror IV,” where Bart encounters a gremlin on a school bus.
Beyond its cultural impact, the episode, directed by Richard Donner, influenced aviation. Airplanes feature small triangles on cabin walls aligned with the wings, helping crew members identify the best windows for inspections. The seats beneath these markers are often referred to as “William Shatner’s Seat,” a nod to the episode. Shatner, who also starred in “Nick of Time,” later became famous as Captain Kirk in Star Trek.
4. Serling Held Exclusive Rights to Use the Word “God” in Scripts
Serling authored or co-authored 92 of the original 156 episodes, collaborating with writers like Richard Matheson, Charles Beaumont, and George Clayton Johnson. Before enlisting professional writers, he invited public submissions, receiving 14,000 teleplays in just five days, none of which were used. He also brought in notable talents such as Earl Hamner Jr., creator of The Waltons, and renowned sci-fi author Ray Bradbury.
Serling enjoyed significant creative freedom when writing episodes. A unique rule allowed only him to use the word “God” in scripts, though the reasoning behind this remains unclear. Richard Matheson recalled, “I used to get annoyed because Rod could include ‘God’ in his scripts, but if I tried, they’d cross it out.”
3. “Where Is Everybody?” Was the Third Attempt at a Pilot
The first pilot for The Twilight Zone was adapted from a script Serling wrote for his earlier show, The Storm, which aired on a Cincinnati TV station in 1951. “The Time Element” featured classic Twilight Zone elements, including a sci-fi plot about a man traveling back in time to prevent the Pearl Harbor attack and a surprising twist. CBS initially purchased the script but delayed its production, eventually selling it to Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse later that year.
The overwhelming positive reception of “The Time Element” convinced CBS to greenlight The Twilight Zone. Serling then wrote a new pilot, “The Happy Place,” which depicted a dystopian society that executed individuals at age 60. While producer William Self appreciated the story, he deemed it too dark for a pilot. Serling finally succeeded with “Where Is Everybody?” and reworked “The Happy Place” into the season 2 episode “The Obsolete Man.”
2. George Takei Appeared in an Episode Removed from Syndication
Several Twilight Zone episodes were removed from syndication after their initial airing, often due to copyright disputes. Episodes like “A Short Drink from a Certain Fountain,” “Sounds and Silences,” and “Miniature” fall into this category. However, “The Encounter,” which premiered in 1964, was pulled for different reasons. The episode features a conversation between a Japanese American man, played by George Takei before his Star Trek fame, and an American WWII veteran portrayed by Neville Brand.
While “The Encounter” aimed to address racial issues in America, it ended up reinforcing harmful stereotypes. Takei noted that the episode sparked controversy among Japanese American and Asian American civil rights groups, leading CBS to withdraw it. Decades passed before it was re-aired on American television. “I missed out on residuals from that one,” Takei quipped. The episode is now available in syndication, on DVD, and through streaming platforms. Takei also appeared in the 2020 episode “You Might Also Like.”
1. A Helicopter Accident During Filming Claimed Three Lives on the Set of Twilight Zone: The Movie
On July 23, 1982, tragedy struck during the filming of John Landis’s segment for Twilight Zone: The Movie. Vic Morrow, the lead actor, and child actors Renee Shin-Yi Chen and Myca Dinh Le, aged 6 and 7, were killed when a helicopter stunt went horribly wrong. Morrow’s character was depicted rescuing the children from an attacking helicopter, but pyrotechnic explosions caused the helicopter to crash into them. The storyline involving the children was removed, but Morrow’s remaining scenes were kept in the film.
Landis, along with associate producer George Folsey Jr., pilot Dorcey Wingo, production manager Dan Allingham, and explosives specialist Paul Stewart, faced involuntary manslaughter charges but were acquitted. Despite clear safety violations, such as failing to secure legal waivers for the children to work at night and near explosives, and ignoring warnings about the explosives’ impact on the helicopter, the filmmakers were not held accountable.
While accidents can occur despite precautions, this incident led to significant advancements in safety protocols across the industry. Measures such as the implementation of the Injury and Illness Prevention Program, increased reliance on insurance (which enforced stricter compliance), and the introduction of risk managers were adopted to enhance safety.
