People Are Alike All Over
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Cast
- Sam Conrad: Roddy McDowall
- Teenya: Susan Oliver
- Marcusson: Paul Comi [first of three TZ appearances—see Episode Notes]
- First Martian: Byron Morrow
- Second Martian: Vic Perrin [first of two TZ appearances—see Episode Notes]
- Third Martian: Vernon Gray
Rod Serling's Opening Narration
"You're looking at a species of flimsy little two-legged animal with extremely small heads whose name is Man. Warren Marcusson, age thirty-five. Samuel A. Conrad, age thirty-one... They're taking a highway into space, Man unshackling himself and sending his tiny, groping fingers up into the unknown. Their destination is Mars, and in just a moment we'll land there with them."Synopsis
A rocketship piloted by two astronauts heads out on a mission to Mars. One of them, Marcusson, is a positive thinker who believes that people are alike all over, even on Mars. The other astronaut, Conrad, disagrees with Marcusson’s view. The impact of landing on Mars is so severe that Marcusson dies. Now alone, Conrad is consumed by fear when he hears a rhythmic sound reverberating upon the ship's hull. As he ventures outside, his apprehension turns to joy when he sees that the Martians are indeed human, have mind-reading abilities and give the impression of being most amicable, especially the beautiful Teenya, who welcomes him. The hospitable locals lead their honored guest to his residence: an interior living space furnished exactly like one on Earth. Conrad briefly relaxes, but soon discovers that his room is windowless and the doors cannot be opened. Momentarily, a wall slides upward, leading to the realization that Conrad is actually in a zoo. His despairing words are, “Marcusson, you were right. People are alike everywhere.”
Rod Serling's Closing Narration
"Species of animal brought back alive. Interesting similarity in physical characteristics to human beings in head, trunk, arms, legs, hands, feet. Very tiny undeveloped brain; comes from primitive planet named Earth. Calls himself Samuel Conrad. And he will remain here in his cage with the running water and the electricity and the central heat as long as he lives. Samuel Conrad has found the Twilight Zone."Episode Notes
- This episode was based on Paul W. Fairman's Brothers Beyond the Void, published in the March 1952 issue of Fantastic Adventures and also appearing in August Derleth's 1953 collection Worlds of Tomorrow. In this popular short story, it is the lone pilot Marcusson who has the too-close encounter with smaller, more alien Martians. In adapting the tale, Serling made key changes that would deepen the irony and heighten the impact. He installed the frightened Conrad as a protagonist whose fears could be eased, only to be ultimately confirmed, and he presented the Martians as a human-sized, handsome, superior race whose apparent benevolence would make their ultimate treachery seem even more shocking.
- The original pilot of Star Trek (The Cage, later reworked into the two-part episode The Menagerie) had a plot which greatly resembled People Are Alike All Over. Interestingly, the actress Susan Oliver played a character ("Vina") astonishingly similar to her role in this episode.
- Vic Perrin, who plays one of the Martians, was the "Control Voice" on the 1963-65 Outer Limits. He also voiced "The Keeper" in the same The Menagerie episode indicated above. His other Twilight Zone appearance, also in a relatively minor role, was in the fifth season's Ring-a-Ding Girl.
- Marcusson is potrayed by Paul Comi, a frequent guest star in TV shows of the 60s and 70s, who was busy during this period with regular roles in two short-lived syndicated series, the 1960-61 western Two Faces West and the first seventeen episodes of the 1961-62 skydiving adventure Ripcord. His other TZ work was in the second season's The Odyssey of Flight 33, where he played the co-pilot, and the fourth season's The Parallel.
- The planet exteriors are taken from the oversize painted background dioramas seen in the 1956 MGM film Forbidden Planet (Interesting to note that a number of Twilight Zone episodes were filmed at MGM's movie studios).
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