Walking Distance
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American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.
Details
- Episode number: 5
- Season: 1
- Production code: 173-3605
- Original air date: October 30, 1959
- Writer: Rod Serling
- Director: Robert Stevens
- Music: Original score by Bernard Herrmann
Cast
- Martin Sloane: Gig Young
- Martin's Father: Frank Overton
- Martin's Mother: Irene Tedrow
Synopsis
A middle-aged man driving cross-country stops his car, and walks toward his hometown, which appears exactly as it was when he was a boy. He sees himself as a boy, and following him home, meets his parents. Trying to convince his parents that he is their son from the future, he succeeds only in proving his insanity. Martin tries to warn his younger self to enjoy his childhood before it is too late, but his advances scare young Martin, who falls off the merry-go-round and injures his leg. Finally, his father confronts him. Having seen the papers in Martin's wallet and now believing him to be who he says he is, he tells him to return to his own time. Martin finds himself back in his own time, walking with a new limp.Trivia
- Features a bit part by young Ron Howard.
- The park in the episode is said to be inspired by Recreation Park in Rod Serling's hometown of Binghamton, New York. Like the park in "Walking Distance", Recreation Park has a carousel and a bandstand. There is a plaque in the Recreation Park bandstand commemorating the episode.[link][link]
- The episode was filmed predominantly at sets built for the 1959 television movie remake of Meet Me in St. Louis. The carousel used in the episode was a rental.
Themes
Similar themes are explored in “The Incredible World of Horace Ford” and, to a lesser extent, “Young Man's Fancy”. The episode also deals with the relentless pressures of the business world, which also serve as the basis for “A Stop at Willoughby”, “The Brain Center at Whipple's” and two Serling teleplays from before and after The Twilight Zone: Patterns and the Night Gallery episode “They're Tearing Down Tim Riley's Bar”.Critical response
- "It's been three decades since he made that journey but the experience still tingles the flesh and waters the eye. This was "Walking Distance,” Episode Five of Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone. Originally aired on October 30, 1959, it was the most personal story Serling ever wrote, and easily the most sensitive dramatic fantasy in the history of television. The yearning to recapture one's youth is an inescapable part of the human condition, and to discover, in the end, that the past is irrevocably behind you can be heartbreaking and sobering. With mesmerizing performances by Gig Young and Frank Overton, Serling played out this theme of ice cream and irony, of band concerts and broken dreams, and allowed us to take a better look at ourselves in the process. Devoid of the gimmickry that pervaded other episodes, "Walking Distance" stands alone in its simplicity and maturity. It captured the essence of Serling's poignant pen. Moreover, it's a fine example of how inventive cinematography and inspired direction could propel a half-hour teleplay forward—a rarity in the "golden days" of harried, grind-'em-out production schedules." —Paul Mandell, excerpt from "'Walking Distance' from The Twilight Zone", first published in the June 1988 of the American Cinematographer magazine.
Memorable Quotes
"Martin, is it so bad where you're from?""I thought so pop. I've been living in a dead run, and I was tired. And one day I knew I had to come back. I had to come back, and... get on the merry-go-round, and eat cotton candy and listen to band concerts. I had to stop, and breathe, and close my eyes, and smell, and listen."
"I guess we all want that. Maybe when you go back Martin, you'll find that there are merry-go-rounds and band concerts where you are. Maybe you haven't been looking in the right place. You've been looking behind you, Martin. Try looking ahead."
External link
References
- Zicree, Marc Scott: The Twilight Zone Companion. Sillman-James Press, 1982 (second edition)
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