Twilight Zone: “The Midnight Sun” [Season 3, Episode 10] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “The Midnight Sun” [Season 3, Episode 10]
Original Air Date: November 17, 1961

Director: Anton Leader

Writer: Rod Serling

Starring: Lois Nettleton, Betty Garde and Tom Reese


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

The Earth has come out of orbit and is moving ever closer to the sun.  Most people have headed north or south to delay the inevitable.  With the city abandoned, with no police, no running water or fresh food deliveries, a pair of women are struggling to survive in their city apartments.

An armed man breaks in looking to steal what they have and we come to discover things are not as they seem.

Contains a classic Twilight Zone twist ending.

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11 Last Meals of the Rich and Famous

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Eddie Deezen and Mental Floss present 11 Last Meals of the Rich and Famous [and 9 Honorable Mentions].  Using just the meals presented, here are the three I would pick…

8. ERNEST HEMINGWAY
By the time he reached his 60s, Hemingway was suffering from severe depression. Several electroshock therapy treatments had left him in a frazzled condition. After a failed suicide attempt in the spring of 1961 at his home in Idaho, Hemingway tried again on July 2 by putting a shotgun to his head. First, though, he ate his favorite meal: New York strip steak, baked potato, caesar salad, and a glass of Bordeaux.

Marilyn Monroe Selections from a Mexican buffet that had been delivered to her Brentwood home

Frank Sinatra A grilled cheese sandwich

Twilight Zone: “Deaths-Head Revisited” [Season 3, Episode 9] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “Deaths-Head Revisited” [Season 3, Episode 9]
Original Air Date: November 10, 1961

Director: Don Medford

Writer: Rod Serling

Starring: Joseph Schildkraut, and Oscar Beregi Jr.


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

Nearly two decades after the end of World War II, SS Capt. Gunther Lutze returns to the deserted concentration camp he once rules.  As he walks through the rundown buildings, Lutz remembers with glory the wonderful feelings he had torturing and putting to death his inferior prisoners of war… that is until the executed prisoners return to extract their revenge.

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10 Timely Facts About “48 Hrs.”

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Andrew LaSane and Mental Floss present 10 Timely Facts About 48 Hrs.  Here are three of my favorites…

3. NICK NOLTE AND EDDIE MURPHY WERE NOT THE STUDIO’S FIRST CHOICES.
According to The Telegraph, several actors turned down the roles of Detective Jack Cates and Reggie Hammond before Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy signed on. Mickey Rourke, Clint Eastwood, and Jeff Bridges were reportedly offered the detective role, while Gregory Hines, Richard Pryor, Howard E. Rollins Jr., and Denzel Washington all ultimately passed on playing the convict.

5. MURPHY’S PERFORMANCE WAS INSPIRED BY BRUCE LEE.
Having never been in a serious role, Eddie Murphy did not know how to be angry on camera, so he mimicked actor and martial artist Bruce Lee. “There’s a scene in 48 Hrs. where I’m coming down the alley and there’s all this neon and I’m supposed to be intense, but I had no reference,” Murphy told Byron Allen in an interview for the 25th anniversary edition DVD ofEddie Murphy: Delirious. “So I was doing my Bruce Lee impression, and I still do it until this day. When I’m mad on screen if I pull my gun out, it may not look like Bruce Lee because I look nothing like him, but on the inside, my face, all the sh*t I’m doing with my eyes … it’s all my Bruce Lee impression.”

9. 48 HRS. LED TO ANOTHER SNL MILESTONE FOR MURPHY.
Having already been the youngest cast member years prior, Eddie Murphy was also the first Saturday Night Live cast member in history to host the show while he was still on it, but that was not the plan. On December 11, 1982, Nick Nolte was supposed to host, but he was sick and had to back out at the last second. “When Nick got here, and got off the plane, he vomited on my shirt,” Murphy said in his opening monologue, “and we realized Nick was too sick to do the show. And that’s too bad, because Nick was gonna be in some real great stuff tonight.” He added that because the audience came to see someone from the film, he was going to be the host, and he famously kicked off the episode with the line: “Live, from New York, it’s The Eddie Murphy Show!”

Twilight Zone: “It’s a Good Life” [Season 3, Episode 8] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “It’s a Good Life” [Season 3, Episode 8]
Original Air Date: November 3, 1961

Director: James Sheldon

Writer: Rod Serling from a story by Jerome Bixby

Starring: John Larch, Cloris Leachman, Don Keefer and Billy Mumy.


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

Little Anthony Fremont [Mumy] has extraordinary mental powers.  Anthony has made all of the world outside of his small farming town disappear.   He’s done the same or worse to anyone of anything that displeases him.

Anthony demands that everyone think happy thoughts.  The town people live in fear that they will displease Anthony and they will be next.

Tonight is Anthony’s birthday.  Let’s hope he’s not disappointed.

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What If You Fell Out of a Plane Without a Parachute?

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In 2007, Travis Pastrana jumped out of a plane with no parachute as part of a stunt promoting Red Bull.  In short order, Pastrana’s friends caught up to him and he finished the plummet to earth strapped to his friend in a tandem chute.  Still, how crazy is that?

But…

Could you survive if you fell out of an airplane without a chute and no assistance?

Marshall Brain at How Things Work say you have a chance in Brain’s article What If You Fell Out of a Plane Without a Parachute?

Twilight Zone: “The Grave” [Season 3, Episode 7] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “The Grave” [Season 3, Episode 7]
Original Air Date: October 27, 1961

Director: Montgomery Pittman

Writer: Montgomery Pittman

Starring: Lee Marvin, James Best, Strother Martin, Elen Willard and Lee Van Cleef.


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

Late one night Bounty Hunter, Conny Miller rides into town.  At the tavern he learns from several men that the outlaw he had been tracking for months has been gunned down and buried by the town folk.

When Conny expresses displeasure that he had wasted months tracking the outlaw, one of the town men says that Conny only acted as if he wanted to meet up with the outlaw but the truth was that Conny was afraid. Arguments with the men lead to a twenty dollar bet that Conny hasn’t the courage to go to the outlaw’s grave and stick a knife in it.

This is episode would work even without the all-star cast, but is even better because of them.

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Twilight Zone: “The Mirror” [Season 3, Episode 6] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “The Mirror” [Season 3, Episode 6]
Original Air Date: October 20, 1961

Director: Don Medford

Writer: Rod Serling

Starring: Peter Falk, Will Kuluva and Antony Carbone.


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

Ramos Clemente [Falk] and his generals have led a successful revolution to overthrow their government.  Before his execution, the ousted dictator tells Clemente that the mirror in his office can predict who will betray him.  Clemente begins to see things in the mirror that are not happening in reality and that his closest generals plan to execute him!

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R.I.P. – Clyde Lovellette

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Clyde Lovellette passed away yesterday at the age of 86 from cancer.

If you’re a die-hard basketball fan, you probably know that Hall of Famer, Clyde Lovellette was the first player to win an N.C.A.A. championship, an Olympic gold medal and an N.B.A. title.  That puts Clyde Lovellette in the same stratosphere as Bill Russell, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan… of course Mr. Lovellette got there first.

Clyde Lovellette played 11 seasons in the NBA and was a player on three championship teams [one with the Minneapolis Lakers and two with the Boston Celtics].  Of course before he was in the NBA, Lovellette had a great college career at Kansas… and before that an outstanding high school career at Garfield High in Terre Haute, Indiana.

And that’s where my knowledge of Clyde Lovellette comes into play.  When I was a kid, Clyde Lovellette was the Sheriff of Vigo County.  Terre Haute is in Vigo County and that is where I was born and grew up.  Clyde Lovellette lived one block from me.

We all knew Clyde Lovellette as The Sheriff.  He reminded us of Matt Dillon and at 6’9″ he was just an imposing figure.  I have just a few memories of interacting with Mr. Lovellette.  A couple of times hanging out on the front porch of his house talking to neighborhood kids and another time when he came to a Collett Elementary “fair.”  He had a portable “jail” and kids could buy tickets to have other kids put in jail with Sheriff Lovelette keeping guard.

We didn’t know then how famous Mr. Lovelette was or would become.  We just knew him as a man who kept us safe and took the time to come to our school to help us raise money.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Clyde Lovellette’s family, friends and fans.

Twilight Zone: “A Game of Pool” [Season 3, Episode 5] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “A Game of Pool” [Season 3, Episode 5]
Original Air Date: October 6, 1961

Director: Buzz Kulik

Writer: George Clayton Johnson

Starring: Jack Klugman and Jonathon Winters.


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

Jesse Cardiff [Klugman] is the greatest pool player alive.  Sadly, no matter who or how many people Jesse beats, he always is told, that the late “Fats” Brown was better.  One night, alone in the pool hall, Jesse says he’d give anything to play “Fats.”

“Fats” appears and accepts the game if Jesse will wager his life.

Be careful what you ask for, because you just may get it all.

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Twilight Zone: “The Passerby” [Season 3, Episode 4] / Z-View

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Twilight Zone: “The Passerby” [Season 3, Episode 4]
Original Air Date: October 6, 1961

Director: Elliott Silverstein

Writer: Rod Serling

Starring: James Gregory, Joanne Linville and Rex Holman.


The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…

The Civil War has ended.  A young Confederate widow sits on her porch and watches a long procession of soldiers [Union and Confederate] slowly march by her house which is on a dark, remote road.  When a soldier asks for water and a chance to rest, she comes to discover that all is not what it seems.

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10 Law-Abiding Facts About “Raising Arizona”

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Roger Cormier and Mental_Floss present 10 Law-Abiding Facts About Raising Arizona.  Here are three of my favorites…

3. KEVIN COSTNER AND RICHARD JENKINS AUDITIONED FOR THE FILM.
Kevin Costner auditioned three times to play H.I., only to see Nicolas Cage snag the role. Richard Jenkins had his first of many auditions for the Coens for Raising Arizona. He also (unsuccessfully) auditioned for Miller’s Crossing (1990) and Fargo (1996) before calling it quits with the Coens. In 2001, Joel and Ethan cast Jenkins in The Man Who Wasn’t There, even though he had never auditioned for it.

4. KATE CAPSHAW TURNED DOWN THE LEAD.
Kate Capshaw said no to playing Ed in Raising Arizona—and later regretted the decision. She also notably turned down the role of Diane Chambers on Cheers.

9. THE FILMMAKERS GOT EXPERIMENTAL WITH THEIR CAMERA TECHNIQUES.
Wanting to have as many options as possible in the editing room, the Coens and their cinematographer, Barry Sonnenfeld, decided at one point to have Cage run through the house while holding a camera towards himself. After seeing the results, they was decided it was too weird.