I'm acting the role of a tired nonconformist

November 14, 2008 12:56 PM

Mike Wallace interviews Rod Serling in 1959, discussing timidity and censorship in television programming, and Serling's upcoming series The Twilight Zone. Part one. Part two. Part three. (TouTube links)
posted by Astro Zombie (13 comments total)

All The Mike Wallace Interviews they could find are here
posted by jfrancis at 1:01 PM on November 14, 2008

It's interesting to watch this interview with this paragraph from Jonathan Lethem in mind:

It only seemed a faint irony to learn that Serling was the most honored writer in the history of television *before* The Twilight Zone, that when he first announced the series it was seen as a disastrous artistic compromise, a signal of the collapse of his ambition.

Which Serling addresses, to an extent, in the interview, although he argues that he will not be using the show to examine social issues. I suppose he just couldn't help himself when it came to injecting adult social commentary into television dramas, even those rooted in fantasy and the supernatural.
posted by Astro Zombie at 1:06 PM on November 14, 2008 [2 favorites]

These are great. Thanks.

Also: Holy Cow Look At All That Cigarette Smoke.
posted by billysumday at 1:27 PM on November 14, 2008

I know. It's not surprising Serling died after a series of heart attacks when he was only 50.
posted by Astro Zombie at 1:30 PM on November 14, 2008

fantastic. more, please.
posted by krautland at 1:51 PM on November 14, 2008

Richard Matheson wrote all my favourite ones though, Serling was always too fond of stories where someone meets an angel and learns the error of their ways, or somesuch.

(Charles Beaumont also deserves props as the third major writer on the Twilight Zone as well. Poor guy died shockingly young from Alzheimers, which is probably part of why he's less well known.)
posted by Artw at 3:00 PM on November 14, 2008 [1 favorite]

Also: Holy Cow Look At All That Cigarette Smoke.

I know. It's not surprising Serling died after a series of heart attacks when he was only 50.

And yet somehow Mike Wallace is a working nonagenarian.
posted by Sys Rq at 4:22 PM on November 14, 2008 [1 favorite]

Astro,

I love you.

The sort of love that creates a sparkling pink luminous plasma gas to waft out my ears. The Twilight Zone (and Serling in particular) being perhaps my very favorite thing on earth.
posted by tkchrist at 5:13 PM on November 14, 2008

Thanks for posting this. The visual editing seems so quiet compared to contemporary television interviews.
posted by philfromhavelock at 5:52 PM on November 14, 2008

It's hard listening to this interview, I keep expecting Mike Wallace to turn out to be Satan.
posted by Grimgrin at 6:41 PM on November 14, 2008 [1 favorite]

Thanks for posting this. The visual editing seems so quiet compared to contemporary television interviews.

We hates the influence of music video editing. We hates it forever!
posted by JHarris at 12:21 AM on November 15, 2008 [1 favorite]

I'm especially fond of the part where he starts discussing Lassie. Not for the content, necessarily, but for the way it sounds coming from someoen with such clipped, stentorian delivery.
posted by pxe2000 at 12:33 PM on November 15, 2008

You can find this interview on the Treasures of the Twilight Zone.
posted by lilnemo at 4:34 PM on November 15, 2008