"The Twilight Zone" Living Doll (1963)

User Rating:

8.9/10   

Director:

Richard C. Sarafian

Writers:

Charles Beaumont (writer)
Rod Serling (creator)

TV Series:

"The Twilight Zone" (1959)

Original Air Date:

1 November 1963 (Season 5, Episode 6)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

A frustrated father does battle with his stepdaughter's talking doll, whose vocabulary includes such phrases as "I hate you" and "I'm going to kill you". |

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Animate Doll | Evil Doll | Classic Episode | Talking Doll

Cast

Telly Savalas	...	Erich Streator
Mary LaRoche	...	Annabelle Streator
Tracy Stratford	...	Christie Streator

Runtime:

26 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Cayuga Productions

Trivia:

June Foray, the voice of the "Talky Tina" doll, was also the voice of Mattel's "Chatty Cathy" doll, upon which the doll in this episode was based.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror III (#4.5)" (1992)

One of the Best Twilight Zone Episodes

Dolls are creepy. This is the basis of many famous horror movie series: Child's Play, Puppet Master, Demonic Toys, and so on. However, the Twilight Zone did it first—and likely best.

I have to say this is probably the best episode in a series where I find many of the episodes sloppy or dull. It is scary, for one thing: atmosphere is built up wonderfully, and the doll is very frightening due to a grinding voice and some terrific lighting.

The characters are well-drawn, too, and the story is well-written, so it's more than just a chance for the SFX guys to show off. The acting is terrific and the story engaging. This is one even for those who normally don't like the Twilight Zone or find it sub-par.