#rod serling

Fear: The Spiral

𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹

Opening narration:

"Picture of a woman looking at a picture. Movie great of another time, once-brilliant star in a firmament no longer a part of the sky, eclipsed by the movement of earth and time. Barbara Jean Trenton, whose world is a projection room, whose dreams are made out of celluloid. Barbara Jean Trenton, struck down by hit-and-run years and lying on the unhappy pavement, trying desperately to get the license number of fleeting fame."

𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹

I think Barbara Jean’s actions in this episode are fueled by The Desolation, but I don’t think that’s what this episode’s fear is. The Desolation is about the destruction of things before their time, but Barbara Jean’s life is similar to the dusty movies decaying in her film room to other people- irrelevant and old. I think the horror in this episode is seeing Barbara Jean going mad, unable to accept the passage of time and instead locking herself away in her past and eventually becoming a part of the screen. Ultimately, this is a Spiral episode to me. 

𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹

Summary + closing narration:

Aging film star Barbara Jean Trenton secludes herself in her private screening room, where she reminisces about her past by watching her old films. In an attempt to bring her out into the real world, her agent Danny Weiss arranges a part for her in a new movie and brings a former Leading Man--now also older, many years retired from acting, and managing a chain of grocery stores--to visit her. This horrifies Barbara Jean and only drives her further into seclusion. Then one day, Barbara Jean's maid finds the screening room empty — and is horrified by what she sees on the screen. Danny comes over and sees on the screen the living room of the house, filled with movie stars and Barbara Jean as they appeared in the old films. She throws her scarf toward the camera and departs just before the film ends. In the living room, Danny finds Barbara Jean's scarf.

I want to add to this summary that the part offered to her is that of a mother, and Barbara Jean is enraged. She still wants to be the young lead, but the man they met with says giving her the role would be a charity

𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹 𓁹

Closing narration:

“We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.” — Ernest Hemingway As writers, we all have a fantasy mentor. I have several: Serling, Poe, Hemingway. Maybe yours is Stephen King. Maybe yours changes depending on what you’re struggling with that week. While perusing the Web recently I came across this article about Hemingway, though I’m unsure of its author. In the…