Long Distance Call
- Episode aired Mar 31, 1961
- TV-PG
- 25m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
2.9K
YOUR RATING
A toy telephone becomes the link between a young boy and his dead grandmother.A toy telephone becomes the link between a young boy and his dead grandmother.A toy telephone becomes the link between a young boy and his dead grandmother.
Bill Mumy
- Billy Bayles
- (as Billy Mumy)
Arch Johnson
- Fireman
- (uncredited)
Robert McCord
- 1st Fireman
- (uncredited)
Jutta Parr
- Nurse
- (uncredited)
Rod Serling
- Narrator
- (uncredited)
- …
James Turley
- 2nd Fireman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe original script called for 6-year-old Bill Mumy's character to be found floating face down in the decorative pond behind the house. However, the child actor's mother refused to allow her son to participate in a drowning scene. Director James Sheldon modified the shot to show only the father reaching into the pond to pull Billy out, carefully filmed to exclude having to show the boy. Says Mumy, "I wanted to do it. I was a very good swimmer, but Mom was terrified I'd get some weird ideas about suicide if I did."
- Quotes
[closing narration]
Narrator: A toy telephone, an act of faith, a set of improbable circumstances, all combine to probe a mystery, to fathom a depth, to send a facet of light into a dark after-region, to be believed or disbelieved, depending on your frame of reference. A fact or a fantasy, a substance or a shadow - but all of it very much a part of The Twilight Zone.
- ConnectionsEdited into Twilight-Tober-Zone: Long Distance Call (2021)
Featured review
Subtle, Beautifully Acted Episode
Just before dying, an old woman gives her grandson a toy telephone for his birthday, with which the boy can seemingly speak to her from beyond the grave. This episode is a prime example of how the series could deal in depth with deeply human issues through the veil of science fiction in a remarkably frank and effective manner.
At the same time the episode creates a somewhat creepy atmosphere (owing to the brooding presence of the grandmother over the house), it simultaneously addresses the complex web of familial relationships -- the tensions between parents and their children-in-law, the attachment children find for their grandparents, and the need to deal with familial loss. The remarkably intuitive script by Beaumont and Idelson, matched by wonderful performances by the entire case (Philip Abbott as the father, in particular, is the standout), and the realistic setting of this story drives the message home -- the need to cut ties between generations.
The only small downside to this episode is the videotape look, which makes it look more like a soap opera. In the end, it doesn't matter, as the script and the performances carry this to the highest levels reached by the series -- indeed, that any half-hour show can reach.
At the same time the episode creates a somewhat creepy atmosphere (owing to the brooding presence of the grandmother over the house), it simultaneously addresses the complex web of familial relationships -- the tensions between parents and their children-in-law, the attachment children find for their grandparents, and the need to deal with familial loss. The remarkably intuitive script by Beaumont and Idelson, matched by wonderful performances by the entire case (Philip Abbott as the father, in particular, is the standout), and the realistic setting of this story drives the message home -- the need to cut ties between generations.
The only small downside to this episode is the videotape look, which makes it look more like a soap opera. In the end, it doesn't matter, as the script and the performances carry this to the highest levels reached by the series -- indeed, that any half-hour show can reach.
helpful•515
- chrstphrtully
- Jul 28, 2007
Details
- Runtime25 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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