Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Any one of these episodes could serve to demonstrate the craft as well as the concern for humanity that always permeated Rod Serling's writing. "In Praise of Pip" is a particulary powerful script and is given a deeply moving performance by Jack Klugman. This and "One for the Angels" are my all-time favorite episodes of The Twilight Zone. The latter has a very touching story and a beautifully-written script. Its protagonist, Lew Bookman (Ed Wynn) is an aging, unsuccessful sidewalk salesman whose gentle yet fun-loving nature makes him popular with the neighborhood children, and in particular with Maggie, a little girl whose life he eventually saves by sacrificing himself to "Mr. Death." I love how Wynn (a former vaudeville comedian -- you may also remember him as the laughing Uncle Albert in MARY POPPINS and as the voice of the Mad Hatter in Disney's ALICE IN WONDERLAND -- and a surprisingly effective dramatic actor) interacts with Maggie; he is like her uncle or grandfather. Some have pointed out that, because Wynn was not a "fast talker," he is unconvincing in his "final sales pitch," in which he distracts Mr. Death and saves Maggie's life. I don't entirely agree with this view. The whole point of the story is that Bookman is NOT a great salesman but is loved by the children, and that this is what matters in the end. So it seems fitting that his delivery of the pitch does not sound smooth and practiced, but desperate, as though he is frantically improvising because he knows he must save Maggie. In other words, Bookman is too soft-spoken to have ever been a good salesman, but for the sake of a child he loves he can muster the energy for an effective pitch. I find Wynn's characterization entirely believable throughout the episode. Watch all four of the epidoes on this DVD. But especially watch "In Praise of Pip" and "One for the Angels" for their stories, their scripts, and their star performances by two remarkable actors, Jack Klugman and Ed Wynn.
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Episodes: "One for the Angels" (Ep. 2, October 9, 1959) - A salesman (Ed Wynn) cleverly eludes Death. But if he lives, a little girl must die in his place. Only the salesman's greatest pitch can save her! "The Man in the Bottle" (Ep. 38, October 7, 1960) - A discontented curio shop owner thinks he's finally found happiness when a genie he discovers in an old bottle grants him four wishes. But be careful what you wish for. "The Arrival" (Ep. 67, September 22, 1961) - A plane lands safely, but all its passengers, pilot and crew are missing! When a veteran FAA investigator is called upon to solve the mystery, his own past provides the answer. "In Praise of Pip" (Ep. 121, September 27, 1963) - An alcoholic bookie (Jack Klugman) regrets that he wasn't a better father to his son, Pip (Bill Mumy), critically wounded in South Vietnam. A visit to an amusement park gives them both a second chance.
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