THE OUTER LIMITS (1963-65)

         Now that the holiday season is really kicking in, I’ve got more free time than I know what to do with.  That can be a recipe for disaster, but I’m fortunate to have a long list of movies and episodics I need to catch up on.  I started an Outer Limits binge while away on location this fall, and returned home determined to finish the job.  To be clear, I’m talking about the original series of the early ’60’s, not the inept revival of the mid-90’s.  I’ve never been much of a science fiction fan, but I’m almost done and am happy to have made the commitment.

         I have vague memories of this program as a very small child; all of them are associated with having the hell scared out of me.  While I’m not so easily affected these days, there’s definitely something unsettling in the claustrophobic atmosphere evoked by each episode.  Maybe that’s a byproduct of the pathetically cheap production values.  For some reason, the notion of real people struggling to put the story across under threadbare conditions enhances the fright factor.  Though most of the narratives are straight-forward, during moments when the mechanical effects or monster’s make-up go overboard, I find myself asking: How can something be so cheesy yet still be so disturbing?

         On the other hand, the makers of The Outer Limits weren’t just going for the low-hanging fruit.  The shocks were often cloaked in philosophical, moral and behavioral themes that remain sophisticated to this day.  One episode that caught my attention, titled Nightmare (S1\E10, aired 12\2\63), concerned a group of soldiers pitted against one another by an alien being.  Without skimping on the fear factor, its sharp examination of interpersonal relations would be seen as ahead of its time if only we had a similar reference in 2024.

         Along with the music (courtesy of prolific composer Dominic Frontiere), the greatest contributing factor to the show’s discomfiting effect was its stark, black and white cinematography.  Split up among future ASC members Kenneth Peach, Conrad Hall, John Nickolaus, Jr. and Fred Koenekamp, its deeply-shadowed, high-contrast look keeps the viewer off-balance and suspicious of what might happen next.  That a predominance of shadow helped cover up any budgetary shortcomings was of secondary concern.  For them, it was all about maintaining the mood.  It’s no surprise that watching each episode anew awakened my child-like anxiety.  It was akin to hearing a strange noise in a dark room while fumbling for the light switch.  Never a reassuring sensation.

         Some inside cinematography trivia: Hall once told me that he got the job on The Outer Limits thanks to a recommendation from his mentor, Ted McCord, ASC.  Backing him up were a couple of future ASC all-stars, camera operator William A. Fraker and 1st AC Bobby Byrne.  I can imagine the laughs they had photographing foam-rubber spacemen and all-manner of high school science experiments gone awry.  If only that dolly could talk…

         Written by series creator Leslie Stevens and co-producer Joseph Stefano, the Nightmare episode was directed by John Erman, who at this early stage of his long TV career was only twenty-eight years old.  Stevens, by the way, wrote the script for Incubus, a film discussed in a post dated October 18 of this year, while Stefano wrote the script for Hitchcock’s Psycho.  Somehow, they and the rest of their staff kept up the suspense for forty-nine episodes – each fifty-two minutes in length – before being canceled at the end of season two.  Many plots were hung on the threat of nuclear annihilation.  Considering the current state of the world, it might be time for a revival of this great show…hopefully done the right way.

         Until then, I’ll still be having nightmares about the S1\E14 offering, The Zanti Misfits.  Having just watched it, I’ll tell you this much – it scared the crap out of me as a kid…and it still does now!