![]() Williams’ home phone number, CApital 7-9899, includes what was once a legitimate central office name for Westport. The “Stamford” and “Westport/Saugatuck” stops called out by the conductor in the episode do exist- Metro-North Railroad (at the time New Haven Railroad) stops in Fairfield County, Connecticut, include Stamford (the station is now the Stamford Transportation Center), and Westport (the station was once known as Westport & Saugatuck), where series creator Rod Serling once lived. ![]() Another possible inspiration is Willoughby Avenue, a street only a few miles from the Sony Pictures Studios (formerly MGM) where nearly all Twilight Zone episodes were shot. There are, however, other places with that name in other parts of the United States, including a Willoughby Creek near Great Valley, New York (however, it is located in the southwest part of the state, nowhere near Connecticut or New York City). The name “Willoughby” presumably comes from the Midwestern town of Willoughby, Ohio, now a suburb of Cleveland. Willoughby? Whatever it is, it comes with sunlight and serenity, and is a part of The Twilight Zone. Gart Williams, who climbed on a world that went by too fast, it’s a place around the bend where he could jump off. Willoughby? Maybe it’s wishful thinking nestled in a hidden part of a man’s mind, or maybe it’s the last stop in the vast design of things-or perhaps, for a man like Mr. The back door of the hearse closes to reveal the name of the funeral home: Willoughby & Son. The 1960 conductor explains to the engineer that Williams “shouted something about Willoughby”, before jumping off the train and being killed instantly. The swinging pendulum of the station clock fades into the swinging lantern of a railroad engineer, standing over Williams’ body. Getting off the train, he is greeted by name by various inhabitants who welcome him while he tells them he’s glad to be there and plans to stay and join their idyllic life. This time, as the conductor warmly beckons him to the door, Williams intentionally leaves his briefcase on the train. On his way home, once again he falls asleep to find himself in Willoughby. Williams promises himself to get off at Willoughby next time.Įxperiencing a breakdown at work, he calls his wife, who abandons him in his time of need. As he is about to get off the train carrying his briefcase, the train begins to roll, returning him to the present. The next week, Williams again dozes off on the train and returns to Willoughby where everything is the same as before. He tells her about his dream and about Willoughby, only to have her ridicule him as being “born too late”, declaring it her “miserable tragic error” to have married a man “whose big dream in life is to be Huckleberry Finn.” Selfish, cold, and uncaring, she makes him see that he is only a money-machine to her. That night, he has an argument with his shrewish wife Jane. He learns that this is a “peaceful, restful place, where a man can slow down to a walk and live his life full measure.” Being jerked awake into the real world, he asks the railroad conductor if he has ever heard of Willoughby, but the conductor replies, “Not on this run…no Willoughby on the line.” He eventually learns that it is July 1888. ![]() ![]() The sun is bright outside, and as he looks out the window, he discovers that the train is in a town called Willoughby. He wakes to find the train stopped and that he is now in a 19th-century railway car, deserted except for himself. Unable to sleep properly at home, he drifts off for a short nap on the train during his daily commute through the November snow. His overbearing boss, Oliver Misrell, angered by the loss of a major account, lectures him about giving the “push-push-push” until Gart insults him. Gart Williams is a contemporary New York City advertising executive who has grown exasperated with his career. Gart Williams, ad agency exec, who in just a moment, will move into the Twilight Zone-in a desperate search for survival. His insecurity has shelled him, his sensitivity has straddled him with humiliation, his deep-rooted disquiet about his own worth has zeroed in on him, landed on target, and blown him apart. He’s been cannonaded this afternoon by all the enemies of his life. Williams’ protection fell away from him, and left him a naked target. Just a moment ago, someone removed the bolt, and Mr. This is Gart Williams, age thirty-eight, a man protected by a suit of armor all held together by one bolt. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |