Description

Published 2004

Gauntlet Press is thrilled to announce we will be publishing all 92 of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone scripts, authorized by his wife Carol Serling.  This will be a 7-10 volume signed limited edition set entitled AS TIMELESS AS INFINITY: THE COMPLETE TWILIGHT ZONE SCRIPTS OF ROD SERLING.  Except for The Twilight Zone Magazine and a few textbooks, this is the first time that Carol Serling has authorized (and will take an active role in) the publication of these scripts.  The books will be edited by Tony Albarella (one of the Board of Directors for the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation).

AS TIMELESS AS INFINITY will offer a unique and definitive look at Rod Serling’s landmark The Twilight Zone teleplays.  The classic scripts will be reprinted directly from Serling’s personal collection, currently housed in the Special Collections Archive at Ithaca College.  As editor, Albarella worked closely with Carol Serling to bring out material that has never before been made available to the public.

The scripts will appear in their original format and will not be typeset or altered in any way.  In many cases this includes Rod’s handwritten changes or notations. The Ithaca material also includes some revisions and earlier script drafts that differ, to varying degrees, from the final shooting scripts.  We’ll include these variant details where appropriate to document the creative process and track the evolution of the stories.

A commentary will accompany each rare script; in many cases this will include interview material with cast and crew and select comments from Serling himself.  In addition, many of Rod’s friends and colleagues will pay tribute to the man and his work.  Included will be appreciations from contemporaries that worked with Serling as well as current talents that were inspired by him.

Participating in Volume One will be Richard Matheson and Rockne S. O’Bannon (creator of the television series’ Alien Nation, Sea Quest DSV, and Farscape).

Preparation for this ambitious collection began in early 2002.  Since then, scores of exclusive interviews have been conducted and the gathering of unique material is an on-going process.  A few surprises will be offered along the way, including examples of Serling’s personal correspondence, vintage communications from CBS, rare production photos and much more.

Rod Serling was a true visionary – one of the pioneers of early television – and The Twilight Zone showcased some of his finest creations.  AS TIMELESS AS INFINITY will present these ageless tales in a tribute worthy of Serling’s legacy.

The list of scripts appearing in Volume One is as follows:

1) The Time Element. This hour-long was not an official Twilight Zone, but the widely accepted unofficial pilot. It was a Desilu Playhouse production from 1958 about time travel. It got surprisingly good ratings and that’s what encouraged CBS to consider Serling’s “sci-fi/fantasy” proposal. This show is seldom seen and has never been offered in print in any form.

2) Where is Everybody? (the official pilot)

3) Eye of the Beholder

4) Third from the Sun

5) The Purple Testament

6) The Big, Tall Wish

7) A Most Unusual Camera. Two versions of this script are included with the book — one that is the “final shooting script” and one that is a complete, alternate version that varies from the other in several respects.

8) The Mind and the Matter

9) The Dummy

Only the lettered edition contains an alternate version to Where Is Everybody?

“Fans of Serling’s classic TV series will welcome this deluxe tribute, which immediately whisks the reader into that ‘dimension of imagination… that might be called the Twilight Zone’… In addition to full and informed commentary on each episode, Albarella provides a wealth of miscellaneous appreciations and photographs.” — Publishers Weekly

“Serling’s brilliance shines through this time-frozen fog as clearly on the page as it does on the screen… (The) additional pages lend an unusual authenticity to the book; they frame the time that surrounded yet could not restrain The Twilight Zone… Perhaps the finest aspect of this book that is external to Serling’s work is the editor’s commentary which follows each script… There’s a treasure on every page.” — Rod Serling Memorial Foundation

“Tony Albarella’s well-researched commentary offers a fascinating glimpse of the television industry of the era as well as details about TZ and Serling… (A) treasure that both explores and preserves The Twilight Zone, an example of fine literature and dramatic art – a real rarity in the vast wasteland of television.” — CFQ (Cinemafantastique)

“If you are looking for a book that encompasses everything TZ, this is it!… This is a “must have” book for any TZ aficionado.” — HorrorWeb

“A book that lives up to its hype, this is indeed the definitive treatment of Serling’s lauded series… A labor of love offering Serling’s stories as well as the stories behind them, this first volume is at once both a collection of television’s most powerful expressions and a tribute to genius in words and images.” — Cemetery Dance, William P. Simmons

“If you think this is just another collection of scripts gathered between two covers, you are wrong… This book belongs in the collection of every horror and fantasy fan, of everyone who has ever had an appreciation of good television, of anyone who has ever dared to dream the fantastic!” — Zacherley’s Picks

“I found reading these (scripts) to be even more interesting than watching the show, and that’s going some.” — SFRevu