As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts Of Rod Serling, Volume Two [Hardcover]

Tony Albarella (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 2005

Gauntlet Press announced last year that we are publishing all 92 of Rod Serling's scripts for The Twilight Zone, authorized by his wife Carol Serling. This is a 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 are edited by Tony Albarella (co-author of THE TWILIGHT ZONE SCRIPTS OF EARL HAMNER and one of the Board of Directors for the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation).

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

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

A commentary accompanies each rare script; in many cases this includes exclusive interview material with cast and crew and select comments from Serling himself. In addition, many of Rod’s friends and colleagues pay tribute to the man and his work. Included are appreciations from contemporaries that worked with Serling as well as current talents who were inspired by him. Participating in Volume Two will be acclaimed author Robert McCammon, whose bestselling novels and short stories have earned scores of prestigious awards.

Preparation for this ambitious collection began in early 2002. Since then, over one hundred interviews have been conducted and the gathering of unique material is an on-going process. These books offer an in-depth, behind-the-scenes examination of Rod Serling and his signature creation, 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 presents these ageless tales in a tribute worthy of Serling’s legacy.

For only those ordering through Gauntlet Press, you receive a free chapbook entitled "I am the Night – Color Me Black." It contains variations of three scenes from this classic Twilight Zone tale. This presentation includes material exclusive to the chapbook.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 504 pages
• Publisher: Gauntlet Press; Limited edition (February 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1887368760
• ISBN-13: 978-1887368766
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,060,451 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Presentation, June 11, 2005

By 

teva_man "teva_man" (United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: As Timeless As Infinity: The Complete Twilight Zone Scripts Of Rod Serling, Volume Two (Hardcover)

Ever since the release of "The Twilight Zone Companion" by Marc Scott Zicree twenty-two years ago, followers of THE TWILIGHT ZONE and Rod Serling have awaited the possible release of a second opinion, if you will. Zicree's comprehensive volume covers the series in depth, and everyone who calls themself a fan of THE TWILIGHT ZONE has a copy of this book. "The Companion" has been criticized for its brevity and lack of thorough coverage of many episodes, possibly due to publisher requests that the book serve as a casual episode guide.

Other attempts have been made in recent years to expand upon what "The Companion" did. Most recently and notoriously, the horridly-written and overpriced volume by Presnell and McGee (1998) and several other books on the series that have included episode guides with commentary. 2001 and 2002 marked the release of Richard Matheson's TWILIGHT ZONE SCRIPTS, and in 2003 Earl Hamner's eight scripts were released. The scripts of Charles Beaumont are also now in print (edited by Roger Anker, published by Gauntlet Press), the three TWILIGHT ZONE scripts written by Jerry Sohl (edited by Christopher Conlon, BearManor Media, c. 2004), as is a collection of eight scripts written by non-mainstream writers compiled by Andrew Ramage (c. 2005, BearManor Media). The eight ZONE scripts and stories written by George Clayton Johnson were released a number of years ago, in 1976.

Tony Albarella undertook the project of introducing all ninety-two scripts written by Rod Serling. Having gotten a warm-up on the art of commentary writing as editor of Hamner's TWILIGHT ZONE SCRIPTS (Cumberland House, 2003), Albarella's commentaries here are excellent. Although not cast as an episode guide, this looks to be the finest analysis of TWILIGHT ZONE episodes to date. After audiences have taken Zicree's words as 'the last words on TWILIGHT ZONE' for many years, Tony Albarella gives a particularly insightful look at each episode. He has taken the time to interview many actors who appeared in/starred in each segment.

Included in each volume are the original, unedited, typewritten copies of Serling's scripts, sometimes with handwritten annotation. Bonus items include a photo gallery with never-before seen production and publicity stills, and short but touching tributes to Serling and the series by actors. Also included are nice essay appreciations by well-known TV and sci-fi writers.

Volume 2 includes the scripts for "Walking Distance", "Judgment Night", "King Nine Will Not Return", "The Silence", "The Passersby", "The Trade-Ins", "Of Late I Think of Cliffordville", "A Short Drink from a Certain Fountain", and "I am the Night - Color Me Black". Albarella offers fine,
in-depth commentary on all, and they are generally right on the mark. They include fascinating anecdotes from over a dozen actors who appeared in these "classic" episodes.

Volume 2 also includes musical cue sheets for each episode, taken straight from CBS's archives, which list the composer and title of the stock music clips that underline certain pointed dialogue and give dimension to scenes. These have never seen the light of day until now; this is very welcome information to diehard Zone fans.

After years of being bottled up and not readily available, this series of script books may well be the finest, if not
the most distinguished, presentations of TV scripts
currently out there.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another impressive addition to the TZ library, January 28, 2008

By 

Bill DeVoe "jiggs" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

I could cop out and simply say that Albarella's As Timeless As Infinity is written such that it is more than worthy to be associated with the high quality of that most unique of television programs - but hell...anyone lucky enough to own any one of the volumes publish to-date knows that. This is beautiful work - well-thought out with rare photos and wonderful anecdotes from those responsible for its greatness.
Serling would indeed be proud of these works. I confess to popping in DVDs and following along with each script - One gets a real appreciation for the art of the script and how it is brought to life and just how good these things were when conceived - nearly "camera-ready"
But I will also confess that I enjoyed reading Mr. Albarella's uniquely titled and very insightful episode commentaries as much or more.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars if you love to read scripts...., November 7, 2008

By 

Margaret Jaggard (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Reprinting scripts to a television program we enjoy watching isn't very exciting. Even less interesting for people trying to study film making, which is the point of reviewing scripts. Very few exceptions make scripts worth any value -- one being a page or two of dialogue that never made it to the finished production or handwritten notes from the author. While this is a valid and negative point, I would like to note that the commentary and insight behind the production of each episode is a plus. In fact, the best part of the book.

I share the same opinion with another reviewer: Marc Scott Zicree's book is NOT the "final word on Twilight Zone." The author who put this series of Rod Serling teleplay scripts did a good job with the commentary which makes Zicree's book even more obsolete.

Sadly, more than half of the book is reprints of scripts. And if this series concludes with the intended ten volumes (I have no doubt it will succeed) it will only cover two-thirds of the Twilight Zone scripts since it will only focus on the Serling teleplays. And at a price tag of $55 - $299 per volume depending on where you buy your copy, this is an expensive proposition.

Amazon.com does offer a solution cheaper than the cost of even one volume of this script series. THE TWILIGHT ZONE: UNLOCKING THE DOOR TO A TELEVISION CLASSIC by Martin Grams Jnr. covers the entire series with 800 plus pages of behind-the-scenes trivia, exclusive interviews with cast and crew and a detail level will exceed anyone's expectation. if you are looking for a book that covers "everything" about the TV series, the Grams book is the one to invest. If you are looking for scripts to read, then this is your best source.

As for this Serling script book, don't buy this unless you want to spend hours reading the same dialogue you can watch on TV tonight.