"NBC Experiment in Television" The Cube (1969)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Jim Henson

Writers:

Jim Henson (writer)
Jerry Juhl (writer)

TV Series:

"NBC Experiment in Television" (1967)

Original Air Date:

23 February 1969 (Season 3, Episode 3)

Genre:

Documentary | Animation | Comedy | Drama | Music

Plot:

A man is trapped inside a mysterious cube.

Plot Keywords:

Trapped | Room | Professor

Cast

Richard Schaal	...	The Man in the Cube
Hugh Webster	...	Arnie
Rex Sevenoaks	...	Manager
Jack Van Evera	...	Prisoner
Jon Granic	...	Straight Man / Sergeant
Guy Sanvido	...	Comic Fritz
Eliza Creighton	...	Seductress
Don Crawford	...	Black Militant
William Osler	...	Scientist
Jerry Nelson	...	Monk
Sandra Scott	...	Decorator
Claude Rae	...	Dr. Conners
Don McGill	...	Professor
Ralph Endersby	...	Guitarist
Trudy Young	...	Liza #1

Runtime:

53 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

CFTO Television Studio - Scarborough, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Henson Associates (HA)

Quotes:

Professor: Excuse me, I know this is a bad time but I just wanted to congratulate you and shake your hand.
The Man in the Cube: Oh? On what?
Professor: Well, as I interpret what you're doing here, this is all a very complex discussion of Reality versus Illusion. The perfect subject for the television medium!
The Man in the Cube: What do you mean, television?
Professor: Well, this is a television play.
The Man in the Cube: What?
Professor: Oh, you don't believe that?
The Man in the Cube: Of course not!
Professor: I should have thought you'd want to. After all, there's only one other possible explanation.
The Man in the Cube: Which is?
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Cube (1997)

Escaping

How do you fight an imaginary monster? Understand that it is your mind that makes it real. The paradox is that the mind can't change what it has created... because it believes in itself. I just received a copy of The Cube. I had not seen it in about 30 years. It made a strong impact on me as a kid... probably because children see their reflection clearer without all the assumptions that now cloud our sight. We search for meaning and children just see it. I have written plays because of the impact of productions like this. There is a lot of value here. It is certainly dated, but in a comedic sort of way that seems intentional. One of my first thoughts on seeing it again is that Jim Henson created The Cube and then he spent the rest of his life doing The Muppets... beautiful. A great tribute would be a reproduction of The Cube using The Muppets... Kermit trapped inside with all of the others coming through the panels... if you listen closely to the dialogue... you can hear them all. Don't miss this one.