"The Twilight Zone" The Odyssey of Flight 33 (1961)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

Jus Addiss

Writers:

Rod Serling (creator)
Rod Serling (written by)

TV Series:

"The Twilight Zone" (1959)

Original Air Date:

24 February 1961 (Season 2, Episode 18)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

Passing through the sound barrier a commercial airliner inadvertently travels back in time. |

Plot Keywords:

Cliffhanger | 1930s | Time Travel | Prehistory | Time Warp

Cast

John Anderson	...	Capt. 'Skipper' Farver
Paul Comi	...	1st Officer John Craig
Sandy Kenyon	...	Navigator Hatch
Wayne Heffley	...	2nd Officer Wyatt
Harp McGuire	...	Flight Engineer Purcell
Betty Garde	...	Passenger
Beverly Brown	...	Janie
Nancy Rennick	...	Paula
Jay Overholts	...	Passenger
Lester Fletcher	...	RAF Man

Runtime:

25 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Cayuga Productions

Trivia:

"The Odyssey of Flight 33", (which takes place entirely on board an airplane) features authentically realistic cockpit dialog written by an actual airline pilot and Rod Serling's brother, Robert, who was the aviation writer for United Press International. (Robert Serling was credited on-screen as a consultant.)

Goofs:

Continuity: When the plane is making its first descent, the radio operator's headphones are lowered to his neck, then over his head and ears, and finally back across his neck.

Quotes:

Narrator: Rod Sterling narrarating- A Global jet airliner, en route from London to New York on an uneventful afternoon in the year 1961, but now reported overdue and missing. By now searched for on land, sea, and air by anguished human beings, fearful of what they might find...

Does My Frequent Flyer Get Bonus Points?

Routine flight from London to New York City is detoured into the TZ.

For me the ending of this show is one of the most unsettling of the series. All the action takes place aboard the jet, so writer Serling had his work cut out for him. But he does keep our interest glued to the cockpit, even if the 5 man crew seems too cool and detached to be plausible. Still, the captain's (John Anderson's) unflappable reactions keep viewers attention focused on what's happening to the flight instead of the crew's reactions to it. The time travel theme is well-handled, particularly with the sonic shocks that impart an air of believability. There's also a humorous bit of byplay between the passengers reminiscent of the later Airport film series. However, someone should have taken a second look at those jungle miniatures, which must have come from some Z-movie stock footage. All in all, the show makes for a very entertaining, if unsettling, half-hour.