Show:
Twilight Zone
Episode:
"The Long Morrow"
Airdate:
January 10, 1964
Synopsis:
Just before astronaut Douglas Stansfield leaves on a forty-year mission to outer
space, he falls in love with fellow NASA employee Sandra Horn. During the trip, he will be kept in suspended animation
and will only age a few weeks. She, on the other hand, will age normally and be an old woman when he returns.
A decision he makes shortly after takeoff has tragic consequences for their relationship.
RL's Character:
Commander Douglas Stansfield
Favorite Scenes:
Anytime he was in the box, the shot of his hands during the scene where Doug
and Sandy meet, and the kiss, of course. :-)
Favorite Line:
General Walker: "Stansfield, you're really quite an incredible
man. It may be the one distinction in my entire life that I knew you. That I knew a man who put such a premium
on love."
Comments:
I usually try to ignore the problems I have with this episode, mainly the concept
of suspended animation and the logistics of deep space travel, and enjoy it for what it is. This episode reminds me
a lot of the classic short story "The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry, except the ending is even more tragic. The
last scene between Doug and Sandy breaks my heart every time, and I thought RL did an absolutely fantastic job of playing
it. Even though it's very understated, you can see his anguish when he realizes he spent forty years in complete
solitude waiting for a woman that he can now never have.
For those of you with iPods, iTunes is selling
audio books of individual episodes of Twilight Zone, including "The Long Morrow". It is read by Stacy
Keach (Stansfield) and Kathy Garver (Sandy). Ironically, Garver was in an episode of Insight with
RL and they became romantically involved in real life. You can download the book for $1.95.
Pet Peeve:
The old-age make-up job pretty much sucked.
RL Factor:
If you want to see RL almost nekkid, this is your chance. <g> When
he's in the box or case or whatever that thing is, the only thing covering him is one itsy-bitsy teeny pair of shorts.
Enjoy!
Availability:
This episode is available in three different DVD packages: The Twilight Zone:
Vol. 23 (released April 18, 2000); The Twilight Zone: Season 5 (released December 26, 2005), and The
Twilight Zone: The Definitive Collection (released October 3, 2006).
