On this day, October 11, 1963, The Twilight Zone first aired "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet."

[mahatmakanejeeves]

President Kennedy might have sat down to watch this episode.

Nightmare at 20,000 Feet


William Shatner with Nick Cravat (not in full costume) as the gremlin

Episode no.: Season 5, Episode 3
Directed by: Richard Donner
Written by: Richard Matheson
Based on: "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" by Richard Matheson
Original air date: October 11, 1963

The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) (season 5)
List of episodes

"Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" is episode 123 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone, based on the short story of the same name by Richard Matheson, first published in Alone by Night (1961). It originally aired on October 11, 1963 and is one of the most well-known and frequently referenced episodes of the series. The story follows the only passenger on an airline flight to notice a hideous creature wandering around the wing of the plane while it is in flight.

In 2019, Keith Phipps of Vulture stated that the episode "doubles as such an effective shorthand for a fear of flying", making it endure in popular culture. This is the first of six episodes to be directed by Richard Donner.

{snip}

Closing narration

The flight of Mr. Robert Wilson has ended now, a flight not only from point A to point B, but also from the fear of recurring mental breakdown. Mr. Wilson has that fear no longer... though, for the moment, he is, as he has said, alone in this assurance. Happily, his conviction will not remain isolated too much longer, for happily, tangible manifestation is very often left as evidence of trespass, even from so intangible a quarter as the Twilight Zone.

{snip}

Turn on the lights before you watch this clip.

The Twilight Zone (Classic): Nightmare At 20,000 Feet - There's A Man Out There
68,701 views Mar 7, 2019

The Twilight Zone
6.61K subscribers

Airline passenger Bob Wilson (William Shatner) spots a creature on the wing of the airplane - but nobody believes him. Check back each Thursday for more Twilight Zone Classic videos. Stream The Twilight Zone on CBS All Access.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCb2D2kOgR4dpNdzxxEH4Dg

[Arkansas Granny]

1. That is one of many episodes that have remained in my brain over the years.

Twilight Zone was required watching in our house. But, then again, so was Lawrence Welk.

[lark]

3. Ha, your house sounds like ours.

Ed Sullivan & Walt Disney Presents were all staples as well.

[Arkansas Granny]

4. My mother always said she could tell when one of the Lennon sisters was pregnant.

They had to sing while standing behind the piano.

[lark]

2. Yep, this is the classic Twilight Zone show.

I've seen it so many times. There are 2 others I love - one with Burgess Meredith who kills all people so he can spend all the time with his books, then breaks his glasses & can't read. The other one that sticks with me is the one where the "normal" girl is in the hospital bed being treated by "monsters", only at the end it's the monsters who are normal and she who is the monster to them.