TWILIGHT ZONE, THE: I AM THE NIGHT -- COLOR ME BLACK (TV)
Summary
One in this science fiction/fantasy anthology series hosted by Rod Serling. In this episode, Sheriff Charlie Koch awakens to realize that it is 7:30 a.m., but that the sun has not risen and it is still pitch black in his small Midwestern town. He is troubled because an accused murderer named Jagger is scheduled to be hanged in two hours. He discusses the strange darkness with his colleague, Deputy Pierce, who remains anxious to see the execution.
Colbey, a newspaperman, stops by to report that citizens are starting to panic, speculating that the darkness signifies the end of the world. Reports indicate that only their small town has been affected. Colbey asks Koch about Jagger's guilt, noting that the murder victim was a Ku Klux Klan member and recalling reports that Jagger acted in self-defense. Also, clues at the crime scene were glossed over.
Colbey goes into the jail and talks to Jagger, who sarcastically states that he is guilty and wryly calls himself "a bad guy.” Colbey tells Jagger that, despite the victim’s behavior, men cannot legally dispense justice. Meanwhile, a crowd gathers to watch the execution. Koch and Pierce debate whether they should go ahead, considering the bizarre darkness.
As 9:30 approaches, Koch recalls that everyone involved with Jagger's verdict had their own agenda: Pierce perjured himself to get public approval, Koch ignored evidence so he could be re-elected, and Colbey didn't print the truth in an effort to sell more papers. Koch asks Reverend Anderson if there might be a “theological explanation” for the darkness, but the reverend has no clear answer. Jagger is then brought to the gallows.
Anderson, who is black, intercedes and thanks Jagger for attempting to defend the black community. However, Jagger admits that he took satisfaction in the murder, making Anderson deem that he is indeed guilty. As the gathering mob craves violence, Jagger promises that he’ll “please them all” by suffering before his death, although he won't apologize to "the majority."
Anderson muses that the majority is “all there is, and the minority died on the cross two thousand years ago.” Jagger is then hanged as the subdued crowd watches. The reverend tells everyone in the crowd that they are as doomed as Jagger, and that the darkness is a result of their hatred. Just then, the darkness intensifies and all light seems to dim.
At the sheriff’s office, Pierce insists that the darkness is just “a fog” that will soon lift, but Colbey thinks that only God knows if the sun will rise again. As they turn up the radio, reports surface that other areas of the world, particularly areas of notable hatred and strife, are also going dark. Commercials deleted.
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Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: March 27, 1964 9:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:25:10
- COLOR/B&W: B&W
- CATALOG ID: B:00947
- GENRE: Drama, fantasy/science fiction
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, fantasy/science fiction; Execution; Capital punishment; Racism - Drama; Morality
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV series, 1959-1964
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- William Froug … Producer
- Abner Biberman … Director
- Rod Serling … Created by, Writer
- Rod Serling … Host
- Michael Constantine … Cast, Sheriff Charlie Koch
- Paul Fix … Cast, Colbey
- George Lindsey … Cast, Deputy Pierce
- Ivan Dixon … Cast, Reverend Anderson
- Eve McVeagh … Cast, Ella
- Terry Becker … Cast, Jagger