Posted on 07/13/2018 5:03:07 PM PDT by eastforker
Rod Serling served as a U.S. Armyparatrooper and demolition specialist with the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 11th Airborne Division in the Pacific Theater in World War II from January 1943 to January 1945 (Discharged stateside in 1946). He was seriously wounded in the wrist and knee during combat and was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Serling's military service deeply affected the rest of his life and influenced much of his writing. Due to his wartime experiences, Serling suffered from nightmares and flashbacks. During his service in World War II, he watched as his best friend was crushed to death by a heavy supply crate dropped by a parachute onto the field. Serling was rather short (5'4") and slight. He was a noted boxer during his military days.
(Excerpt) Read more at army.togetherweserved.com ...
He was a brilliant short story writer. Each episode was only 24 minutes long.
It seems that every time I saw him on TV, he had a cigarette in his hand. Pretty common for the 50s and 60s.
I once read that it is so common because it gave the actors something to do with their hands. The same reason they often hold a drink in modern shows.
As for actors, Dennis Weaver credits his TZ appearance with being able to shed the Gunsmoke typecasting stigma. And of course, William Shatner's gigs, Charles Bronsan, Elizabeth Montgomery, Jack Klugman, and too many more that slipped from memory.
Agreed. I still have my copy of his story collection, Other Worlds.
In an episode of “Perry Mason”, Perry mentions that he knows Rod Serling. I assume that either the actor or the people who made the show really did know him
LMAO.
William Shatner too. Yup, goos series.
Serling did more to make television a respectable art medium than perhaps any other person.
In “The Rewrite”, there’s scene with Marisa Tomei (with Hugh Grant) waxing on about Serling, the carousel, and Binghamton [NY].
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