"Five Characters in Search of an Exit" is episode 79 of the television

anthology series An anthology series is a written series, radio, television, film, or video game series that presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a different ca ...

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

''. It originally aired on December 22, 1961.

Opening narration

Plot

A uniformed

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

major wakes up to find himself trapped inside a large metal

cylinder A cylinder () has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infinite ...

, where he meets a hobo, a ballet dancer, a bagpiper, and a clown. All of them theorize wildly regarding their presence here, as no one remembers who they are or how they became trapped, and they do not seem to have any need for food or water. The major, being the newest arrival, is the most determined to escape. He is told there is no way of either breaking through or climbing up the cylinder. Eventually, the major suggests a plan to escape: forming a tower of people, each person on the other's shoulders. However, the dancer at the top of the tower is still a few inches short of the cylinder's top, and a loud clanging sound shakes the cylinder and sends the five tumbling to the ground. The major demands that they all make a promise to not leave the cylinder until everyone else has left. Now even more determined, the major fashions a

grappling hook A grappling hook or grapnel is a device that typically has multiple hooks (known as ''claws'' or ''flukes'') attached to a rope or cable; it is thrown, dropped, sunk, projected, or fastened directly by hand to where at least one hook may cat ...

out of loose bits of clothing and his sword. By reforming the tower, he manages to grapple onto the edge of the cylinder, only to tumble to the ground outside. Inside, the clown bemoans how the major left without them and will not rescue them if he ever returns, and surmises that the major was right about them being in

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...

. Just then a little girl picks up a

doll A doll is a physical model, model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and ...

from the snow, in the dress of an army major. The cylinder is a

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

toy collection barrel for a girls'

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or abusi ...

, and all five characters are dolls. The loud clanging was the ringing of a

bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...

, used by a woman to attract donations; she tells the girl to return the doll to the barrel. The five characters, now dolls with painted faces and glass eyes, lie unmoving. The ballet dancer nonetheless moves her hand to hold that of the major's as her eyes fill with tears.

Closing narration

Cast

* Susan Harrison as Ballerina *

William Windom William Windom may refer to: * William Windom (politician) (1827–1891), U.S. representative from Minnesota * William Windom (actor) (1923–2012), his great-grandson, American actor See also * William Windham (disambiguation) {{hndis, Wi ...

as Major *

Murray Matheson Sidney Murray Matheson (1 July 1912 – 25 April 1985) was a U.S.-based Australian actor. He appeared on stage and in films and television programs until 1983. Biography Matheson was born in Casterton, Australia in 1912 where he grew up on a 3 ...

as Clown * Kelton Garwood as Hobo * Clark Allen as Bagpiper

Episode notes

The episode's title is a variation on the Pirandello play ''

Six Characters in Search of an Author ''Six Characters in Search of an Author'' ( ) is an Italian play by Luigi Pirandello, written and first performed in 1921. An absurdist metatheatric play about the relationship among authors, their characters, and theatre practitioners, it p ...

'' and existentialist

Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th-century French ph ...

play ''

No Exit ''No Exit'' (, ) is a 1944 existentialist French play by Jean-Paul Sartre. The play was first performed at the Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier in May 1944. The play centers around a depiction of the afterlife in which three deceased characters a ...

,'' both of which served as inspiration for the script. Dolls were specially crafted for the final shots that closely resembled the actors who had played the parts.

Legacy

The episode was reportedly an inspiration for the 1997 film ''

Cube A cube or regular hexahedron is a three-dimensional space, three-dimensional solid object in geometry, which is bounded by six congruent square (geometry), square faces, a type of polyhedron. It has twelve congruent edges and eight vertices. It i ...

''. The TV series '' Felicity'' paid homage in its episode "Help for the Lovelorn"; both episodes were directed by Lamont Johnson. This episode would also serve as one of the inspirations for horror film director

Damien Leone Damien Leone (born January 29, 1982)is an American filmmaker, film editor, and special effects artist. He is best known for writing and directing ''All Hallows' Eve (2013 film), All Hallows' Eve'' (2013), ''Terrifier'' (2016), ''Terrifier 2'' (20 ...

to create the character Art the Clown who serves as the main antagonist in Leone's ''Terrifier'' franchise.

References

External links

*
''Five Characters in Search of an Exit'' Review
at The Twilight Zone Project {{DEFAULTSORT:Five Characters In Search Of An Exit 1961 American television episodes The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) season 3 episodes Works based on Six Characters in Search of an Author Existentialist works Sentient toys in fiction Television episodes written by Rod Serling Television shows based on short fiction Television shows about clowns Absurdist fiction