Episode 166: Thankful for the Night Gallery

Greetings, Planet 8 listeners and viewers! We come once again to that time of the year where we are inclined to do some reflection and realize we have much to be thankful for. We're thankful for all of you, tuning in over and over again, leaving us comments and letting us know what you enjoyed and what your thoughts are on whatever topic we're covering. We're thankful for each other and the friendship we continue to grow and celebrate. And in this particular episode, we are thankful for a short-lived but much-loved TV show, Rod Serling's The Night Gallery.

While Serling is forever identified with The Twilight Zone-and rightly so- from 1970 to 1973, he served as host to this horror anthology series. Night Gallery's stories showcased the macabre, and could be genuinely frightening (especially if you were a kid!). Serling frequently contributed scripts, and many episodes were adaptations of works by well known writers of horror, including H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and Margaret St. Clair.  The show was also graced by many actors that would be recognized by any child of the 70s, such as Vincent Price, Bill Bixby, and William Windom. Despite being the namesake of the show, Serling had little actual creative control over the show, and was disappointed in its direction, as he favored a more nuanced approach. Night Gallery was in your face weird and scary. The show also featured short segments that were comedic, and Serling really disliked these, saying they threw off the tone of the program.But regardless of how Serling felt, he hosted the show and gave it some gravitas. And his presence was a welcome one.

With our returning guest, Lord Blood Rah, we'll discuss some favorite episodes, which ones scared us the most, and our favorite actors. We hope you'll enjoy this trip back through The Night Gallery. We'd love to hear your favorite episodes -please send us comments.

In our Sensor Sweep, Lord Blood Rah shares that he'll be at the East Bay Comic Con in Concord, California in February of next year, if you want to see him in person. Otherwise, you can catch all things Blood Rah at lordbloodrah.com. Likewise, Karen can be found talking about science fiction and fantasy books on her YouTube channel, Echoes from the Satellite. Chief Engineer Bob has got the blue ribbon - Pabst Blue Ribbon, that is. No, we're not endorsing beer now. It's just that these cans have Godzilla and friends on the back of them. Why? Why not?

Finally, Commander Larry brings us back to our topic, Night Gallery, with some beautiful Night Gallery tomes. He shares two books, both purchased via kickstarters. One is Rod Serling's Night Gallery and After Hours Tour, and the other is Rod Serling's Night Gallery the Art of Darkness. Both are from Creature features Press, and are absolutely incredible! However, be prepared to drop some serious coin if you are trying to buy these books now.

That's all for us this time, friends. To those of you in the U.S., we wish you a very happy Thanksgiving. And to all of you, wherever you are, we appreciate you and wish you health and happiness. Take care.

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I swear I thought turkeys could fly!!