This episode holds a special place in my heart. I thought so highly of this episode that I wrote and made a parody of the episode. It had a lot going for it. It never appears on people’s top 25 lists, and that’s fine. Ed Wynn is the star of this one as Lou Bookman (It may be Lew). Ed was also The Mad Hatter in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland, Uncle Albert in Mary Poppins, and many other noteworthy roles and a very distinct voice. Murray Hamilton plays the role of Mr. Death and he is probably best known for his portrayal as Larry Vaughn in Jaws. Sit back and relax as we watch “One For The Angels”.
Rod Serling’s Opening Narration
“Street scene: Summer. The present. Man on a sidewalk named Lou Bookman, age sixtyish. Occupation: pitchman. Lew Bookman, a fixture of the summer, a rather minor component to a hot July, a nondescript, commonplace little man whose life is a treadmill built out of sidewalks. And in just a moment, Lou Bookman will have to concern himself with survival – because as of three o’clock this hot July afternoon, he’ll be stalked by Mr. Death.”
The Story
We meet Lou on the sidewalk trying to sell toys and all sorts of random stuff. There is a man in a black suit taking notes 10 feet away. That is Mr. Death and he has a date with Mr. Bookman. The kids all love Lou because he’s got toys and he likes to give some out. He gives a robot to Maggie.
Lou’s apartment is relatively cluttered. It appears that he has a month’s worth of newspapers among other things. He turns around and sees Mr. Death in there who is going over Lou’s personal info. Lou wonders if he is a census taker. Lou’s departure is for midnight that night. Lou doesn’t understand, but Maggie is knocking at his door. The windup key is bent on her toy. He wants to introduce her to the man, but she sees no gentleman. Death explains that she can’t see or hear him. Lou tells her to say goodbye to the man, and she giggles and leaves.
Now Lou is trying to figure this out. Death says that only those who are to accompany him can see him. Death explains the departure process and how little people appreciate it when he visits them as opposed to people who die from accidents. Lou still isn’t getting it. So Death touches a flower and it instantly wilts.
Death is trying to arrange everything and Lou is adamantly against dying. Lou asks if he can appeal. There are 3 potential areas of appeal. 1. Hardship cases, where you have family who may suffer ridiculously after the person’s demise. 2. Priority cases, important people on the verge of something big like a scientist. 3. Unfinished business of a major nature. Lou likes that third one. But his ideas are shot down until Lou says that he wants to make a big pitch that would make the skies open up, a pitch for the angels. Lou wants the children to be proud of him. Death is listening to this proposal, but he still says no, and Lou pouts. Lou’s pouting works! Death gives him an extension until Lou makes his pitch. Lou gets all kinds of happy thinking that he has pulled one over on Death. He thinks that by shutting the door on Death, that will solve it. This pisses off Death who appears back in the apartment. Lou leaves to run away but Death keeps following him.
Death tells Lou that there will be unintended consequences for his decision. Lou comes back by saying “FYI, that means for your information” and the delivery of this line always makes me laugh. Lou tells Death that he will have to wait for the big pitch. Death picks an alternative and suddenly there is a car screeching outside and a man accidentally hit Maggie with his car. Lou comforts Maggie and she wakes up. She asks Lou who the man is, she can now see Death. Lou is pissed and tells Death that he can’t take Maggie, that he can take Lou right now. You can see where this is going.
At night, the doctor checks on Maggie. Lou asks the doctor, and he says that they should know something by midnight. Ohhhh really? Lou is sitting on the steps and Death comes strolling by. It’s 15 minutes until midnight. Lou pleads with Death to take him. If Death isn’t in Maggie’s room precisely at midnight, it would mess the whole system up. Lou decides to set up shop on the sidewalk. Lou starts laying on his sales pitch to Death with a variety of items. Death is clearly Kentertained by Lou’s performance about how soft this tie is. Now Death has 5 ties on his arm and Lou is selling him some spool of silk. Death is so engaged in this and we see Maggie in bed. He is offering the spool for 25 cents, and Death will take all the spools that Lou has. Hell, he’s going to buy everything, and there is one minute to go until midnight.
Lou then offers himself up as a slave/companion for 4 years. Both men are super sweaty. Then the bell tolls at midnight and Death has missed his appointment. The doctor informs Maggie’s dad that she will be alright. Death then says how great of a pitch that was. Lou agrees, saying it was a big one, a pitch for the angels. Lou understands that it’s time for him to go and says that he’s ready. He gets his suitcase of goods and makes sure that he’s going to Heaven and Death assures him that he made it.
Rod Serling’s Closing Narration
“Louis J. Bookman, age sixtyish. Occupation: pitchman. Formerly a fixture of the summer, formerly a rather minor component to a hot July. But, throughout his life, a man beloved by the children, and therefore, a most important man. Couldn’t happen, you say? Probably not in most places – but it did happen in the Twilight Zone.”
Final Thoughts
You may be wondering why I chose this episode of the Twilight Zone to parody. There is a lot going on here while keeping it incredibly simple. Also, I really loved the ending. It made a lot of sense. It’s also left ambiguously if Death intentionally missed his deadline or not. They play it as if he got hooked by the pitch, but you could argue either side of the coin here. They both got what they wanted in the end. Death isn’t always an easy topic to go in-depth on, but this was pretty creative. This wouldn’t be the last variation on a Mr. Death coming to visit somebody in this series. There is something wonderful to me about the pitch and both men’s performances. It’s not perfect, but it should be appreciated for the performances, creativity, and ideas on hand.
Final Rating: 7.2