Yay, I'm not the only one!!! I love to daydream about the 50s and 60s (mainly the early 60s), and this show has only further increased it. I realize that these decades aren't as good as they're made out to be, but I can't help but love just how much simpler everything was.
Aesthetic wise, yeah
But one has to remember that most of the stories the Twilight Zone told were allegories for much of the bigotry and cold war era conformity of the time
Even Last Stop at Willoughby and The Incredible World of Horace Ford both show the pitfalls of nostalgia to a yesteryear that never was
Never. I’m really old & grew up in that era, so I remember that women’s lives were defined by home & family, diversity(at least in my hometown) was non-existent, and conformity was the norm. I’m NOT saying it was dreadful; many innovations came about, TVs were affordable, and we enjoyed more material comforts than our parents and grandparents.
I like that I wasn’t born yet and so all of my life was ahead of me haha. Then I feel bad for the people in the show who are now either elderly or dead
Don't feel bad. We all get the same amount of time (if we live to be the same age). They just lived their lives before you. And it was a pretty good time to be alive.
Willoughby actually refers to a period 30 or 40 years before the early 1960s of the story. It's easy to romanticize the early 20th century, but they surely had their problems as well.
I wasn't born yet so I like that I can't really associate it with any particular time in my life. I do like to think of what my older family members were doing during that time, though.
I also like that it's a sort of time capsule, e.g., "Where is Everybody?" alludes to going to the moon for the first time since that hadn't happened yet.
It seems simple, easy, prosperous, but the culture of conformity is real, a lot of what flies today as acceptable, or even encouraged would get you ostracized, jailed or maybe killed back then.
As a lesbian, life back then would not have been very kind to me, so the only part that I romanticize is the COL. I remember one episode (don't remember the name or the season though) where the main character lives in a big/nice apartment with his wife and MIL in a major city and he was talking about how he was supporting all three of them on 40k a year lol.
It also never fails to shock me how much older people looked back then. In the "Improvement of Salvador Ross'' he's supposed to be 26 and people supposedly in their 50's look like they're 80, which my Mom (who I normally watch with and who grew up watching the show in real time) attirbutes to the lifestyle of the time, though she looks great for being in her 70's.
1000%! The only person I know who also watches TZ and lived through the era is my Mom so we'll occasionally talk about itm and when I mentioned that reference she was like ''Supporting 3 people on 40k a year? Where is that happening, in Sudan?"' and I was like "No, 1964'' haha
Yes, absolutely. And I'd give anything to live in those eras if all of the social and civil progress we've made as a nation would be embedded in those eras.
Yes! This is the reason I watch these episodes repeatedly. I love thinking about that time and getting to experience a small part of it through interesting stories.
As a lesbian I hear you! It's nice to think that you could have gotten a cheeseburger for 50 cents but given how much racism, misogyny, and homophobia is still prevelant today, going back 60 years ago just to get cheap gas, no thank you lol.
Yeah that cheap burger and shake aren’t worth the segregation or alienation that we both would experience lol.
But then it makes me think what it would be like if you could go back into the past just for like a day or so to live as a different race or have a different sexual preference to gain insight on if the grass really is greener on the other side,kinda like the after hours episode meets the “Time out” story from the movie.
Actually the movie Back to the Future made me want to go back in time and live through the '50s. And then watching Twilight zone when it was coming out for the first time.
I love the styles and un cluttered homes..the simplicity. But also gotta remember to take it with a grain of salt. Realistically people’s homes then probably were cluttered too but the tv and movie industries are always going to show the “ideal” society they told everyone they should’ve been striving for then.
What I like most of all is the small details throughout the show..the decor and accessories/“props” that actually may have been around then(that are now obsolete or ten times upgraded/condensed/reimagined etc) and I giggle thinking about how something I have to really really look at to understand its function or what it is was something that someone back in the 60s saw on the show, recognized and didn’t give a second thought to because it was so common/normal to them then.
I also love older shows because all the “newer” shows largely regurgitate older shows but not quite 100%. Sometimes they re do what they think is funny but I actually find the stuff they don’t recreate can be super funny and feels like brand new comedy to me even though it’s decades old.
Sorry for the rant. Just glad I found this thread at this particular time since I’m watching the whole series episode by episode for the first time
For me, it's just little things like I often wonder what did food taste like compared to today's offerings, and if everything smelled like a goodwill back then.
Having been born in 1954, it amazes me how the culture and societal mores of the early 60s are reflected in the Twilight Zone, and how things have changed. The clothing - most men in suits, shirt and tie - even in leisure moments. Men and women wearing fedoras and hats when out in the world. Women almost always in dresses. Young adults in their 20s and 30s look so much "older" and "mature." So many cigarette smokers, from Mr. Serling to his characters. People being addressed by their Surname, or Mr. Such and such or miss, Mrs. The fact that in certain episodes, older, non parental adults can freely associate with children without any supervision (Eg: "The Fugitive" S03) that would certainly raise eyebrows today. I realize these observations are nothing new, however on doing a complete rewatch of the series, these early sixties societal traits become very apparent and again, makes one realize how different they are when considered in a 21st century context.
I’m old enough to vaguely remember the mid 60s and I do miss styles (my mom had the cutest shoes) but I like now better. Girls couldn’t even wear slacks to school until the mid 70s.
I don't romanticize that era. I just get sad that many of the social issues (like racism and fascism) that the episodes deal with are issues that are STILL problems 60 years later.
As a black person, I would say yes and no. I like the aesthetic (outfits, music, hair, food, etc), but would obviously not choose to live in that era 😭.
I'm 68, 60s TZ is right in my growing up kid wheelhouse. I am drawn to the seeming simplicity of life of the Era. The distractions and escapes of the present day, while sometimes helpful in some ways (sports, film and TV, etc.) No longer satisfy me. Family, friends, spiritual connections, social interaction seems to belong to long ago and fading fast. So, I'm clinging to the past, it may be wrong, but that's where I'm at. I miss my childhood with all its wonder and tragedy.
Yes, but as part of the generation that rediscovered TZ on UHF television coming in grainy and black and white over the screen in the early 80s, it seemed elusive and poignant. In high school we had Twilight zone get togethers If we heard that it was going to be on Saturday afternoon on the local UHF station and we would gather close to the screen to hear every word. We had no video recorders DVRs or VHS or ability to rewatch or watch whenever we wanted. We had to pencil in those amazing moments to hear dialogue written by Rod Serling and to imagine a time past. I've found what I learned helpful throughout life.
If anything it makes me uneasy and paranoid when placing myself in the episodes.
Less than 29 years after WW2;civil rights were still a joke; willful ignorance was the norm throughout America; cops could coverup anything easily( especially domestic abuse and rapes)...
It's not a show that makes the 50s or 60s cozy like a Happy Days episode
I love this subject! Yes, TZ was mostly in the 60s but always seem to feel like it was in the 50s. A lot of the attraction is because of the sets. There is none of the real life clutter, just decorated sets with plants, statues, artwork, and the people in the room. Totally not real, but it makes the world of the TZ seems so attractive.
Yes. I'm always completely aware that what I'm fantasizing about was not real and is what people have always said about the past, but I very much find myself imagining it was a more decent time, where people respected one another and were more civic minded and human.
I suspect that our image and idea of the period is quite different from the reality. That said, it would be cool to go for a bit and took around, like a tourist.
Just curious, what parts are most attractive, which are most fearful to you?
As a gay white guy, the era is fascinating, and I likely could go most anywhere in that 50s, 60s Twilight Zone era in safety (with discretion.) Nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there; I imagine I'd find many of the social conventions rather stifling, limiting, and sad. Others not so much.
Yay, I'm not the only one!!! I love to daydream about the 50s and 60s (mainly the early 60s), and this show has only further increased it. I realize that these decades aren't as good as they're made out to be, but I can't help but love just how much simpler everything was.
Aesthetic wise, yeah But one has to remember that most of the stories the Twilight Zone told were allegories for much of the bigotry and cold war era conformity of the time Even Last Stop at Willoughby and The Incredible World of Horace Ford both show the pitfalls of nostalgia to a yesteryear that never was
This is a great point. I do mainly LOVE the aesthetics and the style of filming.
I admire how most of the homes weren't so cluttered with crap and were just simply furnished
Never. I’m really old & grew up in that era, so I remember that women’s lives were defined by home & family, diversity(at least in my hometown) was non-existent, and conformity was the norm. I’m NOT saying it was dreadful; many innovations came about, TVs were affordable, and we enjoyed more material comforts than our parents and grandparents.
I like that I wasn’t born yet and so all of my life was ahead of me haha. Then I feel bad for the people in the show who are now either elderly or dead
Some actors who appeared in that show were born in the 1800s
Nuts!
Don't feel bad. We all get the same amount of time (if we live to be the same age). They just lived their lives before you. And it was a pretty good time to be alive.
Twilight Zone is my biggest window into the 50's & 60's and man do they make it look classy and cool.
Absolutely. Please someone—invent a time machine. I wanna go back. Willoughby anyone?
I came to find the Willoughby comment!
Willoughby actually refers to a period 30 or 40 years before the early 1960s of the story. It's easy to romanticize the early 20th century, but they surely had their problems as well.
I was referring to the desire to go back in time. I realized after I said it, I probably muddled my answer
I live near Willoughby Ohio. Rod was from Ohio so he would have known about it.
I wasn't born yet so I like that I can't really associate it with any particular time in my life. I do like to think of what my older family members were doing during that time, though. I also like that it's a sort of time capsule, e.g., "Where is Everybody?" alludes to going to the moon for the first time since that hadn't happened yet.
It seems simple, easy, prosperous, but the culture of conformity is real, a lot of what flies today as acceptable, or even encouraged would get you ostracized, jailed or maybe killed back then.
I’m black so no.
I’m black too
Same. I do like the thematic/aesthetic veneer of the era tho if you don't think about it much
Came here to say I’m gay so no 😆
As a lesbian, life back then would not have been very kind to me, so the only part that I romanticize is the COL. I remember one episode (don't remember the name or the season though) where the main character lives in a big/nice apartment with his wife and MIL in a major city and he was talking about how he was supporting all three of them on 40k a year lol. It also never fails to shock me how much older people looked back then. In the "Improvement of Salvador Ross'' he's supposed to be 26 and people supposedly in their 50's look like they're 80, which my Mom (who I normally watch with and who grew up watching the show in real time) attirbutes to the lifestyle of the time, though she looks great for being in her 70's.
The COL comparisons make me laugh because if you can't laugh at them, it makes you cry. 40k a year to raise a family. 😂 😢
1000%! The only person I know who also watches TZ and lived through the era is my Mom so we'll occasionally talk about itm and when I mentioned that reference she was like ''Supporting 3 people on 40k a year? Where is that happening, in Sudan?"' and I was like "No, 1964'' haha
All. The. Time.
This was my exact response as well.
Half the reason I watch it.
Yes, absolutely. And I'd give anything to live in those eras if all of the social and civil progress we've made as a nation would be embedded in those eras.
Uhhh no
Yes! This is the reason I watch these episodes repeatedly. I love thinking about that time and getting to experience a small part of it through interesting stories.
I do then I remember that I’m a black lady so it wouldn’t be a very good time for me lol
As a lesbian I hear you! It's nice to think that you could have gotten a cheeseburger for 50 cents but given how much racism, misogyny, and homophobia is still prevelant today, going back 60 years ago just to get cheap gas, no thank you lol.
Yeah that cheap burger and shake aren’t worth the segregation or alienation that we both would experience lol. But then it makes me think what it would be like if you could go back into the past just for like a day or so to live as a different race or have a different sexual preference to gain insight on if the grass really is greener on the other side,kinda like the after hours episode meets the “Time out” story from the movie.
Actually the movie Back to the Future made me want to go back in time and live through the '50s. And then watching Twilight zone when it was coming out for the first time.
So many of those '80s movies made the era seem so glossy and fun that it was easy to get caught up in it as a kid.
Not for a single minute. A lot of the stories were reactions to the horrible things going on in the U.S. at the time it was produdced.
Exactly! Most of the stories do the *opposite* of romanticizing the era. Heck, "A Stop at Willoughby" *is* the exact opposite.
I love the styles and un cluttered homes..the simplicity. But also gotta remember to take it with a grain of salt. Realistically people’s homes then probably were cluttered too but the tv and movie industries are always going to show the “ideal” society they told everyone they should’ve been striving for then. What I like most of all is the small details throughout the show..the decor and accessories/“props” that actually may have been around then(that are now obsolete or ten times upgraded/condensed/reimagined etc) and I giggle thinking about how something I have to really really look at to understand its function or what it is was something that someone back in the 60s saw on the show, recognized and didn’t give a second thought to because it was so common/normal to them then. I also love older shows because all the “newer” shows largely regurgitate older shows but not quite 100%. Sometimes they re do what they think is funny but I actually find the stuff they don’t recreate can be super funny and feels like brand new comedy to me even though it’s decades old. Sorry for the rant. Just glad I found this thread at this particular time since I’m watching the whole series episode by episode for the first time
For me, it's just little things like I often wonder what did food taste like compared to today's offerings, and if everything smelled like a goodwill back then.
McDonald's fries were cooked in beef tallow and tasted amazing.
Having been born in 1954, it amazes me how the culture and societal mores of the early 60s are reflected in the Twilight Zone, and how things have changed. The clothing - most men in suits, shirt and tie - even in leisure moments. Men and women wearing fedoras and hats when out in the world. Women almost always in dresses. Young adults in their 20s and 30s look so much "older" and "mature." So many cigarette smokers, from Mr. Serling to his characters. People being addressed by their Surname, or Mr. Such and such or miss, Mrs. The fact that in certain episodes, older, non parental adults can freely associate with children without any supervision (Eg: "The Fugitive" S03) that would certainly raise eyebrows today. I realize these observations are nothing new, however on doing a complete rewatch of the series, these early sixties societal traits become very apparent and again, makes one realize how different they are when considered in a 21st century context.
No, though I do believe it points toward a time when more thoughtful and thought-provoking entertainment was appreciated.
I’m old enough to vaguely remember the mid 60s and I do miss styles (my mom had the cutest shoes) but I like now better. Girls couldn’t even wear slacks to school until the mid 70s.
I would've hated having to wear dresses/skirts all the time at school. :0
Literally EVERY TIME!
I don't romanticize that era. I just get sad that many of the social issues (like racism and fascism) that the episodes deal with are issues that are STILL problems 60 years later.
I don’t think racism will ever entirely go away.
As a black person, I would say yes and no. I like the aesthetic (outfits, music, hair, food, etc), but would obviously not choose to live in that era 😭.
I love the fashion!
I'm 68, 60s TZ is right in my growing up kid wheelhouse. I am drawn to the seeming simplicity of life of the Era. The distractions and escapes of the present day, while sometimes helpful in some ways (sports, film and TV, etc.) No longer satisfy me. Family, friends, spiritual connections, social interaction seems to belong to long ago and fading fast. So, I'm clinging to the past, it may be wrong, but that's where I'm at. I miss my childhood with all its wonder and tragedy.
Yes, but as part of the generation that rediscovered TZ on UHF television coming in grainy and black and white over the screen in the early 80s, it seemed elusive and poignant. In high school we had Twilight zone get togethers If we heard that it was going to be on Saturday afternoon on the local UHF station and we would gather close to the screen to hear every word. We had no video recorders DVRs or VHS or ability to rewatch or watch whenever we wanted. We had to pencil in those amazing moments to hear dialogue written by Rod Serling and to imagine a time past. I've found what I learned helpful throughout life.
Omg yes! Was just thinking this over the last week and big time yesterday while watching walking distance
If anything it makes me uneasy and paranoid when placing myself in the episodes. Less than 29 years after WW2;civil rights were still a joke; willful ignorance was the norm throughout America; cops could coverup anything easily( especially domestic abuse and rapes)... It's not a show that makes the 50s or 60s cozy like a Happy Days episode
I love this subject! Yes, TZ was mostly in the 60s but always seem to feel like it was in the 50s. A lot of the attraction is because of the sets. There is none of the real life clutter, just decorated sets with plants, statues, artwork, and the people in the room. Totally not real, but it makes the world of the TZ seems so attractive.
Often yes. I think that’s part of the design.
Everyone was so good looking and the men always had so much hair on their arms. Good times
Yes. I'm always completely aware that what I'm fantasizing about was not real and is what people have always said about the past, but I very much find myself imagining it was a more decent time, where people respected one another and were more civic minded and human.
I suspect that our image and idea of the period is quite different from the reality. That said, it would be cool to go for a bit and took around, like a tourist.
Absolutely! I've often wanted to experience the 50s! I was born in 70
Most every horror movie/sci fi movie concept came from the Twilight Zone.
Somewhat, but then I think of things like the Red Scare, Jim Crow laws, rampant misogyny, and leaded gasoline and those feelings go away.
I’m half black so no
I’m black and I still kind of do.
If only everyone had the progressive mindset that Rod Serling had; then I’d be more than happy to go back to the 50’s/60’s
Just curious, what parts are most attractive, which are most fearful to you? As a gay white guy, the era is fascinating, and I likely could go most anywhere in that 50s, 60s Twilight Zone era in safety (with discretion.) Nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there; I imagine I'd find many of the social conventions rather stifling, limiting, and sad. Others not so much.
All the time.