A Penny for Your Thoughts
| "A Penny for Your Thoughts" | |||
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| The Twilight Zone episode | |||
.JPG) Dick York in "A Penny for Your Thoughts" |
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| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 52 |
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| Directed by | James Sheldon | ||
| Written by | George Clayton Johnson | ||
| Featured music | Stock | ||
| Production code | 173-3650 | ||
| Original air date | February 3, 1961 | ||
| Guest stars | |||
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Dick York: Hector B. Poole |
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| Episode chronology | |||
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| List of Twilight Zone episodes | |||
"A Penny for Your Thoughts" is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Hector B. Poole, a timid bank clerk, gains telepathic powers after tossing a coin that miraculously stands on its edge. He discovers that he is able to "listen" other people's thoughts, and is surprised to hear the things people are thinking around him.
He first "hears" his boss thinking about a weekend affair he is planning with his mistress. He then "hears" a businessman, Mr. Sykes, trying to take out a large loan to pay for a run at the horse track to win back money he has embezzled from his company. Hector informs his boss, Mr. Bagby, and thwarts the businessman's plans. Hector then "hears" Miss Turner, a co-worker, has been admiring Hector from afar, but wishes he would be more bold. Hector "hears" her thoughts and decides to take her into his confidence by revealing his "gift" to her. He also "hears" no thoughts at all from a blonde woman, which was a stealthy blonde joke inserted into the episode.
Eventually he uncovers an apparent plot by an old trusted employee, Mr. Smithers, to steal money from the bank. The plot is eventually disproved; the veteran bank employee admits he has been thinking about stealing money from the bank for years, but would never go through with such a plan. Mr. Bagby fires Hector, but later reinstates him when he discovers Hector was correct about Sykes. With the encouragement of Miss Turner, Hector uses his knowledge of Mr. Bagby's tryst to blackmail his boss into giving him not only a better position as an office manager at the bank, but also Mr. Smithers a long overdue vacation.
After work, as Poole returns home with Miss Turner, he inadvertently knocks down the coin he stood up earlier. To his relief, his ability to read minds is gone; but he is still a changed man, for the better.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media. ISBN 978-1-59393-136-0
- Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9703310-9-0
