Five Characters in Search of an Exit

"Five Characters in Search of an Exit"
The Twilight Zone episode
Susan Harrison as the Ballerina in Five Characters In Search Of An Exit
Episode no.	Season 3 Episode 79
Directed by	Lamont Johnson
Written by	Rod Serling from the story "The Depository" by Marvin Petal
Featured music	Stock from "A Hundred Yards Over the Rim"
Production code	4805
Original air date	December 22, 1961
Guest stars
William Windom: Major Murray Matheson: Clown Susan Harrison: Ballerina Kelton Garwood: Tramp Clark Allen: Bagpiper
Episode chronology
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List of Twilight Zone episodes

"Five Characters in Search of an Exit" is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone.

Plot

A uniformed Army major wakes up to find himself trapped inside in a large metal cylinder, where he meets a clown, who introduces him to the others, a hobo, ballet dancer, and a bagpiper. None of them has any memory of who they are or how they became trapped. The major, being the newest arrival, is the most determined to escape. He is told there is no way out except the ceiling, which is too high to reach but nonetheless he investigates and perseveres. The major's questioning reveals that the characters have no need for food or water and indeed feel nothing in general, except for pain.

The characters question where, what and who they are. The ballerina informs the major, "We are in the darkness; nameless things with no memory – no knowledge of what went before, no understanding of what is now, no knowledge of what will be." Guesses are made about the nature of where they have been placed: the ballerina speculates that they are on another planet or a spaceship; the bagpiper they are dead, the hobo that they are all insane and in limbo; while the clown claims they are in a dream, but then suggests the answers to these questions are unsolvable and immaterial. The major then concludes that they are in Hell.

Eventually, the major suggests a plan to escape: forming a tower of people, each person on the other's shoulders. The plan almost works, but a loud sound shakes the cylinder and sends the five tumbling to the ground. Now even more determined, the major fashions a grappling hook out of loose bits of clothing and his sword. By reforming the tower, he manages to grapple onto the edge of the container. As he turns to survey the area surrounding the cylinder, he tumbles to the ground outside. The other characters talk about him, and the clown says that he may be right, and they may be in Hell.

The scene cuts to a little girl picking up a doll from the snow, a doll in the dress of an army major. A kindly woman tells her, "Put it back in the barrel with the rest of them." It is revealed that the cylinder is a Christmas toy collection bin for a girls' orphanage and that all five characters are nothing more than dolls. The loud noise was the shaking of a handheld bell which the woman used to attract donations.

The final shot is of the five characters, now seen as dolls with painted faces and glass eyes. The ballet dancer moves to hold the hand of the major and her eyes fill with tears.

Production notes

The title is a variation on the Pirandello play Six Characters in Search of an Author.

The last shot of the episode, in which the five characters are seen in doll form, does not feature the actors; rather, specially made dolls were crafted that closely resembled the five actors who played the parts, and these are shown.

The little girl who appears at the end of this episode was portrayed by the daughter of longtime Twilight Zone producer Buck Houghton.

Impact

• The episode was reportedly an inspiration for the 1997 film Cube.
• The TV series Felicity paid homage to "Five Characters in Search of an Exit" in the season 2 episode 11 episode "Help for the Lovelorn"; it was directed by Lamont Johnson.

External links

• "Five Characters in Search of an Exit" at the Internet Movie Database
• TV.com episode page
• Five Characters in Search of an Exit Review at The Twilight Zone Project
• Full video of the episode at CBS.com