They finally showed "Watch the Skies" last nite on TCM. An hour show which chronicled the old movies, most of which have been reported in "The Pond" in the last few weeks. It was a thrill for me to hear Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, James Cameron, and Ridley Scott talking about these old sci-fi flicks from back in the day. Maybe I should try to engage this foursome by sending them the link to "The Pond" by yours truly. These renowned movie makers spoke glowingly about these old relics, and how they had influenced them as well as other film makers. "Watch the Skies" comes from the ending of "The Thing From Another World," as Scottie, a reporter, comes to the North Pole looking for a big story. And he finds it when an alien carrot's spaceship plows into the frozen tundra. His soliloquy follows:
Stand by, all newspapers! Flash continued! This first skirmish
for the possession of the earth
by the creatures from space was
won by the daring leadership of
Captain Patrick Henry. Noah once
saved the world with an ark of wood.
Captain Henry performed a similar
service for our planet with an arc
of electricity. But, ladies and
gentlemen of the globe - there is an
enemy hovering over our heads - an
enemy with an armada of flying saucers,
and an army of super human and
fantastic warriors. Every citizen
of the world must become a sentinel
watching the skies. Keep looking for
the next flying saucer - watch the
skies, watch everything over your
head - throw a ring of watch towers
around the earth - Keep looking -
looking - looking -
FADE OUT
1 comment:
I recall a TV drama (Twilight Zone? Something before that, possibly?) that had a plot about a genteel, well-spoken, attractive gentleman wearing a business suit who was identified as an alien. He dropped a mysterious document or book with only the evocative words "To Serve Man" on the cover.
He convinced people that he was on a mission to take human beings to a far-away place where life would be blissful and happy. Hundreds, maybe thousands of people were so delighted that they were departing on space ships for parts unknown. They were going to a better place, as their forefathers had, leaving other lands for the American Dream.
Meantime, clever analysts were breaking the mysterious code in which the "To Serve Man" document was written. Turns out to have been a cookbook, and the story ended with a panic-stricken man pleading with determined people to stop, stop, come back -- as they streamed aboard the space ships about to "serve man."
Great and memorable plot.
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