Loyd—Very insightful and well-written comments on Mr. Serling. You’re officially in the “Screenwriting from Iowa” Comment Hall of Fame.

Ironically, I think part of what makes Serling’s work so enduring was the very censorship that he buckled against. For instance, he wanted to write about racism in the south but the sponsors of the show wanted to avoid controversy so he’d write something about space aliens instead.

The results were powerful as he found a less on-the-nose (less preachy) way to deal with the themes of how humans interact with people who are different than them. It forced him to be subtle and in turn made his work more universal, as well as resonate deeper.

The same could be said for the limitations of budget. Serling wasn’t able to let his imagination go wherever he wanted. No, he usually had to limit himself to a small cast, and limited locations and wardrobe options.

Even the limitations of being shot in black & white helps the timelessness of “The Twilight Zone.” It seems fresh today even though the series was first created 50 years ago.

And thanks for bringing up the prolific writer Aaron Sorkin. You mentioned that he was the only writer who “comes close to the output, consistency and supervisory skill that Serling demonstrated.” I’d just like to point out that he went to college in Syracuse, New York—the very city where Rod Serling was born.

Cue “The Twilight Zone” music…

When is the last time TV had a writer who could command such attention? Harlan Ellison has tried it and come close, but he lacks the temperament–you always feel his rage. Serling exuded a sense of control. Ellison is always one turn from flying off the rails.

Serling was a great moralistic writer, something he shared with Mark Twain, O. Henry and Nathaniel Hawthorn. Each Twilight Zone episode was a fable with a moral twist at the end. Serling also connected with so-called “common men” and understood their ambitions. He also had a hatred for the pettiness of small dictators clutching for power that always slips through their fingers.

The only name that even comes close to the output, consistency and supervisory skill that Serling demonstrated is Aaron Sorkin, who wrote The American President, A Few Good Men, The West Wing and Sports Night, and even the well-written but doomed Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Sorkin lacks the range and imagination of Serling, however. In the arena that Serling created, he is still the champion.