User Reviews

"The Boy Who Predicted Earthquakes" - Sweet little boy Herbie Bittman (an excellent and engaging performance by Clint Howard) can predict future events with uncanny accuracy. Complications ensue when Bittman foresees a particularly bleak and catastrophic occurrence. Director John Badham relates the intriguing story at a brisk pace and ably crafts an unsettling off-kilter tone. The surprise bummer ending packs a devastating punch.

"Miss Lovecraft Sent Me" -Spunky babysitter Betsy (a cute and perky Sue Lyon) suspects that the child she's looking after is some kind of monster. This one is basically all set up with a lame pay off, although Joseph Campanella radiates suave charm as a Dracula-like vampire.

"The Hand of Borgus Weems" - Peter Lacland (a sympathetic portrayal by George Maharis) demands that Dr. Archibald Ravadon (the always terrific Ray Milland) amputate his possessed hand. This story benefits from a spooky mood as well as concludes on a suitably grim and chilling note.

"Phantom of What Opera?" - The phantom (robustly played with lip-smacking relish by Leslie Nielsen) abducts a lovely lass (the stunning Mary Ann Beck) who isn't what she appears to be. Nielsen's juicy histrionics and the inspired twist ending make this honey a real hoot.

The above quote was stated by Clint Howard's character in the first episode, but it wouldn't surprise me if he was predicting the viewer's response to the second and fourth installments of this Night Gallery offering. They seem to have been written as filler to complete what would have been a one hour TV run time (probably more like an hour and a half with commercials).

The Howard segment, 'The Boy Who Predicted Earthquakes', is more than filled with irony, as young Herbie Bittman is restrained in making a final, fatal prediction for mankind, choosing his words carefully to insure that he wouldn't throw the country and the world into a panic over what his vision really portends. The story included a clip of the 1932 movie "Island of Lost Souls" featuring Charles Laughton and Lon Chaney, being viewed by TV exec Wellman (Michael Constantine) as a distraction following his first meeting with Herbie and his grandfather. It would have been clever if that film had a connection to the Night Gallery story, but you'd really have to stretch to make that work.

The 'Miss Lovecraft' story was a complete throw away with a dumb ending, but it did have me considering whether actor Joseph Campanella might have had a future as a vampire along side luminaries of the era like Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. He looked pretty good as a Dracula knockoff with a Bela Lugosi speech cadence.

'The Hand of Borgus Weems' winds up being something of a revenge story, with the hand in question 'coming back to life' after it's original 'owner' was murdered by a former lover and her accomplice. It's a decently written story with an acceptable resolution, in as much as the doctor (Ray Milland) who performed the hand removal on Peter Lacland (George Maharis) must face the consequences of performing that operation.

'Phantom of What Opera?' runs about as quickly as the Lovecraft segment, and even though it has a horror element, I didn't understand why The Phantom (Leslie Nielsen) expressed shock when he first saw the real face of The Beautiful Prisoner (Mary Ann Beck). If he looked normal under his makeup, that would have worked, but to accept and embrace the look-alike Phantom Lady as a kindred spirit would have required both to be of the same temperament. In a way, this segment reminded me of one of Rod Serling's most famous Twilight Zone episodes - 'Eye of the Beholder', though that one had a lot more substance and an underlying statement about mass conformity that Serling was warning against.

****SPOILERS*** With his network needing a top hit for the 8:00PM slot network manager Wellman, Michael Constantine, gets stuck with this kiddie act of 10 year old Hurbie Bittman, Clint Howard, who besides giving the audience mindless chic-chat about his interests at home and school mixes in predictions about what's to happen in the world in the next 24 to 48 hours. Not taken seriously at first by Wellman who want's to kick little Hurbie and his uncle Mr. Godwin, William Hansen, right out of the TV studio his predictions amazingly happen to be are right on target!

After a year on the air Hurbie runs up a total of 106 straight predictions about what's to happen in the world, far better the "Jolting Joe" DiMaggio 56 straight hitting streak in 1941, that turned out to be right! It's on this evening that little Hurbie seems to be a bit disturbed about what's he's about to predict and tries to have his show of predicting the future canceled. Not that he's not about to come up with any predictions but in the news he's to predict to his audience. That news is far too terrible for him to reveal.

***SPOILERS*** Knowing what's to happen within the next 48 hours and wanting to keep it secret Hurbie finally under Wellman and his uncle Godwin's urging he decides to go on the air and tell his eager world wide audience a story that their very likely to enjoy. A story about the world going into a new age of peace and tranquility where poverty sickness and war no longer exists. A world were everyone is equal and no one has it better then anyone else. A world that man has been striving for since and before the beginning of recorded history.****MAJOR SPOILER*** As it was soon to turn out such a world was indeed coming but Hurbie got or put it half right! Everyone on earth will be equal and war pestilence and famine will be eliminated. But what Hurbie didn't bring out for very obvious reasons is that man will not be around to enjoy it!

I adore the Ln Chaney version of "Phantom" and I appreciate Webber's version if only for the growing interest in the book, wish I find more of a mystery slash horror with the romantic aspects downplayed. I don't approve of the fact that Andrew Lloyd Webber made the relationship between Raoul and Christine less restrained.

Luckily since this is a comedic short with only Erik and Christine this version doesn't even have to bother with any other characters.

I thought I would still be waiting for another version to match up Lon's performance. I was dead wrong. Leslie Nielson is fabulous as Erik though, of course this is a spoof. It's still brilliant.

I especially appreciated the fact that Erik looked more like a living corpse than an accident victim. I still have as of yet to see a Phantom like that, other than Lon's.

However, I do not recommend this short if you don't like spoofs. Because this is in no way supposed to be taken seriously.

Just recently watched this Night Gallery episode and it was broken down into two segments the first one a recurring hitchhiker type story. It's all to common a man writes a script with him and a woman on a lonely road they pick up one another over and over. Is it a dream or is it a nightmare or a daydream. Second and most memorable is a short feature with legendary funny man(the now late Leslie Nielsen)as the phantom of the opera and of course his face looks a horrible mess. Yet the tale takes a strange twist he soon discovers his lovely lady underneath has a monster like face just as ugly. Overall nice little late night treat to watch to bring back memories of the golden TV era.

As Night Gallery moved into its second season, it would start becoming schizophrenic, caught between the darkness and the light of pained comedy or more to the point, creator Rod Serling versus producer Jack laird. Yet when it works, well, man does it work.

I think about "The Boy That Predicted Earthquakes" so often. Directed by John Badham, years before he'd make Saturday Night Fever, it was written by Rod Serling from a Margaret St. Clair story. Clint Howard is astounding as Herbie Bittman, a young boy who simply talks like a real little kid going on and on about telescopes before dropping apocalyptic knowledge on TV audiences. What kid could hopefully deliver a message of hope when he knows that the world will end horribly the very next day? What a Satanic moment in a series known for so many, a child delivering the burnt out worldview of Serling to the masses. A near-perfect segment worth endlessly rewatching.

Less can be said about "Miss Lovecraft Sent Me," the first of too many "black out" gags which has Joseph Campanella as a vampire and Sue Lyon as a babysitter. Director Gene R. Kearney wrote Night of the Lepus and would go on to contribute to the beloved 1979 series Cliffhangers, but the fact that he was involved in Laird putting his insipid fingerprints all over a masterwork is a strike against him. At. Least Lyon is gorgeous; she did better work in Lolita and Murder In a Blue World.

"The Hand of Borgus Weems" has that most horrific and hoary of horror tropes: the haunted human hand. Peter Lacland (George Maharis) claims that his hand is possessed and demands that Doctor Archibald Ravadon (Ray Milland) amputate it. It's simple and effective, with assured direction by John Meredyth Lucas, a producer on Star Trek and the director of several episodes of the Planet of the Apes TV series. Its writer, Alvin Sapinsley, also wrote Moon of the Wolf.

Sadly, "Phantom of What Opera?" is another gag with Leslie Neilsen as the Phantom and Mary Ann Beck as his victim. Directed and written by Kearney, it's exactly the kind of two-minute silliness that would continue to mar this show all season long.

This was a very brief episode of "Miss Lovecraft sent me" that appeared in one of the "Night Gallery" show back in 1971. The episode starred Sue Lyon (of Lolita movie fame) and Joseph Campanella who play a baby sitter and a vampire, respectively. The vampire hires a baby sitter to watch his child (which appears to be some kind of werewolf or monster) while he goes out at night for blood. The baby sitter is totally oblivious to the vampire's appearance when she first sees him and only starts to put two and two together when she notices that he has no reflection in the mirror, has an odd collection of books in the library on the occult, and hears strange noises while the vampire goes to talk to the child. She realizes that the man who hired her may not be what she thought he was originally. She bolts out the door, the vampire comes out looking puzzled and the episode is over. I don't know what purpose it was to make such an abbreviated episode that lasted just 5 minutes. They should just have expanded the earlier episode by those same 5 minutes and skipped this one. A total wasted effort.

This is the first episode of the second season of "Night Gallery". While the show was introduced by Rod Serling, most of the episodes were not written by him. However, in the first segment, "The Boy Who Predicted Earthquakes", the teleplay was written by Serling himself.

Michael Constantine plays an angry program director for television. He's frustrated when a kid is given his own segment on TV where he predicts the future--and the kid (Clint Howard) is amazingly accurate. Naturally after the kid is so uncanny, Constantine signs the kid to be a regular. Sadly, however, by the end, the episode (and the planet) just fizzle. I'd give this one a 3, as there just isn't much of a payoff.

By the way, the weird horror movie that Michael Constantine is watching is "The Island of Lost Souls".

"Miss Lovecraft Sent Me" shows a change starting in the second season. Unlike season one, the scripts now included some kooky and occasionally funny shorts. This one is pretty broad in its humor with Joseph Campanella playing a vampire. And, the reference to 'Miss Lovecraft' is a homage to the horror writer HP Lovecraft. Not funny, though, I'd give this one a 3.

"The Hand of Borgus Weems" has George Maharis playing a freaky guy. He claims that his hand is evil and has a mind of its own--a hand that wants to kill. So, he goes to see a doctor (Ray Milland) and requests that he cut it off to end his risk to others! This one is pretty creepy and had an excellent ending. I'd give this one an 8--by far the best of this show.

"Phantom of What Opera?" stars Leslie Nielsen as the Phantom. This is another short kooky one. While far from great, it is kind of cute and I'd give it a 6.

Overall, a somewhat weak episode other than the Borgus episode.