The Outer Limits (1963–1965): Season 1, Episode 9 - Corpus Earthling - full transcript

I think someone's been
sleeping in my bed,

and here she is now.

Honey?

Honey?

Come closer.

Don't pull away
from me.

I've been
waiting for you.

There is nothing
wrong with your television set.

Do not attempt
to adjust the picture.

We are controlling
transmission.

We will control
the horizontal.



We will control
the vertical.

We can change the focus
to a soft blur

or sharpen it
to crystal clarity.

For the next hour,
sit quietly,

and we will control
all that you see and hear.

You are about to participate
in a great adventure.

You are about to experience
the awe and mystery

which reaches
from the inner mind to...

Rocks.

Silent, inanimate objects

torn from the earth's
ancient crust,

yielding up to man
over the long centuries

all that is known
of the planet

on which we live,



withholding from man forever
their veiled secrets

of the nature of matter
and cosmic catastrophe,

the secrets of other worlds

in the vastness
of the universe,

of other forms of life,

of strange organisms beyond
the imagination of man.

I certainly
can't identify them.

They're definitely not
rock crystals.

A hard cluster
of surfaces,

frozen symmetrical
patterns.

What else can
they be, Dr. temple?

I don't know.

But I'd like to talk
to the student

who brought them in.

We might get a description
of the area

where he made his find.

Sometimes that helps.

I'll have him drop by
after classes.

Good.

Well, we might as well
put these away for now.

I see. Neither one of you
ever gets hungry,

is that it?

Oh, darling. Is it
that time already?

Yes, ma'am, it is.
I'm starving.

I'll be with you
in a minute.

Been in surgery
all morning, Paul?

Yeah. It seems
more like all day.

Tough operation, huh?

Had some
bad moments,

but the patient,

thanks to his
iron constitution,

is still with us.

Yeah, but I think
I'll stick to my rocks.

Never get sick,

and they never phone me
in the middle of the night.

Well, have a nice lunch.

Thanks, Joe.

The time is here.

We have
come to the day.

It has been
a long waiting.

A long
waiting, but over now.

And time to invade
the bodies

of these things
called human beings.

Someone is present.

Is it safe for us
to communicate?

Only our own kind
have the power to hear us.

Looking at him,

I'm filled
with apprehension.

Can the fragile corpus
of these earthlings

support our
consuming energies?

Some will withstand
body invasion.

Others will deteriorate.

We must choose
the heartiest specimens.

Not that one.

There's something
wrong with his head.

He's defective.

Will we be
able to manipulate

the intelligence
and the memory?

Once we inhabit the host,

our control
of the whole

multicellular organism
will be complete,

and then we can begin
to control their planet.

Who's there?

Who is it?

You're in the room.

Where?

How is it

that an earth creature
hears us?

His head.

A foreign element
is implanted in his skull.

It conducts our voices
through the neural network

and into the brain.

If he can hear us

and if we cannot invade
his defective corpus,

then we must kill him.

Paul?

Paul.

Oh, darling? Paul?

What's the verdict?

No fracture.

Oh, that's
a relief.

Well, there, you see?

Everybody should
have a little

wartime souvenir
in their head.

Nothing like
a little metal plate

to prevent
nasty fractures.

Your funny husband

has a funny way
of joking about that plate.

I wonder what a psychiatrist
would say about that.

He'd say overcompensation
if he was any good,

and he'd be right, too.

Whole thing
scares me silly.

If it ever
got jarred loose...

Well, there's not much chance
of that happening.

Well, there was
very little chance

of the Titanic going down.

Paul, everything
is checked out.

You have nothing
to worry about.

You sure?

Paul, if I thought
there was any brain damage,

you think
I'd keep it a secret?

Now, look,

your husband's as sound
inside that skull as I am.

Thank you,
Ralph.

Thanks, buddy.

All right,
come on, honey.

I get you
back to lab.

Paul's all right.

Oh, good.

I'm sorry
about this oven, Paul.

It's given us
trouble before.

I thought surely they'd
fixed it this time.

Well, forget it.
It's nobody's fault.

Ow. Ow!

Paul, you're
still in pain?

Does this help?

Yeah, a little.

You're shaking.

Well, delayed reaction.

No, it's not.

Uh...

I don't know.

I've been trying to push
this out of my head,

but I can't.

What?

Well, when I was
lying on the floor,

I heard, uh...

Uh, voices, and, uh...

Uh, they were
not human voices.

Well, I don't know
how to describe them.

They were really weird,

like nothing
you've ever heard.

I know how this is
gonna sound to you.

Don't worry about

how it's
going to sound, Paul.

All right.

They talked
about invading bodies,

about, uh, controlling people
from the inside,

controlling our world.

Now, just a minute
before you break out

into unbridled laughter.

I called out to them.

And, uh, I expected that
they would show themselves,

at which point they said
that they were going to kill me.

Kill you?

And the worst of it,

I think they would have
if you hadn't walked in.

Paul, that must
have been the shock,

hitting your head.

Honey, the voices
seemed very, very real.

They were real.

Shock can play some
strange tricks, Paul.

People sometimes

mistake their own
thoughts for voices.

The sounds were external,
Joe, vocal,

speech picked up
by the ear,

transmitted to the brain
in a very ordinary fashion.

Where were they
coming from?

Somewhere in this lab.

Paul, there are
only rocks here.

Look around.

Igneous rocks,
metamorphic rocks,

sedimentary rocks.

And rocks don't talk.

If these should
hold their peace,

the stones would
suddenly cry out.

That's from the Bible.

Luke, I think.

Well, you can go all
through literature,

and you'll
find that authors

have often
ascribed speech

to stones and rocks.

Rocks speak.

Rocks weep.

They move, tremble,
dance, exult.

You're positive I just
imagined the whole thing, right?

Well, as a scientist,

I've learned not to be
positive of anything,

but certainly there's
only a thin line

between the animate
and inanimate.

And with billions
of planets in space,

we can easily
postulate the existence

of other
living organisms.

Then, I could be right?

Will you assume
just for a minute

that there might
be such creatures?

All right.

All right,
let's assume they exist.

And these creatures
that you hypothesize

would have to be

some kind of intelligent
superviruses

that depend
for their existence

on other
living organisms.

Viruses?

Mm-hmm.
You're a doctor.

What is a virus,

but a parasite that
invades the body

and thrives
on living cells?

Viruses from another world
with an intelligence.

It's an interesting
hypothesis,

but it's too full
of improbabilities.

For instance, could...

Could creatures
from another planet

utilize a totally strange
organism such as man?

Well, if you
take my advice, Paul,

you'll forget about it.

You had a bad accident,

and you've experienced
the type of hallucination

that's not at all uncommon.

It's as simple as that.

I saw a pot of coffee

brewing in one
of the offices.

Do you want me

to see if I can talk
someone out of a cup?

Yeah, honey,
I could use one.

You listened, earthling.

You
heard us communicate.

Listeners
must be destroyed.

There it is again.
Listen.

They've
started again.

Did you hear that?

No.

Shh. Joe, listen.

I don't
hear a thing.

You will do as we say.

You didn't hear anything?

No.

Why? Why?

They're in this room
somewhere.

Go to
the window, listener.

Go to the window.

Open the window.

Stand in the window.

Paul!

Get down, Paul!

Now jump.

Jump.

Paul.

All right, Paul.
All right.

Lori,
I think you'd

better
take him home.

Yes.

It could be
important, Paul.

No.

Forget it.

I said don't
touch the phone, please.

Why?

Why?

Just leave it alone.

You're afraid

you're going to hear
the voices again

over the telephone?

Maybe that was it.

Maybe the lab phone
was off the hook

and what I heard
was public conver...

What am I so afraid of?

Anyone would be.

No, not anyone.

Not the way I am,

buried away in this place
like an animal

with doors and windows locked.

Against what?

Everyone would try

to protect themselves
from fear, Paul.

You're just
trying to...

You can't lock the door
against spooky voices or...

It's like the forts
I used to build

out of apple crates
and cardboard

when I was a kid.

Oh, baby.

Lori.

Right here.

Don't, Lori.
Don't answer it.

It can't be
what you think.

Lori, don't. Don't!

I'll show you.

It's Billy Frazier.

He's been
drinking again.

It's pointless, honey.

I'm just
kidding myself.

It's easier to be
afraid of spooky voices

than it is
to face what's...

Really has me terrified.

I think I'm,
uh, going insane.

No.

Honey, rocks can't talk.

There are
no superviruses

that invade
the human body,

and, uh,

voices don't
come out of thin air

and tell a guy
to jump out the window.

Honey, you really

believe that
I heard voices...

Voices from
some creatures

from another planet?

Well, maybe you did.

How can anyone
say that you didn't?

Do you know anything
about, uh, paranoia?

I, uh, have several
classic symptoms,

in case they might have
escaped your notice...

Delusions of
persecution

and, uh,
unseen enemies

with superhuman
powers

and a destructive
impulse.

Paul, I want us to go away.

Well, what good
would it do?

Call it feminine instincts,
whatever you like,

but I think that
getting away would help.

We've never had a honeymoon.

We always
promised ourselves

we'd have one
someday, remember?

Oh, boy.

Do you remember
the night

you brought home
those travel folders?

Yep, I remember.

And you said,

"close your eyes
and pick out one."

You picked Mexico.

I peaked.

I've always wanted
to visit Mexico.

Would you go there now,
this minute?

Yes.

Just the way we are...
No bags, nothing?

Oh, Paul,

I want us to go away,
not run away.

Honey, I can't
just go away.

I have to run.
I want to. I need it.

Run with me.

Please.

Please.

I promise you

that in a few days
it'll pass.

It always does.

And when it passes,

we'll stop running,

and I'll be all right.

We'll have a honeymoon.

Please.

Honey, come on.

He does not answer.

Go to him at once.

He may have run away.

Find him.

Yes, I must find him.

Wherever he is.

I will go to his apartment,
wait for his return.

We cannot wait.

We are losing time.

A day, a week,

he'll begin to realize

there's nothing wrong
with his mind.

He'll investigate,
speak to others,

others who
may believe him,

and make us
lose more time.

If he has run away,
I will find out where.

Sane people always leave tracks
when they run away.

Perhaps the girl
has not run with him.

Perhaps she will
lead you to him.

Yes.

Either way,
I will find him

and kill him.

The house has not
been lived in

for a long time.

I can see that.

I gave my compadre promise
that I will watch over it

until he returns...

But it is lonely for me.

Why is it you're
always so sure

it's going to be
some dream place

out of
the travel folders,

and it always
turns out

to be
something else?

Well, let's go back
to the tourist office

and see what else
they have to offer.

Oh, it's not
all that bad.

Well, honey, if you
don't like it,

say so now.

When the wind blows,

the shutters must be
closed against it...

Dust and the sand.

No one will bother us.

We can sleep
as late as we want,

dress in any old way,
unwind completely.

Well, I don't know.
I just thought

that when we
finally got around

to having
a honeymoon,

we'd do a little
better job of it.

I really don't mind.

Now I will bring
to the señor and señora

the firewood.

Thank you.

I will not disturb you.

I am a quiet man.

You will not hear me
on the outside,

and I will not come in

unless I am called
or needed.

Hey, no kidding.
You want to see

if we can find
something else?

I'll drive back
in with you.

Of course, I'm
a little tired,

but, uh...

What did I tell you?

Well, you said
it was all right,

but I never
can trust you.

Will you
please be quiet?

I beg your pardon?
shh.

Oh. That's what
I thought you said.

You know, darling,

I'm really beginning
to like this place.

I think it's kind of quaint.

What do you think?

Well, I think
that all it needs

is a good ol' fashioned
hospital-type scrub down.

I think we should
get some new linens.

We can use them
while we're here

and then take them
home with us.

And let's see...

Oh, we'll need a few
new pots and pans...

Knives,
forks, spoons...

Dishcloths...

Oh, and groceries.
We have to eat.

Yeah, right. You're
thinking all the time.

I'm very proud of you.

You're also gonna need
some oil for that stove

if you want to do
any cooking on it.

Scouring powder...

Soap for
washing clothes.

What, uh, clothes?

Ha ha ha ha.

I forgot.

Well, I can see
I'm gonna have to

whip into town
for a while,

do a little shopping.

I'll call the hospital
from there.

Maybe they'll forgive me
for being awol

if I tell them that
my wife is expecting

and, uh, felt a sudden,
remarkable craving

for a honeymoon.

Paul,
it's not nice to lie.

Huh? Oh, yeah.

Well, I gotta
call them, anyway.

I...

I called them

from the tourist
office last night.

You did?

Mm-hmm.

Well,
what'd you tell them?

Oh, well,
I said that, uh...

You lied, right?

Right.

Come here.

Ha ha ha.
Oh, Paul,

it's going to be
all right now,

isn't it?

Yeah.

And tomorrow, it'll
be even better.

You know what it is?

I finally figured it out.

It's, uh...

Well, it's my upper plate,
doctor.

I don't know,
ever since it was put in,

I, uh, as a professional,

I know it doesn't affect me
one way or the other,

but as a man with all
the notions and misconceptions

you drag along with you
from childhood,

I... I can never forget
that it's there,

that it's holding me
together in one piece,

and I equate...

Brain injury
with insanity.

It's childish,
but I can't help it.

I think that's just
a very polite way

of explaining why
a brilliant young surgeon

would marry a very
plain, unbrilliant

lab assistant.

I think I could live
without bread and water,

but I could never do

without your seductive
sense of humor.

Can you live
without water, by the way?

No.

No, I don't think
I can, either,

now that I think
about it.

I better get some
in bottles.

I'll be dressed
in a minute.

Honey, listen, uh,
I want to go in alone.

You mind?

Just, uh...

See how I feel
about it by myself.

OK?

I won't be gone long.

Paul?

Paul?

Yes?

What is it?

Dr. Temple?

What happened to you?

Where has he gone?

When will
he be back?

Tell me
where he is.

I don't know.

The hospital gave me
your message.

You said he was
coming down here

with you.

He's gone.

Where?!

Tell me.

I have to know.

Tell me.

I want Paul Cameron.

Useless listeners
must not go free.

Where is he?

Answer me!

No. No!

No!

You will get him
for me.

Hey, honey.

I couldn't get
any bottled water,

so I got some beer.

You'd be amazed what comes
in cans down here.

Also, it struck me
that I can't stand a girl

who goes off on a honeymoon
without a Trousseau,

so I went into a store.

I got you several
very lovely things

which can't
possibly fit you.

You asleep?

Kind of warm for...
Burning fires, isn't it?

Is it a ritual?

The fires keep away
the possessed, señor.

"The possessed"?

Evil spirit
has entered the soul

of some
unfortunate being.

Señor...

It hovers over us.

I know these things,
señor.

I think someone's
been sleeping in my bed,

and there she is now.

Honey?

Honey?

Come closer.

Don't pull away
from me.

I've been waiting
for you.

I found you.

You thought you could
get away from me.

Ha ha ha.

Come on. I'm hungry.

Let's get something
to eat, sailor boy.

Señor, I have looked

all over Tijuana
for you.

What do you want?

Your wife
is very sick.

Sick?

She burns with
a terrible fever.

I know this fever
well, señor.

In times past,
many of my people

have died from it
like flies.

Please, señor.

She needs a doctor.

Plenty of doctors
in Tijuana.

It is you she called
for, señor.

For many hours,
she called for you.

This terrible fever
changes people, señor.

I have seen it
many times.

It moves with swiftness.

My own wife.

I leave her well
and happy one evening,

and in the morning,
I do not know.

The young have the look
on them of old people.

The beauty leaves
the face of the women.

Señor, it is death
putting the finger

on those it will claim.

You wife, señor,
is dying.

She suffers?

I can see the fever
burning her.

What?

Uh, get me a pan
of water, will you,

and heat it.

Lori?

Lori?

Medicine for
the sickness?

For the pain.

You can go on out
and get some sleep.

Listener...

Dr. Temple?

I must kill you.

You are a danger to us.

You may think now that
it is your own madness,

but you're
too rational a man

to remain irrational
for long.

Others of our kind
want to come.

You are making us
lose time.

Now it can begin.

This time,
no one will know.

Aah!

Listener.

Lori.

Lori, listen to me!

It's like you! It's one
of those things!

Let the gun drop,
listener.

You don't want
to shoot that gun.

You can't.

Let it go.

2 black
crystalline rocks...

Unclassifiable,

objects on the border
between the living

and the nonliving,

a reminder of the thin line

that separates the animate
from the inanimate,

something to ponder on,

something to stay the hand

when it reaches out
innocently

for the whitened pebble,
the veined stone,

the dead, unmoving rocks
of our planet.

We now return control of
your television set to you

until next week
at this same time

when the control voice
will take you to...