The Twilight Zone (1959–1964): Season 5, Episode 19 - Night Call - full transcript
The elderly Elva Keen is not too happy when she begins receiving phone calls in the middle of the night. At first the calls are little more that static and her complaints to to local telephone operator, Miss Finch, seem to go unheeded. Over time however, she begins to hear a man's voice but out of fear, tells whoever it is to go away. When Miss Finch reports they've found the problem Elva visits the site only to realize the identity of the caller and that regardless of anything she's said, desperately wants the calls to continue.
You unlock this door
with the key of imagination.
Beyond it is another dimension-
a dimension of sound,
a dimension of sight,
a dimension of mind.
You're moving into a land
of both shadow and substance,
of things and ideas.
You've just crossed over
into the twilight zone.
Hello?
I'm sorry, i didn't hear.
The thunder.
Hello?
Who's on the line, please?
Hello?
Hello?
Miss elva keene
lives alone on the outskirts
of london flats,
a tiny rural community in maine.
Up until now, the pattern
of miss keene's existence
has been
that of lying in her bed
or sitting in her wheelchair
reading books,
listening to a radio,
eating, napping,
taking medication
and waiting for
something different to happen.
Miss keene doesn't know it yet
but her period of waiting
has just ended,
for something different
is about to happen to her,
has, in fact,
already begun to happen
via two most unaccountable
telephone calls
in the middle of a stormy night.
Telephone calls
routed directly through
the twilight zone.
Hello?
Hello?
Hello?
Hello!
Up early this morning.
What's the matter
with her?
No answer?
Obviously.
I imagine they're
pretty busy there
this morning
with the storm and all.
Oh, miss finch?
This is elva keene
speaking.
Yes, miss keene, can i help you?
You can.
Last night about 2:00 a.m.
My telephone rang.
I answered it, but no one spoke.
I didn't even hear
the receiver being put down.
Not even a dial tone,
just silence!
Well...
the same thing happened
a few moments later.
Well, miss keene,
that storm just about ruined
our service.
We've been flooded
with complaints
about fallen wires
and bad connections.
I'd say you're pretty lucky
your telephone works at all.
Would you say someone
was trying to call me
and the connection was bad
because of the storm?
That's as good an explanation
as any right now, miss keene.
I'm sorry,
i wish i could be of more help
but, oh,
the way things are right now!
Well, is it likely
to happen again?
Well, i couldn't say,
miss keene, it might.
It depends on what's causing it,
of course.
If it does, though,
you just call me
and i'll have a special check
run on it.
Will you do that?
Oh, very well.
Good. I'll wait
to hear from you, then.
Good-bye, miss keene.
Good-bye.
Margaret?
Yes, miss keene?
Did you call me
last night?
At 2:00
in the morning?
Huh, no, ma'am,
not me.
Well, you might have checked.
But i don't pay you for nights,
do i?
Here's your mail,
miss keene.
Oh, thank you.
An advertisement.
Another advertisement.
The light bill.
Oh, how stimulating.
You just heard
from your sister
a few days ago,
didn't you?
Three weeks.
Three weeks and two days
to be exact, margaret.
Has it been
that long?
Yes, it has.
Nobody cares
whether i live or die.
Oh, sure, they do,
miss keene.
You don't understand.
You don't know
what it's like to be alone.
Oh, now, miss keene.
Hello?
Hello?
Margaret?
Come here, quickly.
What is it,
miss keene?
There's nobody
on the line.
Listen, listen.
See if you can
hear the sound
of a receiver
being put down.
Not a thing.
Wait!
Oh, well,
it doesn't matter.
I'll call miss finch
and have them
check on the line.
You really think
it's necessary?
Yes, i do.
Am i to have calls like this
coming in all the time?
But if it's a breakdown,
they'll fix it.
There we are.
All comfy?
Thank you.
Don't let those calls
upset you, miss keene.
I'm sure whatever
the trouble was
the repairmen
have it fixed by now.
Oh, why not leave
the receiver off the hook?
Then whoever it is
can't call...
though i'm sure
nobody will.
Thank you.
I'll see you in the morning,
miss keene.
Good night.
Good night.
Hello?
What?
Who's there?
Who's on the line?
Who is it?
Who's there?
Hello?
Hello!
Hello?
Hello?
Hello?
Hello?
Miss keene, are you sure
it was someone saying "hello"?
It could've been...
i tell you it was someone.
The same one who kept
listening to me saying "hello"
over and over again
without answering back.
The same one who kept making
those horrible noises.
You have no idea though
whether it was a man or a woman?
I've already told you
there's no way of knowing.
It might be either one.
And you're positive it wasn't
someone on your party line?
Oh, don't you think i don't know
the people on my party line?
Oh, sure you do, miss keene.
Of course you do.
Well, i'll, um,
i'll have a man check your line
as soon as possible.
The crews
are pretty busy right now
on account of the storm, but...
but what am i to do
if this... person calls again?
Try to get their name,
if you can.
If you do that, why, we can take
immediate action, you see.
Yes.
What did she say?
Nothing.
It's obvious she doesn't
believe a word i told her.
Oh, now.
So far as she's concerned,
i'm just a nervous
old biddy
falling prey to
my imagination.
But she's find
out differently.
I shall just keep on
calling her and calling her
until she does.
If i don't let them call,
i... i shall never find out
who it is.
Hello?
Hello?
Who is this?
Hello?
Who is calling?
Hello?
Please, who is calling?
Hello?
Can you hear me?
Hello?
Please!
Hello?
Margaret!
Margaret!
What is it?
It's a man who's been calling.
How do you know?
He's just called me!
What does he want?
I don't know.
He just keeps on saying hello
over and over again.
"Hello, hello, hello."
Miss keene,
you've got to stop this.
You're working
yourself up over...
over nothing?
I didn't say that, miss keene.
You were going to.
Now, miss keene, i wasnot.
I think i better
put you
in your...
i don't want to be
put in my bed!
I want to find out who
this terrible man is
who keeps calling me!
What did miss finch
tell you?
She told you it was
a bad connection,
didn't she?
It's not a connection.
It's a man!
I didn't say
it wasn't.
But if he keeps
saying hello
obviously
he can't hear
because of a bad
connection!
He can hear me.
I know he can hear me!
Then why don't
you hang up?
You don't
have to listen.
Just hang up.
Is that so hard?
Over and over again.
"Hello, hello...
hello."
There.
Now you don't
have to listen.
Nobody can call you,
isn't that right?
Leave it that way.
If you want
to make a call
just hold down
the arm a second
and dial.
Isn't that right,
miss keene?
Miss keene?
Why does he keep callingme?
Why?!
Oh!
Where are you?
I want to talk to you.
Where are you?
I want to talk to you.
No. No!
Where are you?
I want to talk to you.
Leave me alone!
Leave me alone!
Your play.
What?
Oh.
What's the matter
with the girl?
She promised a man
would check today
and now the afternoon's
nearly over.
Maybe he doesn't
have to check here, miss keene.
Your play.
Shall i answer it?
Hello?
Miss keene?
No, this is
margaret phillips.
Here's miss keene.
It's miss finch.
Yes?
About those calls
you say you've been receiving,
miss keene.
Sayi've been?
We sent a man out to trace them.
I have his report here.
And?
He says he traced the difficulty
to a fallen wire
on the edge of town.
Fallen wire?
Yes, miss keene.
Do you mean to tell me
that there were no calls?
Miss keene, there is no way
that anyone could have phoned
from that location.
But i'm sure
a manhascalled me.
There must be a phone there.
There must be some way
he could call.
Miss keene, the wire
is lying on the ground.
Tomorrow, our crew will put it
back up, and you won't be...
there must be some way
he could call me.
But there is no one out there.
Out where?
Where?
Miss keene, it's the cemetery.
What's wrong, miss keene?
What is it?
What's the matter,
miss keene?
I wish
you'd tell me
why you want to come
out here, miss keene.
You know it
isn't good for you.
If you hadn't made
such a to-do
i'd never have come
in the first place.
What can there possibly
be out here to see?
Over there.
Here.
Miss keene.
It's him.
Miss keene, what's the matter?
It's him.
Brian.
Who? What are you talking about?
Brian.
My fiance.
Your f...?
He died... a week
before we were to be married.
We were in a car together.
I insisted upon driving.
I was always insisting
upon everything...
determined to have my own way...
dominating him.
He always did what i said.
Always.
I lost control of the car.
I drove straight into a tree.
Brian went...
right through the windshield.
He was cut to pieces.
I was crippled.
And now he's trying to reach me.
And now he's trying to reach me.
I can talk to him.
I won't be lonely anymore.
Miss keene, i...
i can't leave you like this.
I'll be all right.
Good night.
Good night, margaret.
You'll call me if you need me?
Yes, i will.
I'll be home
all night.
Yes. Good night.
Good night, margaret.
Brian?
Brian, are you there?
Brian?
Brian, if you're there,
speak to me.
It's elva.
Elva!
Please speak to me, it's elva.
Please say so...
you said
leave you alone.
I always do what you say.
But, brian!
Brian, i didn't know it was you.
I thought...
brian, please,
please don't leave me.
Please speak to me.
I didn't mean to say...
brian?
Brian!
According to the bible
god created the heavens
and the earth.
It is man's prerogative,
and woman's,
to create their own particular
and private hell.
Case in point, miss elva keene
who in every sense
has made her own bed
and now must lie in it
sadder, but wiser
by dint of a rather
painful lesson in responsibility
transmitted from...
the twilight zone.
with the key of imagination.
Beyond it is another dimension-
a dimension of sound,
a dimension of sight,
a dimension of mind.
You're moving into a land
of both shadow and substance,
of things and ideas.
You've just crossed over
into the twilight zone.
Hello?
I'm sorry, i didn't hear.
The thunder.
Hello?
Who's on the line, please?
Hello?
Hello?
Miss elva keene
lives alone on the outskirts
of london flats,
a tiny rural community in maine.
Up until now, the pattern
of miss keene's existence
has been
that of lying in her bed
or sitting in her wheelchair
reading books,
listening to a radio,
eating, napping,
taking medication
and waiting for
something different to happen.
Miss keene doesn't know it yet
but her period of waiting
has just ended,
for something different
is about to happen to her,
has, in fact,
already begun to happen
via two most unaccountable
telephone calls
in the middle of a stormy night.
Telephone calls
routed directly through
the twilight zone.
Hello?
Hello?
Hello?
Hello!
Up early this morning.
What's the matter
with her?
No answer?
Obviously.
I imagine they're
pretty busy there
this morning
with the storm and all.
Oh, miss finch?
This is elva keene
speaking.
Yes, miss keene, can i help you?
You can.
Last night about 2:00 a.m.
My telephone rang.
I answered it, but no one spoke.
I didn't even hear
the receiver being put down.
Not even a dial tone,
just silence!
Well...
the same thing happened
a few moments later.
Well, miss keene,
that storm just about ruined
our service.
We've been flooded
with complaints
about fallen wires
and bad connections.
I'd say you're pretty lucky
your telephone works at all.
Would you say someone
was trying to call me
and the connection was bad
because of the storm?
That's as good an explanation
as any right now, miss keene.
I'm sorry,
i wish i could be of more help
but, oh,
the way things are right now!
Well, is it likely
to happen again?
Well, i couldn't say,
miss keene, it might.
It depends on what's causing it,
of course.
If it does, though,
you just call me
and i'll have a special check
run on it.
Will you do that?
Oh, very well.
Good. I'll wait
to hear from you, then.
Good-bye, miss keene.
Good-bye.
Margaret?
Yes, miss keene?
Did you call me
last night?
At 2:00
in the morning?
Huh, no, ma'am,
not me.
Well, you might have checked.
But i don't pay you for nights,
do i?
Here's your mail,
miss keene.
Oh, thank you.
An advertisement.
Another advertisement.
The light bill.
Oh, how stimulating.
You just heard
from your sister
a few days ago,
didn't you?
Three weeks.
Three weeks and two days
to be exact, margaret.
Has it been
that long?
Yes, it has.
Nobody cares
whether i live or die.
Oh, sure, they do,
miss keene.
You don't understand.
You don't know
what it's like to be alone.
Oh, now, miss keene.
Hello?
Hello?
Margaret?
Come here, quickly.
What is it,
miss keene?
There's nobody
on the line.
Listen, listen.
See if you can
hear the sound
of a receiver
being put down.
Not a thing.
Wait!
Oh, well,
it doesn't matter.
I'll call miss finch
and have them
check on the line.
You really think
it's necessary?
Yes, i do.
Am i to have calls like this
coming in all the time?
But if it's a breakdown,
they'll fix it.
There we are.
All comfy?
Thank you.
Don't let those calls
upset you, miss keene.
I'm sure whatever
the trouble was
the repairmen
have it fixed by now.
Oh, why not leave
the receiver off the hook?
Then whoever it is
can't call...
though i'm sure
nobody will.
Thank you.
I'll see you in the morning,
miss keene.
Good night.
Good night.
Hello?
What?
Who's there?
Who's on the line?
Who is it?
Who's there?
Hello?
Hello!
Hello?
Hello?
Hello?
Hello?
Miss keene, are you sure
it was someone saying "hello"?
It could've been...
i tell you it was someone.
The same one who kept
listening to me saying "hello"
over and over again
without answering back.
The same one who kept making
those horrible noises.
You have no idea though
whether it was a man or a woman?
I've already told you
there's no way of knowing.
It might be either one.
And you're positive it wasn't
someone on your party line?
Oh, don't you think i don't know
the people on my party line?
Oh, sure you do, miss keene.
Of course you do.
Well, i'll, um,
i'll have a man check your line
as soon as possible.
The crews
are pretty busy right now
on account of the storm, but...
but what am i to do
if this... person calls again?
Try to get their name,
if you can.
If you do that, why, we can take
immediate action, you see.
Yes.
What did she say?
Nothing.
It's obvious she doesn't
believe a word i told her.
Oh, now.
So far as she's concerned,
i'm just a nervous
old biddy
falling prey to
my imagination.
But she's find
out differently.
I shall just keep on
calling her and calling her
until she does.
If i don't let them call,
i... i shall never find out
who it is.
Hello?
Hello?
Who is this?
Hello?
Who is calling?
Hello?
Please, who is calling?
Hello?
Can you hear me?
Hello?
Please!
Hello?
Margaret!
Margaret!
What is it?
It's a man who's been calling.
How do you know?
He's just called me!
What does he want?
I don't know.
He just keeps on saying hello
over and over again.
"Hello, hello, hello."
Miss keene,
you've got to stop this.
You're working
yourself up over...
over nothing?
I didn't say that, miss keene.
You were going to.
Now, miss keene, i wasnot.
I think i better
put you
in your...
i don't want to be
put in my bed!
I want to find out who
this terrible man is
who keeps calling me!
What did miss finch
tell you?
She told you it was
a bad connection,
didn't she?
It's not a connection.
It's a man!
I didn't say
it wasn't.
But if he keeps
saying hello
obviously
he can't hear
because of a bad
connection!
He can hear me.
I know he can hear me!
Then why don't
you hang up?
You don't
have to listen.
Just hang up.
Is that so hard?
Over and over again.
"Hello, hello...
hello."
There.
Now you don't
have to listen.
Nobody can call you,
isn't that right?
Leave it that way.
If you want
to make a call
just hold down
the arm a second
and dial.
Isn't that right,
miss keene?
Miss keene?
Why does he keep callingme?
Why?!
Oh!
Where are you?
I want to talk to you.
Where are you?
I want to talk to you.
No. No!
Where are you?
I want to talk to you.
Leave me alone!
Leave me alone!
Your play.
What?
Oh.
What's the matter
with the girl?
She promised a man
would check today
and now the afternoon's
nearly over.
Maybe he doesn't
have to check here, miss keene.
Your play.
Shall i answer it?
Hello?
Miss keene?
No, this is
margaret phillips.
Here's miss keene.
It's miss finch.
Yes?
About those calls
you say you've been receiving,
miss keene.
Sayi've been?
We sent a man out to trace them.
I have his report here.
And?
He says he traced the difficulty
to a fallen wire
on the edge of town.
Fallen wire?
Yes, miss keene.
Do you mean to tell me
that there were no calls?
Miss keene, there is no way
that anyone could have phoned
from that location.
But i'm sure
a manhascalled me.
There must be a phone there.
There must be some way
he could call.
Miss keene, the wire
is lying on the ground.
Tomorrow, our crew will put it
back up, and you won't be...
there must be some way
he could call me.
But there is no one out there.
Out where?
Where?
Miss keene, it's the cemetery.
What's wrong, miss keene?
What is it?
What's the matter,
miss keene?
I wish
you'd tell me
why you want to come
out here, miss keene.
You know it
isn't good for you.
If you hadn't made
such a to-do
i'd never have come
in the first place.
What can there possibly
be out here to see?
Over there.
Here.
Miss keene.
It's him.
Miss keene, what's the matter?
It's him.
Brian.
Who? What are you talking about?
Brian.
My fiance.
Your f...?
He died... a week
before we were to be married.
We were in a car together.
I insisted upon driving.
I was always insisting
upon everything...
determined to have my own way...
dominating him.
He always did what i said.
Always.
I lost control of the car.
I drove straight into a tree.
Brian went...
right through the windshield.
He was cut to pieces.
I was crippled.
And now he's trying to reach me.
And now he's trying to reach me.
I can talk to him.
I won't be lonely anymore.
Miss keene, i...
i can't leave you like this.
I'll be all right.
Good night.
Good night, margaret.
You'll call me if you need me?
Yes, i will.
I'll be home
all night.
Yes. Good night.
Good night, margaret.
Brian?
Brian, are you there?
Brian?
Brian, if you're there,
speak to me.
It's elva.
Elva!
Please speak to me, it's elva.
Please say so...
you said
leave you alone.
I always do what you say.
But, brian!
Brian, i didn't know it was you.
I thought...
brian, please,
please don't leave me.
Please speak to me.
I didn't mean to say...
brian?
Brian!
According to the bible
god created the heavens
and the earth.
It is man's prerogative,
and woman's,
to create their own particular
and private hell.
Case in point, miss elva keene
who in every sense
has made her own bed
and now must lie in it
sadder, but wiser
by dint of a rather
painful lesson in responsibility
transmitted from...
the twilight zone.