#The twonky short story movie#
#The twonky short story tv#

~ A Question for the Members: What would it be like to suddenly possess a device from the future which - like the smart phones and Alexis-like devices we now have - was not only designed to serve us in hundreds of way, it would also want to control our lives to make sure we only did what as 'in our best interests'. 'The Twonky' (1942) by Henry Kuttner and C.L.

#The twonky short story movie#

It's a real treat, and it will raise your appreciation for the movie and the short story. If even contains the text of the origianl story and a link to an audio version! In found a great online article about this movie and the story it's based on that site below. I too recall seeing this as a child, but I always confused it with 'The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. My matured assessment after all those years. My vague memories of The Twonky stuck with me through to adulthood, so when I started acquiring nostalgic DVD titles, this was one of them. (Everybody ducked when the native threw his spear toward the camera.) My parents weren't taking me to sci-fi movies, but they may have decided from its promotional advertising that it was enough of a comedy to be 'safe'.

I lived in Oklahoma at the time of its release, and I do recall seeing Arch Oboler's previous film, Bwana Devil in 3-D. I saw this as a child, although I don't recall where or with whom. Last edited by Bud Brewster on Fri 4:02 pm edited 7 times in total Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child? Here's the original Astounding illustration by Orban. After the worker is snatched back to the future, the innocent-looking radio is sold to an unsuspecting consumer whose life is changed by the mechanism. Out of pure habit he builds a super-complex mechanism that appears to be a normal radio. The single-minded and highly trained individual finds himself in a factory which makes radios.

In the story, a factory worker from the future is accidentally projected back in time.

Moore (under the pseudonym Lewis Padgett) is markedly different from the film. The original story was first published in the September 1942 issue of Astounding Science Fiction by husband-and-wife team Henry Kuttner and C.L. United Artist waited a year and five months after the film's completion before releasing it. Writer-director Arch Oboler genuinely hated television, but the film's anti-TV message is somewhat defeated by the unskilled comedy it attempts.

#The twonky short story tv#

He suggests that the robot is just masquerading as an innocuous TV while it dutifully indoctrinates people into the dictatorial superstate which designed it.Īt first the walking TV performs a variety of domestic chores such as washing dishes and lighting Conried's cigarettes.īut then it begins to take control of Conried's life, tampering directly with his brain, preventing him from delivering a lecture on human freedom to his college class. The film's funniest lines go to Conried's friend (Billy Lynn), a dottering old football coach who theorizes that the television is actually a diabolical robot which 'accidentally' came from the future. Posted: Tue 8:37 pm Post subject: The Twonky (1953)Ĭomedy sci-fi about an unusual TV which is delivered to the home of a philosophy professor (Hans Conried).Ĭonried learns that the apparently-normal TV can actually walk, talk, and manipulate objects with energy beams. > Sci-Fi Movies and Serials from 1950 to 1969 Profile Log in to check your private messages Log in ALL SCI-FI :: View topic - The Twonky (1953)įAQ Search Memberlist Usergroups Register