"The New Exhibit"

"The New Exhibit"

A wax-museum employee (Martin Balsam) moves the figures of several notorious murderers into the basement of his home.

Stars Martin Balsam, Will Kuluva.
Original air date: April 4, 1963.

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"10" One of the best of the hour longs and definitely the creepiest of all Zones.

Leen

I have only seen about half of the hour long episodes and this is at the top of the list. Wax museums are pretty creepy to begin with, and ones filled with notorious serial killers, well that just spooks this episode even more. I thought it was a very creative episode, especially for a full hour.

This is a step away from the norm for The Twilight Zone and is a venture into pure horror. It's a good thing I DIDN'T see this one as a child or I might not have become a Zone addict! It almost seems like a William Castle film.
"The New Exhibit" is in my top 20%.

http://leapinbass.com/zone/picture_pages/t...04/tz115-01.jpg

I guess I'm one of the few who isn't too crazy about it. I gave it a 6. A good solid ep for me that just seems to plod on and on at points. Had great, scary scenes, but as Crown 85 pointed out, it seemed to be more a try at a horror film and not a classic TZ that kind of has you either really thinking or going, "wow, oh my gosh" at the end after seeing a twist ending...

Not bad, I enjoy it, being in the style of old horror, like Crown mentioned. I gave it a 7

I must admit (and at this site you run the risk of total embarrassment) that I had never heard the word, "burking" before Mr. Senescu brought it to my attention.

Not too long ago the word was used on Court TV. I looked it up in dictionary.com and it states:

3. To execute (someone) by suffocation so as to leave the body intact and suitable for dissection.

[After William Burke (1792-1829), Irish-born grave robber and murderer.]

Ya learn something every day. Even in...The Twilight Zone.

Leen

I didn't know that either. Thanks Leen!

I like this one very much because it reminds me the morbid mood of "Thriller" (see episode: "Waxwork") and "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour". Besides, Martin Balsam plays in "Psycho" and it can be interpretated as the flip side of his part, meaning, he is the Norman Bates character.

Creepy episode, but much too wordy at times.

8/10

***SPOILERS***




From Zicree's commentary in the Companion: "Where the story falls down is in its denouement. Although we see Jack the Ripper kill Martin's wife, Hicks his brother-in-law and Landru his boss, at the end the murderers reveal that it is Martin who committed the murders. This just does not wash."

Here's one (not the only) possible solution to this difficulty. Now I fully believe that the best interpretation to have of a story is the one that gives the individual interpreter their own best reading or viewing experience. (Let's put aside the issue of the best interpretation of "best" for now, heh heh.) According to my interpretation, however, Martin is, literally, the motivating force behind the murders. From my point of view, Martin has invested so much of his psyche in these figures over the years that, when his frustrations reach a boiling point, the figures not only come alive, but murder in obedience to his unconscious will. When he consciously decides to protect the figures, he assumes the culpability for what he has instigated unconsciously.

Unfortunately, by the time he finally confronts the figures, they have already been charged with so much of his vitality that they are strong enough to rebel against him. (Coincidentally, or perhaps not so coincidentally, this is right after Martin has finally rebelled unconsciously against his own boss, though consciously he is horrified, of course--just as Norman Bates was always horrified after a murder happened around his place, heh heh.) When they tell him that he committed the murders, they are essentially speaking the truth.

A lot of TZs seem to be about characters who, like Martin Lombard Senescu after the museum closes, are at a mental and emotional low point. In these characters' cases, it usually seems to me that their own psychological needs are the key that opens the door to the Twilight Zone for them, directly or indirectly. Sometimes another conscious entity, like Henry J. Fate or J. Hardy Hempstead, will respond to their needs and open that door. In a couple of episodes, like "Nervous Man In A Four Dollar Room" and "The Last Night Of A Jockey", a character's alter ego seems to rise out of his own unconscious to give him a second chance. As I see it, Martin's unconscious works in a much more sinister way in this episode, a way that also calls to mind "The Fever" and "The Dummy." Let's hope it can only happen in . . . the Twilight Zone.

More spoilers:

That's a thoughtful piece of writing, JBWB. I've always had the same problem with the denoument as Zicree does, and you've figured out a good way around it.

Here are some more questions, though: We assume that the figures kill Martin after they converge on him, but what happens afterwards? Presumably the police eventually enter the house when they see from external evidence that it's being completely neglected, or even sooner if Ferguson had left word with someone that he was visiting Martin. They must find Martin's body, but what do they determine as the manner of death? Are the wax figures back in their usual poses, and did they suffer from any extended period of neglect?

Maybe the biggest question, though, is how the wax Martin came to be. What else did the police find? There was Ferguson's strangled body on the floor, which would seem to indicate a double murder more than a murder-suicide. I'll buy that forensics saw enough reason to dig up the floor, revealing Emma's body. (Dave is probably buried there as well, but we don't know for sure -- that's a nitpick about Zicree's synopsis.) So, is that absolute proof to the outside world that Martin killed them?

Perhaps the wax Martin was made (by whom?) by the same rules of ethics that rule the supermarket tabloids. Better yet, imagine an O. J. Simpson wax figure on display shown killing his wife and her friend, preferably some years after his death so he couldn't press suit. It would be based on the court of popular opinion, as might a Martin figure be.

Very good! Martin Balsam gave excellent performance. Epiosde is very creepy.

great episode.. very creepy feel.

i love the way martin looks when he is talking with dave. he is dirty from repaving the basement floor and his face looks ghoulish.

i also like how martin reprimands the wax figures -as if they were bad children. jeez, his wife just died and he was upset with jack for leaving blood evidence on the knife.

-ag

I am currently watching NBC's Dateline. They just mentioned "burking." What is it with me and this word???

There must be a magical affinity between you and that word, Leen. I never come across that word, ever.

It's amazing, now that I know that they're mother/daughter, how much Maggie Mahoney(Emma Sonescu) and Sally Field look and sound alike!

creepy episode i love it

There must be a magical affinity between you and that word, Leen. I never come across that word, ever.

Never say never...I came across this word recently in Positively Fifth Street by James McManus, about the 2000 World Series of Poker. I thought it was an excellent book, by the way.

i haven't seen this in a while either

Oooh, great episode. It's definitely my favorite hour-long episode. I'm glad my nightmares about it have stopped though...

i haven't see this episode in a long time

9
I had to deduct a full point because the ending could have been better.

Otherwise, a great episode!

Really creepy, both because of the mysterious wax figures coming to life, and because of Martin's unhealthy, almost erotic, obsession for the figures.

I like this one, I remember being freaked out when I first saw it back in 1973 when I was 9. I have to agree with Iron Maiden that the ending could've been better but it's still a great episode. I gave it a 9. By the way, Martin Lombard Senescu anagrams perfectly to: Morbid Unclean Masters.

When I first saw this on DVD a few months ago, I thought it was going to be pretty bland(because it said it was a Season 4), but it turned out to be really freaky, sending chills down my spine. Martin Balsam was great(as always), yet Will Kuluva played his role quite woodenly. I liked this story a lot, too bad Rod didn't make more stories like this.

I watched this one again.

The finale is too damn confusing.

Hard 9 pushing for 10. I know this came after House of Wax, but stands on it's own and really shouldn't be compaired, though often is. Truely creepy and enjoyable.

9 Zones. May the best be all of ours eternal.

they don't show this episode that much on tv

You're right Damin, they don't! That's true for the 4th Season though! It'll be on sometime in late December though!

couldn't have said it any better myself "general". Gave ita 7 overall. As for viewing TZ eps, I just rent them. Mucho betta than aired versions & you get the total package that way.

I think I've found an interpretation of the ending that works for me. I think Mr. Senescu had been tending to the figures for so long that his psyche joined with theirs, and could will them to commit the murders that they did. But after a while, their power began to exceed his and then they acted on their own.

You're right Damin, they don't! That's true for the 4th Season though! It'll be on sometime in late December though!

i hope so cause i will be there too tape it

SPOILER AHEAD



I just found an editing flub - right after the gas man first notices the figures, we see a shot of them, in which Landru doesn't have his rope, and Burke and Hare are facing the camera. This shot must have been taken from later in the episode, after Ferguson is killed and before they come alive.

You're right Damin, they don't! That's true for the 4th Season though! It'll be on sometime in late December though!

i hope so cause i will be there too tape it

It will be aired 8 AM December 30 Damin!

Damin Mance, Long Live the HOUR episodes. Good episode.

I gave "The New Exhibit" a "6", although I wanted to score it higher, but the conclusion...it was just wrong!

SPOILER...I know this has been mentioned before but...

We are to believe that it was Martin who did the killing when we actually saw the wax figures do the killing in at least two instances. I enjoyed the creepy feel of this story and also liked seeing the actors playing the wax figures move from time to time.

My explanation of the climax, which may not satisfy everyone, is here.

I said a while back that I would write sometime about why I didn't particularly like this episode. The main reason is that it has my least favorite performance of Martin Balsam (that I've ever seen, anyway). He had an excellent reputation as an actor, and indeed, I've liked him in everything I've ever seen him in except this. He has a few good moments, but he seems to me just to be going through the motions a lot of the time. Yes, I understand that his character is supposed to be low-key and repressed, but there's a difference between portraying those traits and just walking through the role. His rousing conclusion, on the other hand--"You wanted for no-thing! I washed yoooooooo!"--I found embarrrassingly over the top. (I'm laughing now just typing that line. ) Also an episode without much music, especially during the scenes where it could have been most effective.

After a moment's thought, I take back some of the things I said in the above paragraph that imply that Balsam may not have put much effort into this role. It seems more likely that he just never connected with who the character was supposed to be, but did the best he could anyway. I know I'll be in the minority in any criticism of Balsam here, as this is a popular episode, but I'm okay with that. Someday I may come to a different view of his performance in this one, but this is the way I see it now.

My vote: 4.

i didn't catch this episode cause i fell asleep