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We close out our Twilight Zone symposium in style with a pop-up art show of artwork from Staples High School students, inspired by one of the most memorable Twilight Zone episodes, “Eye of the Beholder.” After a screening of that same fan-favorite episode, we have a real treat in store for you — a screening of the episode, “Number 12 Looks Just Like You” — complete with original commercials from its airdate in 1964! Finally, we close out the weekend with a screening of the cult classic 1975 film The Stepford Wives, sharing thematic ties with “Number 12,” and also partially filmed right here in Westport.
Suspended in time and space for a moment: your introduction to Miss Janet Tyler, who lives in a very private world of darkness. A universe whose dimensions are the size, thickness, length of the swath of bandages that cover her face. In a moment we will go back into this room, and also in a moment we will look under those bandages. Keeping in mind of course that we are not to be surprised by what we see, because this isn't just a hospital, and this patient 307 is not just a woman. This happens to be the Twilight Zone, and Miss Janet Tyler, with you, is about to enter it.
—The Twilight Zone, "Eye of the Beholder" (Season 2, Episode 6. Originally aired November 11, 1960)
Given the chance, what young girl wouldn't happily exchange a plain face for a lovely one? What girl could refuse the opportunity to be beautiful? For want of a better estimate, let's call it the year 2000. At any rate, imagine a time in the future where science has developed the means of giving everyone the face and body he dreams of. It may not happen tomorrow, but it happens now, in The Twilight Zone.
—The Twilight Zone, "Number 12 Looks Just Like You"(Season 5, Episode 17. Originally aired January 24, 1964)
The Stepford Wives (1975) was written by William Goldman, who based his screenplay on Ira Levin's 1972 novel of the same name. The film stars Katharine Ross as a woman who relocates with her husband (Peter Masterson) and children from New York City to the Connecticut community of Stepford, where she comes to find that the women live lives of unwavering subservience to their husbands. Filmed in Connecticut in 1974, The Stepford Wives premiered theatrically in February 1975.
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As Roy Lichtenstein brought comic book art into the fine art world, Arlen Schumer has brought it into the commercial art world. His unique comic book-style art appears in advertisements and other editorial and promotional instances.
Schumer's background in graphic design, art direction and copywriting in New York City advertising agencies, combined with his expertise and enthusiasm for the comic book medium and its rich history, produces captivating award-winning imagery recognized worldwide. He has been a long-standing member of the Society of Illustrators.
As a published author and pop culture historian, Schumer has been equally recognized. His book The Silver Age of Comic Book Art won the Independent Book Publishers Award for Best Popular Culture Book; ABC’s 20/20 named him “one of the country's preeminent authorities on comics and culture," and the BBC said his works on The Twilight Zone were “a cut above the rest, full of passion and erudition." Comic Book Artist Magazine called him “one of the more articulate and enthusiastic advocates of comic book art in America.” His other books are Visions from The Twilight Zone and The Neal Adams Sketchbook.
This event is free to attend. Arlen Schumer's new book, The Five Themes of The Twilight Zone, is available for preorder through registration for an additional fee.
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