The Prime Mover
Template:Television episode short description
| "The Prime Mover" | |
|---|---|
| The Twilight Zone episode | |
| File:Prime Mover Twilight Zone 1961.jpg Christine White, Dane Clark, Buddy Ebsen and Jane Burgess | |
| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 21 |
| Directed by | Richard L. Bare |
| Written by | Charles Beaumont |
| Story by | George Clayton Johnson (uncredited) |
| Featured music | Stock |
| Production code | 173-3647 |
| Original air date | March 24, 1961 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
| |
"The Prime Mover" is episode 57 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. It originally aired on March 24, 1961 on CBS.
Opening narration[edit]
| “ | Portrait of a man who thinks and thereby gets things done. Mr. Jimbo Cobb might be called a prime mover, a talent which has to be seen to be believed. In just a moment he'll show his friends, and you, how he keeps both feet on the ground, and his head in the Twilight Zone. | ” |
Plot[edit]
Small-time gambler Ace Larsen discovers that his partner, Jimbo Cobb, has telekinetic powers after a car overturns outside their café and Jimbo moves the car without touching it.
Ace plans to use Jimbo's powers to win big in Las Vegas, and he takes his girlfriend Kitty with them. Ace wins many jackpots, disregarding Jimbo's headaches from the use of his powers and his growing moral concerns over what they are doing. Kitty is repulsed and leaves, so Ace uses his newly acquired cash to lure the attention of the casino's cigarette girl and bets the pile in a game of craps, just as Jimbo's powers appear to "run out". The loss awakens Ace to the reality of what he has become, and he and Jimbo have a good laugh over their misfortune. The three return home and, back at the café, Ace asks Kitty to marry him just as Jimbo drops his broom. She flips a coin, and Ace calls "heads". Kitty doesn't show Ace the coin or tell him the result of the coin toss; Kitty simply accepts his proposal. As they embrace, Jimbo picks up the broom telekinetically, revealing he faked his loss of power to snap Ace out of his greed.
Closing narration[edit]
| “ | Some people possess talent, others are possessed by it. When that happens, the talent becomes a curse. Jimbo Cobb knew, right from the beginning, but before Ace Larsen learned that simple truth, he had to take a short trip - through The Twilight Zone. | ” |
Cast[edit]
- Dane Clark as Ace Larsen
- Buddy Ebsen as Jimbo Cobb
- Jane Burgess as Sheila
- Christine White as Kitty Cavanaugh
- William Keene as Desk clerk
- Nesdon Booth as Big Phil Nolan
- Clancy Cooper as Trucker
Production[edit]
The crash scene re-uses footage from the 1958 film Thunder Road.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- DeVoe, Bill. (2008). Trivia from The Twilight Zone. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media. ISBN 978-1-59393-136-0
- Grams, Martin. (2008). The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9703310-9-0
