The Outer Limits (1963) 1.17

Don't Open Until Doomsday

starring Miriam Hopkins, John Hoyt, Russell Collins

writer by Joseph Stefano

directed by Gerd Oswald

Gard Hayden and Vivia Balfour elope. They rush to the justice of the peace (Russell Collins). He marries them and then directs them to the home of Mrs. Kry (Miriam Hopkins). There are no hotels in town and it has a bridal suite. Mrs. Key is more than happy to set them up in the bridal suite. Her husband disappeared just after they god married, 35 years before. She tells them that but she doesn't warn them about the box with the blinking light with the alien inside it.

The alien zapped her husband into the box with him. He has been trapped within the box ever since. Mrs. Kry still holds out hope that she can get her husband back. Vivia gets zapped into the box. Gard leaves thinking that Vivia has run back to her father. Mr. Balfour (John Hoyt) comes looking for his daughter. He gets zapped into the box. The alien promises to let them go if they will help him destroy the Earth. Mr. Balfour agrees to the alien's terms.

The alien zaps them out of the box. Gard shows up. He grabs Vivia. They rush out of the house. Mr. Balfour declares that he won't help the alien and gets zapped back into the box. The alien decides he's had enough and blows up the box which destroys the house.

Thoughts

The alien is kind of reptilian and gross looking. It doesn't move very much.

The title of the episode was written on the card that accompanied the box. It was a wedding present for Mr. and Mrs. Kry.

This episode was as crazy as my description makes it sound. Mrs. Kry may have been the craziest part of it all. This episode, on the whole, doesn't make a lot of sense. Maybe there was a decent story buried somewhere in this mess of an episode but this wasn't it.

Notes

This is the only episode of this show in which Miriam Hopkins appeared.

This is the first of three episodes of this show in which John Hoyt appeared. I've seen him in a few movies including X: The Man with X-Ray Eyes (1963). See my notes about that movie and my notes about an episode of Alcoa Theatre, 3.04 Operation Spark, for a lists of some other TV shows and movies in which he appeared.

This is the only episode of this show in which Russell Collins appeared. He was in nine episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955) and one episode each of The Twilight Zone (1959) and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. He's been in a couple movies I have seen but none that I have seen recently or in which he played a major role.

Buck Taylor played the part of Gard. This is the only episode of this show in which he appeared. He was in two episodes of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. 

David Frankham played the part of Mrs. Kry's husband, who spent most of the episode trapped in the box with the alien. This is the second of two episodes of this show in which he appeared. The first was 1.10 Nightmare. He also appeared in episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955), The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Star Trek (1966), and The Six Million Dollar Man. 

This is the fifth of 12 episodes of this show written by Joseph Stefano, the producer for the first season. This is the fourth of 14 episodes of this show that was directed by Gerd Oswald.