View source for It's a Good Life (The Twilight Zone)

{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2019}}
{{Infobox television episode
| series         = [[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]
| image          = 
| caption        = 
| season         = 3
| episode        = 8
| airdate        = {{Start date|1961|11|03}}
| editor         = 
| production     = 4801
| teleplay       = [[Rod Serling]]
| based_on       = "[[It's a Good Life]]" by [[Jerome Bixby]]
| director       = [[James Sheldon]]
| guests         = 
* [[John Larch]] as Mr. Fremont
* [[Cloris Leachman]] as Mrs. Fremont
* [[Don Keefer]] as Dan Hollis
* [[Bill Mumy|Billy Mumy]] as Anthony Fremont
* [[Alice Frost]] as Aunt Amy
* [[Max Showalter]] (as Casey Adams) as Pat Riley
* [[Jeanne Bates]] as Ethel Hollis
| season_article = The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) season 3
| episode_list   = List of The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) episodes
| prev           = [[The Grave (The Twilight Zone)|The Grave]]
| next           = [[Deaths-Head Revisited]]
}}

"'''It's a Good Life'''" is the eighth episode of the [[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) season 3|third season]] of the American television series ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]'', and the 73rd overall. It was written by series creator/showrunner [[Rod Serling]], based on the 1953 short story "[[It's a Good Life|It's a ''Good'' Life]]" by [[Jerome Bixby]]. The episode was directed by [[James Sheldon]], and is considered by some, such as critics in ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' and ''[[TV Guide (magazine)|TV Guide]]'', to be one of the best episodes of the series. It originally aired on November 3, 1961. The episode was one of four from the original 1959 series which formed the basis of the 1983 film ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]''.

==Opening narration==
{{cquote|Tonight's story on The Twilight Zone is somewhat unique and calls for a different kind of introduction. This, as you may recognize, is a map of the [[United States]], and there's a little town there called Peaksville. On a given morning not too long ago, the rest of the world disappeared, and Peaksville was left all alone. Its inhabitants were never sure whether the world was destroyed and only Peaksville was left untouched, or whether the village had somehow been taken away. They were, on the other hand, sure of one thing - the cause. A monster had arrived in the village. Just by using his mind, he took away the automobiles, the electricity, the machines, because they displeased him. And he moved an entire community back into the [[Dark_Ages_(historiography)|Dark Ages]], just by using his mind. Now I'd like to introduce you to some of the people in Peaksville, Ohio. This is Mr. Fremont. It's in his farmhouse that the monster resides. This is Mrs. Fremont. And this is Aunt Amy, who probably had more control over the monster in the beginning than almost anyone. But one day she forgot. She began to sing aloud. Now the monster doesn't like singing, so his mind snapped at her, and turned her into the smiling vacant thing you're looking at now. She sings no more. And you'll note that the people in Peaksville, Ohio, have to smile. They have to think happy thoughts and say happy things because, once displeased, the monster can wish them into a cornfield, or change them into a grotesque walking horror. This particular monster can read minds, you see. He knows every thought, he can feel every emotion. Oh, yes, I did forget something, didn't I. I forgot to introduce you to the monster. This is the monster. His name is Anthony Fremont. He's six years old with a cute little-boy face and blue guileless eyes. But when those eyes look at you, you'd better start thinking happy thoughts. Because the mind behind them is absolutely in charge. This is the Twilight Zone.}}

==Plot==
Six-year-old Anthony Fremont has godlike mental powers, including mind-reading. He has isolated his town of Peaksville, Ohio, from the rest of the universe. The people must grow their own food, and supplies of common household items, such as [[Soap|bar soap]], have been dwindling. He has blocked television signals and caused cars not to work. He creates grotesque creatures, such as three-headed [[gopher]]s, which he then kills. Everybody is under his rule, even his parents.

The people live in fear of Anthony, constantly telling him how everything he does is "good", since he banishes anyone thinking unhappy thoughts forever to a place that he calls "the cornfield." Having never experienced any form of discipline, he does not understand that his actions are harmful. He is confused when his father tells him that the neighbors are reluctant to let their children play with him after he sent several of his playmates to the cornfield.

One night each week, Anthony gives the townsfolk one hour of television, which he creates and projects onto the family TV set. The adults gather around in the Fremonts' living room, squirming uncomfortably as Anthony shows them a vision of battling [[dinosaur]]s with ample gore. Unable to voice their real feelings, they tell Anthony that it was far better than what used to be on television.

Afterwards, the adults celebrate their friend Dan Hollis's birthday. He gets two presents from his wife;— a bottle of [[brandy]], one of only five bottles of liquor left in the village, and a [[Perry Como]] record. Dan is eager to listen to the record, but he is reminded by everyone that Anthony does not like singing. Getting drunk from the brandy, he starts complaining about the miserable state of the town, not being able to listen to the record, and no one singing "[[Happy Birthday to You|Happy Birthday]]" to him. Dan snaps and confronts the child, calling him a monster and a murderer. While Anthony's anger grows, Dan yells for someone to attack him from behind and end his reign of terror. Aunt Amy (who is not able to sing anymore because of Anthony) tentatively reaches for a fireplace poker, but no one dares to act. Anthony angrily taunts Dan for being a "bad man" and transforming him into a [[jack-in-the-box]], causing his wife to break down. The adults are horrified at what Anthony has done, and his father asks him to wish Dan into the cornfield, which Anthony does.

Anthony then causes snow to begin falling outside. The snow will kill off at least half the [[crop]]s and the town will face [[starvation]]. Anthony's father starts to rebuke Anthony about this, but his wife and the other adults look on with worried smiles on their faces. The intimidated father then smiles and tells Anthony "...But it's good that you're making it snow, Anthony, it's real good. And tomorrow...tomorrow's gonna be a real good day!"

==Closing narration==
{{cquote|No comment here. No comment at all. We only wanted to introduce you to one of our very special citizens, little Anthony Fremont, age 6, who lives in a village called Peaksville, in a place that used to be Ohio. And if by some strange chance you should run across him, you had best think only good thoughts. Anything less than that is handled at your own risk. Because if you do meet Anthony, you can be sure of one thing: you have entered the Twilight Zone.}}
Rod Serling then appears on camera to promote the next episode - "This is the lobby of an inn in a small Bavarian town, and next week we'll enter it with a former [[SS]] officer. It's the first stop on his road back to relive a horror that was [[Nazi Germany]]. Mr. [[Joseph Schildkraut]] and Mr. [[Oscar_Beregi_(actor,_born_1918)|Oscar Beregi]] demonstrate what happens to the monster when it is judged by the victim. Our feeling here is that this is a stark and moving a piece of drama as we have ever presented. I very much hope that you're around to make your own judgment."

==Cast==
* [[John Larch]] as Mr. Fremont
* [[Cloris Leachman]] as Mrs. Fremont
* [[Don Keefer]] as Dan Hollis
* [[Bill Mumy|Billy Mumy]] as Anthony Fremont 
* [[Alice Frost]] as Aunt Amy
* [[Max Showalter]] (as Casey Adams) as Pat Riley
* [[Jeanne Bates]] as Ethel Hollis
* Lenore Kingston as Thelma Dunn
* Tom Hatcher as Bill Soames

==Reception and legacy==
''Time'' named this the third-best ''Twilight Zone'' episode, behind "[[Time Enough at Last]]" and "[[The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street]]".<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://entertainment.time.com/2009/10/02/top-10-twilight-zone-episodes/slide/its-a-good-life-1961/|title=Top 10 Twilight Zone episodes|date=2009-10-05|access-date=February 15, 2020| magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]}}</ref>

Rod Serling's introduction at the beginning of this episode was recycled and digitally edited for the preshow of the Disney Parks attraction [[The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror]]. In the preshow video, Serling stands in front of a service elevator door, rather than a map of the United States, and explains to guests the journey they are about to experience. The attraction, which first opened at [[Disney's Hollywood Studios|Disney-MGM Studios]] in 1994, almost two decades after Serling's death, is an homage to the original series with an original story based on it. When conceiving the attraction, Disney Imagineers wanted to include Serling in the attraction and opted for a voice artist to play him; Mark Silverman was chosen by Serling's widow to provide his voice.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-disney-voice-over-actors-20150728-story.html|title=Disney voice-over actors bring theme park rides to life|last=MacDonald|first=Brady|date=July 28, 2015|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=July 30, 2017}}</ref> A poster advertising "Anthony Fremont's Orchestra" is displayed next to the concierge desk in the lobby of the attraction, an ironic reference to Anthony's hatred of singing.

In 1997 ''TV Guide'' ranked the episode number 31 on its 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time list.<ref>{{cite book|title=TV Guide Guide to TV|year=2004|publisher=Barnes and Noble|isbn=0-7607-5634-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780760756348/page/667 667]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780760756348/page/667}}</ref>

The opening narration of this episode is sampled in "Threatened" by [[Michael Jackson]] in his 2001 album, [[Invincible (Michael Jackson album)|''Invincible'']].

===Remake===
In a 1974 interview with Marvel Comics, [[Rod Serling]] said "I'm on my third draft of a feature film based on Jerome Bixby's short story, 'It's a Good Life'. We did it originally on ''Twilight Zone'', but now we're doing a full-length version. [[Alan Landsburg]], who produced ''[[Chariots of the Gods (film)|Chariots of the Gods]]'', is producing it. It's in the fantasy-horror genre."<ref>[http://pota.goatley.com/comics/potauk012.pdf ''Rod Serling Recalls'']—'Marvel Planet of the Apes' UK Issue 12 (1975)</ref> This was one of Serling's last interviews before his death in 1975.

''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]''{{'}}s "It's a Good Life" segment is a remake of the original episode, and is directed by [[Joe Dante]].

===Pop culture===
The 1980 song "Cemetery Girls"<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNUOXSShYjU |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/BNUOXSShYjU| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|title="Barnes & Barnes - Cemetery Girls"|website=YouTube|date=September 2, 2009 |access-date=2019-07-09}}{{cbignore}}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=July 2023}} by novelty rock group [[Barnes & Barnes]] refers to the episode in its lyrics ("Fresh souls in the cornfield...Anthony put them there..."), and with samples of lines.  Since the album was released several years before fictional twin brothers Art ([[Bill Mumy]]) Barnes and Artie ([[Barnes & Barnes#Robert Haimer|Robert Haimer]]) went "public" about their identities, the reference is an in-joke.

This episode was also remade as a parody in ''[[The Simpsons]]'' episode "[[Treehouse of Horror II]]" in 1991, with [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] in the role of Anthony.

The 1997 episode "Johnny Real Good" from ''[[Johnny Bravo]]'' is also based on this episode. Johnny has to babysit a boy named Timmy, who also has supernatural powers and sends Johnny several times to a nearby cornfield for "thinking bad thoughts."

The 2007 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel ''[[The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao]]'' uses the episode as an analogy for life under the dictator [[Rafael Trujillo]] in the [[Dominican Republic]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Diaz |first=Junot |title=The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1204601789 |isbn=978-1-4074-4350-8 |oclc=1204601789 |access-date=2022-06-14}}</ref>

The 2017 ''[[Black Mirror]]'' episode "[[USS Callister]]" was conceived with the episode as an inspiration.<ref name="ew interview">{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/tv/2017/12/29/black-mirror-u-s-s-callister-interview/|title=''Black Mirror'': Here's the secret inspiration for 'USS Callister'|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|last=Hibberd|first=James|date=29 December 2017|access-date=29 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229164415/http://ew.com/tv/2017/12/29/black-mirror-u-s-s-callister-interview/|archive-date=2017-12-29|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2025, during the September 8 episode of ''[[The Daily Show]]'', host [[Jon Stewart]] invoked the episode to critique the sycophancy surrounding [[Donald Trump]], quipping that Trump was “that ''Twilight Zone'' kid … [who] sent them out to the cornfield.”<ref>{{Cite web |last=Day |first=Debbie |title=News of Donald Trump's death has been greatly exaggerated, Jon Stewart says on ''The Daily Show'' |url=https://ew.com/jon-stewart-talks-donald-trump-death-rumor-the-daily-show-11806113 |website=Entertainment Weekly |date=September 9, 2025 |access-date=September 9, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=If Trump Isn’t Dying, Why Is He Being Treated Like a Make-A-Wish Kid? |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qxWKVIflyo |website=YouTube |publisher=The Daily Show |date=September 8, 2025 |access-date=September 9, 2025}}</ref>
===Sequel===
In the 2002 [[The Twilight Zone (2002 TV series)|revival series]], a sequel to this episode was broadcast, titled "[[It's Still a Good Life]]", making it the only ''Twilight Zone'' episode to have a sequel. In the episode, Anthony is a middle-aged man who now has a daughter Audrey who has inherited his powers.<ref name="It's a Good Life">{{cite web|url=http://www.billmumy.com/mumy/bio/index.htm|title=Bill Mumy—Biography| publisher = [[Bill Mumy|Billmumy.com]]|access-date=2007-06-22}}</ref> [[Bill Mumy]] and [[Cloris Leachman]] reprised their roles from the original episode.<ref name="Cast">{{cite web|url=http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/ZCSC.do?t=The+Twilight+Zone&sId=EP523833&method=getEpisodeDetailForShow&pId=EP5238330015|title=The Twilight Zone|publisher=Zap2it|access-date=2007-06-22|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080409225537/http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/ZCSC.do?t=The+Twilight+Zone&sId=EP523833&method=getEpisodeDetailForShow&pId=EP5238330015|archive-date=2008-04-09}}</ref>  Anthony Fremont's daughter, Audrey, is played by actor Bill Mumy's real-life daughter [[Liliana Mumy]].<ref name="Cast" /><ref name="SFW-Liliana">{{cite web|url=http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue304/screen3.html |title=The Twilight Zone Special Remake Episodes |publisher=[[Syfy#Science Fiction Weekly|Science Fiction Weekly]] |quote=Played by Mumy's real life daughter, Liliana Mumy |access-date=2007-06-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070806075325/http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue304/screen3.html |archive-date=2007-08-06 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

A commercial for [[MeTV]] airing on that channel in 2015 features an adult Bill Mumy as adult Anthony intercut with scenes from the original episode, apparently interacting as the adult Anthony uses his powers to beam Me-TV to little Anthony's set. In early 2017, the network used clips from this episode in promos for the show's late-night reruns.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Zicree, Marc Scott: ''The Twilight Zone Companion''. Sillman-James Press, 1982 (second edition)
* 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}}
* Diaz, Junot. Penguin Books New York (2007) The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao p.g 224
* Wiater, Stan, et al. (2007). ''The Stephen King Universe: The Guide to the Worlds of the King of Horror'' (1st ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Renaissance Books. p.&nbsp;427. {{ISBN|978-0-525-94190-3}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb episode|0734580}}

{{The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) episodes}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:It's A Good Life (The Twilight Zone)}}
[[Category:1961 American television episodes]]
[[Category:The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) season 3 episodes]]
[[Category:Fiction about telepathy]]
[[Category:Television episodes written by Rod Serling]]
[[Category:Television episodes based on short fiction]]
[[Category:Television episodes set in Ohio]]