1963’s The Outer Limits delivered a classic sci fi anthology that is still well-regarded today, but ABC cut the original series short after only two seasons.
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What Is It?
This anthology series gave us science fiction-focused tales that often worked around a monster-of-the-week format and that also delivered the expected twist ending. It has since been ranked as a classic among sci fi shows and is revered for pushing boundaries and helping the genre to mature on television, all kicked off by that iconic opening narration:
There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission. If we wish to make it louder, we will bring up the volume. If we wish to make it softer, we will tune it to a whisper. We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the image, make it flutter. We can change the focus to a soft blur or sharpen it to crystal clarity. For the next hour, sit quietly and we will control all that you see and hear. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with your television set. You are about to participate in a great adventure. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the inner mind to – The Outer Limits.
Aired: ABC, 1963-65, 2 Seasons Totaling 49 Episodes
Created By: Leslie Stevens
Notable Guest Stars: Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner, Shirley Knight, Barry Morse, Adam West
Why Was It Cancelled?
This series is actually a classic example of the disrespect that networks had for sci fi in the past (and that still exists to an extent today) and also of a promising show killed by poor scheduling. It pulled decent ratings during its first year when it aired on Monday nights, enough to justify a second-season renewal. But ABC had a new entry joining the schedule in Fall of 1964–Irwin Allen’s Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea— and the network decided to give the Monday 7:30 PM EST timeslot to the freshman series while relocating The Outer Limits. It was shuffled to Saturday nights (back when the networks still had new programming on that night and people were tuning in) to compete with the popular Jackie Gleason Show over on CBS. Obviously, the sci fi series took a nose dive in the ratings, and instead of rescheduling the show to a better timeslot, ABC just decided to cancel it at midseason, truncating its run at 49 eps. It still managed to live on in syndication despite a less-than-ideal episode count, but had ABC made any attempt to keep it alive, its classic run could have been extended even further.
Should It Be Revived?
The Outer Limits has already gone through one reboot, but another would certainly be welcome. Three decades after its initial cancellation, the show would get a second chance when Showtime brought it back for a revival run. The second series lasted much longer at seven seasons (the last two on The Sci Fi Channel) and 154 episodes, though the revival never quite matched the reputation of the original (but it did still produce its share of standout episodes).
A modern reboot would certainly work as well, and now might be the perfect time. Like The Twilight Zone, a new adaptation should be pretty seamless because of its anthology format. Plus, it is not a show that requires a massive budget. The Outer Limits has succeeded because of its ability to tell a good story (and throw in some decent scares as well), and if the right creative team is tapped for the revival, the show can do that without breaking the bank. There is no need to go into the sfx-excess that we have seen from the more recent Star Trek revivals, just tell good sci fi stories. And with all of the television networks–linear and streaming–in the midst of cost-cutting, this could offer the perfect property with name recognition and a reasonable budget.
The Outer Limits stands next to shows like The Twilight Zone and Star Trek as the pinnacle of the genre in the 1960’s (what I consider to be the first Golden Age of sci fi television). Both of those other properties have gone through reboots, and OL could certainly hold up well to that treatment in the current environment. But perhaps that should adjust the opening for the control voice to the following:
There is nothing wrong with your ratings results. Do not attempt to adjust the schedule or cancel the show. We are now in control of the transmissions . . .
Where Can You Watch It?
The entire series has been released on DVD and Blu-ray, though both are rather pricey. If you keep an eye out (especially around the holidays), sometimes there are some pretty good discounts on those. It has bounced around across several streaming services over the years and it is currently available for free (with ads) on The Roku Channel, FreeVee, and Pluto TV (On Demand). The 1990s revival is available for streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video and The Roku Channel. It is also a regular in CometTV’s rotation of classic shows.
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Does anyone remember if the show re-ran after the second year? I have this memory of watching the pilot show on a Friday night in the Fall of 1965.
Yes, was living in Florida, then. I was 11 years old 1965, how the heck my mother let me watch this type of show don’t know, she watched it with me though, as did my father sometimes. But yeah, where it was broadcast out of Tampa, Florida, the TV station just re-ran from the start for a few till it disappeared however many episodes later.
My opinion is money, I think exec’s purposely slotted it at the end to nosedive the ratings so’s to cancel it. Jackie Gleason and other shows were bigger money doers with sponsors and advertisements then Outer Limits could do.
It sure caught on though in the memory of people, almost like a cult thing, even myself at 70 years old now still watch the original time to time, never get tired of it.
WHAT CAN I SAY? THIS SERIES WAS UNBELIEVABLY UNIQUE. WHAT I ADMIRED ABOUT IT WERE THE CONCEPTS IT EXPLORED ( EG – TIME TRAVEL, GENETIC MANIPULATION, ALIEN VISITATION ETC.). FOR ITS TIME IT WAS GREATLY UNDER RATED AND TREATED BADLY BY THE NETWORKS ABC. THEIR DISRESPECT FOR THE GENRE WAS APPALLING. OBVIOUSLY THE PEOPLE IN CHARGE OF THE SHOW DIDNT HAVE A CLUE ABOUT CULTURAL FORESIGHT. THIS CAN BEEN WITH THE RESPONES TO THE SHOWS RESURRECTION YEATS LATER. PEOPLE WERE ENAMORED WITH THE SCIENTIFIC DEVELOPMENTS OF THE TIME AND AS SUCH THESE TYPE OF SHOWS WERE VIEWED WITH EXTREME INTEREST. THE SHOW NEEDED TIME TO GROW BECAUSE OF THE TRIME SLOT. ABCs INCOMPETENCE IN REGARDS TO THIS FACTOR WERE ONE OF THE REASONS FOR THE SHOWS DEMISE. ALL OF THIS IS A SHAME BUT ALL OF US ARE HOPEFUL THAT A REPLACEMENT PROGRAM WILL EMERGE IN THE FUTURE.
It’s so wonderful to read all these comments by the young people who had the intelligence and E spirits to appreciate the great work of my late husband Joseph Stefano who absolutely Loved writing and producing this amazing TVShow that has still so many loyal fans who are happy to share how the show affected their lives, even someone like James Cameron who watched with his mother at the same age as so many of you, Thanks so much – makes an old woman feel good!
Thank you, Mrs. Stefano for your appreciative comments. I can’t express how fortunate I was to be exposed to your husband’s wonderfully creative and provocative writing via the Outer Limits when I was 8,9 and 10 years old while ABC carried it. And I have enjoyed those 49 episodes every since. (As well as his input into the later 1990s OL series.) I was so much MORE than entertained (and a little scared) by the Outer Limits; I was getting deeply insightful commentary into the world in which I was growing up via what can only be called well-crafted morality plays. And as a gift that has kept on giving, I have been able as an adult to understand and appreciate the adult themes of episodes such as Don’t Open Until Doomsday, The Invisibles, and The Bellero Shield. (Later at 14, I was allowed to watch Psycho for the first time and it too remains a favorite. Actually, I wasn’t exactly “allowed” to watch the Outer Limits as a child…..but I usually found a way. ;>) Bottom Line: your husband’s timeless work has been so much more than nostalgia for me!
Wow, what a privilege to have you comment here Mrs. Stefano. The Outer Limits was required viewing for this ‘young’ GenXer (born in the 70’s) whenever it showed up in syndicated reruns. I can’t express enough thanks to your late husband for the effect his show has on a budding imagination and kindling an unending fascination with the mysterious and unknown aspects of our universe. Thanks to the blu-ray release I have had the pleasure of watching it together with my young son and seeing the same amazement and wonder light up in his eyes. The Outer Limits is truly one of the priceless treasures of American television history. Thanks again.
Everyone thought the Outer Limits was JUST a Sci-Fi show; however, if you watched the many first episodes, you knew better. It was a series that showed the many Short Comings of Humanity, (the supposed “Superior Race” of Planet Earth!). The many morals of that magnificent presentation moved me greatly. But, then the Almighty Buck killed it. Too bad THAT one short coming didn’t rear it’s Ugly Head sufficiently. Still, the several original episodes are there. All of them were in B&W, so if you see or hear tell of one of those episodes airings, anywhere, Bust-a-Gut to see it!
Hugh, would you agree that The Shortcomings of Humanity were especially well illustrated in The Chameleon, O.B.I.T., Nightmare, The Bellero Shield, The Children of Spider County, The Inheritors and The Brain of Colonel Barham?
Absolutely!! The best!! As a sci Fi fan it was the greatest.
The show was incredibly preachy. Not just one show, but so many, that it turned people off. This is less than 20 years after world war ii, when millions of Americans were killed or brutally injured, and you have a show, that’s week after week, telling us how terrible society is and how we all kind of suck. It turned a lot of people off at the time. I remember people who wouldn’t even watch it due to that. But it was a cool show to watch as a kid. The 1990’s reboot even more so. It lasted 7 years but had very average numbers of viewership. Same theme, all mankind sucks.
I was 7 Years Old On, September,1963,When I Started Watching,”The Outer Limits”,Great Show !!!! It Scared Me To No End,!!!! I Loved All The Episodes It Was The Best Sci-Fi Ever !!!!,ABC, Cancelled Too Soon !!!!
I was 8 years old, Jerry, when the Outer Limits premiered, and I wholeheartedly agree with everything you say. It scared me too, but I loved it. I was forbidden to watch it, but I evaded that stricture every chance I got. As an adult I own the series, can watch it anytime I want (:>) ) and can now appreciate the depth of writing, the social commentary and the genius of Joseph Stefano and all who brought it to us for too brief a period of time.
I was 9 and transfixed by the Outer Limits. SCARED by many episodes. What an astounding time to be a kid: when “OL” began, Kennedy was President, Lawrence Welk music was on TV, Sonny Liston was Heavyweight Champion, Vietnam was at best, a minor foreign skirmish. By February’64, JFK had been assassinated, a relative unknown Muhammad Ali( then Cassius Clay) won the Heavyweight Boxing Title, Vietnam still had not yet regularly made the front pages, but a music group called the Beatles seemingly came out of nowhere to dominate the music scene.
Being born in 1962 I missed the first airing of the original Outer Limits series. But in 1975, our UHF stations began airing the show. It became my Saturday night obsession. Forty-five years later I still watch the show on DVD. Without a doubt, the most beloved Sci Fi series. A B C network gave show kiss of death.
Yes, I remember The Outer Limits TV series of the 1960’s myself.
I was born in 1970, but I grew up watching and always absolutely LOVE shows like Outer Limits and The Twilight Zone. I’m watching S4 E26 of The Outer Limits as I type this! Aahh… I’m gone.
My parents would send me to bed early and they would watch the show. The audio was loud enough for me to hear it and I was able to watch the show through my neighbor’s living room window from my bedroom window…that’s how much I liked it.
I was 10 and still watch all episodes today on my tablet.
Outer limits was cancelled and then replaced By “the King Family Sings”?? A terrible show like a low budget Lawrence Welk, or Sing Along with Mitch Miller. I believe it was on Saturday night. One of my favorite shows.
Like a fool, I watched the King Family every Saturday night hoping the Outer Limits would return. Strangely it did show up for one night maybe because of technical difficulties producing the King Family live…I don’t know.
I was 9 years old in 1963… Loved this show, some episodes scared the crap out of me.
Just a great ? sci fl show. I was 7 and 8 when the show aired. One of the few memories I had of my father. He passed away at 42.we both loved sci-fi tv shows. Lost my dad and our outer limits, 1965.wish they hadn’t stopped at 49.