The Duplicate Man: Difference between revisions

"**The Duplicate Man**"
"The Duplicate Man"
The Outer Limits episode
Episode no.	Season 2; Episode 13
Directed by	Gerd Oswald
Story by	Clifford Simak
Teleplay by	Robert C. Dennis
Cinematography by	Kenneth Peach
Production code	45
Original air date	December 19, 1964
Guest appearances
	Ron Randell; Constance Towers;
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← Previous; "Keeper of the Purple Twilight"	Next →; "Counterweight"
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"The Duplicate Man" is an episode of the original The Outer Limits television show. It was first aired on 19 December 1964, during the second season.

Opening narration

Since the first day that Man stared up at the stars and saw other worlds, there has been no more haunting question than this: What will we find there? Will there be other creatures, and will they be like us? Or when that ancient dream comes true, will it turn into a nightmare? Will we find, on some distant, frozen planet, an alien life of unimaginable horror?

Plot

It is the year 2025; fourteen years previously wealthy research academic Henderson James had Captain Karl Emmet smuggle a Megasoid to Earth.^[1] It is illegal to possess a Megasoid as they are highly dangerous, always thinking about killing, unless in a reproductive cycle, which this one now is. When the Megasoid escapes to hide amongst the stuffed exhibits at a nearby space zoo, James, lacking the courage to track it down and kill it himself, has a clone of himself illegally made for the purpose by clone bootlegger Basil Jerichau. Strict guidelines govern the production of these "duplicates", which must be destroyed before vestigial memory renders them indistinguishable from the originals.

The clone botches its mission at the zoo and the Megasoid gets away after informing the clone that he is a duplicate. A trace of memory leads the duplicate James to the home of Captain Emmet. Emmet panics and tries to phone the police; the duplicate James knocks him out cold; and, accumulating more of the real Henderson James’ memories as he goes, he finds his way to "his" own home. The wounded Megasoid returns to the James home and hides in the bushes. Duplicate James meets the real James’ wife, Laura, who sees in him a more youthful version of her husband before he became obsessed with studying the Megasoid. The real James has gone to bribe Emmet into killing the duplicate James once he has completed his mission. Returning home, he leaves Emmett on the grounds to await duplicate James’ arrival. Unfortunately, Emmett is attacked and killed by the Megasoid. Entering his home, the real James meets his duplicate. Seeing a more compassionate version of himself gives him the courage to kill the alien, as he believes Laura would be happier with the duplicate.

Henderson James and his duplicate hunt for the Megasoid. James shoots the alien after it has torn his duplicate apart. He discovers that his clone was dying all the time, from a timed release of poison into his blood stream; a precaution provided by the clone bootlegger. A less cynical Henderson James is now reconciled with his wife.

Closing narration

In all the universe, can there be creatures more strange than the species called Man? He creates and destroys; he fumbles and makes mistakes. But the thing which distinguishes him is his ability to learn from his mistakes.

Background

Adapted from the short story "Goodnight, Mr James" by Clifford D. Simak, first published in Galaxy Science Fiction magazine in March 1951, later published as "The Night of the Puudly" in 1964 in a collection of Simak's short stories. The original story begins and ends with the "duplicate" of Henderson James, who awakes on a street in an unnamed city with a mission to kill an alien called a Puudly. Using telepathy the Puudly informs "duplicate" James of his origins as a clone, before James kills it. James then decides to attempt to talk the real Henderson James into letting him live. The clone of James arrives at Henderson James' home just after the gardener (whose job it is to kill the clone) has mistakenly killed the real James instead. As the duplicate prepares to become the real James, he receives a phone call from Allen, the clone bootlegger, who advises him of the poison: "Like a time bomb. No antidote for it even if he found out somehow." The duplicate says "It was good of you to let me know." Allen replies, "Glad to, Goodnight, Mr. James." (source - The Outer Limits: The Official Companion (1986), page 343.)

The Chemosphere House in Los Angeles was used in exterior shots as the home of the character Captain Emmet.

Star Ron Randell recently had been featured in The Most Dangerous Man Alive.^[2]

Cast

Ron Randell as Henderson James and his clone
Sean McClory as Captain Karl Emmet
Constance Towers as Laura James
Mike Lane as the Megasoid
Alan Gifford as Zoo Guide
Konstantin Shayne as Murdock
Jeffery Stone as Policeman
Steven Geray as Basil Jerichau
Ivy Bethune as Miss Thorson
Jonathon Hole as Pedestrian
George Robotham as Sean McClory's stunt double
George Paul as Ron Randell's stunt double

References

^ "We Are Controlling Transmission: The Duplicate Man". 9 March 2011.
^ Vagg, Stephen (August 10, 2019). "Unsung Aussie Actors – Ron Randell: A Top Twenty". Filmink.

External links

"The Duplicate Man" at IMDb
A Critical Guide to The Outer Limits | The Duplicate Man at the Wayback Machine (archived 2018-08-11)

[1] "We Are Controlling Transmission: The Duplicate Man". 9 March 2011.

[2] Vagg, Stephen (August 10, 2019). "Unsung Aussie Actors – Ron Randell: A Top Twenty". Filmink.

[1]

[2]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Multiple issues|
-{{primary sources|date=November 2008}}
+{{more citations needed|date=November 2017}}
-{{Infobox Television episode
+{{primary sources|date=November 2008}}
-| title        = The Duplicate Man
+}}
-| series       = The Outer Limits
+{{Infobox television episode
-| image        = <!--This use of this image has no rationale on the image's page. [[Image:TheOuterLimits-Screenshot-old.jpg|250px]]-->
+| series       = [[The Outer Limits (1963 TV series)|The Outer Limits]]
+| image        =
 | caption      =
 | season       = 2
 | episode      = 13
-| airdate      = December 19, 1964
+| airdate      = {{Start date|1964|12|19}}
 | production   = 45
-| writer       = [[Robert C. Dennis]] (teleplay)<br />[[Clifford D. Simak|Clifford Simak]] (story)
+| story        = [[Clifford D. Simak|Clifford Simak]]
+| teleplay     = Robert C. Dennis
 | director     = [[Gerd Oswald]]
 | photographer = [[Kenneth Peach]]
-| guests       = [[Ron Randell]]<br>[[Constance Towers]]
+| guests       = {{Plainlist|
+* [[Ron Randell]]
+* [[Constance Towers]]
+}}
-| episode_list = [[List of The Outer Limits episodes|List of ''The Outer Limits'' episodes]]
+| episode_list = List of The Outer Limits (1963 TV series) episodes
 | prev         = [[Keeper of the Purple Twilight]]
 | next         = [[Counterweight (The Outer Limits)|Counterweight]]
@@ Line 24: / Line 30: @@
 ==Plot==
-It is the year 2025; fourteen years previously wealthy research academic Henderson James had Captain Karl Emmet smuggle a Megasoid to Earth.<ref>http://wearecontrollingtransmission.blogspot.com/2011/03/duplicate-man.html</ref>  It is illegal to possess a Megasoid as they are highly dangerous, always thinking about killing, unless in a reproductive cycle, which this one now is. When the Megasoid escapes to hide amongst the stuffed exhibits at a nearby space zoo, James, lacking the courage to track it down and kill it himself, has a [[Clone (genetics)|clone]] of himself illegally made for the purpose by clone bootlegger Basil Jerichau. Strict guidelines govern the production of these "duplicates", which must be destroyed before vestigial memory renders them indistinguishable from the originals.
+It is the year 2025; fourteen years previously wealthy research academic Henderson James had Captain Karl Emmet smuggle a Megasoid to Earth.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://wearecontrollingtransmission.blogspot.com/2011/03/duplicate-man.html|title=We Are Controlling Transmission: The Duplicate Man|date=9 March 2011}}</ref>  It is illegal to possess a Megasoid as they are highly dangerous, always thinking about killing, unless in a reproductive cycle, which this one now is. When the Megasoid escapes to hide amongst the stuffed exhibits at a nearby space zoo, James, lacking the courage to track it down and kill it himself, has a [[Clone (genetics)|clone]] of himself illegally made for the purpose by clone bootlegger Basil Jerichau. Strict guidelines govern the production of these "duplicates", which must be destroyed before vestigial memory renders them indistinguishable from the originals.
-The clone botches its mission at the zoo and the Megasoid gets away after informing James that he is a duplicate. A trace of memory leads the duplicate James to the home of  Captain Emmet. Emmet panics and tries to phone the police; the duplicate James knocks him cold; and, accumulating more of the real Henderson James memories as he goes, he finds his way to "his" own home. The wounded Megasoid returns to James home and hides in the bushes. Duplicate James meets the real James wife, Laura, who sees in him a more youthful version of her husband before he became obsessed with studying the Megasoid. The real James has gone to bribe Emmet into killing the duplicate James once he has completed his mission. Returning home, he leaves Emmett in the grounds to await duplicate James arrival. Unfortunately, Emmett is attacked and killed by the Megasoid. Entering his home, James meets his duplicate; seeing a more compassionate version of himself gives him the courage to kill the alien, as he believes Laura would be happier with the duplicate James.
+The clone botches its mission at the zoo and the Megasoid gets away after informing the clone that he is a duplicate. A trace of memory leads the duplicate James to the home of  Captain Emmet. Emmet panics and tries to phone the police; the duplicate James knocks him out cold; and, accumulating more of the real Henderson James’ memories as he goes, he finds his way to "his" own home. The wounded Megasoid returns to the James home and hides in the bushes. Duplicate James meets the real James’ wife, Laura, who sees in him a more youthful version of her husband before he became obsessed with studying the Megasoid. The real James has gone to bribe Emmet into killing the duplicate James once he has completed his mission. Returning home, he leaves Emmett on the grounds to await duplicate James’ arrival. Unfortunately, Emmett is attacked and killed by the Megasoid. Entering his home, the real James meets his duplicate. Seeing a more compassionate version of himself gives him the courage to kill the alien, as he believes Laura would be happier with the duplicate.
-Henderson James and his duplicate hunt for the Megasoid. James shoots the alien after it has torn his duplicate apart. He discovers that his clone was dying all the time, from a timed release poison in his blood stream, a precaution provided by the clone bootlegger. A less cynical Henderson James is now reconciled with his wife.
+Henderson James and his duplicate hunt for the Megasoid. James shoots the alien after it has torn his duplicate apart. He discovers that his clone was dying all the time, from a timed release of poison into his blood stream; a precaution provided by the clone bootlegger. A less cynical Henderson James is now reconciled with his wife.
 ==Closing narration==
-<blockquote>"In all the universe, can there be creatures more strange than the species called Man? He creates and destroys; he fumbles and makes mistakes. But the thing which distinguishes him is his ability to learn from his mistakes."</blockquote>
+<blockquote>''In all the universe, can there be creatures more strange than the species called Man? He creates and destroys; he fumbles and makes mistakes. But the thing which distinguishes him is his ability to learn from his mistakes.''</blockquote>
 ==Background==
-Adapted from the short story 'Goodnight, Mr James' by [[Clifford D. Simak]], first published in ''[[Galaxy Science Fiction]]'' magazine in March 1951, later published as "The Night of the Puudly" in 1964 in a collection of Simak's short stories. The original story begins and ends with the "duplicate" of Henderson James, who awakes on a street in an unnamed city with a mission to kill an alien called a Puudly. Using telepathy the Puudly informs "duplicate" James of his origins as a clone, before James kills it. James then decides to attempt to talk the real Henderson James into letting him live. The clone of James arrives at Henderson James' home just after the gardener, whose job it is to kill the clone, has mistakenly killed the real James instead. As the Duplicate prepares to become the real James, he receives a phone call from Allen, the clone bootlegger, who advises him of the poison: "Like a time bomb. No antidote for it even if he found out somehow." The duplicate says "It was good of you to let me know."  Allen replies, "Glad to, Goodnight, Mr. James." (source - The Outer Limits: The Official Companion (1986), page 343.)
+Adapted from the short story "Goodnight, Mr James" by [[Clifford D. Simak]], first published in ''[[Galaxy Science Fiction]]'' magazine in March 1951, later published as "The Night of the Puudly" in 1964 in a collection of Simak's short stories. The original story begins and ends with the "duplicate" of Henderson James, who awakes on a street in an unnamed city with a mission to kill an alien called a Puudly. Using telepathy the Puudly informs "duplicate" James of his origins as a clone, before James kills it. James then decides to attempt to talk the real Henderson James into letting him live. The clone of James arrives at Henderson James' home just after the gardener (whose job it is to kill the clone) has mistakenly killed the real James instead. As the duplicate prepares to become the real James, he receives a phone call from Allen, the clone bootlegger, who advises him of the poison: "Like a time bomb. No antidote for it even if he found out somehow." The duplicate says "It was good of you to let me know."  Allen replies, "Glad to, Goodnight, Mr. James." (source - ''The Outer Limits: The Official Companion'' (1986), page 343.)
-The [[Chemosphere]] House (as the home of Captain Emmet) was used to great effect in this futuristic portrayal. Now part of Hollywood architectural history, this cultural monument was used in exterior shots as a futuristic domicile of the character Captain Emmet.
+The [[Chemosphere]] House in Los Angeles was used in exterior shots as the home of the character Captain Emmet.
+Star [[Ron Randell]] recently had been featured in ''[[The Most Dangerous Man Alive]]''.<ref>
+{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/unsung-aussie-actors-ron-randell-top-twenty/|title=Unsung Aussie Actors – Ron Randell: A Top Twenty|date=August 10, 2019}}</ref>
 ==Cast==
+{{cast listing|
 * [[Ron Randell]] as Henderson James and his clone
 * [[Sean McClory]] as Captain Karl Emmet
@@ Line 45: / Line 55: @@
 * [[Alan Gifford]] as Zoo Guide
 * [[Konstantin Shayne]] as Murdock
-* [[Jeffery Stone]] as Policeman
+* Jeffery Stone as Policeman
 * [[Steven Geray]] as Basil Jerichau
 * [[Ivy Bethune]] as Miss Thorson
-* [[Jonathon Hole]] as Pedestrian
+* Jonathon Hole as Pedestrian
 * [[George Robotham]] as Sean McClory's stunt double
-* [[George Paul]] as Ron Randell's stunt double
+* George Paul as Ron Randell's stunt double
+}}
 ==References==
@@ Line 56: / Line 67: @@
 ==External links==
-* {{IMDb title|tt0667832}}
+* {{IMDb episode|0667832}}
-* [http://home.earthlink.net/~markholcomb/ol/ol_duplicate.html "The Duplicate Man" appreciation] by Mark Holcomb
+* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180811015904/http://home.earthlink.net/~markholcomb/ol/ol_duplicate.html |date=2018-08-11 |title=A Critical Guide to The Outer Limits {{!}} The Duplicate Man}}
 {{The Outer Limits}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Duplicate Man, The}}
-[[Category:The Outer Limits (1963 TV series) episodes]]
+[[Category:The Outer Limits (1963 TV series) season 2 episodes]]
-[[Category:1964 television episodes]]
+[[Category:1964 American television episodes]]
+[[Category:Fiction set in 2011]]
+[[Category:Fiction set in 2025]]
+[[Category:Television episodes directed by Gerd Oswald]]
+[[Category:Television episodes set in the 2010s]]
+[[Category:Television episodes set in the 2020s]]