A World of Difference

For the book by Harry Turtledove, see A World of Difference (novel).

"A World of Difference"
The Twilight Zone episode
200px Scene from A World of Difference
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 23
Directed by	Ted Post
Written by	Richard Matheson
Featured music	Nathan Van Cleave
Production code	173-3624
Original air date	March 11, 1960
Guest actors
Howard Duff as Arthur Curtis/Gerald "Gerry" Raigan Eileen Ryan as Nora Raigan David White as Brinkley Gail Kobe as Sally Peter Walker as Sam Susan Dorn as Marian Curtis Frank Maxwell as Marty Fisher Bill Idelson as Stagehand Thomas Martin as Technician (uncredited) Robert McCord as Camera Crew (uncredited)

"A World of Difference" is episode 23 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.

Plot

Arthur Curtis is a businessman planning a vacation with his wife. One day, he finds that his phone no longer works, and discovers his office to be a set on a sound stage. He is told that Arthur Curtis is merely a role he is playing, and his real name is Gerry Raigan, an alcoholic movie star caught in the middle of a brutal divorce and a declining career. He tries to locate Arthur Curtis's house, but cannot find any evidence of it, and Raigan's agent tells him that the movie, called The Private World of Arthur Curtis, is being cancelled because the filmmakers believe that Raigan has had a nervous breakdown. Raigan/Curtis rushes back to the set, which is being dismantled, and demands not to be left in the uncaring world of Gerry Raigan. Curtis reappears in his office as it was before, just as his wife arrives. As he hears echoes of the studio sounds, he tells her that he doesn't want to lose her and that they should leave for their vacation immediately. Meanwhile in the "real" world Raigan's agent shows up on the set to find that Raigan has vanished. As the set is being dismantled, a teaser shows the "Arthur Curtis" script left on a table, waiting to be thrown in the rubbish bin.

In the last scene Curtis and his wife board a plane, which takes flight and fades away into the sky.

Further reading

• 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

External links

• "A World of Difference" at IMDb
• TV.com episode page
• the-croc.com episode page(unlike TV.com - lists Frank Maxwell playing Marty)
• Full video of the episode at CBS.com