Original subtitles

( music playing )

ROD: Tonight's stars,

Laurence Harvey,

William Windom,

Joanna Pettet,

Ed Nelson,

and John Williams,

Good evening,

I'm your little old curator

in this museum which we call

the Night Gallery,

There are horror stories

and horror stories,

elements of terror

that take myriad forms,

But this item

has a built-in terror

which can refrigerate

even the most dispassionate

amongst us,

It has to do

with a little beastie

known as an earwig,

A small bug that crawls

into the human ear,

And while inside,

it doesn't whisper

sweet nothings--

it performs

quite another function,

Offered to you now

on Night Gallery,

a brand new nightmare

which we call

"The Caterpillar",

( music playing )

Does it never stop raining?

RHONA: Sometime in March,

JOHN: You'll get used to it,

old chap,

Really, after a while,

you'll ignore it,

I could assure you,

I won't get used to it,

and I won't ignore it,

A more days of this

and I'll go stark, staring,

raving mad and you can ship me

back to England,

trussed up

like an old guinea hen,

Well, the unfortunate

thing is that

you really don't have

much choice,

I don't know how you can

stand it, I really don't,

And I don't know how poor

Mrs, Warwick stands it, either,

Poor Mrs, Warwick

stands it very well,

thank you,

I count myself

a lucky man, Macy,

Not only is Rhona

young and beautiful,

but very patient with

an old colonial like myself,

You can have it,

both of you,

Borneo,

the China and Java Seas,

and the whole ruddy

Malaya Archipelago,

Take it

with all my blessings,

Well, the first few weeks

are the hardest,

I got to go out

and check the north sheds,

see if they plugged up

that leak,

Wet tobacco leaves

are not easily pushed

in the market,

Put your coat on, John,

Bundle up,

My darling,

I'm not 16, I'm 66,

I'll be back

in quarter of an hour,

( music playing )

You are moody one, Mr, Macy,

Your go from outrage

to silence

as if it were a quick

tram ride,

This place is conducive

to moods,

And the scratchings

of that miserable gramophone

don't help either of you,

How can you stand it?

What?

The music?

You make it sound

rather like medicine,

I don't stand it,

I enjoy it,

I take comfort from it,

How incredibly easy you are

to please,

And that means what?

That means that you're,,,

under 28 years of age,

you're an absolute knockout,

and you waste away here

in a Borneo jungle,

5,000 miles

from everything you know,

with a husband

who's old enough to be your,,,

No more of that, please,

We judge things

very differently, Mr, Macy,

Please, call me Steven,

I'll call you Mr, Macy,

And if ever again

you mention my husband or me,

or the discrepancy in our ages,

I should call you

something else, Mr, Macy,

As you pass through the door

with your suitcase,

you'll hear what it is,

I, uh,,,

beg your forgiveness,

You have my forgiveness,

Mr, Macy,

But I do suggest

you take each day as it comes,

Stop counting time,

In a year, suddenly,

it will all be over,

And then you can return

to England,

and the rains of Borneo

will be but a small,

insignificant

historical footnote

to your entire life,

Is that the way you do it?

Hardly,

John and I shall remain here

for all our days,

Our life is here,

Well, thank heaven mine isn't,

People like us

don't belong here,

We become

like jungle vegetation,

We mildew and rot

and grow soggy,

our brains

and our insides are--

I would not force a wife

of mine to stay,

If you had a wife

who loved you, Mr, Macy,

force wouldn't enter into it,

Marriage is love,

not capitulation,

I'm here by choice

and by love,

Now, if you'll excuse me,

I have to prepare dinner,

Mrs, Warwick,

I meant nothing personal,

I signed a contract for a year,

and I shall honor it,

If I were to lose

your friendship, Mrs, Warwick,

that would destroy

the only pleasure I have

in this place,

We are friends,

aren't we?

Yes, of course we are,

Mr, Macy,

( clears throat )

TOMMY: Well now,

I didn't mean to barge in,

Really, I didn't,

but I've got a loaded kindling

outside in the cart,

Mrs, Warwick,

But with wet weather and all,

I thought you and Mr, Warwick

might be needing some,

We've got quite enough kindling,

thank you, Mr, Robinson,

You don't know

what you needs are gonna be

a few months from now,

Then ask my husband,

And Mr, Robinson,

we don't observe

many social graces here,

but knocking

before entering a room

is still considered

de rigueur,

Oh, I don't doubt that,

Mrs, Warwick,

I don't doubt that at all,

TOMMY:

I don't believe we've met,

Tommy Robinson's the name

and kindling is the trade,

Odd jobs, personal service,

almost anything in the way

of aid to me fellow man,

I'll keep that in mind,

Mr, Robinson,

as one of your fellow men,

You're that, uh, new bloke,

just arrived

a week ago, right?

Throw your baggage down

on the dockside, did you?

How you finding it?

Wet, buggy, humid, and hot,

Don't doubt it,

Don't doubt it at all,

young gentleman,

I've been here 20 years meself,

- Twenty years?

- Yes,

I had made a choice,

It was either a London jail

or a Borneo jungle,

A choice that's

no choice at all,

Ah, what about you?

What are you trying

to escape from?

From dullness and convention,

I thought,

God, how wrong I was,

Well then,

you'll have to come down

to the village sometime

and have a snifter

or two with me and chat,

But not too many Europeans

in these parts, you know,

Sometimes,

it's good for a bloke

to be with his own,

It's a pity, you know,

I can't offer you something

of your own,

say, like that,

what just left the room,

( music playing )

Yes, that is a pity,

Well,

there are ways, and means,

and methods,

I'm afraid that eludes me,

Then we'll talk

about it again, Mr, Macy,

Yes,

We'll talk about it again,

young gentleman,

( music playing )

JOHN: What are you doing?

TOMMY: I was just passing by,

Mr, Warwick,

I had some kindling to sell,

JOHN:

Well, sell it somewhere else,

And stay away from here,

I told you that before,

On your way, Robinson,

TOMMY: Yes, sir,

Well, I see you've met

our village entrepreneur,

Robinson?

Yes, the only known rodent

in captivity

with a Christian name,

What does he do here,

besides peddling kindling wood?

Well, he's back and forth,

selling contrabands

to the sailors,

Occasionally panders,

frequently steals,

and when he's out of whisky,

he turns up here

with a cart-load of kindling,

Stay away from him, Macy,

He'll do you absolutely

no good at all,

- Darling,

- Hello, darling,

- Dinner in half an hour,

- Good, I'm famished,

How about you, Macy?

An appetite?

Slowly growing,

Excellent,

I know, let's put some candles

on the table tonight,

Make it a bit festive,

I'll go and wash up,

( music playing )

Mr, Macy,

I think perhaps

I do you an injustice,

Perhaps, you do,

Then I'd like to offer

my apologies in advance,

but I'm not a child,

I do know what loneliness

can do to a man,

Loneliness and,,,

abstinence,

Please, go on,

I have a suggestion,

A friendly suggestion,

Yes?

Take a cold bath, Mr, Macy,

( music playing )

TOMMY: Over here, Mr, Macy,

Over here, young gentleman,

Now then,

what can I offer you, sir?

Nothing, thank you,

If not a whisky, then what?

What had you in mind,

Mr, Robinson?

What have I in mind?

I rather thought

you had something,

You did send this, didn't you?

I should like to talk to you

at your earliest convenience,

Steven Macy,

I rather thought

that you had something

definite in mind to discuss,

I--

I don't have

anything specific, it's--

it's just that

I'm so bloody bored

- over there that I,,,

- You sought out

a bit of companionship

this evening?

Understandable,

young gentleman,

Understandable,

A man shouldn't be

by himself all the time,

That's not healthy, that's not,

It's not wholesome,

It isn't just

being by myself, it's,,,

TOMMY:

It's being close to her,

Close enough to touch,

close enough to fondle,

And a beautiful thing

she is, too,

And married to that old man,

Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk,

It's criminal, is what it is,

Night after night,

we just sit and,,,

and talk about the tobacco crop,

And the amount of rainfall,

And the payroll,

And as the hours go by--

as the hours go by,

I find it very difficult to,,,

TOMMY: I quite understand,

young gentleman,

I quite understand,

Now then, what's to do?

I haven't an earthly,

I think you have,

young gentleman,

I think you have

a very good idea,

You bloody fool,

I'm not soliciting

an assassination,

Assassination?

Oh, come now, young gentleman,

Assassination?

I shudder at the very word,

The thought of a killing

palpitates me, is what it does,

Sends shivers up

and down my body,

Oh, no, Mr, Macy,

No, Nothing as bloody

and violent

as all of that,

What I had in mind was,

well, was more of an act

of destiny,

Let me tell you something

about Borneo,

We have here

a kind of an earwig,

- A what?

- An earwig,

A kind of caterpillar,

A thing almost as fine

as a spider's web,

It lives on wax,

feeds on the innards of flowers,

and it has a decided liking

for the human ear,

The natives here about,

they have a distinct terror

of it, they do,

You see,

it moves and it rests

so lively on a human being

that one is practically

unconscious of it,

Now, if you were to place

on of these

earwigs in a man's hair,

just above his ear,

well,

once in the ear,

it's a thousand to one chance

of it ever coming out

the same way again,

You see Mr, Macy,

it can't turn around,

Backing out is impossible,

So it continues to feed

as it goes,

And it crawls right inside

of the head,

- The result that--

- Dear God, no,

Think of it, Mr, Macy,

Think of it,

Ultimately,

it reaches the brain,

and the result that, uh,,,

it's the end of it,

The complete end of it,

But while it's happening?

Oh, while it's happening,

oh, it's a,

it's a living torment,

is what it is,

Torture,

But the net results,

Mr, Macy--

oh, there's the beauty of it,

The net result

is what it is we're looking for,

I want no part of it,

TOMMY: Mr, Macy?

( music playing )

Don't you want to know

how we get the little earwig

into Mr, Warwick's hair?

How?

Well, I have some friends

I have,

Stealthy chaps,

you might say,

They walk on cat's feet,

they do,

I could send one of them

over there

in the dead of night,

and I could tell him

what was needed,

And then in the morning,

oh, young gentleman,

in the morning Mr, Warwick

would wake up

with a little visitor

inside his head,

But,,,

the pain?

Oh, it's horrible,

Horrible,

there's no doubt about it,

For how long?

Some say two weeks sometimes,

Sometimes three,

It's the longest three weeks

a man could ever spend,

And the cost?

Oh, well,

I'm not a man to haggle,

Mr, Macy,

It's against my nature,

it is,

The cost?

Hundred pounds,

( music playing )

Done, When?

This very night,

if that's your pleasure,

None of this is my pleasure,

Call it my--

call it my ultimate desperation,

Then that's what we call it,

it is just a question of words,

And as to--

as to what you're paying for,

well, we'll-- we won't call

that assassination,

No, what we'll call it

is, uh, prodding fate,

Yes, that's what we'll call it,

Prodding fate,

Call it

what you damn well please,

When this is over,

I never want to see you again,

you understand?

Uh, Mr, Macy,

you know,

with your fine hairs,

and your London

drawing room manner,

and your Mayfair,

proper talk,

deep down inside,

you're a treacherous,

murderous animal,

just like all the rest of us,

The only difference is that, uh,

you disdain a bit of blood

on your hands,

You like to keep a clean shop,

you do,

So as to our seeing

each other again,,,

( music playing )

- Darling, here,

- Uh-hmm,

- Good morning,

- Morning,

Sit down, old chap,

How did you sleep?

Fine, thank you,

And you?

Oh, first grade,

Spot of breakfast?

Oh, just some tea, please,

You know,

it may be my imagination,

but I'd say the rain let out

a bit during the night,

Oh, you'd be

the better judge of that,

It all sounds the same to me,

Oh, thank you,

( music playing )

What's the matter, Mr, Macy?

Is your ear bleeding?

Must be some sort of bug bite,

It's in my ear,

The damn thing is in my ear,

- What's in your ear?

- Dear God, not an earwig,

- RHONA: It's not possible,

- JOHN: We'd better get you

to bed immediately,

Come on, lad,

- To bed,

- They put it in my ear,

Oh, my dear God,

they put it in my ear,

What in heaven's name

is he talking about?

I'm afraid to guess,

STEVEN: ( screams )

( music playing )

TOMMY: Doc?

- Doc?

- What do you want, Robinson?

I thought Mr, Warwick told you

to stay off his property,

I heard about their misfortune,

The young gentleman

with the earwig,

Well, you can't help him,

No one can,

But it's been two weeks now,

Yes, Two weeks of hell,

I don't doubt it,

Don't doubt it at all,

The thought of that thing

crawling into your brain,

I don't require your analysis,

Mr, Robinson,

I'm quite aware of what's

happening to that pour soul,

Lying there

with his hands bound

to keep him from tearing

his own face apart,

But I think

it's almost over now,

Might he have a visitor?

To who and what for?

The man's half insane now,

as you or I,

or anyone else

would be with that monstrous

thing in his head,

( creaking )

( groaning )

Mr, Macy,

Mr, Macy,

I came to offer up

apologies, sir,

( groaning )

Can you hear me?

Can you understand?

That native bloke we tried

to send over here that night

obviously got into

the wrong room,

( groaning )

I,,,

want,,,

to die,

Oh, yes,

Well,

you'll die all right,

young gentleman,

Have no fear of that,

You will die,

It's just that

I regret what happened,

The mistake, I mean,

I distinctly told

that native bloke

which room it was,

But there's this language

difficulty, you know?

Mistakes will happen,

you know,

nobody's fault really,

But I'm truly sorry

for what happened

if that does any good,

Truly sorry,

Well, I've got to be off now,

But I did want to pay

my respects,

You might comfort yourself,

young gentleman,

It won't last much longer,

Really, it won't,

Not much longer at all,

Bye-bye,

( music playing )

I still don't understand,

doctor,

It's quite simple really,

The earwig traveled

through the ear,

and through the brain, and--

oh, forgive me, Mrs, Warwick,

Continue, please?

It came out the other ear,

And the damage?

To the brain,

we can only conjecture,

Perhaps, little,

We don't know,

There's no need to stop

on my account,

Please continue,

Do you realize, Macy,

that you have been

a recipient of a miracle,

an undeserved one at that,

In all my experience,

I know of no man

who has survived

what you have survived,

Or suffered

the way I've suffered,

As you would've had

this gentleman suffer,

Mr, Macy, did you believe

that once a widow,

I'd turn to you?

And for that, you were willing

to commit murder?

Or two or three,

If you're expecting contrition,

Mrs, Warwick,

you my cease your expectations,

What I did,

I did for love,

Dear God,

Love?

Have you any remote idea

as to the meaning of the word?

Whether I do or don't,

I've spent two weeks in hell,

and paid the price,

haven't I?

Well,

what happens now?

Am I to be placed under arrest?

Not at all, Macy,

You won't be arrested,

Really?

Of course,

the scandal, quite,

Good show,

And I presume

I am free to leave?

Anytime,

There's a boat

tomorrow afternoon,

I'll be on it,

For your professional

interest, doctor,

since I am first person

who has survived,

I'll tell you what it's like,

It's an agonizing,

driving,

itching pain,

anything would have

been preferable,

To be flayed alive,

to be burnt at the stake,

to be put on the rack,

to be hanged, even,

would have been

an act of mercy,

I've told you, Macy,

You're free to go,

You've told me,

but there's obviously something

you haven't told me,

( music playing )

When I step off the boat

in England,

that's when you mean

to have me arrested?

( music playing )

Damn it all,

Somebody speak,

Somebody say something,

No, Macy,

We have no intention

of having you arrested

either here or in England,

We will not bring you to trial,

We will not see you

flayed alive,

or burnt at the stake,

or hanged,

Although,

anyone of these

might be an act of mercy,

considering,,,

Considering what?

Sit down, Macy,

There's no need,

I think there is,

Sit down,

( music playing )

I took a look at the earwig

that came out,

I killed it,

as a matter of fact,

I squeezed it,

Rhona,

I think you better leave,

( door opens and closes )

It was a female, that earwig,

A female,

And a female,,,

lays eggs,

( music playing )

STEVEN: ( screams )

( music playing )

Our next painting

on Night Gallery

tells the story of an illusion,

an invisible specter

which guides,

and motivates,

and drives,

And though

you will never see her,

this childish wraith,

you'll know she's there,

and we venture to suggest

that you'll be chilled

by the knowledge,

Our painting is called

"Little Girl Lost",

Well, when did this happen?

MAN: Six months ago,

MAN: Wow,

a hit-and-run driver,

the police

never did find out who,

- The mother?

- Died in childbirth,

TOM: What--

what's the little girl's name?

DR, CHARLES: Jenny,

COL, HAWES:

Well, what's your reaction?

Well, why me?

You cleared security,

I'm loath to mention it,

but our Professor Putman

has a natural sympathy

for the afflicted,

It's important

that he like you,

He certainly doesn't like

any of us here,

Well, I can't do anything

if you don't tell me

why I'm doing it,

It wouldn't be

a exaggeration to say

that the future of this country

depends on the professor,

He was working on something

when his little girl

was killed,

It destroyed him,

He only began working again

after he established

his delusion,

Now he refuses to work here,

And we can't keep him here

except as--

well, as you saw him,

Now we want his genius,

and in order to get it we have

to play the game his way,

And let him work

when he wants,

- where he wants,

- Exactly,

And he needs protection,

But you're not only

his bodyguard,

you're his friend,

Pass over his findings to us,

and above all,

keep him happy,

Well, does he give any reason

for wanting to leave here?

DR, CHARLES: He says,

it's not the right place

to bring up a young girl,

TOM: Jenny, very pretty,

Was this taken

on her eighth birthday?

Well, um, Jenny was--

Jenny is very pretty,

Well, good morning, Mr, Burke,

Good morning, professor,

Well, good morning, Jenny,

Oh, did you have

a good breakfast, huh?

I'm afraid not,

The weather, I think,

Oh, but a trip to the seaside

will be the antidote for that,

Some sunshine will do her

a world of good,

Yeah, she is a bit pale, eh?

What about your work?

Oh, that won't interfere,

you see,

we'll each have our own--

our own rooms,

Well, my darling,

When would you like to leave,

hmm?

Right away?

( chuckles )

Well, it'd be fine with me,

I'll pack,

And Jenny, I won't forget

your favorite red dress, huh?

PROF, PUTMAN: Ah, now,

I might have forgotten that,

( music playing )

PROF, PUTMAN: Come in,

Ah, Mr, Burke,

Jenny tells me you two had

a wonderful time today,

Yes, she really had

some appetite for cotton candy,

You found out about that, huh?

And swimming?

You didn't let her go out

too far, did you?

Oh, no, no, sir,

And I didn't trust it

to the life guards either,

You kept her in sight

the whole time?

Oh, absolutely, see,

Good, Burke,

Incompetence, you know,

is another thing,

Oh, it's easy to deal

with deliberate evil,

but think

of what the incompetence,

TOM: And sir, if you remember,

she really doesn't need anyone

to watch over her,

That's right,

Half fish,

I'd say,

Here, sir,

Let me do that,

- You?

- Yes,

Jenny, you don't mind

if I brush your hair, do you?

No, I won't hurt you,

As a matter of fact,

I brush my own hair every day,

And--if I catch a snag,

I promise,

I'll tell you bedtime story,

Oh, oh, yeah, I'm sorry,

Well, I promised you

if I hit a snag,

I'd tell you a bedtime story,

Which one?

Well, she told me today

that her favorite

was the Three Bears,

You're right,

she adores that one,

There you are,

Now, we're all done,

Kiss your daddy goodnight,

And then I'll take you

and tuck in bed, hm?

Come on now,

Here you go,

( music playing )

Once upon a time,

there were these three bears,

The Papa Bear,

Mama Bear,

and the little baby bear,

And,,,

they lived in the forest

in a pretty little cottage,

One day,

the three bears

went out to look for food,

And while they were gone,

a little girl came

to the forest

and,,,

she saw the cottage,,,

( music playing )

She thought it was pretty,

and she went inside,,,

( music playing )

Good, he's working,

Yeah, he's working,

- But I don't like it,

- Neither do I,

I'm a doctor of the mind,

my job is to heal,

What would you think

of a doctor

who deliberately encouraged

cancer in a man

because it increased his IQ?

Well, I think that would depend

on what he does with that IQ,

Well, I can't tell you

what he's working on,

I will say I feel he'd be

much better off dead,

A stranger,

Some incident,

Any number of a thousand things

could make our professor realize

that he's been living

in a dream,

If you can't live

with something, you escape it,

He's escaping by forgetting

and the trouble is

he can't forget enough,

So he keeps on trying,

Dementia praecox

isn't very nice,

Yeah, I know,

but with the proper therapy,,,

Oh, proper therapy,

man, damn it,

They won't allow us time

for that,

So they give him his dream

until he's done his dirty work

and then,,,

And then what?

Forgetting?

- Let him go mad?

- DR, CHARLES: Why not?

What better way to save God

than knowledge?

By allowing his mind

to lapse in total insanity,

( music playing )

( indistinct chatter )

PROF, PUTMAN: Well, Jenny,

I imagine that after two weeks

of cotton candy and sweets,

I wouldn't be

very hungry either,

She does look wonderful,

though,

Nothing like sea air,

I'm sorry, sir,

This is--the seat is taken,

MAN: Oh, it is, huh?

Then where's the plate?

Now, listen, you,

there's not another chair

in the place,,,

( speaking in Italian )

There's a larger table

just over here,

please,

( music playing )

- I'm sorry, sir,

- Oh, that's all right,

Tom?

The world is,,,

full of bad people,

Oh, that guy?

Forget him,

How's work, hmm?

Oh,

it's finished, you can,,,

have the results tonight,

That's what you wanted,

isn't it?

The final set of equations

so they could begin

testing, hmm?

- Look, professor,

- Tests on control fission

of non-radioactive material,

Bigger and better bombs

and a fraction of the costs,

Oh, the demented fools,

Why don't we

get out of here, huh?

Why don't we take Jenny

for a walk, huh?

Why don't we buy her a dolls?

( engine revving )

Such eagerness,

A general himself

fetching the papers,

Enjoying the ride, honey?

Well, good,

Oh, we'll stop for lunch soon,

Murdering fools,

Sir, that kind of talk

I'm afraid is scaring Jenny,

Sir?

Sir,

Jenny,

( tires screeching )

( brake screeches )

You could've killed

both of us,

I know,

I'm sorry,

Okay, I'll drive,

Yes,

You drive,,,

wherever,

And what then?

Well, I took the wheel,

Well, anything else?

Did you do something?

Say anything?

Oh, I said,

"He could've killed as both,"

- And he,,,

- Both of you?

Dear God,

You stopped him just in time

from committing suicide,

But why should he want

to kill himself?

I don't know,

( sighs )

The papers have arrived by now,

They're hard at work

on the tests,

I want to see the professor,

( music playing )

PROF, PUTMAN: Oh, Jenny,

Jenny,

We'll all be with you soon,

Me and mommy,

Tom,

You like Tom, don't you?

The world is rotten, darling,

Bad men, all bad,

Better dead,

All the same altogether,

( music playing )

It won't matter,

he can't hear us now,

What do you mean, doctor?

You can't fool the subconscious,

He knows she's dead,

Oh,

I didn't mean to,,,

Well, it's not your fault,

Burke,

It's us,

All of us,

Can a man remain a genius

when his mind is clouded

by delusion?

No,

But by your pretending

that Jenny was still alive,

you took over his delusion,

He could be objective

and finish his work,

But he was talking

as if he was going to see her,

Yes, and the only way

to do that is to die,

And he can't commit

conscious suicide,

You see, that's the conflict,

The conflict

that leads to insanity

and the desperate need to escape

from opposing problems,

And that is the man

who worked out the means

to create fission,

This non-radioactive materials,

What are you saying, doctor?

Do I have to explain?

Look, it's madness to give him

the wrong formula,

Madness

or perhaps the perfect solution?

Is it--is it too late?

I'm afraid it is,

When our world

goes up in flames,

you'll be revenged on the murder

of his little girl,

And at the same time,

you'll be with him

in the only way he can,,,

( loud explosions )

( rumbling )

( music playing )