Queen of the Nile (The Twilight Zone)
| "Queen of the Nile" | |
|---|---|
| The Twilight Zone episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 23 |
| Directed by | John Brahm |
| Written by |
Jerry Sohl (credited to Charles Beaumont) |
| Featured music | Lucien Moraweck |
| Production code | 2626 |
| Original air date | March 6, 1964 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
|
Ann Blyth: Pamela Morris/Constance Taylor |
|
Ann Blyth: Pamela Morris/Constance Taylor
Lee Philips: Jordan Herrick
Celia Lovsky: Viola Draper
Ruth Phillips: Charlotte
Frank Ferguson: Krueger
"Queen of the Nile" is episode 143 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.
Columnist Jordan Herrick visits actress Pamela Morris to interview her. She is known for her vitality and beauty. In Pamela's manor he notices a painting of her that is dated 1940. Pamela still looks just as she did in the painting. When questioned on this, she says the painter drew her when she was a child with a projection of what she would look like as an adult, and deflects questions about her age. Pamela and Jordan flirt during the interview and make dinner plans for that night. As Jordan is leaving, an old woman who Pamela introduced as her mother, Mrs. Draper, warns him to never come back. Mrs. Draper says Pamela is many centuries old and that she is actually Pamela's daughter.
During his date with Pamela, Jordan mentions what Mrs. Draper had said. Pamela claims Mrs. Draper is mentally ill, but after the date, Herrick calls his editor and asks him to research Pamela's first film, The Queen of the Nile. The editor reveals that the film was a remake of a silent movie filmed on location in Egypt. Leading lady Constance Taylor was apparently killed in a cave-in near the end of the shooting. The editor compares photos of Constance and Pamela in the same role and says they look alike. Jordan asks the editor to dig up articles on every man Pamela has ever been involved with.
Jordan returns to the manor and confronts Pamela with his discovery. Pamela drugs Jordan's coffee and then places a scarab beetle on his unconscious body. The beetle drains his life until he has turned to dust. She then applies the scarab to her own chest.
The episode ends with another young and handsome columnist arriving to interview Pamela, starting the cycle once again. In the closing narration, it is hinted that Miss Morris is actually Cleopatra VII, and she has continued to live for more than two thousand years.
Apparently, in the original first-draft script, a handsome young policeman turned up at the end of the story, asking Pamela Morris as to the whereabouts of the now missing Jordan Herrick. She begins to flatter and flirt with the cop, setting him up to start the cycle all over again.
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