The New Exhibit

Season 4 had a mixed bag of ok to good episodes, but this episode definitely was the best of the one hour episodes and for good reason.

The atmosphere and setting of the episode is well executed, along with the performances of it leads and also the 'wax figures'. The expressions of the actors portraying them, is absolutely priceless and chilling at the same time.

Martin Balsam was a great character and this episode displays his talents to the extreme and his portrayal of an obsessed and desperate man, is well drawn out. The one hour length, was perfect for this episode.

Not to be discarded or missed by the TZ fans!

Martin Senescu (Martin Balsam) is a tour guide in a museum and is obsessed with the exhibits. They are mass murderers in wax about to be discarded as the museum's owner believes the public are no longer thrilled by Jack the ripper and the like. Senescu cannot give up his 'friends' and so keeps them in his basement.

For me this is an ordinary horror tale that lacks depth, meaning, and sensible human aspirations for true Zone standard. Senescu simply has an unhealthy obsession that cannot lead to any good. So you get a weird tale, but not a thought-provoking or an involving one. Martin Balsam was a very fine actor, but the mad single-mindedness of this character does not impress me. Having said all that, this would be one of the better entries in just about any other fantasy anthology series.

One of the last outstanding scripts developed by Charles Beaumont, who left us too soon. Let the record show he also wrote for the dean of shock and horror, Roger Corman, notably THE PREMATURE BURIAL and THE HAUNTED PALACE.

Accordingly, Beaumont takes us into a spooky wax museum, about to be torn down. Dedicated employee (which is an understatement!) Martin Balsam is terribly depressed. Why? He's very "fond" of some of the wax figures, destined for the trash can. How could anyone toss Bluebeard and Jack the Ripper in the street? Sure enough, Martin takes them home with him(!), storing the madmen in his basement, continuing a beautiful friendship, all the while his lonely wife (Margaret Field) is slowing going nuts.

Then the murders start, and the proverbial TZ question -- have these fiends come back to life???

A campy slice of insanity you can't miss, and I agree, Martin Balsam is excellent in a bizarro role, unlike most of the dramatic performances he's remembered for. As for the villains; Milton Parsons, often cast in mysteries and thrillers, makes a wonderful Bluebeard, same for David Bond as Jack the Ripper. Will Kuluva (usually playing professors) plays the owner of the museum and Marcel Hillaire as the guide. Marcel was a prime fit for villains.

If you're a horror buff, you'll enjoy this, particularly for its connection to HOUSE OF WAX (starring Vincent Price) and MYSTERY OF THE WAX MUSEUM.

SEASON 4 EPISODE 13 remastered CBS dvd box set, hour-long episodes collection. The entire series is on blu ray. 24 discs. Released 2016. 74 hrs and 24 minutes total running time. New fans will be impressed.

In the Ferguson's Wax Museum, Martin Lombard Senescu has been the curator of the murderers' row for thirty years. When Ernest Ferguson tells his employee and friend Martin that he has sold the museum to a supermarket, Martin asks to keep the five statues from his row in his basement. Martin argues with his wife Emma, buys and air conditioning to the basement to keep the figures in the right temperature, increases the energy power bill and becomes obsessed by them. Emma tells her brother Dave what is happening at home and he suggests that she turns the air condition off to damage the wax figures. But something happens in the basement.

"The New Exhibit" is one of the best episodes of "The Twilight Zone", with an ambiguous story of obsession. Who the killer (s) is (or are) in Martin's basement is the great mystery. The performances are excellent, highlighting Martin Balsam in the role of an obsessed man. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Figuras de Cera" ("Wax Figures")

I thought back to Alec Guinness in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" as he obsesses over his accomplishments, ignoring the dangers he is causing. In this one, Martin Balsam has given his life to a wax museum. He dresses the figures, talks to them, leads tours, and so on. Then, one day, his boss and the owner of the museum calls him into his offices, announcing that the museum is being torn down to make way for a supermarket. Balsam is stunned. Not only is he losing his job, but he has actually developed an unhealthy imaginary relationship with the figures in the murderers room, including Jack the Ripper. He does everything he can think of to prevent the destruction of the figures. He is finally given permission to have them delivered to his basement, causing a huge rift with his wife. He is so obsessed, that he begins to practically live with these grotesque figures. Of course, we know these things aren't going to just stand there, and that's where the trouble starts. It's he and the wax figures against the world. One of the things I really enjoyed was the way the makeup people were able to produce believable wax figures. They really seemed to be true and exude personality without moving. We kind of know what is going to happen, but it doesn't matter. And Balsam is a great actor and his malaise and utter insanity comes across comes across so well.