Dust (The Twilight Zone)


"Dust" is episode 48 of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone. It originally aired on January 6, 1961 on CBS.

Opening narration

Plot

Set in the Old West in a desolate barren town, an unscrupulous peddler, after selling the executioner some five-strand rope needed for a hanging, sells a bag of "magic" dust to the condemned man's father. The condemned man had been found guilty of accidentally causing the death of a child. The peddler collects ordinary dirt from the ground and insists to his mark that it will spread good will throughout the crowd and will make them feel love and sympathy for the man sentenced to be hanged.
As the crowd gathers for the hanging, the father cries out and starts sprinkling the dust everywhere. To his dismay, he hears the trapdoor drop behind him and turns... to see that the fresh and sturdy rope has snapped above the noose, and his son is unharmed. When asked if another hanging attempt should be made, the girl's parents decide that it should not, that the condemned man has suffered enough and maybe they have had a sign from God. As father and son walk home, the peddler discovers that he is also affected by the "magic". He throws his gold pieces from the sale of the dust to the poor children of the town, laughing.

Closing narration

Cast