CBS airs the 17th episode of Rod Serling’s anthology series The Twilight Zone. Everett Sloane stars in a Serling original about addiction to gambling.
Franklin Gibbs is annoyed by his wife’s insistence that they vacation in Las Vegas, especially when she feeds a single nickel into a slot machine. At the insistence of a drunken casino patron, Franklin himself gives a nickel to the one-armed bandit, only to win a payout. Unable to sleep that night, Franklin gathers up his winnings and declares that it’s “tainted” money that he must rid himself of by going back to the casino to put it back into the machine from which it came. Hours later, he’s still there, having fallen for the trap, the illusion that if he keeps playing, he can win again.
written by Rod Serling
directed by Robert Florey
music not credited
LogBook entry by Earl Green