httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwyjywPb8xE
Today, December 28th, This Day in Twilight Zone History celebrates the birth of actor Martin Milner, born on this day in 1931.
Bedecked in a fedora and suit, Milner portrayed Paul Grinstead, a fellow bus traveler who tries to lend a sympathetic ear to Millicent Barnes, who claims she’s seen her dopplegänger.
Was t a more sympathetic actor in television than Martin Milner? Probably not, so he was the perfect choice to play Millicent’s savior.
If you’re in a Twilight Zone-esque predicament, it’s best to have a companion.
If you think about it, the solo acts don’t have a great track record – think of Richard Conte in “Perchance to Dream,” Mickey Rooney in “The Last Night of a Jockey,” Joe Maross in “The Little People,” or Anne Francis in “The After Hours.” So Paul Grinstead was a help to Millicent Barnes – until he discovers his own roadway into The Twilight Zone.
If you’re a World War II film geek like me, you were aware of Milner very early on.
This fresh-faced young actor who seemed to never age achieved his greatest fame on the small screen – first in Route 66 as Tod Stiles opposite George Maharis, then as Officer Pete Malloy on Adam-12.
So let us toast a man who seemed to be perpetually young on the show that also aged very well: The Twilight Zone.