Printer's Devil
Encyclopedia
"Printer's Devil" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone
. The title comes from the profession printer's devil
, an apprentice in the industry.
The plot line, though with a different ending, borrows heavily from the classic American short story "The Devil and Daniel Webster
", and echoes a plot device in Jack Finney
's 1952 short story "Behind the News."
operator. Drunk, at a bridge, he looks down into the inviting water below. When he is going to commit suicide
, he is approached by one "Mr. Smith", who comments that it's a short fall and probably wouldn't do a very good job. He then asks Doug for a light, and, if he wasn't quite ready, a ride into town. Amused, forgetting all about suicide, Winter gives him a lift to a café, where Mr. Smith agrees to provide the editor with money to pay off debts and continue the operation of the newspaper. Mr. Smith also signs up to replace the linotype operator and be the sole reporter. With nothing to lose, Doug agrees to the proposition.
The first scoop is a large bank robbery
. Business booms for the little newspaper, as Mr. Smith out-scoops other reporters from the rival Gazette on dramatic news stories, many involving disasters. The Courier becomes a success as its stories hit the streets seemingly minutes after the events happen. It is so successful that a man from The Gazette, Mr. Franklin, tries to buy up the little newspaper. Winter is now in a position to say "No!" with confidence. Not many days later, there is a fire at The Gazette, and they accuse someone at The Courier of arson
.
With all the success the newspaper is having, Mr. Smith asks the editor to humor him by signing a contract guaranteeing continued success in exchange for his soul, pointing out that it doesn't mean much; "it's almost like an appendix these days, not really necessary," and besides, since the devil
is not real, Winter shouldn't have a problem with it. Winter hesitates, but Mr. Smith goads him by saying, "Imagine a grown man believing in the devil!" More importantly, Mr. Smith has modified the newspaper's linotype machine
, so that whatever is set in type subsequently happens.
Eventually, Mr. Smith makes a pass at Miss Benson, who sternly rebuffs him. Mr. Smith vows that Benson will pay the price. In retaliation for this, and trying to turn the screws on Winter, he writes a story that has the editor's girlfriend gravely injured in an auto accident. The editor concludes that Mr. Smith is in fact the devil
, and he discovers the story that has his girlfriend dying. Smith demands that Winter kill himself to fulfill his part of their bargain, or Jackie dies. In desperation, Winter uses the linotype machine to change the story so his girlfriend survives the crash (Mr. Smith himself the catalyst behind the steering wheel, trying to destroy Jackie as well), but also writes it so that Mr. Smith's contract is void, and he must leave. When the car is found, Jackie is safe, but Mr. Smith has completely disappeared. Winter decides to run the newspaper fairly, and to destroy the infernal linotype machine- after hauling it away.
The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)
The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising...
. The title comes from the profession printer's devil
Printer's devil
A printer's devil was an apprentice in a printing establishment who performed a number of tasks, such as mixing tubs of ink and fetching type...
, an apprentice in the industry.
The plot line, though with a different ending, borrows heavily from the classic American short story "The Devil and Daniel Webster
The Devil and Daniel Webster
"The Devil and Daniel Webster" is a short story by Stephen Vincent Benét. This retelling of the classic German Faust tale is based on the short story "The Devil and Tom Walker", written by Washington Irving...
", and echoes a plot device in Jack Finney
Jack Finney
Jack Finney was an American author. His best-known works are science fiction and thrillers, including The Body Snatchers and Time and Again. The former was the basis for the 1956 movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers and its remakes.-Biography:Finney was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and given the...
's 1952 short story "Behind the News."
Synopsis
Douglas Winter, the editor of The Courier, a failing newspaper, feels there is nothing to live for after a number of employees quit, including the LinotypeLinotype machine
The Linotype typesetting machine is a "line casting" machine used in printing. The name of the machine comes from the fact that it produces an entire line of metal type at once, hence a line-o'-type, a significant improvement over manual typesetting....
operator. Drunk, at a bridge, he looks down into the inviting water below. When he is going to commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, he is approached by one "Mr. Smith", who comments that it's a short fall and probably wouldn't do a very good job. He then asks Doug for a light, and, if he wasn't quite ready, a ride into town. Amused, forgetting all about suicide, Winter gives him a lift to a café, where Mr. Smith agrees to provide the editor with money to pay off debts and continue the operation of the newspaper. Mr. Smith also signs up to replace the linotype operator and be the sole reporter. With nothing to lose, Doug agrees to the proposition.
The first scoop is a large bank robbery
Bank robbery
Bank robbery is the crime of stealing from a bank during opening hours. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, robbery is "the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of...
. Business booms for the little newspaper, as Mr. Smith out-scoops other reporters from the rival Gazette on dramatic news stories, many involving disasters. The Courier becomes a success as its stories hit the streets seemingly minutes after the events happen. It is so successful that a man from The Gazette, Mr. Franklin, tries to buy up the little newspaper. Winter is now in a position to say "No!" with confidence. Not many days later, there is a fire at The Gazette, and they accuse someone at The Courier of arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
.
With all the success the newspaper is having, Mr. Smith asks the editor to humor him by signing a contract guaranteeing continued success in exchange for his soul, pointing out that it doesn't mean much; "it's almost like an appendix these days, not really necessary," and besides, since the devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
is not real, Winter shouldn't have a problem with it. Winter hesitates, but Mr. Smith goads him by saying, "Imagine a grown man believing in the devil!" More importantly, Mr. Smith has modified the newspaper's linotype machine
Linotype machine
The Linotype typesetting machine is a "line casting" machine used in printing. The name of the machine comes from the fact that it produces an entire line of metal type at once, hence a line-o'-type, a significant improvement over manual typesetting....
, so that whatever is set in type subsequently happens.
Eventually, Mr. Smith makes a pass at Miss Benson, who sternly rebuffs him. Mr. Smith vows that Benson will pay the price. In retaliation for this, and trying to turn the screws on Winter, he writes a story that has the editor's girlfriend gravely injured in an auto accident. The editor concludes that Mr. Smith is in fact the devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
, and he discovers the story that has his girlfriend dying. Smith demands that Winter kill himself to fulfill his part of their bargain, or Jackie dies. In desperation, Winter uses the linotype machine to change the story so his girlfriend survives the crash (Mr. Smith himself the catalyst behind the steering wheel, trying to destroy Jackie as well), but also writes it so that Mr. Smith's contract is void, and he must leave. When the car is found, Jackie is safe, but Mr. Smith has completely disappeared. Winter decides to run the newspaper fairly, and to destroy the infernal linotype machine- after hauling it away.