The Dummy story
A ventriloquist believes his dummy is alive... and is beginning to take over not just the act. Directed by: Abner Biberman. Story by: Lee Polk, Rod Serling.
9 total · 7 major · 2 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| agent and client | major | Jerry's agent Frank became increasing concerned about his mental state, and urged him to see a psychiatrist. |
| anthropomorphic object come to life | major | The dummy Jerry used to perform his ventriloquist act turned out to have a mind of its own. |
| multiple personality disorder | major | The obvious medical explanation for what occurred is that Jerry had developed a secondary personality called Willie, which eventually came to take over (the face swap may be explained away in any number of ways). |
| persecution complex | major | Jerry thought his old doll was alive and out to get him. |
| schizophrenia | major | Jerry heard a voice that did not exist and had seen psychiatrists about it, we are left to interpret. |
| the entertainment industry | major | We saw some behind the scenes goings on at a New York City comedy club. |
| ventriloquism | major | We saw Jerry on stage performing his sit-down ventriloquist act. |
| alcohol abuse | minor | Jerry's agent urged him pull himself together and keep off the bottle. |
| what if I found myself in the body of another person | minor | The ventriloquist Willie some how managed to swap bodies with his owner Jerry. |