There it was again.

I'd already been to half a dozen yard sales that morning, and I'd noticed it at each. This was my seventh stop, and there it was again--the same small green glass ruffled rim vase.

Was someone ahead of me, endlessly buying and reselling the vase as part of some Kafkaesque plot? Was it some manifestation of a rift in the space-time continuum? Was this-The Twilight Zone?

Nah! Those vases had been popular a number of years ago, and half of Berkshire County had them. (I have one in my kitchen.)

The anecdote, however, serves to illustrate the degree to which Rod Serling's television masterpiece has become part of our national psyche. Even now, nearly forty years after its initial run (1959-64), we can still appreciate its imaginative impact.

And so can collectors.

Over the years, Twilight Zone has generated a modest variety of licensed merchandise-primarily books, videos, and comics-but the hot market today is in trading cards. Believe it or not, it wasn't until 1999 that the first-ever TZ trading cards were issued, but with an added bonus that made them an immediate sellout.

A number of now-famous actors had appeared on Twilight Zone early in their careers, and Rittenhouse Archives (publisher of the cards) convinced many of the stars to autograph limited numbers of the cards, which were then distributed randomly in the packs. So, a search (02.03.01) of completed auctions on eBay has revealed that Burt Reynolds' signature was worth $41 to someone; Bill Mumy's sold for $52.50; and William Shatner's (yes, Captain Kirk himself!) was traded for a mere $155!

Trading has also been fairly steady for sealed box sets (Rittenhouse issued the Premier Edition set in November 1999 and the Next Dimension set in December 2000), with many selling in the $50+ range.

For more information on the sets, and for free sample cards, you can check out the Rittenhouse Archives web site at http://www.scifihobby.com. Rittenhouse also publishes Star Trek, Xena, and other sci-fi card sets.

You might also want to take more than a peek at these other sites:

The TZ Archives
http://www.twilightzone.org
Links to the Twilight Zone webring. Also sponsoring a petition to the United States Postal Service for a Rod Serling postage stamp!

The 5th Dimension
http://www.thetzsite.com
Latest news, Episode guide, Promoting a TZ alumni cruise in October 2001 where you can rub shoulders with yet-to-be-announced stars from the show.

Sci-Fi Channel
http://www.scifi.com/twizone
Episode guide, Fan forum, Viewing schedule.

If you prefer your reference on paper, the following books are available:

The Twilight Zone Companion, by Marc Scott Zicree
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1879505096/auctionbytescom
I consider this the "bible" of the series-very well written, extensively researched. I've had my copy for almost 20 years.

Twilight Zone: the Complete Stories, by Rod Serling
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/157500111X/auctionbytescom
Actually, there are just 19 stories, but well worth the price as they were adapted from teleplays to short stories by the master himself.

So, next time you're at a yard sale and you see a green glass ruffled rim vase, remember:

"There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears, and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call... THE TWILIGHT ZONE." - Rod Serling