Versions of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”

Occurrence Owl Creek Bridge American author Ambrose Bierce originally published the short story “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” in 1890 in  The San Francisco Examiner. Today the story remains in the national consciousness more than one hundred years later, largely due to the story’s appearance in film and TV.

Director Robert Enrico made the story into a 1962 French short film La Rivière du Hibou (“The Owl River”). The film won awards at the Cannes Film Festival and the Academy Awards.

But you may have seen the French film without knowing it was a French film. Rod Serling broadcast it with the short story’s title during the 1964 season of The Twilight Zone.

The Story of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”

In “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” Civil War soldiers prepare to hang a man named Peyton Farquhar at Owl Creek Bridge. When the man drops, the rope breaks, dropping him into the river below.  Farquhar escapes and tries to return to his family and loved ones.

In the film, the escaped prisoner, played effectively by Roger Jacquet, conveys his desperation to get back home. If you have never seen the film or read the story, I will not ruin the ending.

The French Film Version

The original French short film won the Golden Palm for Best Short Subject at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival.  It also won the Best Live Action Short at the 1963 Academy Awards.

Unlike the short story, the film begins with the execution, omitting the back story but thrusting the viewer right into the action. [October 2015 Update: Unfortunately, the entire French film is no longer available on YouTube, but below is reportedly an excerpt from the original French film with the song “Livin’ Man.”]

The Twilight Zone Broadcast

The French film attained a larger audience when Rod Serling incorporated the film into a Twilight Zone episode.  In a series of original productions, Serling’s use of the film in this way was unique.

Different sources give different stories about how the film came to be a Twilight Zone episode.  One source claims that Rod Serling attended a film festival and saw the short.  Then, he bought the rights for broadcasting on his series.

However, most other sources report that Twilight Zone producer William Froug first had the idea when he showed the movie to a film class. At the beginning of this video, Froug, who passed away in September 2013, explains how the idea arose.

Below is the “special and unique” 1964 Twilight Zone episode that incorporated the French short film and added a Rod Serling introduction. The original French film achieved its tension with very little dialogue and used English for what little dialogue there was.  So, the French film easily translated to American TV.

The Twilight Zone episode includes some music around the 15:20 mark that does not appear in the French video above (although one source says the song “Livin’ Man” appears in the French version too).

Reportedly, the Twilight Zone episode of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” was the last one produced for the series.  But it was not the final episode that was broadcast.

For a long time after the broadcast and one repeat showing, viewers could not watch the episode.  Twilight Zone did not have the syndication rights for the film. So after its initial broadcast and a repeat, for years the “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” episode did not rerun on TV in syndication with the other episodes. Eventually, though, the episode was reunited with the other series episodes on DVD.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

The Twilight Zone episode, however, was not the first to tell Ambrose Bierce’s story on television. Several years earlier in 1959, Alfred Hitchock Presents aired its own version of the story.

The Hitchock version, like the original short story, provided more back story on how the man came to be sentenced to death. [September 2016 Update: Unfortunately, a decent quality of the video is currently not available on YouTube.]

A Song, “Owl Creek Bridge”

Finally, more recently, Montreal-born singer-songwriter David Rubin wrote and recorded a song inspired by “An Occurrence at Owl Street Bridge.” The song, “Owl Creek Bridge,” appeared on his album Secret Agent in 2006.

One can speculate that Ambrose Bierce could never have imagined how his story “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” would reach so many people.  It continues to grip us even today because the tale of one man’s desire to get home reflects the tragedy of both death and war.

Which is your favorite version of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Pop Culture Roundup (Best of 2011 Edition)

    New Year hat 2012 Happy new year! In case you have been too busy preparing for the new year, here is a sample of recent pop culture stories you might have missed. As you might guess, many of the interesting stories look back at the best and worst of 2011.


    — Best of 2011 —

    A number of websites and blogs consider the best music of 2011. The New York Post featured Twitter-sized reviews of the best songs of 2011. Ickmusic has a 2011 best-of list of albums and songs. Uprooted Music Revue listed its 50 Favorite Audio Releases of 2011. Entertainment Weekly listed its top 10 albums of 2011. USA Today critics picked their best albums of 2011. Cover Lay Down presented mp3s of the best cover songs of 2011.

    A number of sites considered the best and worst films of 2011. Chicago Tribune critic Michael Philips picked his 10 worst films of 2011, and he also picked his 10 best films. Just Go With It was the number one rented film at Redbox kiosks in 2011. All of top 5 rentals were comedies. Leonard Maltin picked the 11 Best Films You May Have Missed In 2011.

    Some posts examined the top books. For example, NPR listed its Best Music Books Of 2011. (Thanks @robertloerzel.) The New York Daily News picked the best under-the-radar books of 2011.

    There were other end-of-the-year lists. For example, Salon featured the viral videos of 2011. Frontier Psychologist listed The Top 10 Not That Special People of 2011. (Thanks @HipandCritical.) Salon featured the best and worst Tweets of the year. Slate had the worst catchphrases of 2011. TV critic Robert Bianco put together a list of the best and worst of TV in 2011.

    DJ Earworm created a mashup of the top 25 pop songs of 2011 in one 5-minute clip. It’s pop. There ain’t no Lucinda Williams or Ryan Adams in here.

    — Other Recent Music News —

    Beyond “more cowbell!” The New York Post examined Blue Oyster Cult in pop culture.

    Kelly Clarkson received a big boost in album sales after she endorsed Ron Paul.

    stuffed puppy toy
    Thanks for saving me, Pink!

    Pink saved a puppy thrown in a river. How cool is that?

    Singer-actress Kaye Stevens passed away. She performed with the Rat Pack, on Johnny Carson, etc.

    Bob Seger recently explained his 2011 highlight was playing with Bruce Springsteen.

    The Los Angeles Times
    interviewed Woody Allen about his career playing New Orleans jazz.

    Bono and Glen Hansard played on the streets of Dublin for charity on Christmas Eve.


    — Other Movie News —

    Me Tarzan, you ?? Maybe it isn’t true that the chimp that just died was the 80-year-old Cheetah of Tarzan movie fame.

    Scientists have discovered the reason for the strange bird behavior that inspired Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds.


    — Other Television News —

    Anne Serling has written a memoir about discovering her father Rod through his show The Twilight Zone.

    Slate has the best and worst ads inspired by director Wes Anderson.

    Barry Livingston, who played Ernie on My Three Sons, is still acting and has a book out.

    What were your favorite stories of the year? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Missed Movies: The Man From Earth

    If you enjoy intelligent science-fiction movies, you might want to check out The Man From Earth (2007) on DVD/Blu Ray.   I did not hear of the movie when it came out in 2007, so I’m guessing a lot of other people missed it too.  All you probably need to know is that Jerome Bixby, whose writings were used for episodes in the original The Twilight Zone and Star Trek series, is the screenwriter for The Man from Earth.  If you liked The Twilight Zone, you’ll most likely enjoy this thought-provoking movie that in many ways plays like an extended version of one of those shows.

    Man from EarthThe movie begins with friends visiting a college professor (played by David Lee Smith) at his home in the country as he plans to move out-of-town.   As they sit in his home among the last boxes, they begin to inquire more into his background and why he is leaving.  It is not too much of a spoiler to tell you that he reveals that he has lived for centuries and has to move on before people realize he does not age.  The friends — who are experts in areas  such as biology, anthropology, psychology, and religion — question his claims.  What follows is a fascinating meditation on life, morality, and time.  Is he playing a joke, telling the truth, or is he mentally ill?

    The movie is not perfect, so I suggest you go into it with modest expectations.  And if you prefer your sci-fi with high-octane action and special effects, you might want to skip this movie that has no special effects and limited action.  But if you like thought-provoking movies, you’ll probably enjoy watching this one on a rainy autumn day.  If it sounds interesting, I suggest you rent it immediately without learning more or even watching the trailer, which doesn’t capture the movie very well.  You can’t make conversation look fun in a minute.  If you want to see the trailer, though, it is here.  If you subscribe to Netflix, the movie is available for instant streaming.

    One final tidbit:  Bixby thought up the idea for The Man From Earth in the 1960’s when he was doing his television work, and he completed the story on his death bed in 1998.  The story was circulated through the Internet and gained enough attention that it was eventually made into a movie.  I need to go call the Internet and thank them.

    Jerome Bixby’s The Man from Earth on Amazon

    Missed Movies is our series on very good movies that many people did not see when first released.

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