"Steel" is an episode of the

American television Television is one of the major mass media outlets in the United States. , household ownership of television sets in the country is 96.7%, with approximately 114,200,000 American households owning at least one television set as of August 2013. ...

anthology series ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

''. Set in the near future, its premise is that human

professional boxing Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...

has been banned and replaced by android boxing. The story follows a once-famous human boxer who works as a manager for an antiquated android while struggling to come to grips with his career having been taken over by machines. The episode is based on the short story of the same name by

Richard Matheson Richard Burton Matheson (February 20, 1926 – June 23, 2013) was an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres. He is best known as the author of '' I Am Legend'', a 1954 science fictio ...

first published in the May 1956 issue of ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher ...

''.

Opening narration

Plot

In the near-future year of 1974,

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

between human fighters has been criminalized and the sport is dominated by fighting robots. Former boxer Timothy Kelly (nicknamed "Steel" because, as a heavyweight, he was never knocked down) manages a B2-model robot called "Battling Maxo", an older model that is no longer in demand. Kelly and his partner, Pole, have used the last of their money to get to the fight venue. They are being given this chance because one of the scheduled fighters was damaged in transport. Kelly has to assure fight promoter Nolan and his assistant Maxwell that Maxo will be able to fight. After they leave Nolan's office, Kelly and Pole argue about Maxo's fitness. Kelly feels that Maxo should be able to go through with the fight despite its age and condition. Pole tests Maxo's functions and an arm spring fails, effectively prohibiting it from fighting as they don't have the funds to repair it. Kelly decides that he will disguise himself as Maxo in order to collect the money necessary for repairs. Despite a valiant effort, he is unable to damage Maynard Flash, the B7 robot that he is fighting, even when he lands an unblocked punch directly into the back of its head. He is nearly killed but manages to last a little under three minutes of the first round. The crowd jeers and boos at Maxo's performance, it being Kelly under disguise. Afterwards, the fight promoter withdraws half of the promised reward due to poor performance; Kelly dares not protest to prevent recognition. Badly bruised but stubborn as ever, Kelly tells Pole that they will use whatever they have to repair Maxo regardless.

Closing narration

Production notes

This was the first episode sponsored by

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer he ...

(alternating sponsorship with

American Tobacco The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter and Goodwin & Company. The company was one of the original 12 members of ...

), who usually "pitched" Crest toothpaste, Lilt Home Permanent, and Prell shampoo, among their other products. Serling was not required to endorse any of P&G's products at the end of their episodes. Serling, in his narration, had predicted that professional boxing would be outlawed within five years of the episode's airing; at the time, the sport was mired in controversy after

Emile Griffith Emile Alphonse Griffith (February 3, 1938 – July 23, 2013) was a professional boxer from the U.S. Virgin Islands who won world titles in three weight divisions. He held the world light middleweight, undisputed welterweight, and middleweight ...

killed his opponent

Benny Paret Bernardo Paret (March 14, 1937 – April 3, 1962), known as Benny Paret or Benny "Kid" Paret, was a Cuban welterweight boxer who won the World Welterweight Championship twice in the early 1960s. Paret's death occurred 10 days after injuries ...

in a nationally televised and particularly brutal 1962 match. With Paret's death at Griffith's hands, as well as the death of Davey Moore from a neck injury sustained in a March 1963 contest, the specter of the sport being outlawed was a realistic possibility at the time "Steel" was broadcast. Serling's prediction did not come to fruition; although boxing declined in popularity in the succeeding years, it has never been outlawed. Each of the five credited cast members appeared in one other episode —

Lee Marvin Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...

starred in "The Grave" (October 1961), Joe Mantell starred as "

Nervous Man in a Four Dollar Room "Nervous Man in a Four Dollar Room" is episode 39 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone''. It originally aired on October 14, 1960, on CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its for ...

" (October 1960),

Chuck Hicks Charles Dallas Hicks (December 26, 1927 – May 4, 2021) was an American actor and stuntman. During World War II, Hicks served in the U.S. Merchant Marine and later in the Navy.

had an uncredited bit part as a mover in "

Ninety Years Without Slumbering "Ninety Years Without Slumbering" is episode 132 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone''. The title comes from the lyrics of the song "My Grandfather's Clock", which is sung or played throughout the episode as a recurring ...

" (December 1963, two months after this episode), Merritt Bohn was billed at the bottom of the cast list in a bit part as a truck driver in ''Twilight Zones second episode, "

One for the Angels "One for the Angels" is the second episode of the American anthology television series ''The Twilight Zone''. It originally aired on October 9, 1959, on CBS. Opening narration Plot Lew Bookman is a kindly sidewalk pitchman who sells and repairs ...

" (October 1959) and Frank London was billed third from the end in a bit part as a driver in " "A Penny for Your Thoughts" (February 1961).

References

*DeVoe, Bill. (2008). ''Trivia from The Twilight Zone''. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media. *Grams, Martin. (2008). ''The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic''. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. *Zicree, Marc Scott: ''The Twilight Zone Companion''. Sillman-James Press, 1982 (second edition)

External links