The Architects of Fear: Visionary Sci-Fi Predicted Global Fear Mongering

You may have heard that long-time Hollywood actor Robert Culp died yesterday at the age of 79, following an accidental fall. If not, here’s a link to the story of his death:

ABC News: Actor Robert Culp Dies

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Robert Culp 1930 - 2010

In addition to appearing in the old TV series “I Spy” in the 1960s, as well as countless other television and movie roles over the decades, Robert Culp also starred in one of the most extraordinary and visionary episodes of the old sci-fi series, The Outer Limits in the early 1960s.

The episode was entitled “The Architects of Fear,” which — although it was produced and aired in 1963 — was a page straight out of today’s worst New World Order and Global Union conspiracy theory. “The Architects of Fear” was AT LEAST 25 years ahead of Ronald Reagan’s comments regarding a “common enemy” needed to unite Mankind, and it was a solid 45 years ahead of today’s global fear mongering.

Here’s a link to a YouTube video of “The Architects of Fear”
(NOTE: This is just Part One of a 6-part series of videos):



From the opening scenes and dialogue, you KNOW that this is going to be a chilling story — and it IS. The premise of the tale is that Mankind is on the brink of global self-annihilation; and, so, The Powers That Be decide to FRIGHTEN the masses of humanity into global unity.

Sound familiar?

It’s WELL worth watching, and in my opinion it’s one of Robert Culp’s finest roles EVER. In his own inimitable style of realism, Culp tackles the improbable character and MAKES YOU BELIEVE the horror of the story.

Rest in Peace, Robert Culp, and God Help Us All.

— Doc Velocity

Thanks Doc for the links.

I had never heard about this episode before, so I will watch it during breakfast.

The idea that shows like this predict the future somewhat accurately even 50 years ahead of time is not surprising.

There are many very good episodes of shows like Outer Limits, or even the old Twilight Zone series, that reveal incredible points of view regularly. All types of aspects of the bizarre, strange, or abnormal are explored and if all TV was this good, we would be a nation of philosophers. But I am rambling now.

How does the saying go? Sci-Fi today is Sci-Fact tomorrow.

[edit on 26-3-2010 by muzzleflash]

For those who don't have the time nor inclination to watch the entire episode, I can provide a brief summation.

In "The Architects of Fear," Mankind is on the brink of self-annihilation — as stated in the first few minutes of the episode, this is due to the proliferation of nuclear weaponry among a number of rogue nations. In a covert effort to "save" humankind, The Powers That Be decide to invent a "common enemy" to frighten all nations of the Earth into global unity.

Apparently, nuclear holocaust isn't frightening enough.

Although the particulars of the Science involved are not elucidated, this manmade ultimate horror is concocted through genetic and surgical modification of a human volunteer into an especially hideous extraterrestrial invader — a "Thetan". The plan is that this creature will make a sensationalized arrival in New York City, scare the bejeezus out of the population, then proceed to the United Nations to scare the bejeezus out of the General Council.

That's the plan, anyway.

The bulk of the episode is devoted to the excruciating surgical and biochemical transformation of the human volunteer (Robert Culp) into his Thetan alter-ego. As the volunteer becomes increasingly grotesque in appearance and less human in behavior, it becomes obvious that something is wrong with the metamorphosis... The volunteer still has the human capacity to LOVE, and his efforts to contact his wife nearly destroy the secrecy of the whole project.

Finally, when the Thetan biological transformation is complete, the creature is loaded into a mock spaceship which is somehow secretly launched into Earth orbit. It then makes re-entry, triggering radar detection alarms all over the planet and sending the world into panic. However, rather than landing in New York City, as was planned, the spacecraft changes course and lands in a remote area near its secret point of origin — it seems that the Thetan's lingering humanity caused it to commit an act of free will, aborting the hoax mission altogether.

Unfortunately, a group of hunters witness the landing and shoot the monster; he survives just long enough to seek out his wife once more and gesture "I Love You" to her.

I agree, the ending could have been more meaningful, or more emphasis should have been placed on the creature's last act of free will, which was the antithesis of its covert mission — that being to frighten all Mankind into abandoning its free will.

"The Architects of Fear" was a truly visionary story, even by today's standards, and Robert Culp's portrayal of the human/monster volunteer was inspired. This is one sci-fi story I wouldn't mind seeing remade and updated with convincing FX, as long as the story line wasn't mutilated to the same degree as the lead character.

— Doc Velocity




[edit on 3/26/2010 by Doc Velocity]

Here's a link to the episode in it's entirety on Hulu. They have both the old and newer Outer Limits on there, quite cool. I don't know about you but I've quickly grown tired of Youtube and their ten minute clips. Makes watching things unbearable sometimes.

The Architects Of Fear

Ok now I'm off to watch this. TOL was always a show that made you think so should be good watching.

Originally posted by TheLoony
Ok now I'm off to watch this. TOL was always a show that made you think so should be good watching.

The only shortfall of this episode — as with most Outer Limits and Twilight Zone episodes — was the budgetary constraints of production, which often resulted in rather cheesy monsters and special effects.

In "The Architects of Fear," for example, a full-scale Thetan monster was, in fact, constructed; however, it resembles nothing so much as a first-draft sketch of the monster.

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The producers realized how phony it looked and chose, rather, to use only fleeting close-ups of the monster's face and claws — which was, as it turned out, still dreadfully phony.

But that's what you had to do in the early 60s with a weekly budget of only a hundred thousand dollars or less. The really remarkable aspect of this episode, aside from its visionary story line, was Robert Culp's performance, which sort of dwarfed all of the other actors to shame.

— Doc Velocity

Cheesy monster a Shortfall? How could you say such a thing? That's part of what makes Outer Limit's is so wonderful. I've heard some abominable opinions on the internet before but Doc, that just takes the cake.

I apologize... I understand and agree that most of the B-movies and sci-fi television series of the 1960s were classics in their own right — they invented their own genre and their own audience, for that matter.

— Doc Velocity

[edit on 3/27/2010 by Doc Velocity]

I saw that episode of Outer Limits when it was first shown. I was 7 years old.
The Thetan scared the hell out of me. I had to sleep with the light on for months! It's funny how lame the monster is by today's 'scary' standards.

I agree with you Doc...that episode was prophetic and decades ahead of it's time, as were some of the Twilight Zones, written by Rod Serling.
I remember seeing episodes like 'The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street'
when I was 7-8 years old, and actually being enthralled by the story.
Most TV was mindless drivel. Some of the 'Outer Limits' and 'Zones' were
very well-written.

I'll submit Rod Serling's closing narration from the 'Monsters Are Due..." episode:

The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices, to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill, and suspicion can destroy, and the thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own: for the children, and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to the Twilight Zone.

reply to post by Doc Velocity
Forgive the off-topic reply. I noticed the writer was Meyer Dolinsky, the name seemed familiar so I checked him out. He wrote a lot of screenplays including an interesting episode for Star Trek...Plato's Stepchildren.

He was quite a journeyman in the business (IMDB) and had written 38 televised episodes.

reply to post by ColeYounger
The quote is very accurate indeed

[edit on 27-3-2010 by Kandinsky]

But if you listen to william cooper he had evidence that the ptb planned this stuff far longer than 50 years ago. So if the pentagon are giving ideas to hollywood today i would say they where probably doing the same years ago too.

Originally posted by ColeYounger
The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices, to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill, and suspicion can destroy, and the thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own: for the children, and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to the Twilight Zone. — Rod Serling

Yeah, good old Rod Serling... He was another of those pioneers of television that came out of the Nuclear Age of the 1940s & 50s. Serling's background was in radio scriptwriting, so he was all about the spoken word, right, rather than wild visual effects. I mean, Rod Serling was a prolific writer who was absorbed with soliloquy — waxing Shakespearean on occasion — so much so that you can physically turn away from the TV and just listen to any episode of the Twilight Zone that he wrote, and you won't miss a thing.

Because it was all there in the dialogue. Everything. Descriptions of the surroundings, sights, sounds, odors, textures, you name it, Rod Serling would describe it all in dialogue... Because he was an old radio man. And a damned good wordsmith.

— Doc Velocity

Just had to come back and say I was only joking about the abominable opinion, just in case I was taken seriously....which would be silly but you know...

E-paranoia.

Rod Sterling was great wasn't he.