Rod Serling: Nathan Edward Bledsoe, of the Bowery Bledsoes. A man once, a specter now. One of those myriad modern day ghosts that haunt the reeking nights of the city in search of a flop, a handout, a glass of forgetfulness. Nate doesn't know it, but his search is about to end, because those shiny new shoes are going to carry him right into the capital, of the Twilight Zone.
Air date: January 19, 1962
In the wee hours of the night, a car full of gangsters dumps a dead body in an alley. The commotion awakens Nate Bledsoe (Warren Stevens), a homeless man sleeping on a bed of old newspapers, who investigates the scene. Inspecting the body, Nate takes notice of the stylish shoes the corpse is wearing, and after finding nothing else of value on the body, takes them and puts them on. As he does this, Nate is possessed by the spirit of the shoes' original owner: the notorious gangster known as Dane. Taking control of Nate's body, Dane intends to go after Bernie Dagget (Richard Devon), the man who had him killed, deadset on returning the favor.
Dead Man's Tropes:
- And the Adventure Continues: Chips, a fellow homeless man who was friends with Nate, puts on Dane's shoes and is possessed by the man in question, hinting that the cycle will continue until Bernie is finally killed.
- Bookends: The episode begins and ends with Bernie's men dropping off a dead body, and a homeless man putting on the possessed shoes.
- Determinator: Dane won't let a little thing like death stop him from getting revenge on his treacherous partner Bernie, even if his shoes have to be worn by untold numbers of men.
- Drink-Based Characterization: After trying and failing several times to convince his girlfriend Wilma that he's back from the dead and inside a homeless man's body, Dane is finally recognized by his typical drink order: tequila, with a cube of sugar. He later uses the same order to get Bernie's attention at their club.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: Wilma gradually loses control over not knowing what's going on, prompting Dane (in Nate's body) to slap her and tell her to get a hold of herself.
- The Hat Makes the Man
- Nate finds Dane's body thrown into the alley he calls home, puts on his shoes, and is possessed by Dane's ghost.
- The '80s remake did a gender flip of the episode, titled "Dead Woman's Shoes", in which the shoes are high-heels inhabited by the spirit of a rich socialite who wants murderous revenge on the husband that killed her.
- Here We Go Again!: In the end, Dane is murdered a second time and Nate's body is thrown into the same alley Dane was originally dumped in. Nate's friend Chips, a fellow hobo and aspiring thespian, finds the body and takes the shoes. As he's putting them on, the audience can see Dane's spirit has already possessed him, starting the cycle over again.
- The Mafia: Dane and Bernie were a pair of gangsters who were partners in crime for many years, particularly working together to run a nightclub. When Bernie offered to buy him out, Dane refused. Unwilling to accept this, Bernie had him murdered so he could fully take over the club.
- The Remake: This episode was remade as "Dead Woman's Shoes" for The Twilight Zone (1985) and as "Dead Man's Eyes" for The Twilight Zone (2002).
- Robbing the Dead: Nate immediately starts searching Dane's dead body for any valuables instead of calling the police, only taking his expensive shoes when he can't find anything else. In the end, Nate's homeless friend Chips does the same to Nate's own body.
- Tricked-Out Shoes: Dane wore a very expensive and very distinctive pair of two-tone black and white shoes when he was killed. When Nate puts them on, Dane's spirit takes over his body. After Bernie kills Dane again, the same thing happens again when Nate's friend Chips puts on the shoes.
- We Used to Be Friends: Dane and Bernie were lifelong friends who worked together for many years in the life of crime. When they founded a nightclub together, Bernie had Dane killed when he refused to be bought out, and thus gained total control of the club. With his spirit now housed in the shoes he wore during the murder, Dane takes over any man who puts the shoes on, intent on nothing less than gunning down his treacherous partner.
Rod Serling: There's an old saying that goes, "If the shoe fits, wear it." But be careful. If you happen to find a pair of size nine black and gray loafers, made to order in the old country, be very careful. You might walk right into the Twilight Zone.
