One of my favorite shows on television while growing up was The Twilight Zone which was written and produced by Rod Serling. In fact, he was a prolific television writer who contributed to many early televisions productions including: The Doctor, Fireside Theater, Hallmark Hall of Fame, Lux Video Theater, Kraft Television Theatre, and Suspense. For pioneer television, his work was cutting edge and is still watched regularly on the Sci-Fi channel today. This 1959 interview talks of his dealings with censorship and his writing. Why lines were changed or cut due to sponsor censorship. He also talks about self-censorship and why it was employed. You'll have to listen to this piece to learn about Lassie's inappropriate sexual content.

This interview also opens a window into the culture of the late 50s. You'll see that the host doing the interview is the well-known Mike Wallace. He and Rod Serling both light up cigarettes and puff away throughout the interview with smoke clouding the camera lense from time to time, or clearly curling in the background. In fact, if you're a fan of The Twilight Zone, you'll remember Rod standing there introducing the evening's story with a cigarette in his hand. His writing was brilliant, and when he died of a heart attack at age 50 it left a void in the fantasy, sci-fi writing world. Whenever I think of that, I remember the cigarettes.

In this interview, you'll have a chance to wee that Serling was not only a gifted writer, but articulate and to-the-point.

Rod Serling Interview - Part 1