"The Gift" (A Cure For Cancer)

The ultimate irony! The very end of a Twilight Zone episode about an alien culture bringing earthlings the ultimate gift, the cure for cancer. Then, the episode is followed by its creator, Rod Serling, smoking a cigarette and doing a Chesterfield cigarette commercial. More irony - this was several years after the first surgeon generals warning on smoking and cancer, and several years before Rod Serling dies of lung cancer...

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• roger holzberg
• cure for cancer

[RogerHolzberg]

Yes, I've been corrected before, thanks. I'm certain his heavy smoking didn't help his heart disease.

[RogerHolzberg]

The 2nd irony is a dramatic irony, where the situation is understood by the audience but not the character. Serling created the storyline of the benevolent alien bringing the cure for cancer to earth, and we as the audience know he died of the disease when viewing the episode with hindsight.

[RogerHolzberg]

The 1st (traditional) irony I was referring to was the content of the episode centering around a "cure for cancer" being portrayed as a valuable gift to humanity, juxtaposed against an add to sell cigarettes to the viewers - these seem very much at adds (opposite) with one another.

[ariddikulusriddle]

According to Thomas Hobbes, people are by nature selfish.... Anyway, I love the irony! xD

[joshman783]

SERLING DID NOT DIE OF LUNG CANCER. he had a series of heart attacks.

[pvtjamesryan3]

This video made me cry. People are so selfish.

[Deeznuwts]

One of my favorite episodes, the little kid says some pretty smart stuff

[collegeman1988]

Serling did not die from cancer. He died from heart disease, which was most likely made much worse from being a heavy smoker.

[Bobalithmiss1]

Him promoting smoking and then dying of smoking is not ironic. Irony is the opposite of what is expected. If he was promoting a healthy lifestyle THEN it would be ironic.