The Storyteller (The Twilight Zone)

=Synopsis=

A traveling teacher hears of a man who has lived to be over two hundred years old in a small Western town. She scoffs, but soon discovers that there is truth to the legend. Desperate to learn the secret to eternal life, she hides in a closet in the old man's room and observes him. Suddenly, the mystery is solved-the old man's great-great-grandson enters the room and begins to tell a wonderful story. Just as he reaches an exciting point, he stops. The aged man asks, "And then what happened?" The boy promises to tell him tomorrow night. The woman realizes that the never-ending story is the secret to the man's long life, and screams in surprise. Hearing her, the boy walks towards the closet. He stretches out his hand and suddenly, the audience sees a little girl who has been telling this episode as a story. Her great-great-grandmother, who is just as old as the man in the story, asks, "And then what happened?" The little girl promises to tell her tomorrow night.