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{{Infobox television episode
| series = [[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]
| image = Hocus Pocus And Frisby.JPG
| image_size = 250
| caption = Frisby's Alien
| season = 3
| episode = 30
| airdate ={{Start date|1962|04|13}}
| production =4833
| teleplay=[[Rod Serling]]
| story = Frederic Louis Fox
| director =[[Lamont Johnson]]
| guests = [[Andy Devine]]: Frisby [[Milton Selzer]]: Alien #1 [[Larry Breitman]]: Alien #2 [[Peter Brocco]]: Alien #3 [[Howard McNear]]: Mitchell [[Dabbs Greer]]: Scanlan [[Clem Bevans]]: Old Man (Pete)
| music = [[Tommy Morgan]]
| season_article = The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) (season 3)
| episode_list = List of The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) episodes
| prev = [[Four O'Clock (The Twilight Zone)|Four O'Clock]]
| next = [[The Trade-Ins]]
}}

"'''Hocus-Pocus and Frisby'''" is episode 95 (season 3, number 30) of the [[American television]] anthology series ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]''.

==Opening narration==
{{Blockquote|The reluctant gentleman with the sizable mouth is Mr. Frisby. He has all the drive of a broken [[camshaft]] and the aggressive vinegar of a corpse. As you've no doubt gathered, his big stock in trade is the tall tale. Now, what he doesn't know is that the visitors out front are a very special breed, destined to change his life beyond anything even his fertile imagination could manufacture. The place is Pitchville Flats, the time is the present. But Mr. Frisby's on the first leg of a rather fanciful journey into the place we call the Twilight Zone.}}

==Plot==
Somerset Frisby has a [[general store]]/[[Filling station|gas station]] in a small town, and the townsfolk know him well for the [[tall tale]]s he spins of his experiences, from his heroism in war to his inventions to his advice to presidents and captains of industry, all of which he fabricates. His friends gather in the store to hear him spin his stories, which they find very entertaining, and he often accompanies himself on [[harmonica]].

That evening, as he is alone at closing time, creatures from another planet lure him into their clutches while disguised as humans, then abduct him to their spaceship. They want to add Frisby to their collection of specimens from other planets. The aliens, who accept his tales at face value, have heard Frisby claim eight doctoral degrees, so they want him as the outstanding example of the human race. Ignoring his plea that he is late for supper, the aliens insist that Frisby accompany them to their planet.

Frisby pleads that he is simply a shameless liar, but the aliens have no concept of lying, and ask him to just sit quietly and wait for departure. Unable to persuade the aliens to release him, Frisby decides to try to relax by playing his harmonica, and makes the unexpected discovery that the sound is extremely painful to the aliens, who call the notes "death sounds". After two or three aliens are rendered senseless by the harmonica, the remaining ones permit Frisby to escape. Running back to the general store, he finds his friends waiting to throw him a surprise party; in the evening's excitement, he had forgotten that it is his birthday. When he tries to tell them what happened, they enjoy a laugh at what they take to be another of Frisby's tall tales.

===Nicknames===
Mr. Frisby often mentions nicknames that he supposedly has received, which pertain to his tall tales. These nicknames include (ordered as mentioned):

* "Ol' Infilatin' Frisby"
* "Old Cumulus Frisby"
* "Ol' Archimedes Frisby"
* "Rear-Engine" and "Ol' Rear-Engine Frisby"
* "Stonewall Frisby" and "Stony"
* "Ol' Rocket Sauce Frisby"
* "Old Liquid Propellant Frisby"
* "Ol' Mile-A-Minute Frisby"

For his 63rd birthday, Mr. Frisby received a trophy from his friends, declaring him to be the "World's Greatest Liar".

==Closing narration==
{{Blockquote|Mr. Somerset Frisby, who might have profited by reading an [[Aesop's Fables|Aesop fable]] about a [[The Boy Who Cried Wolf|boy who cried wolf]]. Tonight's tall tale from the timberlands of the Twilight Zone.}}

==References==
*DeVoe, Bill. (2008). ''Trivia from The Twilight Zone''. Albany, GA: Bear Manor Media. {{ISBN|978-1-59393-136-0}}
*Grams, Martin. (2008). ''The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic''. Churchville, MD: OTR Publishing. {{ISBN|978-0-9703310-9-0}}
* Zicree, Marc Scott. ''The ''Twilight Zone'' Companion'', [[Bantam Books]], 1982. {{ISBN|0-553-01416-1}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb episode|id=0734573|episode=Hocus-Pocus and Frisby}}

{{The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series) episodes}}

[[Category:1962 American television episodes]]
[[Category:The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series season 3) episodes]]
[[Category:Television episodes about alien visitations]]
[[Category:Television episodes written by Rod Serling]]
[[Category:Television shows based on short fiction]]

Hocus-Pocus and Frisby - Revision history

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199.33.91.11: /* Nicknames */