The Twilight Zone What You Need (1959–1964) Online

I have always enjoyed this episode. People over analyze it. The "bad guy" is just that. There are bad people and given a situation where they can take, will do so. This is not a religious allegory. This is about a situation where we must suspend our disbelief (as we often do in The Twilight Zone) and accept the gifts the man has. Why do people automatically believe that a writer needs to put a religious spin on it. If you want to put a spin on it, it is more fairy tale (The Goose that Laid the Golden Egg and The Fisherman's Wife). These people are dissatisfied with what they have and try to destroy the source of their gifts. It is really about Kismet, not theology.

This episode works well because it has a magical quality and some great characters. We create our destinies, and the supernatural aside, the man went too far.

A lot of the action in this tale takes place in a bar that looks almost identical to the drinking establishment from previous episode 'And When The Sky Was Opened', but the two stories couldn't be more different: the earlier tale worked well because its audience knew full well what fate was going to befall its characters, whereas 'What You Need' keeps the viewer guessing with a classic twist ending.

In addition to delivering a terrific 'traditional' Twilight Zone conclusion, this episode also boasts one of my favourite performances of the season so far: Steve Cochran as churlish loser Fred Renard, who harasses kindly street peddler Pedott (Ernest Truex) after he realises that the old man can see into the future and provide people with precisely 'what they need'. Cochran is truly menacing—I'm not at all surprised to find that he originally found fame as a heavy in gangster films, including a role in Cagney classic White Heat.

Steve Cochran is a loser. He's vicious and self-centered and a taker. As "What You Need" begins, he's sitting in a bar. Soon, a small old man (Ernest Truex) enters and begins peddling trinkets to the customers. Instead, however, of letting the customer tell him what they need, he looks at them and instantly knows what they need--and the results are glimpses into the near future. For example, in one case, he hands a guy a bus ticket and only moments later this same guy receives a phone call about a job--for the same city that the bus ticket is printed! Cochran sees this and insists that the Truex give him what he needs. Truex is noticeably worried and quickly gives Cochran a pair of scissors and then vanishes. A bit later, Cochran is on an old elevator and his scarf gets caught and begins choking him. In a last act of desperation, he uses the scissors to cut the scarf.

Now he knows he must go back to the old man, as the old guy can give him everything he needs. And the man gives Cochran a leaky pen--which soon turns out to be a boon as well.

Unfortunately, this isn't enough for Cochran and he insists that the old guy give him something else he needs, but Truex refuses. This leads to a wonderful finale--and you'll just have to see it for its wonderful ironic twist.

Overall, there's a lot to like about this show. First, I just loved Truex. This character actor plays a cute old guy and his meek and sweet manner helps the show immensely. Second, the writing was just terrific from start to finish.

It's funny, but some of the episodes of the show were meant as possible pilots for future TV series--such as the really dumb "Twilight Zone" with Jesse White and Carol Burnett. Well, though not intended as a series, "What You Need" could have easily been made into one--it was a terrific concept and would have been worth revisiting. Nice stuff all around.

UPDATE: It turns out this short story by Harry Kutner was used previously in the series "Tales of Tomorrow" and is also called "What You Need"--and it's a bit different. While the one from "The Twilight Zone" is better, both are worth seeing.

An old street vendor goes to a bar to sell his stuffs. However, he foresees what each costumer will need in a short period, selling precisely what they need. After selling in the bar, the crook Fred Renard (Steve Cochran) mocks him and the peddler gives a pair of scissors for him. When Fred arrives at the hotel where he is lodged, his scarf is trapped on the elevator door and he only survives due to the pair of scissors. Now Fred believes that the peddler has a gift and he decides to force the old man to tell the horse that will win the race. The greedy Fred earns a large amount and seeks out the peddler threatening him again that the old man gives him a pair of shoes to Fred. But who needs the pair of shoes?

"What You Need" is another great episode of "The Twilight Zone". The old peddler uses his mysterious ability to help people with goof deeds but a smalltime crook wants to take financial advantage and frightens the old man. But in the end he gives what he actually needs to the crook to save his life. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Além da Imaginação: What You Need" ("Beyond Imagination: What you Need")

At the beginning this story focuses on Lefty (Read Morgan), a former baseball pitcher drowning his sorrow in a bar, and what he needs. There is also a girl (Arlene Martel- mysterious nurse in season two's Twenty Two) whose need happily makes her path and Lefty's cross. The peddler, who knows which little item can lead a person to help bring their life meaningfully together, then disappears from the bar. This is because Fred Rennard, a charmless, malevolent loser is watching him.

Steve Cochrane who played gangster roles opposite James Cagney and Joan Crawford in the early fifties plays Rennard. This is a very good little morality tale about the importance of using things not people. Also how little it would take to put one's life on a happy path providing you take a droplet of good fortune with a virtuous approach.

Sorry if I'm sounding a bit preachy, but I love to find meaning in the Zone.

What I got is a great episode of someone who got what they deserved when he took advantage of a man simply trying to help people. Yeah! He got his gift... slippery shoes. There is a filming quirk in the beginning before the first commercial break. That is the cigarette smoke from the thug's ashtray is going downward, i.e., the film is being played in reverse. There is also the aspect of someone of no moral grounding taking advantage of someone who is using their "Gift" of helping people with "What they need." Maybe this will sway some folk to not corrupt "charities" for their own selfish need. I was really impressed by the charitable guy's clairvoyance of the thug sitting at the bar. I also loved the cleaning fluid lady's beauty and Lefty the washed up pitcher's smile... it's infectious. It's also evident that Lefty is a good hearted guy. At the same time, it's also plain the bartender is a needler of Lefty. How the thug found out where the peddler lived and broke in, just sitting there until the peddler got home is pretty good fraught for a cheap thug like Renard.

Sci-Fi/cult series like "The Twilight Zone" (but also others, like "Tales of the Unexpected" or "Tales from the Crypt") always root for the underdog and show no mercy for selfish or obnoxious characters. Modest, introvert and meek characters will be victorious at the end of the ride most of the time, whereas the arrogant ones die a merciless death. Sounds rather logical perhaps, but it's nevertheless a trademark and one that is marvelously illustrated in the "What you need" episode. The plot introduces two-time loser and insignificant swindler Fred Renard, who's sitting in a bar when a street vendor named Pedott comes walking in. Pedott is a kind, gentle and unobtrusive man with a remarkable gift… He knows exactly what his customers need and persuades them to buy things moments before the goods become incredibly useful to them. Fred Renard immediately notices Pedott's unique gift and extorts the poor man into using it to make him rich really fast. His plan initially works quite well, but Renard gets too greedy too quick and his plan backfires. "What you need" is a powerful but obviously very implausible episode. Accepting that Pedott has this unique gift of clairvoyance is one thing, but believing that he never used it for his own benefit and exclusively strives to offer small bits of happiness to complete strangers is an entirely different story… In fact, the Fred Renard character is much more realistic and identifiable, since he wants to make money out of it and – let's be honest – that's what we all would do. Admittedly his methods aren't very nice and thus the twilight zone karma punishes him. "What you need" is low on suspense and surprises, but the contrast between the two protagonists and the fantastic acting performances of both Steve Cochran and Ernest Truex make it more than worthwhile. With a bit of imagination, it's a supernatural variant on the David & Goliath story, and a damn fine I may add.

Ernest Truex seems like the kind of guy you'd like to sit down with and share some brandy and a nice long conversation. Maybe the kind of grandfather your kids would enjoy dispensing stories and telling tall tales. He's the kindly old gent who shows up in 'What You Need', a cautionary tale that falls into the 'be careful what you wish for' category as soon as the wishes become demands. The story cleverly makes connections with things and events that at first seem disconnected, like the bus ticket for Lefty, or the bottle of cleaning fluid for the lady in the booth. But as is so often the case in real life, events don't always traverse a straight path from Point A to Point B, they sometimes take an oddly circuitous route that one never envisioned along the way.

The character of Fred Renard (Steve Cochran) is a familiar one. His take on life is that if one is good, a hundred or thousand have to be better. It never occurs to him that life consists of choices made for good or ill, and that choices forcefully made often lead to unintended consequences. The finale of the story contains a double edged sword; Pedott (Truex) never offered Renard the final thing he 'needed', Renard simply took it (the shoes). The unintended consequence, we come to learn, is something that Pedott 'needed' to continue his vocation as a street peddler. What I found unnecessary was Pedott's explanation of it all, I think most viewers could have figured it out given the intensity of Renard's malice and evil intention as the story progressed.

What might be considered a bit concerning is the degree of justice imposed on Renard. Yes, perhaps he intended to kill Pedott, but a motive for that was never clearly established. He seemed more a bully than a murderer, and in that light, might have been subjected to a less than fatal, yet still ironic consequence in exchange for his harassment of Pedott. Something say like being sentenced as a bartender at the local gin mill and having to deal with nightly customers just like himself.

Ernest Truex plays a common street peddler who has the gift of giving to anyone exactly what they need to get to their next station in life. For example, while in a bar and overhearing a hard luck story from a down-and-out baseball player, he sends the fellow a miraculous phone call from a team looking for a coach. It's exactly what the guy needs to get to the next level. Then bad guy Steve Cochran figures out Truex's gift and starts demanding things that he needs to continue his ruinous ways. Truex soon realizes that Cochran's "needs" are never-ending and counter-productive, to say the least. He decides to turn the tables on him and satisfy his own desperate need to rid himself from this tyrant.

Not one of the best Twilight Zone stories, but good performances by Truex and Cochran make this episode worth watching. Cochran made a career out of playing unsavory characters and was usually typecast as a gangster (e.g. "White Heat"). He put his under-rated acting skills to fine use here.

Ernest Truex plays a street peddler named Pedott who has the uncanny ability to know exactly what a customer will need that day, which may give them a second chance, or save their life. Steve Cochran plays a thuggish man named Fred Renard, who discovers this ability, and bullies Pedott into repeatedly giving him what he needs to succeed, like winning at the racetrack, but what the mean-spirited Renard doesn't realize is that he can only go to this well so often, until Pedott decides to use what he needs to get away from Renard... Entertaining tale is no classic but builds nicely to a most amusing ending, and wry summation by Pedott.

Mean small-time crook Fred Renard (well played to the menacing hilt by Steve Cochran) plots to take selfish advantage of kindly street peddler Pedott (a fine and appealing portrayal by Ernest Truex), who has the psychic ability to foresee the immediate near future and hence gives people exactly what they need right before they need it.

Director Alvin Ganzer keeps the engrossing story moving at a quick pace and ably crafts a smoky noir atmosphere along with a charming gentle tone. Rod Serling's compelling script makes the most out of the cool premise as well as has a neat central message about the potential peril inherent in wanting the wrong greedy things out of life. Cochran and Truex both do terrific work in their roles; they receive sturdy support from Read Morgan as washed-up baseball player Lefty, Arlene Martel as a sweet woman in a bar, and William Edmonson as a worldly bartender. Kudos are also in order for Van Cleave's spare moody score and the sharp black and white cinematography by George T. Clemens. Moreover, Renard rates as a real hateful no-count bastard; it's a lot of fun to watch this despicable little crumb get his rightful rotten comeuppance at the end. A solid show.

One thing I noticed about these "User Reviews" for "Twilight Zone" Season 1, Episode #12, is that a great majority of them pretty much say the same things, but thankfully, each says it in the words of each individual Reviewer. And there are quite a few Reviews from The U.K., and a few other places outside the USA. That's proof that Mr. Serling did indeed create a world-wide HIT!

One thing that stands out about the reviews for THIS "Zone" installment (like ALL of the FILMED Twilight Zone's), it was filmed in my Home Town, Culver City, California, (which turned 100 years old in 2016) at the former home of MGM Studios - which was once HUGE - they actually had SIX movie lots in all, once upon a time - most of which was sold for its real estate value in the early 1970's. The several "Twilight Zone" shows which were shot on VIDEOTAPE with multiple TV cameras were taped at CBS Television City In Hollywood - unlike THIS one, which was shot like a movie at M-G-M, with only a single 35mm film camera. I won't say very much about this individual show, since there are so many other EXCELLENT, well-written reviews. What I WILL say is that Rod Serling and Co. would have had a VERY difficult time shooting this show and making it look so good without the wonderful facilities of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where some of the GREATEST Movies of All Time were made. I'll also say that even though some "Twilight Zone" installments are better than others, ALL of them are GOOD!

Ernest Truex plays a peddler with a remarkable gift: he can give you an item that is exactly what you will need shortly. It is his performance that really sells this episode; the juxtaposed cheerfulness and grimness of his character provides a depth that warms your heart and chills your bones.

It is clear that Pedott the peddler (Truex) has the power of premonition. He fears a selfish loser who yearns for success, Fred Renard (Steve Cochran). As far as Renard understands, Pedott can see the future, but this is the Twilight Zone, and things are not always crystal clear.

Pedott helps people by giving them an obscure item that they would never think they would need, but does he really know why they need those items himself? Does Pedott actually know why Renard needs a leaky fountain pen, or just that it is needed? The same can be said for the cleaning fluid, bus ticket, and pair of scissors.

Pedott's concept of "what you need" is clearly synonymous with "what will help you". In testament to this, the ever helpful peddler is certainly reluctant to help Renard, but in both cases where he does, it benefits Renard. However, in their final exchange, Pedott does not GIVE Renard anything; Renard forcefully takes a pair of slippery shoes, over the objections of Pedott. Those shoes lead to the death of Renard.

This is no act of malice, murder or manslaughter by Pedott, rather it is an act of suicide by Renard. However, Pedott describes this transaction as "what I need" and, he explains later, Renard would have caused his death otherwise. This is not to say that Renard would have murdered Pedott, just have caused his death somehow, possibly even by accident in an angry scuffle.

People who try to understand or explain this episode (or for that matter any Twilight Zone episode) using only literal interpretations of what is presented cannot possibly understand what the Twilight Zone is about. It is more fantasy than science-fiction, more lateral than literal, and more emotional than logical. The only issue I have with this episode is how Renard managed to get into Pedott's apartment.

Like the comments of other viewers, I agree that there is a certain engaging gentleness to this story. I do not think the peddler had full knowledge of the future--he could just look at somebody and get a glimpse at a major soon-to-happen incident (getting a scarf caught in an elevator door) or minor one (grooming needed prior to having one's picture taken.) The leaky pen was a stretch. I suppose the peddler could have seen Fred Renard trying to pick a winner from a list of horses but how he (the peddler) would know that the pen would leak onto a winner is not clear. The only way I can resolve this is that the peddler looked FURTHER into the future, saw the winner of the race, and also saw that the pen (if only Renard would have one) would JUST HAPPENED to leak onto the winner. The only trouble with that explanation is that the other "futures" he sees the consequences of the person NOT having "what they need." The pen "need" is completely different.

The Fred Renard character seems to be the person in the story most in need of real help--real salvation. Like Batman (well, Adam West) used to say about Catwoman: "She is more to be pitied than feared." I would loved to have seen an ending of this episode where Renard had a change (for the better) of life experience. Or, if he HAD to be killed, had presented him as more menacing and beyond redemption.

(I have a similar sentiment about a later TZ episode. A man confronts three people from is past. He has a grievance against all of them and, while they are locked with him in his bomb shelter, he wants them to say "I'm sorry" to him. Instead, they (verbally) cut him to ribbons.)

**SPOILERS** I used to watch T.T.Z. when I was a kid (along with a million others on Friday night; usually after collecting for my paper route. This one I remember from back then.

There seems to be a misunderstanding about the kindly old gentleman (Mr. Pedott), who helps people with "What they Need". I've watched it on METV, and from my own collection, and I NEVER saw the peddler tell or see the future. All he has is a gift for knowing what people need. Just so happens that sometimes it helps them in a choice about their future. A link to a chance, if you will.

Now, I agree that it is predictable that the cheap punk is gonna have to deal with his own fate. Instead of thanking the nice man for the lucky pick at the races, though, his vile inner nature is uncovered, and as much as it obviously made him suffer to do it, Mr. Pedott connected him with his fate.

That's all well and good. There's just this one other small matter that we need to address. You know, don't you guys? Yeah....The incredibly sexy Arlene Martel (A.K.A. Arlene Sax). She was in a lot of stuff, and was just Cinnamon (hot and sweet, for all you Neil Young fans). No matter what part she had, she was great in it. I suggest you check out Perry Mason "Absent Artist", and "Dead Ringer". See, I get to do that because I've got the series from Amazon. You can, too, and I recommend that you do. Her parts may be understated, but her beauty was certainly not (R.I.P., Arlene, we miss you).

Any good TV show or film from the 1920s all the way through to the 1960s is what I need. What is it about older just being better? In my opinion anyway

The "I got what you need" old man was an enjoyable character. The bitter middle aged man Renard was not, but he wasn't supposed to be. The episode would not have been as good if 100% of the people in it were all happy and nice every minute of it. That goes for most shows and movies in general.

The writers of this episode had a good point about making each person in it only be given what they need just once. And the one time was supposed to set each person onto the right track for the rest of their lives, if they made their moves wisely after the old man gave them their initial boost with what they needed. The other characters each realized that but Renard did not. He was greedy, selfish, and antagonizing and decided just to keep hounding the old man every day while being very ungrateful. Him also breaking into the old man's apartment and waiting for him in the dark was pretty messed up.

The differences between Renard and the other characters was, after they got what they needed, were set and on the road to a better life without needing the old man again. The ex major league pitcher, after getting his bus ticket to Scranton, got a great job offer there and was on his way. The pretty woman, after receiving the cleaning fluid, found out she made good use of it rubbing out a stain on the pitcher's coat to improve his chances of a good impression when meeting his manager. She also, as it appeared, may have just met the man of her dreams. l saw a few romantic sparks flying between her and him at that moment. That's how they greatly benefited. A new successful career and possibly marriage was their outcome, because they played their moves right after getting the one thing they needed from the old man.

Renard, on the other hand, played his moves all wrong by not accepting the one thing he needed and coming back again demanding more. He was also a bully, manipulating, completely ungrateful, and he broke into his home. That is why he did not win out like the other characters. After finding out he was able to save himself with the scissors the old man gave him from being strangled to death when his scarf got caught by the elevator doors, what should've been is that the incident should've gotten him to appreciate his life and other people better. It should've helped change his outlook on life and given him more patience, appreciation, and serenity. Just like the old man said near the end of the episode he needed but realized at that point he could not give that to him. He had tried earlier to give that to him with the scissors and the elevator incident, but it failed due to Renard insisting on wanting to stay the way he was, full of misery, greed, and hate. Then, the man decided to give him one more chance and gave him a leaky fountain pen which suceeded in dripping onto a winning horse in the race. Renard won some good money but he still refused to give up his ugly attitude and ways. So then there was nothing else the old man could do for him. That's why Renard couldn't win.

Also, I know that some reviewers have asked why if the old man could see the future, how come he couldn't predict Renard breaking into his apartment? My answer is, I believe from what I saw, that the old man could only see ones future once he was looking at them or standing by them. Like with the pitcher, the old man only learned of his future managing job offer in Scranton once he was standing right by him in the bar. He couldn't see Renard's breaking into his apartment until it happened because he didn't see him and wasn't near him until he walked into his place switching on the lights and suddenly got startled dropping his suitcase.

Fascinating entry. Timid old man Pedott (Truex) sells odds and ends from a tray in grubby urban setting. He's so insignificant looking, it's hard to expect anything from him. But that's a mistake—and possibly the entry's moral. He's got an uncanny ability to know what a person needs in the next few minutes. It's like he can see into the future, but not very far. So why does he give ex-ballplayer Lefty (Morgan) a ticket to Scranton or thuggish Renard (Cochran) a drippy fountain pen, and then a puzzling pair of leather shoes. In Renard's case, it's too bad he can't fix bad character, but I guess that's not something that can be held in a tray.

Actor Truex is perfect as the unlikely seer, while underrated Cochran makes his usual convincing tough guy. Too bad, however, we don't see more of the exotic looking Arline Sax. She's got really distinctive features, perfect for the bride of Star Trek's Dr. Spock. Note too, the atmospheric nighttime set with its suggestive blinking lights, appropriate for a Twilight world that lies in wait.

All in all, the 30-minutes amounts to one of the more memorable entries that helped define the classic series.

Everything about this episode was appealing. The actors played their characters exceptionally well.. The script was very good and flowed naturally. The plot and story line was quite interesting and kept my attention. The character Fred Renard was truly scary while the character of Pedott was truly loveable. What a great contrast and the way these two characters were brought together made the plot more exciting. A great story that made complete sense unlike most of the series episodes.

Steve Cochran is a nasty, selfish guy sitting in a bar brooding over the fact that he's had no luck in life because he's a nasty, selfish guy. Enter Ernest Truex, an old man with a tray of cheap junk, who shuffles from customer to customer and offers two of them small gifts. A failed baseball player gets a bus ticket to Scranton. A eccentrically beautiful woman gets a spot remover. Within minutes the ball player gets a phone call offering him a coaching job in Scranton, but he doesn't want to show up in his dirty jacket, so the pretty young woman comes over and offers him her spot remover. They leave the bar together.

Now, Cochran has been keeping an eye on these mysterious goings on and he's figured out that the old man can see into the future and is in a position to help him, Cochran, out. Cochran follows him onto the street and forces him to start giving him elliptical guides to the future. Example: a pen drips ink onto the next day's winner in a horse race. Eventually, Cochran pushes too far and Truex is forced to give him what HE, Truex, needs. Moral: Never force your feet into shoes that are too tight.

This isn't among the best episodes but I always enjoy it for its fey quality. Cochran is so rotten and Truex trembles so well. And the ending does come as a surprise. There's wish fulfillment built into the narrative too. I'd love to run into Truex some time. I spend the occasional evening in shabby bars. I wonder if he's got an eighteen-year-old blond Swedish masseuse in that suitcase.

There are a lot of surprises in this well-acted season one entry from "The Twilight Zone" that features excellent performances by film noir veteran Steve Cochran and character actor Ernest Truex. Unlike Ed Wynn's pitchman in "One for the Angels", earlier in the season, Truex is a man of mystery, seemingly knowing the future long before it happens and preparing for it here regardless of the outbarflies who has no idea where he's going and when Truex meets him, he has a look of fear on his face. For some reason however, Cochran goes to Truex for whatever he needs goes to Truex for whatever he needs and sometimes, those little unexpected items do come in handy. But a last-minute confrontation after a fountain pen fails to work while he is trying to bet on horses leads Cochran to confront Truex in what will definitely be the final destiny of one of the two.

Slow-moving and spots but still interesting, this is a moody and psychologically challenging episode that you have to wait patiently for any real outcome for. But don't turn it off when you think it's ending, because there's more to come in the few minutes left and it is an amusing twist that gives questions to who indeed Truex really is, a recurring mystery in Twilight episodes where some wisened older man seems to be a visitor from a distant star where all wisdom and knowledge is created. The rainy atmosphere adds to the moodiness of the plotline and creates a dour look into the souls of the characters involved in the plot.

This episode features a guy who has the ability to look into the future. He carries a briefcase that has stuff people will soon need. One guy notices how this helps him. He then wonders why the other guy doesn't just use his power to get rich or something. That's obviously what he wants. It does make me wonder about how there must be people wanting to exploit a supernatural ability.

He says he can't just use his ability constantly. The twist probably could have been a little better, but it's still a great episode. I did feel bad for the little guy. The pacing really worked out here. It told the whole story at the right time. Really a must see. ****

"You're looking at Mr. Fred Renard, who carries on his shoulder a chip the size of the national debt. This is a sour man; a friendless man; a lonely man; a grasping, compulsive, nervous man. This is a man who has lived thirty-six undistinguished, meaningless, pointless, failure-laden years and who at this moment looks for an escape—any escape, any way, anything, anybody—to get out of the rut. And this little old man is just what Mr. Renard is waiting for."

That was the opening narration for What You Need. After hearing this, you would assume that Fred Renard is one of Serling's usual down on your luck characters. Almost all of the Twilight Zone episodes had a hero or heroine in a "rut." Hearing this narration you feel very sorry for Mr. Renard. You can see the anguish in his face as he sits at the bar. Then the needling bartender is on his back about how he's not ordering another drink and he's just sitting there taking up space. Renard responds by saying "How would you like to take a flying jump at the moon." Hearing this, you cheer Renard on.

I don't know what happened when this episode was written, but somewhere along the lines, something went wrong. The episode starts out great. You see the gift that the peddler has and how he can help people. He comes across an attractive young woman and he gives her cleaning fluid. She doesn't know why, but he tells her it is what she needs. Next, the peddler comes across Lefty, a former pitcher, who's career got cut short when his arm went sour. You learn from the needling bartender, who is laughing at Lefty, that Lefty took up drinking because of this. The peddler gives Lefty a bus ticket to Scranton, Pennsylvania. What the peddler gives the young lady and the pitcher, turns out to be just what they needed. Naturally, when the old peddler leaves, Mr. Renard follows him outside to find out what he needs.

Slowly but surely, the episode gets worse from this moment on. The old peddler gives Renard a pair of scissors. Renard, like the others, doesn't know why he would get scissors, but he needs them. They end up saving his life. He goes back to the peddler and he wants him to keep supplying him with what he needs. The peddler refuses to help him any longer. He tells Renard that it "must stop." A confused Renard wants to know why it has to stop. The more the old peddler refuses to help Renard the angrier he gets. Fred Renard, who is still the same desperate man we met at the beginning of the episode, grabs the peddler and tells him how he was born under a lousy zodiac and that he's been getting the dirty end of the stick since he was 4 years old. The old man tells him that he feels sorry for him. But Renard doesn't want pity. He wants help.

The episode ends with the old peddler giving Renard slippery leather shoes and baiting him into the street to get hit by a car. A man with such a gift uses it to murder someone. The peddler tells the lifeless Renard that he saw a vision of him killing him. But Fred Renard is not a killer. We are only told that he is a miserable unhappy man. People assume that Renard is a gangster or a thug only because Steve Cochran is in the role. But there is no mention of that. There's no gun, no knife. Just a man down on his luck. If the episode was made right, Jack Klugman, or anyone else could've played the role. Why would Renard kill the peddler? Why would he kill the only person that can get him out of the rut that he is in? It doesn't make any sense. The only reason why Renard was even getting angry with the peddler is because the old man was refusing to help him and giving him the business. What You Need is a very flawed episode. The second half and especially the ending, was lousy. They took a sympathetic character and turned him into a villain for no good reason. They took the peddler, a god-like character, and they messed up with him too. God would've helped a man like Mr. Renard if he asked. We are given no real evidence to show that Renard was so bad and undeserving of help. We are given no real reason for why he deserved to die. Check it out for a great beginning, but don't expect it to get better after that.

What You Need In the run up to 'What You Need', every episode since 'The Lonely' had been a winner to some extent. This episode is the first major failure since 'Escape Clause'. The Serling script is again based on someone else's materiel, a short story by Lewis Padgett. As with 'And When the Sky Was Opened', Serling altered the content significantly, removing a scientist and his machine and inserting an elderly peddler.

'What You Need' works best when it is being sweet. The opening half, in which the peddler provides customers in a bar with objects they will need in the near future, has a gentle charm about it that may have worn thin throughout an entire episode but works well in the time frame it is allotted. Sadly, the main plot which it sets up is full of gaping holes. The minute Steve Cochran's performance as a two-bit thug becomes the main focus the episode falls apart. Cochran's part is an underwritten stereotype and his flat performance highlights this flaw. His exploitation of the old peddler is dull and predictable and the revelation that he will murder the old man is totally unconvincing, making the whole slippery shoes scene seem completely false. Ernest Truex is good as the peddler, bringing a magical, mysterious but warm edge to the character, but he's not good enough to help the floundering script.

To make matters worse, the weak script is also full of inconsistencies. For instance, we learn that the peddler's power to provide people with what they need stems from an ability to see into the future. So how exactly does this allow him to produce a pen that will magically pick winning horses. That seems like it should be a little outside his realms of power. Also, for a man who can see the future, the peddler certainly acts surprised to find the thug waiting for him in his flat. There are many more holes that can be picked in 'What You Need' but it's hardly worth it when the episode is so thin that you can see through it anyway.

***SPOILERS*** It's when the kindly old street peddler Pedott, Earnst Trvex,dropped into the bar peddling his wears at no cost to those who took them that Fred Renard, Steve Cochron, drinking himself silly gave him little or no mind at all. It's when Pedott gave a number of costumers gifts,free of charge of course, that proved not only to help them but in a way predict future events that he started to take a long and hard look at him in trying to change his luck, which at the time was rock bottom,with some gifts for himself.

Pedott did in fact notice Renard deep and almost psychotic interest in him and offered up a pair of scissors to him just to keep the overbearing jerk off his back. It's when Renard was almost strangled with his scarf when it got caught in his hotel elevator that the scissors came in handy,by cutting himself loose, in saving his life. You would think that by having saved Renard's life he would appreciate what Pedott did for him but this ungrateful swine now started to put the squeeze on Pedott in making him rich with his bag of tricks or he'll end up busting the old guy up! This stupid moron, Fred Renard, is given a chance to make it big at the race track with a fountain pen that drips ink. The ink just happens to hit, on the newspapers sport page, a horse running in tomorrow's races who ends up winning giving Renard a $250.00 pay-off.

****SPOILERS****Still not satisfied in what old man Pedott has already done for him Renard pushes his luck just a bit too far. And this time around the meek and harmless looking Pedott pushes back by giving Renard a gift that in the end would help him finally get the pushy and now about to work him over Renard off his back once and for all.