AllMovie

Written by George Clayton Johnson, this elegiac Twilight Zone episode stars 72-year-old Ernest Truex as Charles Whitley, a reluctant resident of the Sunnyvale Rest Home. Becoming convinced that he'll never truly grow old so long as he "thinks young," Charlie begins indulging in such children's games as kick the can. Before long, Charlie has been joined in his youth-quest by the rest of Sunnydale's residents -- all except for his roommate Ben Conroy (Russell Collins), who pays dearly for his unwillingness to shed his inhibitions. Ernest Truex's real-life son Barry Truex appears in the opening scene as Charlie's insensitive son David, while the rest of the cast includes such familiar Hollywood "oldsters" as Burt Mustin, Hank Patterson, Marjorie Bennett, Anne O'Neal, and Earle Hodgins. Originally telecast February 9, 1962, "Kick the Can" was one of three Twilight Zone episodes that would be remade and included in the 1983 theatrical film Twilight Zone: The Movie.