fjp, those coincidences regarding Lincoln/Kennedy always astounded and unnerved me somewhat. Somewhere I have a card that lists them all and it is lengthy and amazingly weird.

quote:

Originally posted by lmskipper:
I remember reading a short story like this as a kid, and it totally creeped me out. There was a whole group of people living in a department store who would come out of hiding at night, kind of an underground society. But occasionally one would just disappear and then a while later there would be a mannequin in the store that looked just like him/her. I think it was in one of my father's Alfred Hitchcock collections, but it was so long ago, my memory could be faulty.

I registered for this site just to answer this question (don't get me wrong, huge Bradbury fan too lol). This came up today on a smokebreak at work and I found this site trying to find the name of this story myself. The story is Evening Primrose, by John Collier. Apparently it's a staple/classic horror story and was widely anthologised. I personally read it in this anthology: http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/robert-p-mills/deca...-science-fiction.htm.

Sorry to double-dip, but in the interest of teaching to fish rather than giving a fish, as dandelion sagely advised (not in so many words)in another lost story thread...

I Googled "short story living in store mannequin" (w/o any quotes), first hit was this site (pleasant new find!) and third result was a link toIMDB for the musical version and the first User Comment included ""Evening Primrose" is based on a short story of the same name, by English author John Collier. In the original story, a sensitive young man retreats from the cruel world by moving into a department store. He plans to hide in the daytime when the store is open, coming out only after closing hours at night, helping himself to food and clothing and writing materials from the store's merchandise. Then he learns that the store is populated by a Morlock-like group of subterraneans with the same idea but different motives, who spend their daylight hours hiding in plain sight, disguised as department-store mannequins. Among the living mannequins is a beautiful girl who was abandoned in the store as an infant and who has lived among the subterraneans for her entire life. The young man falls in love with her and tries to rescue her. But then danger looms... John Collier's story "Evening Primrose" is a classic of horror fiction, widely anthologised."

Outstanding stuff. Check this out. It contains the story you mentioned and has an introduction by a very nice fellow:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1590170512/qid=1147405...ks&v=glance&n=283155

Wow, thanks, I hadn't heard of that one, but Bradbury would be pleased, having stated he was greatly influenced by Collier. He isn't always so favorably impressed with the authors whose works he is mistaken as having written.

“Thus I Refute Beelzy,” by John Collier, is a bizarre tale as well. I use it to supplement the reading of Lord of the Flies (when we get to the chap. "Gift for the Darkness").

Geomancy any one? A definite JC influence on RB, as in "Zero Hour."

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Then he learns that the store is populated by a Morlock-like group of subterraneans with the same idea but different motives, who spend their daylight hours hiding in plain sight, disguised as department-store mannequins.

Some similiarities to the Twilight Zone episode called 'Twenty-One.'

Anne Francis plays a mannequin living with a group of other mannequins in a department store. They take turns coming to life when no one is around and living in the real world for three weeks...
Not exactly the same, I guess. Good episode, though.

One of my favorite TZ’s. (My favorite is “One For The Angels”).

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Some similiarities to the Twilight Zone episode called 'Twenty-One.'

This was "The After Hours," mentioned earlier.

Oops...how soon we forget. I stand corrected.

Speaking of TZ and perhaps Outer Limits, have any of you seen the Outer Limits starring Carroll O'Connor and Barry Morse?(Lt. Gerard in the tv series 'The Fugitive.') They played two Martians come to Earth to study the concept of murder...they have no idea what it is. They keep stopping and replaying time in a scene inside a hotel lobby where a jealous woman shoots her boyfriend.
One of funniest parts is when everyone is frozen and Morse walks up to the woman rubs some of the lady's lipstick onto his finger, asking O' Connor what it is. He says, 'Oh, they use it to attract the male of the species...it is a mixture of coloring, sheep's fat, and perfume...'
That one was great, especially the effects.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Robert M Blevins,

dandelion is right of course. “The After Hours” is the one you described and is one of my favorites. There is no TZ named Twenty-One but there is one named “Twenty-Two” and refers to a room number in a hospital. It was taken from an anecdote by Bennett Cerf.

Bennett Cerf! Now there's a name from the past.
I have a very good collection of American Humor he put together that includes the likes of Robert Benchley and Ring Lardner.

B-Two, can you "hear" me?

I am in the twilight zone, help.....

Look, that signpost up ahead—no that’s not a signpost, that’s Braling II holding up a note telling me the name of said book by Bennett Cerf. Pray, please submit same for my approval.

Hark, I think I hear the toots and snorts of a little robot lost—could this be a hint at Richard Matheson?

I just wanted to play kick the can Wally.