Episode – Ol’ St. Nick
Starring – Alec Baldwin
George Welles loves Christmas. The boss of a successful advertising company, Christmas has been very good to him. The company makes millions of dollars a year creating Christmas campaigns for all the big brands. The companies come back every year because of George’s relentless enthusiasm for the festive season, which in turn drives unbelievable results.
Part of his passion comes from the fact that every year, George dresses up as Father Christmas and delivers presents to Amberson County Orphanage, where George was raised as a young boy. It was here that George’s life was set in motion. It was here that George met Father Christmas.
He tells the story to all his clients; one Christmas Eve, when George was 8 years old, he heard a rustling in the main communal room of the orphanage and snuck downstairs to have a look. Peeking into the room, he spotted Santa putting presents under the tree. After making a noise in shock, Santa turned round and spoke to him, gave him a small wooden horse and then sent him off to bed. It was only 5 minutes, but it was enough to change his life. He carries this wooden horse everywhere with him, the company logo is a horse, it’s his lucky charm.
George leaves the office in his Santa suit, gets in his car and starts making the 200 mile trip back to Amberson County. The weather is terrible, snow drifts everywhere, fierce winds, but George won’t stop or turn around, he won’t let those kids down. Just outside the grounds, his car hits a solid mound of snow and he careens off the road into a tree.
He awakens later, unsure of how much time has passed. Feeling dazed, but generally OK, he decides to walk to the orphanage, drop off the gifts to the kids and call the insurance when they’ve all gone to bed. He checks his phone, but it is smashed beyond repair. He gathers up his sack of presents, and starts the short walk.
It’s all quiet when he gets there, and no-one answers the door. Figuring it’s later than he realised, George goes round the back to the kitchen entrance and lets himself in. He’s not worried about scaring the staff, because he comes here at least once a month, so they all know him. The familiar Christmas smells hit him when gets inside, instantly taking him back to his childhood and that magical night. Realising that nobody is around, he guesses that it’s really late and the staff must be in bed. He tries the phone, but all he gets is a crackle, so the bad weather must’ve knocked out the phone lines. He decides to drop the presents under the tree, and then take a walk into town to find a hotel for the night.
He notices that the main room looks a lot more classic this year, it’s been remodelled to the way it used to look before he started donating his money. Thinking this is pretty strange, he notices the tree, with all its handmade decorations and shiny baubles. It’s a beautiful thing, and he forgets all about the room, mesmerised. As he’s dropping off the presents, he hears a rustling behind him and turns round. There’s a young boy stood there, hair messed up and wild eyed, fresh from bed. Not wanting to scare the boy, George puts on his best Santa voice and speaks to the little boy for a while, sending him back off to bed. Remembering his youth, he takes the little horse out of his pocket and gives it to the boy. After the boy has gone back upstairs, George find himself feeling a little dazed, and sits on the sofa, drifting off to sleep.
He awakens to the terrible sound of banging and car horns blaring, after rubbing his eyes, he realises he’s in his car, off the road and crashed. There are people banging on the windows, asking him if he’s OK. George looks in the back and sees that the sack of presents is gone. Checking his pocket, he notices the horse is gone too.
“Incident on a Christmas night. A man named Welles realises that adage that many people have realised before – “There is no fate but what we make”. A chance meeting with his younger self set in motion events that would shape the life of hundreds of people. A chance encounter-- in the Twilight Zone”
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