[Extollager]

I read Ellison's original "City on the Edge of Forever" screenplay (just skimmed the prefatory material with his gripes about Gene Roddenberry et al.

Offhand, overall I think the final version is better; for example, it is more interesting and ultimately more poignant to have McCoy cause the trouble than the Beckwith character; the filmed speaking "arch" is probably more interesting and appropriate than the statue-like guardians of the original screenplay. I'm inclined to stand by my hunch that Ellison sometimes benefits from having to adjust his work to the requirements of others. But what an outstanding TV teleplay that original is.

One can only imagine how Ellison might have responded if he'd written a screenplay for The Prisoner, although given Patrick McGoohan's relatively high degree of artistic control for the series, the combination of McGoohan and the touchy Ellison might have been explosive! Had they managed to bring the teleplay to completion, though, one expects it would have been a standout. Now here's a thought for you: Ellison as the screenplay writer for the final episode. McGoohan wanted something over the top. I find that final episode to have some splendid moments, and yet quite a bit of it isn't really all that great-seeming to me; the "trial scene" doesn't quite work. What might Ellison have come up with?