For Shakespeare it was Peter Quince. For Serling it was Julius Moomer (Jack Weston). Both great writers conceived of a world's worst writer. Somehow for Shakespeare the idea worked better. The Bard is full of bad jokes. It could have worked much better, especially with Shakespeare (John Williams) up against the shallowness of commercial sponsorship in the form of a pompous businessman (John McGiver). That theme was really close to Rod Serling's heart as a TV writer. Unfortunately, the feckless protagonists in the Zone like Moomer were too often without any redeeming charm (a rare exception would be Andy Devine's Frisby).
'The Bard' is a curate's egg worth having a look at for Burt Reynolds as method actor Rocky Rhodes (appearing about 35 minutes in).
'The Bard' is a curate's egg worth having a look at for Burt Reynolds as method actor Rocky Rhodes (appearing about 35 minutes in).