Today, most people remember Roald Dahl as the author of several beloved children's books like Matilda and The BFG. 

But in the early 1960s, Dahl was briefly a television personality. The author hosted Way Out, a science-fiction anthology series that ran for one season.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? The series was a direct companion to The Twilight Zone, with both series airing on Friday nights on CBS.

YouTube via Atlas Obscura

Way Out may not have even aired if it wasn't for Jackie Gleason. In 1961, The Honeymooners star hosted the ill-fated game show You're in the Picture. When the ratings tanked, the network canceled the program and scrambled to put another one on air. 

The Twilight Zone was such a smashing success for CBS, they decided to tap Dahl to basically write a carbon copy. Dahl also assumed the role of host, similar to Rod Serling's role on The Twilight Zone, even smoking a cigarette while introducing each episode. Of course, the show was sponsored by L&M Cigarettes.

Only 14 episodes were produced, with stories ranging from an abusive husband who chooses to keep his brain alive after death so he can watch over his wife, to a woman who has a light bulb for a head. 

Way Out was quietly canceled over the summer and swiftly overshadowed by The Twilight Zone as an inferior anthology series. Dahl only wrote one episode.

Fans of Roald Dahl, or even The Twilight Zone, should give the series a shot. You can catch clips on YouTube, and the whole series is held by The Paley Center for Media.