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George Went was the world’s most famous and truly beloved actor as the standard for “cheer.” Went passed away tragically on May 20, 2025, but he leaves a huge amount of work behind. Not only did he have 269 episodes of “Cheers” (and one of the memorable cameos for “The Simpsons”), but he also had over 170 acting credits for his name, spanning nearly 50 years. Meanwhile, Went had the opportunity to place a small stamp on another classic TV series.
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The show in question is nothing more than the “Twilight Zone.” The Sci-Fi Anthology series, created by Rod Serling, originally aired on CBS in the 60s, but is still widely regarded today as one of the best shows in television history. That’s why CBS has revived it several times over the years, including the latest short-lived “Twilight Zone” reboot from Horror Master Jordan Peel. One of the less-controversial times of the show came in the ’80s when CBS revived a new generation of series. It was during this period that Went appeared in often forgotten episodes.
As part of the fourth episode of the second season of the Revival, Went appeared in a segment entitled “The World Next Door.” It was combined with two other segments: “After Hour” and “Lost and Found.” It’s not that you don’t remember this episode, but for those who are curious, the episode’s summary (via) TV ratios) Read as follows:
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Barney Schlessinger (George Wendt) is a part-time inventor whose often extremely unrealistic gadgets are being blamed by his wife Katy (Bernadette Birkett). Bernie also has frequent dreams of living a second life in another world stuck in the early 20th century. When he is able to enter this world through the strange underground door, Bernie discovers that his counterpart has dreams just like him, and wants to escape into a world where he has been freed from the trap of fame.
The Neighbor World was not part of the well-known Twilight Zone episode
This sounds like a classic premise worthy of the show. There are big SF components. It has the classic “Beware of what you want” of lessons at its heart. It’s easy to see why it was made. That said, the revival of “Twilight Zone” in the ’80s had moments like some segments of Wes Craven, but it’s not as highly praised as the original series. Furthermore, the episode in which Went appeared is not maintained accurately as a classic. So it’s very likely that even the hardcore fans of the show haven’t seen it.
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To make it even more complicated, it would be difficult for people who want to check it out now. The 1985 era of the series is currently not streamed on Paramount+ alongside the original series. It’s a bit difficult to track with modern television standards. Moreover, these episodes were never in the heavy spins on cable. This means it’s much less likely that the viewer has stumbled.
Looking back, that’s a bit disappointing. George Went created a television legend thanks to “cheers.” Without a doubt, more people will probably want to check out the Twilight Zone episode if they find out that it exists, even if it is not purely curiosity. Even if Went is relatively small, there’s nothing, if not interesting, to think of Went making his mark in this franchise.
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You can grab “The Twilight Zone: The Complete 80s Series” on Amazon’s DVD.
