A scientist develops a device containing a synthetic crystal that is supposed to be able to "play back" sounds absorbed by inanimate objects. He tries to convince a Government Official of its usefulness as an Espionage tool but a test-run in front of the Official is a total failure. Dejected, the scientist walks out, leaving the device on the Official's desk. Someone inadvertantly places a small paperweight next to the abandoned device, and the room is flled with unearthly shrieks and screams. The Official explains that the "Paperweight" is aactually a chunk of Lava that his wife brought back from a trip to the ruins of Pompeii....
That sounds bad ass! I've only seen one episode... "The Strange Lodger"... About an old man who manages to teleport himself thru a television. It was ok, but the lava rock sounds way better!
That episode was one of my favs too. That and the one with the aliens living next door lol. Have the two DVDs and they are a marvel to watch ---- along with DVDs of that other anthology of that era: Tales of Tomorrow. Both were all we had back then.
It's been more than 50 years, but I remember an episode--whose name I don't remember--with a mysterious little girl who says she is from the "third planet from the sun." Some people claim she thus means she is a Martian, but one man defending her says, "The 'third planet from the sun' is the very Earth you're standing on!"
For me, it was Hour of Nightmare, along with Earth vs the Flying Saucers, introduced me to the theme of The Evil UFO/Aliens. I was only five when I saw this story about two US journalists who travel to Mexico to investigate mysterious disappearances and UFO reports. The UFO/aliens wasn't really "evil", but still powerful and lethal when circumstances required. My favorite and most terrifying episode.