Welcome to MysticSeer.com

Rod Serling and the Mystic Seer"You're traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That's the signpost up ahead - your next stop, The Twilight Zone!"

Spoken by Rod Serling before the Twilight Zone episode: "Nick of Time".

Welcome to mysticseer.com.  Your home for information and history related to the Twilight Zone Mystic Seer prop that appeared in the season two episode titled "Nick of Time".  Here you will also find detailed instructions if you want to build your own replica.  I had previously detailed my journey into building the Mystic Seer prop replica on my other web site www.B9RobotResource.com.  That is the site I created so I could document the construction of my Lost in Space B9 Robot replica.  One thing lead to another and I included information about building my Mystic Seer.  I intend on  moving all of that information to this site and upping the ante by expanding the information.  Bare with me as I gather the info and organize it into a more comprehensive and joyful experience.

Thanks,

Daniel Livingston

Now listen to what Mr. Serling has to say about my web site.  (Flash required) 

 PLAY      Rod Serling Greeting

How it all Started

I came across a small red plastic devil head being sold on ebay as a "replica" of the one in the classic Twilight Zone episode "Nick of Time".  That's the episode where William Shatner keeps dropping pennies into the Mystic Seer fortune telling machine and reads all the fortunes that it spits out.  He becomes obsessed with the machine and it almost ruins his life.  This episode was always one of my favorites.  The devil head on ebay was the wrong color and looked pretty cheesy.   I figured I could make one myself that looked better using the plastic molding skills I learned making various Lost in Space B9 Robot parts.

Twilight Zone Mystic Seer Replica

To the left is my Devil Head in action on top of a custom Mystic Seer machine I made.  It's just waiting for William Shatner to walk through the door with more pennies! I made the Mystic Seer out of some scrap plastic left over from my B9 Robot project.  I even reproduced a set of the Mystic Seer fortune cards with the same fortunes as seen in the Twilight Zone  episode.

 

I am selling the Devil Heads on ebay every so often. If you have one of the original Swami Machines from the 1950's, you'd love one of these sitting on top.  I mold them one at a time and each is hand painted.  The left eye is a rhinestone like the original.  Look for them under my ebay Seller name of "soti" or you can buy one directly from me for $35 + $4.50 shipping. Send me a note if you are interested; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .   I am also building complete Mystic Seer machines for Twilight Zone fans and prop collectors.  If you are interested in having one built, please send me an email.     If you want to build your own, see my Mystic Seer construction page.  I've had to warn my kids that they can't tell their teachers that their dad makes devil heads at home, down in the basement.  They'd never understand

Building the Mystic Seer - Part 1

I've had many requests from TZ fans to help them build their own Mystic Seer. Below, I've provide some detailed drawings and in progress construction pictures. I will try to add additional information as I have time. Send me a note if you have any particular questions. First, I need to say that my MS is not really operational. That is, it does not dispense the fortune slips. It does however have a working/spring loaded lever and will collect all the pennies you put into it. Also, the napkin holders are spring loaded and hold the napkins rather nicely.

 1:1: scale front drawing with dimensions. These are hand drawn drawings based on measurements I made using a few different sources. Knowing that the original Mystic Seer was built over the guts of the popular Swami machine, gave me some idea of the overall size. But, knowing the size of the napkin was the biggest clue to all the dimensions.

 
I used PVC sheet material for construction. Partly because I used it for constructing many parts of my robot but also because it is so easy to work with. My Mystic Seer will not fit over a Swami Machine.If you attempt that, you may have to use sheet metal and/or adjust some of the dimensions.I noticed that my drawing does not have the center point for the key lock. I'll have to update it at some point.

Read more: Building the Mystic Seer - Part 1