Rod Serling Statue Planned for Binghamton’s Recreation Park

Fans of Rod Serling, the creator of The Twilight Zone, want to construct a six-foot-tall statue honoring the television producer and playwright in the Binghamton park he loved.

Serling lived on the city's West Side near Recreation Park as a child. His nostalgia for the park inspired an episode of The Twilight Zone called "Walking Distance."

Now, members of the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation are about to launch a fundraising campaign to cover the cost of erecting a statue to honor one of Binghamton's best-known residents.

Foundation president Nicholas Parisi said plans call for the Serling statue to be placed on the east side of the park facing an existing statue of George F. Johnson.

Speaking on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program, Parisi said it's "an honor that is well-overdue for Rod Serling." He said not having a statue in the hometown Serling loved "is an oversight" that the foundation hopes to correct.

Parisi said the foundation plans to set a goal of $90,000 Kickstarter campaign for the statue project. More information about the fundraising effort may be found at rodserling.com.

The campaign will start this Saturday in conjunction with the Serling Fest in Binghamton.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com.

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