![]() |
Crossroads | |
---|---|
![]() Jean Willes and Dennis Morgan in Crossroads (1955) | |
Genre | Anthology |
Directed by | Justus Addiss Nathan Juran Richard Kinon Paul Landres Leslie H. Martinson Ralph Murphy Ralph Nelson George Waggner |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 78 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Harry Joe Brown |
Producers | Harry Joe Brown Bernard Schubert |
Editors | Roy V. Livingston James E. Smith |
Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 25 mins. |
Production companies | Federal Telefilms Sterling Films (IV) |
Release | |
Original network | ABC Syndication |
Picture format | Black-and-white |
Audio format | Monaural |
Original release | October 7, 1955 – June 6, 1957 |
Crossroads is an American television anthology series based on the activities of clergy from different denominations. It aired from October 1955 to June 1956 on ABC. The series' second season aired from October 1956 to June 1957 in syndication. It was retitled The Way of Life during syndication. [1] Story technical advisers were credited as Fr. George Barry Ford, USN Captain Maurice M. Witherspoon Presbyterian Minister, Vice-President of the Military Chaplains Association and Rabbi William Franklin Rosenblum. The entire series is preserved at the UCLA Film & Television Archive in Los Angeles, California.
The episodes, which often had deep spiritual themes, were usually set in the 1950s, but some were framed for an earlier era.
The series featured numerous guest stars, many of whom appeared in several episodes throughout the series' run. James Dean appeared in a 1955 episode, "Broadway Trust", along with Lloyd Bridges and Mary Treen. The episode aired five weeks after Dean died in an automobile crash in September 1955.
Victor Jory was cast in the 1957 episode "Lone Star Preacher", a dramatization of the Texas Baptist pastor George Washington Truett, with Barbara Eiler as his wife, Jo Truett. [2]
Other guest stars include:
In its first season on ABC, Crossroads followed the long-running sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet on the Friday evening schedule. It was scheduled opposite Our Miss Brooks on CBS and The Life of Riley on NBC.
ABC canceled Crossroads after one season. The series was then picked up for a second season, airing in syndication from October 1956 to June 1957, for a total of 78 episodes.
Sample episodes:
James Allen Whitmore Jr. was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Academy Award nominations.
The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin is an American children's television series in the Western genre that aired from October 1954 to May 1959 on the ABC television network. In all, 164 episodes aired. The show starred Lee Aaker as Rusty, a boy orphaned in an Indian raid, who was being raised by the soldiers at a US Cavalry post known as Fort Apache. Rusty and his German shepherd dog, Rin Tin Tin, help the soldiers to establish order in the American West. James E. Brown appeared as Lieutenant Ripley "Rip" Masters. Co-stars included Joe Sawyer as Sergeant Biff O'Hara and Rand Brooks as Corporal Randy Boone.
Denver Dell Pyle was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling Jr. in several episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, as Jesse Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard from 1979 to 1985, as Mad Jack in the NBC television series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, and as the titular character's father, Buck Webb, in CBS's The Doris Day Show. In many of his roles, he portrayed either authority figures, or gruff, demanding father figures, often as comic relief. Perhaps his most memorable film role was that of Texas Ranger Frank Hamer in the movie Bonnie and Clyde (1967), as the lawman who relentlessly chased down and finally killed the notorious duo in an ambush.
Stephen McNally was an American actor remembered mostly for his appearances in many Westerns and action films. He often played hard-hearted characters, criminals, bullies, and other villains.
Gloria Talbott was an American film and television actress.
Kenneth Jesse Tobey was an extremely prolific American actor who performed in hundreds of productions during a career that spanned more than half a century, including his role as the star of the 1957-1960 Desilu Productions TV series Whirlybirds.
Fireside Theatre is an American anthology drama series that ran on NBC from 1949 to 1958, and was the first successful filmed series on American television. Productions were low-budget and often based on public domain stories or written by freelance writers such as Rod Serling. While it was panned by critics, it remained in the top ten most popular shows for most of its run. It predated the other major pioneer of filmed TV in America, I Love Lucy, by two years. Jacques Tourneur has directed in 1956 three episodes, A Hero Return, Kirsti, and The Mirror.
Edward Binns was an American actor. He had a wide-spanning career in film and television, often portraying competent, hard working and purposeful characters in his various roles. He is best known for his work in acclaimed films as 12 Angry Men (1957), North by Northwest (1959), Judgment at Nuremberg (1961), Fail Safe (1964), The Americanization of Emily (1964), Patton (1970) and The Verdict (1982).
Ziv Television Programs, Inc. was an American production company that specialized in productions for first-run television syndication in the 1950s.
Science Fiction Theatre was an American science fiction anthology television series that was produced by Ivan Tors and Maurice Ziv and originally aired in syndication. It premiered on April 9, 1955 and ended on April 6, 1957, with a total of 78 episodes over the course of 2 seasons.
Christopher Dark was an American actor. He graduated from Cornell University and did post graduate work at Columbia University. He served as an army medic in the Philippines during WWII, and received honors. He began his career in theater in NY, and then moved to Hollywood in 1952. He was a member of the Foreign Film Committee for SAG for most of his career. As well as acting, he also wrote many scripts, including collaborations with Ida Lupino and Christopher Cary.
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars is an anthology series that was telecast from 1951 until 1959 on CBS. Offering both comedies and drama, the series was sponsored by the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. The title was shortened to Schlitz Playhouse beginning with the fall 1957 season.
George Washington Truett, also known as George W. Truett, was an American clergyman who was the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, from 1897 until 1944, and the president of the Southern Baptist Convention from 1927 to 1929. He was one of the "most famous Southern Baptist" preachers and writers of his era.
Matinee Theater is an American anthology series that aired on NBC during the Golden Age of Television, from October 31, 1955, to June 27, 1958. Its name is often seen as Matinee Theatre.
Hugh Reilly was an American actor who performed on the Broadway stage, in films, and on television. He is best remembered for co-starring from 1958 to 1964 as the father, Paul Martin, in the CBS television series, Lassie.
Douglas Richards Kennedy was an American supporting actor originally from New York City who appeared in more than 190 films between 1935 and 1973.
Lane Bradford was an American actor, who appeared in more than 250 films and television series between 1940 and 1973, specializing in supporting "tough-guy" roles predominantly in Westerns but also in more contemporary crime dramas such as Dragnet, The Fugitive, and Hawaii Five-O.
Walter Darwin Coy was an American stage, radio, film, and, principally, television actor.
Chevron Hall of Stars is an American television anthology series which aired in 1956 in first-run syndication. It was produced by Four Star Productions, and was a half-hour series.
The Vise is an American detective drama that was broadcast on ABC (1955-1957) and then moved to NBC (1957-1960). The series is a reboot of the ABC Mystery Theater radio and television series. It was produced by the Danzigers and starred Donald Gray as Mark Saber. It mostly ran during prime time in the late 1950s.