Schlitz Playhouse of Stars | |
---|---|
Also known as | Schlitz Playhouse |
Genre | Anthology |
Directed by | Robert Aldrich John Brahm David Butler Robert Florey Paul Henreid Arthur Hiller Delbert Mann Lewis Milestone Ray Milland James Neilson Christian Nyby Ted Post Robert Stevenson Jacques Tourneur Don Weis Richard Whorf |
Composers | Melvyn Lenard Paul Dunlap Stanley Wilson |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 8 |
No. of episodes | 347 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Nat Holt |
Producers | William Self Frank P. Rosenberg Jules Bricken |
Production location | Revue Studios |
Cinematography | George T. Clemens Russell Harlan |
Editors | Joseph Gluck Richard Belding Sam Gold George Amy Robert B. Warwick, Jr. |
Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 50 mins. |
Production companies | Meridian Productions Revue Studios |
Original release | |
Network | CBS |
Release | October 5, 1951 – March 27, 1959 |
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.
Initially, the show was broadcast live, but starting in the summer of 1953, some episodes were filmed in advance. Beginning with the 1956-1957 season, all of the shows were filmed.
Between October 1951 and March 1952, the hour-long show was aired at 9 p.m.[ clarification needed ] In April 1952, the running time was reduced from an hour to 30 minutes. The series moved to 9:30 p.m. in the 1955 fall season.
Three episodes served as pilots for later NBC Western series: The Restless Gun with John Payne (March 29, 1957 pilot) and Tales of Wells Fargo with Dale Robertson (as Jim Hardie; season 6, episode 12 - A Tale of Wells Fargo - aired on December 14, 1956), and the first-run syndication series Shotgun Slade [1] with Scott Brady (season eight, episode 14 aired on March 27, 1959). The Restless Gun pilot was based on the radio series The Six Shooter, and Payne's character had the same name, Britt Ponset, as the radio character; that name was changed to Vint Bonner when the actual series began, possibly to prevent confusion with Bret Maverick in Maverick , which debuted in 1957. The same year, Jacques Tourneur directed one episode, "Outlaw's Boots" (25 min), broadcast in December 1957. For the 1958-1959 season, the series alternated weeks with the Lux Playhouse .
An episode of the series also was the pilot for China Smith . [2]
Guest stars included the child actress Beverly Washburn, later on The New Loretta Young Show , who appeared in "The Closed Door" (1953) and "One Left Over" (1957).
Child actor Michael Winkelman, later of The Real McCoys , also appeared twice, as Joey Harlow in the 1955 episode "Fast Break" and as Jimmy Quinlin in the 1956 segment "Weapon of Courage."
Phyllis Avery appeared six times, including the episodes "The Girl Who Scared Men Off" and "Bluebeard's Seventh Wife".
Walter Coy appeared four times, including the role of Paul Hunter in "Fool Proof" in 1956.
Rodolfo Hoyos, Jr., played Colonel Louis Coca in the episode "Little War at San Dede" (1954).
Dayton Lummis appeared as editor Cartwright in "The Last Pilot Schooner" and as Arthur Healy in "Ambitious Cop" (both 1955). Tyler MacDuff made his television debut in the 1954 episode "At the Natchez Inn".
Nora Marlowe played Katherine in "The Girl in the Grass" (1957), with fellow guest stars Ray Milland and Carolyn Jones.
James Dean made a rare television appearance in "The Unlighted Road" in 1955.
Gene Kelly made his television dramatic debut in "The Life You Save" in 1957. [3]
Others included Irene Dunne and Helen Hayes in "Not a Chance" (1951, the first episode); John Payne in "The Name is Bellingham" (1951); Rosalind Russell in "Never Wave at a WAC" (1951); Charlton Heston and June Lockhart in "One is a Lonely Number" (1951); Robert Preston and Margaret Sullavan in "The Nymph and the Lamp" (1951); John Payne and Coleen Gray in "Exit" (1951); Anthony Quinn in "Dark Fleece" (1951); Dan Duryea in "P.G." (1952); Vincent Price in "The Human Touch" (1952); Lillian Gish in "The Autobiography of Grandma Moses" (1952); Barbara Britton in "Say Hello to Pamela" (1952); Dolores del Río in "An Old Spanish Custom" (1957), etc. Most had multiple appearances throughout the series.
In 1958, Paul Monash won an Emmy Award for Best Teleplay Writing - One Hour or Less for the episode "The Lonely Wizard". [4] In 1954, Billboard ranked it sixth-best filmed network dramatic series; it received 264 votes, compared to 826 votes for list-topping Ford Theater, but well ahead of the series at 10th place, Revlon Mirror Theater, which only got 35 votes. [5]
Episodes of the series were rerun during the summer under several titles. In 1958, repeats aired for two months as Adorn Playhouse. In 1960 and 1961, the summer reruns aired as Adventure Theater. [4]
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
TBA | 1 | "Not a Chance" | Frank Telford | Story by : Teleplay by : Thomas W. Phipps | October 5, 1951 |
TBA | 2 | "The Name Is Bellingham" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | October 12, 1951 |
TBA | 3 | "Never Wave at a WAC" | William H. Brown Jr. | Story by : William Dozier Teleplay by : Don Mankiewicz | October 19, 1951 |
TBA | 4 | "Still Life" | Frank Telford | Story by : Noël Coward Teleplay by : Robert Anderson | October 26, 1951 |
TBA | 5 | "The Lucky Touch" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | November 2, 1951 |
TBA | 6 | "Decision and Daniel Webster" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | November 9, 1951 |
TBA | 7 | "The Memories of Aimee Durant" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | November 16, 1951 |
TBA | 8 | "One Is a Lonesome Number" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | November 23, 1951 |
TBA | 9 | "Two Living and One Dead" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | November 30, 1951 |
TBA | 10 | "The Nymph and the Lamp" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | December 7, 1951 |
TBA | 11 | "Exit" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | December 14, 1951 |
TBA | 12 | "Dark Fleece" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | December 21, 1951 |
TBA | 13 | "Girl in a Million" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | December 28, 1951 |
TBA | 14 | "Clean Sweep for Lavinia" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | January 4, 1952 |
TBA | 15 | "Billy Budd" | Unknown | Story by : Herman Melville Teleplay by : Louis O. Coxe and Robert H. Chapman | January 11, 1952 |
TBA | 16 | "The Man That I Marry" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | January 18, 1952 |
TBA | 17 | "P.G." | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | January 25, 1952 |
TBA | 18 | "Lady with a Will" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | February 1, 1952 |
TBA | 19 | "The Daughter" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | February 8, 1952 |
TBA | 20 | "Fifty Grand" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | February 15, 1952 |
TBA | 21 | "World So Wide" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | February 22, 1952 |
TBA | 22 | "Apple of His Eye" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | February 29, 1952 |
TBA | 23 | "The Haunted Heart" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | March 7, 1952 |
TBA | 24 | "Make Way For Teddy" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | March 14, 1952 |
TBA | 25 | "The Human Touch" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | March 21, 1952 |
TBA | 26 | "The Autobiography of Grandma Moses" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | March 28, 1952 |
TBA | 27 | "Experiment" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | April 4, 1952 |
TBA | 28 | "Four's a Family" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | April 11, 1952 |
TBA | 29 | "Now's the Time" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | April 18, 1952 |
TBA | 30 | "Fear" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | April 25, 1952 |
TBA | 31 | "Doctors Should Never Marry" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | May 2, 1952 |
TBA | 32 | "Appointment with the Past" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | May 9, 1952 |
TBA | 33 | "Autumn in New York" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | May 16, 1952 |
TBA | 34 | "Love Came Late" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | May 23, 1952 |
TBA | 35 | "A Quarter for Your Troubles" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | May 30, 1952 |
TBA | 36 | "Souvenir from Singapore" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | June 6, 1952 |
TBA | 37 | "Dress in the Window" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | June 13, 1952 |
TBA | 38 | "Say Hello to Pamela" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | June 20, 1952 |
TBA | 39 | "The Von Linden File" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | June 27, 1952 |
TBA | 40 | "The House of Death" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | July 4, 1952 |
TBA | 41 | "A Southern Lady" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | July 11, 1952 |
TBA | 42 | "Early Space Conquerors" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | July 18, 1952 |
TBA | 43 | "A Man's World" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | July 25, 1952 |
TBA | 44 | "Crossroads" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | August 1, 1952 |
TBA | 45 | "So Help Me" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | August 8, 1952 |
TBA | 46 | "Double Exposure" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | August 15, 1952 |
TBA | 47 | "Mr. And Mrs. Trubble or The Tubbles" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | August 22, 1952 |
TBA | 48 | "Port of Call" | Unknown | Story by : Teleplay by : | August 29, 1952 |
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No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
TBA | 1 | "Portrait of a Legend" | Don Weis | Story by : Milo Wood Teleplay by : Donald S. Sanford | September 12, 1958 |
TBA | 2 | "Kinsman" | Jules Bricken | Story by : Teleplay by : Tom Seller | September 19, 1958 |
TBA | 3 | "A Thing To Fight For" | John Brahm | Story by : Wyatt Blassingame Teleplay by : Paul Monash | September 26, 1958 |
TBA | 4 | "The Hasty Hanging" | John Brahm | Story by : Teleplay by : Charles Larson | October 10, 1958 |
TBA | 5 | "The Trouble With Ruth" | John Brahm | Story by : Henry Slesar Teleplay by : Jameson Brewer | October 24, 1958 |
TBA | 6 | "False Impression" | Don Medford | Story by : Teleplay by : Jameson Brewer | November 7, 1958 |
TBA | 7 | "The Last Edition" | John Brahm | Story by : Teleplay by : Helen Cooper & Irving H. Cooper | November 21, 1958 |
TBA | 8 | "Third Son" | Unknown | Story by : Ernest Haycox Teleplay by : Tom Seller | December 5, 1958 |
TBA | 9 | "No Answer" | Arthur Hiller | Story by : Theodore Sturgeon Teleplay by : Tom Seller | December 19, 1958 |
TBA | 10 | "A Fistful Of Love" | Allen H. Miner | Story by : Teleplay by : Allen H. Miner | January 2, 1959 |
TBA | 11 | "You Can’t Win'em All" | David Butler | Story by : Mac Shoub Teleplay by : Charles Larson | January 16, 1959 |
TBA | 12 | "And Practically Strangers" | Jules Bricken | Story by : Robert Bristow Teleplay by : Halsey Melone | January 30, 1959 |
TBA | 13 | "The Man Who Had No Friends" | Anton M. Leader | Story by : Hugh Pentecost Teleplay by : Tom Seller | February 13, 1959 |
TBA | 14 | "On The Brink" | Sidney Lanfield | Story by : James Yaffe Teleplay by : Kathleen Hite | February 27, 1959 |
TBA | 15 | "Ivy League" | Richard Whorf | Story by : Jameson Brewer Teleplay by : Everett Freeman | March 13, 1959 |
TBA | 16 | "The Salted Mine" | James Nielson | Story by : Teleplay by : Frank Gruber | March 27, 1959 |
TBA | 17 | "The Rumor" | Richard Haydn | Story by : Erskine Caldwell Teleplay by : Everett Greenbaum and Fritzell Greenbaum | June 5, 1959 |
TBA | 18 | "Hostage" | John Brahm | Story by : Teleplay by : Tom Seller | June 19, 1959 |
TBA | 19 | "Cowboy Five Seven" | James Stewart | Story by : Teleplay by : Beirne Lay Jr. | July 17, 1959 |
TBA | 20 | "A Ballad to Die By" | Robert M. Leeds | Story by : Roy Chanslor Teleplay by : Otis Carney | July 31, 1959 |
In April 1957 Schlitz extended its contract with Revue Productions, agreeing to pay approximately $2 million for 40 episodes. The increased budget enabled Revue to seek top-name stars for the series. Jules Bricken and Frank P. Rosenberg were the producers. [8]
CBS-TV bought the negative rights to 104 episodes of Schlitz Playhouse of Stars for about $1.2 million in 1957 with RKO Teleradio serving as an intermediary between the network and Meridian Productions. CBS tried to buy the property outright, but Meridian wanted payments spread over 10 years, and the network did not want a long-term commitment. RKO Teleradio solved the problem by accepting the short-term payment from CBS and, in turn, paying 10 percent to Meridian each year for a decade. [9]
The year 1957 in television involved some significant events. Below is a list of television-related events during 1957.
The year 1953 in television involved some significant events. Below is a list of television-related events during 1953.
The Six Shooter is a United States Western old-time radio program starring James Stewart as a gunfighter. It was created by Frank Burt, who also wrote many of the episodes, and lasted only one season of 39 episodes on NBC. Initially, it was broadcast on Sundays at 9:30 pm Eastern Time, through October 11. Then it was heard at 8:30 pm for three weeks. Finally, on November 8, 1953, through March 21, 1954, it was broadcast Sundays at 8 pm; beginning April 1, 1954, through the final episode, it was on Thursdays at 8:30 pm. One old-time radio directory called the program "a last, desperate effort by a radio network (NBC) to maintain interest in adventure drama by employing a major Hollywood movie star in the leading role."
Madge Blake was an American character actress best remembered for her role as Larry Mondello's mother, Margaret Mondello, on the CBS/ABC sitcom Leave It to Beaver, as Flora MacMichael on the ABC/CBS sitcom The Real McCoys, and as Aunt Harriet Cooper in 96 episodes of ABC's Batman. Gene Kelly had a special affection for her and included her in each of his films following her role in An American in Paris.
Dayle Lymoine Robertson was an American actor best known for his starring roles on television. He played the roving investigator Jim Hardie in the television series Tales of Wells Fargo and railroad owner Ben Calhoun in Iron Horse. He often was presented as a deceptively thoughtful but modest Western hero. From 1968 to 1970, Robertson was the fourth and final host of the anthology series Death Valley Days. Described by Time magazine in 1959 as "probably the best horseman on television", for most of his career, Robertson played in Western films and television shows—well over 60 titles in all.
Herman August Wilhelm Katt, known professionally as Bill Williams, was an American actor, best known for his portrayal of the titular character in the western series The Adventures of Kit Carson, which aired in syndication from 1951 to 1955.
Phyllis Coates was an American actress, with a career spanning over fifty years. She was best known for her portrayal of reporter Lois Lane in the 1951 film Superman and the Mole Men and in the first season of the television series Adventures of Superman.
Richard Dutoit Carlson was an American actor, television and film director, and screenwriter.
Lux Video Theatre is an American television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1957. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays.
Jesse Kenneth Tobey was an American actor active from the early 1940s into the 1990s, with over 200 credits in film, theatre, and television. He is best known for his role as a captain who takes charge of an Arctic military base when it is attacked by a plant-based alien in The Thing from Another World (1951), and a starring role in the 1957-1960 Desilu Productions TV series Whirlybirds.
Boris Karloff (1887–1969) was an English actor. He became known for his role as Frankenstein's monster in the 1931 Frankenstein, leading to a long career in film, radio, and television.
An anthology series is a written series, radio, television, film, or video game series that presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a different cast in each episode, but several series in the past, such as Four Star Playhouse, employed a permanent troupe of character actors who would appear in a different drama each week. Some anthology series, such as Studio One, began on radio and then expanded to television.
The following is the 1957–58 network television schedule for the four major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1957 through March 1958. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1956–57 season.
Oscar Brodney was an American lawyer-turned-screenwriter. He is best known for his long association with Universal Studios, where his credits included Harvey, The Glenn Miller Story (1954), several Francis movies and the Tammy series.
Ford Theatre, spelled Ford Theater for the original radio version and known, in full, as The Ford Television Theatre for the TV version, is a radio and television anthology series broadcast in the United States in the 1940s and 1950s. At various times the television series appeared on all three major television networks, while the radio version was broadcast on two separate networks and on two separate coasts. Ford Theatre was named for its sponsor, the Ford Motor Company, which had an earlier success with its concert music series, The Ford Sunday Evening Hour (1934–42).
William Edwin Self was an American television and film producer who began his career as an actor.
Martin Ellyot Manulis was an American television, film, and theatre producer. Manulis was best known for his work in the 1950s producing the CBS Television programs Suspense, Studio One Summer Theatre, Climax!, The Best of Broadway and Playhouse 90. He was the sole producer of the award-winning drama series, Playhouse 90, during its first two seasons from 1956 to 1958.
Nancy Gates was an American film and television actress.
Robert Ellis was an American film and television actor in the 1940s and 1950s, who was the last actor to play Henry Aldrich on the radio series The Aldrich Family.
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