The Ninth Day (Playhouse 90)

"**The Ninth Day**"
"The Ninth Day"
Playhouse 90 episode
Episode no.	Season 1; Episode 15
Directed by	John Frankenheimer
Written by	Dorothy Baker; Howard Baker
Original air date	January 10, 1957
Episode chronology
← Previous; "Snowshoes: A Comedy of People and Horses"	Next →; —

Last updated January 18, 2026

"The Ninth Day" is a 1957 American television play. It aired as an episode of Playhouse 90 .

Premise

After World War III a small group of people live in the desert. A young man tries to run away, hoping to find other communities of survivors, but is told by the elders that he must stay and marry the group's only young woman.

Cast

John Kerr as David
Piper Laurie as Ruth
James Dunn as Reverend Powell
Victor Jory as Dr. Jackson
Mary Astor as Virginia Jackson
Elizabeth Patterson as Aunt Ada
Nehemiah Persoff as Rudy
Audra Lindley as Miss Steckert
Felipe Turich as Gonzales

Production

It was known as Mr and Mrs McAdams. Piper Laurie called it "one of my favourite live shows."^[1]

Reception

Variety felt the writers "handled their “whimsy” treatment with grace and delicacy, with some helpings of quiet power and a sensitivity rare for a television medium well known for its triphammer obviousness."^[2]

References

↑ Laurie, Piper (2011). Learning to live out loud : a memoir. Crown Archtype. p. 174.
↑ "Playhouse 90". Variety. January 16, 1957. p. 30.

External links

The Ninth Day at IMDb

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[1] Laurie, Piper (2011). Learning to live out loud : a memoir. Crown Archtype. p. 174.

[2] "Playhouse 90". Variety. January 16, 1957. p. 30.

[1]

[2]

v t e Playhouse 90
People	John Frankenheimer Martin Manulis Franklin J. Schaffner Rod Serling
Season 1	"Forbidden Area" "Requiem for a Heavyweight" "Sizeman and Son" "Rendezvous in Black" "The Country Husband" "The Big Slide" "Heritage of Anger" "Eloise" "Confession" "Made in Heaven" "Sincerely, Willis Wade" "The Family Nobody Wanted" "Massacre at Sand Creek" "Snowshoes: A Comedy of People and Horses" "The Ninth Day" "So Soon to Die" "The Star Wagon" "The Greer Case" "The Miracle Worker" "The Comedian" "The Coat of White" "The Blackwell Story" "Invitation to a Gunfighter" "The Last Tycoon" "The Hostess with the Mostes'" "Charley's Aunt" "Clipper Ship" "If You Know Elizabeth" "Three Men on a Horse" "Four Women in Black" "Child of Trouble" "Homeward Borne" "Helen Morgan" "Winter Dreams" "Circle of the Day" "Without Incident" "Clash by Night" "Ain't No Time for Glory" "The Fabulous Irishman"
Season 2	"The Death of Manolete" "The Dark Side of the Earth" "Topaze" "A Sound of Different Drummers" "The Playroom" "Around the World in 90 Minutes" "The Mystery of Thirteen" "The Edge of Innocence" "The Clouded Image" "The Jet Propelled Couch" "The Troublemakers" "Panic Button" "Galvanized Yankee" "The Thundering Wave" "For I Have Loved Strangers" "The Lone Woman" "Reunion" "The Last Man" "The 80 Yard Run" "Before I Die" "The Gentleman From Seventh Avenue" "The Violent Heart" "No Time at All" "Point of No Return" "Portrait of a Murderer" "The Last Clear Chance" "The Male Animal" "The Right Hand Man" "Turn Left at Mount Everest" "The Dungeon" "Verdict of Three" "Rumors of Evening" "Not the Glory" "Nightmare at Ground Zero" "Bomber's Moon" "Natchez" "The Innocent Sleep" "A Town Has Turned to Dust" "The Great Gatsby" "A Bitter Heritage"
Season 3	"The Plot to Kill Stalin" "Days of Wine and Roses" "The Time of Your Life" "The Long March" "Shadows Tremble" "Word From a Sealed-Off Box" "Heart of Darkness" "Old Man" "The Return of Ansel Gibbs" "Free Weekend" "Seven Against the Wall" "The Nutcracker" "Face of a Hero" "The Wings of the Dove" "The Blue Men" "The Velvet Alley" "A Quiet Game of Cards" "Child of Our Time" "The Second Man" "The Raider" "The Dingaling Girl" "Made in Japan" "For Whom the Bell Tolls: Part 1" "For Whom the Bell Tolls: Part 2" "A Trip to Paradise" "In Lonely Expectation" "The Day Before Atlanta" "Judgment at Nuremberg" "A Corner of the Garden" "Dark December" "Diary of a Nurse" "A Marriage of Strangers" "Out of Dust" "The Rank and File" "The Killers of Mussolini" "Project Immortality" "Dark as the Night" "The Second Happiest Day"
Season 4	"Target for Three" "The Sounds of Eden" "Misalliance" "The Hidden Image" "The Grey Nurse Said Nothing" "The Tunnel" "The Silver Whistle" "A Dream of Treason" "To the Sound of Trumpets" "The Cruel Day" "Tomorrow" "The Hiding Place" "Alas, Babylon" "Journey to the Day" "The Shape of the River" "In the Presence of Mine Enemies"
Revivals	CBS Playhouse CBS Playhouse 90