CBS Playhouse

*CBS Playhouse*
CBS Playhouse
	Arthur Hill and Barbara Bel Geddes in Secrets, 1968
Genre	Anthology drama
Written by	Ron Cowen; Robert J. Crean; Earl Hamner; Loring Mandel; J.P. Miller; Tad Mosel; Ronald Ribman; Reginald Rose; Ellen M. Violet
Directed by	Paul Bogart; Robert Butler (director); William A. Graham (director); David Greene (director); Delbert Mann; George Schaefer (director)
Theme music composer	Aaron Copland
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	12
Production
Executive producer	Barbara Schultz
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	90 mins.
Release
Original network	CBS
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	January 29, 1967 –; February 10, 1970

CBS Playhouse is an American anthology drama television series that aired on CBS from 1967 to 1970. Airing twelve plays over the course of its run, the series won ten Primetime Emmy Awards and featured many noteworthy actors and playwrights.

History[]

The CBS Playhouse series was announced in 1966, with CBS announcing a $500,000 outlay for new scripts to film. CBS was specifically looking to "encourage authors to write original and significant dramas for television," and offered $25,000 per optioned script.^[1] This occurred shortly after ABC announced its dramatic arts program ABC Stage 67,^[2] along with many CBS dramas.

Playhouse ultimately commissioned thirteen playwrights to write scripts for the series.^[3] The first program aired in 1967, called The Final War of Olly Winter starring Ivan Dixon and written by noted playwright Ronald Ribman. According to CBS, over 30 million people watched the broadcast, making it a popular hit for the time.^[4]

Twelve broadcasts ultimately occurred before production stopped due to lack of sponsorship funding.^[5] CBS would later revive the genre in , which would refer back to both CBS Playhouse and the early drama series Playhouse 90 that broadcast in the late 1950s.

Episodes[]

CBS broadcast twelve teleplays over the three television seasons between 1967 and 1970.^[6]

1967-68 Season[]

1968-69 Season[]

1969-70 Season[]

Episode status[]

The broadcasts have been preserved in a variety of archives, with all twelve broadcasts archived between the Paley Center for Media, the UCLA film archive, and the Peabody Awards Collection.^[7]

Awards[]

The CBS Playhouse series of broadcasts were nominated for a number of awards over the course of its run. In total, the dramatic series was nominated for twenty-eight Primetime Emmy Awards, including ten wins, and seven Directors Guild of America awards, including three wins.^[8]^[9] CBS Playhouse was also honored with a Peabody Award in 1967.^[10]

References[]

^ New York Times: C.B.S. SEEKS OUT ORIGINAL DRAMAS. June 22, 1966.
^ TV.com: ABC Stage 67
^ New York Times: Where's CBS Playhouse? October 23, 1966.
^ Advertisement from early 1967 as seen in many national newspapers.
^ New York Times: TV Drama Faces Cutback in Fall. May 22, 1970
^ TV.com: CBS Playhouse
^ Television Obscurities: Status Guide: CBS Playhouse
^ IMDb: Awards for CBS playhouse
^ Emmys.com: CBS Playhouse
^ Profile for CBS Playhouse from PeabodyAwards.com (accessed 11/8/2014)

External links[]

[1] New York Times: C.B.S. SEEKS OUT ORIGINAL DRAMAS. June 22, 1966.

[2] TV.com: ABC Stage 67

[3] New York Times: Where's CBS Playhouse? October 23, 1966.

[4] Advertisement from early 1967 as seen in many national newspapers.

[5] New York Times: TV Drama Faces Cutback in Fall. May 22, 1970

[6] TV.com: CBS Playhouse

[7] Television Obscurities: Status Guide: CBS Playhouse

[8] IMDb: Awards for CBS playhouse

[9] Emmys.com: CBS Playhouse

[10] Profile for CBS Playhouse from PeabodyAwards.com (accessed 11/8/2014)

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v t Playhouse 90
People	John Frankenheimer Martin Manulis Franklin J. Schaffner Rod Serling
Season 1	"Forbidden Area" "Requiem for a Heavyweight" "Sizeman and Son" "Rendevous 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" "" "" "" "" "" "" "" "The Comedian" "" "The Blackwell Story" "" "" "The Hostess with the Mostes'" "" "" "" "" "" "" "Homeward Borne" "Helen Morgan" "" "" "" "" "" "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" "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
Arthur Hill and Barbara Bel Geddes in Secrets, 1968
Genre	Anthology drama
Written by	Ron Cowen Robert J. Crean Earl Hamner Loring Mandel J.P. Miller Tad Mosel Ronald Ribman Reginald Rose Ellen M. Violet
Directed by	Paul Bogart Robert Butler (director) William A. Graham (director) David Greene (director) Delbert Mann George Schaefer (director)
Theme music composer	Aaron Copland
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	12
Production
Executive producer	Barbara Schultz
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	90 mins.
Release
Original network	CBS
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	January 29, 1967 (1967-01-29) – February 10, 1970 (1970-02-10)