''Armstrong Circle Theatre'' is an American

anthology drama An anthology series is a written series, radio program, radio, television show, television, film series, film, or video game series that presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, Season (television) ...

television series which ran from June 6, 1950, to June 25, 1957, on NBC, and from October 2, 1957, to August 28, 1963, on CBS. It alternated weekly with '' The United States Steel Hour''. It finished in the

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

at number 19 for the 1950–51 season and number 24 for 1951–52. The principal sponsor was Armstrong World Industries. Between July 8 and September 16, 1959, CBS aired reruns of six documentary dramas originally broadcast during the 1958–1959 season as episodes of ''Armstrong Circle Theatre'' under the title ''Armstrong by Request''. ''Armstrong by Request'' aired during ''Armstrong Circle Theatre''′s time slot and also alternated with ''The United States Steel Hour''.

Synopsis

The program's first season featured episodes that tried "to please every body in a mass audience, using only highly formularized plays. The next season brought a different approach, with more emphasis on characters than on plot. Edward B. Roberts worked with writers from all over the United States to find scripts. By mid-November 1952, he estimated that he had talked to 3,000 writers and looked at 20,000 scripts. Authors received $750 for each accepted script. The series featured original dramas by noted writers, although sometimes comedies were shown. Its guidelines specifically called for the avoidance of violence. Originally a half-hour production, in 1955 the show expanded to an hour and began to emphasize dramatized versions of real-life contemporary events (including the sinking of the SS ''Andrea Doria'') and a documentary on the history of Communism in the Soviet Union. Upon moving to CBS, the show emphasized several

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

topics, including

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ...

, Radio Free Europe and escapes from

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. David Susskind, producer of the program, called the new episodes "actuals", describing them as "dramatizations based on truth".

Hosts and narrators

Nelson Case Nelson Case (February 3, 1910 – March 24, 1976) was an American radio and television announcer. Case was the son of Walter and Ethel Case. His father was a newspaperman, and his mother was a driving force in the Long Beach Community Players. H ...

(1950–1951) * Joe Ripley (1952–1953) * Bob Sherry (1953–1954) * Sandy Becker (1954–1955) * John Cameron Swayze (1955–1957) * Douglas Edwards (1957–1961) * Ron Cochran (1961–1962) * Henry Hamilton (1962–1963)

Guest stars

The series featured numerous guest stars including: * Tige Andrews * Edward Asner * Anne Bancroft * Ed Begley * Barbara Britton * James Broderick * John Cassavetes * Dabney Coleman * Jackie Cooper * James Dean * Patty Duke * Robert Duvall * Peter Falk * Geraldine Fitzgerald * Nina Foch * Wallace Ford * Alan Furlan * Jonathan Harris * Hurd Hatfield * Grace Kelly * Jack Klugman * Otto Kruger * Cloris Leachman * Jack Lemmon *

Julie London Julie London (born Julie Peck; September 26, 1926 – October 18, 2000) was an American singer and actress whose career spanned more than 40 years. A torch song, torch singer noted for her contralto voice, London recorded over thirty album ...

* Audra Lindley * Gene Lockhart * Karl Malden * Walter Matthau * Roddy McDowell * Darren McGavin * Patrick McVey *

Elizabeth Montgomery Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1933 – May 18, 1995) was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She portrayed the good witch List of Bewitched characters#Samantha Stephens, Samantha Step ...

* Rosemary Murphy *

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and activist. He was the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Paul Newman, numerous awards ...

* Lois Nettleton *

Leslie Nielsen Leslie William Nielsen (February 11, 1926November 28, 2010) was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters. He made his a ...

* Carroll O'Connor * Susan Oliver * Miko Oscard * Anthony Perkins * Lee Remick * Jason Robards * Cliff Robertson * Gena Rowlands * Telly Savalas * George Segal *

Martin Sheen Ramón Gerard Antonio Estévez (born August 3, 1940), known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. His work spans over six decades of television and film, and his accolades include three Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and ...

* Kim Stanley * Maureen Stapleton * Harold J. Stone * Suzanne Storrs * Beatrice Straight * Ron Thompson * Jo Van Fleet *

Eli Wallach Eli Herschel Wallach ( ; December 7, 1915 – June 24, 2014) was an American film, television, and stage actor from New York City. Known for his character actor roles, his entertainment career spanned over six decades. He received a British Aca ...

* Jack Whiting *

Gene Wilder Gene Wilder (born Jerome Silberman; June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and filmmaker. He was mainly known for his comedic roles, including his portrayal of Willy Wonka in ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Fa ...

* Joanne Woodward

Directors

* Paul Bogart * William Corrigan * Marc Daniels * Robert Ellis Miller * Robert Mulligan * Daniel Petrie * Ted Post * James Sheldon * Garry Simpson * Robert Stevens

International broadcast and streaming

The series didn't air internationally until June 4, 2007 when Telecapri News aired the first 10 seasons of the show and on Telecapri with the 11th, 12th and 13th season until December 29, 2016 and with repeats both on Telecapri Sport until January 17, 2018 and on the same network until April 12, 2024, all with Italian subtitles in Italy. It is also known as "Teatro di Armstrong". The success of the Italian broadcast on Telecapri News in the late 2000s and 2010s (followed by Telecapri from 2015 to 2016) led the series to broadcast in Poland, where Polsat JimJam aired only the sixth and ninth season with Polish subtitles and in the United Kingdom on CBS Justice. It is unknown whether this show will be available to stream on Paramount+. As of 2025, the rights to this show are owned by

Paramount Global Paramount Global (Trade name, d/b/a Paramount) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate controlled by National Amusements and Headquarters, headquartered at One Astor Plaza in Times Square, ...

Episodes

1950–1951

1952–1953

1954

1955–1956

1956–1957

1957–1958

1962–1963

References

External links

*
''Armstrong Circle Theatre'' at CVTA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong Circle Theatre 1950 American television series debuts 1963 American television series endings 1950s American anthology television series 1960s American anthology television series Black-and-white American television shows American English-language television shows NBC television dramas CBS television dramas