''Medallion Theatre'', aka ''Chrysler Medallion Theatre'', is a 30-minute American anthology series that aired on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
from July 11, 1953, to April 3, 1954.
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor. He had a career that spanned five decades on Broadway and in Hollywood. He cultivated an everyman screen image in several films considered to be classics.
Born and ra ...
(in the premiere telecast "The Decision of Arrowsmith"),
Claude Rains, and
Janet Gaynor made their major television dramatic debuts on this series in various 1953 episodes. Others guest stars included
Helen Hayes,
Charlton Heston,
Ronald Reagan,
Jack Lemmon,
Rod Steiger, and
Roddy McDowell
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...
. Among its writers were
Rod Serling and
Robert Anderson. Directors included
Ralph Nelson
Ralph Nelson (August 12, 1916 – December 21, 1987) was an American film and television director, producer, writer, and actor. He was best known for directing '' Lilies of the Field'' (1963), '' Father Goose'' (1964), and '' Charly'' (1968 ...
,
Don Medford
Donald Muller (November 26, 1917 – December 12, 2012), known professionally as Don Medford, was an American television director who directed over 75 TV series between 1951 and 1989, and who also directed three movies.
Medford directed the fin ...
,
Robert Stevens, and
Seymour Robbie. The original producer was
William Spier
William Hannan Spier (October 16, 1906 – May 30, 1973) was an American writer, producer, and director for television and radio. He is best known for his radio work, notably ''Suspense'' and ''The Adventures of Sam Spade''.
Early life
Wil ...
.
Premise
Spier said that older short stories were selected for their quality: "Thirty or forty years ago, writers knew content better, and by using their stories we hope to get what we're aiming at, dramas with fiber and dimension."
Production
All thirty episodes were aired live from New York.
was associate producer, Samuel Leve was the set designer, and Robert Tallman the story editor.
Reaction
Ben Gross of the ''
New York Daily News'' said it was "a welcome recruit to the ranks of live dramatic shows".
Columnist
John Crosby was intrigued at the show's extracting a storyline for its premiere episode from a longer work, and praised the cast, writing, and all-around production.
Broadcast history
By mid-February 1954 columnist
Erskine Johnson reported that CBS had decided to replace ''Medallion Theater'' with a new
sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...
called ''
That's My Boy''.
About the same time, the producer role was taken over by Mort Abrahams.
Episodes
References
External links
''Medallion Theatre'' at CVTA with episode list*
1950s American anthology television series
1953 American television series debuts
1954 American television series endings
American live television series
CBS original programming
Black-and-white American television shows
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