''The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre'' is an American

anthology series 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 ca ...

that aired live on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

Mondays at 8 pm EST from September 27, 1948 to June 26, 1950. The program presented both news headlines and live dramatic performances of either original plays or works adapted for television from the stage. Sometimes the show was referred to as ''Chevrolet on Broadway'' or ''The Broadway Playhouse''; particularly when the program was presenting an adapted stage work from New York City's theatre scene. The sponsor was

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...

, an automobile division of

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

. Beginning with the January 4, 1949, episode, the Chevrolet Central Office of General Motors was the sponsor, replacing Chevrolet dealers' groups.

Production

Owen Davis Jr. was the program's first producer. When he died in a boating accident, Victor McLeod replaced him. Barry Bernard and

Garry Simpson Garry Chalmers Simpson (February 16, 1914 – November 19, 2011) was an American director, writer, and producer for more than 35 years. Simpson was the first stage management, stage manager for NBC, NBC Television. He was also known for having d ...

were the directors. The program originated from WNBT. Effective January 24, 1949, the program was moved to the 8:30-9 p.m. Eastern Time slot on Mondays. That change allowed it to be shown live in the Midwest, via use of coaxial cable, rather than just in the East as had been the case in its previous time slot (30 minutes earlier on Mondays). The change meant that it was shown simultaneously on 12 NBC stations.

Critical reception

A review of the January 31, 1949, broadcast in the trade publication ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' called the episode "a neat comedy playlet" that featured "sharp lines snappily rendered by two vet thespers". It also complimented the way the one-act play was adapted for television.

Episode status

One episode from October 1949 is stored at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

, along with three other episodes from that year, plus an episode from 1950. There are five

kinescope Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 1940s ...

recordings of 1948 programs also archived at Library of Congress, and an interview with one of the people involved in the production appears on the Archives of American Television Web Site. However, these aging 69+ year old kinescope film prints have yet to be transferred to modern media to ensure the survival of the episodes.

Episodes

*"I Cover Times Square" was a pilot for the ABC TV series '' I Cover Times Square''.

Guest stars

Jonathan Harris Jonathan Daniel Harris ( Charasuchin; November 6, 1914 – November 3, 2002) was an American character actor whose career included more than 500 television and film appearances, as well as Voice-over, voiceovers. Two of his best-known roles we ...

's TV debut came on ''The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre'' in the 1949 episode "His Name Is Jason". Other actors who appeared in the series included: *

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Gertrude Berg Gertrude Berg (born Tillie Edelstein; October 3, 1899 – September 14, 1966) was an American actress, screenwriter, and producer. A pioneer of classic old-time radio, radio, she was one of the first women to create, write, produce, and star in a ...

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* Leo G. Carroll *

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Nanette Fabray Nanette Fabray (born Ruby Bernadette Nanette Theresa Fabares; October 27, 1920 – February 22, 2018) was an American actress, singer and dancer. She began her career performing in vaudeville as a child and became a musical-theatre actress dur ...

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Dean Jagger Dean Jagger (November 7, 1903 – February 5, 1991) was an American film, stage, and television actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Henry King's '' Twelve O'Clock High'' (1949). Early life Dean Jeffri ...

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Guy Kibbee Guy Bridges Kibbee (March 6, 1882 – May 24, 1956) was an American stage and film actor. Early years Kibbee was born in El Paso, Texas. His father was editor of the ''El Paso Herald-Post'' newspaper, and Kibbee learned how to set type at age ...

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* E.G. Marshall *

Mercedes McCambridge Carlotta Mercedes Agnes McCambridge (March 16, 1916 – March 2, 2004) was an American actress of radio, stage, film, and television. Orson Welles called her "the world's greatest living radio actress". She won an Academy Award for Best Support ...

Felicia Montealegre Bernstein Felicia Montealegre Bernstein ( Felicia María Cohn Montealegre; February 6, 1922 – June 16, 1978) was an American actress born in Costa Rica.National Archives and Records Administration; Washington, D.C.; Decimal Files, compiled 1910–1949; ...

Paul Muni Paul Muni (born Frederich Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund; September 22, 1895 – August 25, 1967) was an American stage and film actor from Chicago. He started his acting career in the Yiddish theater and during the 1930s, he was considered one of ...

* Barry Nelson *

Luise Rainer Luise Rainer ( , ; 12 January 1910 – 30 December 2014) was a German-born film actress. She was the first thespian to win multiple Academy Awards, and the first to win back-to-back; at the time of her death, thirteen days shy of her 105th birt ...

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References

External links

''The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre'' at CVTA with episode list
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chevrolet Tele-Theatre 1948 American television series debuts 1950 American television series endings 1940s American anthology television series 1950s American anthology television series 1940s American drama television series 1950s American drama television series Black-and-white American television shows American live television series American English-language television shows Chevrolet NBC television dramas