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''Startime'' is an anthology show of drama, comedy, and variety, and was one of the first American television shows broadcast in
color Color (or colour in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though co ...
. The program was aired Tuesday nights in the United States on the
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 ...
network in the 1959–60 season.


Summary

The show was known as either Ford Startime—TV's Finest Hour or Lincoln–Mercury Startime, depending on which division of the
Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...
was presenting commercials within that show. The contents varied from week to week – dramas, musical comedies, and variety shows were all presented.Tim Brooks and Earl March, ''The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows: 1946–Present'' (Random House, 2007) p. 976 The show was always broadcast on Tuesday nights. Initially, from the premiere through the end of 1959, the show was broadcast 9:30–10:30 PM (EST) - but, starting on January 5, 1960, the show was broadcast 8:30–9:30 PM (EST). Furthermore, some of the shows first broadcast in 1959 were ninety minutes long, continuing to 11 PM.
Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...
hosted two variety episodes within this series and later began his own variety show.
Mitch Miller Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...
had "Sing Along with Mitch" on May 24, 1960, which led to his own show of the same name beginning in 1961. The February 23, 1960, episode, "Talent Scouts", was an adaptation of ''
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts ''Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts'' (also known as ''Talent Scouts'') is an American radio and television variety show that ran on CBS from 1946 until 1958. Sponsored by Lipton Tea, it starred Arthur Godfrey, who was also hosting '' Arthur God ...
'', which had been broadcast on CBS.


Production

Hubbell Robinson Hubbell Robinson (October 16, 1905 - September 4, 1974) was an American broadcasting executive who "was noted for his adeptness with programs both of artistic merit and of broad popular appeal." William Paley, who was chairman of CBS when Robinson ...
was the show's producer. The
Music Corporation of America Music Corporation of America, formerly known as Universal Music Group Nashville, is Universal Music Group's country music subsidiary. It was officially opened in 1945 as MCA Nashville and Mercury Nashville which opened on New Year's Day 1950 a ...
(MCA), under
Lew Wasserman Lewis Robert Wasserman (March 22, 1913 – June 3, 2002) was an American businessman and talent agent, described as "the last of the legendary movie moguls" and "arguably the most powerful and influential Hollywood titan in the four decades afte ...
, was the "packager" of the series, providing stars who would not ordinarily appear on American television, such as
Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. In the BFI, British Film Institute listing of 1999 of BFI Top 100 British films, the 100 most important British films of the 20th century ...
and
Rex Harrison Sir Reginald Carey Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage at the Liverpool Playhouse in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play '' French W ...
at reduced rates, in exchange for an overall
packaging fee In film industry terminology, movie packaging or film packaging is a type of product bundling in which a top-level talent agency starts up a film or television project using writers, directors and/or actors it represents, before giving other age ...
for the entire series paid to MCA. Wasserman was also the agent for
Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...
, who directed one ''Startime'' episode, "Incident at a Corner" (aired April 5, 1960). For example,
Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, Bergman is often regarded as one of the most influential screen figures in cin ...
, who at that time commanded a salary of $750,000 per film, and who had never appeared in a dramatic role on American television, was paid $100,000 for her role in Startime's presentation of ''The Turn of the Screw''. Though MCA only received $10,000 (10% of Bergman's salary) as commission, the company also received, as packager, 10% of the entire production schedule of the entire ''Startime'' season (which was $7.24 million). In other words, MCA received $724,000 solely for providing to ''Startime'' the services of stars such as Bergman, in addition to the commissions for each individual star.Dennis McDougal, ''The Last Mogul: Lew Wasserman, MCA, and the Hidden History of Hollywood'' (Da Capo Press, 2001) page 282 NBC had to pay a royalty fee to CBS in order to present the "Talent Scouts" episode. Ford ended the series on May 31, 1960, rather than continuing through the originally planned June 28, 1960, ending. The network said it was cutting four episodes "... so that Ford can go into an extensive summer schedule." ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that essentially the reallocation of advertising money enabled Ford to purchase one-third sponsorship of '' Laramie'' and ''
Riverboat A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury ...
'', both of which were on NBC. ''The Times article said, "Judging from the general reaction of viewers, 'Startime' failed to live up to the billing ('TV's Finest Hour') assigned to it by N. B. C. and the sponsor." The article also noted that Robinson was no longer actively involved with ''Startime''. The initial competition for ''Startime'' included ''
The Red Skelton Show ''The Red Skelton Show'' is an American television comedy/variety show that aired from 1951 to 1971. In the decade prior to hosting the show, Richard "Red" Skelton had a successful career as a radio and motion pictures star. Although his tele ...
'' on CBS. Although NBC executives thought that ''Startimes budget and stars might draw more viewers than Skelton's show, the comedian commented that the ratings indicated otherwise, with his show in the top 10, while ''Startime'' was "down around 100". ''Startime'' was moved to an hour earlier time slot in January 1960, but it was no more successful.


Episodes


Nominations and awards

Alec Guinness, playing the lead role in ''The Wicked Scheme of Jebal Deeks'', received a nomination in the Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor category in the ''
12th Primetime Emmy Awards The 12th Emmy Awards, later referred to as the 12th Primetime Emmy Awards, were held on June 20, 1960, to honor the best in television of the year. The ceremony was held at the NBC Studios, in Burbank, California. It was hosted by Fred Astaire. ...
''. He lost to
Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...
in ''
The Moon and Sixpence ''The Moon and Sixpence'' is a novel by W. Somerset Maugham, first published on 15 April 1919. It is told in episodic form by a first-person narrator providing a series of glimpses into the mind and soul of the central character, Charles Stri ...
''.


Critical response

A review of the episode "The Man" in ''The New York Times'' said that Audie Murphy "never seemed menacing or calculating" in the role of an "unbalanced young man" and that Thelma Ritter was "quite wasted" in her widow's role. Critic
Jack Gould John Ludlow Gould (February 5, 1914 – May 24, 1993) was an American journalist and critic, who wrote commentary about television. Early life and education Gould was born in New York City into a socially prominent family and attended the Loomis ...
described the TV adaptation as "especially flat and thin."


Canadian version

From October 6, 1959 through June 28, 1960, Ford of Canada broadcast, in the Tuesday 9–11 PM timeslot, on the
CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...
network in Canada, a show also called ''Ford Startime'', presenting many of the same shows as the American version, alternating with Canadian-produced shows, including adaptions of Arthur Miller's ''
The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...
'' (starring
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 ...
), Henrik Ibsen's ''
An Enemy of the People ''An Enemy of the People'' (original Norwegian title: ''En folkefiende'') is an 1882 play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen that explores the conflict between personal integrity and societal norms. The play centers on Dr. Thomas Stockmann, w ...
'', Oscar Wilde's ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde, the last of his four drawing-room plays, following ''Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1892), ''A Woman of No Importance'' (1893) and ''An Ideal Husban ...
'', and James Thurber's ''
The Thirteen Clocks ''The 13 Clocks'' is a fantasy tale written by James Thurber in 1950, while he was in Bermuda completing one of his other novels. It is written in a unique cadenced style, in which a mysterious prince must complete a seemingly impossible task to ...
''."CBC Television Series, 1952-82 (Stage Door to Switzer)"
webpage on the Queens' Film and Media website


See also

*
Ford Theatre ''Ford Theatre'', spelled ''Ford Theater'' for the original radio version and known, in full, as ''The Ford Television Theatre'' for the TV version, is a radio and television anthology series broadcast in the United States in the 1940s and 195 ...
*
Ford Festival ''Ford Festival'', also known as ''The James Melton Show'', is an hour-long television show, sponsored by Ford Motor Company, hosted by James Melton, and broadcast on NBC television, NBC Television beginning on April 5, 1951. The final show was a ...
*
The Ford Show ''The Ford Show'' (also known as ''The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford'' and ''The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show'') is an American variety program starring singer and folk humorist Tennessee Ernie Ford, which aired on NBC on Thursday even ...
*
Ford Star Jubilee ''Ford Star Jubilee'' is an American anthology series that originally aired monthly on Saturday nights on CBS at 9:30 P.M., E.S.T. from September 24, 1955, to November 3, 1956, (With a summer hiatus). The series was approximately 90 minutes long ...


References


External links

* {{IMDb title
''Ford Startime'' at Classic TV Archive
1959 American television series debuts 1960 American television series endings 1950s American anthology television series 1960s American anthology television series Ford Motor Company NBC original programming