Producers' Showcase(1954–1957)

The Skin of Our Teeth

Our Town is a 1955 episode of the American series Producers' Showcase directed by Delbert Mann and starring Frank Sinatra, Paul Newman and Eva Marie Saint. The episode is an adaption of Thornton Wilder's 1938 play Our Town.

Our Town

Musical version of Thornton Wilder's 1938 stage play (the most performed American stage play),depicts life in a rural New Hampshire village, with its humor and pathos. Songs written especially for this television production included both ""The Impatient Years"" and ""Love and Marriage;"" this is believed to be the only entertainment program in which Paul Newman sings (in this case, a duet with Eva Marie Saint).

Cyrano de Bergerac

The story of a professional soldier with an extraordinarily long nose and his unrequited love for the fair Roxanne who woos her for her suitor, who dies on the battlefield, after which the stricken Roxanne enters a convent, visited over the years by the ever-faithful Cyrano until she realizes, too late, that it was his soul that she loved all along.

Dateline II

A salute to foreign correspondents; presented in cooperation with Overseas Press Club of America, Inc., Milton Berle performs a monologue; Peggy Lee sings ""You're My Thrill"" and ""Swing Low, Sweet Chariot;"" Irving Berlin sings a few bars from ""You Gotta Get Up;"" John Raitt sings ""Free,"" written by Berlin especially for this program; Janet Blair sings ""The Funnies"" and reads the funnies as a ballet from ""Li'l Abner"" is performed; ""Dateline Korea"" is original playlet by Donald Bevan, honoring Pulitzer Prize Winning correspondent Marguerite Higgins, with Janet Blair and Greer Garson sing ""How About You;"" John Wayne reminisces about role of Marine Correspondents; Spanish dance by Antonio, assisted by Carmen Rojas; John Steinbeck ""Memorium to Robert Capa"" read by William Holden; Robert Frost reads his poem ""The land was ours before we were the land's;"" Greer Garson pays tribute to underground newspaper in Cracow Ghetto; entire cast sings ""Free"" in Finale.

Sleeping Beauty

Beautifully orchestrated ballet of the fairy tale ""Sleeping Beauty"". A true treasure for all ages.

Peter Pan

Festival of Music

Musical director George Bassman, orchestra conducted by Max Rudolph of the Metropolitan Opera; stage concert with 13 of world's top opera singers and musicians, each performing a single number; the performers included baritone Leonard Warren (""Prologue"" from Leoncavallo's ""Pagliacci""), tenor Jan Peerce (""Vesti La Giubba"" from Leoncavallo's ""Pagliacci""), violinist Isaac Stern (lst movement of Mendelssohn's ""Violin Concerto in E Minor""), soprano Zhinka Milanov (""Vissi d'Arte"" from Puccini's ""Tosca""), coloratura soprano Roberta Peters (""The Doll Song"" from Offenbach's ""Tales of Hoffman""), cellist Gregor Piatigorsky (""Adagio and Rondo for Cello and Orchestra"" by Carl Maria Von Weber), contralto Marian Anderson (""Beautiful City,"" ""Poor Me,"" ""He's Got the Whole World in His Hands""), mezzo-sopranos Blanche Thebom and Mildred Miller (""Barcarolle"" duet from Offenbach's ""Tales of Hoffman""), mezzo-soprano Rise Stevens (""Card Song"" from Bizet's ""Carmen""), tenor Jussi Bjoerling (""Che Gelida Manina""

Caesar and Cleopatra

The story concentrates on the encounter of the girl queen with the great Roman Emperor Julius Caesar. Now a battle-hardened veteran and experienced ruler in his 50's, Caesar finds the young Cleopatra ignorant of how to behave and how to rule wisely. He becomes her instructor. In the midst of court intrigue she has Caesar's help in strengthening her hand.

The Barretts of Wimpole Street

The story of the relationship of famed Victorian poet Elizabeth Moulton-Barrett, first, with her possessive father, and then to the vital and vigorous Victorian poet Robert Browning, beginning with their first meeting at the Barrett home on 50 Wimpole Street on May 20, 1845; at the time, Elizabeth was a 40-year old bedridden invalid, dominated by her widowed father; when her doctor recommends a trip to Italy for her health, Browning declares his love for her, foiling her father's plan to spoil the trip by arranging one of his own by secretly marrying her and taking her to Italy after all.

Dodsworth

The story of Midwest industrialist who lets wife obsessed with youth bully him into retirement and a grand European tour, eventually seeing through her, her promiscuity, and the pretensions of European society and leaving for a civilized widow.

Bloomer Girl

The story is set shortly before Civil War and centers around Evalina, sixth daughter of a hoop skirt manufacturer who sides with her Aunt Dolly Bloomer, an avid suffragette, and falls in love with a handsome slave owner, Jefferson Calhoun.

Happy Birthday

The story of modest and inhibited Newark librarian who secretly loves handsome young bank clerk, schemes to meet him in a bar and gets drunk herself but successfully pursues a campaign to woo him, aided by the bar patrons.

Tonight at 8:30

Three playlets by Noel Coward, original music composed and conducted by Carmen Dragon: ""Red Peppers,"" a satirical affectionate look at small-time vaudeville with two musical numbers, ""Still Life,"" in which couple ""see a stranger across a crowded room"" and which was eventually made into a movie titled ""Brief Encounter,"" and ""Shadow Play,"" musical about a crisis in an otherwise happy marriage, and in her television debut, Gloria Vanderbilt.

State of the Union

An extremely successful and fundamentally honest businessman is lured into presidential ambitions, and is forced to make compromise after compromise until he withdraws from the race, determined to reform the system.

Dateline

""Foreign correspondents and stars of show business present a 90-minute tribute to former colleagues. The Overseas Press Club Memorial Building in Manhattan is dedicated with a program saluting the men who have died serving the cause of a free press. Funds for the building were donated by organizations and individuals. Tonight's show was been arranged by Overseas Press Club members. John Daly will represent them as host. Bob Hope, who toured the world entertaining American troops, is featured in a scene depicting his overseas stints. Robert E. Sherwood, noted American playwright, contributes a dramatic vignette based on a scene of decision in the life of the great war correspondent, Ernie Pyle. Title: The making of an American correspondent. Richard Rodgers, the composer, conducts the orchestra in excerpts from Victory at sea, his score for the award-winning film series. No other love, drawn from a melody in this score, is sung by Perry Como. Sid Caesar, accompanied by thick accent, is

Call to Freedom

Docummentary made as part of ""Project Twenty"" series but run in Producer's Showcase time slot with regular Producer's Showcase sponsors. Relates the struggle for freedom in Austria from the time of the Austro-Hungarian Empire to WWI, to Nazi domination, to WWII, to post-war Four Power Occupation, to final freedom, keyed to the reopening of the rebuilt Vienna State Opera House in November, 1955 with the performance of Beetovan's opera ""Fidelio."" Produced by Henry Salomon, music scored and conducted by Robert Russell Bennett, narrated by Alexander Scourby; opera cast includes Martha Moedl, Anton Dermota, Paul Schoeffler, Irmgard Seefried, Ludwig Weber, Waldemar Kmentt, Karl Kamann, with Karl Bohm conducting the Vienna Philharmonic.

Yellow Jack

The story of the pursuit of the cause of yellow fever by Dr. Walter Reed and his Army medical colleagues after the Spanish-American War.

The Women

A sociological satire on the female of the species, set against a glamorous Park Avenue background that eventually extends to Reno and back, in which a happily married society leader is prodded by the gossip of her "best friends" to divorce her husband.

Peter Pan

This marvelous show won several Emmy awards. They are as follows: Best Program, Best Actress (Martin), with nominations for director (Jones) and Supporting Actor (Ritchard).

Reunion in Vienna

The story of a banished Austrian archduke who returns to Vienna for a reunion of the old nobility and reunites with his former love, now married to a psychoanalyst.

The King and Mrs. Candle

The deposed king of Brandovia, whose inhabitants spend their time exporting bologna and repelling invasions by neighboring Carps and Gloats, finds his way to America, where he earns a living as a dancing instructor, pursued by his former royal fiancee who still has the valuable pearls he gave her, with the king marrying commoner Mrs. Candle and returning with her to his now peaceful kingdom.

Darkness at Noon

Set in Russian prison during purge trials of 1930s, with prisoner Rubashov, an old Bolshevik, reviewing his life in series of flashbacks and tapped conversations with prisoner in adjoining cell.

The Petrified Forest

Set in Black Mesa Bar-B-Q at desert crosswords, as a patrons, owner and his daughter Gaby Maple and an unfortunate hitchhiker Alan Squier are held hostage by fleeing killer Duke Mantee and his henchmen, with Squier signing over his life insurance policy to Gaby to fund her dream of traveling to France to paint, and then persuading Mantee to kill him .

Wide Wide World

(""That's My Desire"") backed up by the Woody Herman orchestra (with Woody singing)and Louis Armstrong and Velma Middleton, featuring Bobby Hackett on trumpet (""My Funny Valentine""); jam session of ""When The Saints Go Marchin' In;"" Shakespeare Festival, Stratford, Ontario, featuring Lorne Greene in ""Julius Caesar,"" with backstage segments with Director Michael Langham and Artistic Director Tyrone Guthrie; Cantinflas, performing his famous ""bullfighter"" act from Tiajuana Mexico; various scenes in New York City, Chicago, Des Moines, Denver, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington D.C., Mount Hood; the RCA commercial features Vaughn Monroe and Milton Berle.

The Lord Don't Play Favorites

The story of small-time traveling circus stranded in a drought-stricken small Kansas town, subjected to huge fine by city fathers as a way of raising money to pay for a professional rain-maker, when the circus needed money to enter its trick horse in the county races, with circus duping yokels into paying the race fee to the circus ringmaster posing as the rainmaker.

The Letter

The scene is a rubber plantation outside of Singapore. As the story opens, Mrs. Leslie Crosbie is shooting one Geoffrey Hammond. Leslie insists she acted in self-defense. An attorney friend of the family agrees to take her case, only to have her story wrecked by the appearance of a letter Leslie had written to Hammond.

Jack and the Beanstalk

As the Peddler who exchanges the magic beans for Jack's cow, Cyril sang THERE ONCE WAS A BOY AND HIS NAME WAS JACK and THIS IS THE ONE about the cow. Later in the plot, Cyril and Celeste Holm, revealed as having plotted to bring Jack to the Giant's land in order for him to slay the giant, sing THE BIGGER THEY ARE THE HARDER THEY FALL. This production seemed heavily influenced by the 1939 WIZARD OF OZ, in that everything turned out to be a dream, and the characters Jack met in the Giant's land were played mainly by the same actors he knew in his hometown, Billy Gilbert appearing as both the town bully and the giant.

Festival of Music II

The stage concert starring Victoria De Los Angeles, Barry Morrell, Elizabeth Doubleday, Virginio Assandri, Arthur Newman (in opening scene of Verdi's ""La Traviata""), Marian Anderson (""Heav'n, Heav'n,"" ""My Lord, What a Mornin',"" ""Roll, Jord'n Roll""), pianist Artur Rubenstein (Rachmaninoff's ""Rhapsodie on a Theme by Paganini,"") Alfred Wallenstein conducting the Symphony of the Air Orchestra, guitarist Andres Segovia (Gavotte by J.S. Bach, Allegretto by M. Torroba), Boris Christoff, Nicola Moscona, Michael Pollock, Kirk Jordan (Last Act Death Scene from Mussorgsky's ""Boris Gudonov""); large supporting cast.

Wide Wide World II

Ruggles of Red Gap

The musical version of classic tale of English butler who is ""lost"" in a poker game by his noble English employer to a nouveau riche couple from out West, who charms the community and resigns from service to open a restaurant.

Mayerling

Mayerling is the title of an episode of the American television series Producers' Showcase made for NBC, which was aired in 24 February 1957 and released theatrically as a film in Europe. It was produced and directed by Anatole Litvak, who had previously directed the 1936 French film version of Mayerling. It starred Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer with Raymond Massey, Diana Wynyard, Basil Sydney, Judith Evelyn, Isobel Elsom, Lorne Greene, Nancy Marchand, David Opatoshu, Suzy Parker, Nehemiah Persoff, Pippa Scott and Lilia Skala. The story of Mayerling is based on the real life events of the tragic love affair between Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and his mistress, Baroness Mary Vetsera and their mysterious death on January 30, 1889 in a hunting lodge in Lower Austria.

Romeo and Juliet

Tragic star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliette unfold in this classic story.

The Great Sebastians

Set in Prague in 1948, comedy-melodrama of vaudeville mind-reading team commanded by Communist general to entertain at a private party to use their talents to ferret out traitors; they are asked to falsely swear that the patriot Masaryk was depressed, thus excusing his apparent murder; they refuse, and escape by using their stage tricks.

Cinderella

Classic fairy tale of Cinderella and her evil step sisters unfold as she longs for her prince.

Mr. Broadway

Musical version of rags-to-Vaudeville-riches life of George M. Cohan, musical numbers and choreography staged by Peter Gennaro; songs include ""Give My Regards to Broadway,"" ""Harrigan,"" ""Over There,"" ""Yankee Doodle Dandy,"" and ""You're a Grand Old Flag.