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Medallion Theatre

Medallion Theatre, aka Chrysler Medallion Theatre, is a 30-minute American anthology series that aired on CBS from July 11, 1953, to April 3, 1954.[1] Henry Fonda (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. Among its writers were Rod Serling and Robert Anderson. Directors included Ralph Nelson, Don Medford, Robert Stevens, and Seymour Robbie. The original producer was William Spier.[2]

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."[3]

Production

All thirty episodes were aired live from New York.[4] Mort Abrahams was associate producer, Samuel Leve was the set designer, and Robert Tallman the story editor.[5]

Reaction

Ben Gross of the New York Daily News said it was "a welcome recruit to the ranks of live dramatic shows".[4] 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.[6]

Broadcast history

By mid-February 1954 columnist Erskine Johnson reported that CBS had decided to replace Medallion Theater with a new sitcom called That's My Boy.[7] About the same time, the producer role was taken over by Mort Abrahams.[8]

Episodes

References

  1. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present (9 ed.). New York: Random House Publishing. p. 877. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  2. ^ "The Man behind Medallion Theatre" (PDF). Radio-TV Mirror. 40 (6): 16. November 1953. Retrieved November 19, 2014.
  3. ^ Coleman, Bill (July 4, 1953). "A Talk with Spier". The Tablet. New York, Brooklyn. p. 15. Retrieved April 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b Gross, Ben (July 13, 1953). "What's On?". Daily News. New York, New York. p. 40 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "On "Medallion Theatre", It's Tops in Talent Plus Only the Best Stories". The Times Recorder. Zanesville, Ohio. July 11, 1953. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Crosby, John (July 17, 1953). "Fonda Excels In Portion Of 'Arrowsmith' On TV". Tampa Bay Times. Tampa, Florida. p. 40 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Johnson, Erskine (February 13, 1954). "In Hollywood". Dixon Evening-Telegraph. Dixon, Illinois. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ a b "Richard Kiley To Star Tonight On Medallion Theater". The Oshkosh Northwestern. Oshkosh, Wisconsin. February 20, 1954. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Today's Television". Poughkeepsie Journal. Poughkeepsie, New York. July 11, 1953. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Crosby, John (July 17, 1953). "Radio and Television". Lansing State Journal. Lansing, Michigan. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (July 18, 1953). "TV Key". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. p. 4. Retrieved April 16, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "To See - To Hear". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. July 25, 1953. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (August 1, 1953). "TV Key". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "A Comedy Starring June Havoc". Cincinnati Post. Cincinnati, Ohio. August 8, 1953. p. 22 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Week-End Highlights". Los Angeles Mirror. Los Angeles, California. August 15, 1953. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Saturday TV". Daily News. Los Angeles, California. August 22, 1953. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (August 29, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (September 5, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (September 12, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Saturday's Television Programs". Newsday (Nassau Edition). Hempstead, New York. September 19, 1953. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (September 26, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (October 3, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Inge, Gene (October 10, 1953). "TV and Radio". Evening Vanguard. Venice, California. p. 8 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ Danson, Tom (October 17, 1953). "TV-Radiologic". The Whittier News. Whittier, California. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (October 24, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (October 31, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ Collins, William (November 10, 1953). "Helen Hayes Stars as Mrs. Stowe". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "To See - To Hear". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. November 14, 1953. p. 26 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ Danson, Tom (November 21, 1953). "TV-Radiologic". The Napa Valley Register. Napa, California. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ Inge, Gene (November 28, 1953). "TV and Radio". News-Pilot. San Pedro, California. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ Danson, Tom (December 5, 1953). "TV-Radiologic". Progress-Bulletin. Pomona, California. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  32. ^ Price, Paul (December 12, 1953). "Adlai Stevenson in Radio-TV Talk". Daily News. Los Angeles, California. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. ^ Scheuer, Steven H. (December 19, 1953). "TV Key". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ^ Price, Paul (December 26, 1953). "Plenty of variety on Radio-TV skeds". Daily News. Los Angeles, California. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. ^ "(Photo Caption)". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. December 26, 1953. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. ^ "Saturday, January 2" (PDF). Ross Reports on Television. January 3, 1954. p. A. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  37. ^ "Today on TV". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. January 9, 1954. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  38. ^ "Today on TV". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. January 16, 1954. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  39. ^ "Saturday Television Program". Courier-Post. Camden, New Jersey. January 23, 1954. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  40. ^ "Saturday Television Program". Courier-Post. Camden, New Jersey. January 30, 1954. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  41. ^ "Today on TV". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. February 6, 1954. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  42. ^ "Saturday Television Program". Courier-Post. Camden, New Jersey. February 13, 1954. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  43. ^ "Today on TV". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. February 27, 1954. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  44. ^ "Today on TV". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. March 6, 1954. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
  45. ^ "Saturday Television Program". Courier-Post. Camden, New Jersey. March 13, 1954. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  46. ^ "War II Incident Is Recounted on Medallion Theater". The Oshkosh Northwestern. Oshkosh, Wisconsin. March 20, 1954. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  47. ^ "KMJ-TV Channel 24 (column ad)". The Fresno Bee. Fresno, California. March 27, 1954. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  48. ^ "Television Program Schedule". The Windsor Star. Windsor, Ontario. March 27, 1954. p. 21 – via Newspapers.com.
  49. ^ "Television Program Schedule". The Windsor Star. Windsor, Ontario. April 3, 1954. p. 15 – via Newspapers.com.
  50. ^ "Television". Daily News. New York, New York. April 3, 1954. p. 233 – via Newspapers.com.

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