CTVA US Anthology - "Celebrity Playhouse" (ScreenGems/NBC)(1955-56)

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Celebrity Playhouse (1955-56)

Episode Guide compiled by The Classic TV Archive

with contributions by:

Steve Greenup, "A Life to Live By" J. Fred MacDonald (www.macfilms.com),

Rina Fox [updated April 2021 #32]
references:
Library of Congress (telnet://locis.loc.gov)
Internet Movie Database (https://us.imdb.com)
UCLA Film and Television Archive

Screen Gems Inc. a division of Columbia Pictures

for

NBC (local time)

Executive Producer William Sackheim (also produced several episodes)

first aired via New York City's WNBC at 7-7:30 PM

US Anthology series 1955-56 39 episodes x 30 min bw

########## Celebrity Playhouse ##########

########### season 1 1955-56 ###########

####################################

1.01 [01] Celebrity Playhouse: I NEVER BELIEVED IN MIRACLES

Screen Gems Prod. no. 1

Guest Cast:

Mona Freeman

Keith Brasselle

Sara Haden
Synopsis:
When a returning GI visits the girl he has corresponded with,

he learns for the first time that she cannot walk. [RF]

1.02 [02] Celebrity Playhouse: DAY OF THE TRIAL

Screen Gems prod. no. 2

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by Fred F. Sears
Written by Richard Carr
Based on a story by John and Ward Hawkins
Director of photography Gert Anderson
Guest Cast:
Frank Lovejoy
Ellen Drew
Wallace Ford
Billy Chapin
Chris Alcaide
James Anderson
Charles Wagenheim
Richard Benedict
Robert Foulk
Synopsis 1:
A taxi driver finds himself a marked man. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
Cab driver overcomes intimidation by gangsters and indifference of his

neighbors to gather the courage to testify in a trial. [RF]

1.03 [03] Celebrity Playhouse: SHOWDOWN AT SAN PABLO

Screen Gems prod. no. 3

Guest Cast:

Joseph Cotten

1.04 [04] Celebrity Playhouse: MINK DOES SOMETHING FOR YOU

Screen Gems prod. no. 4

(03Nov59 ABC Tue)

Guest cast:
Gale Storm
Keith Andes
Synopsis:
A farce in which a New York City secretary experiences a series of comedic misadventures

--and romance--when she innocently wears her boss' mink coat and is mistakenly

considered to be wealthy. [JFM]

Synopsis 2:
A young girl, masquerading in her employer's mink coat, finds herself

in trouble when she cannot pay the check at a smart dinner club. [RF]

*Note: Syndication airing 23Jul57.

1.05 [05] Celebrity Playhouse: A VERY BIG MAN

Screen Gems prod. no. 5

Guest cast:

Pat O'Brien
Faith Domergue
Hugh O'Brian
Synopsis:
This boxing story is about a man who is torn between his passion in the fight game

and his love for a beautiful woman. [JFM]

1.06 [06] Celebrity Playhouse: HOUSE BETWEEN FLAGS

Screen Gems prod. no. 6

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by James Neilson
Written by Frederic Brady
Based on a story by Margaret Pittman
Director of photography Gert Andersen
Guest Cast:
Stephen McNally
Sylvia Sidney
Jan Merlin
Jerry Antes
Richard Norris
Patricia Hardy
Kim Charney
John Truax
*Note: A civil war drama. [RF]

1.07 [07] Celebrity Playhouse: FOR THE DEFENSE

Screen Gems prod. no. 7

1.08 [08] Celebrity Playhouse: HE KNEW ALL ABOUT WOMEN

Screen Gems prod. no. 8

Guest Cast:

Dan O'Herlihy

Barbara Hale

Synopsis:
A frontiersman, looking for a wife, believes he's found her when

he meets a high-spirited girl called Felicity. [RF]

1.09 [09] Celebrity Playhouse: EMPTY ARMS

Screen Gems prod. no. 9

1.10 [10] Celebrity Playhouse: THE SILVER SADDLE

Screen Gems prod. no. 10

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by Arnold Laven
Written by Clark E. Reynolds
From a story by Thomas Thompson
Director of photography Gert Andersen
Guest cast:
Mark Stevens
Jaclynne Greene
Robert Osterloh
William Bryant
Paul Brinegar
Trevor Bardette
Louis Jean Heydt
Cheryl Callaway

Synopsis:
An outlaw returning from imprisonment discovers that his wife has

divorced him and married a reformed member of his gang. [RF]

1.11 [11] Celebrity Playhouse: KNOWN BUT TO GOD

Screen Gems prod. no. 11

Guest cast:

Charles Bickford

Phil Carey
Synopsis:
An accomplice to a holdup murder is killed after talking to a priest.

The police try to prevail upon the Father to divulge the dead man's confession. [RF]

*Note: Reaired on Triangle Theater 02Mar56.

Syndication airing on 13th Hour 01Jun62.

1.12 [12] Celebrity Playhouse: DIAMONDS IN THE SKY

Screen Gems prod. no. 12

starring

Scott Brady

Jane Greer

Synopsis 1:
A transatlantic pilot hears some disturbing news. [RF]

Synopsis 2:

A trans-Atlantic airplane pilot is disillusioned over news that the girl who saved

his life during the war belongs to a diamond-smuggling gang. [RF]

*Reaired on Celebrity Playhouse 27Nov56.

1.13 [13] Celebrity Playhouse: THE HOAX

Screen Gems prod. no. 13

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by Gerald Freedman
Written by Irving Wallace & Lowell Barrington
Based on an article by Irving Wallace
Director of photography Gert Andersen
Guest cast:
Paul Henreid
Herbert Marshall
Michael Fox
Trude Wyler
Norbert Schiller
Richard Flato
Lester Matthews
George Spaulding

Synopsis 1:
A prewar Dutch artist (Henreid) whose paintings are blasted by a haughty but

celebrated art critic (Marshall). The critique propels the artist to begin forging "lost"

master paintings, fooling not only critics but also his own staff. After the Nazis occupy

Holland in 1940, the artist sells a fake Vermeer to a Nazi Field Marshal who believes it

is authentic. After the war, however, the artist is placed on trial as a collaborator for selling

this "national treasure" to the enemy. He must convince the court--and the arrogant critic

whose reputation is now on the line--that he painted the Vermeer, that it was all a hoax. [JFM]

Synopsis 2:
In Amsterdam in 1947, a man is on trial for selling artwork to the Nazis. [RF]

1.14 [14] Celebrity Playhouse: RED HORSE HAMBER (film)

Screen Gems prod. no. 14

(05Jul56 NYC) copyright date 27Dec55

starring

Dane Clark

Synopsis:

A rodeo rider tries to enter a rodeo, only to find it is run by a crooked operator. [RF]

1.15 [15] Celebrity Playhouse: MY NAME IS SALLY ROBERTS

Screen Gems prod. no. 15

Synopsis:
A Chicago doctor brings his wife to the country. [RF]

1.16 [16] Celebrity Playhouse: LIVE BAIT

Screen Gems prod. no. 16

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by Lewis R. Foster
Written by Jack Laird
From a story by Richard Wormser
Director of photography Henry Freulich
Guest cast:
Macdonald Carey
Marguerite Chapman
Gale Robbins
Steve Brodie
Roy Roberts
John Douchette
Vito Scotti
Synopsis:
A cop with a crook for a brother baits a trap for his capture, but in doing so learns that his fiance,

who also used to be his brother’s girlfriend, is a liar and double-crosser. [RF]

1.17 [17] Celebrity Playhouse: SECRET OF THE BELLS

Screen Gems prod. no. 17

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by Arnold Laven
Director of photography Henry Freulich
Guest Cast:
Louis Jourdan
Dianne Foster
Carroll McComas
Peter Votrian
James F. Stone
Belle Mitchell

1.18 [18] Celebrity Playhouse: THE TWELVE YEAR SECRET

Screen Gems prod. no. 18

Guest cast:
David Brian
Ellen Drew
Judy Nugent
Melinda Plowman
Synopsis:
A husband and wife learn that, due to a hospital mix-up,

their young daughter isn't really their child. [RF]

*Note: Reaired on Triangle Theater 09Mar56.

1.19 [19] Celebrity Playhouse: BACHELOR HUSBAND

Screen Gems prod. no. 19

Guest Cast:

Cesar Romero

Phyllis Kirk
Richard Denning
Synopsis:
Because their firm insists that its female employees remain single,

a husband and wife attempt to conceal their martial status. [RF]

1.20 [20] Celebrity Playhouse: TANTRUM-SIZE 12

Screen Gems prod. no. 20

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by Anton M. Leader
Written by Frederick Brady
From a short story by Vicki Baum
Director of photography Gert Andersen
Guest Cast:
Gene Nelson
Kathryn Grant
Fay Roope
Mike Winkelman
Charles Herbert
Jean Byron
Dee J. Thompson
Byron Keith

1.21 [21] Celebrity Playhouse: THEY FLEE BY NIGHT

Screen Gems prod. no. 21

Guest Cast:

Thomas Mitchell

1.22 [22] Celebrity Playhouse: THE FOREIGNER

Screen Gems prod. no. 22

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by Anton M. Leader
Written by Rik Vollaerts
From a Redbook story by Charlotte Paul.
Director of photography Gert Andersen

Guest Cast:

Ricardo Montalban

Marilyn Erskine
Don Beddoe
Riza Royce
Peter Mamakos
Argentina Brunetti
Ana Maria Majalca
*and introducing Felicia Farr

Synopsis:
An American girl on tour in Greece falls in love with a Greek soldier. [RF]

1.23 [23] Celebrity Playhouse: MORE THAN KIN

Screen Gems prod. no. 23

Guest cast:
Sylvia Sidney

1.24 [24] Celebrity Playhouse: EAST OF NOWHERE

Screen Gems prod. no. 24

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by John Meredyth Lucas
Written by D.D. Beauchamp
From a story by Steve Fisher
Director of photography Gert Anderson

starring
Peter Graves

Ann Sheridan
Robert Lowery
John Dennis

Synopsis 1:
A roving reporter in love with construction crew boss Graves who is broke and

working for rival construction boss Lowery. The action takes place in Arabia. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
A man agrees to go to work for the man who put him out of business. [RF]
*Note: Reaired in syndication on "Warning" 15Oct59.

1.25 [25] Celebrity Playhouse: THE GO-BETWEEN

Screen Gems prod. no. 25

Guest Cast:

Don Taylor

Jan Sterling

1.26 [26] Celebrity Playhouse: SHADOW OF A THIEF

Screen Gems prod. no. 26

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by James Sheldon
Written by Gene Levitt & Robert Tallman
From a story by Isabelle Ziegler
Director of photography Henry Freulich

Guest Cast:

Joanne Dru

Arthur Franz

William Leslie
Dani Nolan
Brad Trumbull
George Fairchild
Francis DeSales

1.27 [27] Celebrity Playhouse: HOME IS THE SOLDIER

Screen Gems prod. no. 27

Guest cast:
Howard Duff
Phyllis Kirk
Synopsis:
A G.I. who was presumed dead, returns home. [RF]

1.28 [28] Celebrity Playhouse: DEBORAH

Screen Gems prod. no. 28

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by Gerald Freedman
Written by DeWitt Bodeen
Based on a Good Housekeeping story by Margery Sharp
Director of photography Fred Jackman Jr.

Guest Cast:

Angela Lansbury ....... Deborah

Zachary Scott
Maxwell Reed
Winifred Harris
Marjorie Bennett
Vera Denham

Synopsis:
An injured man persuades the young companion of a rich, elderly woman

to let him spend the night in her employer's home. [RF]

1.29 [29] Celebrity Playhouse: TOMORROW WE MAY PART

Screen Gems prod. no. 29

Produced by Lou Breslow
Directed by James Neilson
Written by Marianne Mosner
From a story by Laura Owen Miller
Director of photography Henry Freulich
Guest cast:
Laraine Day
William Bishop
Frank Albertson
Raymond Greenleaf
Synopsis:
Woman learns that she has a heart condition and may not last more than a couple of years.

She meets and falls in love with a womanizing, roving newspaper reporter and after

much trouble and grief, he returns to her and gives her a reason to fight for life. [RF]

1.30 [30] Celebrity Playhouse: A LETTER FROM THE PAST

Screen Gems prod. no. 30

1.31 [--] Celebrity Playhouse: NO ESCAPE (film)

Screen Gems prod. no. 31

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by Gerald Freedman
Written by Philip MacDonald
From a short story by Bruno Fischer
Director of photography Henry Freulich

starring

Teresa Wright ....... Helen Fiske
Raymond Burr ....... George
John Larch ....... Pocker
Barbara Bell Wright ....... Marie
Howard Wright ...... Mr. Karnes
John Merrick ....... Ralph Fiske
Mark Scott

Synopsis 1:
Two gunmen enter a woman's home, threatening to kill her husband. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
A gang try to force a young bank clerk to help them in a bank robbery they are planning.

When he refuses, they attempt to blackmail him by kidnapping his wife

and holding her as a hostage. [RF]

(Syndication airing on Undercurrent 26Jul57)

1.32 [--] Celebrity Playhouse: THE FLEETING YEARS [verified on film-RF]
Screen Gems prod. no. 32 (copyright date 01May56)
07May1956
Produced by David Stephenson
Teleplay by DeWitt Bodeen
From the American Magazine story by Rosamond du Jardin
Directed by Danny Dare
Guest cast:
George Brent ..... Carter Everton
Ann Harding ........ Gay Marshall
May Wynn ......... Janet Marshall
William Leslie ...... Jon Everton
Carroll McComas ..... Cassy Benedict
Tristram Coffin ......... Tom Alcorn
*
Director of photography .... Henry Freulich A.S.C.
Art director ..... Cary Odell
Supervising Editor .... Henry Batista A.C.E.
Film Editor .... Richard Brockway
Set Decorator .... Louis Diage
Assistant Director ..... Herb Wallerstein
Story Editor .... Margaret Wilder
Synopsis:
A romantic drama in which the elderly, widowed parents of a young couple marry after a very
short courtship, thereby precipitating a family crisis that drives apart both couples. [JFM]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj9pYzsn
juk&list=PLlPSwDmTYTRo8Sbo76QeRQ1N9mUX5208M&index=14>

1.33 [33] Celebrity Playhouse: STAGECOACH TO PARADISE

Screen Gems prod. no. 33

copyright date 08May56

Produced by David Stephenson
Directed by Fred F. Sears
Written by D.D. Beauchamp & Jack Laird
From a story by Tom Gwynne
Director of photography Ray Rennahan

starring
Wendell Corey
Cynthia Stone

William Hopper
Rusty Lane
John Pickard
Synopsis:
A man fears conviction for the murder of two men whom he killed in self-defense. [RF]

1.34 [34] Celebrity Playhouse: INCIDENT IN RIO

Screen Gems prod. no. 34

copyright date 15May56

1.35 [35] Celebrity Playhouse: I'LL MAKE THE ARREST

Screen Gems prod. no. 35

copyright date 22May56

Produced by William Sackheim
Directed by James Sheldon
Written by Mort Thaw
From a story by Charles Beckman Jr.
Director of photography Irving Lippman
Guest Cast:
Jan Sterling
Phil Carey
Sean McClory
Dan Barton
Virginia Vincent
Penny Santon
John Mylong
Synopsis:
After his ex-wife is found murdered, a cop fanatically searches for her killer,

but discovers that it wasn’t murder but a self-defense killing, and learns

that his ex-wife wasn’t such an angel after all. [RF]

1.36 [36] Celebrity Playhouse: GIRL ON THE RUN

Screen Gems prod. no. 36

copyright date 29May56

Guest Cast:

Joan Caulfield

Arthur Franz
Synopsis:
A young girl has a frightening series of midnight callers,

hallucinations and murder attempts. [RF]
*Note: Syndication airing on Sparkle Showcase 21Oct58.

1.37 [37] Celebrity Playhouse: FAITH

Screen Gems prod. no. 37

copyright date 05Jun56

Guest cast:

Edward Arnold
Eugenie Leontovich

Roger Smith

Synopsis 1:
A woman becomes obsessed with the idea that her son is to be

chosen as the World War I Unknown Soldier. [RF]

Synopsis 2:
A widow who lost her only son in the war is obsessed with the idea that he is the

Unknown Soldier in Arlington Cemetary. She is determined that he will be reburied

in his hometown. [RF]
*Rerun on Celebrity Playhouse 13Nov56.

1.38 [38] Celebrity Playhouse: DARK LEGACY

Screen Gems prod. no. 38

copyright date 12Jun56

Guest cast:
Howard Duff

Synopsis:
A dying criminal tells his estranged son the hiding place of some stolen money. [RF]

1.39 [39] Celebrity Playhouse: GIRL AT LARGE (final episode)

Screen Gems prod. no. 39

copyright date 19Jun56

Guest cast:
Sterling Hayden
Helen Parrish
Synopsis:
A man on a business trip gives a beautiful girl a lift in his car, only to discover

that she escapes from an institution for the criminally insane. [RF]

[40] Celebrity Playhouse: A LIFE TO LIVE BY
a Four Star Films, Inc. Production
unknown airdate (aired originally on Cavalcade Theatre 20Mar56.)
Executive Producer Don W. Sharpe [SG]
Produced by Warren Lewis
Screenplay by Laszlo Gorog
From an article by Melvin Durslag
Editorial Supervisor, Bernard Burton
starring:
John Ericson ........ Leon Patterson
Sally Frazer ........ Dixie Patterson
Russ Conway ......... Coach O'Brien
Chris Warfield ...... Joe Wilson
Alexander Campbell .. Doctor
Shirley Bernard ..... Betty Wilson
Synopsis 1:
The story of a California schoolboy who, in spite of the knowledge that
he has an inaccurate disease, sets the world's record for the high school
shot-put and leads a full life before death overtakes him. [JB]
Synopsis 2:
The story of a boy who knew he was doomed by disease but won sports
and scholastic honors and a full life before death came. [RF]
*Note: True story from Taft, California. [SG]

Comment by Gary Alexander, submitted by Steve Greenup

Also Leon is Mention here
"---Left turn, no signal. A wrong has been righted in Bakersfield California.

The board of directors of the Bob Elias Sports Hall of Fame selection board

in Kern County have finally selected Tom O'Brien as an honoree.

Ohh... only about 30 years over due. Tom was one of the most interesting men I've ever known.

He taped my ankles in Taft Union High School and Taft College... I had no idea that major

West Coast colleges at the time sent their people to observe just how he did it.

As a volunteer he coached two of the greatest athletes ever to come out of Kern County

.... Mike Garratt and Dick Russell and Leon Patterson... to stellar careers in the shot put

and discus. Few small high schools have ever boasted such a trio in the weight events

... Garratt and Russell in the 60s; Patterson in the 50s."

https://leatherneckm31.typepad.com/leatherneckm31/2005/12/tic_tic_tic.html

########## Celebrity Playhouse ##########

############## the end ###############

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