The Big Story (1949-58)
Episode Guide compiled by The Classic TV Archive

https://ctva.biz/index.htm

with contributions by:

Bill Priest (ep Ralph Goll of the Detroit Free Press), Tom Alger Rina Fox
references:
Library of Congress (telnet://locis.loc.gov)
Internet Movie Database (https://us.imdb.com)
UCLA Film and Television Archive

The Big Story (season 1) (NBC) (1949-1950)
The Big Story (season 2) (NBC) (1950-1951)
The Big Story (season 3) (NBC) (1951-1952)
The Big Story (season 4) (NBC) (1952-1953)
The Big Story (season 5) (NBC) (1953-1954)
The Big Story (season 6) (NBC) (1954-1955)
The Big Story (season 7) (NBC) (1955-1956)
The Big Story (season 8) (NBC) (1956-1957)
The Big Story (season 9) (First-Run Syndication) (1957-1958)

Prockter Productions, Inc./ Producer, Bernard J. Prockter (seasons 1-6)

Pyramid Productions, Inc./ Exec. Producer Everett Rosenthal (seasons 7-9)

for
NBC (Fridays 9:30 pm ET) (1949-50) (season 1)
NBC (Fridays 9:30 pm ET) (1950-51) (season 2) (alt with "The Clock)
NBC (Fridays 9:00 pm ET) (1951-56) (seasons 3-7)
NBC (Fridays 9:30 pm ET) (1956-57) (season 8) (final network season)
First-Run Syndicated Episodes (1957-58) (season 9)
 

Based on the radio series of the same name

 

US Newspaper Reporter Anthology series 1949-58 ? episodes x 30 min live/filmed

This series was broadcast from 16Sep1949 to 28June1957 on NBC

and then continued as a syndicated show for one more season.
 

Narrators:

Bob Sloane (1949-1954)

Norman Rose (1954-1955) ???

Ben Grauer (1955-1957)

Burgess Meredith (1957-1958)(syndicated)

 

 Premise:
This series presents dramatizations based on actual crimes. The show extols the achievements of newspaper reporters who
have brought about justice, such as the solution of crimes, capture of criminals, vindication of wrongly accused persons,
or amendment of laws for the protection of individual citizens. The real names of the journalists are used. Films of
the actual locales of the stories are used withthe live portions of the shows. The reporter whose story is told receives
the $500 Big Story Pall Mall Award. At the end of the program, Ben Grauer, (1955-57) who acts as host and as editor
of the story, interviews the reporter. 

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Theme 1: "The Big Story Theme"
[theme incorporates part of "A Hero's Life (Ein Heldenleben)",
a classical tone poem by Richard Strauss...]
Composer: Vladimir Selinsky (ASCAP)
1978 Publisher: Emil Ascher, Inc. (ASCAP)
2000 Publisher: [listed in ASCAP without publisher]

Theme 2: "Prowess In Battle" section of
the tone poem "A Hero's Life (Ein Heldenleben, Opus 40)"
Composer: Richard Strauss (not affiliated)
Adapter/arranger: Vladimir Selinsky (ASCAP)

1978 Publisher: [in the public domain] 2000 Publisher: [in the public domain]
Composition Date: 1898
Recordings:
"Rex Newman, Reporter for the Globe and News" 9/11/1953 James Dean
"Arthur Petacque, Chicago Sun-Times" 6/18/1954 Ross Martin (I)
"Fred Wegner Jr., Copy Boy, South Bend (Ind) Tribune" 4/6/1956 Ross Martin (I)
"Thurman Johns, Reporter: Phoenix (Ariz) Gazette" 11/23/1956 Ross Martin (I)

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################### Feedback #################
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Dear Sir
I was intrigued with your website listing many of the specific shows from "The Big Story" back in the 1950's.
I'm looking for info on a specific show that was to have been submitted by The Dothan Eagle of Dothan, AL regarding
the corruption in that city while Eddie Kelley was Chief of Police. He was evidentually accused of being at fault for
most of the problems in the city, was demoted and later, he committed suicide. I'm interested in this only because I
am doing genealogy studies on this case and Eddie Kelley turns out to be a distant cousin of mine. Thank you
Don Avery; Massachusetts <Yankeema2000@cs.com> Dec 2002

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