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"The Big Story"
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Producer Bernard J. Prockter/ Narrated by Bob Sloane
Season
2 (NBC) (1950-51)
Episode Guide
compiled by The Classic TV Archive
with contributions by: Rina Fox [Updated Jan
2021 RF]
references:
TV Guide /
Library of Congress (telnet://locis.loc.gov)
Internet Movie Database (https://us.imdb.com)
UCLA Film and Television Archive
################ The Big Story ###############
############## season 2 1950-51 ##############
##############################################
NBC Fridays 9:30-10:00pm Eastern
alternated with season 3 of "The Clock"
2.01 The Clock: PRESCRIPTION FOR DEATH
08Sep1950 NBC Fri
2.01 [27] The Big Story: RAY GIRARDIN OF THE DETROIT TIMES
15Sep1950 NBC Fri
29Sep1950 [San Mateo Times]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
Synopsis:
The story of reporter Ray Girardin of the Detroit Times and his solution of a
brutal murder are dramatized. [RF]
*Note: "The Big Story" celebrates its first anniversary.
2.02 The Clock: THE MORNING AFTER
22Sep1950 NBC Fri
2.02 [28] The Big Story: JOE SALDANA OF THE LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS
29Sep1950 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Owen Jordan ,,,,,, Joe Saldana
Elliott Sullivan
Joan Lazer
Francis DeSales
Ethel Britton
Lewis Charles
Synopsis:
Joe Saldana of the L.A. Daily News gets the award on "Big Story" for his story
of befriending a murderess
and saving her from doing something (she slew three husbands already) that would
make the law mad at her. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
Joseph Saldana of the Los Angeles Daily News befriended a convicted murderess
and kept her from making
a mistake that would have put her outside the law for life. It is the story of
Nora Cahill who slew her third
husband. [RF]
*Note: LA Daily News lists that the program could not be aired due to a Football
game
and that it is postponed to Tuesday night. After many viewers contacted and
complained
that the show promised did not air.
2.03 The Clock: THE JOKE
06Oct1950 NBC Fri
2.03 [29] The Big Story: JACK ALLEN OF THE WASHINGTON EVENING STAR
13Oct1950 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
James McCallion .... Jack Allen
Joseph Boland
John Glendinning
Byron Nash
Joseph Latham
Synopsis:
Jack Allen of the Washington Evening Star runs into a murder while attending
boxing bouts. [RF]
2.04 The Clock: VENGEANCE
20Oct1950 NBC Fri
2.04 [30] The Big Story: JACK FRANK OF THE DENVER POST
27Oct1950 NBC Fri
17Nov1950 [Independent Long Beach]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Jack Lemmon ...... Jack Frank
Peggy Wagner
Ethel Remey (as Ethel Everett)
Nellie Burt
Eva Condon
Richard Abbott
Frank McNellis
Joseph Helgesen
Synopsis:
Reporter Jack Frank who helped redeem a boy who was lost to society through the
influence of a woman
he believed to be his mother is told. Jack Frank reporter for the Denver Post
helps redeem a boy who was
lost to society through the influence of a woman he believed to be his mother.
The reporter discovers the
boy's foster parents after a long period of searching.
2.05 The Clock: THE BRIEF CASE
03Nov1950 NBC Fri
2.05 [31] The Big Story: BILL FOLEY OF THE COLUMBUS OHIO DISPATCH
10Nov1950 NBC Fri
01Dec1950 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Charles Mendick
Synopsis:
The true experiences of reporter Bill Foley of the Columbus (Oh.) Dispatch in
helping police
trackdown a murderous bandit and accomplice. [RF]
2.06 The Clock: NINTH LIFE
17Nov1950 NBC Fri
2.06 [32] The Big Story: ELIZABETH BEECHER OF THE NEW YORK JOURNAL-AMERICAN
24Nov1950 NBC Fri [Syracuse Herald Journal]
15Dec1950 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Evelyn Siebold ...... Elizabeth Beecher
Ivan Cury
Edwin Bruce
Paul A. Lilly
Merle Albertson
Anita Grannis
David Anderson
John Boruff
Norman MacKaye
Charles Randell
Joe Costa
Synopsis:
The heartwarming story of how reporter Elizabeth Beecher of the New York
Journal-American helped
redeem a youth lost to society because of society's neglect of him will be
dramatized on "The Big Story." [RF]
2.07 The Clock: THE OLD WOMAN
01Dec1950 NBC Fri
2.07 [33] The Big Story: CHARLES RUSSELL OF THE SEATTLE POST INTELLIGENCER
08Dec1950 NBC Fri [Syracuse Herald Journal]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Donald Curtis .... Charles Russell
Melville Ruick
Lois Holmes
Bess Winburn
Aileen Poe
Reese Taylor
Lucille Fenton
Robert H. Harris
Synopsis:
Reporter Charles Russell of the Seattle (Wa.) Post Intelligencer is instrumental
in unmasking
a Northwest "Bluebeard".The story began for Russell when a woman notified the
sheriff's office
her middle-aged sister had disappeared. The sheriff believed the disappearance
was merely
a phase of a husband-and-wife quarret, but Russells investigation told a
different tale. [RF]
2.08 The Clock: THE LAST TOMORROW
15Dec1950 NBC Fri
2.08 [34] The Big Story: BILL MILLER OF THE CLEVELAND PRESS
22Dec1950 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Teleplay by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Nelson Olmsted ....... Bill Miller
Jay Barney
Henrietta Moore
Leonard Bell
Allen Stevenson
Robert Dryden
Patricia Remick
Eugene Ruymen
William Lally
Gordon Peters
Graham Velsey
Synopsis:
Bill Miller of the Cleveland Press is asked for help by the mother whose son
is innocent of the killing of an elderly couple during a robbery. [RF]
2.09 The Clock: THE NEW YEAR CAPER
29Dec1950 NBC Fri
2.09 [35] The Big Story: AL BAENZIGER OF THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE
05Jan1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Teleplay by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Vinton Hayworth ...... Al Baenziger
James Van Dyke
Nellie Burt
Ed Peck
Alvin Sullum
Humphrey Davis
Frank Stephens
Lester Mack
Synopsis:
Chicago reporter Albert F. Baenziger aided police by extracting a confession of
murder from an admitted forger and bigamist. [RF]
2.10 The Clock: A DREAM FOR SUSAN
12Jan1951 NBC Fri
2.10 [36] The Big Story: HAROLD FALLER OF THE HUNTINGTON ADVERTISER OF WEST
VIRGINIA
19Jan1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Adapted by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Bob Sloane
Guest Cast:
Francis De Sales ...... Harold Faller
Jim Boles
Joseph Graham
Michael Dreyfuss
Charles Alvin Bell
Thomas M. Heaphy
Dallas Boyd
John F. Hamilton
Ida Crystal Goldman
Stuart A. Germain
Ernest Chappell
Synopsis:
Harold Faller ties together the escape of a murderer from prison and the
disappearance of a teenage boy who operates a
fishing boat. Faller is sure the boy has unwittingly helped the convict to
escape and has been murdered for it. When the
newspaper refuses to believe him, he proves it by finding the murderer and the
boy's body.
*NOTE: Syracuse Herald news item. The Big Story celebrates its 200th
presentation on the air next month, NBC-TV plans
to present the TV stanza on a weekly basis starting in March and switching The
Clock to another time spot and hopes
also to present that whodunit weekly. [RF]
2.11 The Clock: WHENEVER I'M ALONE
26Jan1951 NBC Fri
2.11 [37] The Big Story: DOROTHY POPE OF THE OGDEN STANDARD EXAMINER
02Feb1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Adapted by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Anne Summers ..... Dorothy Pope
Bill Griffin
John Shay
Frank Campanella
Agnes Young
Douglas Parkhirst
Clarke Gordon
Frances Ingalls
Harriet MacGibbon
John Armstrong
Synopsis:
Dorothy Porter Pope of the Ogden, Utah Standard Examiner in identifying and
capturing a
mad murderer who killed six Ogden residents in one terror-filled evening. [RF]
2.12 The Clock: RUNAWAY
09Feb1951 NBC Fri
2.12 [38] The Big Story: GEORGE A. BUCHANAN OF
THE COLUMBIA (S.C.) STATE
16Feb1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Adapted by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Ben Irving ...... George A. Buchanan
Clement Fowler
Gladys Thornton
James Bender
Graham Denton
John Sylvester
Peter Fernando
Synopsis:
Reporter George A. Buchanan Jr. of the Columbia S.C. State, the story began with
police
finding the body of an unidentified middle-aged man in a car wreckage in a small
gully.
Buchanan aids in the capture of a pair of amateur killers and their confession
is told. [RF]
2.13 The Clock: AN ACCIDENT ON CANIGOU
23Feb1951 NBC Fri
2.13 [39] The Big Story: PAUL FAIRLEIGH OF THE
MEMPHIS PRESS-SEMITAR
02Mar1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Adapted by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
John Shellie .... Paul Fairleigh
Harry Davis
Joe Downing
Laura Weber
Jo Bessell
Synopsis:
Paul Fairleigh of the Memphis Press-Scimitar unveils the story of a woman who
says her husband
jumped from the bridge and committed suicide when the river is dragged and a
woman's body is found.
The wife admits to the insurance scam which now has turned to murder. [RF]
*Note: New York Times: "The Big Story" will be shown weekly from this point on.
2.14 [40] The Big Story: WILLIAM M. PINNEY OF THE PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL
09Mar1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Adapted by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Martin Balsam ..... William Pinney
Synopsis:
Reporter William Pinney of the Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal solved the mystery
surrounding
an attempted train wreck and revealed a story of frustrated love and murder
plot. [RF]
2.15 [41] The Big Story: CELESTINE SIBLEY OF THE ATLANTA CONSTITUTION
16Mar1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Adapted by Arnold Perl
Musical Direction, Vladimir Selinsky
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Ethel Remey ..... Celestine Sibley (as Ethel Everett)
Synopsis:
Reporter Celestine Sibley of the Atlanta (Ga.) Constitution frees an innocent
man from jail. [RF]
2.16 [42] The Big Story: JERRY BLIZIN OF THE ST. PETERSBURG TIMES
23Mar1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Grant Richards ..... Jerry Blizin
Synopsis:
Reporter Jerry Blizin of the St. Petersburg Times, and aids police in solving a
baffling murder. [RF]
*Note: Another Jerry Blizin story covered the mysterious death of Mary Hardy
Reeser on July 2, 1951.
FBI said death wasn't 'spontaneous combustion'.
*Note: March 23, 1951 news article [Long Beach Independent]
"The Big Story" will be seen every Friday instead of on alternate weeks on KNBH
from now on. [RF]
2.17 [43] The Big Story: SKIP HENDERSON OF THE HARTFORD TIMES
30Mar1951 NBC Fri
20Apr1951 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Richard McMurray .... Skip Henderson
Synopsis:
Tracking down a criminal and defending an innocent man was accomplished by Skip
Henderson reporter of
the Hartford (Ct.) Times.
The story of how reporter Skip Henderson cleared; a man indicted for murder, and
discovered the
identity of the real killer, will be dramatized on the Big Story. [RF]
*Note: "The Big Story" changes from a bi-weekly series to a weekly series airing
on Fridays.
[Long Beach Independent]
2.18 [44] The Big Story: DUDLEY MCCLURE OF THE PORTLAND JOURNAL
06Apr1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
27Apr1951 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Blair Davies ..... Dudley McClure
Synopsis:
Dudley J. McClure reporter of the Portland, Oregon Journal has the thrilling
story of how Dud aided
the police in solving a double murder.
In 1933, the police reporter began the job of tracking down a criminal who had
wounded one person
and killed two others. Dud soon uncovered the killer's identity and several
witnesses leading to the
murderer's conviction and sentencing to the Oregon State Penitentiary. [RF]
2.19 [45] The Big Story: EDWARD KASUN OF THE PITTSBURGH PRESS
aka "The Munhall Murders"
13Apr1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
04May1951 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Bob Radick .... Edward Kasun
Synopsis:
Edward Kasun of Pittsburgh Press solved a puzzling murder through a unique deck
of playing cards.
Clever sleuthing on Ed's part led to a fortune teller who, because of imaginary
grievances through
card readings, had compiled a death list of relatives. The woman was later found
guilty of murder
and sentenced to life imprisonment. [RF]
2.20 [46] The Big Story: JOSEPH GARRETSON OF THE CINCINNATI ENQUIRER
20Apr1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Richard Kendrick .... Joe Garretson
Synopsis:
Reporter Joseph Garretson of the Cincinnati Enquirer receives this weeks Pall
Mall Award
about a boy who finds a box and inside the box are a pair of dismembered hands.
Joe aids police and helps solve a murder. [RF]
2.21 [47] The Big Story: PAT FOLEY OF THE LOS ANGELES HERALD AND EXPRESS
aka "The Rattlesnake Murder".
27Apr1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
18May1951 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Thomas Carney Jr. .... Pat Foley
Synopsis:
Reporter Pat Foley of the Los Angeles Herald and Express picks up the "Big
Story" prize tonight
for tracking down two rattlesnakes and two murderers. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
How two rattlesnakes named Lethal and Lightning, and their human counterparts, a
murder and his
accomplice, were tracked down by a clever reporter.
Pat Foley who brought to justice a husband who caused his wife's death by snake
bite
and drowning and his partner in crime. [RF]
2.22 [48] The Big Story: ED FREEMAN OF THE BALTIMORE NEWS POST
04May1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
Synopsis:
Reporter Ed Freeman of the Baltimore News Post helps to solve the truth
behind a widow's claim in the mysterious death of her husband. [RF]
2.23 [49] The Big Story: MAX SWARTZ OF THE MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE
11May1951 NBC Fri [Times Dispatch]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Harry Davis ..... Max Swartz
Synopsis:
Reporter Max Swartz of the Minneapolis Star Tribune story is the Pall Mall award
winner dramatized.
Synopsis 2:
Max Swartz was assigned to cover what looked like a routine assignment on a
killing in a vacant lot,
Swartz eventually found himself sitting across a table from an egomaniac with a
determined gun hand.
The case could have passed as a killing for robbery until the persistent
reporter matched mud at the
scene of the crime with mud found miles away. [RF]
2.24 [50] The Big Story: PAUL HOCHULI OF THE HOUSTON POST
18May1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Paul Lilly ..... Paul Hochuli
Synopsis:
Reporter Paul Hochuli of the Houston Post and the story of the paper hanger, a
cheque fraud forgery crime. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
Assigned to cover a story involving the slaying of the two officers, both
friends of his,
Hochuli is determined to solve the murder. Combing the scene of the crime for
clues,
he found a piece of paper with an address on it that sent him on the trail of
the Big Story. [RF]
2.25 [51] The Big Story: AUBREY MADDOCK OF THE HARTFORD DAILY COURANT
25May1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
15Jun1951 [Long Beach Press-Telegram]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
William Lally ..... Aubrey Maddock
Synopsis:
The story of Aubrey Maddock of Hartford (Ct.) Daily Courant chasing down a
murderer
in a home for the aged. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
A number of unexplained deaths in a home for the aged aroused Maddock's
suspicions.
He investigated the activities of the owner and went on to discover whose work
the deaths were. [RF]
2.26 [52] The Big Story: AARON DUDLEY OF THE L.A. BULLETIN
01Jun1951 NBC Fri
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Jason Robards ..... Aaron Dudley
Synopsis:
Reporter Aaron Dudley of the South Los Angeles Bulletin turned in his best
friend on a murder charge.
The story of a reporter who forced himself to turn his best friend in on a
murder charge. [RF]
The story was written by Aaron Dudley, reporter for the L.A. Bulletin.
2.27 [53] The Big Story: CLEVE BULLETTE OF THE TULSA TRIBUNE
08Jun1951 NBC Fri [Courier Journal]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Ed Binns ...... Cleve Bullette (George Cleveland Bullette)
Synopsis:
Reporter George Cleveland "Cleve" Bullette of the Tulsa Tribune saves a young
woman
from death at the hands of an avaricious woman. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
In 1944 Bullette heard a strange tale about a fanatic woman who had been keeping
a young
girl penniless, foodless and practically without clothing for over a two-year
period.
She forced the girl to extort money from her father and to steal food in order
to keep
herself alive. She asked the girl to take out an insurance policy on her life
with the
probable intention of killing her. Bullette was willing to listen to this story,
unfolded by
the helpless victim, he had the satisfaction of seeing the culprit brought to
justice. [RF]
2.28 [54] The Big Story: ALBERT B. HENDRY OF THE ST. LOUIS GLOBE DEMOCRAT
15Jun1951 NBC Fri [Courier Journal]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Robert Pastene ...... Albert B. Hendry
Synopsis:
Reporter A.B. Hendry of the St. Louis Globe Democrat who tracked down an
avaricious murderess. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
The discovery of a bullet riddled body one summer afternoon sent vacationing
reporter Hendry back to St. Louis, with all his fishing gear, in search of the
culprit.
His clues were a crumpled piece of paper with two names on it found in the
victim's
pocket, a car track and footprints. Back in St. Louis, 16 miles from the scene
of
the crime. Hendry came across a wedding announcement in the Globe-Democrat
with the same names that were on the piece of paper. Hendry then went to a
wedding
rehearsal to meet the bride-to-be. She sent him on the track of the killer. [RF]
2.29 [55] The Big Story: FRANK TOUGHELL OF THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS
22Jun1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
Synopsis:
Reporter Frank Toughell of the Philadelphia Daily News who cracked an arsenic
ring which
murdered 21 people and collected $121,000 in insurance money. [RF]
2.30 [56] The Big Story: TED PRAGER OF THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
29Jun1951 NBC Fri [Courier Post]
Produced by Bernard J. Prockter
Directed by Charles E. Skinner
Narrator, Robert Sloane
starring
Bruce Gordon ....... Ted Prager
Synopsis:
A robber-killer is brought to justice through the efforts of Ted Prager of the
New York Daily News. [RF]
Synopsis 2:
A young policeman in New York's Lower East Side is killed early one morning
in attempting to nab a robber in a sandwich shop. The policeman was an intimate
friend of the reporter and Prager vowed to find his killer.
Working meticulously on the case, Prager obtains a number of clues leading to
the apprehension of the killer, who later died in the electric chair. [RF]
Summer replacement : "Door With No Name" Spy Drama Series with Melville Ruick
################# The Big Story
##############
################ end of season 2 #############
##############################################
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