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The Greatest Gift (TV Series)
''The Greatest Gift'' was a US TV daytime soap opera on NBC that ran between 1954 and 1955, featuring Ward Costello, Anne Meara and Jack Klugman as Jim Hanson. Dr. Eve Allen, played by Anne Burr, was one of the first TV women doctors. One of the last storylines before cancellation was a couple adopting a black-market baby. Cast The cast included: * Anne Burr: Eve Allen * Philip Foster: Phil Stone * Athena Lorde: Betty Matthews * Will Hare: Harold Matthews (1954–1955) * Martin Balsam: Harold Matthews (1955) * Gene Peterson: Ned Blackman (1954–1955) * Ward Costello: Ned Blackman (1955) * Jack Klugman: Jim Hanson * Josef Drake: Sam Blake * Henry Barnard: Peter Blake * Helen Warren: Mrs. Blake * Margaret Heneghan: Peg * Anne Meara Anne Meara Stiller (September 20, 1929 – May 23, 2015) was an American actress and comedian. Along with her husband Jerry Stiller, she was one-half of the prominent 1960s comedy team Stiller and Meara. Their son is actor, director, and producer ...: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soap Opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored by soap manufacturers.Bowles, p. 118. The term was preceded by " horse opera", a derogatory term for low-budget Westerns. BBC Radio's '' The Archers'', first broadcast in 1950, is the world's longest-running radio soap opera. The longest-running current television soap is ''Coronation Street'', which was first broadcast on ITV in 1960, with the record for the longest running soap opera in history being held by ''Guiding Light'', which began on radio in 1937, transitioned to television in 1952, and ended in 2009. A crucial element that defines the soap opera is the open-ended serial nature of the narrative, with stories spanning several episodes. One of the defining features that makes a television program a soap opera, according to Albe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ward Costello
Edward "Ward" Costello (July 5, 1919 - June 4, 2009) was an American actor, composer and lyricist. Costello was born in Boston. When he was young, he left home to go to sea, after which he was an itinerant worker on farms and ranches before he became a newspaper reporter in New York. Costello served in both the British Royal Air Force and the U.S. Army Signal Corps during the Second World War. He received the Silver Star and three Distinguished Flying Crosses. After he left the military, he was a foreign-news editor for CBS in New York. He composed and wrote the lyrics to the theme for ''The Gallant Hours''. During his acting career, Costello appeared in several television programs, including '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', '' Little House on the Prairie'' and ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents''. He retired from acting in 1989. Costello was married to actress Loraine Grover, and they had a daughter, Erin. Costello died from complications of a stroke on June 4, 2009, aged ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anne Meara
Anne Meara Stiller (September 20, 1929 – May 23, 2015) was an American actress and comedian. Along with her husband Jerry Stiller, she was one-half of the prominent 1960s comedy team Stiller and Meara. Their son is actor, director, and producer Ben Stiller. She was also featured on stage, on television, and in numerous films and later became a playwright. During her career, Meara was nominated for four Emmy Awards and a Tony Award, and she won a Writers Guild Award as a co-writer for the television movie '' The Other Woman''. Early years Meara was born on September 20, 1929, in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of parents of Irish descent, Mary (née Dempsey) and Edward Joseph Meara, a corporate lawyer for American Standard. An only child, she was raised in Rockville Centre, New York, on Long Island. When Anne was 11 years old, her mother committed suicide. When she was 18, Meara spent a year studying acting at the Dramatic Workshop at The New School and at HB Studio unde ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Klugman
Jack Klugman (April 27, 1922 – December 24, 2012) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. He began his career in 1950 and started television and film work with roles in '' 12 Angry Men'' (1957) and '' Cry Terror!'' (1958). During the 1960s, he guest-starred on numerous television series. Klugman won his first Primetime Emmy Award for his guest-starring role on '' The Defenders'' in 1964. He also made a total of four appearances on ''The Twilight Zone'' from 1960 to 1963. In 1965, Klugman replaced Walter Matthau as Oscar Madison in the Broadway play '' The Odd Couple''. Five years later, he reprised that role in the television adaptation of '' The Odd Couple'' opposite Tony Randall. The series aired from 1970 to 1975. Klugman won his second and third Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award for his work on the series. From 1976 to 1983, he starred in the title role in '' Quincy, M.E.'', for which he earned four Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Early ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anne Burr
Anne Elizabeth Burr, later Anne Burr McDermott (June 10, 1918 - February 1, 2003), was an American actress, known especially for her work on stage and in radio. Early life Burr was born at Emerson Hospital in Boston, the daughter of Eugene Palmer Burr, a manager of a rooming company, and Helen Isabel Cummings. Her parents resided in Weymouth, Massachusetts at the time. Shortly after her birth, Burr's parents moved to Manhattan, where they resided on Riverside Drive. By 1930, her family had moved to Columbus, Ohio, her father's home-state. Burr had one younger brother, Charles Edward Burr (born in 1920 and died in 1938). Career Burr made her theatrical debut in summer stock before turning to Broadway, making her debut there in ''Native Son'' in 1941. She went on to appear in numerous Broadway productions through the 1940s, including '' Detective Story'' and '' The Hasty Heart''. On radio, she appeared as Regina Rawlings on '' Backstage Wife'' from 1948 until 1949; and once her c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (Schemering Book)
''The Soap Opera Encyclopedia'' is a 1985 reference book by Christopher Schemering which assembles comprehensive information about all daytime and prime time soap operas broadcast up to the date of publication. It was revised and reprinted in 1987 and 1988, but is currently out of print. ''The Soap Opera Encyclopedia'' features commentary, analysis and criticism of "every daytime and prime-time television soap opera broadcast on the three major networks, as well as a selection of syndicated, cable, and foreign efforts." It also discusses background, significant storylines and impact of each program, and lists performers and characters. Schemering also includes a "Short History of Television Soap Opera," as well as profiles of major performers, writers and producers in the genre in a section entitled "Who's Who in Soap Opera." Finally, the book contains 30 pages of photos from various programs. Published in a time before the internet, the ''Encyclopedia'' was a primary source of b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Will Hare
Will T Hare (March 30, 1916 – August 31, 1997) was an American actor who appeared on television and films, often playing old crusty figures and father/grandpa roles. Hare was born in Elkins, West Virginia, the son of Frances Laetitia (née Satterfield) and George Thomas Hare. Career Will had appeared on stage, screen, and television since he was 15. Becoming a veteran of stage for over a half of a century, Hare's film debut was Alfred Hitchcock's ''The Wrong Man'' (1956) and his final theatrical appearance was ''Me and Veronica'' in 1992. Hare's other distinctive film credits include roles in ''The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds'' (1972), ''The Rose'' (1979), ''The Electric Horseman'' (1979), ''Enter the Ninja'' (1981), '' Eyes of Fire'' (1983), ''Silent Night, Deadly Night'' (1984), '' The Aviator'' (1985), ''Back to the Future'' (1985, as gun-toting farmer "Old Man Peabody"), ''Vendetta'' (1986) and ''Grim Prairie Tales'' (1990). Hare was also an active m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martin Balsam
Martin Henry Balsam (November 4, 1919 – February 13, 1996) was an American actor. He had a prolific career in character roles in film, in theatre, and on television. An early member of the Actors Studio, he began his career on the New York stage, winning a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for Robert Anderson’s '' You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running'' (1968). He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in '' A Thousand Clowns'' (1965). His other notable film roles include Juror #1 in '' 12 Angry Men'' (1957), private detective Milton Arbogast in ''Psycho'' (1960), Hollywood agent O.J. Berman in '' Breakfast at Tiffany's'' (1961), Bernard B. Norman in ''The Carpetbaggers'' (1964), Lt. Commander Chester Potter, the ship doctor, in ''The Bedford Incident'', Colonel Cathcart in ''Catch-22'' (1970), Admiral Husband E. Kimmel in '' Tora! Tora! Tora!'' (1970), Mr. Green in '' The Taking of Pelham One Two Three'' (1974), Signor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Television Soap Operas
American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the " United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, people who self-identify their ancestry as "American" ** American English, the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States ** Native Americans in the United States, indigenous peoples of the United States * American, something of, from, or related to the Americas, also known as "America" ** Indigenous peoples of the Americas * American (word), for analysis and history of the meanings in various contexts Organizations * American Airlines, U.S.-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas * American Athletic Conference, an American college athletic conference * American Recordings (record label), a record label previously known as Def American * American University, in Washington, D.C. Sports teams Soc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1954 American Television Series Debuts
Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York, at the head office of IBM. * January 10 – BOAC Flight 781, a de Havilland Comet jet plane, disintegrates in mid-air due to metal fatigue, and crashes in the Mediterranean near Elba; all 35 people on board are killed. * January 12 – 1954 Blons avalanches, Avalanches in Austria kill more than 200. * January 15 – Mau Mau rebellion, Mau Mau leader Waruhiu Itote is captured in Kenya. * January 17 – In Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia, Milovan Đilas, one of the leading members of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, is relieved of his duties. * January 20 – The US-based National Negro Network is established, with 46 m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
