''
Alcoa Premiere'' (also known as ''Premiere, Presented by Fred Astaire'') is an American
anthology drama series
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-ge ...
that aired from October 1961 to July 1963 on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
. The series was hosted by
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history.
Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...
, who also starred in several of the episodes.
Overview
Each episode presented a new story, with no overriding theme to the series as a whole. While some episodes were light entertainment, and at least one variety show was aired, the dramatic episodes often offered powerful stories on painful or controversial subjects as opposed to classic drama. The series showcased writers such as
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery fictio ...
,
Howard Rodman
Howard A. Rodman is a screenwriter, author and professor. He is the former President of the Writers Guild of America, West, professor and former chair of the writing division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, alumnus of Telluride Associatio ...
,
Ernest Kinoy
Ernest Kinoy (April 1, 1925 – November 10, 2014) was an American writer, screenwriter and playwright.
Early life
Kinoy was born in New York City on April 1, 1925; his parents, Albert and Sarah Kinoy (formerly Forstadt), were both high-school ...
,
Donald S. Sanford,
Alfred Bester
Alfred Bester (December 18, 1913 – September 30, 1987) was an American science fiction author, TV and radio scriptwriter, magazine editor and scripter for comic strips and comic books. He is best remembered for his science fiction, incl ...
, and
Gene L. Coon, amongst others. The program also featured actors such as
James Stewart,
John Wayne,
Charlton Heston,
James Whitmore
James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Ac ...
,
Maureen O'Sullivan
Maureen O'Sullivan (17 May 1911 – 23 June 1998) was an Irish-American actress, who played Jane in the ''Tarzan'' series of films during the era of Johnny Weissmuller. She performed with such actors as Laurence Olivier, Greta Garbo, William ...
,
Arthur Kennedy and
Ray Milland. Both Stewart and Wayne appeared in an episode directed by
John Ford
John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...
.
The premiere telecast was "People Need People" about the rehabilitation of psychologically disturbed war veterans starring
Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...
and
Arthur Kennedy and directed by
Alex Segal.
Several ''Alcoa Premiere'' episodes were actually pilots for TV shows, often produced by other hands and picked up as anthology episodes by Alcoa. Most of these pilots went no further than their appearance on ''Alcoa Premiere'', but two series (''
Channing'' and ''
McHale's Navy
''McHale's Navy'' is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from October 11, 1962, to April 12, 1966, on the ABC television network. The series was filmed in black and white and originate ...
'') were developed from the pilot films shown on this anthology series.
One first-season episode ("The Jail") had been produced with the intention of airing as an episode of ''
Alfred Hitchcock Presents'', but was shown on ''Alcoa Premiere'' instead. The episode was written by
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery fictio ...
and produced by the AHP crew, with Hitchcock credited as executive producer of the aired episode.
Broadcast history
During its first season, the show was broadcast on Tuesday evenings at 10:00 pm. The show moved to Thursday evenings at the same time for its second season.
Awards
The anthology was nominated for 14
Emmy Awards during its two-year run.
[O'Neil, Thomas (2000). ''The Emmys'' (3rd ed.). New York: Berkley Publishing Group. .]
Episodes
Season 1 (1961–62)
Season 2 (1962–63)
See also
* ''
The Alcoa Hour
''The Alcoa Hour'' is an American anthology television series that was aired live on NBC from 1955 to 1957. The series was sponsored by Alcoa.
Overview
Like the ''Philco Television Playhouse'' and ''Goodyear Television Playhouse'' that had prec ...
''
References
External links
* {{IMDb title, id=0054513
''Alcoa Premiere'' at CVTA with episode link
1961 American television series debuts
1963 American television series endings
1960s American anthology television series
American Broadcasting Company original programming
1960s American drama television series
Black-and-white American television shows
English-language television shows
Television series by Universal Television
Alcoa