''Confession'' is an American interview and

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

which aired locally in the

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

, area beginning early in 1957 and nationally 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 ...

during the summer of 1958 and the 1958–1959 television season. Hosted by

Jack Wyatt Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

, the show explored the root causes of crime and possible ways of addressing them.

Synopsis

In each episode, host Jack Wyatt interviews a convicted criminal who has been vetted and approved by local police officials, discussing his or her crimes and reasons for committing them.McNeil, Alex, ''Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming From 1948 to the Present, Fourth Edition'', New York: Penguin Books, 1996, , p. 176.Brooks, Tim, and Earle Marsh, ''The Complete Directory to Prime-Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present (Sixth Edition)'', New York: Ballantine Books, 1995, , p. 211.Erckson, Hal, ''Encyclopedia of Television Law Shows: Factual and Fictional Series About Judges, Lawyers and the Courtroom, 1948–2008''
Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2009, , pp. 61–62. After the interview, Wyatt moderates a discussion by a panel which includes a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

, a member of the

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, either a

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

or a

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and interpretation of how indi ...

, and either a

penologist Penology (from "penal", Latin '' poena'', "punishment" and the Greek suffix ''-logia'', "study of") is a sub-component of criminology that deals with the philosophy and practice of various societies in their attempts to repress criminal activities ...

or a sociologist, during which the panelists analyze the interview and suggest ways of reforming the criminal.

Production

Patrick Fay directed ''Confession'', which began as a live local program in

, broadcast from the studios of

WFAA WFAA (channel 8) is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex as an affiliate of ABC. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Decatur-licensed Estrella TV affiliate KMPX (channel 29), ...

. With relatively few network shows to broadcast during prime time during the late 1950s,

picked up the show for network broadcast to help fill out its schedule during the summer of 1958, and continued to broadcast it during the first half of the 1958–1959 season. Episodes for ABC were

videotape Videotape is magnetic tape used for storing video and usually sound in addition. Information stored can be in the form of either an analog or digital signal. Videotape is used in both video tape recorders (VTRs) and, more commonly, videocassett ...

d at WFAA. Although its live local broadcasts in Dallas prior to its ABC run commonly prompted a flood of telephoned complaints to WFAA after each episode, the little-watched series managed to avoid some of the strict

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

that constrained the content of most other television shows of the 1950s. This allowed it to cover a variety of topics rarely permitted on the air by censors and sponsors of the era, including the crimes of

drug addicts Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use of ...

prostitutes Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

, sex offenders, and murderers. In one of its more notable 1957 episodes, Darrell Wayne Kahler, a 22-year-old male

transvestite Transvestism is the practice of dressing in a manner traditionally associated with the opposite sex. In some cultures, transvestism is practiced for religious, traditional, or ceremonial reasons. The term is considered outdated in Western c ...

arrested for

vagrancy Vagrancy is the condition of homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants (also known as bums, vagabonds, rogues, tramps or drifters) usually live in poverty and support themselves by begging, scavenging, petty theft, temporar ...

while drunk, dressed as a woman, and being molested by three men, discussed his dysfunctional upbringing, his heavy use of alcohol and cigarettes, and his work as a "B girl" at a nightclub, and police allowed him to dress in a black

cocktail dress A cocktail dress is a dress suitable at semi-formal occasions, sometimes called cocktail parties, usually in the late afternoon, and usually with accessories. After World War I, the idea of the "working woman" became popular. After 1929, it was ...

to reenact his arrest for Wyatt's interview."Television: Confession," ''Time'', December 30, 1957. The Kahler episode brought the show to national attention and prompted ABC to pick up it for network broadcast.

Broadcast history

''Confession'' premiered as a local program on

in Dallas, Texas, in early 1957. It began its national run on ABC on June 19, 1958, airing on Thursdays at 10:00 p.m.

Eastern Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small port ...

until September 1958, when it moved to Tuesday at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The show faced stiff competition on both

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

and

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

, and it was cancelled at mid-season. Its last episode was broadcast on January 13, 1959. '' Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond'' replaced it in ABC's schedule.

References

{{reflist 1950s American television talk shows 1958 American television series debuts 1959 American television series endings Black-and-white American television shows American Broadcasting Company original programming Television shows set in the United States English-language television shows