"Journey to the Day" was an American

television play A television play is a television programming genre which is a drama performance broadcast from a multi-camera television studio, usually live in the early days of television but later recorded to tape. This is in contrast to a television movi ...

broadcast on April 22, 1960, as part of the CBS television series, ''

Playhouse 90 ''Playhouse 90'' was an American television anthology series, anthology drama series that aired on CBS from 1956 to 1960 for a total of 133 episodes. The show was produced at CBS Television City in Los Angeles, California. Since live anthology dr ...

''. It was the 14th episode of the fourth season of ''Playhouse 90''.

Plot

Dr. Gutera is assigned to lead group therapy at a state mental hospital. The play covers several group sessions with six patients: Katherine, a highly intelligent schizophrenic woman; Arthur, a talkative actor suffering from manic-depressive disorder; Martha, who is catatonic; Mr. Cooper, a con man sent to the asylum by the court; Billy, a delusional teenager committed to the asylum by his mother; and Helen, a housewife suffering from depression.

Production

Fred Coe Frederick Hayden Hughs Coe (December 23, 1914 – April 29, 1979) was an American television producer and director most famous for '' The Goodyear Television Playhouse''/''The Philco Television Playhouse'' in 1948-1955 and ''Playhouse 90'' from 1 ...

was the producer. He made a pitch to produce a drama on the subject of mental health.

Roger O. Hirson Roger Overholt Hirson (May 5, 1926 – May 27, 2019) was an American dramatist and screenwriter best known for his books of the Broadway musicals, ''Pippin'', for which he was nominated for a Tony Award, and '' Walking Happy''. He contributed ex ...

was hired to write the teleplay with

John Bartlow Martin John Bartlow Martin (4 August 1915, in Hamilton, Ohio – 3 January 1987, in Highland Park, Illinois) was an American diplomat, author of 15 books, ambassador, and speechwriter and confidant to many Democratic politicians including Adlai Stevens ...

serving as a consultant on mental health issues. Hirson conducted research at the Columbus State Hospital in Ohio and at St. Vincent's Hospital in New York. To ensure accuracy, Hirson's script was submitted for review to the

American Psychiatric Association The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 37,000 members are involve ...

and the

National Association for Mental Health Mind is a mental health charity in England and Wales. Founded in 1946 as the National Association for Mental Health (NAMH), it celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2016. Mind offers information and advice to people with mental health problems an ...

. The production required a year of production time. John Frankenheimer was later brought in to direct. The music was composed by

Jerry Goldsmith Jerrald King Goldsmith (February 10, 1929July 21, 2004) was an American composer and conductor known for his work in film and television scoring. He composed scores for five films in the ''Star Trek'' franchise and three in the Rambo (franchise) ...

. The cast included Steven Hill as Dr. Gutera, Mary Astor as Helen, James Dunn as Mr. Cooper, James Gregory as Dr. Endicott,

Vivian Nathan Vivian Nathan (born Vivian Firko, October 26, 1916 – April 3, 2015) was an American actress and founding member of the Actors Studio, which opened in 1947. She served on the Actors Studio's board of directors until 1999. She appeared in the or ...

as Martha,

Mike Nichols Mike Nichols (born Michael Igor Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theater director, producer, actor, and comedian. He was noted for his ability to work across a range of genres and for his aptitude fo ...

as Arthur Millman,

Janice Rule Mary Janice Rule (August 15, 1931 – October 17, 2003) was an American actress and psychotherapist, earning her PhD while still acting, then acting occasionally while working in her new profession. Early life Rule was born in Norwood, Ohio, to ...

as Katherine,

David J. Stewart David J. Stewart (January 8, 1915 – December 23, 1966) was an American Broadway, film, and television actor. Born Abe J. Siegel in Omaha, Nebraska, Stewart was known primarily as a New York stage actor. However, he also made several appearanc ...

as Dr. Sobik, Peter Votrian as Billy, and Helen Kleeb as the nurse. Due to producer Coe's obligations in Hollywood, the production was taped there. The play was rehearsed for two weeks in New York and continued on a jet flight to California.

Reception

Cyntia Lowry of the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

Fran Swaebly of ''The Miami Herald'' found it be "too real to be real."

References

{{Playhouse 90 1960 American television episodes Playhouse 90 (season 4) episodes 1960 television plays