"Massacre at Sand Creek" was an American

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

broadcast on December 27, 1956, as part of the

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 ...

television series, '' Playhouse 90''. It was the 13th episode of the first season.

Plot

The film tells a story of the Sand Creek massacre, an 1864 massacre of Cheyenne and Arapaho people by the U.S. Army.

Cast

The cast included performances by: * Everett Sloane as Col. John Templeton * John Derek at 2nd Lt. Norman Tucker *

Gene Evans Eugene Barton Evans (July 11, 1922 – April 1, 1998) was an American actor who appeared in numerous television series, television films, and feature films between 1947 and 1989. Background Evans was born in Holbrook, Arizona and raised i ...

as 1st Sgt. Maddox * Roy Roberts as Col. Collery *

Ken Mayer Ken Mayer (June 25, 1918 – January 30, 1985) was an American actor best known for his portrayal of Major Robbie Robertson in the 1950s television series, '' Space Patrol''. Following service in the United States Army Air Corps' intelligen ...

as Major Downing *

William Schallert William Joseph Schallert (July 6, 1922 – May 8, 2016) was an American character actor who appeared in dozens of television shows and films over a career spanning more than 60 years. He is known for his roles on '' Richard Diamond, Privat ...

as Defense Attorney * Haim Winant as Free Horse * Marshall Bradford as Presiding Officer *

Rick Vallin Rick Vallin (born Eric Efron; September 24, 1919 – August 31, 1977) was an actor who appeared in more than 150 films between 1938 and 1966. Early years Born in Feodosia, in the Crimea, Russia, Vallin came to the United States at age there ...

as Henshaw * Ben Wright as Prosecuting Attorney *

Michael Granger Michael Granger (May 14, 1923 – October 22, 1981) was an American actor. Born Milton Grossman in Kansas City, MO, Granger, he appeared in ''The Big Heat'' and in B movies such as '' Creature With The Atom Brain'', as well as on TV shows includ ...

as Little River * Anthony Lawrence as Reed * William Bryant as Calhoun

Production

Arthur Hiller was the director in his first production for '' Playhouse 90''. William Sackheim was the producer and also wrote the teleplay. Ray Cory was the director of photography, and

Henry Batista Henry Batista (1914-2002) was an American film and television editor active from the 1930s through the 1970s. Biography Henry Batista was born in Pasadena, California, to Henry Batista and Rose Delara, both of whom had emigrated to the United ...

was the editor. The film was produced by Screen Gems for ''Playhouse 90''. It was the third ''Playhouse 90'' film produced by Screen Gems. Steve Drumm, a Blackfoot Indian, served as the makeup and hair expert for the actors playing the parts of the Indians. He was in charge of ensuring the use of authentic haircuts, applying war paint, and overseeing scalpings. The production used approximately 75 horses. Actor John Derek emphasized the importance of the horses: "Any western star is only as good as his horse. Put a dashing hero on a drooping, plodding horse and even the most cityfied youngster would pelt the television screen . . . A spirited, prancing hunk of horseflesh is as necessary as the camera."

Reception

Donald Kirkley in ''The Baltimore Sun'' criticized the film for its historical "changes and inventions." In addition to changing the villain's name from Chivington to Templeton, Kirkley noted that the production radically altered the details of the massacre as well as the motive. The real Chivington, wrote Kirkley, was a former minister motivated by a fervent belief that Indians "were no better than wild beasts, to be exterminated when found." The script changed the fictional Templeton's motive to one of personal ambition.

References

External links

* {{Playhouse 90 1956 American television episodes Playhouse 90 (season 1) episodes 1956 television plays