''Robert Montgomery Presents'' is an American

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

television series which was produced by

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

from January 30, 1950, until June 24, 1957. The

live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film * ''Live'' (2023 film), a Malayalam-language film *'' Live: Phát Trực Tiếp'', a Vietnamese-langua ...

show had several sponsors during its eight-year run, and the title was altered to feature the sponsor, usually Lucky Strike cigarettes, for example, ''Robert Montgomery Presents Your Lucky Strike Theater'', ''....The Johnson's Wax Program'', and so on.

Evolution

Initially offering hour-long dramas adapted from successful Hollywood films, the series was hosted and produced by Robert Montgomery. His presence lent a degree of respectability to the new medium of television, and he was able to persuade many of his Hollywood associates to appear. Montgomery introduced each episode and also acted in many episodes. The program was noted for the high level of production values and the consistent attempt to present quality entertainment within the constraints of a live presentation. A drama built around the ''Hindenburg'' disaster, including interviews with survivors of the actual event, was one example of the ambitious nature of the program. In the 1950–51 season, the series finished #11 in the

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

, followed by finishing #26 in 1951–52.

Productions

The debut episode was

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

's '' The Letter'', starring Madeleine Carroll in her television debut. The broadcast raised concern with regard to how television rights to a story related to film rights to the same story.

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

produced the film '' The Letter'' (1940), and after the TV broadcast studio executives considered suing NBC and others connected with the program for copyright infringement. During its first season, the movie adaptations included ''

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'', '' The Egg and I'', ''

Dark Victory ''Dark Victory'' is a 1939 American melodrama film directed by Edmund Goulding, starring Bette Davis, and featuring George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Ronald Reagan, Henry Travers, and Cora Witherspoon. The screenplay by Casey ...

'' and Montgomery's '' Ride the Pink Horse''. Over the following seasons it adapted highly respected works but also showcased new writers and original dramas written expressly for the series. On Christmas Eve 1956, in a departure from its usual non-musical format, the series telecast Gian-Carlo Menotti's

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

'' Amahl and the Night Visitors'', which had already become an annual television event. From 1952, a repertory cast appeared on the show along with guest artists (and featured during the series' ''Summer Theater'' seasons as well). Montgomery's daughter,

Elizabeth Montgomery Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1933 – May 18, 1995) was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She portrayed the good witch List of Bewitched characters#Samantha Stephens, Samantha Step ...

, made her acting debut as a repertory player in 1951 and remained with the show until 1956.

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also made his acting debut as part of the same group in 1954. The announcer was

Nelson Case Nelson Case (February 3, 1910 – March 24, 1976) was an American radio and television announcer. Case was the son of Walter and Ethel Case. His father was a newspaperman, and his mother was a driving force in the Long Beach Community Players. H ...

. On November 20, 1950, the program presented " The Canterville Ghost", starring

Cecil Parker Cecil Parker (born Cecil Schwabe; 3 September 1897 – 20 April 1971) was an English actor with a distinctively husky voice, who usually played supporting roles, often characters with a supercilious demeanour, in his 91 films made between 1 ...

and

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Guest stars

Notable guest stars included: * Luther Adler * Brian Aherne * Eddie Albert * Robert Alda * Mary Astor * Jean-Pierre Aumont * Jim Backus * Fay Bainter *

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* Lee Bowman * Ray Boyle *

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* Sally BrophyTalent ShowSheet May 25-31, 1953: Monday May 25
''Ross Reports''. May 24, 1953. p. 7. Retrieved June 10, 2024. * Vanessa Brown *

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* Madeleine Carroll *

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* Gage Clarke (as Gage Clark) *

Claudette Colbert Claudette Colbert (koʊlˈbɛər/ kohl-BAIR, born Émilie "Lily" Claudette Chauchoin (ʃoʃwɛ̃/ show-shwan); September 13, 1903 – July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Colbert began her career in Broadway theater, Broadway productions dur ...

* Jackie Cooper * Aneta Corsaut * Kathleen Crowley *

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* Gloria DeHaven * Charles Drake"Mon. 9:30 P.M.; Robert Montgomery Presents"
''The Times-Tribune''. August 4, 1956. p. 5-A. Retrieved June 10, 2024. * Joanne Dru * James Dunn * June Duprez * Bill Erwin * Tom Ewell *

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* Mary Fickett *

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* Geraldine Fitzgerald *

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* Peggy Ann Garner * Dorothy Gish *

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* Farley Granger *

Signe Hasso Signe Eleonora Cecilia Hasso ( Larsson; 15 August 1915 – 7 June 2002) was a Swedish actress. Early life Hasso was born in the Kungsholmen parish of Stockholm in 1915. Her father and grandfather died when she was four, and her mother, gran ...

* Hurd Hatfield * June Havoc *

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* Van Heflin * Wanda Hendrix *

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* Louis Jourdan *

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* Angela Lansbury * Piper Laurie * Anna Lee *

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* Audra Lindley *

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* Diana Lynn * Jeffrey Lynn * Raymond Massey * Osa Massen"Talent ShowSheet February 22-28, 1954; Monday February 22"
''Ross Reports''. February 21, 1954. p. C. Retrieved June 10, 2024. * Carole Mathews * Walter Matthau *

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* Darren McGavin * Dorothy McGuire * Burgess Meredith * Jan Miner *

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* Chester Morris * John Newland *

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* David Niven *

* Una O'Connor * Gale Page *

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* Ella Raines * Lydia Reed *

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* Ann Rutherford *

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* Reinhold Schünzel * Martha Scott * Zachary Scott * Anne Seymour *

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* Alexis Smith *

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* Lois Smith"Today's Tops in TV"
''The San Francisco Examiner''. December 26, 1955. p. 23. Retrieved June 10, 2024. * Brett Somers *

Jean Stapleton Jean Stapleton (born Jeanne Murray; January 19, 1923 – May 31, 2013) was an American character actress of stage, television and film. Stapleton is best known for her portrayal of Edith Bunker, the perpetually optimistic and devoted wif ...

* Inger Stevens * Grant Sullivan * E.W. Swackhamer (as E.L. Swackhammer) *

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* Franchot Tone * Natalie Trundy (As Natalie Trunde) * Jo Van Fleet * Mary K. Wells *

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* Joanne Woodward *

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* Jane Wyatt * Gig Young * Frank Wilson

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
''Robert Montgomery Presents'' at CVTA with episode list
{{EmmyAward DramaSeries 1951-1975 1950 American television series debuts 1957 American television series endings 1950s American anthology television series 1950s American drama television series Black-and-white American television shows American English-language television shows Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series winners NBC television dramas