Anne Bancroft Patty Duke Miracle Worker 1 1960

''The Miracle Worker'' refers to a broadcast, a play and various other adaptations of Helen Keller's 1903 autobiography '' The Story of My Life''. The first of these works was a 1957 ''

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 ...

'' broadcast written by

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as ''cyberpunk''. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ...

and starring

Teresa Wright Muriel Teresa Wright (October 27, 1918 – March 6, 2005) was an American actress. She was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress: in 1941 for her debut work in ''The Little Foxes'', and in 1942 for ''Mrs. Miniver'', ...

as Anne Sullivan and Patricia McCormack as Keller. Gibson adapted his teleplay for a 1959 Broadway production with

Patty Duke Anna Marie "Patty" Duke (December 14, 1946 – March 29, 2016) was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her acting career, she was the recipient of an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, three Primetime Emmy Aw ...

as Keller and

Anne Bancroft Anne Bancroft (born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano; September 17, 1931 – June 6, 2005) was an American actress. Respected for her acting prowess and versatility, Bancroft received an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, tw ...

as Sullivan. The 1962 film also starred Bancroft and Duke. Subsequent television films were released in 1979 and in 2000.

Source of the name

The title originates in

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

's description of Sullivan as a "miracle worker

He admired both women, and although his personal finances were problematic, he helped arrange the funding of Keller's

Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and functioned as the female coordinate institution for the all-male Harvard College. Considered founded in 1879, it was one of the Seven Sisters colleges and he ...

education by his friend, financier and industrialist

Henry Huttleston Rogers Henry Huttleston Rogers (January 29, 1840 – May 19, 1909) was an American industrialist and financier. He made his fortune in the oil refining business, becoming a leader at Standard Oil. He also played a major role in numerous corporations ...

Play

Film

* ''The Miracle Worker'' (1962 film) with

as Annie Sullivan and

as Helen Keller * ''The Miracle Worker'' (1979 film) with

as Annie Sullivan and

Melissa Gilbert Melissa Ellen Gilbert (born May 8, 1963) is an American actress, television director, producer, politician, and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. Gilbert began her career as a child actress in the late 1960s, appearing in numerous co ...

as Helen Keller * ''The Miracle Worker'' (2000 film) with

Alison Elliott Alison Elliott (born May 19, 1970) is an American actress. She was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for the 1997 film '' The Wings of the Dove''. Her other film appearances include ''The Spitfire Grill'' (1996), ''Birth'' (2004), '' The ...

as Annie Sullivan and

Hallie Kate Eisenberg Hallie Kate Eisenberg (born August 2, 1992) is an American former child actress, best known for being "The Pepsi Girl" in a series of Pepsi commercials, as Marie Alweather in ''Paulie'', and her role as Erika Tansy in ''How to Eat Fried Worms''. ...

as Helen Keller

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Miracle Worker, The 1959 plays 1962 films 1979 television films 1979 films 2000 television films 2000 films Helen Keller American television films Films set in Alabama American biographical films 1960s American films 1970s American films 2000s American films