"Tragedy in a Temporary Town" is a dramatic teleplay written by

Reginald Rose Reginald Rose (December 10, 1920 – April 19, 2002) was an American screenwriter. He wrote about controversial social and political issues. His realistic approach was particularly influential in the anthology programs of the 1950s. Rose w ...

. It was originally produced for ''

The Alcoa Hour ''The Alcoa Hour'' is an American anthology television series that was aired live on NBC from 1955 to 1957. The series was sponsored by Alcoa. Overview Like the ''Philco Television Playhouse'' and ''Goodyear Television Playhouse'' that had prec ...

'' in the US directed by

Sidney Lumet Sidney Arthur Lumet ( ; June 25, 1924 – April 9, 2011) was an American film director. He was nominated five times for the Academy Award: four for Best Director for ''12 Angry Men'' (1957), ''Dog Day Afternoon'' (1975), ''Network'' (1976), ...

and sparked media attention for its portrayal of race and for

Lloyd Bridges Lloyd Vernet Bridges Jr. (January 15, 1913 – March 10, 1998) was an American film, stage and television actor who starred in a number of television series and appeared in more than 150 feature films. He was the father of four children, includi ...

ad libbed profanity during its live broadcast. Bridges was nominated for the Emmy Award for Best Single Performance by an Actor for 1957 but did not win. In 1959, the same script was produced as the third episode of the Australian anthology drama show ''

Shell Presents ''Shell Presents'' was an early attempt at Australian television drama, being an umbrella title for several different productions. It debuted on 4 April 1959, and aired on ATN-7 and GTV-9, who split production of plays for the series between t ...

'' starring

Michael Pate Michael Pate OAM (born Edward John Pate; 26 February 1920 – 1 September 2008) was an Australian actor, writer, director, and producer, who also worked in Hollywood in the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early life Pate was born in Drum ...

Plot

In a small town, a group of migrant workers are employed at an aircraft factory and live in a trailer park. When 15 year-old Dotty Fisher claims she has been attacked, a group of men, led by Frank Doran, attempt to find out who is possible. They seize a boy, Raphael Infante, and threaten to lynch him. Only a tolerant man called Alec Beggs dares to stand up to the mob in an attempt to stop them.

Cast

For the 1956 Alcoa Hour Production: *

Edward Binns Edward Binns (September 12, 1916 – December 4, 1990) was an American actor. He had a wide-spanning career in film and television, often portraying competent, hard working and purposeful characters in his various roles. He is best known for hi ...

as Anderson *

as Alec Beggs *

Rafael Campos Rafael Campos (13 May 1936 – 9 July 1985) was an actor from the Dominican Republic whose credits include ''Blackboard Jungle'' (1955), '' Dino'' (1957), '' The Light in the Forest'' (1958), ''Slumber Party '57'' (1976), ''The Astro-Zombies'' (1 ...

as Raphael Infante *

Robert Dryden Robert Dryden (February 8, 1917 – December 16, 2003) was an American actor and voice-over performer "whose acting career spanned over four decades of radio, television, theater, and film appearances." Radio Dryden played Sergeant Maggio in ...

as Sankey *

Robert Emhardt Robert Emhardt (July 24, 1914 – December 26, 1994) was an American character actor who worked on stage, in film and on television. Emhardt was frequently cast as a villain, often a crooked businessman or corrupt politician. Early years E ...

as Matt Fisher * Pete Gumeny as Reynolds *

Donald Harron Donald Hugh Harron, (September 19, 1924 – January 17, 2015) was a Canadian comedian, actor, director, journalist, author, playwright, and composer. Harron is best remembered by American audiences as a member of the cast of the long-running co ...

as Mickey Doran *

Betty Lou Keim Betty Lou Keim (September 27, 1938 – January 27, 2010) was an American stage, film, and television actress. Early life and career Keim was born in Malden, Massachusetts, as the daughter of a choreographer and a dancer, and she grew up in New Y ...

as Dotty Fisher *

Will Kuluva Will Kuluva (May 2, 1917 – November 6, 1990) was an American actor. He appeared in the films '' Abandoned'', ''Viva Zapata!'', '' Operation Manhunt'', '' The Shrike'', ''Crime in the Streets'', ''Odds Against Tomorrow'', ''Go Naked in the World ...

as Julio Infante *

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 Grace Beggs *

Milton Selzer Milton Selzer (October 25, 1918 – October 21, 2006) was an American stage, film, and television actor. Early life Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, Selzer and his family moved to Portsmouth, New Hampshire where he was raised. After graduating fro ...

as Pike * Clifford Tatum Jr. as Buddy Beggs *

Jack Warden Jack Warden (born John Warden Lebzelter Jr.; September 18, 1920July 19, 2006) was an American character actor of film and television. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for ''Shampoo'' (1975) and '' Heaven Can Wait ...

as Frank Doran * Jane White as Dolores Infante

Reception

The US production garnered press in February 1956 for actor

' emotional performance during which Bridges inadvertently slipped some profanity in while

ad-libbing In music and other performing arts, the phrase (; from Latin for 'at one's pleasure' or 'as you desire'), often shortened to "ad lib" (as an adjective or adverb) or "ad-lib" (as a verb or noun), refers to various forms of improvisation. The r ...

. Although the slip of the lip and the racial content generated some complaints, most of the public feedback was positive. The episode won a

Robert E. Sherwood Robert Emmet Sherwood (April 4, 1896 – November 14, 1955) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He is the author of '' Waterloo Bridge, Idiot's Delight, Abe Lincoln in Illinois, Rebecca, There Shall Be No Night, The Best Years of Our ...

Television Award, with Bridges' slip being defended even by some members of the clergy. The episode, during which an innocent

Puerto Rica Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

n man is targeted by a mob for a sexual crime, was cited by the

Anti-Defamation League The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), formerly known as the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, is an international Jewish non-governmental organization based in the United States specializing in civil rights law. It was founded in late Septe ...

as "the best dramatic program of the year dealing with interethnic group relations."

References

External links

* {{IMDb episode, 0507700 1956 American television episodes