Customer Reviews

Studio One Anthology

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Studio One ran for nine years on CBS and presented a wide range of dramas and received 18-Emmy nominations and a total of five Emmy wins. Its story began in 1948 when a CBS executive took one of their long-running radio programs and adapted it to television. It was one of several drama anthology series which were common in the 1950's and had a single sponsor. However, its quality was superior to many of the others.

This collection features 17 restored and remastered episodes along with bonus materials. The episodes include:

Twelve Angry Men - long thought lost, a copy was discovered in 2003.
Wuthering Heights
1984
The Arena
June Moon
Dino - Sal Mineo reprised his role here in the 1957 film.
Julius Caesar
Pontius Pilate
The Storm - an exceptionally good crime drama
Confessions of a Nervous Man
The Remarkable Incident at Carson Corners
Dark Possession
The Death and Life of Larry Benson
The Strike
The Medium
An Almanac on Liberty
Summer Pavilion

The guest stars in these episodes include include Charlton Heston, Art Carney, Jack Lemmon, Leslie Nielsen, Norman Fell, Sal Mineo, Elizabeth Montgomery, Vaughn Taylor, Lorne Greene and Lee Remick.

BONUS FEATURES:

Footage from the Archive of American Television Utilizing Interview Excerpts about Studio One
Excerpts from The Paley Center's Studio One Seminar
Interview with Director Paul Nickell
PLUS: Collectible - 52-page Booklet with Detailed Information about Each Anthology Episode

The expense is probably due to the fact that Studio One was filmed only in kinescope for the purpose of re-broadcasting across timezones. In the 40's and early 50's nobody ever considered the possibility of reruns that might go on for years and bring in a continued revenue stream. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were about the only two TV stars to have the foresight to have their show shot in 35mm. That is one of the reasons why reruns of the show "I Love Lucy" have been ubiquitous for years. The video was in good shape.

In 2002 a company named Video Service Inc released 3 DVDs of kinescopes of original "Studio One" programs (including the original play "The Defender", which became a long running CBS-TV series, "The Defenders" with E.G. Marshall. These discs brought back memories of when I original watched these shows LIVE, as they were broadcast in real-time in the early 1950s. I wished for more of these, especially the highly acclaimed - and probably the best well known - teleplay, "Twelve Angry Men" (TAM).

2008 brought my wish with this fabulously six-disc set produced by Koch Vision in partnership with the Archive of American Television (a program of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences). There are 17 dramas (well 16 plus the TV opera "The Medium") here and each runs about an hour. Most of them have the original Westinghouse Commercials (with Betty Furness) included - and thankfully they are indexed so you can skip them on repeat viewings. Some shows are missing the commercials - as they were probably from versions made for the Armed Forces broadcasts - and "Twelve Angry Men" (TAM) is one of them. This is such a riveting drama that you don't want to see a refrigerator or washing machine being sold in the middle of this jury room drama by Reginald Rose. Another Rose drama - which most won't remember is "An Almanac of Liberty", which was based on a book (published the day the play was originally aired) by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Douglas. Like TAM, and 1984 (an adaptation of Orwell's novel starring Eddie Albert) there is a message about prejudice. Rose was a master at writing these. Though TAM was later made into a movie, it was somewhat padded. Here, in 50 minutes, the story has even more impact.

I won't go into each of the plays - it's more fun to discover them for yourself - but I loved "June Moon" a play with music which was the debut of Jack Lennon and a VERY young Eva Marie Saint. Though they are on screen more than all the other actors, they are actually listed at the end of the cast because they were "unknowns" then.

The quality of the prints vary but are more than watchable and many haven't been seen in 60 years. (Note that the TAM has a Copyright 1997 by CBS notice at the end so maybe it was released and I missed it,.).

The extras include an hour-long Seminar held at the Paley Center of the Museum of Television in the 1990s with many of the writers and directors - AND Betty Furness! There's also a short interview with Director Paul Nickell from another period.

The 52-page booklet is also excellent. In addition to full cast and credits, there are essays on each play. (I found it more fun to watch the play before reading, as you will find surprises, just as when the shows were originally aired. (Try to guess which play was directed by actor Yul Brynner!)

Every theater lover must own this set. These shows are classics. Koch has already announced that "What Makes Sammy Run?" based on the book by Budd Schulberg is coming next. (This is the drama; not the Broadway musical with Steve Lawrence.). And, if sales are good, I hope there is more to come. And EVERY College library needs a copy as well.

Along with TAM, the other TV play which is most often mentioned in the "Golden Age" of television drama - "Marty" with Rod Steiger - was not on Studio One. It was on Philco Television Playhouse (May 1953). Maybe Koch can team with the Archive of Television to release these and even Playhouse 90 shows, many of which are in the AAT archives.


Steve Ramm
"Anything Phonographic"

"Studio One," a live drama anthology, was the first of the early TV drama programs that focused on the visual, always experimenting with innovative camera work and showing rather than having actors talk, talk, talk. The series received 18 Emmy nominations and five wins during its nine-year run on CBS.
"Studio One Anthology" is a six-disc box set containing 17 shows, including the original broadcast, "The Storm," and 1954's "Twelve Angry Men," a show later transferred to the big screen starring Henry Fonda. Others include "Dino" starring Sal Mineo (who reprised this role in the 1957 theatrical version), "Wuthering Heights," starring Charlton Heston as Heathcliff, Lee Remick in "The Death and Life of Larry Benson," Art Carney in "Confessions of a Nervous Man," Jack Lemmon in "June Moon," and Leslie Nielsen in Gore Vidal's "Dark Possession." Other actors in the set include Robert Cummings, Eddie Albert, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Elizabeth Montgomery, Eva Marie Saint, Lorne Greene, and Marsha Hunt.
Bonus features include "Studio One"-related footage from the Archive of American Television, a 52-page book, and a "Studio One" historical overview and rediscovery featurette. Because the shows are taken from kinescopes -- films of the original broadcasts made from a TV screen -- quality is not up to the usual DVD standard, but the material is so fascinating, it would be a shame not to have these shows preserved.

I've just watched several of the shows in this great anthology of the 1950s. I remember watching the 1957 movie "Dino", which used to show ocassionally on the late show. I tried to find a copy of this movie, but it is not in print. So, I found this early version of the movie in this anthology. It is much shorter (50 min.) than the movie version, but it is very well done. Most of the cast is different than in the movie version except Sal Mineo as Dino and his brother Tony. A surprise is seeing Ralph Meeker as the psychologist. You may know him from the 1955 movie "Kiss Me Deadly" where he played a private eye. This anthology also has Eddie Albert as the main character in "1984". A 50 minute version of this is obviously just highlights from the book, but was probably the first filmed version of it in 1953. Of course, "12 Angry Men" is outstanding, and is the first filmed version of it dating from 1954. A surprise is seeing Robert Cummings in the main role. It also has Franchot Tone somewhat miscast as the cantankerous juror played so well by Lee J. Cobb in the movie version, and Edward Albert as the bigot. I believe there are only one or two actors in this version that also appear in the movie version. For variety, it has Menotti's opera "The Medium" from 1948. As they say, these dramas are much better written than today's tv!

This collection of Studio One live dramas from the 1940s and 1950s includes some fantastic performances from the Golden Age of television. It's a pleasure to have these programs to view. 12 Angry Men is justly lauded (and rightly won several Emmy Awards at the time). Art Carney is hilarious in George Axelrod's Confessions of a Nervous Man. The other shows are wonderful as well.

Koch Vision has done a great job with both the selection of programs as well as the excellent booklet which is included in this glorious package. The notes are excellent and the stills from the programs are fascinating to see. I am looking forward to more releases in this series. Perhaps they can reissue the other Studio One titles which are now out-of-print on DVD such as The Defenders and the James Dean programs....

I purchased the 'Studio One Anthology' set for one reason, and one reason alone, to see the Robert Cummings original version of '12 Angry Men', which was a live television broadcast from 1954, 3 years before the more celebrated Henry Fonda film version.
The only thing I was disappointed with, was the picture quality, but considering it was from what is believed to be the only surviving kinescope, and was thought lost for decades, we're lucky to have it at all? I was not let down by the performances, Robert Cummings, largely remembered for his great comedy performances, was a fine dramatic actor, and here he is equal, if not better, than Henry Fonda's later portrayal, with equally strong support from another big screen star, Franchot Tone, plus Edward Arnold, this taut 50 minute presentation, written for this program, gets you in right from the start, it certainly must have impressed Henry Fonda, for it was the only film he ever produced for himself to star in? Within five minutes, you've forgotten about the inferior picture quality, and get caught up in the whole thing. Robert Cummings deserved his Emmy Award for this, and is a much underated star! For me, well worth the price of the whole boxed set, just for this one experience!

Excellent and rare.......It's amazing how you can get such rare finds through the Internet. It might be that some of such material will be great for posterity, as some of the movies are classic for their inconspicuously absent nature.

Mainly, I just HAD to have everything from ROD SERLING I could possibly find!

Although I haven't purchased this set myself yet - I really want to see the "12 Angry Men" episode included here - I found that a few episodes have fallen into the public domain. If you want to see other episodes you may want to purchase the collection Historic Classics 50 Movie Pack which contains several episodes of this live show along with other historical films.

On that set you'll find:
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1952) with Boris Karloff
The Nativity (1952) with Paul Tripp
Pontius Pilate (1952) with Cyril Ritchard
Trial of John Peter Zenger (1953) with Eddie Albert
The Night America Trembled (1957) with Warren Beatty

There are some other live television series on that set as well:
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from "Climax!" (1952) series with John Carradine
A Tale of Two Cities from "ABC Album" (1953) with Wendell Corey

And then there's one episode of "Studio One" that for some reason is on Chilling Classics 50 Movie Pack:
A Passenger to Bali (1950) with E.G. Marshall

I'd warn that the rest of that collection contains some pretty gruesome horror films.

It would be nice to have just these episodes isolated into a set on their own, like the official "Studio One" release, but until other sets come out these will have to do for now.

I purchased this almost exclusively to see the original production of '12 Angry Men', which is quite good, but not quite as compelling as the full Hollywood movie treatment with Henry Fonda, which shares three actors from this original TV production. The collection is fascinating for its breadth of stories that were turned into dramas. Some are brilliantly acted, others are a little ragged. The production values of the programs are perhaps the best one may expect for early live television, but even that is instructive in seeing how they tried to deal with such a new medium back then. For example, in a particularly charged moment of '12 Angry Men', a camera lens is clearly seen to the side on screen as the camera's operator obviously tried for a compelling alternative to what was at that moment being broadcast. It's okay of course, but some might judge these programs by modern standards that would never allow such a mistake to be broadcast; the obvious benefit of pre-recorded programming. Another obvious "weakness" of these programs is the image that is shown for each program. Black and white TV/kinescope, minimalist or avant-garde set designs, odd lighting, sudden cuts, and single shots that last for minutes, etc., can wear on the modern viewer used to slick imagery and transitions. Nevertheless, like reading a classic novel from an earlier era, one must resolve to "get through it." Doing the work pays off with great rewards.

Many of these programs are memorable for their acting. I found it most interesting, for example, to see 'Julius Caesar' played by Theodore Bikel, (who was the original Captain Von Trapp on Broadway) in one program. And Bob Cummings's version of the lone holdout in '12 Angry Men' is far different from Henry Fonda's. Finally seeing a production of Gian Carlo Menotti's "tele-opera" 'The Medium' was also amazing. The list of young or "unknown" actors that passed through these casts and that later became household names is staggering. Jack Lemmon, Eddie Albert, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Lee Remick, Sal Mineo, Ralph Meeker, Eva Marie Saint, Cyril Ritchard, James Daly, Vincent Gardenia, Charlton Heston and Lloyd Bochner are among many familiar faces, and the writing by the likes of Reginald Rose, Gore Vidal, Ring Lardner, and Rod Serling is equally impressive. Yul Brynner is listed as a director on a couple programs, as well.

To top it off, many of the programs include the inimitable Betty Furness hawking Westinghouse appliances (live) during the commercial breaks (Westinghouse sponsored the broadcasts). These are historical, too, in looking at what was sold and how it was sold, and at whom the ads were aimed.

Early television must have been a weird and wonderful world to work in, as evidenced by these productions. They were learning new things with each and every broadcast, no doubt, and yet they seem intent on acting as if this were not a fledgling industry with a tiny, but slowly growing audience. These programs cover the gamut from Shakespeare to Lardner, futuristic dystopia to the contemporary Korean War, modern courtroom drama to Biblical judgment, comedy and love stories to drama and suspense. It's a full buffet of options, and hardly something you can sit down to and watch all at once. Nevertheless, it is a worthy collection to add to one's library, particularly if one has a historical interest in television. The accompanying guide is extremely informative as well.

In the late 1940's and early 1950's, before demographics and advertising dollars determined the content of broadcast television, the public was treated to a series of LIVE dramatic performances by young writers like Rod Serling, Paddy Chayefsky and Reginald Rose, and young, virtually unknown actors like Charlton Heston, Jack Lemmon, Paul Newman and James Dean.

Programs like Playhouse 90, Armstrong Circle Theatre, The United States Steel Hour brought into people's homes original dramas of high quality and intelligence. The jewel in the crown was Studio One, broadcast on CBS from 1948 to 1958. This collection presents 17 of those dramas, preserved on film as kinoscopes, an early technique whereby a camera was set up before a TV monitor to capture the production, not for posterity, but rather to keep some kind of crude record of the performance. And thank heaven they made those recordings, for they are the only record available of live performances that otherwise would have been lost forever.

Not one of the 17 is a disappointment. While the technical quality of the picture and sound is somewhat hazy and fuzzy, the greatness of the performances and the writing shine through. Fortunately, closed-captions are available as an option. And as an added treat, the original Westinghouse commercials, hosted by Betty Furness give a portrait of post-WWII America that is indelible.

I recommend this set to anyone who appreciates high quality entertainment and only hope that more such boxed sets are available in the future. Watch these dramas and you will agree with me that this is the best television you have seen all year!