"Armstrong Circle Theatre" The Bells of Cockaigne (1953)

Director:

James Sheldon

Writer:

George Lowther (by)

TV Series:

"Armstrong Circle Theatre" (1950)

Original Air Date:

17 November 1953 (Season 4, Episode 12)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Mother Son Relationship | Husband Wife Relationship | Dollar Bill | Church Bell | Father Son Relationship

Cast

Gene Lockhart	...	Pat
James Dean	...	Joey Frasier
Vaughn Taylor	...	Jonesy
Donalee Marans	...	Margie
John Dennis	...	Rivnock
Karl Lukas	...	Kreuger
William Thunhurst Jr.	...	Mike (as William Thunhurst)
Si Vario	...	Eddie
Tige Andrews	...	Sam
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Bob Sherry	...	Himself - Host

Directed by
James Sheldon

Writing credits
George Lowther		(by)

Produced by
Hudson Faucett	....	producer (as Hudson Faussett)

Original Music by
Harold Levey

Set Decoration by
Mel Bourne		(settings)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Julie Light	....	associate director

Art Department
Bob Krouskoff	....	graphic artist

Sound Department
Norman Ogg	....	audio

Camera and Electrical Department
James F. Gibbings	....	lighting (as James Gibbings)
William Little	....	video camera

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jerry Boxhorn	....	costume supervisor

Music Department
Harold Levey	....	conductor

Other crew
Allan Henderson	....	technical director

Directed by
William Corrigan		(episode "Divorces Anonymous") (episode "Flight Number 387 from Budapest") (episode "Man in the Shadow") (episode "Slow Assassination")
John Fitchen		(episode "Broadway Trust")

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Vance Bourjaily		(episode "Divorces Anonymous")
Jerome Cameron
Harold Gast		(episode "Flight Number 387 from Budapest")
Agnes Nixon
David Padwa		(episode "Man in the Shadow")
Philip H. Reisman Jr.		(episode "Three Homes for Danny")
Boris Simon		book
Douglas Stone
Don Taylor
Irve Tunick		(episode "Operation Deep Freeze") (episode "Silent Assassination")

Original Music by
Will Schaefer

Distributors

• Laser Light Digital (1998) (USA) (VHS) (For Delta Entertainment)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1953) (USA) (TV)

Runtime:

30 min

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

A little rough and a little schmaltzy, but still very nice...

I've recently discovered that many of the live teleplays of the 1950s are actually now available on DVD, so I've spent a lot of time watching them. I've seen most of the more famous ones (most of which were soon remade by Hollywood) and now I've located some of the obscure ones--ones I had never heard of or knew existed.

While "The the Bells of Cockaigne" is not the equal to such great teleplays as "Marty" or "Requiem for a Heavyweight", it was quite enjoyable. However, unlike the great television plays of the era, this one was a bit rough. The acting was not quite as fluid and stars Gene Lockhart and James Dean did flub a few lines here and there. But, considering this was broadcast live, I certainly can make some allowances. In addition, the story was high on the sentimentality scale (some might find it schmaltzy), it was still very sweet and enjoyable.

The story is about a nice old janitor (Lockhart) and a down-on-his-luck father (Dean) whose child is sick and in need of expensive medical care. I would say more, but it might just spoil the film for you.