The Classic TV Archive - US Dramatic Anthology Series

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####### OMNIBUS #######

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Episode Guide
version 16.0 January 2008

(Ep 2.3)
compiled by
The Classic TV Archive

http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/Stage/2950/

with contributions by:
Rina Fox
references:
Library of Congress (telnet://locis.loc.gov)
Internet Movie Database (http://us.imdb.com)
UCLA Film and Television Archive
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OMNIBUS

November 9, 1952 to March 31, 1957

Nov 1952-May 1953 CBS Sun 4:30-6:00

Oct 1953-Apr 1956 CBS Sun 5:00-6:30

Oct 1956-Mar 1957 ABC Sun 9:00-10:30

Oct 1957-May 1961 ABC Various airtimes

Host: Alistair Cooke

Producers: Fred Rickey Directors: Bob Banner

Mel Ferrer Andrew McCullough

Cyril Ritchard Bob Miller

Don Hewitt

Delbert Mann

John Stix

Jeffrey Hayden

Omnibus has the distinction of being the most outstanding and longest running

cultural series in the history of commercial network television.

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########## Omnibus ##########

###### season 1 1952/53 #######

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1.01 [--] Omnibus: THE TRIAL OF ANNE BOLEYN

09-Nov-1952

Written by Maxwell Anderson

starring

Rex Harrison ........ Henry VIII

Lilli Palmer ....... Anne Boleyn

Synopsis:

As King Henry VIII decides to behead another one of his wives.

1.02 [--] Omnibus: MR. LINCOLN PART 1

16-Nov-1952

Written by James Agee

Directed by Norman Lloyd
Narrated by Martin Gabel

starring

Royal Dano ....... Abraham Lincoln

Joanne Woodward ....... Ann Rutledge

Crahan Denton ....... Tom Lincoln

*Note: Rebroadcast 01Feb59 in a longer version and not the five separate features.

 Filmed in Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana, it dramatizes Lincoln's formative years.

Author James Agee (Pulitzer Prize winner), is seen as an actor in a small role.

1.03 [--] Omnibus: THE TWELVE POUND LOOK

23-Nov-1952

story by J.M. Barrie

starring

Helen Hayes

1.04 [--] Omnibus: MR. LINCOLN PART 2

30-Nov-1952

written by James Agee

Directed by Norman Lloyd
Narrated by Martin Gabel

starring

Royal Dano ....... Abraham Lincoln

Joanne Woodward ...... Ann Rutledge

Crahan Denton ...... Tom Lincoln

1.05 [--] Omnibus: THE DAGGER

07-Dec-1952

(High-Speed Photography, Rowland Emett - Inventor, The Trial of Ben Johnson, Jean Sibelius)

1.06 [--] Omnibus: MR. LINCOLN PART 3

14-Dec-1952

written by James Agee

Directed by Norman Lloyd
Narrated by Martin Gabel

starring

Royal Dano ...... Abraham Lincoln

Joanne Woodward ...... Ann Rutledge

Crahan Denton ...... Tom Lincoln

1.07 [--] Omnibus: PICKWICK

21-Dec-1952

(Palle Alone in the World)

1.08 [--] Omnibus: MAN IN THE COOL

04-Jan-1953

(The Bear (aka The Boar, Letters to be Answered, Dance Congress)

1.09 [--] Omnibus: MR. LINCOLN PART 4

11-Jan-1953

written by James Agee

Narrated by Martin Gabel

starring

Royal Dano ...... Abraham Lincoln

Joanne Woodward ...... Ann Rutledge

Crahan Denton ...... Tom Lincoln

1.10 [--] Omnibus: THE SERVANT WITH TWO MASTERS

18-Jan-1953

1.11 [--] Omnibus: WHILE THE TIDE WAS RISING

25-Jan-1953

1.12 [--] Omnibus: DIE FLEDERMAUS

01-Feb-1953

starring

Lois Hunt

Charles Kullman

Jarmila Novotna

Eugene Ormandy

Brenda Lewis

Thomas Hayward

Hugh Thompson

1.13 [--] Omnibus: MR. LINCOLN PART 5

08-Feb-1953

written by James Agee

Narrated by Martin Gabel

starring

Royal Dano ...... Abraham Lincoln

Joanne Woodward ...... Ann Rutledge

Crahan Denton ...... Tom Lincoln

1.14 [--] Omnibus: THE LOVE STORY OF NAPOLEON AND JOSEPHINE

15-Feb-1953

starring

James Mason ...... Napoleon

Pamela Mason ...... Josephine

1.15 [--] Omnibus: LA BOHEME

22-Feb-1953

Puccini drama

starring

Brian Sullivan

Nadine Connor

Brenda Lewis

Alberto Erede

Frank Guarrera

Norman Scott

1.16 [--] Omnibus: THE HAPPY JOURNEY

01-Mar-1953

starring

Helen Hayes

1.17 [--] Omnibus: A LODGING FOR THE NIGHT

08-Mar-1953

starring

Yul Brynner as Francois Villon

1.18 [--] Omnibus: THE LAST NIGHT OF DON JUAN

15-Mar-1953

starring

Fredric March

Joseph Schildkraut

1.19 [--] Omnibus: THREE MAIDENS AND THE DEVIL

22-Mar-1953

starring

Agnes DeMille

*Note this title was censored by the networks from Three Virgins and the Devil to Maidens.

A ballet performance.

1.20 [--] Omnibus: LORD BYRON'S LOVE LETTER

29-Mar-1953

starring

Ethel Barrymore

1.21 [--] Omnibus: GRANDMA MOSES

05-Apr-1953

(The Drift to One Eye, Trip to the Moon)

1.22 [--] Omnibus: TOY SYMPHONE WITH STOKOWSKI

12-Apr-1953

starring

Leopold Stokowski

1.23 [--] Omnibus: MIDNIGHT RIDE OF PAUL REVERE

19-Apr-1953

also The Abracadabra Kid

by William Saroyan

1.24 [--] Omnibus: TALE OF TWO CITIES

26-Apr-1953

1.25 [--] Omnibus: ARMS AND THE MAN

03-May-1953

Based on George Bernard Shaw's play

starring

Jean-Pierre Aumont ...... Captain Bruntschi

Walter Slezak ...... Major Paul Petkoff

[--] Omnibus: THE FIGGERIN' OF AUNT WILMA
1953
Adapted by Tad Mosel
Story by James Thurber

[--] Omnibus: THIS LITTLE KITTY STAYED COOL
1953
Adapted by Tad Mosel
Story by James Thurber
starring
Elliott Reid
Carol Channing

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########## Omnibus ##########

####### season 2 1953/54 ######

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2.01 [--] Omnibus: GLORY IN THE FLOWER

04-Oct-1953

story by William Inge

starring

Jessica Tandy

Hume Cronyn

James Dean

2.02 [--] Omnibus: THE BATTLER

11-Oct-1953

written by Arnold Schulman

2.03 [--] Omnibus: KING LEAR

18-Oct-1953

Produced by Robert Saudek
Adapted by Peter Brook
Based on the play by Shakespeare
Directed by Andrew McCullough
Music by Virgil Thomson
Hosted by Alistair Cooke

starring

Orson Welles ...... King Lear

Arnold Moss

Beatrice Straight

Margaret Phillips

Natasha Parry

Bramwell Fletcher

David J. Stewart

Alan Badel

Michael MacLiammoir

*NOTE: This was Orson Welles' TV-debut.
 

2.04 [--] Omnibus: THE GOLDEN DRESS

25-Oct-1953

adapted by Arnold Schulman

story by Stephen Vincent Benet

starring

Jocelyn Brando

Perry Fiske

Raymond Bramley

Joe Sweeney

Doro Merande

2.05 [--] Omnibus: THE MAN OF DESTINY

01-Nov-1953

by George Bernard Shaw

2.06 [--] Omnibus: BILLY THE KID

08-Nov-1953

by Susan Glaspell & Elizabeth Hart

2.07 [--] Omnibus: THE RASPBERRY QUEEN
15-Nov-1953
by George Bellak
starring
Claudia Hall
Conrad Janis
Synopsis:
Story of a press agent's efforts to make a 16-year-old drum majorette

"The Raspberry Queen" of Wyandotte Valley.
Also "The Moor's Pavane" a modern ballet based on Othello with Jose Limon and Company.
And a documentary study of the life cycle of "The Sea Horse". [RF]
 

2.08 [--] Omnibus: TOINE

22-Nov-1953

adapted by Maurice Valency

starring

Walter Slezak

2.09 [--] Omnibus: THE HORN BLOWS AT MIDNIGHT

29-Nov-1953

written by Hugh Wedlock Jr. & Howard Snyder

directed by Ralph Levy

starring

Jeff Donnell

Jack Benny as the Avenging Angel

Dorothy Malone

2.10 [--] Omnibus: CAPITAL OF THE WORLD

06-Dec-1953

adapted by Arnold Schulman

story by Ernest Hemingway

directed by Yul Brynner

starring

Sal Mineo

Johnny Stewart

Anne Bancroft

John Marley

Mario Gallo

Synopsis:

Dramatization of the Hemingway story of a young man confronted with his idol.

2.11 [--] Omnibus: THE NATURE OF THE BEAST

13-Dec-1953

by Moss Hart

2.12 [--] Omnibus: MOM AND LEO

20-Dec-1953

starring

Helen Hayes

2.13 [--] Omnibus: THE SOJOURNER

(aka THE INVISIBLE WALL)

27-Dec-1953

written by Carson McCullers

directed by Robert Ellis Miller

starring

Lorne Greene as Ed Bailey

David Wayne as John Ferris

Frances Starr as Mother

Neva Patterson as Elizabeth

Johnny Kellin as Billy Bailey

Rex Thompson as Valentin

2.14 [--] Omnibus: NOBODY'S FOOL

03-Jan-1954

by Arnold Sundgaard & Tad Mosel

(2) VILLAGE INCIDENT - INDIA

Synopsis:

A live drama using the living newspaper technique written by Arnold Sundgaard.

The drama takes up the problems of a single village in India

2.15 [--] Omnibus: THE REMARKABLE CASE OF MR. BRUHL

10-Jan-1954

written by Tad Mosel

story by James Thurber

starring

Elliott Nugent as Mr. Bruhl

Synopsis:

Mr. Bruhl's life is turned upside down, when it turns out that he looks exactly like an escaped convict.

2.16 [--] Omnibus: THE DUCHESS AND THE SMUGS

17-Jan-1954

adapted by Ellen Violett

novel by Pamela Pfrankau

starring

Susan Strasberg

John Beal

Lilyan Chaunvin

Lili Darvas

Synopsis:

Story of a young girl living on the Riviera, and the conflict in her mind.

 The conflict is symbolized by her envy of a staid English family.

2.17 [--] Omnibus: NOTHING SO MONSTROUS

24-Jan-1954

starring

Lew Ayres

Tommy Rettig

Nan Boardman

Arthur Shields

Randy Stuart

Anthony Sydes

Isabel Withers

Synopsis:

Story about a crazy woman driver who blames all her antics on other drivers.

*Note: From the comic French film, "The Spice of Life" starring Noel Noel.

2.18 [--] Omnibus: SLEEPING BEAUTY IN THE WOODS

31-Jan-1954

adapted by Arnold Schulman

opera by Ottorini Repighi

directed by Robert Banner

starring

Jim Hawthorne

Jo Sullivan

Helena Scott

Frank Rogier

Rosemary Kuhlmann

Gloria Lane

Leon Lischner

George Irving

Michael Pollack

Nadia Witkowska

Helen Rice

Muriel Shaw

Patricia Bybell

Dorie Fretwell

Synopsis:

The first American performance of Respighi's opera, Sleeping Beauty in the wood.

 The opera opens with a puppet sequence in an enchanted forest. Fairies and elves

are summoned to present their gifts to the princess,

but the wicked witch arrives to cast a spell. [RF]

2.19 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

07-Feb-1954

2.20 [--] Omnibus: THE CONFIDENTIAL CLERK

14-Feb-1954

by Budd Schulberg

(1)The Confidential Clerk

(2) The Whale Who Wanted to be a Submarine

(3) Azuma Kabuki Dancers and Musicians, Paso Doble

2.21 [--] Omnibus: A TIME OUT OF WAR

21-Feb-1954

(1) A Time Out of War

(2) Yale Shakespeare Festival

(3) South African Folk Songs

2.22 [--] Omnibus: HILDE AND THE TURNPIKE

28-Feb-1954

by Alfred Sutro & A.K. Lewis

starring

Olga Fabian as Hilde's Mother

(1) Hilde & the Turnpike

(2) Undersea Research Part III

(3) A Marriage Has Been Arranged

2.23 [--] Omnibus: THE HOUSE

07-Mar-1954

Hosted by Alistair Cooke

(1) The House : Filmed drama starring Buddy Ebsen, Mabel Paige, and Jonathan Winters.

(2) Letters to be Answered : Alistair Cooke reads letters sent in by listeners.

(3) Treason - 1780: is the story of Benedict Arnold. [RF]

2.24 [--] Omnibus: THREE SKETCHES

14-Mar-1954

by James Thomas Flexner

(1) Three Sketches

(2) Shoot the Nets

(3) The New York Times

2.25 [--] Omnibus: TELL ME IF IT HURTS

21-Mar-1954

(1) Tell Me If It Hurts

(2) Arteriosclerosis

(3) Village Festival

2.26 [--] Omnibus: THE APOLLO OF BELLAC

28-Mar-1954

by Maurice Valency

starring

Oscar Karlweis

(1) The Apollo Of Bellac

(2) Omnibus in Retrospect

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########## Omnibus ##########

####### season 3 1954/55 ######

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3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

17Oct1954

by Fred Allen & Jack Roche

3.xx [--] Omnibus: THE MAN WHO MARRIED A DUMB WIFE

24Oct1954

starring

Nita Talbot

Zachary Scott

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

31Oct1954

by Joel Sayre

3.xx [--] Omnibus:  Unknown title

07Nov1954

3.xx [--] Omnibus: BEETHOVEN'S FIFTH SYMPHONY

14Nov1954

starring

Leonard Bernstein as Himself

3.xx [--] Omnibus:  Unknown title

21Nov1954

3.xx [--] Omnibus: JUST BE NORMAL

28Nov1954

starring

Darren McGavin

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

05Dec-954

3.xx [--] Omnibus: THE CONTRAST

12-Dec-1954

starring

Nita Talbot

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

19Dec1954

by John Gassner & Ed Jurist

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

26-Dec-1954

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

02Jan1955

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

09Jan1955

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

16Jan1955

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

23Jan1955

3.xx [--] Omnibus: HAMLET

30Jan1955

Based on the Play by William Shakespeare
Directed by Seymour Robbie
Host Walter Kerr
With players from the Stratford (Ontario) Shakespearean Theatre.
 

3.xx [--] Omnibus: MR. LINCOLN

06Feb1955

starring

Royal Dano ....... Abraham Lincoln

Joanne Woodward ....... Ann Ruthledge

Crahan Denton ....... Tom Lincoln

Synopsis:

A feature film on the young Lincoln has been made from the applauded series shown

on "Omnibus" in previous seasons, and will occupy the entire program.

The film was shot on location in Lincoln country in Kentucky and Illinois. [RF]

3.xx [--] Omnibus: THE TURN OF THE SCREW

13Feb1955

Adapted by Gore Vidal

Based on the horror story by Henry James

starring

Geraldine Page

Synopsis:

A governess believes she sees two ghosts who exert

a sinister influence on her charges.

3.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

20Feb1955

3.xx [--] Omnibus: THE LIVES OF HENRY ADAMS AND CHARLES FRANCES ADAMS JR.

27-Feb-1955

by James Flexner

starring

William Windom

3.xx [--] Omnibus: ILIAD (90 mins)
03Apr1955
Based on Homer's "Iliad"
Directed by Tad Danielewski
Staged by Elliot Silverstein
Music score by Gene Cines
Off-camera voice of "Homer", Michael Kane
starring
Dorothy Hart ........ Helen
Florence Reed ....... Andromache's Servant
Paul Sparrer ........ Achilles
Frederic Tozere ..... Agamemnon
Michael Higgins ..... Hector
Frederick Rolf ...... Priam
Susan Douglas ....... Andromache
Herbert Evers ....... Paris
Alexander Scourby ... Odysseus
LeRoi Operti ........ Nestor
Edgar Stehli ........ Idaios
Grant Sullivan ...... Ajax
Roger Evan Boxill ... Petroclos
Sorrell Booke ....... Dolon
Donald Harens ....... Polydamos
Synopsis:
During the 10th year of the Trojan War, which was precipitated by the departure

to Troy of the beautiful Helen, wife of the King of Sparta. [RF]
 

3.xx [--] Omnibus: UNCLE TOM'S CABIN

10Apr1955 (last show of this season)

Adapted by Ellen Violett

Based on the story by Harriet Beecher Stowe

starring

John Marriott ........ Uncle Tom

Doreen Lang ....... Ophelia

James Daly ....... St. Clare

Lynn Loring ....... Eva

Phyllis Hill ....... Marie

Irene Treadwell ...... Topsy

This three part program consists of,

1. "Uncle Tom's Cabin" the heart-rending chronicle of the slave, Uncle Tom,

who passes into the hands of one master after another.

2. "Dances From India" The prominent classical dancer of the country, Shanta Rao, and an

equally prominent player on the sarod, Ali Akbar Kahn. A singer and other musicians also take part.

World-famous violinist Yehudi Menuhuin provides an interpretive commentary.

3. "Change Ringing" a centuries old art of producing patterns of sound with bells,

is shown as practiced by students of Kent School, Connecticut. [RF]

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######### Omnibus ###########

####### season 4 1955/56 #######

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4.01 [--] Omnibus: THE BIRTH OF MODERN TIMES

09-Oct-1955

by Robert Coughlan

starring

Charlton Heston

4.02 [--] Omnibus: THE BAD MEN

16-Oct-1955

Narrated by William Saroyan

starring

Sal Mineo

4.03 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

23-Oct-1955

4.04 [--] Omnibus: ADVICE TO BATHERS

30-Oct-1955

starring

Esther Williams

Hume Cronyn

Jessica Tandy

Synopsis:

The first half of the show is devoted to advice offered by that lovely bathing instructress Esther Williams.

She has help from the Yale swimming team and a few members of the Walter Reed swimming team.

The history of swimming is covered once over lightly, and some modern strokes are demonstrated.

 The Yale University pool is the scene of this live pickup.

The other half of the show is in the nature of advice to actors, since the popular team

of Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy is seen applying makeup for,

and then performing a variety of roles.

4.05 [--] Omnibus: TOBY AND THE TALL CORN

06-Nov-1955 CBS Sun

narrated by writer Russell Lynes

Synopsis:

Antonio and his Spanish Ballet Company perform for the first half of the show.

Then there is a repeat of "Toby and the Tall Corn", the prize-winning film showing the

impact on a midwestern town of the arrival of a troupe of traveling players.

4.06 [--] Omnibus: AMERICAN BOYHOODS, CAPTAIN JOHN M. ELLICOTT

13-Nov-1955 CBS Sun

Synopsis:

Another episode in the American Boyhoods series, Captain John M. Ellicott, 96,

in a filmed interview with his daughter. Captain Ellicott reminisces about the Civil War,

 the assassination of Lincoln and the Spanish-American War. At the time of his death,

which occurred shortly after the interview was filmed, Captain Ellicott was

the oldest living graduate of Annapolis.

4.07 [--] Omnibus: SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER

20-Nov-1955 CBS Sun

based on Oliver Goldsmith's 18th century comedy of manners.

cast:

Michael Redgrave ...... Marlow

Barbara Jefford ....... Kate Hardcastle

Hermione Gingold .......... Mrs. Hardcastle

Walter Fitzgerald ........ Mr. Hardcastle

Synopsis:

The main thread of this complicated story finds the upper-class Miss Hardcastle

smitten with young Marlow. When she learns he is ill at ease with ladies,

she poses as a barmaid, thus stooping to conquer.

[--] Omnibus: preempted by SEE IT NOW an Edward R. Murrow documentary on the Nation's Schools

27-Nov-1955 CBS Sun

4.09 [--] Omnibus: THE ART OF CONDUCTING

04-Dec-1955 CBS Sun

starring

Leonard Bernstein ........ Himself

4.10 [--] Omnibus: THE ROYAL GAME

11-Dec-1955 CBS Sun

starring

Carmen Matthews

Mercer McLeod

Synopsis:

A chess-obsessed man finds that the cruise he's taken with his

 wife is populated with European chess champions. [RF]

4.11 [--] Omnibus: SALOME

18-Dec-1955

starring

Eartha Kitt ...... Salome

Patricia Neal ....... Herodias

4.12 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

25-Dec-1955

4.13 [--] Omnibus: THE BEST YEAR IN THE HISTORY OF THE WHOLE WORLD

01-Jan-1956

written by William Saroyan

directed by Delbert Mann

starring

Orson Bean

4.14 [--] Omnibus: DEAR BRUTUS

08-Jan-1956

starring

Helen Hayes

4.15 [--] Omnibus:  THE GREAT FORGERY
15-Jan-1956
Synopsis:
Story of four Americans who forged bills of credit and bilked the Bank of England

of a fortune in English money. Second feature of today's show is Part 1of

the widely acclaimed feature film "The Great Adventure" depicting some of

 the varied rhythms of nature, and filmed by Arne Sucksdorff. [RF]
 

4.16 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

22-Jan-1956

written by Alvin Sapinsley

4.17 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

29-Jan-1956

4.18 [--] Omnibus: ONE NATION

05-Feb-1956

starring

Lilia Skala as Rosica Schwimmer

4.19 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

12-Feb-1956

written by John Latouche

4.20 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

19-Feb-1956

written by E.J. Kahn

4.21 [--] Omnibus: THE ART OF BALLET (aka The Evolution of the Ballet)

26-Feb-1956

starring

James Mitchell ...... Himself/dancer

(2) The Boyhood of William Shakespeare

by Walter Kerr & Alfred Harbage

4.22 [--] Omnibus: WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL

04-Mar-1956

Narrated by Attorney Joseph Welch

starring

Lilia Skala

Vaughan Taylor

Ray Bramley

Reynolds Evans

David Stewart

Synopsis:

This is the third and last in the series on the U.S. Constitution. This episode

emphasizes the role of the Federal Judiciary in protecting civil liberties. [RF]

4.23 [--] Omnibus: THE BETTER HALF

11-Mar-1956

written by Alvin Sapinsley

4.xx [--] Omnibus: no details

18-Mar-1956

4.25 [--] Omnibus: HARVARD UNIVERSITY REMOTE

25-Mar-1956

written by Andy Lewis

directed by Delbert Mann

starring

Alistair Cooke

Nathan Pusey

John F. Kennedy

Everett Saltonstall

Leonard Bernstein

Samuel Eliot Morison

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########## Omnibus ##########

####### season 5 1956/57 ######

############################

5.01 [--] Omnibus: THE AMERICAN MUSICAL COMEDY

07-Oct-1956

written by Leonard Bernstein

directed by Charles S. Dubin

starring

Leonard Bernstein as Himself

Carol Burnett as Herself

5.02 [--] Omnibus: ANDROCLES AND THE LION

14-Oct-1956

adapted by Frank Duane

story by George Bernard Shaw

directed by Lee Rothberg

starring

Bert Lahr

Jerome Kilty

Joan Diener

Philippa Bevans

Albert Corbin

Clint Young

Mark Daniels

Alvin Epstein

Douglas Watson

George Mathews

Stanley Jay

Felix Munso

Berry Kroeger

(2) THE SILENT WORLD

14-Oct-1956

Louis Malle

Jacques Cousteau who screened his first undersea adventure on American television

5.03 [--] Omnibus: THE LAST DAY OF MANOLETE

21-Oct-1956

Synopsis:

The last day of Manolete, the great Spanish bullfighter, is recounted through the use of still photos.

 Barnaby Conrad, author of the novel Bullfight, edited the selection. [RF]

The stranger left no card / producer, George K. Arthur ; director, Wendy Toye ;

writer, Sidney Carroll ; cast, Alan Badel (22 min.)

 -- The silent world--excerpt / a Columbia Pictures release ;

 by Jacques Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle (9 min.)

 -- Rodeo / created and staged by Agnes de Mille ; director, Andrew McCullough ;

 music, Aaron Copland ; conductor, Joseph Levine ;

dancers, John Kriza, Jenny Workman, Kelly Brown, the Ballet Theatre Company (23 min.)

 -- The day Manolete was killed / producer, Barnaby Conrad (20 min.)

5.04 [--] Omnibus: MY HEART'S IN THE HIGHLANDS

28-Oct-1956

written by William Saroyan

Synopsis:

My heart's in the Highlands, the one-act play by William Saroyan first produced in 1938.

It's the lyrical story of a poet who refuses to take a workaday job in order to rescue himself,

his son and his Armenian mother-in-law from the dismal conditions in which they live. [RF]

(2) How different kinds of horses are used for sport. Sportscaster Bud Palmer narrates.

 3. Part three of excerpts from The silent world, Capt. Jacques-Yves Cousteau's film of underwater life.

(3) Almost all about horses / director, Hal Davis ; writer, Andy Lewis ; with Bud Palmer (21 min.) -- My heart's in the highlands / director, Charles S. Dubin ; writer, William Saroyan ; music, Paul Bowles ; with Everett Sloane, James Daly, Richard Olsen, David J. Stewart, Eda Heineman, John McGovern, Marilyn Siegel, Frank Bolgerm, Charles Saari, Joseph Boland, Meridith Schoonover, Dennis Patrick (44 min.) -- The silent world--excerpts / Columbia Pictures release ; by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle (9 min.)

5.05 [--] Omnibus: LET THERE BE FARCE

04-Nov-1956

directed by Charles S. Dubin

starring

Judith Evelyn

Enid Markey

Jonathan Harris

Eartha Kitt

5.06 [--] Omnibus: MOLIERE'S SCHOOL FOR WIVES

11-Nov-1956

written by Walter Kerr

story by Moliere

directed by Hal Davis

starring

Bert Lahr

Michael Strong

Elizabeth Wilson

Patricia Smith

William Shatner

Synopsis:

To provide himself with an ideal wife, Arnolphe, a bachelor, has had a girl educated

 from infancy in such a way as to keep her ignorant of the knowledge

most young ladies possess. [RF]

5.07 [--] Omnibus: PLAYS OF THE IRISH RENAISSANCE

18-Nov-1956

directed by Charles S. Dubin

starring

Siobhan McKenna

Cavada Humphrey

Frances Fullerm

James Neylin

Tom Clancy

Vince Dowling

Farrell Pelly

Synopsis:

The plays will include Lennox Robinson's The whiteheaded boy (1916) and Is

life worth living (1933), and Sean O'Casey's Juno and the paycock (1924) and

The plough and the stars. John Millington Synge will be represented

 by his Deirdre of the sorrows (1910). [RF]

5.08 [--] Omnibus: THE BLUE HOTEL

25-Nov-1956

adapted by Joseph Hurley

story by Stephen Crane

directed by Fred Carney

starring

Arthur O'Connell

Charles Aidman

William Traylor

Patrick McAlinney

Rip Torn

Jim Boles

Dan Morgan

Synopsis:

It's the story of a Swede who is confined in a little Nebraska hotel by a blizzard.

He is afraid that the other guests, though they appear to mean no harm, actually are

looking for an excuse to kill him; and his fear itself incites violence. [RF]

5.09 [--] Omnibus: A MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY

02-Dec-1956

adapted by Maurice Valency

story by Edward Everett Hale

directed by Daniel Petrie

starring

Arthur Franz

Joseph Anthony

John McGovern

Bernard Lenrow

James Coots

George Mitchell

Joe Mantell

Joan Wetmore

Frank Marth

Philip Abbott

(2) Amicable Parting

directed by Charles S. Dubin

written by George S. Kaufman and Leueen MacGrath

starring

Eli Wallach

Anne Jackson

5.10 [--] Omnibus: THE FINE ART OF MURDER

09-Dec-1956

written by Sidney Carroll

directed by Paul Bogart

starring

James Daly

Jack Sydow

Truman Smith

Jane McArthur

Bruce Kirby

Ludie Claire

Daniel Ocko

Felix Munso

Herbert Voland

Dennis Hoey

Robert Ecles

Gene Reynolds

Rex Stout

5.11 [--] Omnibus: THE CHRISTMAS TIE

16-Dec-1956

written by William Saroyan

directed by Andrew McCullough

starring

Helen Hayes

Ray Boyle

Iggie Wolfington

Synopsis:

The Christmas tie spots her as an elderly, quite genteel shoplifter. [RF]

(2) DRUG STORE, SUNDAY NOON

written by Horton Foote

story by Robert Hutchinson

directed by Andrew McCullough

starring

Helen Hayes

Jacqueline Scott

Enid Markey

Elizabeth Watts

Philip Abbott

Robert Brian

Johnny LoBianco

(3) [--] Omnibus: THE SPIRIT OF FREEDOM

is a play about Sandor Szabo's flight from Communism.

written by Joseph Hurley

directed by Charles S. Dubin

starring

Sandor Szabo

Kato Barczy (Mrs. Szabo)

Barna Szabo

Balazs Szabo

5.12 [--] Omnibus: MADELINE VISITS OMNIBUS

23-Dec-1956

adapted by Frank Dunne

written by Ludwig Bemelmans

starring

Evelyn Rudie

Renie Riano

Tommy White

5.13 [--] Omnibus: THE ART OF CHOREOGRAPHY

30-Dec-1956

directed by Charles S. Dubin

starring

James Mitchell as Himself/dancer

Agnes de Mille

Gemze de Lappe

Jenny Workman

Diana Adams

Frederic Franklin

James Jamieson

Kelly Brown

Sonia Arova

Charles Queenan

5.14 [--] Omnibus: OEDIPUS, THE KING

06-Jan-1957

produced by Robert Saudek

host Alistair Cooke

starring

Christopher Plummer ........ Oedipus

J. Robert Dietz ............ Priest

Robert Goodier ......... Creon

William Shatner ............. Palace Messenger

Carol Goodner ........ Jocasta

Donald G. Davis .......... Tiresias

Robert Carroll ............ Chorus Leader

William Needles ........... Old Shepherd

Synopsis:

The city of Thebes is afflicted with a plague; the oracle ascribes it to divine

punishment for the murder of King Laius. Oedipus, successor to Laius, pushes

zealously the search for the guilty party, so that the plague will be lifted. He is,

accordingly, horrified when Tiresias, the blind old seer, informs him that he, Oedipus,

 killed Laius, and that, further, he has fulfilled the prophecy that he would kill

his father and marry his mother. [RF]

5.15 [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

13-Jan-1957

5.16 [--] Omnibus: LEE AT GETTYSBURG

20-Jan-1957

written by Alvin Sapinsley

directed by Delbert Mann

host Alistair Cooke

starring

James Daly as General Lee

William Smithers as General Hill

William Redfield as Messenger

Dick Moore as General Stuart

Bruce Gordon as General Longstreet

Bob Allen

Wesley Lau

Ralph Stantley

James Pritchett

Frank Sutton

Fred Herrick

Mort Marshall

Addison Powell

Synopsis:

The critical battle of the Civil War is dramatized in terms of the characters

of three of the Southern leaders. [RF]

5.17 [--] Omnibus: THE BIG WHEEL -- THE BURLESQUE ENTERTAINMENT OF YESTERDAY

27-Jan-1957

[--] Omnibus: UNKNOWN TITLE

17-Feb-1957

Synopsis:

Fitness for combat service is being determined by a new series of tests

developed by the U.S. Army. [RF]

[--] Omnibus: UNKNOWN TITLE

24-Feb-1957

Synopsis:

Alistair Cooke introduces today's three features: the pantomime of Jean-Louis Barrault,

a dramatic sketch about Shakespeare's youth and a re-creation of high

living among the wealthy in the early 1900's. [RF]

5.18 [--] Omnibus: THE THEATRE BREAKS LOOSE

03-Mar-1957

written by Walter Kerr

directed by David Greene

host Alistair Cooke

starring

Lloyd Bochner

Jonathan Harris

Robinson Stone

William Marshall

(Tennis, Everyone! directed by Jack Sameth, written by Andy Lewis

starring Tony Trabert and Gussie Moran)(15min)

(And Joy is My Witness directed by Charles S. Dubin starring Pearl Lang and Bruce Marks)(15min)

Synopsis:

The drama has reflected the structure of the theater. This is the thesis that critic Walter Kerr

tries to demonstrate in one feature of today's show. He has written and narrates this chronicle

of the theater from the Greeks to the present day. There will be excerpts from Oedipus Rex

performed as the Greeks did it, and Hamlet and Othello in the style of the Elizabethan theater.

The balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet is performed in Elizabethan style and as it would

be done today. There will also be a performance of the scene as rewritten in the style of

a playwright of today. [RF]

5.19 [--] Omnibus: THE TRIAL OF CAPTAIN KIDD

10-Mar-1957

starring

Victor Jory ....... Kidd

Jerome Kilty ........ Lord Bellomont

Michael Strong ........ Darby Mullins

Edward Andrews ....... Colonel Livingstone

Berry Kroeger ....... Solicitor General

Synopsis:

Hot-tempered, ruthless, fiery, William Kidd was a respected sea-faring man. Later,

in New York City, he was engaged by a group of British merchants to protect English merchant

ships from pirates. But he took few prize vessels, there was mutiny aboard his ship, and in a

brawl he killed the leader of the mutiny. At this point he turned pirate himseld, and made some

large hauls. When he learned that criminal charges had been made against him, he returned to

New York to clear himself. Kidd was transported back to England, in chains, placed on trial

and in May 1701, hanged. There is considerable doubt that Kidd was given a fair trial, since

his guilt would have implicated the highly placed men who originally hired him as a privateer. [RF]

5.20 [--] Omnibus: HOW THE F-100 GOT IT'S TAIL

17-Mar-1957

directed by Richard Leacock

Synopsis:

A military reenactment.

5.21 [--] Omnibus: THE FALL RIVER LEGEND -- THE TRIAL OF LIZZIE BORDEN

24-Mar-1957

starring

Virginia Johnson

5.22 [--] Omnibus: THE MUSIC OF JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH

31-Mar-1957 CBS Sun

starring

Leonard Bernstein

Synopsis:

Leonard Bernstein discusses Bach, with an extended excerpt from

"The St. Matthew Passion", performed by members of the Schola Cantorum and the

St. Thomas Boys Choir. Other illustrations will be performed by an orchestra, and by

Bernstein himself at the piano and harpischord. The discussion will emphasize Bach's music

as the culmination of nearly three centuries of musical history and will show the diversity

of his appeal, jazz improvisations borrow Bach's techniques, he wrote quantities of church

music, he wrote for organ, piano, harpischord. Bernstein will also illustrate Bach's techniques

 in harmony and counterpoint through the use of tunes familiar to viewers. [RF]

*Note: This is the final show of the current series. Amateur Hour moves into this time spot.

############################

########## Omnibus ##########

####### season 6 1957/58 #######

############################

23Sep57 no details
30Sep57 no details
06Oct57 no details
13Oct57 no details
20Oct57 no details
27Oct57 no details
03Nov57 no details
 

6.08 [--] Omnibus: SCHOOL FOR WIVES
10-Nov-1957 CBS Sun
adapted by Walter Kerr
story by Moliere
starring
Bert Lahr ...... Arnolphe
Synopsis:
To provide himself with an ideal wife, Arnolphe a bachelor, has had a girl educated

 from infancy in such a way as to keep her ignorant of the knowledge most young ladies possess.
Second feature of this show:
From Princeton University, where coach Charley Caldwell and members of the

football team review yesterday's game with Harvard. Bud Palmer narrates the feature,

which also includes a brief history of college football in the U.S. [RF]

6.09 [--] Omnibus: AMERICAN TRIAL BY JURY
17-Nov-1957 CBS Sun
starring
Leonard Bernstein
Summary:
1. Last month Leonard Bernstein, American Composer and Conductor,

responded to an invitation to conduct the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.

The occasion was the dedication, via several concerts, of the new

Fredric R. Mann Auditorium in Tel Aviv. Omnibus covers this visit.
2. The other section of this 90 minute show is "American Trial By Jury".

 Boston attorney Joseph N. Welch turns to a trial which focused attention

on the plea of not guilty by reason of insanity.

This was the 1934 Massachusetts murder case of the Millen brothers and Faber.

Verbatim transcripts of the trial will be dramatized. [RF]
 

24Nov57 no details
01Dec57 no details
08Dec57 no details

6.13 [--] Omnibus: LIFE OF SAMUEL JOHNSON

15-Dec-1957 CBS Sun

adapted by James H. Lee

story by Boswell

starring

Peter Ustinov as Dr. Johnson

Synopsis:

Based on the celebrated Englishman of letters, from 1763 until his death.

22Dec57 no details
29Dec57 no details
05Jan58 no details

6.17 [--] Omnibus: THE SUBURBAN REVIEW
12-Jan-1958 CBS Sun (rerun 14Jan58 CBS Tue)
Dances choreographed by John Butler
Hosted by Alistair Cooke
starring
Bert Lahr
Pat Stanley
Mike Nichols
Elaine May
Synopsis:
Via comedy sketches, songs and dances, this special one-hour edition of "Omnibus"

will contrast suburban living in the U.S. of the 1920's with Suburbia as it is today. [RF]

6.18 [--] Omnibus: THE YOUNG PEOPLE'S CONCERT

19-Jan-1958 CBS Sun

starring

Roger Englander

Leonard Bernstein

6.19 [--] Omnibus: LA PERICHOLE

26-Jan-1958 CBS Sun

Jean Morel conducts

Maurice Valency translated the libretto.

comic opera by Jacques Offenbach

cast:

Laurel Hurley ........ La Perichole

Theodor Uppmar ........ Paquillo

Cyril Ritchard ........ Don Andres

Osie Hawkins ........ Don Pedro

Paul Franke ........ Count Panatellas

Alessio de Paolis ........ Old Prisoner

Synopsis:

Perichole was a Peruvian actress who also is a character in "The Bridge of San Luis Rey".

The opera depicts her romantic misadventures dodging the amorous viceroy. [RF]

*Note: This is a 90 minute TV version of the Metropolitan Opera production

staged by and co-starring Cyril Ritchard.

02Feb58 no details
09Feb58 no details
16Feb58 no details

6.23 [--] Omnibus: MOMENT OF TRUTH (90 min)
23-Feb-1958 CBS Sun
Written & Staged by Peter Ustinov
Hosted by Alistair Cooke
starring
Peter Ustinov ...... Marshal
Jason Robards Jr.... Prime Minister
Rosemary Harris .... Cordelia
Fritz Weaver ....... Photographer
Nancy Wickwire ..... Nurse
David King-Wood .... General
Karel Stepanek ..... Victor
Wood Romoff ........ Foreign Minister
Synopsis:
Faced with the prospect of imminent invasion by enemy forces, the prime minister

 contrives a desperate plan. He recalls from retirement the nation's military hero,

 a doddering old man whose mind can no longer cope with anything but memories

of ancient campaigns. The prime minister believes that the old marshal's reputation

will restore the people's confidence and frighten the enemy. [RF]

02Mar58 no details

6.25 [--] Omnibus: MRS. MCTHING

09-Mar-1958

starring

Helen Hayes .......... Mrs. McThing
Irwin Corey .......... Dirty Joe
Eddie Hodges ......... Boy
Sam Levene ........... Eddie
Ruth McDevitt ........ Evva
Lee Meriwether ....... Beautiful Witch
Guy Raymond .......... Stinker
Alexandra Wager ...... Mimi
Iggie Wolfington ..... Chef
Beatrice Arthur ...... Ugly Witch

16Mar58 no details
 

6.26 [--] Omnibus: BERNSTEIN LOOKS AT OPERA

23-Mar-1958 NBC Sun
starring
Leonard Bernstein ....... Himself
Laurel Hurley ....... Musetta
Marcella Pobbe ....... Mimi
Martha Moedl ....... Isolde
Frank Guarrera ....... Rodolfo
Synopsis:
90 minutes of operatic music direct from the stage of the Metropolitan Opera
in New York City. Participating will be the Metropolitan's singers and
orchestra with Leonard Bernstein conducting. Bernstein's remarks about
special characteristics of opera are illustrated with varied operatic excerpts.
Bernstein's translation of a scene from Puccini's "La Boheme" is acted out;

 then the scene is sung in Italian. There will also be the "Liebestod" from
Wagner's "Tristan", the "Credo" from Verdi's "Otello" and selections
from "Rosenkavalier", "Carmen", "The Medium", "Don Giovanni" and "Lucia". [RF]

30Mar58 no details

6.29 [--] Omnibus: THE LADY'S NOT FOR BURNING
06-Apr-1958
Directed by Stuart Vaughan
Adapted by Walter Kerr
Based on the acclaimed English dramatist Christopher Fry's novel.
Hosted by Alistair Cooke
starring
Christopher Plummer .. Thomas Mendip
Mary Ure ............. Jennet Jourdemayne
Bryarly Lee .......... Alizon Eliot
John McGiver ......... Tappercoom
Stephen Joyce ........ Richard
Gerald Hiken ......... Nicholas Devize
Edwin Sherin ......... Humphrey Devize
Ann Shoemaker ........ Margaret Devize
Geoffrey Lumb ........ Mayor
Noel Leslie .......... Chaplain
Synopsis:
The scene is England in the 1400's in the mayor's house at Cool Clary.

 A vagrant named Thomas Mendip is making things difficult by insisting that he be

 hanged - he has a poor opinion of the world. To make matters worse, in comes

a lovely young woman believed to be a witch. The mayor grows impatient. [RF]

 13-Apr-1958 no details

6.31 [--] Omnibus: THE REINDEER MEN
20-Apr-1958
Synopsis:
Two Norwegian films are featured. "The Reindeer Men", filmed by Per Host,

which shows the way of life of a nearly extinct group of nomadic Laplanders and

"Nine Lives" the true story of a Norwegian anti-Nazi saboteur. [RF]

6.xx [--] Omnibus: BERNSTEIN IN ISRAEL

1958

Directed by Richard Leacock

############################

########### Omnibus ##########

####### season 7 1958/59 #######

############################

7.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

26-Oct-1958

by James Lee

7.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

09-Nov-1958

by Nicholas Baehr

7.xx [--] Omnibus: DANCING, A MAN'S GAME

21-Dec-1958

directed by William A. Graham & Gene Kelly

prod. no. 147

hosted by Alastair Cooke

starring

Gene Kelly

Richard Button

Bob Cousy

Vic Chezzi

Mickey Mantle

Sugar Ray Robinson

Vic Seixas

Johnny Unitas

David Sime

Bill Corbalis

Charles Keosseian

Fred Orlovsky

Andy Pasinski

Milan Trnka

*Note:

Solo Dancers: Patrick Adiarte, Edward Villella, Lou Willis, Jr.

7.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

01-Feb-1959

written by James Agee

7.xx [--] Omnibus: Unknown title

29-Mar-1959

music score by Virgil Thompson

7.xx [--] Omnibus: THE STRANGE ORDEAL OF THE NORMANDIER

12-Apr-1959

written by H.L. Tredree

Synopsis:

The Normandier was a tramp steamer which was struck by disaster in mid-Atlantic

in 1918. Blackwater fever swept the ship, killing its officers and crew or rendering

them helpless. One of the survivors, wireless operator H.L. Treree, has written

a book about the ill-fated voyage. [RF]

*Note: This strange ordeal was acted out aboard a freighter in the harbor at Bayonne, N.J.

7.xx [--] Omnibus: FORTY-FIVE MINUTES FROM BROADWAY

1959

starring

Larry Blyden as Kid Burns

Tammy Grimes

Russell Nype

#############################

########## Omnibus ###########

####### season 8 1959/60 #######

############################

8.xx [--] Omnibus: HE SHALL HAVE POWER

13-Nov-1960

starring

Ludwig Donath as Lenin

Larry Blyden

8.xx [--] Omnibus: A MIDWINTER NIGHT'S DREAM

(re Lincoln Center)

01-Jan-1961

starring

Leonard Bernstein as Himself

8.xx [--] Omnibus: ROBERT ALTMAN IN ENGLAND

starring

Robert Altman as Himself

Stephen Frears as Himself

Peter Ustinov as Dr. Samuel Johnson (his American television debut)

8.xx [--] Omnibus: SUBURBAN REVUE

Mike Nichols & Elaine May production

8.xx [--] Omnibus: S.J. PERELMAN'S PAEAN TO BURLESQUE

8.xx [--] Omnibus: ARTHUR MILLER PLAYS

includes scenes from Miller's plays "Death of a Salesman", "All my Sons",

 "A View from the Bridge", "The Crucible", "After the Fall" and "The Archbishop's Ceiling." [RF]

8.xx [--] Omnibus: WESTERN HEMISPHERE - 1971
16Apr61
Summary:
Five experts, from as many nations, discuss what the next 10 years may bring

to the Americas. The experts: Samuel Hutchinson Beer, professor of Government

at Harvard University; Brazilian sociologist Clodomir Vianna Moog; Dr. Claude Bissell,

president of the University of Toronto; Dr. Paul Prebisch, economist from Argentina;

and Colombian diplomat German Arciniegas. [RF]
 

############################

######### Omnibus ##########

######### the end ##########

############################

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