FORD 50th {FIFTIETH} ANNIVERSARY SHOW, THE (TV)
Summary
A special two-hour retrospective of American social history from the turn of the century to the present. Edward R. Murrow speaks for the American mind; Kukla and Ollie for the imagination; Mary Martin for the American heart; Oscar Hammerstein II for the spirit; and Wally Cox represents the average bumbling, earnest Great American Male. Highlights include the following: Howard Lindsay and Dorothy Stickney in a scene from Lindsay and Russel Crouse's long-running play "Life with Father"; Kukla and Ollie narrate "By the Beautiful Sea," a dance sequence following changing fashions in beachwear; Hammerstein portrays the Stage Manager and Martin plays Emily Webb in a scene from Thornton Wilder's "Our Town"; Kukla and Ollie sing "There's Nothing Like the Model T," accompanied by clips from silent films, including Harold Lloyd in a Model T; Murrow describes how Henry Ford and the Ford assembly line influenced the American economy and the lives of workers; Ethel Merman sings Irving Berlin's "Alexander's Ragtime Band"; Hammerstein discusses his ignorance of world affairs when he traveled across Europe in 1913 and narrates clips from silent movies including Theda Bara in "A Fool There Was" (1914); Charlie Chaplin and Marie Dressler in "Tillie's Punctured Romance" (1914); Lillian Gish in "The Birth of a Nation" (1915); and Rudolph Valentino in a tango from "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" (1921); Wally Cox offers advice on relaxation techniques; Merman sings the World War I song "Hinky Dinky Parlez-Vous"; Martin illustrates changing women's fashions from 1903 to the present; Kukla and Ollie present clips from documentary newsreels; Cox plays the ukulele; Hammerstein introduces clips from movies reflecting Americans feelings; Merman and Martin as the "Happiness Boys" recreate a vaudeville routine, lip-syncing to "Down in Norfolk Town"; Oliver J. Dragon presents more documentary newsreels from the 1920s. The first hour closes with a 1920s dance sequence set in front of a speakeasy.
The second hour continues with the 1929 stock market crash. Murrow offers statistics about the Depression; newscaster Lowell Thomas reads a radio broadcast tale about heroism, introduces a radio clip of "Amos 'n' Andy" and illustrates the crooner craze in each decade with songs by Rudy Vallee, Bing Crosby (on film singing "White Christmas"), Frank Sinatra (singing "You Go to My Head" and "Old Black Magic"), and Eddie Fisher (singing "I Believe"). Cox attempts to learn to dance from a book, followed by a sequence demonstrating popular dances from the waltz to the lindy. To illustrate America's interest in serious music, Marian Anderson sings "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands." Other highlights include: Murrow narrates radio and film highlights of World War II; Merman and Martin perform a twelve-minute medley of popular songs including "There's No Business Like Show Business," "A Cock-Eyed Optimist," "By the Light of the Silvery Moon," "Wait Till the Sun Shines Nellie," "The Sheikh of Araby," "Melancholy Baby," "You Made Me Love You," a duet of "I Get a Kick Out of You" and "I've Got You Under My Skin," "My Heart Belongs to Daddy," "I Got Rhythm," and "Tea for Two"; Kukla and Ollie comment on American imagination; and in front of a film of the A-bomb's mushroom cloud, Murrow and Hammerstein discuss the future, editorializing that the people who invented war had better invent peace. They remark that America, the nation with the power, should take the lead in designing peace, noting peacetime uses for atomic power. Murrow advocates patience and tolerance with our allies, acknowledges that we are unlikely to solve problems with either dollars or with bombs, and adds that America should not confuse dissent with disloyalty. Henry Ford II offers an optimistic outlook for the next fifty years and producer Leland Hayward introduces Marian Anderson who concludes the program with "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." This special aired on CBS and NBC.
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: June 15, 1953 Monday 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:57:34
- COLOR/B&W: B&W
- CATALOG ID: T77:0204
- GENRE: Specials; Music/Variety
- SUBJECT HEADING: Dance; Fashion; Music, popular (songs, etc.); Puppets; U S - Social life and customs; World War II; Women's Collection - Music
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV, 1953
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Leland Hayward … Producer
- Clark Jones … Director
- Marshall Jamison … Director, Scenes from "Life with Father" and "Our Town" staged by
- Frederick Lewis Allen … Writer
- Agnes Rogers … Writer
- Sidney Olson … Writer
- Howard Teichman … Writer
- Lois Long … Writer, Fashion commentary written by
- Bernard Green … Music by, Music (Misc. Credits), Musical direction by
- Jerome Robbins … Choreographer
- Ethel Merman … Singer
- Marian Anderson … Singer
- Rudy Vallee … Singer
- Bing Crosby … Singer
- Eddie Fisher … Singer
- Frank Sinatra … Singer
- Ray Carter … Music (Misc. Credits), Assistant to Mr. Green
- Jay Blackton … Music (Misc. Credits), Popular song duet arranged and conducted by
- Edward R. Murrow … Host
- Kukla … Host
- Ollie … Host
- Lowell Thomas … Commentator
- Burr Tillstrom … Performer
- Henry Ford II … Guest
- Oscar Hammerstein II … Cast, the Stage Manager
- Mary Martin … Cast, Emily Webb
- Howard Lindsay … Cast, Clarence Day
- Dorothy Stickney … Cast, Mrs. Day
- Wally Cox … Cast, the Great American Male