Tag Archives: N.E.T. Playhouse

Balladeer’s Blog’s Forgotten Television category takes its final look at episodes of the 1966-1972 series N.E.T. Playhouse. For the opening look at the 1966 episodes click HERE. 

LORRAINE HANSBURY: TO BE YOUNG, GIFTED AND BLACK (January 20th) – A 90-minute biography of African-American playwright Lorraine Hansbury, whose works include A Raisin in the Sun. Her husband Robert Nemiroff wrote this drama which includes performances of scenes from her plays. Ruby Dee, Roy Scheider, Blythe Danner, Barbara Barrie and Claudia McNeil were among the cast members. 

GALILEO (January 27th) – An airing of the 1968 Italian film about the famed scientist who was charged with heresy for agreeing with Copernicus by refuting the notion that the sun and the planets revolved around the Earth. Liliana Cavani directed this 1 hour and 45 minute production starring Cyril Cusack.   

HARRIET (February 3rd) – Adaptation of the 1943 stage drama about the life of Harriet Beecher Stowe. The drama follows Stowe from her early fantasy writings through her important novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, an indictment of the Democrats’ “peculiar institution” of slavery. Kitty Winn, Gretchen Corbett, Dolph Sweet, Richard Dysart and Madeleine Sherwood starred. 90 minutes. Continue reading →

Balladeer’s Blog

Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at the 1971 episodes of N.E.T. Playhouse. For the opening look at the 1966 episodes click HERE. 

LAY DOWN YOUR ARMS (January 7th) – A 1970 British telefilm. This comedy dealt with an eccentric young British genius drafted to work as a Russian translator for the military intelligence service during Egypt’s 1956 bid to nationalize the Suez Canal. During the resulting crisis, the young genius steals some classified documents to try to impress his mocking family members and chaos follows. 90 minutes.  

AN IDEAL HUSBAND (January 14th) – Adaptation of the play by Oscar Wilde. THE Jeremy Brett starred as the good guy, Viscount Arthur Goring, who takes action when the brother of his lady love Mabel Chiltern (Susan Hampshire) is being blackmailed by a conniving socialite (Margaret Leighton). Originally aired in England in 1969. 90 minutes. 

A MEMORY OF TWO MONDAYS (January 28th) – This was a 90-minute production of Arthur Miller’s memorable play about several days in the lives of blue-collar workers during the Great Depression. Among the cast members were Harvey Keitel, Estelle Parsons, Tony Lo Bianco, Jerry Stiller, Dick Van Patten, Jack Warden, Cathy Burns and J.D. Cannon.  Continue reading →

Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at the 1970 episodes of N.E.T. Playhouse. For the opening look at the 1966 episodes click HERE.

THOUGHTS OF THE ARTIST ON LEAVING THE SIXTIES (January 1st) – Assorted figures performed, did selected readings and offered perspectives on moving into a new decade. Among those appearing: Christopher Walken, Jessica Tandy, Fred Rogers, George Carlin and Dick Gregory. An entire version of Edward Albee’s short play The Sandbox was enacted, as well. Approximately 60 minutes for the bulk of the show and 30 minutes for The Sandbox.

VOLPONE (January 8th) – Canadian adaptation of the Ben Jonson comedy from 1605. The title character tries to con favors out of well to do associates by pretending to be dying. 81 minutes but stretched to 90 with a 9-minute animated short from Poland titled The Composer and His Muse. The short has no dialogue. 

HAMILE (January 15th) – A Ghanaian adaptation of Hamlet written by that nation’s Joe C. De Graft and performed by actors from the National Theatre of Ghana. De Graft sets the action in Tongo, changes the names Hamlet and Laertes to Hamile and Laitu, plus he adapts swordplay into traditional Ghanaian wrestling in this 2-hour production.      Continue reading →

From Balladeer’s Blog’s Forgotten Television category, it’s a look at the 1969 episodes of N.E.T. Playhouse. For the opening look at the 1966 episodes click HERE.

THE TIN WHISTLE (January 10th) – Barbara Bosson starred in this 80-minute adaptation of Richard S. Burdick’s play about 12-year-old Martin Palmer, who channels his newly discovered powers of witchcraft through his tin whistle. Martin targets two teachers who have tried to discipline him. A 10-minute short film, Eugene Atget, which looks at the man’s Belle Epoque photos, padded the runtime to 90 minutes.

THE NATIONAL THEATER OF THE DEAF (January 17th) – The first part of this hour-long production featured members of the National Theater of the Deaf reciting, miming and signing poetry by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, William Blake, Yang Ti, Robert T. Panara and others. The second part saw the theater members performing an adaptation of Puccini’s comedy Gianni Schicchi. The production used instruments specially designed by French sculptor Francois Baschet, which produce vibrations discernible to the deaf. 

SILENT SONG (January 24th) – Filmed version of Hugh Leonard and Frank O’Connor’s play with only partial dialogue and the rest in mime. In a trappist monastery, the monks honor their vows of silence but indulge in vices like drinking and betting on horse races. The 75-minute effort starred Tony Selby, Milo O’Shea and Jack MacGowran. Continue reading →

Balladeer’s Blog’s year by year look at the forgotten N.E.T. Playhouse continues with the program’s 1968 offerings. For the opening look at the 1966 episodes click HERE.

1968

AUTO STOP (January 5th) – Henry (David Hemmings) is told by Federika, the older woman he is pursuing, that he needs to gain more experience in the world before she’ll entertain the thought of a romance with him. Henry takes her seriously and roams around Europe, loving and leaving women his own age, encountering a Neo-Nazi and attending a La Dolce Vita party in Rome. N.E.T. Playhouse paired this 75-minute film with the 8-minute cartoon short Tamer of Wild Horses from Yugoslavia’s Zagred Animation. 

HOME (January 19th) – A 90-minute musical about the threat of overpopulation set among a honeycomb of rooms in which citizens of the future must spend their lives due to the dictates of the government. They live in these small chambers, own nothing and are forbidden to travel. Written by Megan Terry, noted for her 1966 anti-war musical Viet Rock. Edward Winter, Joel Fabiani, Dennis Patrick, Roger Davis, Irene Dailey, Louise Latham and others starred.

A PASSAGE TO INDIA (January 26th) – Long before the theatrical film came this teleplay that was first broadcast on the BBC’s Play of the Month in November, 1965. The cast of this 90-minute adaptation of the E.M. Forster novel included Sybil Thorndike, Virginia McKenna, Cyril Cusack and Zia Mohyeddin. Drama involving life and race relations in 1920s India under the Raj. Continue reading →