CBS Playhouse is an American anthology drama television series that aired on CBS from 1967 to 1970. Airing 12 plays over the course of its run, the series won ten Primetime Emmy Awards and featured many noteworthy actors and playwrights.
History
The CBS Playhouse series was announced in 1966, with CBS announcing a $500,000 outlay for new scripts to film. CBS was specifically looking to "encourage authors to write original and significant dramas for television", and offered $25,000 per optioned script.New York Times: C.B.S. SEEKS OUT ORIGINAL DRAMAS. June 22, 1966. This occurred shortly after ABC announced its dramatic arts program ABC Stage 67, along with many CBS dramas.
Playhouse ultimately commissioned 13 playwrights to write scripts for the series.New York Times: Where's CBS Playhouse? October 23, 1966. The first program aired in 1967, titled "The Final War of Olly Winter", starring Ivan Dixon and written by noted playwright Ronald Ribman. According to CBS, over 30 million people watched the broadcast, making it a popular hit for the time.Advertisement from early 1967 as seen in many national newspapers.
Twelve broadcasts ultimately occurred before production stopped due to lack of sponsorship funding.New York Times: TV Drama Faces Cutback in Fall. May 22, 1970 CBS would later revive the genre in CBS Playhouse 90, which would refer back to both CBS Playhouse and the early drama series Playhouse 90 that broadcast in the late 1950s.
Episodes CBS broadcast 12 teleplays over the three television seasons between 1967 and 1970.
Season 1 (1967-1968)
Season 2 (1968-1969)
Season 3 (1969-1970)
Episode status The broadcasts have been preserved in a variety of archives, with all twelve broadcasts archived between the Paley Center for Media, the UCLA film archive, and the Peabody Awards Collection.
Awards The CBS Playhouse series of broadcasts were nominated for a number of awards over the course of its run. In total, the dramatic series was nominated for twenty-eight Primetime Emmy Awards, including ten wins, and seven Directors Guild of America awards, including three wins.Emmys.com: CBS Playhouse CBS Playhouse was also honored with a Peabody Award in 1967.Profile for CBS Playhouse from PeabodyAwards.com (accessed 11/8/2014)
References
External links CBS Playhouse at CVTA with episode list