Pre-1960 TV Horror Films in TV Terrors Forum

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Pre-1960 TV Horror Films

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PhantomXCI	Pre-1960 TV Horror Films	Lead	[-]
Apr 2 12 2:27 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I've tried to compile a complete list of pre-1960 horror, sci-fi and fantasy movies which were produced for television. I'm not talking about series (like SCIENCE FICTION THEATRE, SUSPENSE or LIGHTS OUT), but rather those weekly dramatic shows which would occasionally produce a one hour horror episode. The list is incomplete (I know I've missed episodes, and included some which probably aren't genre). Titles known to be extant are in red. Comments and additions are welcome (I will periodically update the list). ALAS, BABYLON- 1960 (Playhouse 90) ANGEL STREET- 1946 [Henry Daniell] (WNBT), 1950 (Ford Theatre), 1952 & 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre), 1954 (Pond's Theatre), 1958 (Matinee Theatre) ARSENIC AND OLD LACE [all with Karloff]- 1949 (Ford Theatre), 1955 (Best of Broadway), 1962 (Hallmark) BAT, The- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre), 1960 (Dow Hour) BERKELEY SQUARE- 1948 (Kraft), 1949 (Studio One), 1959 (Hallmark) BIRDS, The- 1955 (Danger) BURNING COURT, The- 1960 (Dow Hour) CANTERVILLE GHOST, The- 1949 (Actors Studio), 1950 (Fireside Theatre), 1950 (Robert Montgomery), 1953 (Medallion) CARROLL FORMULA, The- 1956 (Screen Directors) CLIMAX, The- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre) CRIMINAL AT LARGE- 1948 (Kraft), 1951 (Danger), 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre) DANIEL WEBSTER & THE SEA SERPENT [Carradine]- 1957 (Matinee Theatre) DARK OF THE MOON- 1949 (Philco Goodyear), 1957 (Matinee Theatre) DEADLY GAME, The [Karloff]- 1957 (Suspicion) DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre), 1954 (Ponds Theatre) DEVIL & DANIEL WEBSTER, The- 1960 (Sunday Showcase) DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE- 1955 [Rennie] (Climax), 1957 (Matinee Theatre) DONOVAN'S BRAIN- 1955 (Studio One) DOUBLE DOOR- 1947 (Kraft Theatre) DRACULA [Carradine]- 1956 (Matinee Theatre) DYBBUK, The- 1949 (Studio One) ENCHANTED COTTAGE, The- 1952 (Broadway TV Theatre) FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER, The- 1956 (Matinee Theatre) FAUST '57- 1957 (Robert Montgomery) FORBIDDEN AREA- 1956 [Price] (Playhouse 90) GHOST STORY- 1949 (Fireside Theatre) GRAMERCY GHOST, The- 1949 (Kraft Theatre), 1954 (Broadway TV Theatre), 1955 (Kraft Theatre), 1956 (Matinee Theatre) GREAT IMPERSONATION, The- 1955 (Climax), 1960 (Dow Hour) HAND IN GLOVE- 1957 (Suspicion) HAUNTED HOUSE, The- 1951 (Pulitzer Prize Playhouse) HIGH TOR- 1950 (Philco Goodyear) HOUSE OF SEVEN GABLES, The- 1949 (Philco Goodyear), 1951 (Robert Montgomery), 1956 [Carradine] (Matinee Theatre) HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, The- 1954 (Robert Montgomery) IMP IN THE BOTTLE, The- 1949 (Fireside Theatre) INEXPERIENCED GHOST, The- 1948 (Actor's Studio) INN OF THE FLYING DRAGON, The- 1960 (Dow Hour) INVISIBLE MAN, The- 1957 (Matinee Theatre) JET-PROPELLED COUCH, The- 1957 (Playhouse 90) LADIES IN RETIREMENT- 1950 (Kraft Theatre), 1951 (Robert Montgomery), 1954 (Lux Video) LIZZIE BORDEN- 1957 (Omnibus) LORD ARTHUR SAVILLE'S CRIME- 1958 (Suspicion) LORD MOUNTDRAGO- 1950 (Somerset Maugham) LOTTERY, The- 1951 (Fireside Theatre) MAN IN HALF MOON STREET, The- 1949 (Kraft Theatre), 1952 (Kraft Theatre) MARKHEIM- 1956 (Screen Directors) MARY POPPINS- 1949 (Studio One) MEDIUM, The- 1948 (Studio One) MIRACLE ON 34th STREET, The- 1955 (20th Century-Fox Hour) MR. KRANE- 1956 (Matinee Theatre) MOONSTONE, The- 1952 (Robert Montgomery) MY NAME IS JULIA ROSS- 1955 (Lux Video) NIGHT AMERICA TREMBLED, The- 1957 (Studio One) NIGHT MUST FALL- 1948 (Ford Theatre), 1952 (Broadway TV Theatre), 1954 (Ponds Theatre) NIGHT OF THE AUK- 1960 (Play of the Week) NIGHTMARE AT GROUND ZERO- 1958 (Playhouse 90) 1984- 1953 (Studio One) NINTH DAY, The- 1957 (Playhouse 90) ON BORROWED TIME- 1949 [Rathbone] (Ford Theatre), 1950 (Ford Theatre), 1952 (Celanese Theatre), 1957 [Rains] (Hallmark) OTHERS, The- 1957 (Matinee Theatre) OUTWARD BOUND- 1949 (Ford Theatre), 1952 (Broadway TV Theatre), 1955 (Front Row Center) PETER IBBETSON- 1951 (Ford Theatre) PROJECT IMMORTALITY- 1959 (Playhouse 90) QUEEN OF SPADES- 1950 (Chevrolet Tele Theatre) R.U.R.- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre) RAVEN, The- 1950 (Pulitzer Prize) RIVAL DUMMY, The- 1949 (Studio One) SIRE de MALETRIOT'S DOOR, The- 1951 (Lux Video) SHANGRI LA- 1960 [Rains] (Hallmark) SO DARK THE NIGHT- 1955 (Lux Video) SREDNI VASHTAR- 1954 (Danger) STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN- 1951 (Robert Montgomery) STINGIEST MAN IN TOWN, The- 1956 [Rathbone] (Alcoa Hour) STRANGER IN THE NIGHT- 1956 (20th Century Fox Hour) SUICIDE CLUB, The- 1949 (Chevrolet Tele Theatre), 1958 (Matinee Theatre) TELL TALE HEART, The- 1949 (Actor's Studio), 1956 (Matinee Theatre) TEN LITTLE INDIANS- 1959 (Rexall) TERRIBLY STRANGE BED, The- 1949 (Fireside Theatre) THIRTEENTH CHAIR, The- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre) THUNDER ROCK- 1955 (Pond's Theatre) TIME ELEMENT, The- 1958 (Westinghouse Desilu Theatre) TRILBY- 1950 (Studio One) TURN OF THE SCREW, The- 1955 (Omnibus), 1959 [Ingrid Bergman] (Startime) UFO- 1954 (Studio One) WHISTLING IN THE DARK- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre) WHITE CORRIDORS- 1956 (Screen Directors) WITCHING HOUR, The- 1953 (Broadway TV Theatre) Last Edited By: PhantomXCI May 17 12 1:40 PM. Edited 6 times.
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GaryP11111		#1	[-]
Apr 2 12 7:37 PM Burgomaster Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Excellent list! MARKHEIM- 1956 (Screen Directors) played on TCM a year or so ago. GARY L. PRANGE "Sic gorgiamus allos subjectos nunc." Check out my YouTube Video of the Week! (updated 8-3-09)
Wich2		#2	[-]
Apr 2 12 7:46 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Very cool stuff, Jay, and a great list to develop - but is it really kosher to consider them all "films"?
clore103051		#3	[-]
Apr 2 12 7:48 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	There's a 1955 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde with Michael Rennie and Sir Cedric Hardwicke that played as an episode of the "Climax" series.
PhantomXCI		#4	[-]
Apr 2 12 8:11 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Wich2 wrote: Very cool stuff, Jay, and a great list to develop - but is it really kosher to consider them all "films"? I totally understand where you're coming from. But I wasn't sure what to call them. Movies? TV Shows? Episodes? When I think of the stuff I used to see on HALLMARK HALL OF FAME (like PETER PAN), I refer to them as "TV movies".
Red Gargon		#5	[-]
Apr 2 12 9:03 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Awesome list - I'm drooling to see some of these. One to add - Sinister Cinema just put out a DOW HOUR OF GREAT MYSTERIES adaptation of THE BAT, with Helen Hayes and Margaret Hamilton. They give a 1960 date for it, and it's a hoot. Great companion piece the Vincent Price - Agnes Moorehead movie of the same era.
clore103051		#6	[-]
Apr 2 12 9:06 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I suppose a 1956 TV version of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir deserves mention. It was on the program The 20th Century-Fox Hour under the title Stranger in the Night. Tom Conway played the part that his brother George Sanders played in the film. The key players were Joan Fontaine and Michael Wilding. It still exists, the Fox Movie Channel aired it a few times about a decade ago.
luluthebeast		#7	[-]
Apr 2 12 9:13 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I don't know if these would count, but PLAYHOUSE 90 would occasionally do a genre piece: PROJECT IMMORTALITY (1959) ALAS, BABYLON (1960) NIGHTMARE AT GROUND ZERO (1958) FORBIDDEN AREA (1956) THE JET PROPELLED COUCH (1957) Actually, more of a sci-fi comedy THE NINTH DAY (1957)
rvoyttbots		#8	[-]
Apr 2 12 9:25 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Not sure if you would consider this one. SCREEN DIRECTOR`S PLAYHOUSE 18 July 1956 THE CARROLL FORMULA a scifi comedy. This was shown on TCM earlier this year. Also THE ALCOA HOUR 23 Dec 1956 THE STINGIEST MAN IN TOWN which was recently released on DVD. Last Edited By: rvoyttbots Apr 2 12 9:32 PM. Edited 2 times.
Rick		#9	[-]
Apr 2 12 10:36 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	ALAS, BABYLON (1960) Scared 10-year-old me plumb silly.
Wich2		#10	[-]
Apr 2 12 10:40 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	>I totally understand where you're coming from. But I wasn't sure what to call them. Movies? TV Shows? Episodes?< Understood here, too! But the Theater part of me loves the Live part of early TV... and the fact that it was inspired a little by live Radio, too... so I guess I think of it as its own shortlived animal. "Live TV"? Or the term used later, "TV Specials"? Whatever it's called - great stuff.
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PhantomXCI		#11	[-]
Apr 3 12 9:59 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Updated for posts 2-10.
rvoyttbots		#12	[-]
Apr 3 12 10:27 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Westinghouse Desilu Theater THE TIME ELEMENT 1958 and it exists.
luluthebeast		#13	[-]
Apr 3 12 11:01 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	rvoyttbots wrote: Westinghouse Desilu Theater THE TIME ELEMENT 1958 and it exists. Here's 5 of the 6 parts: http://www.youtube.com/results?rlz=1T4FUJA_enUS354US359&q=Westinghouse+Desilu+Theater+THE+TIME+ELEMENT+1958&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=w1
will		#14	[-]
Apr 3 12 12:30 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Wich2 wrote: >I totally understand where you're coming from. But I wasn't sure what to call them. Movies? TV Shows? Episodes?< Understood here, too! But the Theater part of me loves the Live part of early TV... and the fact that it was inspired a little by live Radio, too... so I guess I think of it as its own shortlived animal. "Live TV"? Or the term used later, "TV Specials"? Whatever it's called - great stuff. The problem with may epsisodes is there is no information what they are about, but I found one I don't think was listed: A Double Life (from the Ronald Coleman movie) Alcoa Hour, 1958. I also didn't see: A Voice in the Night Suspicion (1958) They don't qualify as specials because they were part of a regularly scheduled anthology show.. Isn't it standard to call them TV dramas even though some may be comedies? There is a legitimate TV movie from the fifties, The Pied Piper of Hamlin. Last Edited By: will Apr 3 12 2:10 PM. Edited 2 times.
Wich2		#15	[-]
Apr 3 12 1:17 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	>They don't qualify as specials because they were part of a regularly scheduled anthology show..< Well, as I said, that was my second choice - because the first, "movies," doesn't fit well. >Isn't it standard to call them TV dramas even though some may be comedies?< That's one other option. >There is a legitimate TV movie from the fifties, The Pied Piper of Hamlin.< An earlier one has that claim, too - Roach's THREE MUSKETEERS.
Mora		#16	[-]
Apr 3 12 1:28 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Re: "The Time Element", was there not an addendum to the telecast where Desi Arnaz steps out and offers a "logical" explanation to the proceedings, apparently to pacify nervous sponsors not comfortable with the story's fantasy elements?
PhantomXCI		#17	[-]
Apr 3 12 1:47 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	will wrote: The problem with may epsisodes is there is no information what they are about The IMDb is absolutely useless when researching TV episodes. They are never listed by the episode title (the exception being the "Hallmark Hall of Fame"). You have to search by the name of the series in which they appeared. So, searching for "City on the Edge of Forever" or "Chuckles Bites the Dust" will give you 0 results. The same thing happens when you search for "Dracula" (1956, Matinee Theatre). Nothing shows up. But if you search for "Matinee Theatre", it's listed under the 1956 season. That's why it will probably be impossible to compile a complete list of every genre production from the 1950s. The really big problem, however, is (as you said) there's just no information available about the majority of these shows. Nobody kept records... or kept them for very long. 1950s live television is still a topic waiting to be thoroughly researched.
telegonus		#18	[-]
Apr 3 12 2:22 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I've been able to find episodes by title on the IMDB. If you scroll down on the right on the search window there's are options and I find that they work, have looked for TV episodes just by title and found them without going to the series they aired on. It's a heroic job you're doing, hampered by its own time element, which is that so much early television was live, especially prior to about 1956 a lot of series, and I'm thinking of summer replacements, too, just don't have the info listed as to what the episode titles were. They may not be available.
PhantomXCI		#19	[-]
Apr 3 12 2:58 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	telegonus wrote: I've been able to find episodes by title on the IMDB. If you scroll down on the right on the search window there's are options and I find that they work, have looked for TV episodes just by title and found them without going to the series they aired on. Well, wha'd'ya know. Thanks for that info. I would never have found it by myself!
Red Gargon		#20	[-]
Apr 3 12 9:24 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Are you limiting it to one hour shows? There's a 1954 PEPSI-COLA PLAYHOUSE adaptation of William Hope Hodgson's THE WHISTLING ROOM starring Alan Napier that's otherwise worthy of inclusion, except that it's a 30 minute show.
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Pre-1960 TV Horror Films

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