Colgate Theatre is a 30-minute dramatic television anthology series telecast on NBC from 1949 to 1950. The series is unrelated to NBC's 1958 series of the same name.

Production and content

Colgate Theatre was a live television anthology series. Its episodes included a variety of comedies, dramas, and mysteries. Some were based on short stories, plays, or radio shows — the first season included the first television adaptations of the radio shows Mr. and Mrs. North and Vic and Sade — while others used scripts specifically written for television. Although top names usually did not appear on Colgate Theatre, casts included a wide variety of actors and actresses. Each episode began with a "Broadway Theater" theme playing while cameras showed the audience members take their seats in the theater, look through the program for the episode's title, and then focus their attention on the stage as the curtain rose.

Broadcast history

Colgate Theatre premiered on January 3, 1949, and was telecast from 9:00 to 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday nights from then through September 1949. On October 2, 1949 it moved to Sunday nights, airing from 8:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time from October 1949 to June 1950. It last episode was broadcast on June 25, 1950.

Critical reception

A review in the trade publication Variety described the presentation of "The Haunting Years" on January 10, 1949, as being "completely devoid of quality". It said that the episode "was supposed to be a gag of cosmic proportions but it turned out to be only a kindergarten romp," adding that all involved in the production were "victimized by the script."

Notable stars

Episodes

Season 1 (1949)

Season 2 (1949–1950)

Citations