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Tales of Tomorrow - The Window

Last one I have. Kind of cool to see a 1950's TV studio step outside of the box.
An early experiment in TV.


This movie is part of the collection: Classic TV

Audio/Visual: sound, B/W
Keywords: Tales of Tomorrow; Classic TV; 1950's

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: rtjrrt - - November 7, 2009
Subject: This is one helluvan episode!!
In spite of what campy emoting and acting, when I first saw this episode on SciFi (they used to play this and Lights Out episodes at 4 to 5am on early Saturday morning some years back), the transition from the opening sequence to seeing the actual ABC studio and staff REALLY WOKE ME UP!! That is one hell of a concept, based on the theory of sound and picture waves bouncing out in space after the original transmission. God Bless those who spared this kinescope recording from being destroyed!! WOW!!! If I can give it 10 I would !!

Reviewer: fedupwithgarbage - - August 24, 2009
Subject: Bad quality videos
This has the beginning of "The Lost Planet" and the rest of "The Window". Would anyone happen to know if a correct version of either one of these episodes exists?

Reviewer: perlster - - August 22, 2009
Subject: stunning
I don't give five stars easily (if ever before). This is simply great television.

Reviewer: BellonaTimes - - December 21, 2008
Subject: Near-great production
Just wish they had rehearsed this one more. Or maybe it was meant to look more realistic with all the bad acting.
Cast:
Mort Abrahams ... TV Producer
Merle Albertson ... Daughter
William Coburn ... Father
Roger De Koven ... Announcer
Robert F. Lewine ... Agency Executive
Frank Maxwell ... Al (mean drunk guy in Window)
Rod Steiger ... Henry (drunk's guest)
Virginia Vincent ... Jean (mean drunk's wife)
Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner
(cast listing from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0717086/fullcredits)

Schaffner later directed "Planet of the Apes" (1968), 1970's "Patton", & 1973's "Papillon"

Compare this episode to the excellent radio dramatization of John Cheever's "The Enormous Radio" in Archive's Old Time Radio section (CBS Radio Workshop). http://www.archive.org/details/CBSRadioWorkshop

This is also similar to a couple of movies made in the 1980's, one about a homegrown terrorist attack on Charleston, SC starring Ed Flanders, the other based on War of the Worlds. Both feature realistic news broadcasts interrupted by these fantastic events

Reviewer: IAmTheRedDragon - - November 5, 2008
Subject: Amazing bit of early TV
I've been working my way through these Tales of Tomorrow episodes (my thanks to the uploader for these great and interesting shows) and this one has to be one of the most fascinating examples of early TV. The way they came out of the fake 'Lost Planet' story and revealed the film studio to the audience, with all of the crew, even the hapless-looking Kreisler watchband ad presenter, taking part 'live' in the strange mystery that was unravelling, was brilliant TV and had me glued to the screen throughout. And, there's the extra bonus of a young Rod Steiger in the play-within-a-play! Definitely a 5-star episode.

Reviewer: 2muchtv - - October 14, 2008
Subject: What TV was like before "Lowest Common Denominator" programming
This might be one of the most unusual items in the Internet Archive Classic TV collection. While none of the plot devices employed in this episode are particularly remarkable, the sheer number of dramatic risks taken by the producers is awe-inspiring. The writers showed a remarkable level of confidence in the ability of the audience to accomplish two particularly difficult tasks.

The first, of course, was the task of accepting the jarring and confusing flow of the three story lines; the faux-show that we thought we were watching when the "Lost Planet" title appeared and we saw the man and woman discuss impending doom, the pulp-novel crime of passion unfolding in 'the window' and the reality show-esque vignettes of the performers portraying the TV studio personnel trying to cope with a disrupted production. That's a lot to squeeze in to 23 minutes.

Second was the fascinating peek behind the curtain to see television production of the day. We saw an acknowledgement of the constant pressure applied by sponsors to air their 'spots.' We saw the unexpected tiny-ness of the sets and the enormous amount of equipment employed behind the scenes. We saw roles like floor manager and agency executive played out. The audience was expected to accept this narcissistic introspection and even take a moment to reflect on the state of the industry as it was now revealed.

Wow.

Watch it!

Reviewer: DrSardonicus - - October 10, 2008
Subject: Wrong Episode Title - Actually "The Window"
This is not Lost Planet. It's actually "The Window", with Rod Steiger. I give only three stars because the female lead tends to emote a bit.