ABC Stage 67
Season 1
A weekly anthology of one-hour plays, both original and adapted from literary sources.
Where to Watch Season 1
27 Episodes
- The Love Song of Barney Kempinski
E1Episode 1The Love Song of Barney KempinskiBarney Kempinski, thirtyish and contentedly self-unemployed, leaves his Lower East Side apartment smiling and happy. On this fine sunny day he is to be married - 3 o'clock at City Hall - to his girl Francine. In the few remaining hours of his bachelorhood, Barney goes off to tour the city and sing his love song - exuberant, irresponsible and frequently dangerous - to life, love and the city of New York. - Dare I Weep, Dare I Mourn
E2Episode 2Dare I Weep, Dare I MournOtto Hoffman, a small time West German manufacturer, is a weakling-mercilessly henpecked by his two spinster cousins who live with him. As a young man, Otto's personality was crushed by his powerful father, Karl Hoffman. Otto hated his father, and will soon be rid of him. He has only to go into East Germany to bring the old man's body back to the West for burial. Also in East Germany is his mother's jewelry-which Otto's cousins would like him to smuggle across the border. - The Kennedy WitE4
Episode 4The Kennedy WitPresident Kennedy's speeches were filled with ringing rhetoric-and also with wit and humor that was eloquent and subtle. He had the gift of what comedians call ""good timing,"" and could deliver repartee with rapierlike precision. Films, stills and recordings recall famous and less well known lines from JFK's campaign speeches and calamities; news conferences (such as his celebrated exchanges with newswoman May Craig); addresses to statesmen and Nobel Prize winners; informal moments with his wife and family; and occasional problems with foreign languages. There's also an interview with David Powers, one of the late President's administrative assistants and a member of the famous ""Irish Mafia."" A close friend since 1946, Powers discusses Kennedy's tour of Ireland and his own duties during the campaign. - Olympus 7-0000
E5Episode 5Olympus 7-0000Original musical, songs by Richard Adler, about the world's worst football team, transformed into an unbeatable powerhouse by the miraculous intervention of the Greek gods. Music included: Overture / Olympus 7-0000 - Donald O'Connor & Phyllis Newman / We're Gonna Win - Larry Blyden & Phyllis Newman / What I Mean - Phyllis Newman / I Get Around - Donald O'Connor / I've Got Feelings - Donald O'Connor / For You - Larry Blyden / The Three of Us - Eddie Foy / Better Things to Do - Donald O'Connor & Phyllis Newman / For You - Phyllis Newman / Finale. - The Canterville Ghost
E7Episode 7The Canterville GhostOriginal musical version of the Oscar Wilde story with music and lyrics by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick. U. S. Ambassador Otis and his family move from America to England to live at Canterville Hall. The house is reputed to be haunted by the ghost of Sir Simon Canterville but the Otis family doesn't believe it-even after the Ghost appears. Songs included: Welcome to Canterville Hall - Redgrave, Fairbanks, Schafer, Charkham & Colleano / Undertow - Schafer, Charkham & Colleano / I Worry & If You Never Try - Walker & Noone / Rattletrap - Fairbanks / Vengeance - Redgrave / You're Super - Noone / Overhead - Walker / Peace - Walker & Redgrave. - The People TrapE8
Episode 8The People TrapIn 2067, Earth has a population of 20 billion people and there is not enough land to go around. Steve is a history teacher whose wife Adele is pregnant. The two lack the proper license to have a child so, in order to keep his wife out of prison and their child from being confiscated, Steve decides to enter a race for one of the last free acres of land in the United States (located in Yosemite National Park). - Evening Primrose
E9Episode 9Evening PrimroseThis original musical, with songs by Stephen Sondheim, is a story about a poet, Charles Snell, who decides to drop out of society and live, secretly, in a department store. To his surprise he finds a group of people already doing just that. The catch is that once inside you must stay forever. Errant group members disappear only to reappear later as store mannequins. He meets a young lady, Ella Harkins, and the two fall in love and prepare to leave. The show ends with a shot of a new bride and groom mannequin in a store window. Songs included: (If You Can Find Me) I'm Here - Tony Perkins / I Remember - Charmian Carr / When - Perkins and Carr / Take Me to the World - Carr and Perkins. Music arranged and conducted by Norman Paris, assisted by David Shire. - Noon Wine
E10Episode 10Noon WineRoyal Earle Thompson's small dairy farm in West Texas isn't a thriving enterprise until he takes on Olaf Helton, a moody, hard-working Swede. Because business starts booming, Thompson makes a point of never prying into the personal life of his silent hired hand. But one day Thompson learns that Helton's stoicism masks a terrible secret. - On The Flip Side
E12Episode 12On The Flip SideAn original rock musical, with songs by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, about a washed up teen idol (Nelson) who is coached back onto the charts by a pink-haired angel (Joanie). Songs included: It Doesn't Matter Anymore - Rick Nelson / Fender Mender - Joanie Sommers & The Celestials / They Don't Give Medals (To Yesterday's Heroes) - Rick Nelson / Try To See It My Way - Joanie Sommers / Juanita's Place Montage - Peter Matz / Take a Broken Heart - Rick Nelson / They Gonna Love It - Donna Jean Young / Try to See It My Way - Rick Nelson & Joanie Sommers / Juanita's Place - The Celestials / They Don't Give Medals (To Yesterday's Heroes) - Peter Matz. - A Christmas Memory
E14Episode 14A Christmas MemoryClassic Capote story set in a small Alabama town where he was sent to live with relatives. The young Capote (Buddy) shared his desperately lonely childhood with his cousin Sook, a gentle and eccentric spinster, and some less imaginative, mirthless relatives. The reminiscence begins in 'fruitcake weather,' time for the annual ritual of baking Christmas cakes for the people whom Sook and Buddy like and admire. - The Trap of Solid GoldE15
Episode 15The Trap of Solid GoldA mid-level company executive is assured by his superiors that he's being groomed for better things, and an upcoming project could assure his future at the company, but in the meantime he and his wife are spending themselves into near-poverty trying to "keep up appearances"--expensive house in the suburbs, pricey dinners in town with his bosses, etc.--in order to impress the higher-ups who hold his future in their hands. - Sex in the SixtiesE16
Episode 16Sex in the SixtiesDocumentary about the changing sexual manners and mores of the 1960's. Participating in the discussion are Drs. William H. Masters and Virginia E. Johnson, authors of Human Sexual Response, Dr. John Rock, director of the Rock Reproductive Clinic—and Playboy's Hugh Hefner. - David Frost's Night Out in LondonE18
Episode 18David Frost's Night Out in LondonIn foggy, swinging London, satirist David Frost introduces viewers to the late-life of the most 'in' town in the world. Heading where the action is, David goes to the posh West End, noted for its theaters, smart shops and fine restaurants; and the shady, Bohemian quarter called Soho. London is steeped in history, but on this tour, places are less important than faces: Sir Laurence Olivier, on stage to do his song-and-dance routine from John Osborne's The Entertainer; Albert Finney, who performs a scene from Osborne's Broadway hit, Luther; female impersonator Danny La Rue; and cabaret singer Libby Morris, who offers Just One of Those Things. In two comedy sketches, Peter Sellers portrays a snobbish wine taster and a bombastic BBC announcer interviewing a deep-sea diver (played by Kenneth Connor of the Carry On films). - The Light FantasticE19
Episode 19The Light FantasticLauren Bacall and John Forsythe star in this lighthearted look at dancing in the United States. The show is subtitled ""How to Tell Your Past, Present, and Maybe Even Your Future Through Social Dancing,"" and the idea is that the lives we live are reflected on the dance floor. John, who appears as a social commentator, tries to prove that the depression produced the Big Apple; that the Cha-Cha, Bossa Nova and Conga are the result of pleasant Latin-American relations; and that the gradual decline of segregation can be traced through the Cake Walk, Castle Walk and Lindy. Lauren portrays an interested observer, mostly interested in John, but she soon decides to prove a point of her own, that even the Minuet, Black Bottom, Hully Gully and Twist are clues to the emancipation of women. - Rodgers and Hart TodayE21
Episode 21Rodgers and Hart TodaySalute to the songs of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. All music program with no spoken dialogue. Songs include: I Could Write A Book / The Lady Is A Tramp / Little Girl Blue / I Wish I Were In Love Again - Bobby Darin, Falling in Love With Love - Bobby Darin and The Supremes, Lover / With a Song in My Heart / My Romance / Blue Moon / Manhattan - The Supremes, Where or When / Thou Swell / Spring is Here / On Your Toes - Petula Clark, Any Old Place with You - Darin and Clark, My Heart Stood Still / Glad to Be Unhappy / Here in My Arms / Sing for Your Supper - The Mamas and the Papas, Slaughter on Tenth Avenue - The Doodletown Pipers with Count Basie and His Orchestra, Dancing on the Ceiling / Give It Back to the Indians - Peter Gennaro, Johnny One Note -Peter Gennaro with Count Basie and His Orchestra, Wait till You See Her - The Doodletown Pipers, Mountain Greenery - Cast. Quincy Jones was the musical director. - The American BoyE22
Episode 22The American BoyThree short films which tell stories about three completely different adolescent boys: one living in the city; one in the country; and one in the suburbs. 1-Skaterdater (with Michael Mell, Melissa Mallory) Some photography by Carroll Ballard. Music by Mike Curb & Nick Venet. A boy's emergence into adolescence is given a gentle treatment in this multiple award winning film. To joyous music the camera follows a young boy's adventures on his skateboard as he and the other members of his gang expertly maneuver along tree-shaded sidewalks and steep suburban streets. When he becomes interested in a girl, and loses leadership of the group in a test of skateboarding skills, he realizes that he is leaving his childhood for a new phase in his life. 2-The River Boy (with Philip Lombas, Chrissy Lapeyre). 3-Reflections (with Carl Chu, Diane Cecilio). - I'm Getting MarriedE23
Episode 23I'm Getting MarriedOriginal musical, with songs by Jule Styne, Betty Comden and Adolph Green, about a couple soon to be married and their fears and fantasies about what married life might be like. Performed cabaret-style with twin piano accompaniment. Songs included: Getting Married (Living As One) / Love is Our Umbrella / Roots / Venetia / Forbidden Fruit (originally written for the Broadway show ""Fade Out-Fade In"") and possibly Answer My Heart. - A Time For Laughter: A Look at Negro Humor in AmericaE24
Episode 24A Time For Laughter: A Look at Negro Humor in AmericaSinger-actor Harry Belafonte produced this showcase of Negro humor, satire and self-parody. Sketches: A suburban couple (Godfrey Cambridge & Diana Sands) irritate their maid (Moms Mabley) by pretending to be white; in jail, a civil rights marcher (Dick Gregory) discusses Black Power; The clergyman doesn't show up for a funeral, leaving the nervous undertaker (Richard Pryor) to deliver the eulogy; In a barbershop routine, George Kirby plays seven parts, including Augustus X and Senator Irksen; A pool hustler (Redd Foxx) talks about poverty and civil rights; A judge (Pigmeat Markham) questions a quarreling couple (Harry Belafonte & Diahann Carroll). Songs included: Dogs - Harry Belafonte / Good Lovin' - Diahann Carroll / Jim Crow - Charles Moore & Bill Reilly. - The Human Voice
E26Episode 26The Human VoiceIngrid Bergman plays a middle-aged woman going through a psychological crisis as a love affair ends. French playwright Jean Cocteau's one-character drama unfolds in the form of an extended monologue--a one-sided telephone conversation in which the woman tries to win back her lover despite her growing suspicion that he is calling from his young fiancée's home.
