Tonight on Broadway
{{Short description|American anthology TV series (1948–1949)}}
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Tonight on Broadway is a weekly television show that ran from 1948 to 1949 on the CBS Television network. It premiered locally in New York City on April 6, 1948, and became a network show on April 20, 1948.{{cite book |last1=Brooks |first1=Tim |last2=Marsh |first2=Earle F. |title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present |date=June 24, 2009 |publisher=Random House Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-307-48320-1 |page=1404 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w8KztFy6QYwC&dq=%22Tonight+on+Broadway%22+CBS&pg=PA1404 |access-date=August 14, 2023 |language=en}}
Format
The show initially aired excerpts from Broadway shows live from the theaters in which they were playing,{{cite news |last1=MacArthur |first1=Harry |title=News of Video and Radio |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/evening-star/129999458/ |access-date=August 14, 2023 |work=Evening Star |date=October 2, 1949 |location=District of Columbia, Washington |page=C-8|via = Newspapers.com}} giving viewers a behind-the-scenes perspective via interviews with the shows' stars. When it returned in October 1949, the interviews had been eliminated, with the entire program allocated to scenes from the spotlighted Broadway production.{{cite news |title=Radio-Video: CBS to Present Broadway Scenes in a Half-hour Series Starting Oct. 2 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1949/08/04/archives/radiovideo-cbs-to-present-broadway-scenes-in-a-halfhour-series.html |access-date=August 13, 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=August 4, 1949 |page=42|url-access=subscription }}
Schedule and hosts
Tonight on Broadway was broadcast from 7 to 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesdays from April 6, 1948, until May 23, 1948, with Martin Gosch as the first host.{{cite book|last1=McNeil|first1=Alex|title=Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present |date=1996|publisher=Penguin Books USA, Inc.|location=New York, New York|isbn=0-14-02-4916-8|page= 850|edition=4th}} John Mason Brown replaced him in that role on April 27, 1948.{{cite news |title=The News of Radio: Presidential Candidates Receive an Offer of Free Time on CBS Television Outlet |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1948/04/26/archives/the-news-of-radio-presidential-candidates-receive-an-offer-of-free.html |access-date=August 13, 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=April 26, 1948 |page=40|url-access=subscription }} It returned on October 2, 1949, with Brown as host, running from 7 to 7:30 p.m. E. T. on Sundays until December 18, 1949.
Episodes and theaters
Other shows that were featured included Texas and Li'l Darlin'. Other venues from which featured shows originated included the Mark Hellinger and Shubert theaters.{{cite book |last1=Kessler |first1=Kelly |title=Broadway in the Box: Television's Lasting Love Affair with the Musical |date=April 1, 2020 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-067403-8 |page=23 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pR7ZDwAAQBAJ&dq=%22Tonight+on+Broadway%22+CBS&pg=PA23 |access-date=August 14, 2023 |language=en}}
Production
Gosch was the producer,{{cite news |last1=Gould |first1=Jack |title=A Good Try Gone Awry: Video Series Proves a Disappointment |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1948/04/11/archives/a-good-try-gone-a-wry-video-series-proves-a-disappointment.html |access-date=August 13, 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=April 11, 1948 |page=X 9|url-access=subscription }} and Roland Gillette was one of the directors.{{cite news |title=The News of Radio: CBS to Carry 'Hollywood Salutes Red Cross' on Saturday From 11:15 to Midnight |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1948/06/10/archives/the-news-of-radio-cbs-to-carry-hollywood-salutes-red-cross-on.html |work=The New York Times |date=June 10, 1948 |page=50|url-access=subscription}} Maxine Keith was the program coordinator.{{cite magazine |date=September 10, 1949 |page=12 |title=Short Scfannings |magazine=Billboard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RUUEAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22Tonight+on+Broadway%22+CBS&pg=PT11 |accessdate=August 14, 2023 }} American Tobacco Company sponsored the first session, and Esso Standard Oil Company sponsored the 1949 version.
Critical response
Jack Gould's review in The New York Times called the network debut of Tonight on Broadway "a decided disappointment for a premiere which had been heralded as a 'milestone' in television.'" The review summed up the episode as essentially an advertising vehicle for Mr. Roberts (the featured play) and said, "certainly television merits a better fate than being used merely as an animated billboard." Gould wrote that televised scenes from the play demonstrated TV's potential to enable viewers to see live theater in their homes, and he noted the contrasts between theater and television with regard to "the absolute assurance and sense of presence" of the actors and the quality of the sets. He called some of the questions in the interview segments "silly" and suggested that Gosch should relinquish the host's role in order to concentrate more on his role as producer.
Kelly Kessler wrote in the book Broadway in the Box: Television's Lasting Love Affair with the Musical, "Regardless of its longevity or apparent spotty quality, Tonight on Broadway brought viewers one step closer to Broadway."
A review in the New York Daily News said that the premiere episode "provided fine fodder for video fans" and commended Ben Sylvester for his work on the script.{{cite news |title=Televiewing |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news/130008259/ |access-date=August 14, 2023 |work=Daily News |date=April 11, 1948 |location=New York, New York City |page=28|via = Newspapers.com}} It said that the uneven nature of the production was "a minor defect, easily remedied". Overall, the review described the program as "a high-powered booster" for the theater, presenting enough of a sample of the play to make the audience want more.
John Crosby' review indicated that the show failed to achieve its goal of creating more demand for tickets to Broadway shows, primarily because of the differences between stage and TV. He pointed out that one number from Lend an Ear "wasn't exactly sensational on a 10-inch television screen."{{cite news |last1=Crosby |first1=John |title=TV and the Stage Just Don't Mix |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-miami-herald-tonight-on-broadway-t/130014989/ |access-date=August 14, 2023 |work=The Miami Herald |date=October 7, 1949 |page=24-C|via = Newspapers.com}} Additionally, he wrote, the actors were "playing to the 10th row rather than to a spot 10 feet away from their noses, which is where the television audience sits." Overall, he doubted that watching this production would encourage people to buy tickets to see the complete show in the theater.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}