General Motors Theatre
Encyclopedia
General Motors Theatre was a Canadian
television
anthology series, which ran on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
under its various titles from 1953 until 1961. First transmitted under the sponsored title on October 5 1954, a new 60-minute drama would be presented each week. As suggested by the title, the programme was sponsored by the General Motors car company. It was effectively the same series as the unsponsored CBC Theatre, which had run its first season from December 1, 1953 to April 20 1954, with General Motors becoming title sponsor for the second season.
The series was a breeding ground for writing and directing talent such as William Kotcheff, Donald Jack
and Arthur Hailey
. One of Hailey's plays for the strand, Flight into Danger
(1956), was later remade as the feature film
Zero Hour!
, and was also screened by the BBC
in the United Kingdom
. It was a major factor in General Motors Theatre producer — and CBC Supervisor of Drama — Sydney Newman
moving to work in the UK, where he later worked on and created anthology series similar to General Motors Theatre such as Armchair Theatre
and The Wednesday Play
.
Following concerns about the series moving to a Sunday evening slot in 1956, where it would be in competition with the American
network CBS
's enormously popular game show
The $64,000 Question in the key Toronto
market (where American broadcast signals could be received from across the border), General Motors pulled out and the show disappeared for two years. It returned in 1958, after The $64,000 Question had been cancelled, under the new title General Motors Presents.
General Motors Presents was one of the very first Canadian productions to be sold to one of the major broadcast networks in the United States
. However, despite the American Broadcasting Company
purchasing thirty-nine episodes, they screened only five before cancelling the run in November 1958. On ABC, the series was known as Encounter.
For its final run in the summer of 1961, the series consisted not of originally-produced dramas but broadcasts of a bought-in British anthology series called Interplay.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
anthology series, which ran on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
under its various titles from 1953 until 1961. First transmitted under the sponsored title on October 5 1954, a new 60-minute drama would be presented each week. As suggested by the title, the programme was sponsored by the General Motors car company. It was effectively the same series as the unsponsored CBC Theatre, which had run its first season from December 1, 1953 to April 20 1954, with General Motors becoming title sponsor for the second season.
The series was a breeding ground for writing and directing talent such as William Kotcheff, Donald Jack
Donald Jack
Donald Lamont Jack was a Canadian novelist and playwright.He was born in Radcliffe, Bury, England and grew up in Britain, attending the well regarded Bury Grammar School and Marr College and later serving in the RAF in World War II .After the war he emigrated to Canada in 1951, and became a...
and Arthur Hailey
Arthur Hailey
Arthur Hailey was a British/Canadian novelist.- Biography :Born in Luton, Bedfordshire, England, Hailey served in the Royal Air Force from the start of World War II during 1939 until 1947, when he went to live in Canada. Hailey's last novel, Detective , is a mystery told from the perspective of a...
. One of Hailey's plays for the strand, Flight into Danger
Flight into Danger
Flight into Danger is a 1956 Canadian television film starring Corinne Conley, James Doohan , Kate Reid, Zachary Scott and Philip Gilbert...
(1956), was later remade as the feature film
Feature film
In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
Zero Hour!
Zero Hour!
Zero Hour! is a 1957 movie whose screenplay was written by Arthur Hailey, starring Dana Andrews, Linda Darnell, and Sterling Hayden, and released by Paramount Pictures. Zero Hour! was an adaptation of Hailey's 1956 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation play Flight into Danger...
, and was also screened by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It was a major factor in General Motors Theatre producer — and CBC Supervisor of Drama — Sydney Newman
Sydney Newman
Sydney Cecil Newman, OC was a Canadian film and television producer, who played a pioneering role in British television drama from the late 1950s to the late 1960s...
moving to work in the UK, where he later worked on and created anthology series similar to General Motors Theatre such as Armchair Theatre
Armchair Theatre
Armchair Theatre is a British television drama anthology series, which ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by Associated British Corporation, and later by Thames Television after 1968....
and The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play
The Wednesday Play was an anthology series of British television plays which ran on BBC1 from October 1964 to May 1970. Every week's play was usually written for television, although adaptations from other sources also featured...
.
Following concerns about the series moving to a Sunday evening slot in 1956, where it would be in competition with the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
network CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's enormously popular game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
The $64,000 Question in the key Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
market (where American broadcast signals could be received from across the border), General Motors pulled out and the show disappeared for two years. It returned in 1958, after The $64,000 Question had been cancelled, under the new title General Motors Presents.
General Motors Presents was one of the very first Canadian productions to be sold to one of the major broadcast networks in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. However, despite the American Broadcasting Company
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
purchasing thirty-nine episodes, they screened only five before cancelling the run in November 1958. On ABC, the series was known as Encounter.
For its final run in the summer of 1961, the series consisted not of originally-produced dramas but broadcasts of a bought-in British anthology series called Interplay.
External links
- General Motors Theatre at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Information at CBC Television Series 1952 to 1982