4.6 /10 1 Votes
Created by Charles Vanda Narrated by Blake Ritter Final episode date 29 January 1954 Number of seasons 1 | 4.5/10 TV Directed by Bill Bode
John Ullrich First episode date 2 February 1953 Network CBS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Written by Leslie Urbach
William R. Cox
Dean Owens
John Fleming
Don Prindle
Clair Roskam
Richard Strome Starring Jack Valentine
Barry Cassell
Jean Corbett
Harriss Forrest
Blake Ritter
Mary Elaine Watts
Sam Kressen
Chris Keegan
Creighton Stewart
Marvin Stephens
Norman Garfield
Walt Barnes
John Zacherle
David Soren Opening theme Aaron Copland, Billy the Kid (Ballet Suite) Cast John Zacherle, Walter Barnes Genres Westerns on television, Drama Similar Atom Squad, Boots and Saddles, Shock Theater, Brave Eagle, The Californians | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Action in the Afternoon is an American western television series that aired live on CBS from February 2, 1953 to January 29, 1954. The series originated from the studios and back lot of WCAU, Channel 10 in Philadelphia, and was broadcast Monday through Friday regardless of the weather. The half-hour series aired variously at 3:30 pm or 4:00 pm, throughout its run.
Contents
Production
While ad-libbing his pitch for the series to the executives at CBS, Charles Vanda set the story in the fictional town of Huberle, Montana, a name derived from CBS executives Hubbell Robinson and Harry Omerle.
Action in the Afternoon is the only live outdoor western ever to appear on network television in the United States. Other live westerns existed, however Action in the Afternoon was the only one that did not include prerecorded film segments in the program. If things moved along too fast, or actors needed time to move between the indoor and outdoor sets, the time would be filled by Jack Valentine singing with The Tommy Ferguson Trio playing along.
Because the program was live and outdoors, music director Richard Lester (later to direct two Beatles movies) made every effort to hide the sounds of the world beyond the back lot. The sounds of airplanes overhead and trucks backfiring as they drove past the studio were covered with appropriate music. However, during one particular broadcast a very loud unscripted sound was heard, and was soon discovered to be a horse biting one of the many microphones hidden around the outdoor set.
Only a few video episodes of Action in the Afternoon remain. They can be viewed at The Paley Center for Media in New York City. One episode can be streamed or downloaded at the Internet Archive.
Reception
Three weeks into the broadcast, Time wrote that the "dialogue limps even more obviously than the camera" and that the series is "an experiment that needs a lot more work."