Ben Jerrod

Ben Jerrod is an American serial which ran from April 1, 1963 to June 28, 1963. The series is most notable for being the first daytime drama to be regularly televised in color.[1] Michael M. Ryan played the show's title character. The cast also included Addison Richards, Lyle Talbot, Gerald Gordon, and Isabel Randolph.[2]

Ben Jerrod
GenreSoap opera
Created byRoy Winsor
Written byWilliam Kendall Clark
Directed byFred Carney
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes65
Production
ProducerJoseph Hardy
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time25 mins.
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseApril 1 (1963-04-01) –
June 28, 1963 (1963-06-28)

Production

The show was one of the least-durable soap operas on television.[3] It was created by Roy Winsor[4] and was produced by Joseph Hardy. William Kendall Clark was the writer, and Fred Carney was the director.[5] Ben Jerrod's musical bridges were produced through a guitar and percussion instruments.

Recorded on tape in Hollywood,[5] Ben Jerrod was broadcast from 2 to 2:25 p.m. Eastern Time.[6] It joined with another soap opera, House of Hope, to replace Merv Griffin's program,[7] but its ratings turned out to be lower than Griffin's show.[8] Its competition included Password on CBS and Day in Court on NBC.[5] It was replaced by People Will Talk.[5]

Synopsis

Set in the town of Indian Hill,[9] the series follows two Rhode Island lawyers defending a socialite accused of murdering her husband.[4] John Abbott is a retired judge, and his young assistant, Jerrod, attended Harvard.[9] Abbott's daughter was their "secretary and gal Friday".[5]

Cast
  • Michael M. Ryan as Ben Jerrod[3]
  • Addison Richards as John Abbott, Jerrod's older partner[3]
  • Jeanne Baird as Agnes Abbott, daughter of John Abbott[3]
  • Lyle Talbot as Lt. Choates[3]
  • Regina Gleason as Janet Donnelli[3]
  • Ken Scott as Jim O'Hara, Donnelli's boyfriend[3]
  • Peter Hansen as druggist Peter Morrison[3]
  • Martine Bartlett as Lil Morrison, wife of Peter Morrison[3]
  • Gerald Gordon as Sam Richardson[4]
  • Denise Alexander as Emily Sanders[4]
  • William Phipps as Coroner Engle[3]
  • John Napier as D.A. Dan Joplin[3]
  • Don Collier as Abel Forsythe
  • Adele Pike as Jo Helton
  • Charlotte Stewart as Ingénue
  • Isabel Randolph
  • Paul Geary

References
  1. TV Guide Guide to TV. Barnes and Noble. 2004. pp. 60. ISBN 0-7607-5634-1.
  2. Schemering, Christopher (1987). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (2nd ed.). Ballantine Books. p. 42. ISBN 0-345-35344-7.
  3. McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 85. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  4. Erickson, Hal (September 15, 2009). Encyclopedia of Television Law Shows: Factual and Fictional Series About Judges, Lawyers and the Courtroom, 1948-2008. McFarland. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-7864-3828-0. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  5. Hyatt, Wesley (October 6, 2015). Short-Lived Television Series, 1948-1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000 Flops. McFarland. p. 130. ISBN 978-1-4766-0515-9. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  6. "NBC -TV sets changes in daytime programs" (PDF). Broadcasting. February 4, 1963. p. 66. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  7. "Sponsor-scope" (PDF). Sponsor. February 1963. p. 21. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  8. Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television (PDF). New York: Billboard Books. p. 56. ISBN 0-8230-8315-2. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  9. Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 89. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
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