The Frank Sinatra Show (CBS TV series)
The Frank Sinatra Show | |
---|---|
Sinatra on the set in 1950. | |
Also known as | ''Bulova Watch Time'' |
Genre | Variety |
Directed by | Jack Donohue |
Presented by | Frank Sinatra |
Country of origin | USA |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Marlo Lewis |
Producer(s) | Jack Donohue |
Location(s) | New York City, USA |
Running time | 25 minutes/48-50 minutes |
Release | |
Original network | CBS |
Picture format | Black-and-white |
Audio format | Monaural |
Original release | October 7, 1950 – November 13, 1951 |
The Frank Sinatra Show (also known as Bulova Watch Time) was an American musical variety series hosted by Frank Sinatra from 1950 to 1952. The series aired on CBS. As with many variety shows of the time, the show was broadcast live and was recorded via kinescope. Some episodes were 30 minutes long while others were 60 minutes. At least one episode aired in a 45-minute time-slot.[1]
Overview
Hosted by Frank Sinatra, the series sponsored by Bulova Watches. Sinatra would perform songs and sketches with his guests. The series is reportedly in the public domain.
In his book The Forgotten Network: DuMont and the Birth of American Television (2004), David Weinstein claims that the surprise popularity of the DuMont Television Network series Life Is Worth Living in 1952 was the final blow that led to the cancellation of The Frank Sinatra Show. He notes that controversy surrounding Sinatra's affair with Ava Gardner, along with several unpopular singles, had caused ratings to slip.
Life Is Worth Living, which averaged about 10 million viewers at a time when there were four major television networks in the United States, eroded the ratings of the show even further, to the point that The Frank Sinatra Show finally left the airwaves.
Guest stars
- Brian Aherne
- Don Ameche
- Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson
- The Andrews Sisters
- Toni Arden
- Louis Armstrong
- Eileen Barton
- Jack Benny
- Milton Berle
- Larry J. Blake
- Mari Blanchard
- Joan Blondell
- Eric Blore
- Ben Blue (regular performer)
- Victor Borge
- Jimmy Boyd
- Joe Bushkin
- Jean Carroll
- Perry Como
- Jackie Coogan
- Broderick Crawford
- Arlene Dahl
- Dagmar
- Cass Daley
- Denise Darcel
- Laraine Day
- Yvonne De Carlo
- George DeWitt
- Leo Durocher
- Faye Emerson
- Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
- Sidney Fields
- Frank Fontaine
- Tennessee Ernie Ford
- Phil Foster
- Zsa Zsa Gabor
- Jack Gilford
- Jackie Gleason
- Larry Griswold
- Edmund Gwenn
- Toni Harper
- Dick Haymes
- Skitch Henderson
- June Hutton (regular performer)
- Beatrice Kay
- Betty and Jane Kean
- Buster Keaton
- Pert Kelton
- Irv Kupcinet
- Frankie Laine
- Muriel Landers
- Joe Laurie, Jr.
- Peggy Lee
- Ben Lessy
- Liberace
- Diana Lynn
- Hal March and Bob Sweeney
- James Mason
- Pamela Mason
- Marilyn Maxwell
- Mike Mazurki
- George McManus
- Borrah Minevitch
- Garry Moore
- Patricia Morison
- Alan Mowbray
- Jan Murray
- J. Carrol Naish
- Conrad Nagel
- The Pied Pipers
- Roger Price
- Basil Rathbone
- Phil Silvers
- Walter Slezak
- Smith & Dale
- Harold J. Stone
- Yma Sumac
- Grady Sutton
- George Tobias
- The Three Stooges
- Rudy Vallée
- Sarah Vaughan
- Nancy Walker
- Marie Wilson
- Alan Young
References
- Weinstein, David (2004). The Forgotten Network: DuMont and the Birth of American Television. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. ISBN 1-59213-245-6.
External links
- The Frank Sinatra Show at the Internet Movie Database
- A film clip of The Frank Sinatra Show is available at the Internet Archive
- The Frank Sinatra Show (1950–52)