Off the Record (TV series)

Not to be confused with Off the Record with Michael Landsberg.
Off the Record
StarringZero Mostel
Joey Faye
Mimi Benzell
Country of originUnited States
Production
ProducerMartin Gosch
Running time30 minutes
Original release
NetworkDuMont Television Network
ReleaseOctober 19 (1948-10-19) –
October 26, 1948 (1948-10-26)

Off the Record is a comedy television series that aired on the DuMont Television Network in October 1948.[1][2][3]

Broadcast history

The show, slated to air Tuesdays at 7pm ET, and starring Zero Mostel and Joey Faye, only lasted two episodes, October 19 and October 26, 1948.[4] Mostel claimed he had been promised a live audience, but the available studio was too small to hold an audience.[3] The setting was a radio station, a set at the Wanamaker Studios.

The 1948 show is not to be confused with a 15-minute show in 1951–52, also called Off the Record, aired from DuMont station WTTG in Washington, DC. This latter show, hosted by Art Lamb and Aletha Agee, featured singers lip-synching to current pop songs, and is on YouTube.[5]

Preservation status

As with most DuMont series, no episodes are known to exist.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Zero Televised", Life magazine feature (November 22, 1948)
  2. ^ Arthur Sainer, Zero Dances: A Biography of Zero Mostel p. 124
  3. ^ a b Bob Leszczak, Single Season Sitcoms 1948-1979: A Complete Guide, p. 144
  4. ^ DuMont historical website
  5. ^ 1951–52 episode on YouTube

Bibliography

  • David Weinstein, The Forgotten Network: DuMont and the Birth of American Television (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2004) ISBN 1-59213-245-6
  • Alex McNeil, Total Television, Fourth edition (New York: Penguin Books, 1980) ISBN 0-14-024916-8
  • Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows, Third edition (New York: Ballantine Books, 1964) ISBN 0-345-31864-1