1984 (1953 TV program)

Nineteen Eighty-Four is an American television adaptation of the novel of the same name by George Orwell that was broadcast on CBS in the fall of 1953.

Production and transmission

The play was written by William Templeton, directed by Paul Nickell, and produced by Felix Jackson for the CBS Westinghouse Studio One series. Broadcast on September 21, 1953, it was the first screen adaptation of the novel. Running to just under 50 minutes, it is a much-shortened version of the novel's narrative, with some changes, such as the character of Emmanuel Goldstein being changed to "Cassandra." Templeton went on to co-write the 1956 film version, in which the character was similarly re-named as "Cellador."

Cast

• Eddie Albert as Winston Smith
• Norma Crane was Julia
• Lorne Greene as O'Brien
• Noel Leslie as Charrington
• Truman Smith as Parsons
• Midge Donaldson as Female Telecreen Voice
• Robert Culp as Male Telescreen Voice
• Victor Thorley as Cassandra
• Peter A. Ostroff as Syme
• Janice Mars as the singer
• Susan Halloran as Selia
• Fred Scollay as Man in Cell
• Vincent Vanlynn as Prison Officer
• Don Hollenbeck as Narrator

DVD release

In 2008, Koch Vision released the Studio One Anthology, containing 1984 and sixteen other episodes from the series, as well as an interview with director Paul Nickell.

External links

• IMDB listing