Studs' Place


The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

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About

CHICAGO SCHOOL OF TELEVISION

During the late 1940s and early 1950s, broadcast television emanating from Chicago was noted for its original ideas, inventive production techniques and significant contributions to the development of the new visual medium. Paying close attention to the problems of adjusting personal styles of writing, direction, and performance to television, and to the more theoretical questions of how television actually worked, Chicago broadcasters developed a style or technique that came to be known as the Chicago School of Television.

While all Chicago stations contributed to the School, most success with the distinctive approach to programming is attributed to the NBC owned and operated station, WNBQ. Under the leadership of station manager Jules Herbuveaux and program manager Ted Mills, the NBC outlet went further in developing formats and ideas that would capitalize on television's idiosyncrasies.

Simply stated, the Chicago School worked at creating inventive programs different from both New York's theatrical offerings or Hollywood's screenplay based productions. Utilizing an almost totally scriptless-improvisational approach reliant on interpretive camera work and creative use of scenery, costumes, props, and lighting, Chicago School practitioners produced successful programs in limited spaces with local talent and small budgets. Herbuveaux provided the freedom for his staff to create and Mills theorized and experimented with a variety of ideas including Chinese Opera, commedia dell'arte and Pirandellian forms of reality in his search for new and effective television forms.

By late 1949, Chicago's low-cost television packages were making a ratings impact with such offerings as NBC's Kukla, Fran and Ollie, ABC's Super Circus and the piano talents of Dumont's Al Morgan. By spring, 1950, the major body of Chicago School work focused on such NBC-WNBQ variety offerings as Garroway at Large, the Wayne King Show, Hawkins Falls, and Saturday Square. Children's shows consisted of an extraordinary number of award winning entries including Zoo Parade, Quiz Kids, Mr. Wizard, Ding Dong School, Pistol Pete and Jennifer and the highly rated-low budgeted cowboy film series, Cactus Jim. For comedy and drama there was Studs Terkel's Studs' Place, Portrait of America, Crisis, and Reported Missing. Actuality programming featured Walt's Workshop, The Pet Shop and R.F.D. America. Local news offered the unique Five Star Final with weatherman Clint Youle, news anchor Clifton Utley, Dorsey Connors with consumer tips, sportscaster Tom Duggan and, reflecting Herbuveaux's sense of showmanship, Herbie Mintz with musical nostalgia.

As critically acclaimed as it proved to be, elements of the Chicago School's decline were seen as early as 1950. Chicago programs were shortened and/or removed from network schedules. Key personnel left Chicago to pursue more lucrative careers in New York and Los Angeles and, in 1953, with the opening of the coast-to-coast network cable, there was less and less need for Chicago productions. In 1953, thirteen network programs originated from Chicago. By 1955, no Chicago produced programs appeared on the DuMont network. CBS and NBC had no Chicago network originations except occasional newscasts and a network radio farm program. The Chicago School of Television was becoming just a fond memory.

-Joel Sternberg

FURTHER READING

"Chi Network Originations," Variety, (Los Angeles and New York) CXC (May 27, 1953), 35.

"The Chicago School," Time (New York), LVI (September 11, 1950), 73-74.

"The Chicago Touch: It May Give You the Show You Need," Sponsor, VIII (April 5, 1954), 34-35, 84-86, 88.

Davis, J. Hugh E. "Are Chi Network TV Originations Dying?," The Billboard (New York), LXIV (April 5, 1952), 18, 27.

Fay, Bill. "Top TV Town," Collier's (New York), CXXVII (March 17, 1951), 32-33, 77-78, 80-81.

Herbuveaux, Jules. "Chi TV Parlays a Myth into B.O. Inventiveness," Variety (Los Angeles and New York), CXC (May 27, 1953), 34.

Kupcinet, Irv. "Windy City Nominated as Nation's TV Centre; Home of 'Relaxed' Video," Variety (Los Angeles and New York), CLXXXI (January 10, 1951), 26, 42.

Mabley, Jack. "When Chicago TV Was Young, Bright, and Fun." Chicago's American Magazine (Chicago, Illinois), November 19, 1967, pp. 4-5.

Maloney, Martin. "A Philosophy of Educational Television," cited in Koenig, Allan E. and Hill, Ruane B. (eds.). ETV: The Farther Vision. (Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press, 1969), pp. 11-31.

"NBC's Chi Staffers Miffed Over `Orphan' Status; Blame N.Y. Relations," Variety (Los Angeles and New York), CLXXX (November 29, 1950), 24.

Nielsen, Ted. "Television: Chicago Style," Journal of Broadcasting, IX (Fall, 1965), 305-313.

Oboler, Arch. "Windy Kilocycles," Theatre Arts (New York), XXXV (July, 1951), 46, 89.

Olson, John. "The Reward of Being Local, Live, Lively," Broadcasting (Washington, D.C.), XLVI (May 24, 1954), 108, 110, 114.

"School's Out," Time (New York), LVIII (September 10, 1951), 82-83.

Shayon, Robert Lewis. "A Deadly Calm in the Windy City," Saturday Review of Literature (New York), XLII (September 5, 1959), 30.

_______. "Chicago's Local TV Corpse," Saturday Review of Literature (New York), XLI (October 11, 1958), 32.

_______. Open to Criticism. (Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon Press, 1971).

_______. "Toynbee, TV, and Chicago," The Christian Science Monitor (Boston, Massachusetts), (June 5, 1950), p. 5.

Sternberg, Joel. "Television Town," Chicago History (Chicago, Illinois), IV (Summer, 1975), 108-117.

"Telefile: Creative Programming Highlights WNBQ (TV) Success," Broadcasting (Washington, D.C.), XXXVIII (January 9, 1950), 50-51, 60-61.

Terkel, Studs. "Chi's TV Imagination Vs. Radio City Panjandrums," Variety (Los Angeles and New York), CXC (May 27, 1953), 34.

"TV Chicago Style," Television Magazine (New York), VIII (March, 1951), 19, 21-23, 26-27.

Van Horne, Harriet. "The Chicago Touch," Theatre Arts (New York), XXXV (July, 1951), 36-39.

Wolters, Larry. "Television News and Views," Chicago Tribune (Chicago, Illinois), January 4, 1952, p. 16.

Highlights
Studs Terkel on the spontaneity of "Chicago School" programming of the 1940s-50s, such as Studs' Place, Kukla, Fran, & Ollie, and Garroway-at-Large
01:08
Studs Terkel on how the script was ad-libbed on Studs' Place leading to the show's end credit: "dialogue by the cast"
00:39
Who talked about this show

Charlie Andrews

View Interview
Charlie Andrews on creating Studs' Place
02:32
Charlie Andrews on how Studs' Place was written
02:33
Charlie Andrews on the cast of Studs' Place
01:54
Charlie Andrews on the rehearsal process on Studs' Place
01:41
Charlie Andrews on Studs' Place's Studs Terkel
04:01
Charlie Andrews on rehearsing Studs' Places and its transition from NBC to ABC
01:47
Charlie Andrews on the cancellation of Studs' Place
01:07

Charles Cappleman

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Charles Cappleman on working with Studs Terkel on Studs' Place, and on Chicago in the 1950s
00:53

Michael Dann

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Michael Dann on how important The Chicago School of Television was to early television
02:01

Hugh Downs

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Hugh Downs on the charm of Studs' Place
00:57

Norman Felton

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Director Norman Felton on the "Chicago School" of Broadcasting, which included shows Garroway-at-Large and Studs' Place, crediting the philosophy to writers Charlie Andrews and Paul Rhymer
02:34

Lynwood King

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Lynwood King on working on Studs Terkel's Stud's Place
03:56

Jeff Kisseloff

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Jeff Kisseloff on interviewing Studs' Place host Studs Turkel
08:15

Daniel Petrie, Sr.

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Daniel Petrie, Sr. on author Nelson Algren guest-starring on Studs' Place
00:38
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on how guest actors were much more at ease on their second appearances on Studs' Place
01:06
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on the writing process of Studs' Place during rehearsals
02:03
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on having "creative differences" arguments with Studs Terkel on Studs' Place
01:17
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on Studs Terkel's "common touch" on Studs' Place
02:31
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on directing Studs' Place, starring Studs Terkel
04:52
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on NBC production head Ted Mills offering him the job as director of Studs' Place
05:24
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on how the studio was set up for Studs' Place
01:49
Daniel Petrie, Sr. on Chicago's contribution to television in the 1950s, and on the end of Studs' Place
04:17

Sterling Quinlan

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Sterling "Red" Quinlan on Studs Terkel's show Studs' Place
02:46

Studs Terkel

View Interview
Studs Terkel on the spontaneity of "Chicago School" programming of the 1940s-50s, such as Studs' Place, Kukla, Fran, & Ollie, and Garroway-at-Large
01:08
Studs Terkel on how the script was ad-libbed on Studs' Place leading to the show's end credit: "dialogue by the cast"
00:39
Studs Terkel on the casual tone of Studs' Place (from his and Dave Garroway's approach to broadcasting) and the show's cast of characters
02:13
Studs Terkel on making the plot of his final Studs' Place that they are losing their lease
00:28
Studs Terkel on the success and cancellation of Studs' Place
03:14
Studs Terkel on a typical episode of Studs' Place and  episode in which Studs' character comes to put aside his snobbery toward music
04:37
Studs Terkel on the subject matter of episodes of Studs' Place, including a guest appearance by Mahalia Jackson
01:48
Studs Terkel on actor Chet Roble accidentally referring to sponsor Manor House Coffee as rival Maxwell House Coffee on Studs' Place during a "live" commercial
02:55
Studs Terkel on a favorite episode of Studs' Place, involving con men
01:52
Studs Terkel on how the Hollywood Blacklist ended his budding career in television
03:19
Studs Terkel on working with Charlie Andrews and the creation of Studs' Place
00:57

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