Four Star Playhouse

3,36

1952

6.7 / 10

Episodes

EP 1: Man in the Cellar

A little girl who regularly talks to imaginary friends grows frustrated when her parents refuse to believe that there is a real ma...

EP 2: Never Explain

A novice social worker is dispatched to the home of a widower who refuses to send his children to school....

EP 3: Interlude

A young woman from a wealthy family is graduating from an exclusive school with neither her parents nor close friends attending. ...

EP 4: The Wallet

A French waiter with more pride than money will not stand for his sickly wife to be admitted to a free public hospital. When a wea...

EP 5: The Adolescent

A school teacher on the disciplinery board, finds herself investigating her nephew's misconduct....

EP 6: The Contest

The head of detectives runs into problems when he suspect his fiancé has committed murder....

EP 7: Vote Of Confidence

A con man, recently released from prison, attempts to recoup his fortunes by convincing an heiress' secretary that he needs funds ...

EP 8: My Own Dear Dragon

A successful playwright does his best to avoid reading the script written by his young new wife. She can't understand why he refus...

EP 9: Marked Down

A woman who works at a fancy dress shop is determined to meet and marry the millionaire whose office is next door. Once she is ask...

EP 10: Meet A Lonely Man

An attractive young lady mistakes a lonely hotel desk clerk for a Texas oil millionaire she'd once met. Loving the attention she's...

EP 11: Bourbon Street

A musician returns to New Orleans after breaking into the bigtime. Though his ex-wife deserted him, he is bent on revenge after r...

EP 12: A Championship Affair

A renowned professional bridge champion (Boyer) returns to (openly) woo his long lost, but married, love (Miles). In circuitous fa...

EP 13: The Answer

A cynical Hollywood writer returns to his hometown. At a bar he meets a drunken, disillusioned playwright. The writer challenges...

EP 14: Go Ahead And Jump

Eddie, a cab driver, picks up a sad looking fare and brings him to a hotel where he witnesses the man being humiliated by his ex-w...

EP 15: A Bag Of Oranges

Believing her husband innocent of the crime he is to be executed for, his wife takes up a vigil the night of the scheduled executi...

EP 16: Stuffed Shirt

A seemingly cuckolded working-class husband (Boyer), in tropical setting, must resort to a life-risking ruse (in court) to rid him...

EP 17: Breakfast in Bed

An artist is enticed away from his lucrative commercial advertising contracts by a young model who shows obvious disappointment th...

EP 18: The Good Sister

A nun in German orphanage during World War II will is determined to marry her oldest orphan to an American serviceman in order to ...

EP 19: A Kiss for Mr. Lincoln

A young woman teaches her timid husband some things about love when he tries to show her the importance of supporting Abraham Linc...

EP 20: Fair Trial

Chicago television newsman Dave Sheridan (Dick Powell) arrives in a small Ohio town, Hadenville, where Richard Fulton has just bee...

EP 21: The Wild Bunch

After a charmer sweeps a pretty widow off her feet and marries her in haste, she confesses that she has money and three children. ...

EP 22: Tusitala

The true story of Robert Louis Stevenson's stay on the island of Tahiti. The islanders have come to revere him as Tusitala-Teller ...

EP 23: The Returning

An American professor in Japan falls in love with a half-breed former student in 1941. He is fired for violating school policy, so...

EP 24: Eddie`s Place

Ellen is released from a punitive work farm without means, but Eddie befriends her and gives her a job at his restaurant. She want...

EP 25: Henry And The Psychopathic Horse

After falling for a medical student, a New York City psychiatrist travels to her family ranch to announce their engagement. Her fa...

EP 26: Night At Lark Cottage

A woman with no companion other than her young daughter knows that an escaped convict is on his way to kill her....

EP 27: The Girl On The Bridge

After drawing and painting an unknown young woman he met on a bridge near his vacation retreat, an artist (Dick Powell) is despera...

EP 28: The Collar

The night before the military plans to massacre a warring tribe of Blackfoot Indians, an imprisoned and tortured priest comes out ...

EP 29: Madeira, Madeira

The untimely death of his artist friend causes a failing writer to visit the widow to pay his condolences and pursue suspicions ab...

EP 30: With All My Heart

An overweight woman watches her doctor boyfriend marry someone else....

EP 31: The House Always Wins

Willie Dante, the tough but suave owner of a nightclub and illegal back room casino. One evening, Willie sees an old flame with a ...

EP 32: Uncle Fred Flits By

Uncle Fred descends upon a suburban home, completely disrupts the lives of the family by his eccentric behaviour, and brings two y...

EP 33: Alias Mr. Hepp

Frank Hepp has made his career charming rich, unhappy women out of their fortunes. His parole officer orders him avoid all women, ...

EP 34: Trudy

A young woman is planning her wedding to a groom whom no one believes exists outside her own wishful dreams....

EP 35: Broken Journey

Two cops transporting prisoner Cookie decide on a layover in the city of Westover, temporarily placing Cookie in the local jail wh...

EP 37: The Frightened Woman

A woman's loneliness leads her to re-experience her long repressed (20-year old) pain-associated memories (albeit benign themselve...

EP 38: Award

Valerie is a world famous movie actress who just bombed on her first attempt at live acting on Broadway. She goes to Ben, renowned...

Overview

Four Star Playhouse is an American television anthology series that ran from 1952 to 1956, sponsored in its first bi-weekly season by The Singer Company; Bristol-Myers became an alternate sponsor when it became a weekly series in the fall of 1953. The original premise was that Charles Boyer, Ida Lupino, David Niven, and Dick Powell would take turns starring in episodes. However, several other performers took the lead from time to time, including Ronald Colman and Joan Fontaine. Blake Edwards was among the writers and directors who contributed to the series. Edwards created the recurring character of illegal gambling house operator Willie Dante for Dick Powell to play on this series. The character was later revamped and spun off in his own series starring Howard Duff, then-husband of Lupino. The pilot for Meet McGraw, starring Frank Lovejoy, aired here, as did another episode in which Lovejoy recreated his role of Chicago newspaper reporter Randy Stone, from the radio drama Nightbeat.

  • en
  • Drama, Comedy,

Episodes >>

Man in the Cellar

Episode 1

A little girl who regularly talks to imaginary friends grows frustrated when her...

Never Explain

Episode 2

A novice social worker is dispatched to the home of a widower who refuses to sen...

Interlude

Episode 3

A young woman from a wealthy family is graduating from an exclusive school with ...

The Wallet

Episode 4

A French waiter with more pride than money will not stand for his sickly wife to...

The Adolescent

Episode 5

A school teacher on the disciplinery board, finds herself investigating her neph...

The Contest

Episode 6

The head of detectives runs into problems when he suspect his fiancé has committ...

Vote Of Confidence

Episode 7

A con man, recently released from prison, attempts to recoup his fortunes by con...

My Own Dear Dragon

Episode 8

A successful playwright does his best to avoid reading the script written by his...

Marked Down

Episode 9

A woman who works at a fancy dress shop is determined to meet and marry the mill...

Meet A Lonely Man

Episode 10

An attractive young lady mistakes a lonely hotel desk clerk for a Texas oil mill...

Bourbon Street

Episode 11

A musician returns to New Orleans after breaking into the bigtime. Though his e...

A Championship Affair

Episode 12

A renowned professional bridge champion (Boyer) returns to (openly) woo his long...

The Answer

Episode 13

A cynical Hollywood writer returns to his hometown. At a bar he meets a drunken...

Go Ahead And Jump

Episode 14

Eddie, a cab driver, picks up a sad looking fare and brings him to a hotel where...

A Bag Of Oranges

Episode 15

Believing her husband innocent of the crime he is to be executed for, his wife t...

Stuffed Shirt

Episode 16

A seemingly cuckolded working-class husband (Boyer), in tropical setting, must r...

Breakfast in Bed

Episode 17

An artist is enticed away from his lucrative commercial advertising contracts by...

The Good Sister

Episode 18

A nun in German orphanage during World War II will is determined to marry her ol...

A Kiss for Mr. Lincoln

Episode 19

A young woman teaches her timid husband some things about love when he tries to ...

Fair Trial

Episode 20

Chicago television newsman Dave Sheridan (Dick Powell) arrives in a small Ohio t...

The Wild Bunch

Episode 21

After a charmer sweeps a pretty widow off her feet and marries her in haste, she...

Tusitala

Episode 22

The true story of Robert Louis Stevenson's stay on the island of Tahiti. The isl...

The Returning

Episode 23

An American professor in Japan falls in love with a half-breed former student in...

Eddie`s Place

Episode 24

Ellen is released from a punitive work farm without means, but Eddie befriends h...

Henry And The Psychopathic Horse

Episode 25

After falling for a medical student, a New York City psychiatrist travels to her...

Night At Lark Cottage

Episode 26

A woman with no companion other than her young daughter knows that an escaped co...

The Girl On The Bridge

Episode 27

After drawing and painting an unknown young woman he met on a bridge near his va...

The Collar

Episode 28

The night before the military plans to massacre a warring tribe of Blackfoot Ind...

Madeira, Madeira

Episode 29

The untimely death of his artist friend causes a failing writer to visit the wid...

With All My Heart

Episode 30

An overweight woman watches her doctor boyfriend marry someone else....

The House Always Wins

Episode 31

Willie Dante, the tough but suave owner of a nightclub and illegal back room cas...

Uncle Fred Flits By

Episode 32

Uncle Fred descends upon a suburban home, completely disrupts the lives of the f...

Alias Mr. Hepp

Episode 33

Frank Hepp has made his career charming rich, unhappy women out of their fortune...

Trudy

Episode 34

A young woman is planning her wedding to a groom whom no one believes exists out...

Broken Journey

Episode 35

Two cops transporting prisoner Cookie decide on a layover in the city of Westove...

The Executioner

Episode 36

now-playing-animation

The Frightened Woman

Episode 37

A woman's loneliness leads her to re-experience her long repressed (20-year old)...

Award

Episode 38

Valerie is a world famous movie actress who just bombed on her first attempt at ...