Our American Heritage is a series of TV specials broadcast on NBC from 1959 to 1961.[ 1]
Mildred Freed Alberg produced the program with the cooperation of American Heritage magazine.[ 1] Lowell Thomas was the narrator.[ 2] Directors included James Lee,[ 3] Jack Smight [ 4] and Alex Segal [ 2] Writers included Ted Mosel,[ 5] David Shaw,[ 3] and Mann Rubin .[ 6]
A total of thirteen episodes were aired on the National Broadcasting Company from October 18, 1959 to May 13, 1961. Actors who were featured included Raymond Massey , Dean Jagger , Walter Matthau , Roddy McDowall , Christopher Plummer , Susan Strasberg , Melvyn Douglas , Robert Redford , and Teresa Wright .
On January 27, 1960, the Thomas Alva Edison Foundations recognized Our American Heritage as "the television program best portraying America".[ 7] The program was sponsored by The Equitable Life Assurance Society .[ 8]
Episodes of the program included those shown in the table below:
Partial List of Episodes of Our American Heritage
Date
Title
Subject
Star(s)
November 22, 1959
"The Practical Dreamer"
Eli Whitney
Burgess Meredith [ 9]
January 24, 1960
"Destiny, West"
John C. Frémont
Jeffrey Hunter [ 10]
February 21, 1960
"Shadow of a Soldier"
Ulysses S. Grant
James Whitmore [ 11]
April 10, 1960
---
Andrew Carnegie
David Wayne , Judith Anderson [ 12]
October 21, 1960
"Not Without Honor"
Alexander Hamilton
Arthur Kennedy , Ralph Bellamy [ 13]
December 2, 1960
"Born a Giant"
Andrew Jackson
Bill Travers , Barbara Rush [ 6]
January 13, 1961
"The Invincible Teddy"
Theodore Roosevelt
George Peppard [ 4]
March 11, 1961
"The Secret Rebel"
John Honeyman
Hugh O'Brian [ 2]
May 13, 1961
"Woodrow Wilson and the Unknown Soldier"
Woodrow Wilson
Judson Laire , Don Ameche [ 3]
References
^ a b McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 629. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8 .
^ a b c Shanley, John P. (March 3, 1961). " 'Secret Rebel' on 'Our American Heritage' " . The New York Times . p. 59. ProQuest 115222970 . Retrieved March 27, 2021 – via ProQuest .
^ a b c " 'Heritage' Spotlights WW-I Leader" . The Bradenton Herald . April 15, 1961. p. 5. Retrieved March 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ a b Shanley, John P. (January 14, 1961). "His Early Years Are Depicted as Part of 'Our American Heritage' Series" . The New York Times . p. 47. ProQuest 115425323 . Retrieved March 27, 2021 – via ProQuest .
^ "Congress" (PDF) . Television Digest . 17 (8): 9. February 20, 1961. Retrieved March 31, 2021 .
^ a b Shepard, Richard F. (December 3, 1960). "TV: Story of 'Giant': Life of Andrew Jackson Is Depicted on N.B.C.'s 'Our American Heritage' " . The New York Times . p. 47. ProQuest 115122670 . Retrieved March 27, 2021 – via ProQuest .
^ "Edison Foundation makes annual awards" (PDF) . Broadcasting . February 8, 1960. p. 80. Retrieved March 31, 2021 .
^ "Focus on People" (PDF) . Television . January 1960. Retrieved March 31, 2021 .
^ "Meredith To Play Role Of Eli Whitney" . The Paducah Sun . November 22, 1959. p. 37. Retrieved March 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ " 'Destiny, West' to Be Televised on NBC" . The Times Dispatch . January 24, 1960. p. 6-L. Retrieved March 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "(photo caption)" . St. Joseph News-Press . February 20, 1960. p. 7. Retrieved March 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ Gaver, Jack (April 10, 1960). "Telecasts Of Baseball Start Next Weekend" . The Times Recorder . Ohio, Zanesville. United Press International. p. 36. Retrieved March 27, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ Hadden, Briton; Luce, Henry Robinson (October 24, 1960). "Time Listings: Television" . Time . p. 114. Retrieved March 27, 2021 .
External links