THIS IS YOUR LIFE: THE CLASSICS {FRANCES FARMER} {JANUARY 29, 1958} (TV)
Summary
One in this series of nostalgic programs hosted by Ralph Edwards, in which he introduces classic episodes of his live television program "This Is Your Life." The program usually honors the career of an unsuspecting guest, most often a celebrity, and features surprise testimonials from family and friends. This episode, originally broadcast on January 29, 1957, is one of the rare exceptions to the show's format: the subject -- stage and film actress Frances Farmer -- was informed in advance of the tribute in order that Edwards could "bring her poignant story" to the viewers. Edwards introduces Farmer as "a lovely star who transfixed movie fans with her lyrical beauty, only to find herself in a world of enduring tragedy." Farmer explains that she wants to offer hope to those who are in the same predicament as she was and also to correct the false impressions of her as an alcoholic and drug abuser. Edwards describes the ten years she spent in mental institutions after suffering a nervous breakdown. He then recalls Farmer's childhood in Seattle, Washington, and the trama of her parents' divorce, and introduces her older sister Edith (Edie) Elliott. Edwards chronicles Farmer's academic achievements and introduces Belle McKenzie, her high school teacher, and Glenn Hughes, her drama professor from the University of Washington, who comments on the "intellectual chip" Farmer had on her shoulder.
After mentioning the trip Farmer won to Moscow in 1935, Edwards describes her rapid success in Hollywood and her decision to study acting in New York, where she joined the Group Theatre and co-starred in "Golden Boy." After her marriage to actor Leif Erickson failed and she was deemed uncooperative by Hollywood, no more parts were offered to her; Farmer was arrested for drunk driving in 1942, was declared to be suffering from schizophrenia and delusions, and finally was legally declared mentally incompetent in 1944 and was committed to a public mental institution, losing all her civil rights. Farmer describes the regimen of shots, hydrotherapy baths, and electroshock treatments given to subdue her at the public institution, in which she was incarcerated for six years. She states her belief that "any cure, to be effective, has to be based on faith in oneself, which means faith in God" and tells how this faith led her back to the church. Edwards describes her release from the institution in 1951, her job as a clerk in a Seattle hotel, and as a bookkeeper in 1954 at a photography shop, where she met her current manager, Lee Mikesell. Edwards introduces Mikesell and the neighbors who have helped Farmer answer the volume of mail she has received since her ordeal became known. Edwards explains that the staff had wired 125 Hollywood producers, urging them to watch "This Is Your Life" tonight and to keep Farmer in mind for future films. He presents her with a 1958 Edsel Pacer and mentions that she has been offered a starring role in Eddie Dowlings's latest Broadway production. In conclusion, he states that Farmer's life story illustrates the "need for sympathetic understanding of the mentally ill as patients, not outcasts." Commercials deleted.
("This Is Your Life" aired on NBC from 1952 to 1961.)
Details
- NETWORK: Syndicated
- DATE: November 30, 1989
- RUNNING TIME: 0:24:33
- COLOR/B&W: Color and B&W
- CATALOG ID: T:25415
- GENRE: Talk/Interviews
- SUBJECT HEADING: Actresses; Biography; Mental illness
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1952-1961; 1987, 1993 / Syndication - 1971-1973; 1983-1984
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Ralph Edwards … Executive Producer, Host
- Alex Gruenberg … Producer, Writer
- Richard Gottlieb … Director
- Jan Boehme Miller … Researcher
- Don Malmberg … Researcher
- Alice Keyser Armbruster … Researcher
- Von Dexter … Music by
- John Couch … Production (Misc.), Production staff , Ralph Edwards Updating Segments
- Barbara Dunn-Leonard … Production (Misc.), Production staff , Ralph Edwards Updating Segments
- Gary Edwards … Production (Misc.), Production staff , Ralph Edwards Updating Segments
- Pat Gleason … Production (Misc.), Production staff , Ralph Edwards Updating Segments
- George Moore … Production (Misc.), Production staff , Ralph Edwards Updating Segments
- Frances Farmer … Honoree
- Elliott, Edith (Edie) … Guest
- Glenn Hughes … Guest
- Belle McKenzie … Guest
- Lee Mikesell … Guest
- Rita Will … Guest