DICK POWELL SHOW, THE: THE LEGEND (TV)
Summary
One in this dramatic anthology series hosted by Dick Powell. In this drama, Powell stars as Dave Bannon, a once-great newspaper reporter whose career hit the skids when he took to drinking after his wife left him. His boss has given him one more chance with the paper, asking him to write an expose about Ernie Webb, a notorious gangster who single-handedly controls boxing in New York City. Though cynical about the crusade journalism that once was his life and ultimately cost him his marriage, Bannon has no choice but to start working on the story. When no one in the boxing world will even talk to him about Webb, Bannon gets an idea. He locates Gabe Masters, a lightweight boxing legend who was once a million-dollar purse winner and is now shining shoes in Chicago.
It is generally assumed that Webb took most of Masters' money in "management fees," but Bannon finds that the boxer would rather not dwell on his past. Bannon invites Masters to New York on the pretext of writing a story about the boxer's return to the city, but with the intention of getting Masters to talk about Webb. The two men develop a friendship and mutual respect that begins to chip away at Bannon's self-defensive cynicism. Masters seems to be a truly honest man, something that Bannon had come to believe no longer existed. However, when Masters opens up about his dealings with Webb, Bannon's faith is shattered a-borning -- leading him to sell his story to Webb, who predictably wants it buried. Matters come to a climax when Bannon learns that his earlier respect of Masters was warranted; and Webb sends a band of thugs after the ex-boxer to ensure he doesn't talk. Includes an introduction by Dick Powell. Commercials deleted. (With Dick Powell's death in January, 1963, series title changed to "The Dick Powell Theater.")
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: February 20, 1962 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:49:17
- COLOR/B&W: B&W
- CATALOG ID: T:12421
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama; Reporters
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1961-1963
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Dick Powell … Executive Producer, Host
- Aaron Spelling … Producer
- Richard Newton … Associate Producer
- Marc Daniels … Director
- Bob Barbash … Writer
- Joseph Mullendore … Music by
- Herschel Burke Gilbert … Music (Misc. Credits), Music Supervision by
- Dick Powell … Cast, Dave Bannon
- Sammy Davis Jr. … Cast, Gabe Masters
- Lawrence Dobkin … Cast, Ernie Webb
- Everett Sloane … Cast, Charlie Becker
- Robert F. Simon … Cast, Ben Hagen
- Walter Sande … Cast, Al Cooper
- Gloria Jean … Cast, Ellen Ryan
- James Waters … Cast, Nick Osborne
- Joseph Ruskin … Cast, the Hood
- Michael Fox … Cast, the Attorney
- Lou Krugman … Cast, the Manager