Studio One (TV Series) The Remarkable Incident at Carson Corners (1954) User Reviews

Extraordinary Dramatic Presentation

[Enrique-Sanchez-56 · 10/10 · 16 August 2021]

This is a moving story in an unusual situation where a loved member of a community is accused of murdering a child.

What is unusual is that the trial is organized by the town's children.

I won't reveal more of the plot because that won't serve any purpose. I must then tell you how engrossing this tale was.

The performances, even by the children, were remarkable, believable and very strong. I cannot just pick one of the adult performers to praise here because each and every one of them put out a powerful show. Many of the actors will be familiar to you from their work on TV and the movies. The production was gritty, realistic and so finely done for something that was done almost 70 years ago at the dawn of television. It was recorded on Kinescope and probably performed live. THIS ALONE provides the palpable excitement of a stage production and increases its immediacy.

If these now quaint productions in black and white perturb you in any way, I'd say you are missing out on some of the finest presentations from any era. For my dollar, THIS is highly recommended drama of the highest caliber.

INCREDIBLY MOVING DRAMA

[cbmd-37352 · 10/10 · 21 August 2021]

This show is so impressive on many levels. It had a large cast with many children, presented live without a hitch. It was written by Reginald Rose, who would go on to write many other episodes of Studio One (like 12 Angry MEN)before 5 seasons of The Defenders. Apparently he was on an actual jury once and was fascinated by the process. As questioning progresses, it becomes obvious that more than one person is responsible for the death of the child. His parents are played by Frank Overton and Ruth White, who would appear together on Broadway i "Big Fish, Little Fish" and in "To Kill a Mockingbird". To lose a child is the worst thing a parent can experience, and in the closing speech, Frank Overton gives one of the most moving performances of his career. His anguish is palpable, to watch him and listen to him is agonizing. Over the next 15 years he will play the role of grieving father another 5 times, including an episode of 12 O'clock High and his last on Bonanza-The Wormwood Cup".

Maybe it was just me, but this one seemed awfully heavy-handed.

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 4 October 2010]

"Studio One" was one of the best series of its type from the early days of television. Like the equally good "Playhouse 90", the show consisted of live teleplays--often with original as well as very talented and often big-name actors. Thanks to the Kinescope, copies of some of these old teleplays have been saved (as they made copies in order to show it delayed on the West Coast due to time zone differences). And, even though mounting such huge productions seems impossible, back in the late 40s and 1950s, they were common--and resulted in some amazing productions, such as "Marty" and "Requiem For a Heavyweight".

"The Remarkable Incident at Carson Corners" is, unfortunately, not all that remarkable. Now I am not saying it was bad, but compared to the many wonderful examples of "Studio One", it seems a bit ordinary. Most of this is because the plot (involving an odd little trial held by kids in front of their parents) comes off as very heavy-handed and trite. Yes, there are some nice performances, but overall it's just not one of the better examples of the genre.