Actor Philip Carey Has Died

Philip Carey, best known as "Asa Buchanan" on One Life to Live, but who appeared extensively on television in such primetime series as Philip Marlowe (as the title character) and Laredo (as senior officer Captain Edward Parmalee), has died at the age of 83.

His Archive of American Television interview was conducted on July 25, 2002 and is viewable online here.

Interview description:
Philip Carey reminisced about his early years in acting under contract at Warner Bros., and described how Jack Warner compelled him to change his name (from Eugene). Next, he spoke of the television programs on which he starred, including Tales of the 77th Bengal Lancers, Philip Marlowe, and Laredo. Finally, he talked about his years on the daytime soap opera One Life to Live as patriarch Asa Buchanan, and explained how the program and the daytime business have changed since he joined their ranks in 1979.

Archive Celebrates Fran Allison's Centennial

The Archive celebrates the centennial of Fran Allison (1907-89), born on November 20. Fran Allison was the host of the classic television series Kukla, Fran, and Ollie (in photo with puppeteer Burr Tillstrom). The series is called by the Museum of Broadcast Communications Encyclopedia of Television as, "the first children's show to be equally popular with children and adults." The series was done live and the dialogue was unscripted. The series began locally in Chicago in 1947 and went on NBC's midwest network in 1948 opening to the east coast in 1949 and the West Coast in 1951. As described in the Encyclopedia of Television, "Allison acted as 'straight man' to [the puppets], but her role was much more. A quick wit in her own right who could maintain the pace set by Tillstrom, Allison served simultaneously, according to Tillstrom, as 'big sister, favorite teacher, baby-sitter, girlfriend, and mother.'"


The Archive of American Television interviewed director Lewis Gomavitz, who spoke about about Kukla, Fran & Ollie in parts 2-5 of his interview.

Click here to access the entire nine-part interview with Lewis Gomavitz.


The Archive of American Television interviewed NBC stage manager Lynwood King, who spoke about Fran Allison ("Fran had a very quick wit, very fast thinking") and Kukla, Fran, and Ollie ten minutes into Part 2 of his interview.

Click here to access Lynwood King's entire six-part interview.

Lewis Gomavitz Interview Description:

Lewis Gomavitz described his involvement in the Chicago experimental station, W6XBK during World War II. After the war, he was hired on to the station, renamed WBKB, and served as a stage manager until he was tapped to direct a new show starring Burr Tillstrom's puppets and Fran Allison. The show, originally called Junior Jamboree, evolved into the classic, Kukla, Fran and Ollie. Gomavitz directed the show for ten years, until it went off the air. After that, he moved to Los Angeles where he directed and associate-produced various specials. In the 1970s, he worked as the prop master on Sanford and Son until the show went off the air. Mr. Gomavitz retired in the late 1980s. The interview was conducted by Karen Herman on February 2, 2000.

Lynwood King Interview Description:

Lynwood King talked about breaking into television in 1949 at Chicago’s WNBQ. He described the famous “Chicago School” of broadcasting pioneered by such legends as Dave Garroway and Studs Terkel. King talked about his work as a stage manager on such network series (originating from Chicago) as Studs’ Place; Garroway at Large; Zoo Parade; and Kukla, Fran, and Ollie. He recalled working as a director on such series as Hawkins Falls and, in New York, Tonight! America After Dark: the late night series that ran in between the Steve Allen and Jack Paar Tonight shows. King also talked about his work in public broadcasting and on such documentary series as Project 20. King spoke in great detail about his work as a director on the Today show, which reunited him with Dave Garroway. King also discussed his later freelance work on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and on soap operas, including Ryan’s Hope and One Life to Live. The interview was conducted by Jeff Kisseloff on November 20, 2002.

What are your memories of Kukla, Fran, and Ollie?

David Pressman's Archive of American Television Interview Is Now Online!

Director David Pressman was one of the key directors on the early anthology series Actors Studio which was the first dramatic series awarded the Peabody Award.

Actors Studio featured many of the young "method" actors who would come to prominence in later years including Marlon Brando, Kim Hunter, and Julie Harris. Pressman himself appeared as an actor in the series very first production— Tennessee Williams' "Portrait of a Madonna" starring Jessica Tandy and directed by Hume Cronyn.

Click here to access David Pressman's entire 7-part interview.

Actors Studio switched networks from ABC to CBS in November 1949.

Here is a photograph of David Pressman in the control booth at CBS.

Interview Description:
David Pressman began the interview by recounting his arrival in the U.S. from Russia in 1922 and his early interest in acting. He talked about acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse in the 1930s and his entrance into WWII in the early 40s (as well as describing the feeling of returning home from the war, seeing the Statue of Liberty from a porthole on his ship). He talked about the Actor’s Studio that was created in 1947, which he described as a “gym” for actors. He spoke in great detail about the “live” prestige ABC television drama series Actors Studio that started shortly after the Studio itself opened and which featured many of the emerging talent at the time. Pressman talked about appearing as an actor in the very first production of Actors Studio and then becoming one of the series primary directors. He talked about the process by which the productions were staged and directed for television. He listed the writers, performers, and other talent who worked on the show and the series’ struggle for sponsorship. Pressman talked about the excitement of working in “live” television and talked about other anthology series he directed. He detailed his struggle to work as a director in television despite the shadow of the Hollywood Blacklist, and how he ultimately switched careers to teaching until the end of the blacklist, when he returned to television, notably as an Emmy Award-winning director of the daytime serial One Life to Live. The interview was conducted by Karen Herman on July 27, 2004.