Delbert Mann and the Development of Television - Assignment Example

delbert mann and the development of television The television did not become a household and fixture until the 1950s, and even then, only a select few had access to it. These select few are the affluent and the educated, the people who are more or less capable of appreciating the theatrical content television programming had back then. One of the people who had contributed much to the development of television is Delbert Mann, the man behind such works as the television series Lights Out (1949), The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse (1949-1955), and the TV drama Marty, which was later translated to the wide screen in 1954 and won an Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Leading Actor. Delbert Mann is one of the people who helped shaped the roots of television, which was once a high-brow medium. Though born in Lawrence, Kansas in 1920, Mann grew up in Nashville, where his father taught at Scarritt College (Harwell). He got his first exposure to theater in Hume-Fogg High School and participated largely in the productions of the school's drama club (Gelman). Mann went on to study political science in Vanderbilt University, where he met his future wife. Mann was also actively involved in the Nashville Community Playhouse, where he worked closely with Fred Coe, the man who was to influence his career as a television director later on. During World War II, Mann was drafted in the U.S. Air Force and was assigned to missions in Europe. While in Europe, he immersed himself in the theater scene of London and watched as much theater as he can. His solid commitment to pursue directing in theater, however, only solidified when a man named Rupert Burns, also a pilot in the Air Force, died right after he spoke with Mann about becoming a poet after the war. Mann relayed in the interview with Gelman that the incident convinced him that life is short and that he ought to do what he wanted to do with it. After the war, Mann pursued an M.F.A. at Yale Drama School. Afterwards, he was hired by Fred Coe to work in the studios of the National Broadcasting Company network, the network that later on became the proponent of color television. In close collaboration with Coe, Mann came to direct a number of television anthologies under NBC, such as The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse. It was with these television anthologies that Mann became most identified (Gibberman). Mann is also the director who helmed the first ever domestic situation comedy Mary Kay and Johnny (1949), and Marty, the first television drama ever to receive major press coverage and the most popular anthology of its time (Gibberman). There are quite a few things notable about Delbert Mann and his works in television. These are: 1) that Mann is very much one of the proponents of the live television telecast; 2) that Mann mainly drew the material that he used for his programs from historic and classical sources and that he is an expert in bringing out and highlighting small personal stories against the backdrop provided by overall history and events around which these small stories revolve; 3) that Mann's career was largely shaped and influenced by his association with Fred Coe; and 4) that Mann himself holds so much passion for his work, a passion that drove him to strive for excellence in his productions. Delbert Mann can be said to be one of the proponents of the live television telecast, but that is perhaps because the technology available to the television industry then called for nothing else but live telecasts. The tape was not yet invented then, so every episode of the early television anthologies and dramas that he directed were all done live. But this perhaps did not prove to be difficult for Mann, as all his cast and crew had extensive background in the theater, and early studio for television is somehow parallel to the atmosphere of the theater. Mann himself had broad experience with the theater, given his early exposure with that medium, his M.F.A. degree from the Yale Drama School and that exposure in London. In his interview with Gelman, Mann described the normal process of coming up with an episode as a week-long endeavor, full of meticulous planning and plotting, often stressful and terrifying. It is a scenario that does not leave much room for mistakes or errors in telecast. Mann relayed that airing live exerted horrendous pressure on the panic-stricken cast. Yet for him, that period of the live television was an exciting and stimulating time. The pressure exerted on everyone who is part of the production and their own innate dedication to their art seemed to have brought out the best in them, and therefore the best in their production. Mann mainly drew the materials for his live telecasts and his made-for-television dramas from historic and classical sources. Gibbermann wrote that this stemmed from Mann's own love for history, and he strived to make his productions as accurate as possible. Among such projects made under his direction are Sense and Sensibility, Othello, and Our Town (Harwell), as well as Heidi and David Copperfield. One of the productions of Othello included the late Walther Matthau as Iago, and Sir Laurence Olivier was also among the cast of David Copperfield. Gibbermann also wrote that: But historical context serves as background to the personal relationships in the story. The Man Without a Country, produced during the height of anti-Vietnam protests, is a patriotic story of love of country and flag intended to stir a sense of nationalism during the Civil War and, simultaneously, the intimate story of one man's oppression. Gibbermann's remark also brings us to the observation, as made by Harwell, that Mann is an expert in bringing out and highlighting small personal stories against the backdrop provided by overall history and events around which these small stories revolve. Harwell wrote that: [t]he hallmarks of Delbert Mann's directing style and philosophy are character development and realistic drama over plot and spectacle, the redeeming nature of personal relationships, an interest in portraying the lives of normal everyday people, and a naturalistic approach to directing. It is this approach of Mann to his directing that made his works such as Marty and Ernie Badger is 50 touching and appealing to his audience. The audience can relate to the problems and concerns of the characters in his story, and most likely see themselves in these characters. In the Gelman interview, Mann said that right after the television version of Marty was aired, he received numerous phone calls from people who said that Marty is the story of their lives. The themes of his works are universal, and therefore have universal appeal. Fred Coe's presence in Mann's life largely influenced the director's career. Mann met Coe early in his life, back in the days of Mann's involvement in the Nashville Community Playhouse. When Mann finished his M.F.A. with the Yale Drama School after his World War II stint with the U.S. Air Force, he was immediately hired by Coe to be one of the floor managing staff in the NBC studios in New York. In Coe's hands, Mann eventually moved up to directing. Coe and Mann shared a healthy and thriving working relationship. Mann described in his Gelman interview that Coe worked closely with him in the production of every episode of The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse and that the insights and comments Coe gave on whatever aspect he chose to comment on were right. Mann said that Coe had a volcanic temper, but was magnanimous enough to congratulate the other person if the other person proved that he was right in the first place. The one thing most notable about Delbert Mann is his passion for his work. From his school days in Hume-Fogg High School and Vanderbilt University, he already showed an affinity for the theater. He began as an actor and headed the high school drama club, as well as participated in community theater projects. His pursuit of the theater then may not have been as intense as that when he started working on television professionally, because he did not see himself having much talent as an actor, and may have been interrupted by his serving on missions in Europe as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, but it did not stop. Even during the war, he flew as much as he can to London and immersed himself in the thriving theater scene there. Also, after he saw the pilot Rupert Burns die shortly after Burns told him of his dreams of becoming a poet after the war, he resolved with himself that life is too short to dilly-dally; thus, after the war, he made up his mind to pursue directing and he pursued it with determination. In the Gelman interview, he advised directors not just to focus on technique, but to also get a background in theater to better their craft. Delbert Mann is one of the people associated with the "golden age" of television. The availability of the television to a select educated and affluent audience, the quality of performance given by highly-trained theater actors and crew under the pressure of live telecasts, and the materials used for production during Delbert Mann's heydays as a television director characterized television then as a medium for intelligent audiences. However, this was not to remain so. Companies that sponsored television programs, such as Philco and Goodyear, the sponsors of the Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse, have realized just what kind of power they can wield over production of programs. Thus came the concept of the blacklist and the red channel. As implied in the Mann interview by Gelman, actors blacklisted for participating in rallies, or holding brief periods of membership with a Communist group, or any such acts, would find it impossible to find work in television because the sponsors would block their casting. That, combined with the developments in technology that enabled television to be used by a wider audience base and episodes to be taped rather than aired live, lowered the standards of television programming to the level of the mass audience. Opening the medium to a wider audience base also brought importance the concept of ratings, all for the sake of advertising and sponsorship. In the Gelman interview, Mann said, "There is no question in my mind that [television] is a far less substantial, far less vigorous, informative medium than it has ever been." From his standpoint and background, he is right. It is common knowledge that violence, sex and profanity are rife, not just in television but also in the movies. Television is no longer the high-brow medium that it once was because what rules the production now is what is appealing to the mass audiences. And what appeals to the mass audience and what raises a program's ratings sells. works cited Anderson, Christopher. National Broadcasting Company. The Museum of Broadcast Communications. 18 May 2006. Gelman, Morrie. Interview. Delbert Mann. Archive of American Television Foundation. 20 May 1997. 18 May 2006. Gibberman, Susan. Mann, Delbert. The Museum of Broadcast Communications. 18 May 2006. Harwell, Sarah. Documenting the Director: Delbert Mann, His Life, His Works, and His Papers. Border States On-Line. 1999. 18 May 2006. Read More