Alcoa Premiere

Overview

Alcoa Premiere was an anthology series where every episode told a completely different story, with no single theme tying them together. Some installments were lighthearted, and at least one was a variety show, but the dramatic episodes often tackled tough, painful, or controversial subjects rather than traditional classic drama. The show featured scripts from writers including Ray Bradbury, Howard Rodman, Ernest Kinoy, Donald S. Sanford, Alfred Bester, and Gene L. Coon. On the acting side, it attracted stars like James Stewart, John Wayne, Charlton Heston, James Whitmore, Maureen O'Sullivan, Arthur Kennedy, and Ray Milland. Stewart and Wayne both appeared in the John Ford-directed episode "Flashing Spikes." The very first episode, "People Need People," starred Lee Marvin and Arthur Kennedy, with Alex Segal directing. Many Alcoa Premiere episodes were actually pilots for other TV series, often made by different production teams and then picked up for the anthology. Most of these pilots never went anywhere beyond their Alcoa Premiere airing, but three shows—Channing, Wide Country, and McHale's Navy—did get developed from their pilot films on this series. One first-season episode, "The Jail," was originally produced to be part of Alfred Hitchcock Presents but ended up airing on Alcoa Premiere instead. It was written by Ray Bradbury, produced by the Alfred Hitchcock Presents crew, and Hitchcock was credited as executive producer for that broadcast.