Face of a Hero (Playhouse 90)

"**Face of a Hero**"
"Face of a Hero"
Playhouse 90 episode
	Jack Lemmon in "Face of a Hero"
Episode no.	Season 3; Episode 13
Directed by	John Frankenheimer
Written by	Robert L. Joseph (adaptation), Pierre Boulle (novel)
Original air date	January 1, 1959
Running time	1:29:55
Guest appearances
	Jack Lemmon as David Poole; Rip Torn as Harold Rutland; James Gregory as Chief Fuller;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "The Nutcracker"	Next →; "The Wings of the Dove"

"Face of a Hero" is an American television play broadcast on January 1, 1959 as part of the CBS television series, Playhouse 90. John Frankenheimer was the director and John Houseman the producer. The cast included Jack Lemmon and Rip Torn.

Plot

Prosecutor David Poole is pressured to seek the death penalty for a murder committed by Harold Rutland, the son of a wealthy man. Poole knows that the death was an accident because he was present, but out of sight, at the time and saw that the victim was inebriated and fell from the bluff. In his grief, Rutland falsely confesses to murder. Rather than ruin his own reputation by telling what he saw, Poole proceeds with the prosecution and does so with zeal.^[1]^[2]

Cast

The cast included the following:^[1]^[3]

Jack Lemmon as David Poole
James Gregory as Leo Fuller
Rip Torn as Harold Rutland
William Hansen as Dr. Milliard
Henry Hull as Victor Bishop
Larry Gates as Senator Knox
Anne Meacham as Catherine Poole
Whit Bissell as Mayor Chandos
Malcolm Atterbury as Simon DeGrange
Charles Aidman as Morrell
Stanley Adams as Perry Cates
Byron Foulger as Dr. Spring
Carol Kelly as Mrs. McDermott
Leonard Bell as the Defense Attorney
Burt Reynolds as Gordon
Florida Friebus as Aunt Louisa
Jamie Forster as The Judge
Marilyn Moe as Milly Bishop
Lois Kimbrell as Miss Grant

Dana Wynter hosted the broadcast.

Production

The program aired on January 1, 1959, on the CBS television series Playhouse 90. John Houseman was the producer and John Frankenheimer the director. Robert L. Joseph wrote the teleplay based on the novel La Face (1956) by Pierre Boulle.^[1]^[3]

Reception

John P. Shanley of The New York Times called it "a competent dramatization" told in "provocative terms", though the production moved at a pace that "sometimes was too swift." He added that Jack Lemmon gave "a convincing performance".^[4]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Playhouse 90: Face of a Hero". The Paley Center for Media. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
^ William Ewald (January 2, 1959). "Playhouse 90 Director Breathes Life Into Play". Register-Guard (UPI story). p. 8A – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "Playhouse 90, Season 3". The Classic TV Archive. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
^ John P. Shanley (January 2, 1959). "Intriguing Drama: 'Face of a Hero' Is Told in Provocative Terms in R. L. Joseph's Adaptation". The New York Times. p. 45.

[Paley-1] "Playhouse 90: Face of a Hero". The Paley Center for Media. Retrieved October 18, 2020.

[2] William Ewald (January 2, 1959). "Playhouse 90 Director Breathes Life Into Play". Register-Guard (UPI story). p. 8A – via Newspapers.com.

[CTVA-3] "Playhouse 90, Season 3". The Classic TV Archive. Retrieved October 18, 2020.

[4] John P. Shanley (January 2, 1959). "Intriguing Drama: 'Face of a Hero' Is Told in Provocative Terms in R. L. Joseph's Adaptation". The New York Times. p. 45.

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v t e Playhouse 90
People	John Frankenheimer Martin Manulis Franklin J. Schaffner Rod Serling
Season 1	"Forbidden Area" "Requiem for a Heavyweight" "Sizeman and Son" "Rendezvous in Black" "The Country Husband" "The Big Slide" "Heritage of Anger" "Eloise" "Confession" "Made in Heaven" "Sincerely, Willis Wade" "The Family Nobody Wanted" "Massacre at Sand Creek" "Snowshoes: A Comedy of People and Horses" "The Ninth Day" "So Soon to Die" "The Star Wagon" "The Greer Case" "The Miracle Worker" "The Comedian" "The Coat of White" "The Blackwell Story" "Invitation to a Gunfighter" "The Last Tycoon" "The Hostess with the Mostes'" "Charley's Aunt" "Clipper Ship" "If You Know Elizabeth" "Three Men on a Horse" "Four Women in Black" "Child of Trouble" "Homeward Borne" "Helen Morgan" "Winter Dreams" "Circle of the Day" "Without Incident" "Clash by Night" "Ain't No Time for Glory" "The Fabulous Irishman"
Season 2	"The Death of Manolete" "The Dark Side of the Earth" "Topaze" "A Sound of Different Drummers" "The Playroom" "Around the World in 90 Minutes" "The Mystery of Thirteen" "The Edge of Innocence" "The Clouded Image" "The Jet Propelled Couch" "The Troublemakers" "Panic Button" "Galvanized Yankee" "The Thundering Wave" "For I Have Loved Strangers" "The Lone Woman" "Reunion" "The Last Man" "The 80 Yard Run" "Before I Die" "The Gentleman From Seventh Avenue" "The Violent Heart" "No Time at All" "Point of No Return" "Portrait of a Murderer" "The Last Clear Chance" "The Male Animal" "The Right Hand Man" "Turn Left at Mount Everest" "The Dungeon" "Verdict of Three" "Rumors of Evening" "Not the Glory" "Nightmare at Ground Zero" "Bomber's Moon" "Natchez" "The Innocent Sleep" "A Town Has Turned to Dust" "The Great Gatsby" "A Bitter Heritage"
Season 3	"The Plot to Kill Stalin" "Days of Wine and Roses" "The Time of Your Life" "The Long March" "Shadows Tremble" "Word From a Sealed-Off Box" "Heart of Darkness" "Old Man" "The Return of Ansel Gibbs" "Free Weekend" "Seven Against the Wall" "The Nutcracker" "Face of a Hero" "The Wings of the Dove" "The Blue Men" "The Velvet Alley" "A Quiet Game of Cards" "Child of Our Time" "The Second Man" "The Raider" "The Dingaling Girl" "Made in Japan" "For Whom the Bell Tolls" "A Trip to Paradise" "In Lonely Expectation" "The Day Before Atlanta" "Judgment at Nuremberg" "A Corner of the Garden" "Dark December" "Diary of a Nurse" "A Marriage of Strangers" "Out of Dust" "The Rank and File" "The Killers of Mussolini" "Project Immortality" "Dark as the Night" "The Second Happiest Day"
Season 4	"Target for Three" "The Sounds of Eden" "Misalliance" "The Hidden Image" "The Grey Nurse Said Nothing" "The Tunnel" "The Silver Whistle" "A Dream of Treason" "To the Sound of Trumpets" "The Cruel Day" "Tomorrow" "The Hiding Place" "Alas, Babylon" "Journey to the Day" "The Shape of the River" "In the Presence of Mine Enemies"
Revivals	CBS Playhouse CBS Playhouse 90