Panic Button (Playhouse 90)

"**Panic Button**"
"Panic Button"
Playhouse 90 episode
Episode no.	Season 2; Episode 12
Directed by	Franklin Schaffner
Written by	Rod Serling
Original air date	November 28, 1957
Guest appearances
	Robert Stack as Jerry Cook; Vera Miles as Carolyn Cook; Lee J. Cobb as Al Bengsten;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "The Troublemakers"	Next →; "Galvanized Yankee"

"Panic Button" was an American television play broadcast on November 28, 1957, as part of the second season of the CBS television series Playhouse 90. Rod Serling wrote the teleplay. Franklin Schaffner directed, Martin Manulis was the producer, and Dominick Dunne was the executive assistant. Robert Stack, Vera Miles, and Lee J. Cobb starred.^[1]

Plot

The investigation into a plane crash concludes that it was caused by pilot error. At the inquiry, the co-pilot (Robert Stack) seeks to place the blame on the captain who died in the crash. In the end, the co-pilot is found to have been responsible for the crash, and his pilot's license is revoked.

Reception

Television reviewer Harriet Van Horne praised Serling's story and cited it as proof that television drama had grown up, no longer having the need for a happy ending. She also praised the performances of Stack, Cobb, Seldes and Miles as valiant and true.^[2]

San Francisco Examiner reviewer Dwight Nelson praised the performances of Cobb and Stack but opined that Serling's story was "neither dull nor exciting. Just average for this year's "Playhouse 90" plays which have been distinguished for length than for content."^[3]

Cast

The following performers received screen credit for their performances:

Robert Stack - Jerry Cook
Vera Miles - Carolyn Cook
Lee J. Cobb - Al Bengsten
Leif Erickson - Paul Henderson
Marian Seldes - Kate Sullivan

References

^ "Playhouse 90, Season 2". Classic TV Archive. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
^ Harriet Van Horne (November 29, 1957). "TV Grows Up? Ending of 'Panic Button' Not Happy". El Paso Herald-Post. p. 26 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Dwight Newton (November 30, 1957). "Day and Night". San Francisco Examiner. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.

[CTVA-1] "Playhouse 90, Season 2". Classic TV Archive. Retrieved February 25, 2021.

[2] Harriet Van Horne (November 29, 1957). "TV Grows Up? Ending of 'Panic Button' Not Happy". El Paso Herald-Post. p. 26 – via Newspapers.com.

[3] Dwight Newton (November 30, 1957). "Day and Night". San Francisco Examiner. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.

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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