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Musical Comedy Time

Musical Comedy Time is an anthology television series broadcast on CBS from October 2, 1950, to March 19, 1951, alternating with Robert Montgomery Presents on Mondays from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time. It was the first television program to feature televised adaptations of musical theatre works from the Broadway stage. These adaptations were abridged versions of the musicals and only presented part of the work to fit within a television series's time limits.

Last revised
Jun 14, 2026
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Musical Comedy Time is an anthology television series broadcast on CBS from October 2, 1950, to March 19, 1951, alternating with Robert Montgomery Presents1 on Mondays from 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time.2 It was the first television program to feature televised adaptations of musical theatre works from the Broadway stage.3 These adaptations were abridged versions of the musicals and only presented part of the work to fit within a television series's time limits.4

Regulars on the show were The Ken Christie Singers, The Kevin Jonson Dancers, and the Harry Sosnik Orchestra.2

The premiere broadcast on October 2, 1950, broadcast twice monthly, featured a television adaptation of Cole Porter's Anything Goes with Ethel Merman reprising her role from the original 1934 Broadway production.5 The November 13, 1950, episode presented an adaptation of Rio Rita, starring Bert Wheeler, Patricia Morison, and Hal LeRoy.6 Other adaptations included Babes in Toyland,7 Miss Liberty, and Louisiana Purchase.8

References

References

  1. McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 578. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  2. Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1999). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present (7th ed.). New York: The Ballentine Publishing Group. p. 698. ISBN 0-345-42923-0.
  3. Anthony Enns (2021). "Live Musical Spectaculars". In Julie Lobalzo Wright, Martha Shearer (ed.). Musicals at the Margins: Genre, Boundaries, Canons. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 218.
  4. Thomas S. Hischak (2008). "Musical Comedy Time". The Oxford Companion to the American Musical: Theatre, Film, and Television. Oxford University Press. p. 516. ISBN 9780199887323.
  5. Kelly Kessler (2020). Broadway in the Box: Television's Lasting Love Affair with the Musical. Oxford University Press. p. 24. ISBN 9780190674038.
  6. "'Rio Rita' set for TV". The Sunday Star-Ledger. New Jersey, Newark. November 12, 1950. p. T 7. Retrieved March 21, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Lohman, Sidney (December 24, 1950). "Christmas on the Airwaves". The New York Times. p. 51. Retrieved March 4, 2025.
  8. "Fred Allen Leaves Video Show Dec. 17: Comedian Will Give Up Sunday Night Series on N.B.C. Because of Health". The New York Times. December 1, 1950. p. 31. Retrieved March 4, 2025.
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