The Return of Ansel Gibbs (Playhouse 90)

"The Return of Ansel Gibbs"

Playhouse 90 episode

Melvyn Douglas in "The Return of Ansel Gibbs"

Episode no.

Season 3
Episode 9

Directed by

Ralph Nelson

Written by

David Davidson (adaptation), Frederick Buechner (novel)

Produced by

John Houseman

Original air date

November 27, 1958

Running time

1:27:59

Guest appearances

Melvyn Douglas as Ansel Gibbs
Diana Lynn as Anne
Mary Astor as Sylvia

Episode chronology

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"Old Man"

Next →
"Free Weekend"

"The Return of Ansel Gibbs" was an American television play broadcast on November 27, 1958, as part of the CBS television series, Playhouse 90.

Plot

A retired diplomat, Ansel Gibbs, accepts a position in Washington, D.C., as "Special Assistant to the President for Disarmament". He is invited onto a television show where the host seeks to humiliate him. Gibbs contemplates withdrawing from the nomination but elects to proceed to the Senate confirmation hearing and is approved.

Cast

The cast included the following:^[1]^[2]

Melvyn Douglas as Ansel Gibbs
Diana Lynn as Anne
Mary Astor as Sylvia
Earl Holliman as Robin Tripp
Loring Smith as Sen. Farwell
Ilka Chase as Louise
John Hoyt as Porter Hoye

Production

The program aired on November 27, 1958, on the CBS television series Playhouse 90. It was written by David Davidson based on Frederick Buechner's novel. John Houseman was the producer and Ralph Nelson the director.^[1]^[2]

Reception

John P. Shanley in The New York Times found the production to be melodramatic, artificial, and unsatisfactory.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b "Playhouse 90: The Return of Ansel Gibbs". The Paley Center for Media. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Playhouse 90, Season 3". The Classic TV Archive. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
^ John P. Shanley (November 28, 1958). "Show Within a Show: 'Return of Ansel Gibbs,' With Melvyn Douglas, Features Video Interview". The New York Times. p. 55.

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" "So Soon To Die" "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

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