| Author Meets the Critics | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Talk show |
| Created by | Phyllis Adams Jenkins |
| Presented by | John McCaffery Faye Emerson Virgilia Peterson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Martin Stone |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 22–24 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC (1948, 1951) ABC (1949) DuMont Television Network (1952-1954) |
| Picture format | Black-and-white |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original run | April 4, 1948 – October 10, 1954 |
Author Meets the Critics was an American talk show which aired on NBC, ABC, and the DuMont Television Network. The series began as a mid-season replacement on NBC on April 4, 1948, but moved to ABC in 1949. The show moved back to NBC in 1951, and then to DuMont from January 10, 1952 to October 10, 1954.
Contents |
On the series, two critics debated a recently-published book, one in favor and the other against. Later, the author of the book appeared to face the critics.
John K. M. McCaffery was the moderator from 1948 to 1951. Faye Emerson had a brief stint as moderator in 1952, during which the show was moved to prime time. Virgilia Peterson was the moderator during the DuMont run from 1952 to 1954, when the show was aired Thursdays at 10pm EST.
The DuMont episodes of the show were produced by Phyllis Adams Jenkins, a pioneer in providing serious programming intended for daytime television audiences. She went on to produce other shows, including What's the Problem?, the daytime show Home starring Arlene Francis in the 1950s, and Dinah Shore's daytime show in the 1960s.
On his show, Ernie Kovacs parodied it as "Author Heats the Critics", where the author attacks the critics, rather than the other way around.
As with most DuMont series, not many episodes of the DuMont version are known to survive. The March 27, 1949 original NBC version of the show is preserved from kinescope recordings at the Paley Center in New York.