Wicked Is the Vine
| Wicked is the Vine | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Sumner Locke Elliott |
| Date premiered | 1947 |
| Place premiered | Lux Radio Theatre |
| Original language | English |
Wicked is the Vine is a 1947 radio play by Sumner Locke Elliott.
It was inspired by the Lizzie Borden murder.[1]
Plot
In 1918, two sisters, Sarah and Ellie Vinson, come into conflict. It results in murder..
Radio play
Elliott wrote the play in Australia for Lux Radio Theatre. It was one of the few original plays they had commissioned. He wrote it while trying to emigrate to the USA.
The original production aired in 1947 and starred Brenda Dunrich and Neva Carr Glynn.[2]
One listener wrote in complaining saying the show was "well acted and well produced, we grant, but what a thing to inflict on people trying to escape for one brief hour from the real life tragedies of these troubled times. Open any newspaper any day and you can get your callous murders and your shootings and your wicked people without having to go to the radio plays for it. Wicked Is the Vine gave us two murders and one attempted murder, complete with the horrible sounds of blows on a human head, shots, screams, gaspings for breath, and groans... Truly wickedis the man who chose Wicked Is the Vine."[3]
It received some bad reviews[4] but was also awarded Best Play by the Federation of Commercial Radio Stations.[5]
It was presented again in 1952.
1949 TV Adaptation
It was adapted for US television making it the first Australian play to be done on American television.[6][7]
it aired on 30 March 19490 and was directed by Stanley Quin.[8] It starred Ron Randell, an Australian actor.[9]
The production was well received and launched Elliott's career in New York as a TV writer.[10]
Cast
- Margaret Phillips ....... Sarah
- Joan Stanley ....... Ellie
- Michael Everett ....... Joe
- Ron Randell ....... Howard
- John Hamilton
- Margery Maude
- Janet Fox
References
- ↑ "AUSTRALIAN PENS LUX PLAY.". The Examiner. Launceston, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 9 August 1947. p. 1 Section: The EXAMINER WEEK-END MAGAZINE SECTION. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- ↑ "George Hart's Radio Round-Up". The Sun (11,704). New South Wales, Australia. 31 July 1947. p. 6 (LATE FINAL EXTRA). Retrieved 18 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ "THIS WEEK'S RADIO REVIEW Listeners do a little solid hating". The Argus (Melbourne) (31,494). Victoria, Australia. 9 August 1947. p. 43. Retrieved 18 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ "ON THE AIR". Smith's Weekly. XXIX, (25). New South Wales, Australia. 16 August 1947. p. 20. Retrieved 18 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ "GEORGE HART'S RADIO NEWS". The Sun (12,173). New South Wales, Australia. 1 February 1949. p. 10 (LATE FINAL EXTRA). Retrieved 18 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ "Australian Play To Be Televised.". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 27 October 1948. p. 1. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- ↑ "Australians In Television.". The Sunday Herald. Sydney: National Library of Australia. 19 June 1949. p. 8 Supplement: Features. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- ↑ {http://ctva.biz/US/Anthology/KraftTelevisionTheatre_NBC_02_(1948-49).htm Kraft Television Theatre Season 2] at CTVA
- ↑ "Australians In Television". The Sunday Herald (Sydney) (22). New South Wales, Australia. 19 June 1949. p. 8 (Features). Retrieved 18 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ↑ "MUSIC AND THE THEATRE "Radio Is Doomed"As "Rusty Bugles" Author Sees It". The Sunday Herald (Sydney) (50). New South Wales, Australia. 8 January 1950. p. 6 (Features). Retrieved 18 July 2017 – via National Library of Australia.