Made-for-TV movies, today, are not so much an endangered thing as much as they are completely extinct. Once an esteemed and dominating part of network television, today, they only seem to have a home on the Hallmark Channel (which seems to have a fast-moving factory to produce them) and the Syfy channel which produces a few every so often with their intentions ranging camp to full-on creepy.
Once upon a time, though, made-for-TV movies were a well-regarded and dominating component of the three big networks. They made up the weekly showings that aired as part of “The NBC Monday Movie,” “The CBS Saturday Movie” and, of course, the “The ABC Sunday Night Movie.”
For these and other umbrella titles, their weekly screenings often consisted of former theatrical hits getting their prime-time debut (this was back before pre-streaming and HBO, etc.) as well as annual airings of “Gone With The Wind” (divided over two nights) and “The Wizard of Oz.” Of course, for these theatrical films, they always had to be edited a bit prior to air to make room for commercials. Some made-for-TV movies were also TV pilots hoping to get a head start; for example, the series “Get Christie Love” got off the ground that way as did “The Rookies” and “Wonder Woman.”
But often they were well-crafted, acclaimed parts of “appointment television.” Some of the TV movies of the “golden age” are now undisputed classics: “The Day After,” “Eleanor: First Lady of the World,” “Amelia Earhart,” “The Execution of Private Slovik, and various prestige presentations under the banner of “The Hallmark Hall of Fame” (before they went the full Christmas-y rom-com).
The success of the made-for-TV format eventually engender the miniseries and such esteemed titles as “The Winds of War,” “The Thorn Birds” and, of course, “Roots.”
Mini-series, more or less, still exist as so-called “limited series” but they are now a component of various streaming platforms from Hulu to Netflix. We are also far more likely to binge them than actually wait to watch.
But, as for network TV, made-for-TV movies (or “movies of the week” as they were sometimes called), those one-off, usually two-hour primetime presentations, are not to be found anywhere, anymore. They largely limped to an end in the 1990s, after a variety of “women in peril” movies aired and dulled the genre.
But, oh, but the glory days!
Have you ever wonder though what the very first TV movie was?
Well, according to various sources, including Alvin H. Marill, who authored the authoritative encyclopedia, “Movies Made for TV,” the very first was a 1964 NBC production titled “See How They Run.” (This film is not to be confused with the often-staged theatrical farce of the same name or another TV movie, “See How She Runs,” starring Joanne Woodward from 1978.)
Marill arrives at this decision only after ample research and debate.
To find the right answer, he removes from the discussion installments of earlier anthology programs that got joined together in the editing suite and then aired by stations as “movies.” Similarly, he discounts something similar that has often been done over time where
or two or more episodes of various short-lived TV series (like the high-profile flop “The Survivors”) often got tacked together and “sold” as a “movie.”
He arrives, then, at “See How They Run.”
“See How They Run” barely gained its landmark status however. That same year 1964, the Ronald Reagan-Lee Marvin-Angie Dickinson crime drama “The Killers” was produced by Universal and was, originally, to make its debut over television, namely via the NBC-aired “Project 120” series. But, once completed, execs found the film too violent for primetime and, instead, moved it to a theatrical release.
Hence, “Run” grabs the title.
The impulse behind the original features for the small screen seemed to have to do with the TV networks wanting to give audiences a reason to stay home. It was their way of saying: why go out to the new movies (ugh! the drive, the parking, the over-priced popcorn!) when you can see a brand-new feature from the comfort of your own home? It was also a way for the industry to play new titles after spending the last 15 years replaying many of the same old Hollywood product.
At the time of its debut, “See How They Run” was described as being a “high-flown [tale of] internal intrigue.” The plot deals with a trio of orphans who find themselves embroiled in a chase-heavy drama after their father is killed.
As would soon become something of the norm for TV movies, “See How…” featured an all-star cast. Its players: John Forsythe, Senta Berger, Pamela Franklin, Jane Wyatt, Franchot Tone, George Kennedy and Leslie Nielsen.
When it made its debut in ’64, ads for it tried to make the most of its unique, revolutionary status. They noted that this film would be making its true “world premiere” on NBC, that it had never been seen by anyone any screen before—theater or TV!
Sadly this alleged major sea-change in viewing did not impress everyone. TV critic Arlene Garber, who then wrote for the “LA Evening Citizen News” certainly was not moved. In her review of the film, she wrote, “’See How They Run’ was not a movie in any sense of the word. It wasn’t even a good television show.” She continued, citing specifically its supposed lack of plot coherence, “it wasn’t clear why the children were so involved in this mixed-up spy chase nor was it understood how the adults figured in the plot.” She added, “As for the emotional pull of the drama, there wasn’t any, it was so badly handled.”
Julia Inman, however, writing for the “Indianapolis Star,” was a little kinder and especially noted the superb performances by the three child actors in the film. Those kids were played by Pamela Franklin, Jackie Jones and Jami Fields. Though Fields and Jones would only have very brief acting careers, Franklin was one of the most-dependable young thespians of the era; her good review here comes as no surprise. (Franklin would go on to have an impressive career as a young adult as well.)
After airing over the US airwaves, “See How They Run” was released theatrically overseas.
How “See How” did on either the small screen or the big ones—in terms of money--doesn’t seem to be readily documented. But the fact that this film is so little remembered today might answer this question. That the film doesn’t seem to be available for streaming anyway only confirms it.
Nevertheless, NBC didn’t give up and, a month later, debuted the drama “The Hanged Man” starring Robert Culp and Vera Miles.
Eventually, of course, made-for-TV movies gained a foothold—a big one—in network primetime. One would think that the genesis of this auspicious new genre would have a heralded and celebrated starting point. But history has judged otherwise. Still, for the importance of what “See They Run” would beget, it has its place in history.
