Global Playhouse, intermittently also known as Bell Canada Playhouse or Bell Canada Global Playhouse, is a Canadian television drama anthology series, which aired on Global Television Network in the 1980s.[1] A coproduction of Atlantis Films and the National Film Board of Canada,[2] the series aired film adaptations of short stories by Canadian writers.[1]

Its most noted episode was The Painted Door, a dramatization of a short story by Sinclair Ross which was an Academy Award nominee for Best Live Action Short Film at the 57th Academy Awards in 1985.[3] Other stories adapted for the series included Ross's "One's a Heifer",[4] Mordecai Richler's "Bambinger",[1] Margaret Laurence's "To Set Our House in Order",[5] W. D. Valgardson's "Capital",[6] W. P. Kinsella's "John Cat",[4] Guy Vanderhaeghe's "Cages",[4] Morley Callaghan's "All the Years of Her Life" and "A Cap for Steve",[4] David Walker's "A Good Tree",[4] Isabel Huggan's "Jack of Hearts", and Alice Munro's "Connections".[7]

The series produced 26 episodes overall, which aired monthly from 1984 to 1986,[8] and ended production at the discretion of Atlantis Films rather than being cancelled by the network.[9] All 26 episodes were rebroadcast weekly in the 1986-87 television season.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c Rick Groen, "Short is sweet on Global". The Globe and Mail, September 27, 1984.
  2. ^ Bill Prentice, "Canadians on display in TV drama showcase". The Globe and Mail, September 22, 1984.
  3. ^ "Oscar Nominations Give Canada the Nod Once More". Cinema Canada (116): 48. March 1985.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Atlantis completes 2 of Canlit series". Cinema Canada, April 1984. p. 34.
  5. ^ Rick Groen, "Lofty standards maintained in TV version of Laurence tale". The Globe and Mail, May 23, 1985.
  6. ^ Greg Burliuk, "Global Playhouse productions score another wistful winner". Kingston Whig-Standard, July 25, 1985.
  7. ^ Salem Alaton, "The NFB gives some on-the-job training: Learning the tricks of the trade". The Globe and Mail, February 9, 1985.
  8. ^ John Haslett Cuff, "New tax guidelines may have industry breathing easier". The Globe and Mail, October 30, 1986.
  9. ^ Sid Adilman, "Trio had its fill of TV quickies". Toronto Star, April 2, 1986.
  10. ^ Noel Taylor, "In with new, out with old at Global; Network bringing in 13 new shows, dropping some standbys for fall". Ottawa Citizen, September 4, 1986.


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