setting per se and simply decorating the scene with a minimum of props. It took a bit of ingenuity. Personnel and production Directors included Walter Grauman, Boris Sagal, Lamont Johnson, Arthur Hiller, Lawrence Schwab, Allen A. Buckhantz, Alan Cooke, and Livia Granito. The show initially had 16 directors, but McCleery released those who could not promptly answer questions about what they needed or wanted for episodes. A staff of about a dozen people searched through books, magazines, and material in the public domain, looking for ideas, and about the same number of writers produced material for the program. While one episode of the program was being broadcast, the next day's episode was in final rehearsal. Both occurred in the same studio, with a soundproof curtain separating the activities. Two crews of 75 technicians each worked on the projects. Meanwhile, four future episodes were being rehearsed in four rehearsal halls in a facility at the corner of Vine and Selma in Los Angeles. Notable guest stars Anna Maria Alberghetti Steve Allen Mary Astor Jim Backus Patricia Barry Jacques Bergerac Richard Boone Leo G. Carroll Chuck Connors Richard Crenna Jane Darwell Bradford Dillman Joanne Dru Shelley Fabares Frances Farmer Nina Foch Eva Gabor Edmund Gwenn June Havoc Wendy Hiller Dennis Hopper Edward Everett Horton Vivi Janiss David Janssen Cecil Kellaway DeForest Kelley Shirley Knight Michael Landon Cloris Leachman Anita Louise Roddy McDowall Darren McGavin Martin Milner Agnes Moorehead Rita Moreno Jack Nicholson Hugh O'Brian Margaret O'Brien Arthur O'Connell Maureen O'Sullivan Susan Oliver Geraldine Page Suzanne Pleshette Mala Powers Barbara Rush George Peppard Vincent Price Cesar Romero Marian Seldes Pat Sheehan Wim Sonneveld Dean Stockwell Phyllis Thaxter Marshall Thompson Rudy Vallee Ethel Waters James Whitmore Mary Wickes Fay Wray Alan Young Award nominations Notable episodes The program's initial presentation was "Beginning Now", by John P. Marquand, starring Louis Hayward. Episodes Season 1 (1955-56) Season 2 (1956-57) Season 3 (1957-58) References Notes External links Matinee Theatre at CVTA with episode list 1955 American television series debuts 1958 American television series endings 1950s American anthology television series 1950s American drama television series American live television series Black-and-white American television shows English-language television shows NBC original programming