Marty (teleplay)
| "Marty" | |
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| The Philco Television Playhouse episode | |
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| Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 23 |
| Directed by | Delbert Mann |
| Teleplay by | Paddy Chayefsky |
| Produced by | Fred Coe |
| Cinematography by | Al McClellan |
| Original air date | May 24, 1953 |
| Running time | 51 minutes |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
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"Marty" is a 1953 television play by Paddy Chayefsky. It was telecast live May 24, 1953, on The Philco Television Playhouse with Rod Steiger in the title role and Nancy Marchand, in her television debut, playing opposite him as Clara. Chayefsky's story of a decent, hard-working Bronx butcher, pining for the company of a woman in his life but despairing of ever finding true love in a relationship, was produced by Fred Coe with associate producer Gordon Duff.
The teleplay was adapted into the feature film Marty starring Ernest Borgnine in 1955. It was directed by Delbert Mann and written by Chayefsky. The film won both the Academy Award for Best Picture and the Palme d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival and Borgnine won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
In his collected Television Plays (1955), Chayefsky recalled:
The story originated by chance when Delbert Mann and Chayefsky were rehearsing The Reluctant Citizen in the old Abbey Hotel's ballroom on West 51st Street, which was also used for Friday night meetings of the Friendship Club. After Chayefsky wandered around and spotted a sign which read, "Girls, Dance With the Man Who Asks You. Remember, Men Have Feelings, Too", he told Mann he thought there was a play possibility about a young woman in that type of setting. Speaking to Mann later that day, he told him that such a drama could work better with a man as the central character rather than a woman. Mann told him to go talk to Fred Coe, which Chayefsky did. He pitched the idea by simply saying, "I want to do a play about a guy who goes to a ballroom." Coe told him to start writing it.
As Chayefsky was in the middle of writing the script (at this point entitled "Love Story"), Coe and Mann unexpectedly rejected another script that was scheduled for production. Coe then called Chayefsky to ask him how the "Love Story" script was going, hoping that it could be put into production immediately. At that point, Chayefsky was partway through act 2, and thought he could have it finished in a few weeks, but after talking with Coe he agreed to turn around material in only a few days.
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