The Ford 50th Anniversary Show
The Merman and Martin sequences from television's first special.
1953 | 120m | English
Popularity: 0.4 (history)
| Director: | Jerome Robbins |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Howard Teichmann |
| Staring: |
| The program was the first so-called "Television Spectacular". Ford presented the show without commercial interruption. It is believed to be the first time that Edward R. Murrow appeared on NBC in a professional capacity. Also, in 1953, it was necessary for Ford to buy time on two networks to ensure maximum coverage of US TV households - at the time, neither CBS nor NBC reached 100% of them. The famed 1953 television special celebrating the Ford Motor Company's 50th anniversary brought together two of the greatest leading ladies Broadway has ever known. The highlight of the program is Merman and Martin’s 13-minute duet medley, where they sing the songs that made them famous, plus much more. On their own, Merman sings “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” and “Mademoiselle from Armetières” and Martin performs a brilliantly comic routine about changes in fashion over the first half of the 20th century. | |
| Release Date: | Jun 15, 1953 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Jerome Robbins |
| Writer: | Howard Teichmann |
| Genres: | |
| Keywords | tv special |
| Production Companies | CBS Studios, NBC |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $0 |
| Updates |
Updated: Jan 22, 2026 Entered: May 27, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Mary Martin | Herself |
| Ethel Merman | Herself |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Howard Teichmann | Writer |
| Jerome Robbins | Director |
| Name | Title |
|---|
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
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| 2024 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2024 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2024 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2024 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
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| 2024 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2024 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
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