{{Short description|American TV dramatic anthology series (1952–1953)}} {{italic title}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}} '''''Short Short Dramas''''' is an American dramatic anthology series which aired from September 30, 1952 to April 9, 1953 on NBC. During the original run it was hosted by Ruth Woods,<ref name=tt>{{cite book|last1=McNeil|first1=Alex|title=Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present |date=1996|publisher=Penguin Books USA, Inc.|location=New York, New York|isbn=0-14-02-4916-8|page= 752 |edition=4th}}</ref> whose segments were dropped when it was syndicated.{{Citation needed |date=August 2023}}
Each episode began with Woods introducing a storyteller. He or she set the scene for the episode's play and then took a starring role in it.<ref name="brooks" />
While most American anthology TV series of the 1950s aired weekly in either half-hour or hour-long time-slots,{{Citation needed |date=August 2023}} ''Short Short Dramas'' aired in a 15-minute time-slot, with episodes broadcast each week on Tuesday and Thursday from 7:15 to 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time.<ref name="brooks">{{cite book|last1=Brooks|first1=Tim|last2=Marsh|first2=Earle|title=The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present|date=1999|publisher=The Ballentine Publishing Group|location=New York|isbn=0-345-42923-0|pages=913–914|edition=7th}}</ref> Episodes were 12-minutes excluding ads, and a total of 78 episodes were produced. Additionally, unlike most early anthology series which were live, ''Short Short Dramas'' was an early example of a filmed dramatic series, still a relatively new idea at the time (the first filmed dramatic TV series had aired in 1949, but they were only just starting to become more common in 1952).{{Citation needed |date=August 2023}}
Among its guest stars were [[Cliff Robertson]], [[E.G. Marshall]], [[Leslie Nielsen]], [[Bethel Leslie]], [[Tony Randall]], [[Neva Patterson]],<ref name="brooks" /> [[Richard Kiley]], and [[Ernest Borgnine]], Directors included [[Daniel Petrie]].{{Citation needed |date=August 2023}}
==Syndication== Although it only ran for one season, it nevertheless proved popular enough to have syndicated repeats under the title '''Playhouse 15'''. A 1955 trade ad lists MCA as being the distributor.<ref name="google">{{cite book|title=Billboard|date=1993-06-12|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.|issn=0006-2510|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9A8EAAAAMBAJ|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9A8EAAAAMBAJ/page/n8 9]|accessdate=2014-10-24}}</ref>
It was also exported to Australia. Starting in 1959 it aired in Sydney on ATN-7 and in Melbourne on GTV-9, as this was prior to the creation of the [[Nine Network]] and [[Seven Network]].{{Citation needed |date=August 2023}}
==References== <references/>
==External links== *[http://ctva.biz/US/Anthology/ShortShortDramas.htm ''Short Short Dramas'' at CVTA with episode list] *[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0307828/ ''Short Short Dramas'' on IMDb] *[https://archive.org/details/playhouse15-EqualPartners Public domain episode ''Equal Partners'' is available on the Internet Archive]
[[Category:1952 American television series debuts]] [[Category:1953 American television series endings]] [[Category:1950s American anthology television series]] [[Category:Black-and-white American television shows]] [[Category:NBC television dramas]]