Favorite Television Productions Set in the 1940s

Below is a list of my favorite television productions (so far) that are set in the 1940s: 

FAVORITE TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS SET IN THE 1940s

1. “Homefront” (1991-1993) – Lynn Marie Latham and Bernard Lechowick created this award-winning series about the residents of a small Ohio town in post-World War II.

2. “Mob City” (2013) – Jon Bernthal starred in this six-part limited series that was inspired by John Buntin’s book, “L.A. Noir: The Struggle for the Soul of America’s Most Seductive City”. Co-starring Alexa Davalos and Milo Ventimiglia, the series was created by Frank Darabont.

3. “Agent Carter” (2015-2016) – Hayley Atwell starred as Margaret “Peggy” Carter, an agent with the Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) in the post-World War II Manhattan. Created by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the MCU series co-starred James D’Arcy and Enver Gjokaj.

4a. “Band of Brothers” (2001) – Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks produced this outstanding television miniseries about the history of a U.S. Army paratrooper company – “Easy Company” – during the war. Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston starred. (tie)

4b. “The Pacific” (2010) – Spielberg and Hanks struck gold again in this equally superb television miniseries about the experiences of three U.S. Marines – John Basilone, Robert Leckie and Eugene Sledge – in the war’s Pacific Theater. James Badge Dale, Joseph Mazzello and Jon Seda starred. (tie)

5. “Manhattan” (2014-2015) – Sam Shaw created this series about the creation of the first two atomic bombs at Los Alamitos, New Mexico. The series starred John Benjamin Hickey.

6. “The Winds of War” (1983) – Dan Curtis produced and directed this television adaptation of Herman Wouk’s 1971 novel. The seven-part miniseries starred Robert Mitchum, Ali McGraw and Jan-Michael Vincent.

7. “Pearl” (1978) – Stirling Silliphant wrote this three-part miniseries about a group of men and women who experienced the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. Angie Dickinson, Robert Wagner, Lesley-Ann Warren and Dennis Weaver starred.

8. “The Jewel in the Crown” (1984) – The ITV aired this award winning television adaptation of Paul Scott’s “Raj Quartet”novels (1965–75) about the end of the British Raj in India. The fourteen-part miniseries starred Art Malik, Geraldine James, Charles Dance and Tim Pigott-Smith.

9. “Foyle’s War” (2002-2015) – Anthony Horowitz created this television crime drama about a British police detective during World War II. The series starred Michael Kitchen, Honeysuckle Weeks and Anthony Howell.

10. “RKO 281” (1999) – Liev Schreiber starred as Orson Welles in this 1999 television adaptation of 1996 documentary called “The Battle Over Citizen Kane”. The television movie also starred John Malkovich, Roy Schneider, James Cromwell and Melanie Griffith.

Top Five Favorite Episodes of “MANHATTAN” (2014-2015)

Below is a list of my five favorite episodes from the 2014-2015 WGN series, “MANHATTAN”. Created by Sam Shaw, the series starred John Benjamin Hickey and Olivia Williams: 

TOP FIVE FAVORITE EPISODES OF “MANHATTAN” (2014-2015)

1. (2.07) “Behold the Lord High Executioner” – In this episode, the second Los Alamos base’s commander, Colonel Emmett Darrow, engages in the hunt for a possible spy after the son of a Native American cleaning woman stumbles across a can filled with equations.

2. (1.12) “The Gun Model” – Dr. Reed Akley, lead scientist for the Thin Man bomb design of the Manhattan Project, becomes vulnerable when he tries to fix the design’s shortcomings.

3. (1.02) “The Prisoner’s Dilemma” – When Dr. Frank Winter, lead scientist for the Manhattan Project’s implosion design, attempts to save his team from being shut down, his action leads to serious consequences for team member Dr. Sid Liao.

4. (2.10) “Jupiter” – While the countdown to the first nuclear weapon test commences, Dr. Frank Winter races to apprehend a Soviet spy who intends to sabotage the gadget.

5. (1.05) “A New Approach to Nuclear Cosmology” – When Dr. Glenn Babbit’s past comes back to haunt him, Frank clashes with newcomer Dr. Charlie Isaacs to protect his mentor and team member.

 

Top Ten Favorite Television Productions Set in the 1960s

Below is a list of my favorite television productions (so far) that are set in the 1960s: 

TOP TEN FAVORITE TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS SET IN THE 1960s

1. “Mad Men” (2007-2015) – Matthew Weiner created this award-winning series about the professional and personal life of an advertising executive during the 1960s. Jon Hamm starred.

2. “Kennedy” (1983) – Martin Sheen, Blair Brown and John Shea starred in this seven-part miniseries about the presidency of John F. Kennedy. The miniseries was written by Reg Gadney and directed by Jim Goddard.

3. “Tour of Duty” (1987-1990) – Steve Duncan and L. Travis Clark created this television series about an U.S. Army infantry platoon during the Vietnam War in the late 1960s. Terence Knox and Stephen Caffrey starred.

4. “Pan Am” (2011-2012) – Jack Orman created this series about the lives of four Pan Am stewardesses and two pilots during the early 1960s. The series starred Kelli Garner, Margot Robbie, Karine Vanasse, Mike Vogel, Michael Mosley and Christina Ricci.

5. “Vegas” (2012-2013) – Nicholas Pileggi and Greg Walker created this series about the conflict between Las Vegas Sheriff Ralph Lamb and a Chicago mobster named Vincent Savino. Dennis Quaid and Michael Chiklis starred.

6. “The Astronaut Wives Club” (2015) – Stephanie Savage produced this adaptation of Lily Kopel’s 2013 book about the wives of the Mercury Seven astronauts. The cast included Joanna García Swisher, Yvonne Strahovski and Dominique McElligott.

7. “The Kennedys” (2011) – Jon Cassar directed this award winning miniseries that chronicled the lives of the Kennedy family between the 1940s and the 1960s. Greg Kinnear, Katie Holmes, Barry Pepper, Diana Hardcastle and Tom Wilkinson starred.

8. “Crime Story” (1986-1988) – Chuck Adamson and Gustave Reininger created this television series about the bitter conflict between a Chicago police lieutenant and a mobster in the mid 1960s. Dennis Farina and Anthony Denison starred.

9. “Path to War” (2002) – John Frankenheimer directed this HBO movie that dealt with the Vietnam War through the eyes of President Lyndon B. Johnson. Michael Gambon, Donald Sutherland and Alec Baldwin starred.

10. “Public Morals” (2015) – Edward Burns created and starred in this TNT limited series about police detectives who worked for the Public Morals Division of the New York City Police Department.

Five Favorite Episodes of “MANHATTAN” Season One (2014)

Below is a list of my favorite episodes from Season One of the WGN’s “MANHATTAN”. Created by Sam Shaw, the series starred John Benjamin Hickey:

FIVE FAVORITE EPISODES OF “MANHATTAN” SEASON ONE (2014)

1. (1.12) “The Gun Model” – Dr. Reed Akley, lead scientist for the Thin Man bomb design of the Manhattan Project, becomes vulnerable when he tries to fix the design’s shortcomings.

2. (1.02) “The Prisoner’s Dilemma” – When Dr. Frank Winter, lead scientist for the Manhattan Project’s implosion design, attempts to save his team from being shut down, his action leads to serious consequences for team member Dr. Sid Liao.

3. (1.05) “A New Approach to Nuclear Cosmology” – When Dr. Glenn Babbit’s past comes back to haunt him, Frank clashes with newcomer Dr. Charlie Isaacs to protect his mentor and team member.

4. (1.07) “A New World” – While visiting an off-site reactor in Tennessee, Charlie and Dr. Helen Prins race to prevent a meltdown. Meanwhile, Frank and his wife, Dr. Liza Winter; help the family of their maid Paloma.

5. (1.11) “Tangier” – The death of a German-born spy for the Allies in Germany re-invigorates the hunt for a spy on The Hill. Charlie and his wife, Abby Isaacs, make a sacrifice when the plan with Frank to develop the implosion project is threatened.