Armstrong Circle Theatre Season 8, Episode 16: Day of Disaster: Riker's Island

The Bystander

S.O.S. from the Andrea Doria

This drama about the tragedy of the Andrea Doria is a combination of narration by John Cameron Swayze, film clips and a re-enactment of the story of Thure Peterson and his wife, who loses her life after heroic attempts to free her from beneath a steel beam. It also includes a re-enactment of the story of Lilly Doona who jumps overboard to rescue her daughter. The U.S. Coast Guard Search and Rescue Center plays a major role in the rescue efforts.

Flare Up

Flight #387 from Budapest

Docudrama of a small group of Hungarians escaping to West Germany. Polyak gathers people who wish to flee and, after great difficulty, arranges for a gun. They board a flight to a city near the border and plan to commandeer the plane. The man with their gun does not show up and they are not sure if they should proceed. They decide to go ahead and have to subdue a security officer. They fly on an almost empty tank and arrive safely in West Germany.

Search, Seizure and Arrest

A dramatization of the actual operations of a customs enforcement squad on a ship as it tracks down a man trying to smuggle drugs into the U.S. Inspector Michaels boards a ship from Morocco and leads his squad in searching out the narcotics. They find some in the coat of a crew member named Alvin and hidden in various places on the ship. Michaels turns over the case to the Customs agents.

Operation Deep Freeze: Crash of the Otter

Dramatization of seven men marooned by a plane crash in Antarctica. The plane, the Otter, is part of the largest Antarctic expedition in history, Operation Deep Freeze. The crash occurs during a blizzard and Lt. Comm. Glen H. Lathrop, Jr. of the U.S. Naval Reserve and his men must face the ice and cold to come out of the unchartered area alive. Their food and strength are ebbing, but they are finally rescued.

Divorcées Anonymous

A drama of a woman on the verge of divorce and how Divorcees Anonymous, a Chicago organization, deals with such cases. The organization tries along with two divorced women to make the woman on the verge of divorce realize how much better it is to stay married. With the aid of Sam Starr, a Chicago attorney, they bring about a reconciliation. At the conclusion, Sam Starr speaks briefly about the pressing problem of divorce today.

The Freedom Fighters of Hungary

Dramatization of how three strangers, Anna Percelz, Sandor Fisvek and Ferenc Lukacs, become part of a force fighting a common enemy. The drama traces the heroic and tragic paths each follows until they meet to stand against the overwhelming power of the invading Soviet forces.

Error in Judgment: The Case of Prisoner #16688

True-life drama of a young lawyer's untiring efforts to free a man he believes was unjustly convicted. The lawyer, Bob Gorman, examines the file of Roy Eaton, who has been serving time since 1940 in Joliet, Illinois for armed robbery. Eaton, bitter over the system which he feels discriminates against the poor and illiterate, is distrustful of the lawyer's efforts to prove there is equal justice under the law. The date for a re-trial is long since past and the State of Illinois must give a waiver. Barney Moran is responsible for this decision and he grants it. The evidence is submitted to the judge and Eaton is proclaimed innocent. At the end, Gorman speaks briefly on the fact that convicted people have rights and they must not be abrogated.

The Trial of Poznan

The Vanished

Four Homes for Danny

This is the story of an unloved and misunderstood child, Danny, and the homes in which he lives and tries to find himself. He begins to be difficult at home and in class, but his nagging parents never think they might be partly responsible. He is sent to the New England Home for Little Wanderers, where friendly teachers and psychiatrists study but do not change youngsters' behavior. A temporary foster home is arranged for Danny. With the help of case workers, his parents change their feelings about their responsibilities to Danny and when he returns, he feels he will stay.

Arson: File #732

This is a drama based on the work of the Fire Marshal's Office of Nassau County, Long Island, New York. A case history is presented about the solution of an arson for profit case, which goes into all the details of the fire and investigations to the apprehension of the ""torch.""

Slow Assassination: Perón Vs. La Prensa

A dramatization of the actual life and death struggle of an independent newspaper against the tyranny of the dictator, Juan Perón. The press of the world brought to light the fight of Dr. Alberto Gainza Paz, owner and publisher of the newspaper La prensa, who was forced to close down. He seeks refuge abroad where he continues his endeavors until Perón's downfall. On his return to Argentina, he reopens La prensa and reestablishes freedom of the press.

Night Court

A dramatization based on fact of a typical night in New York's famous Night Court, the City Magistrate's Court, where cases of minor crimes and disturbances are handled. Insight is given into the proceedings between the judge and the defendants.

Three Cents Worth of Fear

Money for Sale

The Hunted: The Eva Soreny Story