The Defender (Studio One)

The Defender (Studio One)

101 mins | Drama, TV Movie | Feb. 25, 1957

The pilot for the television series, "The Defenders." The story of Walter and Kenneth Pearson, a father-and-son legal team. Broadcast as two segments of "Studio One," the story relates how the Pearsons defend a young man accused of killing a woman during a robbery attempt.

The Defender (Studio One)

101 mins | Drama, TV Movie | Feb. 25, 1957

The Defender (Studio One)
The pilot for the television series, "The Defenders." The story of Walter and Kenneth Pearson, a father-and-son legal team. Broadcast as two segments of "Studio One," the story relates how the Pearsons defend a young man accused of killing a woman during a robbery attempt.
IMDb rating 7.8
Producers
Original title The Defender (Studio One)
Directors Robert Mulligan
Writers Reginald Rose

Cast

Ralph Bellamy

as Walter Preston

Martin Balsam

as Francis Toohey

Steve McQueen

as Joseph Gordon

Vivian Nathan

as Mrs. Gordon

William Shatner

as Kenneth Preston

Ian Wolfe

as Judge Marsala

David J. Stewart

as Dr. Victor Wallach

Russell Hardie

as First Guard

Iggie Wolfington

as Court Clerk

Arthur Storch

as Seymour Miller

Frank Marth

as First Reporter

Eileen Ryan

as Betsy Fuller

Milton Selzer

as 2nd Guard

Rudy Bond

as Peter D'Agostino

Dolores Sutton

as Norma Lane

Rosetta LeNoire

as Mary Ellen Bailey

John McGovern

as Dr. Horace Bell

Michael Higgs

as Sergeant James Sheeley

Betty Furness

as Self / Commercial Spokeswoman

Irene Kane

as Courtroom Observer

Florence Stanley

as Courtroom Spectator

Ed Asner

as Juror (uncredited)

Joby Baker

as Trial Spectator (uncredited)

Robert Morris

as Anthony Carmonada (uncredited)