Playhouse 90 poster
Drama

The Best Episodes of Playhouse 90

Every episode of Playhouse 90 ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Playhouse 90!

The Best Episodes of Playhouse 90

Playhouse 90 is an American television anthology series that was telecast on CBS from 1956 to 1960 for a total of 133 episodes. It originated...

Seasons4

  1. Background image for The Time of Your Life
    9.6/10(28 votes)

    #1 - The Time of Your Life

    S3:E3

    William Saroyan's Pulitzer Prize-winning play revolves around the denizens of a San Francisco bar in 1939. Lonely, lovelorn, weary or cynical, the characters drift in and out of the bar and each other's lives, giving voice to Saroyan's philosophies as they randomly comment about the impending world war, the beauty of art, and traditional notions of good and evil.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  2. Background image for Old Man
    9.3/10(16 votes)

    #2 - Old Man

    S3:E8

    To fight a Mississippi flood in 1927, a prison farm releases some convicts.

    0 Comments
    View all
  3. Background image for The Rank and File
    9.0/10(1 votes)

    #3 - The Rank and File

    S3:E34

    A powerful union leader is interrogated by a Senate committee. Testifying before a Senate, William Kilcoyne tells the story of his career. He began as a factory worker and his shrewdness and ambition carried him up through the ranks to his present position as head of a large union.

    0 Comments
    View all
  4. Background image for Alas, Babylon
    8.8/10(45 votes)

    #4 - Alas, Babylon

    S4:E14

    Americans try to cope with the aftermath of a nuclear catastrophe.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Writer:Unknown
  5. Background image for In the Presence of Mine Enemies
    8.4/10(26 votes)

    #5 - In the Presence of Mine Enemies

    S4:E17

    In the Warsaw ghetto, a Jewish man seeks revenge for the rape of his sister by a German soldier.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  6. Background image for Requiem for a Heavyweight
    8.3/10(348 votes)

    #6 - Requiem for a Heavyweight

    S1:E2

    An over-the-hill heavyweight boxing champion who suffers from the ravages of years of head trauma is exploited by his manager, despite the efforts of a compassionate young woman who tries to help him recover his self-respect.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Ralph Nelson
    Writer:Unknown
  7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 WORST Episodes of Playhouse 90

    READ
  8. Background image for Portrait of a Murderer
    8.3/10(29 votes)

    #7 - Portrait of a Murderer

    S2:E25

    Based on a true story, Donald Bashor robs and bludgeons two women to their deaths. While committing the crimes he maintains a normal existence with his girlfriend Florry.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  9. Background image for A Town Has Turned to Dust
    8.3/10(68 votes)

    #8 - A Town Has Turned to Dust

    S2:E38

    A weakling sheriff is unable to prevent a lynching. Can he redeem himself by preventing a second one?

    0 Comments
    View all
  10. Background image for The Velvet Alley
    8.2/10(42 votes)

    #9 - The Velvet Alley

    S3:E16

    Ernie Pandish has tried to be a writer for years and has never made much money out of it. But now he seems likely to hit the big-time.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  11. Background image for The Miracle Worker
    8.1/10(19 votes)

    #10 - The Miracle Worker

    S1:E19

    The story of Anne Sullivan's struggle to teach the blind and deaf Helen Keller how to communicate.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  12. Background image for Tomorrow
    8.1/10(29 votes)

    #11 - Tomorrow

    S4:E12

    Slow witted, and tired, Fentry leads a lonely life of grinding poverty in his sharecropper's shack until a sick, pregnant woman escaping her abusive husband comes there. He takes her in and cares for her, eventually falling in love with her.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  13. Background image for Invitation to a Gunfighter
    8.0/10(12 votes)

    #12 - Invitation to a Gunfighter

    S1:E23

    A gunfighter is terrorizing a small western town. The townspeople finally pool their money to a hire another gunfighter to drive him out of town. The townsfolk thought they had it bad until they handed the reigns over to the new terror. Pooling their money again, this time to hire Jeffers to get rid of Dancer.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  14. Background image for The Plot to Kill Stalin
    8.0/10(36 votes)

    #13 - The Plot to Kill Stalin

    S3:E1

    In late 1952, an aging and increasingly paranoid Stalin puts in motion a purge against his doctors, with anti-Semitic overtones. His lackeys, including Khrushchev, Molotov and Beria, fear it will spread to the Politburo, and plan to strike first.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  15. Background image for Judgment at Nuremberg
    8.0/10(80 votes)

    #14 - Judgment at Nuremberg

    S3:E28

    In the later stages of the Nuremberg Trials, four German judges are accused of perverting the course of justice.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Writer:Abby Mann
  16. Background image for The Comedian
    7.9/10(294 votes)

    #15 - The Comedian

    S1:E20

    Sammy Hogarth, a vaudeville comedian who now has his own TV show, is a ruthless egomaniac who demands instant obedience from his staff and heaps abuse on those in lesser positions than his. His most vituperative behavior, however, is reserved for his weak-willed brother, Lester, whom Sammy has hired as his assistant but whom he really uses as his whipping boy.

    0 Comments
    View all
  17. Background image for The Last Tycoon
    7.8/10(25 votes)

    #16 - The Last Tycoon

    S1:E24

    A movie producer is slowly working himself to death.

    0 Comments
    View all
  18. Background image for Clipper Ship
    7.8/10(11 votes)

    #17 - Clipper Ship

    S1:E27

    A romance on the high seas revolving around the comely widow of a shipping magnate, and her growing love for a handsome young political prisoner who was scheduled to be put to death when the vessel reached its destination. Though unyielding at first, the ship's stern captain eventually helped the woman to make a clean getaway, with the condemned man in tow.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  19. Background image for Days of Wine and Roses
    7.8/10(189 votes)

    #18 - Days of Wine and Roses

    S3:E2

    An alcoholic falls in love with and gets married to a young woman, whom he systematically addicts to booze so they can share his "passion" together.

    0 Comments
    View all
  20. Background image for Bomber's Moon
    7.7/10(33 votes)

    #19 - Bomber's Moon

    S2:E35

    A hard-hearted Colonel loses many men in his group's bombing missions over World War II Germany, but keeps on going and won't tolerate a young lieutenant losing his nerve under the strain, who refuses to continue.

    0 Comments
    View all
  21. Background image for The Great Gatsby
    7.7/10(10 votes)

    #20 - The Great Gatsby

    S2:E39

    A Midwesterner becomes fascinated with his wealthy neighbor, who obsesses over his lost love.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  22. Background image for Ain't No Time for Glory
    7.6/10(16 votes)

    #21 - Ain't No Time for Glory

    S1:E38

    American soldiers must use stealth to take over a German command post in Normandy.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  23. Background image for No Time at All
    7.6/10(29 votes)

    #22 - No Time at All

    S2:E23

    An airliner flying nonstop at night from Miami to New York fails to check in, then disappears from radar. We see how its disappearance affects people on the ground. The Episode was directed by David Swift, who also collaborated with Charles Einstein with the screenplay. Charles Einstein is also credited with writing the story. Guests include William Lundigan, Betsy Palmer, Jane Greer, Buster Keaton, Chico Marx, Frank Wilcox & Charles Bronson. The Production Company was CBS Television Network and was distributed in the USA by CBS.

    0 Comments
    View all
  24. Background image for A Marriage of Strangers
    7.6/10(15 votes)

    #23 - A Marriage of Strangers

    S3:E32

    Marry in haste, repent at leisure? Well, maybe.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  25. Background image for The Dungeon
    7.4/10(12 votes)

    #24 - The Dungeon

    S2:E30

    No description available

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  26. Background image for The Nutcracker
    7.4/10(13 votes)

    #25 - The Nutcracker

    S3:E12

    This telecast of George Balanchine's famous production was broadcast only four years after it was premiered by the New York City Ballet. This was the only episode of the series televised in color.

    0 Comments
    View all
    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

Best Episodes Summary

"The Time of Your Life" is the best rated episode of "Playhouse 90". It scored 9.6/10 based on 28 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 10/9/1958. This episode scored 0.3 points higher than the second highest rated, "Old Man".