Question: What is Truth?

Season 1, Episode 1, Aired
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Episode Summary

Slattery is named to head a committee investigating charges against his friend and fellow legislator Harry Sanborn, who is accused of willfully and illegally killing a piece of legislation he opposed.
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  • Brilliant pilot for this forgotten classic.

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    The only known copies of this episode outside of the CBS vaults ( I say known, because there could be a copy in some warehouse in Singapapore, Australia or Europe.) are in the Museum of Boadcasting in Chicago ( Their ONLY Slattery episode.) and in the UCLA archive. I am basing this review on the script, which is reprinted in a pretty good book by Coles Trapnell , Teleplay: Writing For Television, where it is used as a model TV script. Slattery's People creaor James ( Ben Casey) Moser, spent nine months in Sacramento studying the California state legislator, and repeatedly interviewed legendary Assembly leader Jesse Unruh. It shows. The script is gripping, richly detailed, and shows a deep understanding of politics. It deals, like most episodes of this great show, with a complex moral dilemma. An ambitious young legislator has brought sensational charges against veteran senator (and close friend of Slattery)Harry Sanborn, played by the great James Whitmore. House Speaker Metcalfe( Tol Avery) gives House Minority leader Slattery the task of leading the investigating committee. Slattery soon finds himself torn between his loyalty to his friend and his belief in the integrity of the legislative process. The results are tragic and deeply moving. Elizabeth Allen ( Donavan's Reef), plays an aide to the governor who tries to "persuade" Slattery to go easy on Sanborn. Sanborn's wife is played by that fine character actress Leora Dana while the majority leader-and political rival- is played by Malachi Throne He was an interesting character; it is a shame he never appeared in the series again. One bit of trivia. This episode was filmed in the California state capitol in Sacramento in 1963. In the middle of filming, a security guard came up to Crenna and told him president Kennedy had just been shot in Dallas.moreless

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    • Actor Garry Walberg was credited in this episode as Gary Walberg. Edit
    • The original title was "Mr Slattery's Decision." Edit
    • The teleplay for this episode was published in Teleplay: an introduction to television writing, ed. Coles Trapnell. San Francisco: Chandler, 1966 (168–240). Edit
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