Frances Farmer Presents

I was a pre-teen when Francis Farmer Presents was on the air. It's hard, very hard, to imagine now, in this day of instant communications and text-messaging; but it was true: I first heard the utterly fantastic and soul-wrenching music of Wagner's "Thus Spake Zarathustra" which was to become the theme music for '2001-A Space Oddysey' by Stanley Kubrick. It was during the post-commercial break, when they displayed a black and white still shot of some still-life for 6 or 7 seconds or so, and played a snatch of that music, that was to signify that you were watching 'Francis Farmer Presents" , and that the movie was about to resume. That music captivated me; it struck a deep chord for many years, until, when approching my High School in 1969, at the Band Room entrance, I heard that very same music blare out from the open windows into the open campus space. I stood, transfixed;"Yes, I thought: that was the same music I remembered', and later learned, it was from a new Science Fiction Movie called '2001-A Space Odyssey". It still remains to me one of the most significant pieces of music of our time.

"Frances Farmer Presents" was an Indianapolis ratings powerhouse for six years, 1958-64. Farmer was not merely a "film introducer," she did extensive research for her programs (as evidenced by still extant notes she wrote for certain episodes) and often gave her first-hand impressions of stars and directors who were in that day's feature. Visiting celebrities were a standard feature on Farmer's program, and in still-existing film of her show, she proves what an insightful and gracious interviewer she was. Indianapolis was lucky to have a star of Farmer's stature hosting a show of this nature for so long. In an early 80s television interview, WFBM co-worker Jim Gerrard sums up Frances' character as one of "caring elegance," and that elegance is fully on display in "Frances Farmer Presents."

I remember this show well, and as the show came on TV just after I got home from school, I was a regular. Ms. Farmer was an elegantly coiffed and dressed older woman who didn't just model the clothes provided by one of the sponsors (clothing provided by L.S. Ayres and Company, a local department store who's investment paid off.) She provided a complete contrast to the comparatively dowdy housewives of my small town, and I suspect they despised her because they thought that they could look like that, too, if someone gave them the clothes.

She had a lot more than the clothes. She had presence, and actually had something intelligent to say about the movies, some of them great but some awful.

She was at a minimum competent, and on her better days far better than that. I didn't know anything about her sad history at the time, and she was too good an actress to let anything show.

"Frances Farmer Presents" was on six days a week, with Farmer doing her inserts live. Because WFBM was the NBC affiliate, in the final couple of years, FFP was produced in color.

She showed only the newest available movies from major studios, and even though rival station WISH-TV tried several different formats and hosts, it was never able to unseat FFP in the ratings.

"Frances Farmer Presents" was the number one show in its time period from the day it premiered until the day it left the air.

After Frances left in September, 1964, the morning movie host took over and the show became known as "Bernie Herman Presents."