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by Cary O'Dell
The two plays were Pinter’s “The Dumb-Waiter” (first staged in 1960) and “The Room” (first staged in 1957). They are two one-acts by Pinter that were often presented together, grouped under the umbrella title of “Basements.” And like that unifying title, both plays are dark, chilly, somber things. “The Dumb Waiter” aired first, in May of 1987. It was one-hour long, shown on a Tuesday night with “Moonlighting” as a lead-in. “The Dumb Waiter” is, probably, the more approachable of the two plays since not only did it star John Travolta, it focused on the plight of two hitmen who are biding their time in a windowless room waiting for their next orders, probably the identity of their next victim. In one corner of the room is the titular dumb waiter which keeps disturbing the men as it seems to think they are a kitchen. It is constantly coming down to the room to, apparently, pick up food orders. Between the service’s frequent comings-and-goings, the two men (Ben and Gus) talk… a lot. One topic of careful discussion is the semantics of “light the kettle” vs. “put on the kettle.” The two gunmen debate this issue and others as they clean their guns and wait—eventually calling into question who, besides the service elevator, is not only “waiting” and also “dumb.”
As the (slightly trimmed) play plays out, no other characters appear and no other sets are utilized. The dialogue dominates. But, in the end, this hour possesses a surprising ending—almost Hitchcockian in nature.
“The Room” aired about a month later. (This “Room” is not to be confused with the TV movie “The Room Upstairs,” which also aired in 1987, or with Tommy Wiseau’s 2003 so-weird-it’s-good cult movie, “The Room.”) “The Room” featured Oscar-winner Linda Hunt in the lead role and the cast also included Julian Sands, Donald Pleasance, David Hemblen and, in her major acting debut, rock diva Annie Lennox. What is “The Room” about? It is frightfully difficult to say. Hunt stars as a repressed, sheltered, slightly paranoid English woman whose self-chosen, cloistered life is interrupted one day by a variety of strange visitors to her flat (i.e. “The Room”). Her life will forever be changed…won’t it? One looking for comedic one-liners or action, should not come to this “Room.” It is all slow-camera movements, maudlin, brooding music and—you guessed it!--talk. Lots and lots of talk. Does it mean anything? The only “action” is in this production’s final moments. It is sudden and brutal and…may not mean anything at all. “The Room” is an hour of long pauses and unease. It is anchored by Hunt’s vivid lead performance and Lennox also helps—as we had long known, she has charisma to spare. The two films were both directed by the legendary director Robert Altman. Interestingly, Altman had cut his teeth directing early TV programs including episodes of “Bus Stop” and “Kraft Television Theatre.” He said at the time, “I decided to leave [TV], because I felt I had no connection with the audiences… Now things have reversed.” This duo of Pinter plays was the brainchild of Gary Pudney, a TV producer, who was then serving as ABC’s Executive for Specials and Talent. In the press at the time, Pudney was quite forthright about his reasoning behind putting on the Pinter specials. He said at the time, it’s “an attempt to get out of third place,” ABC’s then current ratings’ position. Making a play for quality TV, Pudney believed, would eventually draw audiences back to the channel. He said, “We’re trying to recapture the patina of the ‘The Golden Age of Television.’” After “Basements,” ABC aired another play-based production. It was an adaptation of Neil Simon’s three-act “Plaza Suite” starring Carol Burnett. It aired in December of 1987. Though, Simon is a far more accessible playwright than Harold Pinter and Carol Burnett was/is a beloved talent, ABC chose to air the two-hour special on a Thursday night up against NBC’s then powerhouse sitcom lineup which included “The Cosby Show” and “Cheers.” The ratings for “Plaza” tanked. Along with “Plaza” and this pair of Pinters, Pudney announced that he would also be bringing to the network a production of Donald Freed’s play “Circe and Bravo.” This production was supposed to star Faye Dunaway. Pudney also stated he was in talks to bring to the airwaves works by Edward Albee and Harvey Fierstein. He had also hoped to secure Jack Lemmon for a presentation of Pinter’s “The Light Ache.” None of these plans ever came to fruition. Ratings were probably to blame. If “Plaza Suite” didn’t garner much of an audience, the numbers for “Dumb Waiter” and “Room” were even worse. They literally landed in the bottom five for the weeks in which they aired. So, after this trio of productions, Pudney seemed to abandon his attempt to “bring a Tiffany luster” to his network. Since then, however, the four networks have presented plays or, more accurately, musicals, sometimes even airing them live. “Rent” and “Grease” have both been brought to the small screen amid much fanfare. Looking back, the presence of the Pinters as part of the 1987 TV landscape, should be roundly commended. This was an era of broadcasting that also included such programming as “Married…with Children,” “Werewolf,” “ALF,” and “Highway to Heaven.” Hence, the productions of “The Dumb Waiter” and “The Room” is not only a noble experiment, it was a brave one. THE EIGHTIES: EARLY EIGHTIES NETWORK PROMOS / TV 1986 / WOODY HARRELSON AS WOODY ON CHEERS / FALCON'S GOLD: CABLE TV'S FIRST MOVIE / BILL & TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURES SITCOM / CREATORS & CAST OF IT'S A LIVING THAT HAVE PASSED AWAY / MOST UNEXPECTED MOMENT IN TV HISTORY / NORMAN LLOYD TRIBUTE / THE CHARMINGS / ORSON WELLES INTERVIEWS ANDY KAUFMAN / EARLY MTV STARS MISSING PERSONS / FALCON CREST / PEE-WEE HERMAN / THE TWO OF US / MURDER SHE WROTE / 1981 CHARLES GRODIN INTERVIEW / THERE ARE FUNNY EPISODES OF MAMA'S FAMILY - HONEST! / HANGING WITH SEAN PENN 1986 / 1985 GEORGE CLOONEY INTERVIEW! / IT'S A LIVING / EDDIE MURPHY AS JAMES BOND? IT ALMOST HAPPENED! / AUNT BEE'S DYING WORDS TO ANDY GRIFFITH / THE GOLDEN PALACE / MARRIED WITH CHILDREN'S ED O'NEILL & AMANDA BEARSE'S LONGTIME FEUD / PAUL McCARTNEY vs MICHAEL JACKSON / HOW NBC GOT ITS GROOVE BACK / 1980's WCW WRESTLING / When Pinter Came to Primetime / ALAN ALDA DISCUSSES THE M*A*S*H FINALE / I WAS ALMOST CUJO IN THE STEPHEN KING MOVIE / 1986-87 TV SEASON / 1988-89 TV SEASON / 1990-91 TV SEASON / 1991-92 TV SEASON / WHY SHELLEY LONG LEFT CHEERS? / JASON ALEXANDER BEFORE SEINFELD / PEOPLE vs JEAN HARRIS / TROUBLED 1980-81 TV SEASON / "KISS MY GRITS" FLO HAD HER OWN SHOW? / CULLY HOLLAND / ONE SEASON WONDERS... THAT GOT RENEWED! / DWIGHT SCHULTZ ON WORKING WITH GEORGE PEPPARD / DEMPSEY & MAKEPEACE / THE BAXTERS / G.L.O.W. / FRIDAYS / GREATEST AMERICAN HERO / Great 1983 Carson Tonight Show / EARLY '80s TV COMMERCIALS / LOST MOVIE POSTERS /RICH HALL /FILTHY RICH/1980's TV WRESTLING STARS / TV DADS / FOX'S JOAN RIVERS / CHEVY CHASE DEBACLES |
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Even the most optimistic of network programmers could not have possibly thought that two dark-themed, one-act plays by one of the 20th centuries’ most challenging playwrights was going to result in a ratings bonanza… But somehow, in 1987, ABC-TV decided the time was right to produce and air two works by Harold Pinter, one of England’s most cerebral writers for the stage and the purveyor of what would later be called “the comedy of menace.” 
Interestingly, the dialogue between the two men (Travolta’s co-star was Tom Conti), though seemingly banal, is pregnant with some sort of meaning and, in many ways, seems to prefigure the later conversations Travolta would have with Sam Jackson in “Pulp Fiction” i.e. the “un Royal Cheese.” Is this it then? The long-awaited intersection between Harold Pinter and Quintin Tarantino?
Reviews of the program were mixed. Travolta drew most of the ire as many reviewers faulted his attempt at an English accent. But Travolta might just have been an easy target at that time; he had yet to achieve his great comeback in “Pulp Fiction” and was, at that time, in something of a career lull.