Studio One
The Defender (Part 1)
TV Flash files “The Defender (Part 1)” as a desk essential hour — Studio One (1948–1958) on CBS, season 9, episode 20, aired 1957-02-25, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S09E20: listed hour 392 of 466 in the Studio One guide, hour 20 of 47 in season 9. It aired 1957-02-25 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “The Hollywood Complex” (S09E19). Next is “The Defender (Part 2)” (S09E21). Broadcast log — titles and dates, not a plot bible.
Essential hour: “The Defender (Part 1)”. The Defender (Part 1): two-night legal landmark in the log, prestige still arriving as a numbered play instead of a franchise.
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
A young criminal attorney and his firm owning father defend a 19 year old on trial for a murder that he swears he did not commit. Personal conflicts arise with the attorney and his father while the prosecution puts on a dramatic and convincing argument of guilt.
Viewer FAQ
Where does The Defender (Part 1) sit in the Studio One guide?
S09E20 is listed hour 392 of 466 — hour 20 of 47 in season 9, season 9 episode 20.
When did Studio One S09E20 air?
The Defender (Part 1) aired 1957-02-25 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Where should I start?
Start with the 1954 Twelve Angry Men telecast if you can get it, then sample other surviving Westinghouse hours. The jury play is the calling card.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Studio One is Westinghouse's live stage: 467 episodes, and the 1954 Twelve Angry Men that argued on television before the film. Watch it in 2026 as premier CBS dramatic anthology — a pressure-cooker studio that launched scripts and stars, then became the nostalgia of a braver prime time.
The group chat in 1954 was a jury room. Westinghouse *Studio One* turned CBS into a prestige factory: live hour dramas, literary adaptations, original teleplays, November 7, 1948 to September 29, 1958, **467 episodes across ten seasons** — including the 1954 television *Twelve Angry Men* that preceded the famous film. Reginald Rose's jury-room original is the ultimate flex of live-drama legacy. (Spoiler-free mostly: the film is the spoiler everyone already has. The TV night was first.)