Our Mr. Sun (Bell Science Series)

'Dr. Research', Frank C. Baxter, presents this Emmy award-winning documentary from the legendary Frank Capra. Our Mr. Sun is the first in a series combining live-action and animation that became a mainstay on TV and in elementary schools during the 1950s and 60s. Capra, an avid science buff, became interested in making educational films after his career in Hollywood effectively ended. The famed director commissioned scripts from first Willy Ley (Conquest of Space) and then Aldous Huxley (Brave New World) about mankind's dependence on the Sun. Unhappy with the results, he rewrote the film as a conversation between 'Dr. Research', his friend 'Mr. Fiction Writer' and 'Mr. Sun' itself. For the role of the scholarly scientist, Capra chose Dr. Frank C. Baxter, a real-life English professor who had hosted the popular series Shakespeare on TV (1953) in addition to appearing in the prologue of the 1956 sci-fi film The Mole People. Eddie Albert plays Mr. Fiction Writer. Cartoon sequences featuring Mr. Sun, Chloro Phyll, and Father Time were created by animation studio UPA, best known for Gerald McBoing Boing and Mister Magoo. These characters were voiced by Marvin Miller, Sterling Holloway, and, in his last role, Lionel Barrymore (the actor had previously worked with Capra on You Can't Take It with You and It's a Wonderful Life.) After its premiere on CBS November 19, 1956, Our Mr. Sun was made available to educational institutions free of charge, leading to screenings in classrooms all over the country. It won the Emmy for Best Editing of a Film for Television in 1957, and was followed by a series of popular science documentaries, all hosted by the affable Baxter. Voices of Lionel Barrymore, Marvin Miller and Sterling Holloway. Written, Produced & Directed by Frank Capra.