Fame Is the Name of the Game


Fame Is the Name of the Game is a 1966 American made-for-television drama film that aired on NBC and served as the pilot episode of the subsequent series The Name of the Game. It was
directed by Stuart Rosenberg. It was produced by Ranald MacDougall, who also wrote the teleplay, from the novel One Woman by Tiffany Thayer.
The film stars Anthony Franciosa as investigative journalist Jeff Dillon. It also presents the screen debut of 20-year-old Susan Saint James as Peggy Chan, Dillon's new editorial assistant. In the film, Jeff Dillon writes for Fame magazine, a publication of Janus Enterprises, and Glenn Howard is just the managing editor. In the subsequent series, Dillon writes for People magazine, a division of Howard Publications, and Glenn Howard is head of the whole company.
The telefilm also features Jill St. John, Jack Klugman, and Robert Duvall.

Plot

An investigative reporter looks into the murder of a call girl. His investigation unearths her diary, which has the names of many prominent people inscribed within its pages. He sets out to find her killer from among the names contained in the diary.

Cast

as Jeff Dillon

Jill St. John as Leona Purdy

Jack Klugman as Ben Welcome

George Macready as Glenn Howard

Jack Weston as Griffin

Susan Saint James as Peggy Chan

Lee Bowman as Cruikshank

Robert Duvall as Eddie Franchot

Jay C. Flippen as Dizzy Shaner

Nicholas Colasanto as Lieutenant Lewis

Production

Advertising

In the weeks before the telefilm's first broadcast, NBC ran an unprecedented blitz of TV ads which erroneously billed Fame is the Name of the Game as television's first "world premiere" of a "major motion picture". The film garnered phenomenal ratings leading to the spin-off series.