Fit To Print will take you back to the moment the rules of modern media were first written.

Adele Houston Productions is thrilled to announce the upcoming film production of Fit To Print, a compelling historical teleplay written by Josiah Houston. This project represents a landmark collaboration between community talent and emerging professional leadership, directed by Adam Benzinane, a recent Cinematography and Film graduate from Boston University.

Production is set to begin in mid-June and will continue through the summer, with a scheduled release during USA250.

At a time when the impact of media and journalism sits at the heart of our democracy, Fit To Print offers a timely, provocative look at the origins of how the news began to control the daily narrative. Wallingford native son, Moses Yale Beach, was at the forefront of this historic journalism pivot.

The Vision: A "Doing History" Initiative

Fit To Print isn't just a period piece; it’s a high-stakes "chamber drama" designed to function like a machine on screen. Set during the explosive rise of the Penny Press, the film tracks six pivotal moments where the pursuit of news changed American history forever.

The Fit To Print narrative dramatizes six pivotal historical decisions made by The Sun publisher, Moses Yale Beach, between 1839 and 1849. The story of journalism follows Beach’s encounters with a revolving door of historical titans:

• 1839: Roger Sherman Baldwin & Joseph Cinqué (The Amistad Case)
• 1842: P.T. Barnum - American Museum Opens
• 1844: Edgar Allan Poe (The Balloon Hoax)
• 1844: Jane Storm (Manifest Destiny)
• 1846: Willis A. Hodges (Anti-slavery activism)
• 1849: Daniel Webster – Court on Trial

This is not a story of moral collapse, but of procedural adaptation. It illustrates how pragmatic decisions—made one logged line at a time—constructed the governing logic of modern media. The film’s arc is not about the corruption of a man, but the expansion of a system through him.

Production Status & Resource Needs

While WPAA-TV and the Community Media Center is providing significant technical resources, and the cast is nearly finalized with talented local performers, we are seeking community partners and journalism scholars to help bring this "Doing History" project to life. We appreciate the contributions of Kathleen Maher, Barnum-Museum and Campbell Harmon, Poe Actor, during the validation phase of script development.

To maintain the authenticity of this period piece, we are seeking commitments for:

• Locations: Period-appropriate interiors (19th-century offices, counting rooms, or aesthetic spaces).
• Catering: Sustenance for our local cast and crew during the summer filming schedule.
• Props & Wardrobe: 1830s–1840s era items, specifically ledger books, printing ephemera, and period furniture.
• History Scholars: Become part of the film release and education tour to prep schools, colleges, and universities.

Special Note: We are excited to announce a burgeoning partnership with Wallingford Lamp & Shade, whose period lamps will help transform Moses Yale Beach's office. They will represent a decade of transformation at a location TBD .

• Set Dressing: Materials to recreate the "ritual" of the 19th-century press office.

Why Support This Project?

By contributing resources, you are participating in a community media milestone. This project empowers local creators and students while producing a high-caliber historical narrative that challenges audiences to recognize how public reality is manufactured.

We invite you to be part of the "machine" that builds this story. Help us document the moment 'American journalism' began to not just report the world, but shape it.

Susan Huizenga, WPAA-TV Executive Director, calls this a 'signature' local contribution to the 'Doing History' motif embraced by the CT Humanities Commission for the United States Semiquincentennial (USA250). This film is an interpretation of the past shaped by the interests, attitudes, and contexts of the present. It helps us critically question and understand the role of journalism and newspapers through the lens of Moses Yale Beach, native son of Wallingford, and his impact on his time and ours.

For more information or to offer support, please visit: Filming Fit To Print - WPAA-TV Event Page