Unfortunately, though Pope John XXIII is often referred to as "the most beloved pope in history," the one-hour TV special about him doesn't rate a video release.

To be fair, of course, few telefilms do. And this one, clocking in at only one hour and premiering nearly 37 years ago, is less likely than most.

Even the pirates and unauthorized-bootleg sellers seem to have stayed away from this title, perhaps understandably given the subject matter.

But it is unfortunate, as papal biopics don't come along very often -- as you've no doubt noticed. The spate that came along after the death of Pope John Paul II in 2005 -- most notably the competing telefilms "Have No Fear: The Life of Pope John Paul II" and the simply titled "Pope John Paul II" -- makes up the bulk of them.

Granted, other popes gave biographers significantly less time with which to work. While Pope John Paul II reigned for 23 years, Pope John XXIII sat for just more than four.

But he's best remembered for his time before serving as pope, and that is the subject of ABC's Emmy-nominated "A Man Whose Name Was John."

Raymond Burr -- who at the time was starring in his second-most beloved TV series, "Ironside" -- starred as Angelo Roncalli, at the time serving as a Vatican envoy to Greece and Turkey. Roncalli used his position to help an underground network save Jewish refugees from the Nazi extermination camps.

The film co-starred Burr's "Ironside" co-star Don Galloway, a frequent collaborator of his. The two also appeared together on a couple of telefilms featuring Burr's most famous character, Perry Mason, as well as an episode of "The Bold Ones," a show which Burr co-produced.

"A Man Whose Name Was John" also featured Eric Braeden, now best known for his longstanding role as Victor Newman on "The Young and the Restless." At the time, though, Braeden was television's go-to guy for German-soldier roles, a lucrative business in the heyday of the Second World War film.

The best-known entry in this category of his resume is on the late-'60s adventure series "The Rat Patrol," on which he played the villainous Capt. Hans Dietrich.

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