Radio daytime drama serials were broadcast for decades, and some expanded to television. These dramas are often referred to as "soaps", a shortening from "soap opera". That term stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive, and Lever Brothers as sponsors [1] and producers. [2] These early radio serials were broadcast in weekday daytime slots when mostly housewives would be able to listen; thus the shows were aimed at and consumed by a predominantly female audience. [1]
Show | Region/country | Began | Ended | Creator | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Adopted Daughter | United States | 1939 | 1941 | Jettabee Anne Hopkins | |
The Affairs of Dr Gentry | 1957 | 1959 | [3] | ||
Against the Storm | United States | 1939 | 1952 | Sandra Michael | [3] |
Amanda of Honeymoon Hill | United States | 1940 | 1946 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
The Archers | United Kingdom | 1951 | present | Godfrey Baseley | |
Arnold Grimm's Daughter | United States | 1937 | 1942 | Margaret Sangster | [4] |
Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories | United States | 1937 | 1955 | [4] | |
Aunt Mary | United States | 1942 | 1951 | Leigh and Virginia Crosby & Gil South | [3] |
Bachelor's Children | United States | 1935 | 1946 | Bess Flynn | [3] |
Backstage Wife | United States | 1935 | 1959 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Barry Cameron | 1945 | 1946 | Richard, Leonard, and Peggy Blake | ||
Betty and Bob | United States | 1932 | 1940 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Big Sister | United States | 1936 | 1952 | Julian Funt, Carl Bixby, Bob Newman and Bill Sweets | [3] |
Blue Hills | Australia | 1949 | 1976 | Gwen Meredith | |
Bob and Victoria | 1947 | 1947 | Lee and Virginia Crosby & Gil South | [4] | |
Brave Tomorrow | United States | 1943 | 1944 | Ruth Adams Knight | [4] |
Brenda Curtis | United States | 1939 | 1940 | Ken Roberts | [4] |
Bright Horizon | United States | 1941 | 1945 | James and Elizabeth Hart, John M. Young, Ted Maxwell, Stuart Hawkins, and Kathleen Norris | [3] |
The Brighter Day | United States | 1948 | 1956 | Irna Phillips | [3] |
The Carters of Elm Street | United States | 1939 | 1940 | Mona Kent | [4] |
Central City | United States | 1938 | 1941 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
The Colcloughs | United Kingdom | 1991 2016 | 1993 present | Mike Hopwood | |
Citizens | United Kingdom | 1987 | 1991 | BBC | |
City Soap | United Kingdom | 2005 | 2008 | Preston Fm | |
Clara, Lu, and Em | United States | 1930 | 1942 | Louise Starkey, Isobel Carothers and Helen King | [3] |
College Road | Ireland | 2009 | 2009 | MightyStudent | [3] |
Dan Harding's Wife | United States | 1936 | 1938 | Ken Robinson | [3] |
David Harum | United States | 1936 | 1950 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Doc Barclay's Daughters | United States | 1939 | 1940 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
The Doctor's Wife | United States | 1952 | 1956 | Manya Starr | |
Family Skeleton | United States | 1953 | 1954 | Carlton E. Morse | |
Front Line Family | United Kingdom / Canada | 1941 | 1948 | ||
Front Page Farrell | United States | 1941 | 1954 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Girl Alone | United States | 1935 | 1941 | Fayette Krum | [3] |
The Goldbergs | United States | 1929 | 1950 | Gertrude Berg | [4] |
The Guiding Light | United States | 1937 | 1956 [5] | Irna Phillips | [3] |
Helpmate | United States | 1941 | 1944 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Her Honor, Nancy James | 1938 | 1939 | [4] | ||
Hilltop House | 1937, 1948 | 1941, 1957 | Edward Wolf | [4] [6] | |
Home of the Brave | United States | 1941 | 1941 | [4] : 326-327 | |
Into the Light | 1941 | 1942 | Larry Bearson | [4] | |
Jane Arden | United States | 1938 | 1939 | [4] | |
John's Other Wife | 1936 | 1942 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [4] | |
Joyce Jordan, M.D. | United States | 1938 | 1956 | [3] | |
Judy and Jane | United States | 1932 | 1935 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [4] |
Just Plain Bill | United States | 1932 | 1955 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [4] |
Kate Hopkins, Angel of Mercy | 1940 | 1942 | Gertrude Berg and Chester McCracken | [4] | |
Kitty Foyle | United States | 1942 | 1944 | [3] | |
Kitty Keene, Incorporated | United States | 1937 | 1941 | Day Keene and Lester Huntly | |
The Life and Love of Dr. Susan | 1939 | 1939 | Edith Meiser | [4] | |
Life Begins | 1940 | 1941 | [4] | ||
Life Can Be Beautiful | United States | 1938 | 1954 | Don Becker and Carl Bixby | [4] |
Life of Mary Sothern | 1934 | 1938 | Don Becker | [4] | |
The Light of the World | United States | 1940 | 1950 | [3] | |
Linda's First Love | 1939 | ca. 1950 | [4] | ||
Lone Journey | 1940 | 1952 | Sandra Michael | [4] | |
Lonely Women | United States | 1942 | 1943 | Irna Phillips | |
Lora Lawton | United States | 1943 | 1950 | [3] | |
Lorenzo Jones | United States | 1937 | 1955 | [3] | |
Ma Perkins | United States | 1933 | 1960 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Matysiakowie | Poland | 1956 | present | Jerzy Janicki | |
Mrs Dale's Diary | United Kingdom | 1948 | 1969 | Jonqil Antony | |
My True Story | United States | 1943 | 1956 | Margaret Sangster | [3] |
Myrt and Marge | United States | 1931 | 1942 | Myrtle Vail | [3] |
Newarkers | United Kingdom | 2013 | 2013 | Radio Newark | |
The O'Neills | United States | 1935 | 1943 | [3] | |
One Man's Family | United States | 1932 | 1959 | Carlton E. Morse | [3] |
Our Gal Sunday | United States | 1936 | 1959 | [3] | |
Painted Dreams | United States | 1930 | 1943 | Irna Phillips | [7] |
Penny For Your Thoughts | United Kingdom | 2018 | present | Marion Hartley (Script) Brian Curtis (Producer) on Vectis Radio (104.6FM & www.vectisradio.com) | |
Pepper Young's Family | United States | 1932 | 1959 | Elaine Sterne Carrington | [3] |
Perry Mason | United States | 1943 | 1955 | Erle Stanley Gardner | [3] |
Portia Faces Life | United States | 1940 | 1952 | [3] | |
Pretty Kitty Kelly | United States | 1937 | 1940 | [3] | |
The Right to Happiness | United States | 1939 | 1960 | Irna Phillips | [3] |
The Road of Life | United States | 1937 | 1959 | Irna Phillips | [3] |
The Romance of Helen Trent | United States | 1933 | 1960 | Frank and Anne Hummert | [4] |
Rosemary | United States | 1944 | 1955 | Elaine Sterne Carrington | [3] |
The Second Mrs. Burton | United States | 1946 | 1960 | [3] | |
Silver Street | United Kingdom | 2004 | 2010 | ||
Sounds of the City | United States | 1973 | 1975 | Shauneille Perry | [8] |
Staying Well in Camberwell | United States | 2011 | 2011 | Cheryl L. Davis [9] | [10] [11] |
Stella Dallas | United States | 1937 | 1955 | [3] | |
The Story of Mary Marlin | United States | 1935 | 1952 | [3] | |
The Strange Romance of Evelyn Winters | United States | 1944 | 1952 | [3] | |
This Is Nora Drake | United States | 1947 | 1959 | [3] | |
Today's Children | United States | 1933 | 1938 | Irna Phillips | [3] |
Today's Children (second series) | United States | 1943 | 1950 | Irna Phillips (Dialogue by Virginia Cooke) | [3] |
Valiant Lady | United States | 1938 | 1952 | [3] | |
Waggoners' Walk | United Kingdom | 1969 | 1980 | ||
We Love and Learn | United States | 1942 | 1956 | [3] | |
Wendy Warren and the News | United States | 1947 | 1958 | [3] | |
Westway | United Kingdom | 1997 | 2005 | ||
When a Girl Marries | United States | 1939 | 1957 | Elaine Sterne Carrington | [3] |
The Woman in My House | United States | 1951 | 1959 | [3] | |
Woman in White | United States | 1938 | 1948 | [3] | |
A Woman of America | United States | 1943 | 1945 | [3] | |
You Me Now | New Zealand | 2010 | 2012 | Radio New Zealand and All The Way Home Productions | [3] |
Young Doctor Malone | United States | 1939 | 1960 | Irna Phillips | [3] |
Young Widder Brown | United States | 1938 | 1956 | Frank Hummert and Anne Hummert | [3] |
Your Family and Mine | United States | 1938 | 1940 | [4] |
A soap opera, daytime drama, or soap for short, is typically a long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored by soap manufacturers. The term was preceded by "horse opera", a derogatory term for low-budget Westerns.
The Young and the Restless is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in the fictional Genoa City. First broadcast on March 26, 1973, The Young and the Restless was originally broadcast as half-hour episodes, five times a week. The show expanded to one-hour episodes on February 4, 1980. On March 17, 2006, the series began airing previous episodes weeknights on Soapnet until the closure on December 31, 2013, when it moved to TVGN. From July 1, 2013 until 2019, Pop aired previous episodes on weeknights. The series is also syndicated internationally.
Guiding Light is an American radio and television soap opera. Guiding Light aired on CBS for 57 years between June 30, 1952, and September 18, 2009, overlapping a 19-year broadcast on radio between January 25, 1937, and June 29, 1956. With 72 years of radio and television runs, Guiding Light is the longest-running soap opera, ahead of General Hospital, and is the fifth-longest-running program in all of broadcast history; only the American country music radio program Grand Ole Opry, the BBC religious program The Daily Service (1928), the CBS religious program Music and the Spoken Word (1929), and the Norwegian children's radio program Lørdagsbarnetimen (1924–2010) have been on the air longer.
As the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light. With 13,763 hours of cumulative narrative, As the World Turns has the longest total running time of any television show. In terms of continuous run of production, As the World Turns at 54 years holds the fourth-longest run of any daytime network soap opera on American television, surpassed only by General Hospital, Guiding Light, and Days of Our Lives. As the World Turns was produced for its first 43 years in Manhattan and in Brooklyn from 2000 until 2010.
One Life to Live is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes via Prospect Park from April 29 to August 19, 2013. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature ethnically and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social issues. One Life to Live was expanded from 30 minutes to 45 minutes on July 26, 1976, and then to an hour on January 16, 1978.
Irna Phillips was an American scriptwriter, screenwriter, casting agent and actress. She is best remembered for pioneering a format of the daytime soap opera in the United States geared specifically toward women. Phillips created, produced, and wrote several radio and television daytime serials throughout her career, including Guiding Light, As the World Turns, and Another World. She was also a mentor to several other pioneers of the American daytime soap opera, including Agnes Nixon, William J. Bell and Ted Corday.
Loving is an American television soap opera that ran on ABC from June 26, 1983, to November 10, 1995, for a total of 3,169 episodes. The serial, set in the fictional town of Corinth, Pennsylvania, was co-created by Agnes Nixon and former actor Douglas Marland.
Santa Barbara is an American television soap opera that aired on NBC from July 30, 1984, to January 15, 1993. The show revolves around the eventful lives of the wealthy Capwell family of Santa Barbara, California. Other prominent families featured on the soap were the rival Lockridge family, and the more modest Andrade and Perkins families.
Agnes Nixon was an American television writer and producer, and the creator of the ABC soap operas One Life to Live, All My Children, as well as Loving and its spin-off The City.
Search for Tomorrow is an American television soap opera. It began its run on CBS on September 3, 1951, and concluded on NBC, 35 years later, on December 26, 1986.
General Hospital is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running American soap opera in production, and the second in American history after Guiding Light. Concurrently, it is the world's third longest-running scripted drama series in production after British serials The Archers and Coronation Street, as well as the world's second-longest-running televised soap opera still in production. General Hospital premiered on the ABC television network on April 1, 1963. General Hospital is the longest-running serial produced in Hollywood, and the longest-running entertainment program in ABC television history. It holds the record for most Daytime Emmy Awards for Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, with 14 wins.
These Are My Children is an American television soap opera, or novella, that ran on NBC from January 31 to March 4, 1949. The show was broadcast live from WNBQ in Chicago, Illinois, airing 15 minutes a day, five days a week, at 5 p.m. EST. It is widely credited as the first soap opera broadcast on television. It may be more accurately described as the first daytime drama or the first soap opera strip, as it was preceded by DuMont series Faraway Hill in 1946 and Highway to the Stars in 1947, both of which are described as soap operas but aired later in the evenings and broadcast only once a week; Guiding Light had also been in production for 12 years once These Are My Children debuted, but only as a radio series - its TV version did not debut until 1952.
Indian television dramas are dramatic television programs written, produced, and filmed in India, featuring Indian actors in the lead roles, with episodes broadcast on Indian television.
The First Hundred Years was the first ongoing TV soap opera in the United States that began as a daytime serial, airing on CBS from December 4, 1950 until June 27, 1952.
Gary Tomlin is an American soap opera actor, writer, producer and director.
In television and radio programming, a serial is a show that has a continuing plot that unfolds in a sequential episode-by-episode fashion. Serials typically follow main story arcs that span entire television seasons or even the complete run of the series, and sometimes spinoffs, which distinguishes them from episodic television that relies on more stand-alone episodes. Worldwide, the soap opera is the most prominent form of serial dramatic programming. In the UK the first serials were direct adaptations of well known literary works, usually consisting of a small number of episodes.
Perry Mason is a radio crime serial based on the novels of Erle Stanley Gardner. Broadcast weekdays on CBS Radio from 1943 to 1955, the series was adapted into The Edge of Night which ran on television for an additional 30 years.
Valiant Lady is an American soap opera which ran daily on CBS radio and television from October 12, 1953, to August 16, 1957. The show's title was taken from a 1930s radio soap opera about a young woman struggling through life but is otherwise very different. Like many early soap operas, the show was broadcast live from CBS Studio 57 in Manhattan.
Lonely Women was a radio soap opera in the United States during World War II. It "told of women separated from their men by war." The 15-minute program, which was sponsored by General Mills, ran one season on NBC, with its first episode broadcast June 29, 1942.
Kitty Foyle is an American old-time radio and television soap opera originally aired during the 1940s and 1950s that was based on the 1940 film of the same name starring Ginger Rogers. Kitty Foyle was created by soap opera mogul Irna Phillips of Guiding Light fame and produced by daytime radio monarchs Frank and Anne Hummert of Helen Trent recognition. The program originally starred Julie Stevens in the title role of Kitty Foyle on radio. On television, the title role was portrayed by Kathleen Murray.