The First Hundred Years

Last updated
Jimmy Lydon and Olive Stacey as newlyweds Chris and Connie, 1951 Jimmy Lydon Olive Stacey First Hundred Years 1951.JPG
Jimmy Lydon and Olive Stacey as newlyweds Chris and Connie, 1951

The First Hundred Years is 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. [1]

Contents

A previous daytime drama on NBC, These Are My Children , aired in 1949 [2] but only lasted one month, and NBC's Hawkins Falls began in June 1950 as a primetime "soap" and didn't move to daytime until April 1951.[ citation needed ]

The show began with the wedding of Chris Thayer and Connie Martin, which lasted for the first week of episodes. The couple settled down in a huge, unkept white elephant mansion, a present from Connie's father. [3]

The series did not succeed due to very low viewership, as few American households had television sets, and fewer still watched during the afternoon.[ citation needed ]

The series was replaced with the television version of Guiding Light , which would prove to be much more successful, [4] airing for 57 years (72 years total when its 15-year run on radio is taken into account).[ citation needed ]

Cast

Background

The First Hundred Years was an ABC radio program in 1949, described as a "new angle domestic situation comedy". [5] Sam Edwards and Barbara Eiler portrayed Chris and Connie Thayer. The supporting cast included Bea Benaderet, Joseph Kearns, Myra Marsh, and Earle Ross. The announcer was Owen James. [6]

A TV episode, "The First Hundred Years", was broadcast on The Silver Theatre on CBS [7] on May 1, 1950, starring Barbara Whiting, William Frawley, Lydon, and Allene Roberts. [8] The Bigelow Theatre broadcast it on March 11, 1951. [9] The trade publication Billboard reported that CBS won "the network battle for the highly important Procter & Gamble daytime television billings" and that Benton & Bowles advertising agency won "a three-way scramble" for the account. [7]

Another trade publication, Ross Reports on Television Programming , commented, "only an advertiser of the stature of Procter & Gamble could afford to experiment with a medium as expensive as television.... and "The First Hundred Years" is an experiment — can the success of the soap opera in radio can be paralleled in television?" [10]

See also

Production

The First Hundred Years was sponsored by Procter & Gamble and was broadcast at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time Monday through Friday. Jean Holloway was the writer. [11] Hoyt Allen was the producer, and Bud Gammon was the director. [10] Cy Harrice was the announcer, and Clark Morgan played the organ. [12] The cast worked seven or eight hours per day to prepare each episode. Thirty people worked on the show in addition to the regular members of the cast. [13]

The program originated from WCBS-TV. [14] CBS converted much of its Liederkranz Hall studios for shooting the series with "three permanent sets involving living rooms, kitchens, and other rooms for each of the three families." [10] Outdoor settings were filmed in Long Island and Westchester, and "the illusion of an outdoors setting" was created by using rear projection. [10] Cameras were positioned in the center of the studio, with no stage and no audience. [10]

Critical response

CBS promoted the program prior to its debut as depicting "the ludicrous aspects of young married life", with an emphasis on "hilarious comedy", but Jack Gould wrote in The New York Times , "On the first show, however, the comedy lines were pretty strained and the element of farce largely pushed aside in favor of routine emotion." [11] He also noted that Tobin and Cossart appeared too young to be Chris's parents, looking more like his brother and sister. [11]

Radio Television Mirror's April 1951 issue reported that once the Thayers returned from their honeymoon, "there hasn't been a dull moment since — for the audience or for the hard-working cast." [13]

Related Research Articles

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.

<i>The Edge of Night</i> American television crime drama and soap opera (1956–1984)

The Edge of Night is an American mystery crime drama television series and soap opera, created by Irving Vendig and produced by Procter & Gamble Productions.

<i>The Young and the Restless</i> American daytime soap opera

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 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. In 2006, the series began airing previous episodes weeknights on SOAPnet until 2013, when it moved to TVGN. From July 1, 2013 until 2019, Pop aired previous episodes on weeknights. The series is also syndicated internationally.

<i>Guiding Light</i> American radio and television soap opera (1937–2009)

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.

<i>As the World Turns</i> American television soap opera (1956–2010)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irna Phillips</span> American screenwriter and actress (1901–1973)

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.

<i>Search for Tomorrow</i> American soap opera (1951–86)

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.

<i>The Brighter Day</i> American TV series or program

The Brighter Day is an American daytime soap opera which aired on CBS from January 4, 1954, to September 28, 1962. Originally created for NBC Radio by Irna Phillips in 1948, the radio and television versions ran simultaneously from 1954–1956. Set in New Hope, Wisconsin, the series revolved around Reverend Richard Dennis and his four children, Althea, Patsy, Babby and Grayling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry Haines</span> American actor

Larry Haines was an American actor.

Paul Rauch was an American television and film producer. Rauch's work was primarily in American soap operas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irving Vendig</span> American screenwriter

Irving Vendig was an American soap opera writer best known for creating The Edge of Night.

The Guiding Light (TGL) was an American radio series which became a television soap opera.

Bridget and JeromeDobson were an American husband-and-wife duo of television award-winning screenwriters and artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daytime television in the United States</span> Outline of American television programming broadcast between mid-morning and late afternoon

Daytime television is the general term for television programs produced for broadcast during the daytime hours on weekdays; programs broadcast in the daypart historically have been programmed to appeal to a female audience.

<i>Young Doctor Malone</i> American television series

Young Doctor Malone is an American soap opera, created by Irna Phillips, which had a long run on radio and television from 1939 to 1963. The producer was Betty Corday (1912–1987), who also produced Pepper Young's Family and later was a co-creator with husband Ted Corday of NBC Daytime's Days of Our Lives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Procter & Gamble</span> American multinational consumer goods corporation

The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer health, personal care and hygiene products; these products are organized into several segments including beauty; grooming; health care; fabric and home care; and baby, feminine, and family care. Before the sale of Pringles to Kellogg's, its product portfolio also included food, snacks, and beverages. P&G is incorporated in Ohio.

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.

<i>Big Sister</i> (radio series) 1936-1952 radio drama series

Big Sister was a daytime radio drama series created by Lillian Lauferty and broadcast on CBS from September 14, 1936, to December 26, 1952. It was sponsored by Lever Brothers for Rinso until 1946 when Procter & Gamble became the sponsor.

<i>Wendy Warren and the News</i> 1947-1958 radio soap opera

Wendy Warren and the News was a radio soap opera in the United States. It was broadcast on CBS weekday afternoons, June 23, 1947 – November 12, 1958. The program was notable for the title character's reporting actual "women's news" in addition to appearing in a more traditional soap opera role.

<i>The Story of Mary Marlin</i> American soap opera radio program

The Story of Mary Marlin is an American soap opera radio program. It was broadcast from October 3, 1934, until April 12, 1945, and returned from September 24, 1951, until April 11, 1952. After 1937 it was among the highest-rated soap operas. A version was also broadcast in Australia in 1959-1960.

References

  1. ↑ Copeland, Mary Ann (1991). Soap Opera History. Publications International. p. 266. ISBN   0-88176-933-9.
  2. ↑ Cassidy, Marsha F. (April 20, 2009). What Women Watched: Daytime Television in the 1950s. University of Texas Press. ISBN   978-0-292-78272-3 . Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  3. ↑ Schemering, Christopher (1987). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (2nd ed.). Ballantine Books. pp. 106–107. ISBN   0-345-35344-7.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 287. ISBN   0-14-02-4916-8.
  5. ↑ Atchison, Marion (July 28, 1949). "Gov. Warren To Go on Air". The Miami Herald. p. 24. Archived from the original on February 3, 2024. Retrieved February 3, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Terrace, Vincent (October 6, 2022). From Radio to Television: Programs That Made the Transition, 1929-2021. McFarland. pp. 85–86. ISBN   978-1-4766-8836-7 . Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  7. 1 2 "'1st 100 Yrs,' To Be Aired Live From NY'". Billboard. September 30, 1950. p. 5. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  8. ↑ Hawes, William (November 16, 2015). Live Television Drama, 1946-1951. McFarland. p. 195. ISBN   978-1-4766-0849-5 . Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  9. ↑ "Sunday March 11". Ross Reports. March 9, 1951. p. 4. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "The First Hundred Years". Ross Reports. November 12, 1950. pp. 12–13. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  11. 1 2 3 Gould, Jack (December 5, 1950). "Soap Opera Serial Invades TV Field : 'First Hundred Years' Bows on C.B.S., With Olive Stacey and Lydon as Young Couple" . The New York Times. p. 46. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  12. ↑ "This Week — Debuts, Highlights, Changes". Ross Reports. December 3, 1950. p. 1. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  13. 1 2 "The first hundred years". Radio Television Mirror. April 1951. pp. 48–49. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  14. ↑ "This Week (Cont'd)". Ross Reports. June 22, 1952. p. 9. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.