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''Young Doctor Malone'' (a.k.a. ''Young Dr. Malone'') is an American
''Young Doctor Malone'' (a.k.a. ''Young Dr. Malone'') is an American soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically 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 ...
, created by Irna Phillips
Irna Phillips (July 1, 1901 – December 23, 1973) 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 wo ...
, which had a long run on radio and television from 1939 to 1963. The producer was Betty Corday
Betty Corday (born Elizabeth Shay; March 21, 1912 – November 17, 1987) was a Broadway dramatic actress and long-time American television producer. She co-created and executive produced the long running NBC drama ''Days of Our Lives'' from 1966 ...
(1912–1987), who also produced '' Pepper Young's Family'' and later was a co-creator with husband Ted Corday of NBC Daytime
NBC Daytime was the daytime programming block of NBC. It historically featured many soap operas, game shows, and talk shows.
Its main competitors were CBS Daytime and ABC Daytime.
Game shows were discontinued from NBC Daytime's lineup in 1994 a ...
's '' Days of Our Lives''.
Sponsored by General Foods
General Foods Corporation was a company whose direct predecessor was established in the United States by Charles William Post as the Postum Cereal Company in 1895.
The company changed its name to "General Foods" in 1929, after several corporate ...
and Post Cereals
Post Consumer Brands (previously Post Cereals and Postum Cereals; also known as simply "Post") is an American breakfast cereal manufacturer headquartered in Lakeville, Minnesota.
The company, founded in 1895 by C. W. Post, owns a large portfoli ...
, the radio serial began on the Blue Network on November 20, 1939. The 15-minute program aired daily at 11:15am, continuing until April 26, 1940. Without a break, it moved to CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
on April 29, 1940, where it was heard for two decades, first airing at 2:00pm weekdays (1940–1944) and then 1:30pm (1945–1960). In 1945, Procter & Gamble
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 he ...
assumed sponsorship of the program.
Radio
When the serial began,Alan Bunce
Alan Coe Bunce (June 28, 1900 – April 27, 1965) was an American radio and television actor.
Bunce was best remembered for playing the role of Albert Arbuckle alongside Peg Lynch on the sitcom ''Ethel and Albert'' from 1944-50 on radio and ...
portrayed small-town physician Dr. Jerry Malone, who dispensed prescriptions and advice to the folks of Three Oaks. Others heard in the title role were Carl Frank, Harold Miller, Charles Irving (during the mid-1940s) and Sandy Becker (beginning in 1947). With organists Charles Paul and Milton Kaye providing the background music, the storylines focused on Jerry, his wife Ann Richards Malone ( Elizabeth Reller, Barbara Weeks) and their daughter Jill, initially portrayed by child impersonator Madeleine Pierce. As Jill grew up, she was played by Joan Lazer and Rosemary Rice. Malone's mother (, Vera Allen) usually intruded with a few choice words on the activities of her son. When Jerry made trips to New York, Three Oaks businessman Sam Williams (Berry Kroeger
Berry Kroeger (October 16, 1912 – January 4, 1991) was an American film, television and stage actor.
Career
Kroeger was born in San Antonio, Texas. He got his acting start on radio as an announcer on ''Suspense'' and as an actor, playing fo ...
) let Ann know his true feelings for her. During World War II, Jerry was believed to be dead after he was shot down over Germany. In the early 1950s, after Ann's death, Jerry married Tracey (Joan Alexander
Joan Alexander (born Louise Abrass; April 16, 1915 – May 21, 2009)
''
''
Gertrude Warner).
Ron Rawson was the announcer. James Young (who went on to produce and direct ''General Hospital''), Ira Ashley, Stanley Davis, Walter Gorman and Theodora Yates directed scripts by Frank Provo, Ian Martin, Richard Holland, David Driscoll, Julian Funt, David Lesan and Charles Gussman, who also wrote for ''The Right to Happiness'' and ''The Road of Life''.
In the early 1950s, Procter & Gamble had 13 soap operas on the air but decided to expand the audience in June 1952 by recording the live CBS broadcasts of ''
File:Young Doctor Malone radio 1.jpg, Pictured from left: Elspeth Eric (Lucia Standish), Barbara Weeks (Anne Malone), Sandy Becker (Dr. Jerry Malone). When the Malones move from Three Oaks to New York City, Lucia offers to sell them a home at a bargain price because she has designs on Jerry.
File:Young Doctor Malone radio 2.jpg, Pictured from left: Barbara Weeks (Anne Malone) and Berry Kroeger (Sam Williams). Separated from Jerry, Sam Williams makes his feelings for Anne known; she is torn by the thought of deciding between him and Jerry.
The television series was broadcast on NBC from December 29, 1958, to March 29, 1963. The TV storyline was set in fictional Denison, Maryland and concentrated on the later lives of father and son doctors, Dr. Jerry Malone ( William Prince) and Dr. David Malone (John Connell) at Valley Hospital. Jerry's wife, Tracey, was played first by Virginia Dwyer, then for most of the show's run by
''Young Dr. Malone'' on complete broadcast day: June 6, 1944''Young Dr. Malone'' preempted by ''CBS News Roundup'' on June 7, 1944
Bunce family papersRadio Back When
*
Young Dr. Malone novelette, Radio and Television Mirror, April 1940, page 17
{{US radio soaps 1958 American television series debuts 1963 American television series endings 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs 1950s American radio programs 1960s American radio programs American radio soap operas American television soap operas NBC original programming Black-and-white American television shows English-language television shows Television series created by Irna Phillips NBC Blue Network radio programs CBS Radio programs
The Brighter Day
''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&nda ...
'' and ''Young Dr. Malone'' and airing them one day later on NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
.
The radio program ended on November 25, 1960, known as "the last day of radio soap opera" because CBS cancelled several other series on that day, including '' Ma Perkins'', '' The Second Mrs. Burton'' and ''The Right to Happiness''.
Television
The television series was broadcast on NBC from December 29, 1958, to March 29, 1963. The TV storyline was set in fictional Denison, Maryland and concentrated on the later lives of father and son doctors, Dr. Jerry Malone ( William Prince) and Dr. David Malone (John Connell) at Valley Hospital. Jerry's wife, Tracey, was played first by Virginia Dwyer, then for most of the show's run by Augusta Dabney
Augusta Keith Dabney (October 23, 1918 – February 4, 2008) was an American actress known for her roles on many soap operas, such as the wealthy but kindly matriarch Isabelle Alden on the daytime series ''Loving''. She played the role from 1983 ...
. Prince and Dabney became real-life husband and wife in 1964.
The show was a sophisticated blend of hospital drama, family life and urbane humor. Tracey's father, foundry president Emory Bannister (Judson Laire), regretted his second marriage to neurotic social-climber Clare ( Lesley Woods). After Emory died, Clare married a kindred spirit, slithery operator Lionel Steele (Martin Blaine), who later realized he had a conscience. Lionel's nephew Larry Renfrew (Dick Van Patten
Richard Vincent Van Patten (December 9, 1928 – June 23, 2015) was an American actor, comedian, businessman, and animal welfare advocate, whose career spanned seven decades of television. He was best known for his role as patriarch Tom Brad ...
) was a small-time wheeler-dealer who married the Malones' daughter Jill (Freda Holloway, Kathleen Widdoes, Sarah Hardy) while Diana Hyland—Van Patten's future on-screen wife on ''Eight Is Enough
''Eight Is Enough'' is an American television comedy-drama series that ran on ABC from March 15, 1977, until May 23, 1981. The show was modeled on the life of syndicated newspaper columnist Tom Braden, a real-life parent with eight children, who ...
''—played Gig Houseman, David Malone's wife. Tracey's fragile sister Faye (Chase Crosley, Lenka Petersen) married Jerry's friend and colleague, Dr. Stefan Koda (Michael Ingram). Soap veteran William Post, Jr. played Jerry's other close friend and advisor, attorney Harold Cranston, who harbored feelings for Tracey. Other actors who appeared on the TV show included Peter Brandon, Nicolas Coster, Louis Edmonds
Louis Stirling Edmonds (September 24, 1923 – March 3, 2001) was an American actor from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was best known for his roles in ''Dark Shadows'' and ''All My Children''.
Edmonds appeared in the musical ''Ernest in Love'' in ...
, Hugh Franklin, Joan Hackett
Joan Ann Hackett (March 1, 1934 – October 8, 1983) was an American actress of film, stage, and television. She starred in the 1967 western ''Will Penny''. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and won the Golde ...
, Luke Halpin, Emily McLaughlin, Joyce Van Patten
Joyce Benignia Van Patten (born March 9, 1934) is an American film and stage actress. She is best known for her roles in films like '' The Bad News Bears'' (1976), ''St. Elmo's Fire'' (1985) (as Mrs. Beamish), and as Rob Schneider's septuagenari ...
and Ann Williams.
See also
*List of radio soaps
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 h ...
References
*Listen to
''Young Dr. Malone'' on complete broadcast day: June 6, 1944
External links
*
Young Dr. Malone novelette, Radio and Television Mirror, April 1940, page 17
{{US radio soaps 1958 American television series debuts 1963 American television series endings 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs 1950s American radio programs 1960s American radio programs American radio soap operas American television soap operas NBC original programming Black-and-white American television shows English-language television shows Television series created by Irna Phillips NBC Blue Network radio programs CBS Radio programs