''Amanda of Honeymoon Hill'' is a 15-minute daily radio soap opera produced by

Frank Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curr ...

and

Anne Hummert Anne Hummert (née Schumacher) (January 19, 1905 – July 5, 1996) was the leading creator of daytime radio serials or soap opera dramas during the 1930s and 1940s, responsible for more than three dozen series. Biography She was born in Baltimore ...

. Broadway actress Joy Hathaway had the title role, sometimes described as "the beauty of flaming red hair." The series was broadcast from February 5, 1940, until April 26, 1946, initially on the Blue Network at 3:15 p.m. until August 1942. It then moved to CBS, airing at 10:30 a.m. until 1943 when it was heard at 11 a.m.

Characters and story

The story followed the travails of the beautiful Charity Amanda Dyke Leighton (Joy Hathaway), who lived on Honeymoon Hill in Virginia with her husband, wealthy Southerner Edward Leighton (Boyd Crawford, George Lambert, Staats Cotsworth). As an artist, Edward made many portraits of Amanda. They had a son, Robert Elijah, but they were separated by events prompted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. He left for Abbeyville to run his factory, converted for war production, while Amanda remained in Honeymoon Hill to supervise her nursery for the children of war workers. Dot was portrayed by

Linda Watkins Linda Mathews Watkins (May 23, 1908 – October 31, 1976) was an American stage, film, and television actress. Early years Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Watkins was the daughter of Gardiner and Elizabeth R. (née Mathews) Watkins. Her fat ...

(1908-1976), and Helen Shields (1915–1963) had the role of Sylvia Meadows.

Arlene Francis Arlene Francis (born Arline Francis Kazanjian; October 20, 1907 – May 31, 2001) was an American actress, radio and television talk show host, and game show panelist. She is known for her long-running role as a panelist on the television game s ...

was a cast member in 1941. Also in the cast: Ruth Russell and John Brown (as Mr. Lenord). Organist Ann Leaf supplied the program's background music, and the opening theme was

Stephen Foster Stephen Collins Foster (July 4, 1826January 13, 1864), known also as "the father of American music", was an American composer known primarily for his parlour and minstrel music during the Romantic period. He wrote more than 200 songs, inc ...

's 1854 tune, "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair." In addition to Frank Gallop and

George Ansbro George Ansbro (January 14, 1915 – November 5, 2011) was a radio announcer for NBC and ABC for six decades, working with soap operas, big bands, quiz shows and other programs. Early years Ansbro was born January 14, 1915, in Brooklyn, New ...

, other announcers were

Howard Claney Howard Moorhead Claney (April 17, 1898 - April 30, 1980) was an American actor, an announcer on old-time radio, and a narrator of films. Early years The son of William J. Claney and Mary J. Claney, he was born in the Manchester neighborhood o ...

and Hugh Conover. Anne Hummert unintentionally scripted a prominent double meaning into the show's opening, and this amused many since it was heard for years without change, as described by

in his book, ''I Have a Lady in the Balcony'': :''Amanda of Honeymoon Hill'' ran for five years in the early forties. Frank Gallop was the regular announcer, and his occasional tendency to almost break up but still manage to hang on for dear life while on the air was the giggly gossip of New York radio. The reason was the opening announcement which, as on all the Hummert soaps, was written by Anne Hummert. This particular lead-in indicated how truly naive Mrs. Hummert must really have been: "We bring you now the story of Amanda of Honeymoon Hill, laid in a world few Americans know. The story of love and marriage in America's romantic South..." The attention-getting word remained for the entire run of the program because, evidently, none of Anne Hummert's subordinates at Air Features had the temerity to approach her about deleting the double entendre and replacing it with a word or phrase less suggestive. Rather than chance it, they skipped it. But by substituting for Gallop myself once in a while, I found out what it must have been like for poor Frank to not break up. And for five years yet.

Advertising

Newspaper ads promoted the program with an extreme use of exclamation marks, a contrast with modern advertising approaches.

References

Listen to

Full day coverage on D-Day includes ''Amanda of Honeymoon Hill''

External links

{{US radio soaps 1940s American radio programs American radio soap operas NBC Blue Network radio programs CBS Radio programs 1940 radio programme debuts 1946 radio programme endings

Characters and story

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References

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