Gertrude Warner (April 2, 1917 – January 26, 1986) was an American voice talent who played multiple characters on radio productions during the Golden Age of Radio.

Early life

Warner was born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1917. Her father was James L. Warner, who died not long after the great crash of 1929. Her mother was Mildred Lovejoy Warner, who died in 1976. Her brother, James L. Warner, was a B17 pilot in World War II, who died on November 20, 2008. She is survived by her son, Douglas Warner Frank.

Career

Warner's first starring role on radio came when she was 23, playing Rebecca Lane in ''Beyond These Valleys'' on

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 ...

. Her successful radio career continued for 28 years and well over 4,000 performances. She was considered one of the queens of daytime radio, appearing in dozens of daytime serials. Among her accomplishments was being the female lead on the dramatic anthology ''

Brownstone Theater ''Brownstone Theater'' is an old-time radio dramatic anthology series in the United States. It was broadcast on the Mutual Broadcasting System February 21, 1945 – September 23, 1945. Format ''Brownstone Theater'' featured adaptations of stories ...

'' on Mutual. She portrayed such well known characters as

Della Street Della Street is the fictional secretary of Perry Mason in the long-running series of novels, short stories, films, and radio and television programs featuring the fictional defense attorney created by Erle Stanley Gardner. In 1950, Gardner publ ...

on the daytime ''

The New Adventures of Perry Mason ''The New Perry Mason'' is a CBS TV series that ran from 1973 to 1974. It was a revival of the 1957 ''Perry Mason'' television series about Erle Stanley Gardner's brilliant defense attorney. Plot All of the major characters of the original serie ...

'', "the lovely Margot Lane" on ''

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator, and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by writer Walter ...

'', and the title character on ''

Joyce Jordan, M.D. Joyce Jordan, M.D. is a Radio broadcasting, radio soap opera in the United States. It was broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC, CBS and NBC at various times during the era of old-time radio. Donna Halper, in her book, ''Invisible Stars ...

'' The ''

Lux Radio Theater ''Lux Radio Theatre'', sometimes spelled ''Lux Radio Theater'', a classic radio anthology series, was broadcast on the NBC Blue Network (1934–35) (owned by the National Broadcasting Company, later predecessor of American Broadcasting Company ...

'' episode of ''

Mrs. Miniver ''Mrs. Miniver'' is a 1942 American romantic war drama film directed by William Wyler, and starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon. Inspired by the 1940 novel '' Mrs. Miniver'' by Jan Struther, it shows how the life of an unassuming British h ...

'' proved so popular, it was developed into a daytime serial with Warner in the title role and as narrator. Trudy Warner played leading, supporting and some times guest roles on popular radio series, such as ''

Young Doctor Malone ''Young Doctor Malone'' (a.k.a. ''Young Dr. 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 You ...

'', '' The Mystery Man'', '' Dimension X'', ''

Nick Carter, Master Detective ''Nick Carter, Master Detective'' was a Mutual radio crime drama based on tales of the fictional private detective Nick Carter from Street & Smith's dime novels and pulp magazines. Nick Carter first came to radio as ''The Return of Nick Carte ...

'', ''Dangerously Yours'', '' Suspense'', ''

Cavalcade of America ''Cavalcade of America'' is an anthology drama series that was sponsored by the DuPont Company, although it occasionally presented musicals, such as an adaptation of ''Show Boat'', and condensed biographies of popular composers. It was initially ...

'', ''Matinee Theater'', ''

The MGM Theater of the Air ''The MGM Theater of the Air'' is a one-hour radio dramatic anthology in the United States. It was broadcast on WMGM in New York City and syndicated to other stations via electrical transcription October 14, 1949 – December 7, 1951. It was carr ...

'' and dozens more programs. She was the third-busiest actor in the Golden Age of Radio. Later in her life, she taught acting for television at Oberlin College and Weist Barron studios.

Personal life

Warner was married to Carl Frank from 1955 until 1957. Together they have a son, Douglas Warner Frank. She also has two grandchildren, Griffin and Caroline Frank.

Death

Gertrude Warner died on January 26, 1986, from cancer.

References

External links

* �
Last Ride on the Merry Go Round - Theater Five
March 8, 1965, Starring Gertrude Warner, Hosted b
Archive.orgGertrude Warner at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Warner, Gertrude 1917 births 1986 deaths American radio actresses American soap opera actresses Deaths from cancer in New York (state) 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Hartford, Connecticut