Joyce Jordan, M.D. is a 1938-1955

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It was broadcast on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

and

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

at various times during the era of

old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the earl ...

. Donna Halper, in her book, ''Invisible Stars: A Social History of Women in American Broadcasting'', cited Jordan as one of the women in soap operas who "had careers ... which, of course, became a struggle as they tried to balance their work with their desire for a family."

Origin

''Radio Varieties'' magazine reported in its September 1940 issue that the concept of the Joyce Jordan storyline originated during a ride on a bus in New York City. Producer

Himan Brown Himan Brown (July 21, 1910 – June 4, 2010Himan Brown obituary.< ...

and author Julian Funt sat behind a young couple "who were arguing the age-old theory that marriage and a career do not mix." As the two men who developed radio programs overheard the conversation, the storyline of ''Joyce Jordan'' emerged in their minds.

Plot

The program's national network debut was May 30, 1938, on CBS as ''Joyce Jordan, Girl Interne''. It had first been test-marketed for 21 weeks in 1937 on three stations in New England. On June 28, 1937, it was moved to WEAF in New York City, New York, to be carried on four stations. The name changed to ''Joyce Jordan, M.D.'' in 1942 after the title character passed her medical exams and became employed at a "large city hospital."Terrace, Vincent (1999). ''Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . Pp. 180-181. Radio historian John Dunning wrote in his book ''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio'', that despite some changes in plot, "the theme of a woman's difficulty in a man's world remained." In the early episodes, Dr. Jordan had to choose between a variety of suitors. On the February 19, 1940, episode, she married foreign correspondent Paul Sherwood, who was her patient. Later, she had to deal with her husband's "bitter and neurotic sister." She also had to struggle with the demands of being a physician and a wife. After graduating from her internship, Dr. Jordan was a surgeon at Hotchkiss Memorial Hospital in a mythical place named Preston. Dr. Jordan's motto, as spoken at the beginning of each episode, was "The sick in body, I try to heal; the sick in soul, I try to comfort; For to everyone — rich or poor, young or old — a doctor's hand is a helping hand." From the beginning, Brown and Funt sought to make the stories in the program more realistic than what listeners might have heard in other medically themed soap operas. Dr. Jordan never performed an operation on the program, never worked with experimental medicine and avoided psychological elements. As time went on, Dr. Jordan's role morphed from active participant in the episodes to one that Jim Cox, in his book ''The Great Radio Soap Operas'', described as "hostess of her long-running program, merely narrating the stories ..." In 1948, Procter & Gamble contemplated merging ''Joyce Jordan, M.D.'' with its ''Road of Life'' program to create a single half-hour show. Combining scripts was found to be feasible, but the idea was dropped because the sponsor and the advertising agencies for the two programs "found that the commercial copy for the two products, Dreft and Duz, could not be suitably handled" in the proposed version.

Schedule

The program's broadcast schedule is shown in the table below. Source: John Dunning: ''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio'' In 1948, ''Joyce Jordan, M.D.'' was replaced by a

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

, ''

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&ndas ...

''. Jim Cox wrote: "''The Brighter Day'' premiered on the NBC network on October 11, 1948. But it was actually rolled out on another drama some time before that." Dr. Jordan lived near the Dennis family's hometown of Three Rivers, and listeners of the Jordan program became acquainted with the Dennises in 1948. Cox wrote, "By the time Dr. Jordan said 'good-by' on her final broadcast on Friday, October 8, 1948, the fans were already acquainted with the family that would replace her. The following Monday listeners could easily connect with the new series growing out of the show they had been hearing for so long." ''Joyce Jordan, M.D.'' returned for several months in 1951–52 on ABC, and was then revived for another six months in 1955 on NBC. The cancellation on NBC in 1955 was reported to be part of a reshaping of the network's daytime programming, as executives "hoped to stave off TV awhile longer" by replacing its soap operas with "an innovative multihour magazine called ''Weekday''" that was similar in format to its weekend ''

Monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, Wes ...

'' program.

Cast

Seven actresses —

Helen Claire Helen Claire (October 18, 1911January 12, 1974)DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 54. was an actress on Broadway theatre, Broadway ...

Rita Johnson Rita Ann Johnson (August 13, 1913Parish gives year of birth as 1912, but her grave marker says 1913. – October 31, 1965) was an American actress. Early years Johnson was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, the daughter of a single mother, Lilli ...

, Ann Shepherd, Betty Winkler,

Elspeth Eric Elspeth Thexton Eric (September 15, 1907 – June 15, 1993) was an American actress in old-time radio, "usually cast as the other woman in soaps and serials".DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 ...

Gertrude Warner 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 J ...

and

Fran Carlon Fran Carlon (August 15, 1913 – October 4, 1993)DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . Pp. 49-50. was an American actress who was suc ...

— had the title role at various times. Other characters and the actors and actresses who played them included those shown in the table below. *

Ethel Owen Ethel Owen ( Ethel Marguerite Waite; March 30, 1893 – February 16, 1997) was an American actress with a lengthy career on stage as well as radio and television. In her early sixties, during the mid-1950s, she had a memorable recurring TV role ...

as Cassie *

Myron McCormick Myron McCormick (February 8, 1908 – July 30, 1962) was an American actor of stage, radio, and film. Early life and education Born Walter Myron McCormick in Albany, Indiana, in 1908, he was the middle child of Walter P. and Bessie M. McCo ...

as Paul Sherwood * Eric Rolf as Dr. Hans Simons * Lesley Woods as Margot Sherwood *

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, ''Kiss of Death (1947 film ...

as Dr. Alan Webster * Irene Hubbard as Dr. Tracy * Ethel Owen
Eda Heinemann as Dr. Molly Hedegrow * Alan Devitt as Roger Walton * Patricia Ryan as Myra Lee *

Raymond Edward Johnson Raymond Edward Johnson (July 24, 1911 – August 15, 2001) was an American radio and stage actor best remembered for his work on ''Inner Sanctum Mysteries''. Early years Born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Johnson started out as a bank teller, and late ...

as Dr. Cliff Reed * Raymond Edward Johnson as Dr. Alexander Grey * Boyd Crawford as Greg Ogden * Ethel Blume as Gloria Blaine *

Frank Lovejoy Frank Andrew Lovejoy Jr. (March 28, 1912 – October 2, 1962) was an American actor in radio, film, and television. He is perhaps best remembered for appearing in the film noir ''The Hitch-Hiker'' and for starring in the radio drama ''Night Beat ...

as Victor Manion * Vera Allen as Ada Manion * Charles Webster as Mike Malone * James Monks as Edgar Jarvis * Charlotte Holland * Hope Allison *

Bud Collyer Bud Collyer (born Clayton Johnson Heermance Jr., June 18, 1908 – September 8, 1969) was an American radio actor and announcer and game show host who became one of the nation's first major television game show stars. He is best remembered for ...

as Dr. Henry Powell * Bill Johnstone as Dr. Hunt *

George Coulouris George Alexander Coulouris (1 October 1903 – 25 April 1989) was an English film and stage actor. He was perhaps best known for his collaborations with Orson Welles, most notably ''Citizen Kane''. Early life Of Anglo-Greek origin, Coulouris ...

as Neil Reynolds *

Stefan Schnabel Stefan Artur Schnabel (February 2, 1912 – March 11, 1999) was a German-American actor who worked in theatre, radio, films and television. After moving to the United States in 1937 he became one of the original members of Orson Welles's Mercury ...

as Herbert Yost Source: Terrace, Vincent (1999). ''Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows'', except as noted. Others who often appeared on the program were

Mary Jane Higby Mary Jane Higby (May 29, 1909 – February 1, 1986)DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 129. was an American actress in the era of ol ...

, Michael Fitzmaurice, Rex Ingram,

Agnes Moorehead Agnes Robertson Moorehead (December 6, 1900April 30, 1974) was an American actress. In a career spanning five decades, her credits included work in radio, stage, film, and television.Obituary '' Variety'', May 8, 1974, page 286. Moorehead was th ...

and Theodore Newton. Announcers included Ron Rawson, Ken Roberts and Len Sterling. Himan Brown was the producer, and Julian Funt was the writer.

References

External links

Streaming

Episodes of ''Joyce Jordan'' from the Internet Archive

Episodes of ''Joyce Jordan'' from Old Time Radio Researchers Group Library

Text

''Joyce Jordan: Girl Interne'', a fictional story based on the radio program in ''Radio and Television Mirror'' June 1940

''Joyce Jordan: Girl Interne'', a "complete radio novel" in ''Radio and Television Mirror'' November 1941
{{US radio soaps 1938 radio programme debuts 1955 radio programme endings ABC radio programs CBS Radio programs NBC radio programs American radio soap operas