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Drama

Drama

At first broadcasters didn’t think serious drama would appeal to radio listeners, but when they realized there was demand for such content they excelled and put out a wide range of content, some of which was quite tremendous.
ABC Radio WorkshopABC Radio Workshop
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History: 1953
Cast: Marian Richman, Ray Bradbury, Bill Hudson, Francis Urey, Monty Himmelbaum, Mary Dean Moss, Jo Ellen Chambers, Curt Converse, Roy Schumann, Nan Rodman, Ray Fielding
Producer: John Eppolitto, Steve Markham
Host: Dave Ballard
"Think! You! Live in a world made by you. A world of fact and fantasy. But where does fact end and fantasy begin? This is a program designed to make you think."
ABC Special EventABC Special Event
Show Count: 1
Broadcast History: 1947
"And now from Washington, another ABC Special Event...!"
Academy Award TheaterAcademy Award Theater
Show Count: 39
Broadcast History: 30 March 1946 to 18 December 1946
Sponsor: House of Squibb
Cast: Ronald Colman, Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda
Director: Dee Engelbach
Producer: Dee Engelbach
Adventures Of Danny MarsdonAdventures Of Danny Marsdon
Show Count: 13
Broadcast History: 6 October 1948 to 29 December 1948
Producer: Canadian Chamber Of Commerce
Adventures of Frank FarrellAdventures of Frank Farrell
Show Count: 7
Broadcast History:
Adventures of Horatio Hornblower, TheAdventures of Horatio Hornblower, The
Show Count: 52
Broadcast History: 1952 to 1957
Cast: Michael Redgrave
Producer: Harry Alan Towers
Amazing Mr. Malone, TheAmazing Mr. Malone, The
Show Count: 9
Broadcast History: 11 January 1947 to July 1951
Cast: Frank Lovejoy, Gene Raymond, George Petrie, Larry Haines
Director: Bill Rousseau, Richard Lewis
Producer: Bernard L Schubert
American AdventureAmerican Adventure
Show Count: 23
Broadcast History: 1955-1956
Cast: William Wadell, John Ehle, Carl Venners, Jean Herring, Jud Beckwith, Bill Troutman, Charles Kuralt, Josephine Sharkey, Charles Hadley, Gail Ehle, John Bonitz, Marian Fitzsimons
Director: John Clayton, Robert Shenken
The "American Adventure" series is a new drama on RUSC, authentically depicting important moments in American history.
American NovelsAmerican Novels
Show Count: 5
Broadcast History:
Some of America's best loved literary classics were treated to radio adaptation and presented by NBC's University of the Air in this series of shows called American Novels, also known as The World's Great Novels, and were broadcast on WMAQ Chicago and produced by "The NBC University of the Air".
American Weekly American Weekly
Show Count: 1
Broadcast History:
Ave Maria HourAve Maria Hour
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History:
Brownstone TheaterBrownstone Theater
Show Count: 6
Broadcast History: 21 February 1945 to 23 September 1945
Cast: Jackson Beck, Gertrude Warner, Jane Cowl, Les Tremayne, Jan Miner, Neil Hamilton
Director: Jock MacGregor
If you enjoy listening to a good play, then you'll love Brownstone Theatre!
Castle Playhouse - SACastle Playhouse - SA
Show Count: 29
Broadcast History:
In the 1950s the South African Government - after lengthy consultations with Lord Reith of the BBC - decided to launch a commercial radio station to supplement the existing public service English and Afrikaans networks.
CBS Radio WorkshopCBS Radio Workshop
Show Count: 73
Broadcast History: 27 January 1956 to 22 September 1957
Cast: Various, Aldus Huxley, William Conrad, Parley Baer, Lurene Tuttle, Jack Kruschen, Joseph Kearns, Vic Perrin, Sam Edwards, Gloria Henry, Charlotte Lawrence
Director: Jack Johnstone, William N Robson, Dee Engelbach, Elliott Lewis, Antony Ellis
Producer: William Froug
The CBS Radio Workshop was an experimental dramatic radio anthology series that aired on CBS from January 27, 1956, until September 22, 1957. Subtitled “radio’s distinguished series to man’s imagination,” it was a revival of the earlier Columbia Experimental Laboratory (1931), Columbia Experimental Dramatic Laboratory (1932) and Columbia Workshop broadcasts by CBS from 1936 to 1943, and used some of the same writers and directors employed on the earlier series'.
Ceiling UnlimitedCeiling Unlimited
Show Count: 3
Broadcast History: 8 November 1942 to 30 April 1944
Director: Orson Welles
Producer: Thomas Freebairn-Smith, Orson Welles
Ceiling Unlimited (later known as America — Ceiling Unlimited) (1942–1944) is a CBS radio series created by Orson Welles and sponsored by the Lockheed-Vega Corporation. The program was conceived to glorify the aviation industry and dramatize its role in World War II.
City, TheCity, The
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History: 2 February 1947 to 3 August 1947
Cast: Herb Butterfield, Anne Morrison, David Ellis, Herb Vigran, Robert Bruce, Norman Macdonnell, Lenore Kingston, Gil Warren
Producer: Sterling Tracy
Columbia Presents CorwinColumbia Presents Corwin
Show Count: 15
Broadcast History: 4 May 1941 to 9 November 1941, 7 March 1944 to 15 August 1944 and 3 July 1945 to 21 August 1945
Cast: Everett Sloane, Ted de Corsia, John Brown, Frank Gallop, Peter Donald, Kenny Delmar, Karl Swenson, Paul Stewart, Adelaide Klein , Hester Sondergaard, Luis Van Rooten, Frank Lovejoy, House Jameson, Jack Smart, Beatrice Kay, John Gibson, Arthur Vinton, Larry Robinson, Bartlett Robinson, Martin Wolfson, Joel O'Brien, Perry Lafferty, Kermit Murdock, Joseph Julian, Minerva Pious, Katherine Locke, Carl Frank, Joan Alexander, Arnold Moss, Ralph Bell, Orson Welles, Fredric March, Charles Laughton
A series of stories ranging from serious to whimsical. The most famous is On a Note of Triumph, a celebration of the Allied victory in Europe, first broadcast on VE Day, May 8, 1945.
Columbia WorkshopColumbia Workshop
Show Count: 141
Broadcast History: 18 July 1936 to 8 November 1942, 7 March 1944 to 15 August 1944, 2 February 1946 to 25 January 1947 and 27 January 1956 to 22 September 1957
Cast: Orson Welles, Karl Swenson, Neil O'Malley, Fred Stewart, Minerva Pious, Burgess Meredith, Carl Frank, Joan Alexander, Arnold Moss
Director: Marx B Loeb, Irving Reis, William N Robson, Brewster Morgan, Earle McGill, Norman Corwin, Betzy Tuthill, James Fassett, Albert Ward, Carl Beier, Richard Sanville, Perry Lafferty, Guy della Cioppa, George Zachary, Martin Gosch, Howard Barnes
This was drama with a difference. Columbia Workshop was not everybody’s cup of tea and in terms of audience popularity it was always noted that it was never a strong contender for the title “Radios Top Rated Drama Series” and yet it was always considered to be the drama program that led the way in radio standards.
Count Of Monte Cristo, TheCount Of Monte Cristo, The
Show Count: 3
Broadcast History: 1944-1945, 19 December 1946 to 26 June 1947, 1947-1948 and 12 June 1949 to 1 January 1952
Cast: Carleton Young, Anne Stone, Ferdinand Munier, Joseph Kearns, Barbara Lee, Vic Rodman, Paul Marion, Parley Baer, William Conrad, Jay Novello, Virginia Gregg, Howard McNear, John Dehner
Director: Thomas Freebairn-Smith, Jaime del Valle
Crisis In War Town, TheCrisis In War Town, The
Show Count: 1
Broadcast History:
Curtain TimeCurtain Time
Show Count: 6
Broadcast History: 22 July 1938 to 31 March 1939, 4 July 1945 to 27 June 1946, and 13 July 1946 to 29 March 1950
Sponsor: Kix Cereal
Cast: Olan Soule, Betty Lou Gerson, Louise Fitch, Harry Elders, Nannette Sargent, Betty Winkler, George Cisar, Beryl Vaughn, Sunda Love, Sidney Ellstrom, Maurice Copeland, Michael Romano
Director: Harry Holcomb, Blair Walliser
Host: Patrick Allen
Damon Runyon Theater, TheDamon Runyon Theater, The
Show Count: 52
Broadcast History: 1948 to the mid 1950s
Cast: John Brown, Anne Whitfield, Gerald Mohr, William Conrad, Alan Reed, Herb Vigran, Frank Lovejoy, Sheldon Leonard, Eddie Marr, Luis Van Rooten, Joe DuVal, Willard Waterman, Ed Begley, Jeff Chandler, Sam Edwards, Hans Conried, Parley Baer
Director: Richard Sanville
Producer: Vern Carstensen
Starring John Brown as Broadway, the narrator of Damon Runyon’s dramatic stories of old Manhattan New York and the gangster life in the 1920’s and 1930’s. The stories could be tragic, and often quite sad as you become moved by the strength of the characters.
Dangerously YoursDangerously Yours
Show Count: 12
Broadcast History: 1944
Cast: Victor Jory, Gertrude Warner
Host: Martin Gabel
Diamond DramasDiamond Dramas
Show Count: 25
Broadcast History: 1926-1944
Producer: Sidney S. Fox
Dr ChristianDr Christian
Show Count: 138
Broadcast History: 7 November 1937 to 6 January 1954
Cast: Jean Hersholt, Rosemary DeCamp, Lurene Tuttle, Kathleen Fitz, Helen Claire
Director: Neil Reagan, John Wilkinson, Florence Ortman
Producer: Dorothy McCann
Drama International - SADrama International - SA
Show Count: 27
Broadcast History:
Drama Miscellaneous Drama Miscellaneous
Show Count: 11
Broadcast History:
The shows that are listed under this category are drama series where there are only 1 or 2 of the episodes extant.
Empire Builders, TheEmpire Builders, The
Show Count: 7
Broadcast History: 1928 to 1931
Sponsor: The Great Northern Railroad
Encore TheaterEncore Theater
Show Count: 10
Broadcast History: 1946 to 1949
Cast: Gerald Mohr, Lionel Barrymore, Robert Young, Ronald Colman, Lurene Tuttle, Eric Snowden
Director: Bill Lawrence
Producer: Bill Lawrence
Eternal LightEternal Light
Show Count: 3
Broadcast History:
Fifth Horseman, TheFifth Horseman, The
Show Count: 8
Broadcast History: 4th July 1946 to 22nd August 1946
Cast: Henry Fonda
Host: Dane Clark
Four horsemen rode across the land, and their names were War, Pestilence, Famine and Death, and to these now is added a fifth horseman - the threat of the Atom!
ForecastForecast
Show Count: 21
Broadcast History:
In 1940 in a bid to discover new radio series, Columbia Broadcasting System, already established as a major Radio network, which experimented with radio productions through its Columbia Workshop series, came up with a series of broadcasts it called Forecast.
From The Bookshelf Of The WorldFrom The Bookshelf Of The World
Show Count: 7
Broadcast History:
Front Line TheatreFront Line Theatre
Show Count: 7
Broadcast History:
Frontline Theater brought to the fighting men of the United Nations by the Armed Forces Radio Service of the War Department. Every performance is presented especially for the men fighting for the United Nations on freedoms front line.
Front Page DramaFront Page Drama
Show Count: 83
Broadcast History: 1932 - 1958
Director: Paul W. Keyes
From the early 1930's to the late 1950's this popular radio show format broadcast over fifteen years of entertainment to the nation with dramatized stories adapted from "The American Weekly Magazine."
George Bruce's Air StoriesGeorge Bruce's Air Stories
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History: 1932
Cast: George Bruce
Grand MarqueeGrand Marquee
Show Count: 20
Broadcast History:
Great PlaysGreat Plays
Show Count: 13
Broadcast History:
Greatest Story Ever Told, TheGreatest Story Ever Told, The
Show Count: 67
Broadcast History: 26 January 1947 to 30 December 1956
Cast: Warren Parker
Director: Marx B Loeb, Leonard Blair
Producer: Wadill Catchings
Throughout the tumult of two thousand years a story has lived, a story of a man whose influence was widespread, whose life affected many people then and now.
Hallmark PlayhouseHallmark Playhouse
Show Count: 123
Broadcast History: 10 June 1948 to 1 February 1953 and 8 February 1953 to 27 March 1955
Sponsor: Hallmark Cards
Cast: Irene Dunne, Bob Hope, Gregory Peck, Lionel Barrymore
Director: Dee Engelbach, William Gay, William Froug
Host: James Hilton
In 1948, a new series called the Hallmark Playhouse was launched by Hallmark Cards, replacing the popular series, The Radio Reader's Digest, which had documented the true stories published in the Reader's Digest magazine.
Heartbeat TheaterHeartbeat Theater
Show Count: 3
Broadcast History: March 1956 to 1985
Sponsor: The Salvation Army
Cast: Raymond Burr, Greer Garson, Sam Edwards
Producer: Raymond Burr, C. P. MacGregor, Greer Garson, Sam Edwards
Hollywood Star PlayhouseHollywood Star Playhouse
Show Count: 18
Broadcast History: April 24th, 1950 - February 15th, 1953
Cast: James Stewart, Deborah Kerr, Harry Bartell, William Conrad
Director: Jack Johnstone
Producer: Robert Ryan
Host: Herbert Rawlinson, Orval Anderson
Hollywood Star Playhouse, a drama anthology, was directed by Jack Johnstone and starred such mega actors as James Stewart, Deborah Kerr, Harry Bartell and William Conrad.
I Fly AnythingI Fly Anything
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History: 29 November 1950 to 19 July 1951
Cast: Georgia Ellis, Dick Haymes, George Fenneman, Lurene Tuttle, Eddie Marr
Director: Dwight Hauser
Incredible But TrueIncredible But True
Show Count: 80
Broadcast History:
John Steele, AdventurerJohn Steele, Adventurer
Show Count: 41
Broadcast History: 26 April 1949 to 16 July 1956
Cast: John Larkin, Jack Edwards, Bryna Raeburn, Don Douglas
Director: Elliot Drake
Producer: Robert Monroe
Life In Your Hands, ALife In Your Hands, A
Show Count: 14
Broadcast History: 7 June 1949 to 13 September 1949, 29 June 1951 to 21 September 1951, and 10 July 1952 to 21 August 1952
Sponsor: Raleigh Cigarettes, Heinz Foods
Cast: Carlton KaDell, Lee Bowman, Ned LeFerve
Director: Homer Heck, Jack Simpson, Patrick Murphy, John Cowan
Producer: Homer Heck, Jack Simpson, Patrick Murphy, John Cowan
Marriage TheMarriage The
Show Count: 24
Broadcast History: 4 October 1953 to 28 March 1954
Cast: Bill Griffis, Ralph Bell, Hume Cronyn, Denise Alexander, Adelaide Klein , Jessica Tandy
Matinee TheaterMatinee Theater
Show Count: 22
Broadcast History: 22 October 1944 to 8 April 1945
Cast: Gertrude Warner, Victor Jory
Mayor Of The TownMayor Of The Town
Show Count: 12
Broadcast History: September 1942 to July 1949
Cast: Lionel Barrymore, Agnes Moorehead, Conrad Binyon
Director: Jack Van Nostrand
Producer: Murray Bolen, Knowles Entikin
Medical File - SAMedical File - SA
Show Count: 35
Broadcast History:
Mysterious CircumstancesMysterious Circumstances
Show Count: 15
Broadcast History:
Nazi Eyes on CanadaNazi Eyes on Canada
Show Count: 5
Broadcast History:
NBC University TheaterNBC University Theater
Show Count: 94
Broadcast History:
On StageOn Stage
Show Count: 13
Broadcast History: 1 January 1953 to 30 September 1953
Cast: Ben Wright, Elliott Lewis, Howard McNear, William Conrad, Paul Frees, Harry Bartell, Cathy Lewis, Barney Phillips, Peggy Webber
Director: Elliott Lewis
Producer: Elliott Lewis
Pete Kelly's BluesPete Kelly's Blues
Show Count: 6
Broadcast History: July to September 1951
Cast: Jack Webb, Meredith Howard
Producer: Richard Breen
Philip Morris PlayhousePhilip Morris Playhouse
Show Count: 9
Broadcast History: 1939 to 1949, November 1948 to July 1949, and March 1951 to September 1953
Sponsor: Philip Morris Cigarettes
Cast: Vincent Price, Dan Dailey, Cathy Lewis, Marlene Dietrich, Elliott Lewis, Howard Duff, Joseph Kearns, Sidney Miller, Jerry Hausner, James Mathews, William Conrad, Vanessa Brown, Lew Ayres, June Allyson, Robert Culp, Mandel Kramer, Peter Lorre, Everett Sloane, Ed Begley
Director: William Spier, Charles Martin
Producer: William Spier, Charles Martin
On Friday evenings at 8:30 pm, from 1939 until 1944, everyone who had a radio gathered round it to listed to the music, variety and drama offerings of Philip Morris Playhouse. It continued again in 1948 until 1951.
Radio Adventure TheaterRadio Adventure Theater
Show Count: 10
Broadcast History:
Radio City PlayhouseRadio City Playhouse
Show Count: 56
Broadcast History: 3 July 1948 to 1 January 1950
Cast: Jan Miner, John Larkin
Director: Harry W. Junkin
Producer: Richard P. McDonagh
Radio Readers DigestRadio Readers Digest
Show Count: 69
Broadcast History: 13 September 1942 to 30 September 1945 and 13 January 1946 to 3 June 1948
Sponsor: Campbell Soups, Hallmark Cards
Director: Marx B Loeb, Robert Nolan
Host: Conrad Nagel
Rogers Of The GazetteRogers Of The Gazette
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History:
RomanceRomance
Show Count: 3
Broadcast History:
RUSC - Produced by Ned NorrisRUSC - Produced by Ned Norris
Show Count: 3
Broadcast History:
Cast: David Ian Davies
Producer: Ned Norris
Screen Directors' Playhouse, TheScreen Directors' Playhouse, The
Show Count: 98
Broadcast History: 9 January 1949 to 28 September 1951
Director: Bill Karn
Producer: Howard Wylie
Sea Hound, TheSea Hound, The
Show Count: 5
Broadcast History:
Secret Agent K7Secret Agent K7
Show Count: 68
Broadcast History:
Silver Theater, TheSilver Theater, The
Show Count: 41
Broadcast History:
Somebody KnowsSomebody Knows
Show Count: 2
Broadcast History: July 6th - Sugust 24th, 1950
Director: Jack Johnstone
Producer: James L. Saphier
Somebody Knows was a murder drama series taken from real life stories.
Stars Over HollywoodStars Over Hollywood
Show Count: 72
Broadcast History: 31st May 1941 - 25th September 1954
Sponsor: Dari Rich Products, Armour and Company, Carnation Evaporated Milk
Cast: Hope Emerson, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Crawford, Vincent Price, Basil Rathbone, Jane Wyman
Director: Paul Pierce, Les Mitchel
Producer: Paul Pierce, Les Mitchel
Host: Art Gilmore, Art Ballinger
This thirty minute Saturday morning program featured family oriented stories often with a strong moral that were either written especially for the program or were adapted from famous stories such as Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol and Louisa May Alcott's Little Women.
Strange As It SeemsStrange As It Seems
Show Count: 62
Broadcast History:
Director: Cyril Armbrister
Producer: Cyril Armbrister
Host: Gayne Whitman
Studio OneStudio One
Show Count: 46
Broadcast History: 29 April 1947 to 27 July 1948
Cast: Fletcher Markle, Everett Sloane, Anne Burr, Mercedes McCambridge
Producer: Fletcher Markle
Theater Guild On The AirTheater Guild On The Air
Show Count: 60
Broadcast History:
Theater Of RomanceTheater Of Romance
Show Count: 67
Broadcast History:
Sponsor: Colgate Tooth Powder
This Is My BestThis Is My Best
Show Count: 13
Broadcast History: 5 September 1944 to 28 May 1946
Director: Orson Welles, Jimmy Wallington, Homer Fickett, Don Clark, Dave Titus
Producer: Orson Welles, Jimmy Wallington, Homer Fickett, Don Clark, Dave Titus
Top SecretTop Secret
Show Count: 14
Broadcast History: 11 June 1950 to 26 October 1950
Cast: Ilona Massey
Director: Harry W. Junkin
Producer: Harry W. Junkin
Treasury AgentTreasury Agent
Show Count: 1
Broadcast History: April 1947 to 1948 and 1954 to 1956
Cast: Lawson Zerbe, Raymond Edward Johnson, Larry Haines, Ralph Bell
Producer: Phillips H. Lord
Treasury Star ParadeTreasury Star Parade
Show Count: 47
Broadcast History: April 1942 to 1944
Cast: Gale Gordon, Vincent Price, John Garfield, Paula Winslowe, Peter Donald
Director: William A. Bacher
Host: Henry Hull, Paul Douglas
Wayside Theater, TheWayside Theater, The
Show Count: 9
Broadcast History:
We The PeopleWe The People
Show Count: 4
Broadcast History:
Wings To VictoryWings To Victory
Show Count: 5
Broadcast History: November 1942 to March 1944
Worlds Greatest NovelsWorlds Greatest Novels
Show Count: 18
Broadcast History:
You Are The JuryYou Are The Jury
Show Count: 8
Broadcast History:
Cast: Jay Jostyn
The famous criminologist Roy Post devised this series. Here you are given your chance to actually take part in the jury trial without leaving your own living room, the chance to find out what kind of juror you’d make.