Great Radio Soap Operas

Jim Cox, a leading radio historian, is an award-winning author of numerous books on the subject. A retired college professor, he lives in Louisville, Kentucky.

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgements     Preface     1 Aunt Jenny’s Real Life Stories (The Ultimate Conclusion)     2 Backstage Wife (The Perfectly Named Serial Heroine)     3 Big Sister (John’s Other Wife)     4 The Brighter Day (Falling Leaves)     5 David Harum (Bab-O’s Own Program)     6 Front Page Farrell (The Unforgettable Radio Drama)     7 The Guiding Light (The Longest Narrative Ever Told)     8 Hilltop House (To the Women of America)     9 Just Plain Bill (A Giant of the Air)     10 Life Can Be Beautiful (A Beam of Hope in a Dark World)     11 The Light of the World (An Eternal Beacon     12 Lora Lawton (Where So Few Dreams Come True)     13 Lorenzo Jones (More Smiles Than Tears)     14 Ma Perkins (Mother of the Air)     15 One Man’s Family (Bewildering Offspring)     16 Our Gal Sunday (Can This Girl…Find Happiness?)     17 Pepper Young’s Family (The House That Camay Built)     18 Perry Mason (Murder and Mayhem in the Afternoon)     19 Portia Faces Life (Courage, Spirit, Integrity)     20 The Right to Happiness (Ivory Soap's Own Story)     21 Road of Life (The Duz Program)     22 The Romance of Helen Trent (The Goddess of Goodness)     23 Rosemary (This Is You)     24 The Second Mrs. Burton (Second Wife)     25 Stella Dallas (Nothin’ but Trouble)     26 This is Nora Drake (A Modern Story)     27 Today’s Children (A Bridge Over Troubled Waters)     28 Wendy Warren and the News (Reports from the Women’s World)     29 When a Girl Marries (Follow Your Heart)     30 Young Doctor Malone (A Page from a New Chapter)     31 Young Widder Brown (The Age-Old Conflict)     Epilogue     Appendix A: Soap Opera Firsts, Lasts and Mosts     Appendix B: Adult Weekday Radio Serials by Year of Debut     Chapter Notes     Annotated Bibliography     Index

“one of the better references on a radio genre...for all collections”—Choice; “clear writing and in-depth research”—ARBA; “an immensely readable reference work...exhaustive histories of 31 of network radio’s most durable soap operas aired”—The Centerville-Bellbrook Times; “provides exhaustive documentation”—Classic Images; “wonderful…informative...most excellent...highly recommended reading!”—Chattanooga Airwaves; “covers the realm of 31 different and diverse radio serials spanning a time period of well over 30 years...highly recommend”—The Illustrated Press; “Cox brings the ‘washboard weepers’ back to life in this detailed history”—North American Radio Archives; “entertaining…fascinating details…the perfect gift”—Radio Recall.