Ma Perkins

Ma Perkins (sometimes called Oxydol's Own Ma Perkins) is an American radio soap opera that was heard on NBC from 1933 to 1949 and on CBS from 1942 to 1960.[1] It was also broadcast in Canada, and Radio Luxembourg carried it in Europe.[2]

Ma Perkins
Virginia Payne as Ma Perkins, 1934.
Other namesOxydol's Own Ma Perkins
GenreDaytime daily serial
Running time15 minutes
Country of originUnited States
Language(s)English
Home stationWLW-AM
SyndicatesNBC
CBS
StarringVirginia Payne
Charles Egelston
Created byFrank and Anne Hummert
Written byRobert Hardy Andrews
Orin Tovrov
Produced byFrank and Anne Hummert
Original releaseAugust 14, 1933 –
November 25, 1960
No. of episodes7,065
Sponsored byOxydol

The program began on WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio, where it was broadcast from August 14, 1933 to December 1, 1933.[1] Its network debut occurred on NBC on December 4, 1933.[3] Between 1942 and 1949, the show was heard simultaneously on both networks. During part of its run on NBC, that network's coverage was augmented by use of transcriptions. Beginning April 1, 1935, nine stations broadcast the transcriptions.[4] Oxydol dropped its sponsorship in 1956. The program continued with various sponsors until 1960.

The series was produced by Frank and Anne Hummert with scripts by Robert Hardy Andrews, Orin Tovrov,[5] and others. Ma Perkins began August 14, 1933, on WLW in Cincinnati. On December 4 of that year, it graduated to the NBC Red network. On NBC and CBS the series ran for a total of 7,065 episodes.

"America’s mother of the air" was portrayed by actress Virginia Payne, who began the role at the age of 19 and never missed a performance during the program's 27-year run. Kindly, trusting widow Ma Perkins had a big heart and a great love of humanity. She always offered her homespun philosophy to troubled souls in need of advice.

Ma Perkins is widely credited with giving birth to storytelling and content-based advertising.[6]

Characters and story

Ma owned and operated a lumber yard in the town of Rushville Center[2] (population 4000), where the plotlines pivoted around her interactions with the local townsfolk and the ongoing dilemmas of her three children, Evey, Fay and John.[7] One of her children died during World War II. Ma's daughter Fay was played by Marjorie Hannan,[8][9] Isabelle Krehbiel and Rita Ascot. Gilbert Faust had the role of John. Evey Perkins was played by Lillian White,[7] Dora Johnson, Laurette Fillbrandt and Kay Campbell, who later became known for playing Grandma Kate Martin on the television soap opera All My Children. Shuffle Shober, Ma's best friend, was played by Charles Egelston[10] (and later Edwin Wolfe). Murray Forbes was heard as Willie Fitz, and Cecil Roy portrayed Junior Fitz.

In "Sounds from the Past," Chris Plunkett offered an overview of the series:

Typical of Hummert productions, Ma Perkins had her share of tears, crises, and drama, but with a plotline much slower paced than the average soap opera. In a typical year, no more than three or four major complications were covered --interspersed by long "quiet spells," filled with (brutally) protracted discussions on the meaning of life amid the ever-changing tapestry of family, friends and the small town around them... Early in the drama’s run Ma was portrayed as quite combative and spiteful, but her character soon developed (and softened) into the kindhearted sage and conscience of the entire community. There were various dramas that unfolded over the years, some more far-fetched than others. Two of the more memorable plot stretches involve Ma exposing a black market baby-napping ring, and Ma harboring Soviet political dissidents inside her home.[11]

When the show ended on Friday, November 25, 1960, the day after Thanksgiving Day, it was one of only eight entertainment shows still on the CBS radio network. The last episode was the only one in which Virginia Payne's name was mentioned, by Payne herself in a farewell speech. In all other episodes, the announcer at the close of the show would run down the names of all the actors in the cast (but one), and then say, "... and Ma Perkins."

Cast
  • Virginia Payne - Ma Perkins
  • Charles Egelston - Shuffle Shober, Ma's best friend (1933-1958)
  • Edwin Wolfe - Shuffle Shober (1958-1960)
  • Dora Johnson - Evey Perkins (1933-1944)
  • Laurette Fillbrandt - Evey Perkins (1944-1945)
  • Kay Campbell - Evey Perkins (1945-1960)
  • Isabelle Krehbiel - Fay Perkins (1933)
  • Rita Ascot - Fay Perkins
  • Margaret Draper - Fay Perkins
  • Gilbert Faust - John Perkins

See also

References
  1. Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 420-422. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3.
  2. "Television: Life with Ma". Time. August 26, 1957. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  3. "Around the Radio Clock". Chattanooga Daily Times. December 4, 1933. p. 12. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Oxydol's Transcriptions" (PDF). Broadcasting. April 15, 1935. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  5. "Orin Tovrov, radio-TV scriptwriter for 'Ma Perkins' and 'The Doctors"". The Boston Globe. August 26, 1980. p. 21. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "The History of Procter & Gamble".
  7. "America's Mother of the Air Comes to Isles". The Honolulu Advertiser. November 15, 1936. p. 28. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Original principals still with 'Ma' Perkins". Transcript-Telegram. Massachusetts, Holyoke. November 27, 1935. p. 9. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Thibault to sing 3 songs". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. December 4, 1935. p. 18. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Charles Egelston, Veteran Actor, 72". The Evening Star. District of Columbia, Washington. Associated Press. November 1, 1958. p. 10. Retrieved December 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. Norm's Radio: "Sounds from the Past" by Chris Plunkett

Further reading
  • Andrews, Robert Hardy. A Corner of Chicago. Boston: Little, Brown, 1963.
  • Cox, Jim. The Great Radio Soap Operas. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 1999.
  • LaGuardia, Robert. From Ma Perkins to Mary Hartman: The Illustrated History of Soap Operas. New York: Ballantine Books, 1977.
  • Ohmart, Ben. It's That Time Again. Albany: BearManor Media, 2002. ISBN 0-9714570-2-6
  • Stumpf, Charles. Ma Perkins, Little Orphan Annie and Heigh Ho Silver. Carlton, 1971.
  • Westin, Jeane Eddy. Making Do: How Women Survived the '30s. Follett, 1976.

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