Kitty Foyle (radio and TV series)

Kitty Foyle is an American old-time radio and television soap opera originally aired during the 1940s and 1950s that was based on the 1940 film of the same name starring Ginger Rogers. Kitty Foyle was created by soap opera mogul Irna Phillips of Guiding Light fame and produced by daytime radio monarchs Frank and Anne Hummert of Helen Trent recognition. The program originally starred Julie Stevens in the title role of Kitty Foyle on radio.[1] On television, the title role was portrayed by Kathleen Murray.

Each episode primarily focused on Foyle's ongoing relationship with a doctor in the neighborhood, (played on radio by Bud Collyer and on television by William Redfield), and the relationship between her and her father. Each episode also usually involved a flashback and was set in Philadelphia.[2]

The radio version of Kitty Foyle ran on NBC's daytime schedule from October 5, 1942-June 9, 1944. NBC Television aired the show during the afternoons from January 13-June 27, 1958.[3]

## Radio program

[edit]

Radio show

Kitty FoyleGenre| Soap opera

|

Running time| 15 minutes
Country of origin| United States
Language(s)| English
Syndicates| CBS
TV adaptations| Kitty Foyle
Starring| Julie Stevens
Bud Collyer
Mark Smith
Victor Thorley
Amanda Randolph
Announcer| Mel Allen
Created by| Irna Phillips
Produced by| Frank Hummert
Anne Hummert
Original release| October 5, 1942 (1942-10-05) –
June 9, 1944 (1944-06-09)
No. of series| 2
Sponsored by| General Mills

Kitty Foyle originally began on the radio. The program evolved from a segment on the short-lived radio program Stories America Loves[4] which only ran a year on CBS. The first Kitty Foyle segment was broadcast in June 1942. However, the program had further origin to a 1939 best-selling novel written by Christopher Morley. The novel became the premise for the popular 1940 film of the same name starring Ginger Rogers. The film also resulted in a popular dress of the 1940s.[5]

The program was created by soap opera mogul Irna Phillips[6] and was produced by daytime radio monarchs Frank and Anne Hummert.[7]

The program starred future Helen Trent, (another Hummert production), star Julie Stevens in the title role of Kitty Foyle.[1] Bud Collyer, who was the voice of Superman at the time, portrayed the role of Wyn Strafford,[8][9] the love interest of Kitty Foyle. Also a part of the Foyle family were Mark Smith and Victor Thorley who portrayed Kitty's father Pop Foyle and her brother Ed Foyle, respectively. Sportscaster Mel Allen served as the announcer.

The soap opera was broadcast from October 5, 1942 to June 9, 1944 on CBS Radio. The program was sponsored by General Mills.[10][11]

### History

[edit]

#### Christopher Morley's Kitty Foyle

[edit]

In 1939, Christopher Morley wrote and published a novel also titled Kitty Foyle. The plot of the novel tells the story of a white-collar girl who falls in love with a young socialite, despite the objections of his family. Contemporary Authors noted: "Central to the story is protagonist Kitty's affair with the affluent Wyn Strafford. Critics heatedly debated Morley's sexual sensationalism,"[12] notably her out-of-wedlock pregnancy and abortion.

The story is told by Kitty in the first person. A sociologist suggests that "Kitty, in her observations of the mores and behavior patterns of the upper class acts as the anthropological alter ego of Morley, viewing the upper class from the outside."[13]

The book was a bestseller in 1939 and 1940.[14]

#### 1940 film

[edit]

Main article: Kitty Foyle (film)

#### Formation

[edit]

##### Irna Phillips

[edit]

In 1941, Irna Phillips, creator of the popular soap opera Guiding Light, first proposed the idea of a serialized version of the award-winning film[15] released a year earlier to Lady Esther cosmetics. Unfortunately, Lady Esther rejected but General Mills soon would accept.

##### General Mills, the Hummerts and Stories America Loves

[edit]

By the early 1940s, General Mills had been looking for a way to break into radio. Their first big break came in 1941 when the company became the official sponsor of The Lone Ranger radio program. But within months after landing sponsorship of The Lone Ranger, the company were approached with the idea of a radio program that took popular novels of the time (past or present) and make serialized productions of them. The program was entitled Stories America Loves.[16]

Stories America Loves premiered on CBS October 6, 1941. The program didn't get very much attention until June 1942 when the program began to broadcast segments of the novel Kitty Foyle. The segments became so popular in fact that the rotating story concept of the program was abandoned[17] and by the fall of 1942, the serial Kitty Foyle took over the daytime timeslot of its predecessor.

Frank and Anne Hummert would become the producers of the new program. Stories ended its run on October 16, 1942.[17] Kitty Foyle made its radio debut on October 5, 1942. The program premiered to relatively good ratings but soon would drop in the ratings. The program lasted two seasons and ended its run on June 9, 1944.[18]

## Television serial

[edit]

Kitty Foyle

Genre| Soap opera
Created by| Irna Phillips
Based on| Kitty Foyle (radio)
Written by| Carlton E. Morse
Directed by| Hal Cooper
Starring| Kathleen Murray
William Redfield
Bob Hastings
Ralph Dunn
Country of origin| United States
Original language| English
No. of seasons| 1
Production
Producer| Charles Irving
Running time| 30 minutes
Original release
Network| NBC
Release| January 13 (1958-01-13) –
June 27, 1958 (1958-06-27)

On January 13, 1958, Kitty Foyle premiered on NBC Television.[19] Under new direction and an all new cast, the show went underway. When it premiered, Kitty Foyle was NBC's first thirty-minute soap opera.[20][21] At the time, 15 minutes was the standard for a televised daytime soap opera.

The televised version of Kitty Foyle starred up-and-coming actress Kathleen Murray in the title role of Irish secretary Kitty Foyle.[20] The program also starred actor William Redfield as Foyle's love interest Wyn Strafford and character actors Bob Hastings[22] and Ralph Dunn in the roles of her brother Ed and father 'Pop' Foyle, respectively. Also in the cast were Judy Lewis, Les Damon and a very young Patty Duke.[19]

The series was produced by Charles Irving. Carlton E. Morse, writer for radio's One Man's Family, served as head writer of the series.[23] Hal Cooper was the director of the series[24][25] and the series was packaged and distributed by Henry Jaffee Enterprises.[23]

The television version of Kitty Foyle did not go well with viewers. The story seemed tailor-made for the daytime serial market, but it wasn't. Perhaps the story was too familiar, or perhaps once the basic story was told, there was nothing else to say about Kitty and her problems.[26]

The serial only lasted five months[27] and ended its network television run on June 27, 1958.[28][29]

## Cast and characters

[edit]

### On radio

[edit]

#### Main cast

[edit]

* Julie Stevens as Kitty Foyle
* Bud Collyer[30] as Dr. Wynnewood 'Wyn' Strafford VI
* Mark Smith as 'Pop' Foyle
* Victor Thorley as Ed Foyle

#### Supporting cast

[edit]

* Amanda Randolph

### On television

[edit]

#### Main

[edit]

* Kathleen Murray as Kitty Foyle
* William Redfield as Dr. Wynnewood 'Wyn' Strafford VI
* Ralph Dunn as 'Pop' Foyle
* Bob Hastings as Ed Foyle

#### Supporting

[edit]

* Kay Medford as Sophie Foyle
* Larry Robinson as Mac Foyle
* Judy Lewis as Molly Scharf
* Les Damon as Rosie Rittenhouse
* Marie Worsham as Stacy Lee Balla

## Broadcast history

[edit]

On the radio, Kitty Foyle could be heard every weekday for 15 minutes from 1942 to 1944 beginning at 10:15 a.m. over CBS Radio.[31] On television, the program could be seen every weekday for thirty minutes beginning at 2:30 pm on NBC.[23]

## See also

[edit]

* List of radio soaps

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Cox, Jim (November 5, 2005). Historical Dictionary of American Radio Soap Operas. Scarecrow Press. p. 213\. ISBN 978-0-81-086523-5. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
2. ^ Cox, Jim (July 17, 2009). The A to Z of American Radio Soap Operas. Scarecrow Press. p. 122\. ISBN 978-0-8108-6349-1. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
3. ^ Schemering, Christopher (1987). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (2nd ed.). Ballantine Books. p. 144\. ISBN 0-345-35344-7.
4. ^ Cox, Jim (July 1, 1999). The Great Radio Soap Operas. McFarland. p. 305\. ISBN 978-1-4766-0414-5. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
5. ^ "Ginger Rogers' passion for fashion".
6. ^ Nochimson, Martha (1992). No End to Her: Soap Opera and the Female Subject. University of California Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-0-5200-7771-3. Retrieved September 9, 2015. "kitty foyle soap opera."
7. ^ The Great Radio Soap Operas, p. 17
8. ^ Historical Dictionary, p. 61
9. ^ A to Z, p. 61
10. ^ Historical Dictionary, p. 86
11. ^ A to Z, p. 86
12. ^ "Morley, Christopher (Darlington), 1890-1957". Contemporary Authors. 213: 294–296\. 2004. ISSN 0275-7176. OCLC 6921683.
13. ^ Gordon, Milton M. (November 1947). "Kitty Foyle and the Concept of Class as Culture". The American Journal of Sociology. 53 (3): 210–217\. doi:10.1086/220143. ISSN 0002-9602. OCLC 1831931. PMID 20269185. S2CID 19212674.
14. ^ Burt, Daniel S. (2004). "Bestsellers 1930-1939" and "Bestsellers 1940-1949". The chronology of American literature : America's literary achievements from the colonial era to modern times. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 978-0-618-16821-7. OCLC 52509521.
15. ^ "The 13th Academy Awards (1941) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
16. ^ The Great Radio Soap Operas, p. 10
17. ^ a b A to Z, p. 215
18. ^ Mulcahy, Jr., Kevin (June 9, 2015). "Today in Soap Opera History (June 9)". We Love Soaps. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
19. ^ a b "U.S. tv Daytime Drama Daytime Soap Operas/ Serials/Comedies". The Classic Television Archive. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
20. ^ a b Bowie, Stephen (February 11, 2013). "The Candy-Fudge Sundae Girl". The Classic TV History Blog. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
21. ^ "History of Soaps - Past meets the Present!". October 18, 2007. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
22. ^ Newcomb, Roger (July 1, 2014). "Bob Hastings Dead at 89". Serial Scoop. Archived from the original on August 22, 2014. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
23. ^ a b c Kitty Foyle Thread
24. ^ Hal Cooper's Obituary in Variety
25. ^ Lentz, III, Harris M. (May 7, 2015). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2014. McFarland. p. 75\. ISBN 978-0-7864-7666-4. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
26. ^ Lackmann, Ron (1976). Soap Opera Almanac. Berkley Publishing Corporation, New York. p. 103.
27. ^ Young, William H.; Young, Nancy K. (January 1, 2004). The 1950s. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 227\. ISBN 978-0-3133-2393-5. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
28. ^ "Complete List of Daytime Soap Operas". Archived from the original on November 4, 2014. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
29. ^ The Great Radio Soap Operas, p. 302
30. ^ The Great Radio Soap Operas, p. 69
31. ^ Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. pp. 385–386\. ISBN 978-0-1950-7678-3. Retrieved September 12, 2015.

## External links

[edit]

* Kitty Foyle at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Daytime television soap operas in the United States

Current|

* Beyond the Gates (since 2025)
* The Bold and the Beautiful (since 1987)
* Days of Our Lives (since 1965)
* General Hospital (since 1963)
* The Young and the Restless (since 1973)

1940s debuts|

* Faraway Hill (1946)
* Highway to the Stars (1947)
* These Are My Children (1949)
* A Woman to Remember (1949)

1950s debuts|

* A Time to Live (1954)
* As the World Turns (1956–2010)
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* The First Hundred Years (1950–1952)
* First Love (1954–1955)
* Follow Your Heart (1953–1954)
* For Better or Worse (1959–1960)
* From These Roots (1958–1961)
* Golden Windows (1954–1955)
* The Greatest Gift (1954–1955)
* Guiding Light (1952–2009)
* Hawkins Falls (1950–1955)
* Kitty Foyle (1958)
* Love of Life (1951–1980)
* Miss Susan (1951)
* One Man's Family (1954–1955)
* Portia Faces Life (1954–1955)
* The Road of Life (1954–1955)
* The Secret Storm (1954–1974)
* Search for Tomorrow (1951–1986)
* The Seeking Heart (1954)
* Three Steps to Heaven (1953–1954)
* Today is Ours (1958)
* Valiant Lady (1953–1957)
* Woman with a Past (1954)
* The World of Mr. Sweeney (1954–1955)
* Young Doctor Malone (1958–1963)

1960s debuts|

* Another World (1964–1999)
* Ben Jerrod (1963)
* Bright Promise (1969–1972)
* The Clear Horizon (1960–1962)
* Dark Shadows (1966–1971)
* The Doctors (1963–1982)
* A Flame in the Wind (1964–1966)
* Full Circle (1960–1961)
* General Hospital (1963–present)
* Hidden Faces (1968–1969)
* Love is a Many Splendored Thing (1967–1973)
* Moment of Truth (1965)
* Morning Star (1965–1966)
* Never Too Young (1965–1966)
* The Nurses (1965–1967)
* One Life to Live (1968–2012)
* Our Five Daughters (1962)
* Our Private World (1965)
* Paradise Bay (1965–1966)
* Peyton Place (1964–1969)
* Where the Heart Is (1969–1973)
* The Young Marrieds (1964–1966)

1970s debuts|

* All My Children (1970–2011)
* The Best of Everything (1970)
* Bird of the Iron Feather (1970)
* How to Survive a Marriage (1974–1975)
* Lovers and Friends/For Richer, For Poorer (1977–1978)
* Return to Peyton Place (1972–1974)
* Ryan's Hope (1975–1989)
* Somerset (1970–1976)
* A World Apart (1970–1971)
* The Young and the Restless (1973–present)

1980s debuts|

* Another Life (1981–1984)
* The Bold and the Beautiful (1987–present)
* Capitol (1982–1987)
* Generations (1989–1991)
* Loving (1983–1995)
* Rituals (1984–1985)
* Santa Barbara (1984–1993)
* Texas (1980–1982)

1990s debuts|

* The City (1995–1997)
* Passions (1999–2008)
* Port Charles (1997–2003)
* Sunset Beach (1997–1999)
* Swans Crossing (1992)
* Tribes (1990)

2000s debuts|

* Spyder Games (2001)

2020s debuts|

* Beyond the Gates (2025–present)

Web series|

* All My Children (2013)
* Anacostia (2009–2018)
* As the Cookie Crumbles (2008)
* The Bay (2010–2015)
* Beacon Hill (2014)
* The Cavanaughs (2010–2011)
* DeVanity (2011–2014)
* East Los High (2013–2017)
* EastSiders (2012–2020)
* Miss Behave (2010–2012)
* One Life to Live (2013)
* Ragged Isle (2011–2014)
* River Ridge (2012)
* The Spot (1995–1997)
* Tainted Dreams (2013–2014)
* They Go On (1997)
* Venice: The Series (2009–2014)
* What If... (2010)
* Winterthorne (2015)
* Youthful Daze (2012–2016)
* Days of Our Lives (2022–present)

* v
* t
* e

Radio serials in the United States

* Adopted Daughter (1939–41)
* Against the Storm (1939–52)
* Amanda of Honeymoon Hill (1940–46)
* Arnold Grimm's Daughter (1937-1942)
* Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories (1937–55)
* Aunt Mary (1944–61)
* Bachelor's Children (1935–46)
* Backstage Wife (1935–59)
* Betty and Bob (1932-1940)
* Big Sister (1936–52)
* Brenda Curtis (1939-1940)
* Bright Horizon (1941-1945)
* The Brighter Day (1948–56)
* Clara, Lu, 'n Em (1930–42)
* Dan Harding's Wife (1936–38)
* David Harum (1936–50)
* Girl Alone (1935–41)
* The Goldbergs (1929–50)
* The Guiding Light (1937–56)
* Helpmate (1941-44)
* Hilltop House (1937-57)
* Jane Arden (1938–39)
* John's Other Wife (1936-42)
* Joyce Jordan, M.D. (1938-55)
* Judy and Jane (1932–35)
* Just Plain Bill (1932–55)
* Kitty Keene, Incorporated (1937–41)
* Life Can Be Beautiful (1938–54)
* Lone Journey (1940-52)
* Lonely Women (1942–43)
* Lorenzo Jones (1937–55)
* Ma Perkins (1933–60)
* Myrt and Marge (1931–42)
* The O'Neills (1935–43)
* One Man's Family (1932–59)
* Our Gal Sunday (1936–59)
* Painted Dreams (1930–43)
* The Parker Family (1939-44)
* Pepper Young's Family (1932–59)
* Perry Mason (1943–55)
* Portia Faces Life (1940–53)
* The Romance of Helen Trent (1933–60)
* Rosemary (1944–55)
* Second Husband (1936-46)
* The Second Mrs. Burton (1946–60)
* Stella Dallas (1937–55)
* The Story of Mary Marlin (1934-52)
* Those We Love (1938-45)
* Today's Children (1933-50)
* Valiant Lady (1938-52)
* Wendy Warren and the News (1947-58)
* When a Girl Marries (1939–57)
* Young Doctor Malone (1939–60)
* Young Widder Brown (1938–56)
* Your Family and Mine (1938–40)

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