''Big Sister'' was a daytime radio drama series created by Lillian Lauferty and broadcast on

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

from September 14, 1936, to December 26, 1952. It was sponsored by Lever Brothers for

Rinso Rinso is a brand name of laundry soap and detergent marketed by Unilever. The brand was created by Robert Spear Hudson and originally branded Hudson's Soap, which was sold to Lever Brothers of Port Sunlight, England, in 1908. It was introduc ...

until 1946 when Procter & Gamble became the sponsor. Set in the fictional town of Glen Falls, the program dramatized the life of Ruth Evans who sacrificed her own happiness to care for her younger sister Sue and their crippled brother Neddie. After Sue married reporter Jerry Miller, Ruth continued to care for Neddie. She fell in love with Neddie's doctor, John Wayne, who cured Neddie. Ruth and John married on October 19, 1939, but during World War II, John was held in a Japanese prison camp. He returned to Glen Falls suffering from shell-shock. John was played by

Staats Cotsworth Staats Cotsworth (February 17, 1908 – April 9, 1979) was an actor in old-time radio.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 64. He is ...

Martin Gabel Martin Gabel (June 19, 1911 – May 22, 1986) was an American actor, film director and film producer. Life and career Gabel was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Rebecca and Isaac Gabel, a jeweler, both Jewish immigrants. He married Arle ...

, and Paul McGrath. The actresses who portrayed Ruth over the decades were

Alice Frost Alice Frost (August 1, 1910 – January 6, 1998) was an American actress. An inaugural member of Orson Welles's Mercury Theatre on radio and the stage, she later performed the role of Pamela North on the radio series '' Mr. and Mrs. North'' for ...

Nancy Marshall Nancy may refer to: Places France * Nancy, France, a city in the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle and formerly the capital of the duchy of Lorraine ** Arrondissement of Nancy, surrounding and including the city of Nancy ...

Marjorie Anderson Marjorie Anderson (7 November 1913 – 14 December 1999) was a British actress and leading BBC radio broadcaster for over thirty years, including on the programme ''Woman's Hour'' from 1958 to 1972. Early life Marjorie Enid Anderson wa ...

and Mercedes McCambridge. Sue was played by

Haila Stoddard Haila Stoddard (November 14, 1913 – February 21, 2011) was an American actress, producer, writer and director.Weber, Bruce (February 25, 2011)Haila Stoddard, Actress and Producer, Dies at 97.''New York Times''; accessed April 20, 2014. During ...

, Dorothy McGuire,

Peggy Conklin Margaret Eleanor Conklin (November 2, 1906 – March 18, 2003) was an American film, television and theatre actress. Conklin was born in Dobbs Ferry, New York. When she was twelve her mother died, and she was raised by her two aunts. After she ...

and Fran Carlon. Michael O'Day was heard in the role of little Neddie Evans. In 1940,

ZaSu Pitts Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...

joined the cast as Mamie Wayne. Over the years the program's writers, in addition to Lauferty, were Julian Funt, Carl Bixby, Bob Newman and Bill Sweets. Announcers for the program were Fred Uttal,

Jim Ameche Jim Ameche (August 6, 1915 – February 4, 1983)Cox, Jim (2008). ''This Day in Network Radio: A Daily Calendar of Births, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . Page 29. was an American r ...

and Hugh Conover. Organist Richard Leibert furnished the background music and the opening theme, "Valse Bluette". Ameche's son, Jim Ameche, Jr., played Richard, the son of John and Ruth Wayne. In an indication of the program's popularity, listeners sent truckloads of wedding presents to the CBS studio when characters Ruth Evans and Dr. John Wayne were married. Its success led to a spin-off radio series, ''

Bright Horizon ''Bright Horizon'' is an old-time radio soap opera in the United States. It was broadcast on CBS August 25, 1941 - July 6, 1945. The program initially had an alternate title, ''The Story of Michael West''. Format ''Bright Horizon'' was a spinoff ...

'', which CBS began broadcasting in 1941. To attract audience to the new show, Alice Frost reprised her role as Ruth Evans Wayne in early episodes of ''Bright Horizon''.

Note

References

External links

"Big Sister: The Story"
in ''Radio and Television Mirror'', January 1942 issue
"34 episodes"
at ''Archive.org'', retrieved Aug 17, 2021. {{US radio soaps American radio soap operas 1936 establishments in the United States 1952 disestablishments in the United States