Frank and Anne Hummert's Radio Factory

Book excerpt: Frank and Anne Hummert brought at least 125 separate series to the airwaves. The production dynasty over which they presided extended far beyond the serialized melodrama that became their trademark. Their genres also included music, mystery, juvenile adventure, quiz, sports, news, comedy and dramatic theater. The Hummerts tried to appeal to everyone's tastes and probably influenced more old time radio listeners than anyone else. By the 1940s the twosome controlled four and a half hours of the national weekday broadcast schedule. This book explores the private lives and professional dealings of broadcasting's most prolific creator-producers. There are five appendices: a list of all broadcast series that were created, adapted, supervised, augmented or influenced by the Hummerts; a list of the most active players among radio producers stemming from the Golden Age and their best-remembered titles; a collection of statements attributed to Frank or Anne that express their philosophy of broadcast programming; a chronology of defining moments in the Hummerts' lives; and three sample programming schedules that give the reader a clear understanding of the Hummerts' involvement in radio producing.