Ah, Wilderness!

The post-war 1940's was a time of experimentation and expansion in radio. One such show from this era was Studio One, a drama anthology, which first aired Tuesday, April 29, 1947, at 9:00 over CBS stations. It brought hour-long presentations of books and plays to radio, many of which had not been attempted before. Fletcher Markle, a CBS radio veteran, produced, hosted and occasionally acted in the series. Initially, he was supported by a troupe of seasoned radio actors, because he felt the actor's name was not as important as the play. The works selected were adapted to be as true as possible to the original, a tough job considering the shows were to air only an hour. It was directed by Robert Landry and was written by Vincent McConnor.

Half way through the season, ratings were not as expected, possibly because the series didn't air on the West Coast. Big name actors were brought in to help improve ratings. The sustained series still left the air after only one season. Studio One ran until July 27, 1948, when it was replaced by Rooftops of the City. However, the standards it set led to a TV series of the same name which ran for nine seasons.

Interestingly, when The Ford Theater moved from NBC to CBS in 1948, Fletcher Markle became producer for it and brought his troupe of Studio One radio actors with him. The Ford Theater followed the same formula as Studio One, using Hollywood screen actors in the lead, supported by a cast of radio actors.