The Remarkable Miss Tuttle

The Remarkable Miss Tuttle
Other namesThe Private Life of Josephine Tuttle
The Remarkable Miss Crandall
Running time30 minutes
Country of originUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SyndicatesNBC
StarringEdna May Oliver
AnnouncerHarlow Wilcox
Written byMartin Gosch,
Howard Harris
Produced byMurray Bolan
Original releaseJuly 5 –
August 30, 1942
No. of series1
No. of episodes9
Sponsored byLever Brothers (Rinso soap washing powder)

The Remarkable Miss Tuttle is an old-time radio series which ran on NBC in 1942. It was a light comedy-drama which aired Sunday nights at 7 p.m. EWT, serving as a summer replacement for The Jack Benny Program.

Format

Character actress Edna May Oliver played Miss Josephine Tuttle, an elderly woman "possessed of a boundless desire to help people", who unfortunately often "sticks her nose into others' business with the best intentions, trying to get people out of trouble, and invariably getting them in deeper".

Personnel

Regular cast members included Arnold Stang as Miss Tuttle's nephew, Bobby, and Cy Kendall as Judge Carter. Sharon Douglas played Betsy, Bobby's girlfriend. Lillian Randolph played Ramona, Miss Tuttle's housekeeper. Harlow Wilcox was the program's announcer and the show's music director was Leith Stevens.

Production

Edna May Oliver did an audition recording (the radio equivalent of a television pilot) in early 1942. The initial title for the series was The Private Life of Josephine Tuttle. The show was picked up for a 13-week summer run, and it began on July 5, 1942. It was scheduled to run until September 27 and then be replaced by the returning The Jack Benny Program.

But Oliver was only able to do two episodes of the series before illness forced her off the show. In response to Oliver's absence, the July 19th episode brought in actress Mary Boland as Miss Tuttle's sister, with Boland taking on the lead role. Mary Boland and Edna May Oliver were friends who had already known each other for years, dating as far back as 1925 when they both starred in the comic play Cradle Snatchers. When it became apparent that Oliver would not return, on August 23 the name of the show was changed to The Remarkable Miss Crandall, with Mary Boland now playing the lead as Miss Crandall.

This new version only lasted for two weeks, with the final episode airing on August 30, 1942. Thus only nine of the show's planned thirteen episodes were produced. So during September the remaining four weeks were instead used for the premiere of Lionel Barrymore's new series, Mayor of the Town. After Mayor's brief 4-week run on NBC it immediately moved over to CBS Radio where it enjoyed a long run.

References

  1. 1 2 Dunning, John (1998). "The Remarkable Miss Tuttle". On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). p. 574. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Four New Series With Noted Performers Begin Summer Radio Programs Today". Youngstown Vindicator (Ohio). July 5, 1942. p. C-6. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  3. ↑ "For the Love of Mike". The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 13, 1942. p. 4 (Daily Magazine). Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  4. ↑ Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 283. ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  5. ↑ "Sharon Douglas". Toledo Blade (Ohio). July 28, 1942. p. 4 (Peach Section). Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  6. ↑ Steinhauser, Si (July 12, 1942). "American Town's Rise From Ashes in Europe Sunday Radio Feature". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 8 (Section 4). Retrieved October 2, 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 Frohlich, Shirley (August 8, 1942). "The Remarkable Miss Tuttle (Review)". The Billboard. p. 7. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  8. ↑ "Coast Summer Shows Get Set". The Billboard. June 27, 1942. p. 6. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Radio Programs". The Gettysburg Times (Pennsylvania). Wide World. June 15, 1942. p. 6. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Don't Miss Edna May Oliver Tonight (advertisement)". Newark Sunday Call (New Jersey). July 5, 1942. p. 12 (Part III). Retrieved October 1, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Mary Boland". St. Petersburg Times (Florida). August 23, 1942. p. 22. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Still Wrangling Over Barrymore for 'Mayor'; MGM Angle". The Billboard. September 12, 1942. p. 6. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
  13. 1 2 Dunning, John (1998). "Mayor Of The Town". On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 443. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3. Retrieved September 29, 2026.