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{{Short description|Radio anthology comedy-drama series (1930 to 1953)}}
{{italic title}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
[[File:Charles P. Hughes and June Meredith (The First Nighter Program publicity shot - 1933).jpg|300px|right|thumb|Charles P. Hughes and June Meredith in a publicity photo (taken March 1933) for ''The First Nighter Program''.]]
'''''The First Nighter Program''''' was a long-running radio anthology comedy-drama series broadcast from November 27, 1930, to September 27, 1953.<ref name="dunningota">{{cite book | last=Dunning |first=John |date=1998| title=On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-507678-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EwtRbXNca0oC&dq=%22The+First+Nighter+Program,+dra%22&pg=PA252 |pages=252–254 |accessdate=28 April 2017 }}</ref> The host was Mr. First Nighter (Charles P. Hughes, [[Macdonald Carey]], [[Bret Morrison]], [[Marvin Miller (actor)|Marvin Miller]], [[Donald Briggs|Don Briggs]] and Rye Billsbury, later known as [[Michael Rye]]).

Charles P. Hughes, the originator and producer of the program, portrayed Mr. First Nighter from 1930 to 1935.<ref>“Dialing Around.” ''The Batavia Herald'', Thursday, 24 October 1935, p. 11</ref> An article in a 1939 newspaper observed, "First Nighter was the first show to present complete and separate original plays each week."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Fizdale|first1=Tom|title=Listen to This|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/5923069/the_edwardsville_intelligencer/|work=The Edwardsville Intelligencer|date=February 2, 1939|location=Illinois, Edwardsville|page=5|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|accessdate = July 17, 2016}} {{Open access}}</ref>

The show's opening recreated the aural atmosphere of a Broadway opening. Before each week's drama began, Mr. First Nighter was first heard walking on Broadway, emerging from the noise of people and street traffic into the crowded lobby of "The Little Theater Off Times Square" and then taking his seat in the third row center, where he gave the whispered introduction:
:The house lights have dimmed, and the curtain is about to go up on tonight's production.

Romantic comedies were the specialty of the series, and the principal roles were played by the teams of [[Don Ameche]] and June Meredith (1930–36), Ameche and [[Betty Lou Gerson]]<ref>{{cite news|last1=Mason|first1=Mildred|title=Betty Lou Gerson Is Married|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/1938076/betty_lou_gerson_is_married/|agency=Xenia Daily Gazette|date=May 12, 1936|page=6|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|accessdate = March 7, 2015}} {{Open access}}</ref> (1935–36), [[Les Tremayne]] and [[Barbara Luddy]] (1936–43) and
[[Olan Soule]] and Luddy (1943 and after).
Joseph T. Ainley produced and directed the series. The announcers were [[Larry Keating]] and Vincent Pelletier. Music was provided by "The Famous First Nighter Orchestra", under the direction of Eric Sagerquist (1930–44), Caesar Petrillo (1945–46) and Frank Worth (1947–53).

The most popular episode may have been the annual Christmas episode, "Little Town of Bethlehem," which was first performed in 1937 and every year afterwards at the request of the listening audience.<ref>"a,b...." ''Catalog of Copyright Entries, Part I'' (Part I, Group 3--Dramatic Compositions & Motion Pictures) Library of Congress Copyright Office. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1933. p. 333, No. 11, 1934 6788 ''Little Town of Bethlehem:a Christmas play'' in 3 acts by Anthony Wayne. Batavia, Ill., Author's Publishing Company (1934) 24 p. 12mo Copyright Oct. 22, 1934; 2c. Nov 12; D 32053; I. Willard Crull c/o Campana sales co., Batavia, IL. (Anthony Wayne was the pseudonym for [[I. Willard Crull]] who wrote over a hundred radio plays for The First Nighter Program while serving as Campana's treasurer which was then headed by his uncle [[Ernest Morgan Oswalt]]. Crull would serve as Campana's president from 1942 through 1974</ref>

Performing before a studio audience, the actors wore formal attire, with Luddy in a gown and Tremayne clad in evening clothes and top hat. Commercial breaks were signalled with the usher's cry "Smoking downstairs and in the outer lobby only, please!", with the action resuming with a buzzer and the usher's curtain call.

The series ran on four radio networks in the following timeline:
* NBC [[Blue Network]]: 11/27/30 to 09/29/33
* [[NBC Red Network]]: 10/06/33 to 02/12/37
* CBS: 02/19/37 to 12/21/37
* NBC Red Network: 01/07/38 to 08/26/38
* CBS: 09/02/38 to 05/29/42
* Mutual: 10/04/42 to 10/25/44
* CBS: 10/20/45 to 04/13/46 and 10/04/47 to 10/20/49
* NBC (reruns): 04/27/52 to 09/27/53

The show was sponsored by [[The Campana Company]] and solely featured commercials for their products. Due largely in part to this exposure, their Italian Balm became the best-selling [[hand lotion]] in the United States in the 1930s.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Listen to==
* [https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1571663 NPR: ''First Nighter'' opening in "Radio Legend Les Tremayne Dies" (December 26, 2003)]
* [http://www.otr.net/?p=1nit OTR Network Library: ''The First Nighter Program'' 16 1944-53 episode]
* [http://www.speakingofradio.com/interviews/luddy-barbara-actress/ An interview with Barbara Luddy and Olan Soule]

==External links==
* [http://www.otrsite.com/logs/logf1020.htm Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio Logs: ''The First Nighter Program'']
* [http://www.otrr.org/FILES/Magz_pdf/Movie%20Radio%20Guide/MRG%204304.pdf "They Shall Be Free" – A ''First Nighter'' story from ''Movie-Radio Guide'', April 1943]
* [https://www.genericradio.com/series/firstnighter Scripts of two ''First Nighter'' programs from The Generic Radio Workshop Script Library]

{{DEFAULTSORT:First Nighter Program, The}}
[[Category:1930 radio programme debuts]]
[[Category:1953 radio programme endings]]
[[Category:1930s American radio programs]]
[[Category:1940s American radio programs]]
[[Category:1950s American radio programs]]
[[Category:NBC radio programs]]
[[Category:NBC Blue Network radio programs]]
[[Category:CBS Radio programs]]
[[Category:Mutual Broadcasting System programs]]
[[Category:Anthology radio series]]

The First Nighter Program - Revision history

imported>Ser Amantio di Nicolao: /* top */ add {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}