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Not much is known about
Hummert's private life or his first marriage as Hummert was a notoriously private man. But public records have now surfaced and according to radio historian Jim Cox, Hummert married the former Adeline E. Woodlock (1888–1934) in 1908 in St. Louis. Woodlock and her family
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centered around "Ma" who owned and operated a lumber yard in the fictional small
Southern town of Rushville Center (population 4000), where the plotlines pivoted around her interactions with the local townsfolk and the ongoing dilemmas of her three children, Evey, Fay and John. The program ended in
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News of the death on March 12 of Frank
Hummert, pioneer in daytime radio serial and nighttime radio musicale productions, has been successfully suppressed for over a month at the insistence of the widow, Ann Ashenhurst Hummert, herself a former broadcast program executive. The Hummerts apparently
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Hummert's mother came from French ancestry and his father was
English. The latter was a mercantilist in lace manufacturing and importing who traveled extensively for Rice, Stix & Co. As a result, Hummert and his family were accustomed to moving around. Hummert, in his early years, lived in
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which premiered
October 30, 1933, on CBS. The program revolved the personal romantic life of Helen Trent and the continuing question: Can a woman of 35 find love? The program ended after 27 years in June 1960 and the broadcast of 7,222 episodes; more than any other radio soap opera.
257:(1935–59). After the success of these dramas, the Hummerts formed Hummert Radio Productions. Under Hummert Productions, creating the basic plots and assigning an assembly line of writers to complete the scripts, they produced more than 40 radio shows, including the soap operas
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In addition to their daytime soap operas, the
Hummerts produced a number of musical programs and crime/mystery shows. At one point, their output included 18 separate serials on the air and up to 90 episodes a week. Other Hummert programs included
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on June 2 in the disputed year of 1884. According to a majority of sources and public records on Frank
Hummert, Hummert was born June 2, 1884. However, this date is disputed against many sources and radio historians. For example, the
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various places across the United States and Europe before his father began operating his own merchandising-exporting venture under the label "Hummert
Hatfield Co." and the family permanently settled in St. Louis.
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agency in New York. Hummert earned a starting salary of $ 50,000 a year. One of
Hummert's first big breaks in advertising came when he coined the slogan "For the skin you love to touch" for soap manufacturer
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lived in recent years at 1220 Park Avenue. There was a small official paid notice for E. Frank
Hummert in the N.Y. Times but that daily had no obit news story on Hummert, as of yesterday.
498:' Gold Medal Flour, was about the marriage of a secretary of her wealthy boss, whose disapproving father cuts Bob out of the will. The program sustained an eight-year run from 1932-1940.
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and the Hummerts spun off their own radio production company, Air Features, Inc., which continued to control the airwaves and purchase air time through DFS.
352:. By the age of 20, Hummert decided against his father's business and after finishing studies at Stonyhurst, Hummert returned to Missouri and graduated from
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Adeline Hummert died on May 11, 1934. Frank and Adeline were married for 26 years at the time of her death. They had no children. Hummert remarried to
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By 1937, with his success on radio and potential advertisers lining up to become clients, Hummert had become advertising's highest paid executive.
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222:, was an American advertising agent originally but was best known for writing/producing episodes of nearly 100 daytime/primetime radio dramas and
696:. He was 81. Anne Hummert, who never remarried again, died a multimillionaire on July 5, 1996, in her Fifth Avenue apartment at the age of 91.
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This Day in Network Radio : A Daily Calendar of Births, Deaths, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History
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and after that assignment ended, Hummert landed reporting jobs for the news journal of the Catholic Archdiocese in
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Frank and Anne Hummert's Radio Factory: The Programs and Personalities of Broadcasting's Most Prolific Producers
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Landry, Robert J. (April 27, 1966). "Pioneer Soaper Frank Hummert, Ever the Hermit, Almost 'Sneaks' His Obit".
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In 1920, Hummert began working in his new field of interest, advertising. He was hired as chief copywriter for
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Robert McG. Thomas Jr. "Anne Hummert, 91, Dies; Creator of Soap Operas." New York Times, July 21, 1996, p. 27.
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between 1931 and 1937, Blackett-Sample-Hummert were producing 46% of shows on the daytime schedule.
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were the start of Hummert's radio empire. Another popular radio serial created by the Hummerts was
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293:(1933–49). In all, the Hummerts are credited with the creation/production of 61 radio soap operas.
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as vice president of their Chicago based agency. In 1943, the agency was renamed the
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Hummert, hoping to take over his father's business, began preparatory studies at the
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Hummert turned to public media and soon landed a reporting assignment with the
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753:"Radio's Most Essential People Countdown: #75-#71: 71) Anne and Frank Hummert"
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in 1938, the Hummert factory was underway. In 1943, B-S-H reorganized to form
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Edward Frank Hummert, Jr. was born to parents Edward F. and Carrie Hummert in
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A Word from Our Sponsor: Admen, Advertising, and the Golden Age of Radio
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resided just a few blocks away from Hummert and his family. Hummert was
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In 1927, Hummert hired a new assistant. That assistant was 22-year-old
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In 1927, Hummert left Lord & Thomas and accepted a position with
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535:. The series revolved around a barber who marries above his league.
329:, published in 1999, Cox lists Hummert's birth year as 1882. But in
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The Hummerts earliest radio serial was a soap opera by the name of
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They began collaborating in radio in 1932 and married in 1935.
214:(June 2, 1884 – March 12, 1966), professionally known as
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In their first year of radio, Hummert and Schumacher created
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825:"Frank Hummert (1879-1966) Blackett-Sample-Hummert, Chicago"
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233:, became the monarchs of daytime radio with dramas such as
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lists two different birth years in two separate books. In
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lists Hummert's birth year as 1879, while media historian
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lists Hummert's birth year as 1885. Even radio historian
476:
854:
Hummert Radio Factory: Ann and Frank Hummert Collection
1194:. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 52.
333:, published in 2003, he gives the birth year as 1884.
778:"Anne and Frank Hummert: American radio producers"
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1100:"Romance of Helen Trent - Radio Hall of Fame"
1138:"Anne Hummert, Creator Of Radio Soap Operas"
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755:. www.greatdetectives.net. 30 September 2012
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613:With the beginning of the 17-year run of
226:serials between the 1930s and the 1950s.
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331:Frank and Anne Hummert's Radio Factory
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595:The American Album of Familiar Music
284:The American Album of Familiar Music
281:(1948–51); and the musical programs
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692:Hummert died on March 12, 1966, in
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1269:American people of English descent
867:Encyclopedia of Radio 3-Volume Set
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1264:American people of French descent
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864:Sterling, Christopher H. (2004).
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1078:. UNC Press Books. p. 116.
589:Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons
450:Anne Ashenhurst (née Schumacher)
272:Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons
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1136:Heise, Kenan (August 1, 1996).
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205:John Ashenhurst, Jr. (stepson)
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549:, based on the popularity of
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269:(1938–56); the mystery shows
229:Hummert, along with his wife
1074:Allen, Robert Clyde (1985).
982:. Fordham University Press.
467:International New York Times
462:International Herald Tribune
7:
1104:National Radio Hall of Fame
1053:"The Hummert Radio Factory"
976:Meyers, Cynthia B. (2013).
901:The Great Radio Soap Operas
870:. Routledge. p. 1209.
551:the eponymous comics series
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327:The Great Radio Soap Operas
103:Advertising agent, producer
10:
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827:. adage.com. 29 March 1999
579:The Romance of Helen Trent
242:The Romance of Helen Trent
218:and sometimes credited as
129:The Romance of Helen Trent
16:American advertising agent
1010:"Radio: Hummerts' Mill".
904:. McFarland. p. 18.
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362:Saint Louis Post-Dispatch
212:Edward Frank Hummert, Jr.
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33:Edward Frank Hummert, Jr.
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1259:American radio producers
1229:American Heritage Center
803:"Frank and Anne Hummert"
662:The American Melody Hour
630:Amanda of Honeymoon Hill
621:Dancer Fitzgerald Sample
601:Manhattan Merry-Go-Round
511:premiered on the radio.
290:Manhattan Merry-Go-Round
1076:Speaking of Soap Operas
1055:. www.oldradioshows.org
782:Encyclopædia Britannica
669:Personal life and death
438:Blackett-Sample-Hummert
319:Christopher H. Sterling
315:Encyclopædia Britannica
1254:American radio writers
586:With the premieres of
354:Saint Louis University
94:Saint Louis University
480:and early radio years
460:, got a job with the
415:Quaker Quick Macaroni
72:, New York City, U.S.
464:, (now known as the
403:Procter & Gamble
642:Little Orphan Annie
519:In September 1932,
158:Adeline E. Woodlock
525:, (under the name
376:The New York Times
342:Stonyhurst College
266:Young Widder Brown
119:Creator/writer of
90:Stonyhurst College
1200:978-0-7864-3848-8
1188:Cox, Jim (2008).
1085:978-0-8078-4129-7
1020:January 23, 1939.
989:978-0-8232-5370-8
957:Cox (2003), p. 16
943:Cox (2003), p. 15
934:Cox (2003), p. 13
911:978-1-4766-0414-5
898:Cox, Jim (1999).
877:978-1-135-45649-8
845:Cox (2003), p. 41
718:Cox, Jim (2003).
678:and Woodlock was
647:Frontpage Farrell
564:and radio success
456:in 1925, went to
398:Lord & Thomas
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108:Years active
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516:November 1960.
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64:(1966-03-12)
43:June 2, 1884
1249:1966 deaths
1244:1884 births
562:Helen Trent
434:J.G. Sample
245:(1933–60),
239:(1932–55),
1238:Categories
700:References
574:Ma Perkins
541:Ma Perkins
513:Ma Perkins
504:Ma Perkins
346:Lancashire
300:Early life
248:Ma Perkins
224:soap opera
135:Ma Perkins
39:1884-06-02
1172:963027145
1018:Time Inc.
694:Manhattan
533:CBS Radio
507:starring
371:New World
306:St. Louis
111:1904-1960
70:Manhattan
47:St. Louis
1168:ProQuest
444:In radio
440:agency.
411:Ovaltine
310:Missouri
202:Children
51:Missouri
1227:at the
1164:Variety
367:Chicago
350:England
323:Jim Cox
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383:Career
53:, U.S.
458:Paris
407:Camay
189:(
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1220:IMDb
1196:ISBN
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1111:2015
1080:ISBN
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726:ISBN
659:and
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59:Died
29:Born
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