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Lucy Radiography

Lucy Radiography

"My Favorite Husband"

CBS Radio
Situation Comedy
30 minutes
125 episodes
Debuted: July 5, 1948
Ended: March 31, 1951

Format I

Liz Cugat
Lucille Ball
George Cugat
Richard Denning*
Katy (the Cugat’s maid)
Ruth Perrott
Cory Cartwright
John Heistand**

Format II: (January 7, 1949 - March 31, 1951)

Liz Cooper
Lucille Ball
George Cooper
Richard Denning
Katy (the Cooper’s maid)
Ruth Perrott
Rudolph Atterbury (George’s boss and friend)
Gale Gordon
Iris Atterbury (Rudolph’s wife, Liz’s friend)
Bea Benaderet

Producer

Jess Oppenheimer
Gordon T. Hughes (1948)
Harry Ackerman (1948)

Director

Jess Oppenheimer
Gordon T. Hughes (1948)
Harry Ackerman (1948)

Writers

Jess Oppenheimer
Bob Carroll Jr.
Madelyn Pugh
Bill Davenport (1948)
Frank Fox (1948)
John Michael Hayes (1948)
Ben Gersham (1948)
Jack Crutcher (1948)
Martin Weiner (1948)
Phil Cole (1948)

Original Music

Marlin Skiles
Music Conductor
Wilbur Hatch

Sponsor

sustaining (1948)
Jell-O (General Foods) (1949-51)

Syndicator

Warner Brothers

*Lee Bowman portrayed George Cugat in the “Special Preview Program” on July 5, 1948. Bowman was replaced by Richard Denning when the program began as a weekly series on July 23.

**Hal March played the role of Cory Cartwright in early episodes from July 5-July 30, 1948.

The "My Favorite Husband" Story Format I:

Ten years ago the town’s most eligible bachelor married the town’s most beautiful society debutante. But after the honeymoon, they become known simply as the Cugats–George and Liz, and begin to take on existence as just another of the town’s many married couples. Whether they’re spending time with their friends, adapting to each other’s mother-in-law, or coping with the resurgence of old flames, Liz and George are definitely each other’s favorite.

The "My Favorite Husband" Story Format II:

There’s never a dull moment in the little white two-story house where George and Liz Cooper live. While George is at work at the bank, Liz keeps busy trying to balance her household account, babysitting to earn extra money, and scheming to convince her husband to buy her a new Easter outfit. George’s boss is bank president Rudolph Atterbury. Rudolph’s wife, Iris, is Liz’s best friend. Together, the two couples enjoy the many misadventures of married life.

"My Favorite Husband" Trivia

1. “My Favorite Husband” was based on the book Mr. And Mrs. Cugat by Isabel Scott Rorick.
2. Liz Cooper’s maiden name is Elliott.
3. George and Liz Cooper live at 321 Bundy Drive in Sheridan Falls.
4. The “Bundy Drive” address came about after “My Favorite Husband” head writer Jess Oppenheimer and his wife bought a home on Bundy Drive in Brentwood, California in 1948.
5. Before Gale Gordon’s Rudolph Atterbury became a supporting player, Rudolph Atterbury was played by Joe Kearns (episode #23, “Liz’s New Dress.”)
6. When the series changed format in January, 1949, Jell-O was secured as the show’s sponsor.
7. Some “My Favorite Husband” episodes share the same title, however these programs are either revised versions of early shows or contain completely different storylines.
8. Gale Gordon first appeared as Rudolph Atterbury in “Charity Review” on March 11, 1949. Two weeks later, Bea Benaderet began her role as Rudolph’s wife, Iris.
9. Only one episode of “My Favorite Husband” was rebroadcast. Originally airing on June 24, 1949, “Liz Changes Her Mind” was rebroadcast on September 30, 1950.
10. Jean VanderPyl (the voice of Wilma Flintstone) and Doris Singleton (Carolyn Appleby of “I Love Lucy”) can be found as supporting players in select “My Favorite Husband” episodes.

"My Favorite Husband" Episode Titles & Original Air Dates

*- “Special Preview Program” (The Cugat’s Tenth Wedding Anniversary) (7/5/48)
1- untitled (Literary Club’s Speaker Comes to Dinner) (7/23/48)
2- untitled (The Magazine Photographer) (7/30/48)
3- untitled (The Portrait Painter) (8/6/48)
4- untitled (The Kissing Booth) (8/13/48)
5- “Liz Teaches The Samba” (8/20/48)
6- untitled (Is Your Ship of Matrimony on the Rocks) (8/27/48)
7- untitled (Liz’s Mother Has Second Thoughts) (9/3/48)
8- untitled (The Swami) (9/10/48)
9- untitled (Making Friends With General Timberlake) (9/17/48)
10- untitled (Knitting Baby Booties) (9/24/48)
11- “Young Matron League Tryouts” (10/2/48)
12-untitled (The Cugat’s Tenth Wedding Anniversary•) (10/3/48)
13- untitled (Young Matron’s League Play) (10/9/48)
14- “Liz Sells Dresses” (10/16/48)
15- “Quiz Show” (10/23/48)
16- “The Election” (10/30/48)
17- “Katy and Roscoe” (11/6/48)
18- “Learning To Drive” (11/13/48)
19- “George Attends A Teen-age Dance” (11/20/48)
20- “Is There A Baby In The House?” (11/27/48)
21- “Be Your Husband’s Best Friend” (12/4/48)
MY FAVORITE/6
22- “Respective Mustaches” (12/11/48)
23- “Liz’s New Dress” (12/18/48)
24- “Numerology” (12/25/48)
25- “Young Matron’s League Tryouts•” (12/26/48)
26- “Over Budget - Beans” (1/7/49)
27- “Piano and Violin Lessons” (1/14/49)
28- “Marriage License” (1/21/49)
29- “Absolute Truth” (1/28/49)
30- “Speech for Civic Organization” (2/4/49)
31- “Valentine’s Day” (2/11/49)
32- “Secretarial School” (2/18/49)
33- “Absentmindedness” (2/25/49)
34- “Mother-In-Law” (3/4/49)
35- “Charity Review” (3/11/49)
36- “Give Away Program” (3/18/49)
37- “Old Jokes and Old Stories” (3/25/49)
38- “April Fool’s Day” (4/1/49)
39- “Gum Machine” (4/8/49)
40- “Horseback Riding” (4/15/49)
41- “Time Budgeting” (4/22/49)
42- “Vacation Time” (4/29/49)
43- “Over Weight” (5/6/49)
44- “Anniversary Presents” (5/13/49)
45- “Getting Old” (5/20/49)
46- “Liz in the Hospital” (5/27/49)
47- “Budget - Mr. Atterbury” (6/3/49)
MY FAVORITE/7
48- “Hair Dyed” (6/10/49)
49- “Television” (6/17/49)
50- “Liz Changes Her Mind” (6/24/49)
51- “Reminiscing” (7/1/49)
52- “The Elves” (9/2/49)
53- “The Auction” (9/9/49)
54- “Baseball” (9/16/49)
55- “The Attic” (9/23/49)
56- “Women’s Club Election” (9/30/49)
57- “George Tries for a Raise” (10/7/49)
58- “Television” (10/14/49)
59- “Superstition” (10/21/49)
60- “Halloween Surprise Party” (10/28/49)
61- “Mother-In-Law*” (11/4/49)
62- “Baby Sitting” (11/11/49)
63- “Katy and Mr. Negley” (11/18/49)
64- “Quiz Show*” (11/25/49)
65- “College Homecoming” (12/2/49)
66- “The French Lessons” (12/9/49)
67- “George’s Christmas Present” (12/16/49)
68- “The Sleigh Ride” (12/23/49)
69- “Liz and George Handcuffed” (12/30/49)
70- “The Question of Another Woman” (1/6/50)
71- “Liz Teaches Iris to Drive” (1/13/50)
72- “Liz and the Green Wig” (1/20/50)
73- “Liz Writes a Song” (1/27/50)
MY FAVORITE/8
74- “The Country Club Dance” (2/3/50)
75- “Mrs. Cooper’s Boy Friend” (2/10/50)
76- “Liz Teaches The Samba” (2/17/50)
77- “Liz Redecorates The House” (2/24/50)
78- “Women’s Rights Part I” (3/5/50)
79- “Women’s Rights Part II” (3/12/50)
80- “The Wills” (3/19/50)
81- “Liz’s Radio Script” (3/26/50)
82- “April Fool” (4/2/50)
83- “Hobbies” (4/9/50)
84- “Anniversary” (4/16/50)
85- “Liz Appears On Television” (4/23/50)
86-”Spring House Cleaning” ( 4/30/50)
87- “The Health Farm” (5/7/50)
88- “Numerology” (5/14/50)
89- “Mrs. Cooper Thinks Liz Is Pregnant” (5/21/50)
90- “Selling Dresses” (5/28/50)
91- “George Is Messy” (6/4/50)
92- “Liz Learns To Swim” (6/11/50)
93- “Be A Pal” (6/18/50)
94- “Dancing Lessons” (6/25/50)
95- “Husbands Are Sloppy Dressers” (9/2/50)
96- “Gossip” (9/9/50)
97- “Movies” (9/16/50)
98- “Fuller Brush Show” (9/23/50)
XX- “Liz Changes Her Mind”; (9/30/50) (rebroadcast of episode #50)
MY FAVORITE/9
99- “Liz Becomes A Sculptress” (10/7/50)
100- “Liz Cooks Dinner For Twelve” (10/14/50)
101- “Safety Drive” (10/21/50)
102- “The Football Game” (10/28/50)
103- “The Two Mrs. Coopers” (11/4/50)
104- “Vacation From Marriage”(11/11/50)
105- “Liz Goes To Night School” (11/18/50)
106- “Liz’s Birthday” (11/25/50)
107- “Trying To Marry Off Peggy Martin” (12/2/50)
108- “Trying To Cash The Prize Check”(12/9/50)
109- “The Christmas Cards” (12/16/50)
110- “The Christmas Stag” (12/23/50)
111- “Liz Has The Flimjabs” (12/30/50)
112- “Liz Substitutes In Club Play” (1/6/51)
113- “The Cuckoo Clock” (1/13/51)
114- “Liz Stretches The Truth” (1/20/51)
115- “George Is Drafted - Liz’s Baby” (1/27/51)
116- “Liz’s Inferiority Complex”(2/3/51)
117- “The Misunderstanding of the Black Eye” (2/10/51)
118- “Renewal of Driver’s License” (2/17/51)
119- “The Two Mothers-In-Law” (2/24/51)
120- “The Passports” (3/3/51)
121- “The Surprise Party” (3/10/51)
122- “Liz Hires a New Secretary For George” (3/17/51)
123- “Iris and Liz’s Easter” (3/24/51)
124- “The April Fool Joke” (3/31/51)

Radio Guest Appearances:

“Good News of 1940” (NBC; December 28, 1939)
“The Campbell Playhouse” (CBS; February 18, 1940)
“The Gulf Screen Guild Theatre: ‘Tight Shoes’” (CBS; April 12, 1942)
“The Kraft Music Hall” (NBC; April 1, 1943)
“Duffy’s Tavern” (NBC Blue; September 12, 1943)
“Suspense: ‘A Little Piece of Rope’” (CBS; October 14, 1943)
“The Abbott and Costello Show” (NBC; November 11, 1943)
“Suspense: ‘Dime a Dance’” (CBS; January 13, 1944)
“The Kraft Music Hall” (NBC; March 2, 1944)
“Suspense: ‘The Ten Grand’” (CBS; June 22, 1944)
“The Lux Radio Theatre” (CBS; September 25, 1944)
“The Lady Esther Screen Guild Theatre: ‘A Girl, A Guy, And A Gob’” (CBS; October 9, 1944)
“The Lady Esther Screen Guild Theatre: ‘China Seas’” (CBS; December 4, 1944)
“Suspense: ‘A Shroud For Sarah’” (CBS; October 25, 1945)
“The Colgate Sports Newsreel” (NBC; May 24, 1946)
“The Radio Reader’s Digest: ‘The Whirligig of Life’” (CBS; June 9, 1946)
“The Radio Reader’s Digest: ‘The Lion and the Mousy’” (CBS; May 22, 1947)
“Hollywood Fights Back” (ABC; October 26, 1947)
“The Jimmy Durante Show” (NBC; October 29, 1947)
“The Lux Radio Theatre: ‘The Dark Corner’” (CBS; November 10, 1947)
“The Kraft Music Hall” (NBC; January 22, 1948)
“The Jimmy Durante Show” (NBC; April 28, 1948)
“The Cavalcade Of America: ‘Skylark Song’” (NBC; June 21, 1948)
“Erskine Johnson’s Hollywood Story” (Mutual; August 25, 1948)
“Screen Directors’ Playhouse: ‘Her Husband’s Affairs’” (NBC, May 22, 1949)
“The Bob Hope Swan Show” (NBC; May 31, 1949)
“Suspense: ‘Red-headed Woman’” (CBS; November 17, 1949)
“Screen Directors’ Playhouse: ‘Miss Grant Takes Richmond’” (NBC; May 19, 1950)
“The Cavalcade Of America: ‘The Redemption Of Lottie Moon’” (NBC; June 13, 1950)
“Screen Directors’ Playhouse: ‘A Foreign Affair’” (NBC; March 1, 1951)
“Screen Directors’ Playhouse: ‘Bachelor Mother’” (NBC; March 8, 1951)
“The Lux Radio Theatre: ‘Fancy Pants’” (CBS; September 10, 1951)

 

Their legacy of laughter