The First Hundred Years

[Paul Raven]

Variety reported in June 1949 that ABC was prepping a new sitcom  'The First Hundred Years' by Jean Holloway.

Dealing with the adventures of a young married couple mixing tragedy with the humorous elements for a change of pace.

 

Yes, cos in 1949 nothing helps a sitcom along like some tragic events. Oh look, nosey Mrs Sickybeak from next door just got hit by a truck.

 

Maybe Jean and the ad agency realized the tragic elements might be more suitable (and sellable) for a soap.

[Paul Raven]

Radio Mirror August 1952

What Ever Happened To . . . Olive Stacy, the girl who first played the role of Connie Thayer on the television serial, The First Hundred Years? (The part is now played by - Anne Sargent.) The strain of doing a daily camera show, with the long hours of rehearsal, was too heavy for Olive, so she resigned her role. She has done nothing professionally since, and at the moment is back in her home town, Rochester, New York. This summer, Olive plans to tour the Eastern part of the United States with her sister, Frances Klute, who will be shooting scenic spots for the Eastman Kodak Company. Frances is one of their top color photographers. Incidentally, the story that Olive had married, and was expecting a baby, is untrue. This was erroneously printed in many newspaper columns about the country.

[Bright Eyes]

Jimmy Lydon (Chris Thayer) passed away March 9, 2022 at the age of 98. 

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/jimmy-lydon-life-with-father-henry-aldrich-movies-dead-1235115079/

[Paul Raven]

Radio Life 3/2/51

THE FIRST hundred years of television are,  like everything else are bound to be the hardest ... but a crew of Hollywood veterans recently took off for Gotham with the enthusiasm of a pioneer caravan, to try their luck at that first formative century. By the time you read this, they will be hard at work on television's first major daytime serial, aired five times a week from the CBS -TV studios in New York and aptly entitled "The First Hundred Years." The story of two newlyweds and their respective families, "The First Hundred Years" catalogues the often amusing and always touching ex- periences of the young couple's progress at "settling down." The venturesome quartet of Hollywood actors are people you've seen many times on the screen and heard many times on the air. They are craftsmen whose lives in Filmtown had settled down to the comfortable surety of "regular" assignments, established homes, proven careers. Robert Armstrong ... Nana Bryant . . . Jimmy Lydon . . . Dan Tobin.

Stay West, Young Folks

Most of their instincts as actors told them to stay out here in the West, podner, and enjoy the fruits of their many years of theatrical labors. But two instincts, inherent in all people who are inclined toward the bright lights, uprooted them summarily- curiosity and love of challenge. "The First Hundred Years" is not just a show, it is a full -time job. The actors report to the television studio at nine o'clock in the morning for final rehearsals on that day's show. As soon as the lights go out on the TV cameras, at 2:45 p.m., they reassemble for initial rehearsal of the next day's stanza and "punch out" at five o'clock, only to start all over again the next day. It's hard work, and it means giving up, for the time being, any opportunities they might have to make pictures, appear in stage plays, guest on other radio and television programs. But they love it!

The Cast Comment

Robert Armstrong, for iñstance, who has made 150 major movies since his debut in 1927, says: "My main ambition these days is to become a veteran in television, a record I've already attained in pictures." Bob believes that "The First Hundred Years" is a highly important experiment in the new field, aimed as it is at the daytime audience and programmed as a five -a -week feature. "The rehearsal schedule probably sounds a little rough to most actors, but I think it is the very thing that will help us to become proficient television performers in the shortest possible length of time. I have few qualms about leaving Hollywood to take part in the development of this new medium, because I have every faith that it will become increasingly successful as the years go by. And I want to be there to see it!"

Nana Bryant, who completed work in Twentieth Century -Fox's "Follow the Sun " just before she entrained for New York and TV circles, has something to say, too. Comments Nana: "Television contains all the elements of stage, film and radio acting that I enjoy most, so why shouldn't I be enthusiastic!" The intriguing quality of her role as "Mrs. Martin," mother of the 'bride, in "The First Hundred Years," is that it is a light comedy role with definite personality that is maintained from day to day, from week to week, rather than from curtain to curtain as it would be in a play or radio show. "I feel that I'll really get to know Mrs. Martin so well that it will be like greeting an old friend as I walk into the studio each day. And that feeling of familiarity will take away from the rigors of the working schedule, I think." Before her role in "The First Hundred Years," Nana's only experience with television had been through a few guest -shots on local shows .where all the dialogue was ad-libbed. "And that's a little nerve - racking at best, without having one of those strange looking cameras staring at you all the time!"

Jimmy Lydon, the engaging young juvenile who is probably best identified as filmland's Henry Aldrich, started out in the theater when he was about six years old, and since then has become an old timer in the legitimate theater and in pictures. Jimmy will be seen as "Chris," the bridegroom, in "The First Hundred Years," and he has this to say about the future: "Sure, I'm sorry to leave the many friends and my home in Hollywood. But I'm looking forward with great excitement to getting my feet wet in television -provided, of course, I don't get 'em wet up to my elbows! I've enjoyed working in the theater, in radio and in pictures, but I think television is the new and important medium of our time, and now I want to tackle that. Think I'm scared? Jeepers, you're so right!"

Dan Tobin, another veteran actor, starts his story with a grin: "Y'know, when I first got out of school, I was a little confused about my future in the theater, so I took time out to see the world and went to sea for a while. Well, here I am at sea again, in a brand new business. But this time I guess the world -or part of it, anyway -is going to see me." Dan is definitely of the opinion that television, like radio and waffles, is here to stay. He is approaching his job in "The First Hundred Years" with mixed emotions -confidence in the eventual success of the venture, plus a certain degree of apprehension in regard to the assignment of making one show a full-time job. "It's a little like working with a stock company," Dan says, "where it's necessary to be ready with a complete role every day. However, in this case, the character remains the same . . . he just continues to develop."

Milestone

"The First Hundred Years" is a product of the creative mind and prolific typewriter of Jean Holloway, scripter of some of radio's top programs since she was in her teens. Jean originally wrote the series for radio, then tailored it to the requirements of television and went to New York to stand by while her brain  child was raised to be a TV giant. The attractive writer will not remain in the East all the time, however, but will operate on a kind of commuter's schedule, returning to Hollywood every few weeks to keep up with her radio chores. It's a milestone in daytime television and certainly in the professional lives of these actors, whose decisions to cast their lot with the new field were not lightly made. Watch for them and remember when. in the years to come, they are honored as pioneers who were important factors in the development of an industry that is destined to be a tremendous influence in our whole way of life.

[Paul Raven]