| Show Name: | December Bride |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Television: | December Bride |
| Starring: | Spring Byington Doris Singleton Hal March Hans Conried Alan Reed |
| Announcer: | Johnny Jacobs |
| Creator: | Parke Levy |
| Director: | Parke Levy |
December Bride is an American old-time radio situation comedy. It was broadcast on CBS from June 8, 1952, to September 6, 1953,[1] replacing Jack Benny's program.[2] CBS television broadcast a version of the program 1954–1959.[3]
In On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio, John Dunning described Lily Ruskin, the program's main character, as "the precise opposite of the stereotypical mother-in-law. A widow, Lily was a dear lady in every aspect."[1] Other main characters in the program were Ruth Henshaw, Lily's daughter; Matt Henshaw, Ruth's husband; and their next-door neighbor, Pete Porter.[1]
Lily wrote an advice column for a newspaper, and Matt was an architect.[4]
In August 1952, December Bride was one of four sustaining CBS radio programs (along with the Steve Allen Show, Gunsmoke, and Horatio Hornblower) carried over into the fall "to test further their commercial potential."[5]
The cast of December Bride is shown in the table below.
| Character | Actor | |
|---|---|---|
| Lily Ruskin | Spring Byington | |
| Ruth Henshaw | Doris Singleton | |
| Matt Henshaw | Hal March | |
| Pete Porter | Hans Conried Alan Reed[6] |
Johnny Jacobs was the announcer, and Wilbur Hatch provided the music.[4] The program was created and directed by Parke Levy.[7]
In December 1952, December Bride held a letter-writing contest with the topic "Why I like my Mother-in-law". The prize was a week's vacation for two to Palm Springs, including being the guests of Spring Byington while there.[8]
A review in the trade publication Variety described the show's dialog as "zany" and said that Byington was "her usual delightful self as the mother-in-law".[9] It summarized the premiere episode as "unpretentious hot-weather fare".[9]
. On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio . John Dunning (detective fiction author) . 1998 . Oxford University Press . New York, NY . 978-0-19-507678-3 . 196. Revised . 2019-09-04.