The Laytons is an American situation comedy that was broadcast live on station WABD-TV from May to June 1948, and on the DuMont Television Network (at the time consisting of two stations)[Weinstein, David, The Forgotten Network, page 191, Temple University Press, 2004] from August to October 1948
Overview
In the 1952 book
The TV Writer's Guide author Margaret R. Weiss uses a script from
The Laytons as an example of how to write for television situation comedies. She also gives information on how the "extremely low-budgeted show" was made. Episodes were written by series creator Barbara Boothe. For each episode two cameras were used (at the time usually three or four were used for television shows). There were one or two sets, and a maximum of four characters appeared in each episode. The series was sponsored by Bates, Fabrics, Inc., and at the middle of the episodes a live commercial for Bates bedspreads and draperies was broadcast from one of the show's sets.
[Weiss, Margaret R., The TV Writer's Guide, pages 93-110, Peliegoini & Cudahy, 1952]
Characters in The Laytons were Martha, the housekeeper who had worked in the Laytons' home for at least 25 years. She usually came up with solutions to the family's predicaments. Ruth Layton was a stay-at-home housewife, George Layton was a doctor, and Virginia (Ginny) was their teenage daughter. Son Bill was a city official. He and his wife Peggy and daughter Nancy lived in a nearby home.
Series cast of characters
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Martha - housekeeper (Amanda Randolph)
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Ruth Layton - mother (Vera Tatum)
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George Layton - father, a doctor
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Virginia (Ginny) Layton - teenage daughter
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Bill Layton - son, a city official
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Peggy Layton - Bill's wife
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Nancy Layton - Bill's daughter
Episode status
The Layton's series was broadcast live, and there are no known preserved episodes. The script from one episode, Uncle Charlie's Visit, or The Moose Hangs High, which aired August 11, 1948, was printed in the book
The TV Writer's Guide.
See also
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List of programs broadcast by the DuMont Television Network
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List of surviving DuMont Television Network broadcasts
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1948-49 United States network television schedule
Bibliography
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David Weinstein, The Forgotten Network: DuMont and the Birth of American Television (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2004)
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Alex McNeil, Total Television, Fourth edition (New York: Penguin Books, 1980)
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Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows, Third edition (New York: Ballantine Books, 1984)
External links
