Scope and Content Note
The Ralph Edwards Productions collection spans the years 1940-1975 and consists of radio and television scripts from shows produced by Ralph Edwards, a radio announcer and early television program host and producer. Included are scripts for the audience participation shows, It Could Be You, Truth or Consequences, and About Faces; a western drama, Wide Country; and a children's program, Funny Boners. Also included is This Is Your Life, which Edwards created and hosted. It featured celebrity guests primarily from the performing arts, but included leading figures in business, education, the military, philanthropy, religion, and sports.
The scripts for This Is Your Life cover the origin of the show from its beginning on radio in 1948 through its television run from 1952 to 1961 and revival in 1971-1973. Among the wide range of guests were Mary McLeod Bethune (March 15, 1949), Frank Capra (June 10, 1959), Ruth Gordon (November 21, 1971), Audie Murphy (March 8, 1949), Jesse Owens (April 27, 1960), and Vincent Price (March 18, 1973). A list from Ralph Edwards Productions of This Is Your Life guests and their airing is available in the Manuscript Division Reading Room and online as a PDF document. The list includes shows not documented in the collection.
Some of the scripts are annotated with production notes such as segment running times and wardrobe descriptions. Also included are scripts for the sponsors' commercials and a few letters primarily from contestants regarding prizes.