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Medical drama · Syndicated (MGM)

The Story of Dr. Kildare

February 1, 1950 – August 3, 1951 · 80 broadcasts

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer brought its most famous movie doctors to radio in The Story of Dr. Kildare, reuniting Lew Ayres as the young intern Dr. James Kildare and Lionel Barrymore as the gruff, wheelchair-bound diagnostician Dr. Leonard Gillespie -- the pair who had anchored MGM's long Kildare film series. Recorded on transcription discs by MGM Radio Attractions from 1949, the half-hour drama was syndicated to more than two hundred stations across the United States, Canada, and even rural Australia, most of them Mutual outlets, and it premiered over MGM's own New York station WMGM. Set in the busy wards of Blair General Hospital, each self-contained episode built its story around a single medical case -- an anthrax outbreak, a lonely child's appendix, a cowboy star's phantom ailment, an amnesiac in a thousand-dollar coat -- laced with the warm, needling banter between the idealistic Kildare and his crusty mentor. Around the leads worked a deep bench of West Coast radio regulars: Virginia Gregg as the tart Nurse 'Nosey' Parker, Ted Osborne as Dr. Carew, Eleanor Audley as receptionist Molly Byrd, and guest turns from soon-to-be stars Jack Webb and William Conrad. Author Max Brand's characters, Dick Joy's announcing, and Walter Schumann's score rounded out a run that ended in 1951, though rebroadcasts lingered in syndication for years.

Collection status: 60 of 80 held (75% complete)
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Episode Spine

Grouped by year. Jump to the full list below, or open a season on its own page.

1950

February 1, 1950 Angela and Steven Kester Listen (MP3)
Concert pianist Angela Kester's growing paranoia threatens both her career and her marriage to Steven, and Kildare must reach the mind behind the illness.
February 8, 1950 Marjorie Northrup Listen (MP3)
Marjorie Northrup faces the loss of a leg, and Kildare weighs the amputation against her will to go on.
February 15, 1950 Benjamin Barkley Listen (MP3)
Benjamin Barkley is treated at Blair General for appendicitis.
February 22, 1950 Rico Marchiano's Dying Wife Listen (MP3)
Rico Marchiano refuses to accept that his wife Carmen is dying of terminal cancer, and Gillespie must help him face it.
March 1, 1950 Vernon Pendleton - Hypondriac Listen (MP3)
Vernon Pendleton is convinced he is gravely ill; Kildare has to separate the hypochondriac's fear from any real disease.
March 8, 1950 Barbara Lane, Dope Addict Listen (MP3)
Young Barbara Lane is brought in as a drug addict, and Kildare looks past the habit to the trouble that drove her to it.
March 15, 1950 Caroline Shelley Listen (MP3)
Caroline Shelley, a lonely little girl whose parents have separated, needs an emergency appendix operation.
March 22, 1950 Janet Dane - New Cancer Treatment Listen (MP3)
Janet Dane's throat cancer sends Kildare after an experimental betatron treatment that may be her only hope.
March 29, 1950 (untitled)
April 5, 1950 (untitled)
April 12, 1950 Warren Jackson's Allergy Listen (MP3)
Warren Jackson is admitted after what looks like an allergic collapse, but the deeper danger is a suicide attempt.
April 19, 1950 Terry Murphy's Hearing Problem Listen (MP3)
Terry Murphy's partial deafness hides a cause the doctors must find before it costs him his hearing for good.
April 26, 1950 Philip Van Court's Amnesia Listen (MP3)
Philip Van Court vanishes and turns up at Brighton Beach with traumatic amnesia and a mind in crisis.
May 3, 1950 Abandoned Baby Listen (MP3)
A newborn, Jackie Mason, is abandoned in one of Blair's ambulances, drawing in a hard-boiled police lieutenant as the staff searches for the mother.
May 10, 1950 Kildare's Old Girlfriend Listen (MP3)
When Kildare's old sweetheart dies of a heart complication after the flu, his grief nearly drives him out of medicine.
May 17, 1950 Nurse Parker Resigns Listen (MP3)
Nurse Evangeline 'Nosey' Parker has finally had enough of Dr. Gillespie and hands in her resignation -- and he is only too glad to let her go.
May 24, 1950 Dr. Carew's Fat Wife Listen (MP3)
Kildare and Gillespie scheme to get Dr. Carew's wife to shed twenty pounds, with predictably stubborn results.
May 31, 1950 Dick Brennan Steals $5,000 (or $50,000) Listen (MP3)
A boy named Dick Brennan confesses to Kildare that he stole 5,000 dollars -- but the owners insist the sum was 50,000.
June 1, 1950 Colonel Boregard's Paralysis Listen (MP3)
A Kentucky colonel, Beauregard, is slowly being paralyzed by a cause no one at Blair can identify.
June 8, 1950 Gordon Mallory's Lead Poisoning Listen (MP3)
Construction worker Gordon Mallory has lead poisoning; when a second worker shows the same signs, Kildare hunts for the shared source.
June 15, 1950 Glaucoma Listen (MP3)
Drake Simmons comes in too late to save his sight from glaucoma, and Kildare and Gillespie must operate.
June 22, 1950 Pricilla's Broken Arm Listen (MP3)
Priscilla Babcock, a young genius nursing a broken arm, learns to be a real person -- and falls for Dr. Kildare along the way.
June 29, 1950 Dr. Gillespie Almost Gets Engaged Listen (MP3)
July 6, 1950 Hunting Trip Listen (MP3)
Kildare and Gillespie head to the mountains for a well-earned week of hunting, only to find the locals need a doctor.
July 13, 1950 Dan Malloy's Peptic Ulcer Listen (MP3)
A construction worker comes in with a peptic ulcer, though his sharper trouble may be the formidable Mrs. Malloy.
July 20, 1950 Mrs. Stanford's Angina Pecturis Listen (MP3)
Mrs. Stanford's angina pectoris tests Kildare's judgment about how much a failing heart can safely bear.
July 27, 1950 (untitled)
August 3, 1950 (untitled)
August 10, 1950 Buffalo Barnie Mcclure Listen (MP3)
Buffalo Barnie McClure, a travelling-show cowboy who swallowed his own bridgework, throws Blair into an uproar and refuses to part with his ten-gallon hat.
August 17, 1950 Appendicitis Operation at Sea Listen (MP3)
With a patient needing an appendectomy far from any surgeon, Kildare talks an operation through step by step over the radio.
August 24, 1950 (untitled)
August 31, 1950 (untitled)
September 7, 1950 Carew Gets Medical Examiner Mixed Up Listen (MP3)
September 14, 1950 Marion Lewis, Teen Age Alcholic Listen (MP3)
A teenager, Marion Lewis, arrives with acute alcohol poisoning, and Kildare finds the real sickness lies with her parents.
September 21, 1950 Sam Lubinski Has Spinal Paralysis Listen (MP3)
Sam Lubinski's spinal injury leaves him facing paralysis unless Kildare can find a way through.
September 28, 1950 Willie Mumpkin's First Baby Listen (MP3)
The Mumpkin family nervously awaits the arrival of their first baby at Blair General.
October 5, 1950 (untitled)
October 12, 1950 (untitled)
October 20, 1950 Eddie Jenkins and the Arsonist Listen (MP3)
Eddie Jenkins is carried in with burns after a warehouse fire the police believe he set -- though the boy swears he was asleep under the pier.
October 27, 1950 Ling Co Refuses Leg Surgery Listen (MP3)
Ling Ko gambles his livelihood on whether to risk the leg surgery Kildare recommends.
November 3, 1950 (untitled)
November 10, 1950 (untitled)
November 17, 1950 Mr. Bradley's Damaged Heart Listen (MP3)
Businessman Mr. Bradley collapses after a punishing day, and his damaged heart forces a decision about open-heart surgery.
November 24, 1950 Mr. Kramer's Chronic Enteritis Listen (MP3)
Mr. Kramer's chronic stomach trouble coincides with Nurse Parker taking up painting -- and a stomach ache of her own.
December 1, 1950 Lady Dunabee's Annual Visit Listen (MP3)
The hypochondriacal Lady Dunabee sweeps in from London for her annual visit and starts bossing all of Blair around.
December 8, 1950 Arthur Morgan Needs Brain Surgery Listen (MP3)
Arthur Morgan's brain hemorrhage puts him in the path of dangerous, delicate surgery.
December 15, 1950 (untitled)
December 22, 1950 (untitled)
December 29, 1950 David Norton Has Pneumonia Listen (MP3)
Little David Norton's bout of pneumonia becomes the thing that finally brings his feuding parents back together.

1951

January 5, 1951 Eddie Lazetti Kidnaps Nurse Listen (MP3)
Eddie Lazetti, a murderer held under guard at Blair, breaks free and takes Dr. Kildare and Nurse Diana hostage.
January 12, 1951 Dr. Gillespie's Testimonal Dinner Listen (MP3)
A surprise testimonial dinner is arranged in Dr. Gillespie's honor, and the staff conspires to keep it from him.
January 19, 1951 Dr. Conlon, Quack Listen (MP3)
Kildare takes on Dr. Conlon, a quack whose useless 'treatments' have let a patient's real illness fester.
January 26, 1951 Joe Finley's Ulcer Listen (MP3)
Joe Finley's ulcer perforates, turning a routine complaint into an emergency.
February 2, 1951 Oliver Van Meter's Allergy Listen (MP3)
Kildare puzzles out why Oliver Van Meter suffers an allergic flare like clockwork each Monday.
February 9, 1951 Anthrax Infection Listen (MP3)
An anthrax case in the Adirondacks sets Kildare and Gillespie against a fast-moving, deadly infection.
February 16, 1951 Pete Cosloff Is Mentally ILL Listen (MP3)
Kildare works the difficult case of Pete Cosloff, a man in the grip of mental illness.
February 23, 1951 Buck Houston, Cowboy Star Listen (MP3)
Cowboy movie star Buck Houston checks himself into Blair, where his 'sciatica' proves to be more in the mind than the spine.
March 2, 1951 David Cooper's Burned Face Listen (MP3)
David Cooper is rushed to Blair with severe facial burns and the long road of reconstruction ahead.
March 9, 1951 Edward Carlton's Dog Bite Listen (MP3)
Edward Carlton's dog bite splits the doctors -- Kildare fears rabies while Gillespie suspects hysteria.
March 16, 1951 Amy Dickens Breaks Her Leg Listen (MP3)
Amy Dickens breaks her leg, and a simple fracture opens onto a more human story.
March 23, 1951 Cathy Morton's Baby Listen (MP3)
A frightened young mother wants to give her baby up for adoption, and Kildare must weigh her wishes against the child's future.
March 30, 1951 Joan Quinn Listen (MP3)
On her second day as a Blair nurse, Joan Quinn becomes the target of Gillespie's matchmaking on Kildare's behalf.
April 6, 1951 Gillespie's New Suit for Henderson Award Listen (MP3)
Up for the Henderson Award on his antibiotics paper, Dr. Gillespie frets everyone -- especially over his shabby suit.
April 13, 1951 Yukon Joe's Gold Mine Listen (MP3)
Nurse Parker sinks her savings into Yukon Joe Moran's gold mine, and Kildare watches the scheme unfold.
April 27, 1951 (untitled)
May 4, 1951 (untitled)
May 11, 1951 (untitled)
May 18, 1951 (untitled)
May 18, 1951 Mysterious Hemophilia Patient Listen (MP3)
A mysterious patient with hemophilia confronts Dr. Gillespie with a case unlike any he has seen.
May 25, 1951 Dr. Gillespie's New Office Listen (MP3)
Dr. Carew maneuvers to move Dr. Gillespie into a new office, enlisting Kildare to get the old man out of the way.
June 1, 1951 (untitled)
June 8, 1951 (untitled)
June 15, 1951 Pedro, Maria and Rosei Listen (MP3)
June 22, 1951 Paul Bailey Listen (MP3)
Internist Paul Bailey is failing his duties -- and a suspected drinking problem masks a nervous breakdown.
June 29, 1951 (untitled)
July 6, 1951 (untitled)
July 13, 1951 Valerie and Walter Benton - Murder! Listen (MP3)
Walter Benton plunges from the hospital's seventh story, and the question of whether he jumped or was pushed turns the case into a murder inquiry.
July 20, 1951 Evelyn Briggs Listen (MP3)
Stranded in the small town of Wentworth, Kildare and Gillespie diagnose fellow guest Evelyn Briggs with diphtheria.
July 27, 1951 Robert Lane, Intern, Shirks Duties Listen (MP3)
Intern Robert Lane is off duty when he is needed most, raising the charge that he has been practicing medicine without a license.
August 3, 1951 Alice Bradley, Amnesia Victim Listen (MP3)
A well-dressed woman faints in Blair's lobby unable to recall her name, and Kildare untangles the repressive amnesia behind her thousand-dollar coat.
The Story

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer brought its most famous movie doctors to radio in The Story of Dr. Kildare, reuniting Lew Ayres as the young intern Dr. James Kildare and Lionel Barrymore as the gruff, wheelchair-bound diagnostician Dr. Leonard Gillespie -- the pair who had anchored MGM's long Kildare film series. Recorded on transcription discs by MGM Radio Attractions from 1949, the half-hour drama was syndicated to more than two hundred stations across the United States, Canada, and even rural Australia, most of them Mutual outlets, and it premiered over MGM's own New York station WMGM. Set in the busy wards of Blair General Hospital, each self-contained episode built its story around a single medical case -- an anthrax outbreak, a lonely child's appendix, a cowboy star's phantom ailment, an amnesiac in a thousand-dollar coat -- laced with the warm, needling banter between the idealistic Kildare and his crusty mentor. Around the leads worked a deep bench of West Coast radio regulars: Virginia Gregg as the tart Nurse 'Nosey' Parker, Ted Osborne as Dr. Carew, Eleanor Audley as receptionist Molly Byrd, and guest turns from soon-to-be stars Jack Webb and William Conrad. Author Max Brand's characters, Dick Joy's announcing, and Walter Schumann's score rounded out a run that ended in 1951, though rebroadcasts lingered in syndication for years.

Full story — coming soon while it's being curated.
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