List of films based on radio series
Encyclopedia
Radio comedy and drama was at its peak during the 1940s, and most of the films on this list were produced during that period. The list includes features, short subject
s and serials.
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
s and serials.
USA
- Breakfast in HollywoodBreakfast in HollywoodBreakfast in Hollywood was a popular morning radio show created and hosted by Tom Breneman who broadcast from 1941 to 1948 on three different radio networks: NBC, ABC and Mutual. These unscripted shows were spontaneous and involved much audience participation...
(1946) - Candid MicrophoneCandid CameraCandid Camera is a hidden camera/practical joke reality television series created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as Candid Microphone June 28, 1947...
(1947), theatrical film shorts based on Allen FuntAllen FuntAllen Funt was an American television producer, director and writer, television personality, best known as the creator and host of Candid Camera from the 1940s to 1980s, as either a regular television show or a television series of specials...
's Candid MicrophoneCandid CameraCandid Camera is a hidden camera/practical joke reality television series created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as Candid Microphone June 28, 1947... - A Date with JudyA Date with Judy (film)A Date with Judy is a 1948 MGM musical film starring Wallace Beery, Jane Powell, and Elizabeth Taylor. Directed by Richard Thorpe, the movie was based on the radio series of the same name....
(1948), based on radio's A Date with JudyA Date with JudyA Date with Judy was a comedy radio series aimed at a teenage audience which had a long run from 1941 to 1950.The show began as a summer replacement for Bob Hope's show, sponsored by Pepsodent and airing on NBC from June 24 to September 16, 1941, with 14-year-old Ann Gillis in the title role... - David Harding, CounterspyCounterspy (radio series)Counterspy was an espionage drama radio series that aired on the NBC Blue Network and Mutual from May 18, 1942 to November 29, 1957....
(1950) - Meet Dr. ChristianDr. ChristianDr. Christian was a long-running radio series with Jean Hersholt in the title role. It aired on CBS from 1937 to 1954.After Hersholt portrayed the character Dr. John Luke, based on Dr. Allan Roy Dafoe, the obstetrician who delivered and cared for the Dionne Quintuplets, in the 20th Century Fox...
(1939) - Duffy's TavernDuffy's TavernDuffy's Tavern was a popular American radio situation comedy which ran for a decade on several networks , concluding with the December 28, 1951 broadcast....
(1945) - Gang BustersGang Busters (serial)Gang Busters is a Universal movie serial based on the radio series Gang Busters. The city is terrorized by a crime wave masterminded by the elusive, soft-spoken Professor Mortis...
(1942), based on radio's Gang BustersGang BustersGang Busters was an American dramatic radio program heralded as "the only national program that brings you authentic police case histories." It premiered as G-Men, sponsored by Chevrolet, on July 20, 1935.-History:... - The Great GildersleeveThe Great GildersleeveThe Great Gildersleeve , initially written by Leonard Lewis Levinson, was one of broadcast history's earliest spin-off programs. Built around Throckmorton Philharmonic Gildersleeve, a character who had been a staple on the classic radio situation comedy Fibber McGee and Molly, first Introduced to...
(1942) - The Green HornetThe Green Hornet (serial)The Green Hornet is a Universal movie serial based on The Green Hornet radio series by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker.-Synopsis:...
(1940) - The Green Hornet Strikes Again! (1941)
- The Green HornetThe Green HornetThe Green Hornet is an American radio and television masked vigilante created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell, in 1936. Since his radio debut in the 1930s, the Green Hornet has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of media...
(2006) - The Green HornetThe Green HornetThe Green Hornet is an American radio and television masked vigilante created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell, in 1936. Since his radio debut in the 1930s, the Green Hornet has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of media...
(2011) - Here Come the NelsonsThe Adventures of Ozzie and HarrietThe Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952 to September 3, 1966, starring the real life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television where it continued its success, running on both radio and TV for a couple of years...
(1952), based on The Adventures of Ozzie and HarrietThe Adventures of Ozzie and HarrietThe Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952 to September 3, 1966, starring the real life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television where it continued its success, running on both radio and TV for a couple of years... - I Love a MysteryI Love a MysteryI Love a Mystery was a radio drama series about three friends who ran a detective agency and traveled the world in search of adventure. Distinguished by the high octane scripting of Carlton E...
(1945) - The Life of RileyThe Life of RileyThe Life of Riley, with William Bendix in the title role, is a popular American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, a long-run 1950s television series , and a 1958 Dell comic book...
(1949) - The Lone RangerThe Lone Ranger (serial)The Lone Ranger is a 1938 American Republic Movie serial. It was the ninth of the sixty-six serials produced by Republic, the fourth western and the first of 1938...
(1938) - The Lone Ranger Rides AgainThe Lone Ranger Rides AgainThe Lone Ranger Rides Again is a 1939 American Republic serial. It was a sequel to Republic's earlier 1937 serial The Lone Ranger, which had been highly successful, and the thirteenth of the sixty-six serials produced by Republic....
(1939) - Look Who's Laughing (1941), based on radio's Fibber McGee and MollyFibber McGee and MollyFibber McGee and Molly was an American radio comedy series which maintained its popularity over decades. It premiered on NBC in 1935 and continued until its demise in 1959, long after radio had ceased to be the dominant form of entertainment in American popular culture.-Husband and wife in real...
- Lum and Abner AbroadLum and AbnerLum and Abner was an American radio comedy network program created by Chester Lauck and Norris Goff that aired from 1931 to 1954. Modeled on life in the small town of Waters, Arkansas, near where Lauck and Goff grew up, the showed proved immensely popular...
(1956) - Mr. District AttorneyMr. District AttorneyMr. District Attorney is a popular radio crime drama which aired on NBC and ABC from April 3, 1939 to June 13, 1952 . The series focused on a crusading D.A., initially known only as "Mister District Attorney," or "Chief", and was later translated to television. On television the D.A...
(1947) - My Friend IrmaMy Friend Irma (film)My Friend Irma is a comedy film directed by George Marshall and is most notable as the film debut of comedy team Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis...
(1949) - People Are FunnyPeople Are FunnyPeople are Funny is an American radio and television game show, created by John Guedel that remained popular throughout the 1940s. The program ran from 1942 to 1960. The program's stunts and audience participation were calculated to reveal the humorous side of human nature...
(1946) - Pot o' Gold (1941)
- A Prairie Home CompanionA Prairie Home Companion (film)A Prairie Home Companion is a 2006 ensemble comedy elegy directed by Robert Altman, and was his final film, released just five months before his death...
(2006) - Radio Stars on Parade (1945), based on radio's Truth or ConsequencesTruth or ConsequencesTruth or Consequences is an American quiz show originally hosted on NBC radio by Ralph Edwards and later on television by Edwards , Jack Bailey , Bob Barker , Bob Hilton and Larry Anderson . The television show ran on CBS, NBC and also in syndication...
- The ShadowThe Shadow (1994 film)The Shadow is a 1994 American superhero film, directed by Russell Mulcahy, and based on the character of the same name created by Walter B. Gibson in 1931. Alec Baldwin starred in the title role...
(1994) - Take It or Leave It (1944)
- Sorry, Wrong NumberSorry, Wrong NumberSorry, Wrong Number is a 1948 American suspense film noir directed by Anatole Litvak. It tells the story of a woman who overhears a plot for murder. It stars Barbara Stanwyck, Burt Lancaster, Ann Richards, Wendell Corey, Ed Begley, Leif Erickson and William Conrad.The film was adapted by Lucille...
(1948), based on an episode of SuspenseSuspense (radio program)-Production background:One of the premier drama programs of the Golden Age of Radio, was subtitled "radio's outstanding theater of thrills" and focused on suspense thriller-type scripts, usually featuring leading Hollywood actors of the era... - Way Back Home (1932)
- The WhistlerThe WhistlerThe Whistler was an American radio mystery drama which ran from May 16, 1942 until September 22, 1955. It was sponsored by the Signal Oil Company: "That whistle is your signal for the Signal Oil program, The Whistler." The program was adapted into a film noir series by Columbia Pictures in...
(1944)
UK
- Band WaggonBand Waggon (film)Band Waggon is a 1940 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Arthur Askey, Richard Murdoch and Moore Marriott. It was based on the BBC radio show Band Waggon.-Plot:...
(1940), based on Band WaggonBand WaggonBand Waggon was a comedy radio show broadcast by the BBC from 1938 to 1940. The first season featured Arthur Askey and Richard Murdoch. In the second season, Askey and Murdoch were joined by Syd Walker, and the third season added Diana Clare for two episodes.Band Waggon was the first comedy show to... - Down Among the Z MenDown Among the Z MenDown Among the Z Men is a B/W 1952 British comedy film starring The Goons; Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Michael Bentine and Harry Secombe.-Plot:...
(1952) (aka: Stand Easy; The Goon Movie; The Goon Show Movie), based on The Goon ShowThe Goon ShowThe Goon Show was a British radio comedy programme, originally produced and broadcast by the BBC Home Service from 1951 to 1960, with occasional repeats on the BBC Light Programme... - HappidromeHappidrome (film)Happidrome is a 1943 British comedy film directed by Philip Brandon and starring Harry Korris, Robbie Vincent and Cecil Fredericks. It was a spin-off from the Happidrome BBC radio series which was popular at the time.-Cast:* Harry Korris - Mr Lovejoy...
(1943), based on Happidrome - Hi, Gang!, based on Hi, Gang!
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the GalaxyThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (film)The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a 2005 comic science fiction film based on the book of the same name by Douglas Adams. Shooting was completed in August 2004 and the movie was released on April 28, 2005 in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and on the following day in Canada and the United...
(2005), based on the radio series created by Douglas AdamsDouglas AdamsDouglas Noel Adams was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television... - Life With The Lyons (1954) & The Lyons In Paris (1955), based on Life With The LyonsLife With The LyonsLife with The Lyons was a British radio and television domestic sitcom dating from the 1950s .-Overview:Life with The Lyons was unusual in that it featured a real-life American family...
- It's That Man Again (1942), based on It's That Man AgainIt's That Man AgainIt's That Man Again was a BBC radio comedy programme which ran from 1939 to 1949. The title was a contemporary phrase referring to ever more frequent news-stories about Hitler in the lead-up to World War II, and specifically a headline in the Daily Express written by Bert Gunn...
- The RebelThe Rebel (1961 film)The film The Rebel is a satirical comedy starring the British comedian Tony Hancock, and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.-Plot:...
(1961): Based on Hancock's Half HourHancock's Half HourHancock's Half Hour was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy, series of the 1950s and 60s written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock, with Sid James; the radio version also co-starred, at various times, Moira Lister, Andrée Melly, Hattie Jacques, Bill Kerr... - Send For Paul Temple, Calling Paul Temple, Paul Temple's Triumph, Paul Temple Returns, based on Paul TemplePaul TemplePaul Temple is a fictional character created by British writer Francis Durbridge for the BBC radio serial Send for Paul Temple in 1938. Temple is an amateur private detective and author of crime fiction...
- The Navy LarkThe Navy Lark (film)The Navy Lark is a 1959 British comedy film adaptation of The Navy Lark radio series broadcast on the BBC Light Programme. It featured Cecil Parker, Ronald Shiner and Leslie Phillips, Gordon Jackson and Hattie Jacques...
(1959) based on The Navy LarkThe Navy LarkThe Navy Lark was a radio sit-com about life aboard a British Royal Navy frigate named HMS Troutbridge, based in HMNB Portsmouth, though in series 1 and 2 the ship and crew were stationed offshore at an unnamed location known simply as "The Island." In series 2 this island was revealed to be...
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See also
- Lists of movie source material
- List of films based on comics
- List of films based on comic strips
- List of films based on television programs
- List of U.S. radio programs