Magnificent Obsession: Screen Guild Theater (January 19, 1941)

“Magnificent Obsession” is an episode of Screen Guild Theater, the old-time radio show, first broadcast January 19, 1941. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Bob Merrick, a reckless young man whose carelessness led to the death of Dr. Hudson, is resented by Dr. Hudson's widow, Helen Hudson, who runs the Brightwood Hospital. Their hostile first meeting turns into an unlikely friendship that stirs Helen's feelings. This episode of the Screen Guild Theater, starring Myrna Loy and Donna Meachie, is based on Lloyd C. Douglas's novel and aired on January 19, 1941. Bob's guilt and his growing affection for Helen shape each of their encounters.

A hospital and a lakeside in the city, later a sunny park and Paris

Characters: Bob Merrick, Helen Hudson, Dr. Hudson, Nancy Ashford, Dr. Carlton, Robin Redbreast

Listen for: The tense confrontation between Bob and Helen in the hospital, and the park scene where Helen learns to read again

Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.