original focus of the Bauer storyline is on Meta, who had left the Bauer household in the 1940s to pursue a career in modeling under the alias Jan Carter. Meta, as Jan, became romantically involved with the British Theodore "Ted" White, who worked for his father as the head of the California advertising agency that handles Jan's modeling career. Jan found herself pregnant with Ted's child and decided to give her son up for adoption to Ray Brandon and his wife, Charlotte Wilson. Around the time Jan finds out that Ray and Charlotte are the adoptive parents of her son, Charles "Chuckie," Ted reenters her life. They get married so she can sue for custody, despite the advice of her friends, Dr. Ross Boling and Dr. Mary Leland (Ross' wife), not to do so. Jan and Ted eventually win custody of Chuckie. At the same time, Mary tells Jan (who had revealed her true identity as Meta) that her mother, "Mama" Bauer, is ill with cancer and will soon die. Mary also tells Meta that Papa has continued to ask for her so that he could make amends to Meta for what had happened to drive her away. Meanwhile, Meta's brother Bill has married a woman striving for material success and thinks Bill should as well. Bertha "Bert" Miller has convinced Bill to give up his job working at the pharmacy to go into the work he trained for, advertising. Still, as Jan to him, Meta convinces Ted to hire Bill at his father's advertising agency. Ted does so but later becomes mad at Meta for covering up her true identity. Meta and Papa eventually make amends, although Trudy is jealous of her older sister and her lifestyle. She also finds herself in love with the married Dr. Ross Boling. Ted's behavior becomes increasingly violent toward Chuckie and Meta, and she sues for divorce. Ted and Meta end up in a custody battle over Chuckie, which Meta wins. However, Ted is granted some lenient visitation times and is permitted to take Chuckie on outings of his own. It is on one such outing that Ted leaves the now five-year-old Chuckie to die in a freak boxing accident. Meta would leave the Bauers (and audiences) in a daze when she ended up in front of Ted's house and shot him dead in 1950. At one point on the radio version, listeners