1946 to 1947 and 1950 to 1951; Willard Waterman, 1947 to 1949; Staats Cotsworth, 1949 to 1950) Julie Barton Collins (Mary Lansing, 1946 to 1947) Reverend Dr. Paul Keeler (Bernard Lenrow, 1946 and 1949 to 1950; Bill Smith, 1950 to 1952) Reverend Dr. Charles Matthews (Hugh Studebaker, 1947 to 1949) Frank Collins (Willis B. Bouchey, 1947) Charlotte Wilson Brandon (Gertrude Warner, 1947; Betty Lou Gerson, 1947 to 1948; Lesley Woods, 1949 to 1951) Dr. Mary Leland (Anne Seymour, 1948 to 1951) Dr. Ross Boling (Karl Weber, 1949 to 1951) Gloria La Rue (Anne Burr McDermott, 1950 to 1951) Richard Hanley (Mandell Kramer, 1950; Maurice Tarplin, 1951) Peggy Ashley Regan (Jane Webb, 1951) Plot development The radio show's original storyline centers on a preacher named Rev. John Ruthledge and all the people of a fictional suburb in Chicago called Five Points. The townspeople's lives all revolve around him, and the show's title refers to a lamp in his study that family and residents can see as a sign for them to find help when needed. Early ongoing storylines contrasted Ellis Smith (nicknamed Mr. Nobody from Nowhere) with Rev. Ruthledge. The former's cynicism often acts as a foil to the latter's optimism. Rev. Ruthledge's daughter Mary also embarked on a secret romance with her foster brother Ned Holden. Ned and Mary would eventually marry in a 1941 episode of the soap with Rev Ruthledge's blessing, but not before a series of complications arose. One such complication is the return of Ned's parents, Frances and Paul Holden. This storyline results in Frances shooting Paul dead when he makes his plans to extort money from Ned known. Another complication is Ned's marriage to and subsequent divorce from lounge singer Torchy Reynolds (who later ended up in a relationship with Ellis Smith). Storylines in this era also touched on topics rarely discussed up to that point — for example, the character of Rose Kransky had radio's first out-of-wedlock baby. During the radio years, succeeding preachers carried on the work Rev. Ruthledge had started, thus becoming keepers of the "guiding light." The show's setting moved to another fictional suburb in 1947, Selby Flats, in the Los Angeles, California area. The Bauers became central to the storyline in 1948. See also List of radio soap operas References Listen to Guiding LIght (July 15, 1940) Guiding Light 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs NBC radio programs