The Loretta Young Show: Season 02 (1954)

Although the weekly anthology A Letter to Loretta had been retitled The Loretta Young Show by the time the series began its second season, the original format, in which hostess Loretta Young would appear in playlets inspired by letters sent in by her fans, remained intact. The season gets underway with "Guest in the Night," marking the first of several guest appearances by a pre-The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp Hugh O'Brian. Other episodes of note include "Something About Love," featuring Loretta Young as a crippled dancer who falls in love with an architect (Gene Barry) who can no longer use his hands, a moving drama that won the Christopher Award for 1954-1955; "The Flood," a reworking of the popular first-season "crisis" drama "The Flood; "600 Seconds," a critically praised episode concentrating on the five hours before a woman (Young, of course) confronts her husband about his alleged adultery; and "Inga II," a sequel to the well-received 1953 entry, Inga, with Young reprising her role as a level-headed Swedish farm girl. Additional season two highlights include the timely "Dateline Korea"; the frivolous "Feeling No Pain," featuring an elaborate ballet based on the series' theme music, with Loretta Young expertly doubled by dancer Dante DiPaolo; and "I Remember the Rani," one of the better episodes in which Young is cast in an ethnic role (in this instance, a far Eastern maharani). It is the last show of the season -- and the last appearance by Loretta Young for several months, due to a very serious operation which rendered her inactive until halfway through the series' third season. Rated number 28 among the nation's most popular TV series of 1954-1955, The Loretta Young Show also earned an Emmy Award for its star. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi