University of Wyoming
Ireene Seaton Wicker (1905-1987) was a vocalist, actress, and author. She was known for her radio performances for children as “The Singing Lady” throughout the 1930s. Beginning in 1931, Wicker’s The Singing Lady program was the first of its kind specifically designed for young audiences. Her performances featured her dramatic adaptations of fairy tales and other children’s stories.
Wicker transitioned to television in 1948 when The Singing Lady was picked up by ABC-TV. The Ireene Wicker Show premiered on WJZ-TV in 1949 which also featured Wicker’s fairy tale retellings.
ABC-TV failed to renew The Singing Lady in 1950 when Wicker’s name was included in the Red Channels book that accused various Hollywood personalities of being Communist sympathizers. The chargers were later dropped by the House Un-American Activities Committee, and ABC renewed Wicker’s contract in 1953 and until 1954 ran a half-hour series called Little Lady Story Time.
Collection contains four phonograph records of Wicker’s The Singing Lady radio program: “Grimm’s Fairy Tales,” “Hans Christian Andersen, Fairy Tales,” “Just So Stories,” and “A Treasury of Fairy Tale Favorites.”
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Item Description, Box Number, Folder Number, Collection Name, Collection Number, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.
This material was received from Ireene Wicker in June 1975.
There are no known other archival collections created by Ireene Wicker at the date of processing.
The American Heritage Center is in the process of converting its older container lists to a more accessible format. This link is to an older version of a container list for 1 box.