Queen for a Day

Ken Murray hosted the original radio version of the show on the Mutual–Don Lee Radio Network. When the series began, in New York City on April 30, 1945, it was titled Queen for Today. A few months later, the show moved to Hollywood and acquired the more familiar title Queen for a Day[3] with Jack Bailey, a former vaudeville musician and World's Fair barker, as host. The show aired five days a week during the daytime.

In 1951, a fictional comedy-drama film adaptation of the show was released by United Artists. Titled Queen for a Day, it purported to be a behind-the-scenes look at the show while at the same time spoofing the show's basic premise. The movie starred Bailey as the host and featured Darren McGavin, Phyllis Avery, and Leonard Nimoy, among others.

Bailey stayed on as host as Queen for a Day jumped from radio to television. With the addition of a visual component, the fashion aspect of the show expanded and each episode featured three to five young women modelling the upscale apparel that would be given away to contestants. Other visual stunts, such as a circus-themed episode featuring ponies and clowns from Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus, helped bring the show into the television era. Through all of these changes, however, Bailey remained the interviewer who, over and over again, brought the contestants—and the live female audience—to tears. The first televised episode, a rebroadcast of an earlier radio episode, featured Pearl Stevens of Claremont, California.

Live remote broadcasts and unscripted interviews added to the show's believability. One of the show's telecast locations was the Earl Carroll Theatre on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood,[7] renamed the Moulin Rouge in 1953. During each episode, the cameras panned over the audience as the women waved and cheered.

From 1948 through 1955, the show was simulcast on radio and television. Both versions aired locally in the Los Angeles market on the Don Lee network.[3]

NBC picked up the show for national broadcast from January 3, 1956 to September 2, 1960, and aired it live across the nation (1:30 PST in Los Angeles and 4:30 EST in New York). It proved to be very popular [2] and Bailey and the program were featured on the cover of TV Guide for the week of June 22–28, 1957.

ABC broadcast the series nationally from September 5, 1960, until the end of the run on October 2, 1964.[3]

In 1987, Barry & Enright Productions[8][9][10] in conjunction with Fries Distribution attempted to revive Queen for a Day with Monty Hall as host for the Fall of 1988 but with no success.

On September 8, 1969, after a five-year hiatus, a new version of the show debuted in syndication with Dick Curtis as host. The premise remained largely the same; however, this version only ran until September 18, 1970.

Viewers turned away from the format when it was revealed that, unlike the radio and earlier television versions, the new show was rigged and the "winners" were apparently paid actresses chosen to "win" the prizes prior to the start of each taping.

On May 27, 2004, (originally May 24, 2004) after being off the air for more than 34 years, it was revived as a one-time special airing on cable network Lifetime with actress and comedian Mo'Nique as host. Judges for this version were Joely Fisher, Meshach Taylor, and Dayna Devon. The only difference between this version and the original was that the winner was not determined by audience applause.

In 2012, a musical was made based on the show called Queen for a Day: The Musical,[11] starring Alan Thicke as Jack Bailey[12] The outspoken and strong-willed Claribel Anderson (played by Blythe Wilson) finds herself along with fellow waitress Lana Beutler (played by Marisa McIntyre) at the glamorous Moulin Rouge Theatre, where the hit show tapes daily. Here the girls meet the quirky and charismatic host Jack Bailey and a colorful cast of Hollywood players who are ready and willing to build the Queen for a Day dream. Bailey sees the women, listens to many stories, dries many tears - but only one can be queen. Eventually Claribel lands as a contestant on the show. Her 15 minutes of fame send her down a road of self-discovery, forcing her to question her dream of being the perfect 50's housewife.

An Australian version aired in Melbourne on station HSV-7 from 1960 to 1962.

The Brazilian version was hosted by Silvio Santos and aired on The Globo in 1972 under the title Boa Noite, Cinderella (Good Night/Evening, Cinderella). This version awarded gifts for children (mainly little girls) instead of housewives. Years later, when the channel changed from TVS to SBT, it aired the program in the afternoons, dropping "Good Night" in its title and renaming it Cinderella, until it was cancelled in 1987.

In Mexico, an Aztec TV version, also called Reina Por Un Día (Queen for One Day) was produced. It was originally hosted by Ingrid Coranado and then by Raquel Bigorra. It premiered in 2011.

In the winter of 2011, a Spanish-language revival was hosted by Tomás Ramos (better known as The Red Shadow animator) aired on Univision in Puerto Rico under the name Reina Por Un Día (Reina for a Day). The panel consisted of Amos Morals and Moraima Oyola.

In Spain, the show was also called Reina Por Un Día (Queen for One Day) hosted by José Luis Barcelona and Mario Cabré aired on TVE from 1964 until 1966. It was mostly broadcast weekly on Sunday afternoons.