Serial (radio and television) usually ran from Monday through Friday at exactly the same time every day. A show called The Smith Family which ran only one night a week on WENR in Chicago during the early 1930s was credited as the "great-granddaddy of the soap operas" by radio historian Francis Chase, Jr. One of the other shows that helped pioneer the daytime soap opera/serial was "The Guiding Light", which debuted on NBC radio in 1937, and then switched to CBS Television in 1952. "The Guiding Light" final episode aired on September 18, 2009, having a total of 15,762 episodes air on CBS. Some
Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama The Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama is an award held by the daytime television magazine "Soap Opera Digest". It was first awarded at the 1st Soap Opera Digest Award ceremony in 1984. It is given to honor an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role while working within the soap opera genre industry. The winners are decided by the fans who read the magazine. Deidre Hall holds the most wins, winning in 1984, 1985 and 1995. Hall