[2] The Adventures of Frank Merriwell first ran on NBC radio from March 26 to June 22, 1934 as a 15-minute serial airing three times a week at 5:30 pm.
[citation needed] Lawson Zerbe (1914–1992) starred as Merriwell, Jean Gillespie and Elaine Rostas as Inza Burrage, Harold Studer as Bart Hodge and Patricia Hosley as Elsie Belwood.
[8] Jack Gould wrote in The New York Times in September 1948 that the second version of the program did not "bear any reasonable resemblance to the original stories" and said that the title "might mislead parents as to its wholesomeness".
[9] Gould noted that one year earlier NBC had limited broadcasting of crime shows to 9:30 p. m. Eastern Time or later because of the effects that they might have on children.
[9] Frank Merriwell, however, with its "saga of assault, arson, larceny and horror", was presented at 10 a.m.[9] He supported his comments by including segments of the script of the September 11, 1948, episode.