For over thirty years, the California Artists Radio Theatre has presented the best in dramas, comedies, and musicals, featuring renowned actors from Hollywood, Broadway, Great Britain, and Ireland, performing award-winning scripts adapted from modern and classic stories, books, and plays.
|
LINDA HENNING
The actress of incredible range. The most versatile actress in CART is, hands down, Linda Henning. 
|
Acting was in her blood.
Starting in early childhood, Linda trained to be a dancer and a singer. Dancing was her first love, I think she was in training to be ready for a career in the entertainment field. Both of Linda's parents were radio actors. Her father, Paul Henning, was also a prolific comedy writer in radio and a producer and creator of television sitcoms. So although the acting bug didn't strike until later, when it did, the results were spectacular. She was the only lead on "Petticoat Junction" to be with the show the whole time. Linda is recognized most often for her leading role as a beautiful ingenue each week on "Petticoat Junction." She was the only lead performer who was in the cast for the entire seven years that the series was on the air. She also went on to a successful career with Broadway Musicals, playing lead roles on road tours throughout the United States and abroad. Eventually, her acting talents were also applied to radio and film. When Linda was spotted by Peggy. It was on the Sears Radio Theatre that Linda first worked with me, I made a note to remember this talented young lady when I formed CART. Before long, I sent Linda overseas to play the lead in a CART tour featuring the musical, "I Do! I Do!" in Ireland. Sometimes, a quirky talent comes in handy. In my day “in Golden Radio”, not many directors were as particular as I wanted to be with my directorial career. I admired Olivier, Welles and Corwin as directors. And I abhored the kind of radio director who hired actors to play parrots, or any role, without demanding truth and perfectionism. So when I had no role for Linda in "Treasure Island", and I wanted Linda in our first show, I said to her,” Linda I know you do authentic bird calls, can you do a parrot?” She said no, she had never tried, and I said, “If you will go to a pet store and work with a parrot, do you think you can give me an authentic sound? I do not want the kind one hears on comedy shows like Jack Benny, I want it to sound real”. No radio director demanded that kind of outside work from a union actor but I wanted my reputation to be built with this first show. Linda endeared herself to me, and convinced me that she was a real pro, by going to a pet store for a week, and turning out a most authentic “Captain Flint”, and stole the show! She loves acting in classic fairy tales. Linda was also a hit as the Dormouse with Roddy McDowall and Samantha Eggar in "Alice In Wonderland" and as Tinker Bell in "Peter and Wendy." A full spectrum of roles. Throughout her career Linda has appeared in films, musicals and TV. For CART Linda is featured in such programs as:
If you think acting is a zoo... Linda also works at the Los Angeles Zoo giving lectures with boa constrictors and pythons. She smiled when asked if you could get fond of them. She says with her musical laugh, "You just have to make certain they don't get around your neck–that could be deadly!" We doubt that Linda was acting when she said that! —Peggy Webber |
