Guiding Light Is Extinguished

(From the AP Wire)

Guiding Light is switching off after a 72-year run that predates television.

CBS says the show will have its final episode in September. Like most daytime dramas, Guiding Light has suffered from declining ratings and CBS is looking for a lower-cost alternative to the hour of programming.

The Guinness Book of World Records has cited it as the longest-running television drama.

It began as a 15-minute serial on NBC Radio in January 1937 and debuted on CBS television in 1952, focusing on the Bauer family of Springfield.