Mama Bloom’s Brood
Mama Bloom's Brood is a serialized Jewish-American family comedy built around Becky and Jake Bloom, their daughters and sons-in-law. The surviving story begins with weddings, household plans and money worries, then expands into travel and an extended Hollywood episode, allowing the family to carry its domestic arguments far beyond home.
Program History
Serialized Jewish-American domestic comedy centered on Becky and Jake Bloom, daughters Yetta and Sarah, and sons-in-law Harold and Sidney. The surviving story moves from family weddings and retirement plans into a cross-country automobile trip and an extended Hollywood/movie-business arc.
The run breaks into several distinct periods: Surviving serialized family-comedy run (1934 to 1934).
The stories often return to family relationships and domestic life, parties, cards, restaurants and social leisure, money, business and investment, engagement, marriage and honeymoon, Hollywood and motion-picture business, and clothing, shopping and consumer goods.
The show also sits in a wider radio history that includes Jewish-American family comedy on radio, Automobile vacation and cross-country mobility, and Hollywood as popular-culture destination.
All Episodes & Recordings
Search this program or browse in its validated catalog order.
New Dresses
Sarah and Yetta want new dresses for a Saturday party, but Papa flatly refuses to spend the money. Mama reverses him by agreeing that the old dresses are good enough…
Abe Morgenstern
After hearing bad stories about Abe Morgenstern and seeing Sarah speaking privately with him, Jake assumes the worst. Sarah explains that Abe has reconciled with his wife, is expecting a…
Girls Are Late
Mama and Papa stay awake waiting for their daughters, with Papa imagining accidents and other disasters as the hour grows late. The girls return safely from an ordinary party, and…
Sidney Comes to Dinner
Mama prepares an elaborate dinner for Sarah's boyfriend Sidney while Papa questions his background, business and earning power. To impress him, Mama and Sarah let Sidney believe Sarah cooked the…
A Picnic Proposed
The girls want a Sunday picnic, but Mama insists they stay home because Grandma Bloom and Uncle Morris are coming to visit. After Mama makes them understand how much those…
The Picnic Planned
The family spends so long arguing over food, baskets, seating, clothes and who will drive that much of the picnic meal is eaten before they leave the house. They finally…
Finding a Place
The family finally sets out on its picnic amid arguments over the route, Papa's driving and the weather. At the picnic ground a missing food basket is blamed on Sidney…
Jake’s Lawsuit
Jake stays home with an upset stomach after eating liver sausage, expecting to rest while Mama tends to him. Instead she puts him through a stream of household chores and…
Gold Mine Investment
A smooth promoter tries to sell Jake a supposedly spectacular Australian gold-mine investment, and the girls are impressed by his clothes, diamonds and promises of huge returns. Mama distrusts him,…
Yetta’s Lesson
Yetta complains about the family's apartment, car, neighborhood and plain dinner until Papa learns that a large customer check may fail and force him out of business. Mama calmly shows…
Jake Buys a New Car
When Jake brings an automobile salesman home, the family immediately quarrels over what kind of new car he should buy and criticizes his driving. After the daughters admit they were…
Planning an Afternoon Party
Mama prepares an elaborate bridge luncheon full of obligatory guests, prizes, special linens and social rules, including an invitation to the relentlessly boastful Mrs. Fink. When Mrs. Fink arrives bragging…
Engagement Announced
On a Sunday morning, Mama and Papa complain about their daughters sleeping late and worry about Sidney's uncertain employment. Sarah then announces that she and Sidney became engaged the night…
Sidney Goes to Work for Jake
Newly working in Jake's business, Sidney alarms him by selling merchandise the factory does not even make and pushing for a much larger operation. Jake finally learns Sidney has ordered…
Red Uniform Profit
Jake is furious over a batch of bright red uniforms he assumes Sidney has made without a buyer. Sidney reveals they were a special order for a South American presidential…
Where’s Sidney
Jake and Sam desperately need Sidney for an urgent Washington sales meeting but cannot locate him anywhere in Philadelphia. After fruitless calls to hotels and the telegraph office, Mama reasons…
One Hundred Seventy Five Dollar Dress Bargain
Shopping for Sarah's trousseau, Mama refuses to accept a department store's $175 price for an evening dress even while Sarah begs her not to bargain. When Mama recognizes a relative…
Making the Wedding List
Mama and Sarah work through the enormous invitation list for Sarah's wedding, adding relatives, business acquaintances and social obligations while Mama supplies running commentary on each one. The task becomes…
Sidney’s Visit at Night
Jake and Mama cancel an evening visit and settle in for cards, only to have Sarah and Sidney drop by just as Jake gets comfortable. Mama exposes Jake's afternoon pinochle…
Sara Is Jealous
Sarah becomes furious after learning that Sidney took a red-haired girl dancing while he was away in Philadelphia, and their argument grows until they ask Mama to decide who is…
Honeymoon in Europe Rumor
As Sarah's wedding approaches, Papa hears Sidney telling a customer he may spend months in Europe and panics that the uniform business will be left in his hands. Sidney finally…
Mrs Fink Told Off
During the final days before Sarah's wedding, boastful Mrs. Fink belittles the Blooms' money, looks and family standing until Mama finally throws her out and fiercely defends Jake and the…
Blank Checks
The day before Sarah's wedding, the Bloom home is overwhelmed by deliveries, telephone calls, expensive clothes, forgotten invitations and last-minute errands. Jake objects to nearly every new expense but keeps…
The Day Before the Wedding
On the eve of Sarah and Sidney's wedding, the family is exhausted by fittings, relatives, honeymoon plans and endless last-minute details. Amid worries over the cost, Jake reveals that he…
The Wedding Day Arrives
Sarah's wedding day becomes a household scramble over a missing veil, ill-fitting clothes, flowers, food, the wedding cake, the rabbi and an absent bridegroom. Sidney finally arrives, the last-minute crises…
Another Engagement
With Sarah and Sidney's wedding finally over, Mama and Papa sit up late reviewing the celebration, the relatives and the mountain of expenses. Just as they begin to enjoy the…
New Furniture
As Yetta's wedding plans begin, Mama argues that the ceremony must be held at night so working friends can attend and enjoy it. The discussion turns to replacing the family's…
Yetta and Harold Elope
The Blooms and Finks discuss an elaborate wedding for Yetta and Harold, including hundreds of guests, orchestras, food and entertainment, while Mama argues for a simpler affair. Their plans become…
Out of Honeymoon Money
After Yetta and Harold marry without the planned large wedding, the family learns that the newlyweds are in Greenwich with too little money for a honeymoon because Harold is determined…
Harold Becomes a VIP
After Yetta and Harold return from their honeymoon, Mama warns that adding another son-in-law to the knee-pants factory may strain Jake's patience. Jake decides Harold should learn the business from…
Should Papa Retire
Mama visits the modernized factory and defends Jake's attachment to the old knee-pants business while the family debates fancy offices and new ways of working. The discussion ends with Sidney…
Papa Wants a Vacation
With Sidney and Harold urging Papa to retire from the knee-pants business, Mama tries to convince him that after years of work he needs a real vacation and can trust…
Travel Plans Changed
Mama and Papa begin planning the Yellowstone vacation for which Mama has already bought tickets, until Mrs. Fink visits and boasts about her travels. Learning that Mrs. Fink has never…
Should Sam Retire
While Jake prepares for a Hollywood vacation, his partner Sam complains about the factory's new gadgets and the changes brought by Sidney and Harold. After Mama explains why she wants…
First to Hollywood
As Mama and Papa prepare for their own Hollywood trip, the family gives them an early farewell dinner and new luggage. The celebration takes an unexpected turn when Harold rushes…
Grandparents Soon
Mama gives up trying to beat Mrs. Fink to Hollywood after learning the Finks will arrive there first, deciding that competing with her is foolish. Sidney and Sarah then reveal…
Mr Greenville’s Offer
A businessman named Mr. Greenville visits the Blooms and offers to buy the entire knee-pants factory so he can expand his own operation. Papa cannot bring himself to answer immediately,…
Eighty Thousand Dollar Price
When businessman Mr. Grenville offers to buy the Blooms' factory, Jake and Sam initially decide they cannot part with the business. Mama discovers from a magazine that Grenville is actually…
The Hollywood Trip Begins
After Jake and Sam sell the factory for $800,000, Mama changes the Hollywood trip from train travel to a leisurely drive and gets the reluctant Jake packed for retirement. As…
The Bridge Game
At a Michigan hotel, Mama decides that playing bridge with the other guests is part of taking a proper vacation, even though Jake barely knows the game. Paired against experienced…