My mother’s sitcom genius and her necklace of tears

Astrid King's mother Peg Lynch was a pioneer of the US sitcom. She was the first woman to write, star in, and hold the rights for her own show, Ethel and Albert - one of America's best-known comedy couples on radio and TV from the 1940s until the 60s. But when the show ended, it disappeared from public view and Peg's career faded. Astrid's relationship with her mother - which in her childhood was 'magical' - became more strained. Peg died in 2014 and left behind a weighty legacy - hundreds of hours of tape and thousands of pages of script for Astrid to sort through. But when Astrid came across a curious necklace nestled in her mother's belongings, it unlocked a childhood memory that would help her understand Peg and their complicated dynamic. Today, Astrid has taken on the task of unearthing and preserving Peg Lynch's archive and bringing her work back into the light.

Presenter: Asya Fouks
Producer: Helen Fitzhenry

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(Photo: Peg Lynch with her daughter Astrid King and mother Clara. Credit: Astrid King)