Incredible, turns out I'm WAY behind the times I guess! - I had never heard of this before.
This from the Wikipedia article got a groan out of me:
"Often the request was for medical care or therapeutic equipment to help a chronically ill child, or might be for a hearing aid, a new washing machine, or a refrigerator. Many women broke down sobbing as they described their plights."
And then this:
The show became popular enough that NBC increased its running time from 30 to 45 minutes to sell more commercials, at a then-premium rate of $4,000 per minute
This from the Wikipedia article got a groan out of me:
"Often the request was for medical care or therapeutic equipment to help a chronically ill child, or might be for a hearing aid, a new washing machine, or a refrigerator. Many women broke down sobbing as they described their plights."
And then this:
The show became popular enough that NBC increased its running time from 30 to 45 minutes to sell more commercials, at a then-premium rate of $4,000 per minute
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_for_a_Day