Mama is a weekly Maxwell House and Post Cereal-sponsored CBS Television comedy-drama series that ran from July 1, 1949 until March 17, 1957. It is based on the memoir Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes, which was also adapted for the John Van Druten play (1944) and the subsequent film I Remember Mama (1948),[1] and told the ongoing story of a loving Norwegian family living in San Francisco in the 1910s through the eyes of the elder daughter, Katrin Hansen (Rosemary Rice). Katrin would be seen looking through the pages of the family album at the start of each episode with the opening narration:

"This old album makes me remember so many things in the past. San Francisco and the house on Steiner Street where I was born. It brings back memories of my cousins, aunts, and uncles; all the boys and girls I grew up with. And I remember my family as we were then. My brother Nels, my little sister Dagmar, and of course, Papa. But most of all when I look back to those days so long ago, most of all, I remember ... Mama."

The show was originally broadcast live from a television studio located above the Oyster Bar in Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal.

....Although earlier incarnations of I Remember Mama had focused primarily on the relationship between Marta and Katrin, the television series typically dealt with a specific family member's problem and eventually drew the whole family into helping with its resolution. The program aired live, and kinescope recordings were prepared for West Coast broadcasts. The popularity and high ratings of Mama prompted a national re-release of I Remember Mama in 1956. In some theaters, this reissue included a stage presentation of "Dish Night," a recreation of the dinnerware giveaways theaters held during the 1930s to attract ticket-buyers.

From its premiere in 1949 to 1955, Mama proved to be not only a ratings winner for CBS; it also became a Friday night tradition when millions of families across America (including children already dressed for bed) gathered around the television set to tune into another episode concerning the Hansen family.