This is the unluckiest Suspense episode ever from a scheduling perspective. Originally planned for April 12, it was cancelled by the news coverage of FDR’s death. Rescheduled for April 26, it was cancelled by the news coverage of the United Nations peace conference. Finally it was broadcast on June 7. The casting had to change.
The story was first broadcast on Suspense on 1942-12-22 and starred Stu Irwin. He was supposed to reprise his role in this 1945 broadcast, but the two-time change in schedule did not allow so. This broadcast stars John Payne and Frank McHugh. For details on the overall story go to https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/01/1942-12-22-two-sharp-knives.html and also https://archive.org/details/TSP421222
Yet again, an indicator of how pleased William Spier was with a script is whether he used it again. It was adapted for The Adventures of Sam Spade 1946-08-16 broadcast. Spier was the producer and owner of that series.
There are two surviving recordings of the episode. The surviving network recording cannot be identified as east or west; it has 3 seconds to network ID and is identified as “(3s).” The Armed Forces Radio Service (#106) recording is drawn from the missing network broadcast. The network recording is in better sound than the AFRS one. Times are approximate:
Network 2:06 “Well if it is, Wally, you can always carry on. You've been a fair imitation of an assistant to me for some time now.”
[McHugh: “Yeah?”]
“Yeah. Anything happens to me you'd be chief. Don't worry, it won't be any harder to....for you to fool the public as chief.”AFRS 1:18 “Well if it is you can always carry on. You've been a fair imitation of an assist...of an assistant to me for some [?] time now.”
[McHugh: “Yeah?”]
“Yeah. Anything happens to me you'd be chief. Don't worry, it won't be any harder for you to fool the public as chief.”
This episode was the only appearances of John Payne and Frank McHugh on Suspense.
John Payne’s stage and movie career began in the 1930s. He is best known as the attorney in Miracle on 34th Street but he had many successful roles. He was an army flight instructor in WW2 and completed his military service in Fall 1944. Payne was not often on radio but appeared on Lux, Cavalcade of America, Family Theater and others. His Wikipedia page is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Payne_(actor)
Frank McHugh was a comedic actor who appear on stage, screen, radio, and television. He was especially in the months and years prior to the broadcast he starred in a traveling revue to entertain the troops and keep their spirits high. McHugh was not on radio often. His Wikipedia overview of his very long career is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_McHugh
LISTEN
TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or
mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP450607
THE CAST
JOHN PAYNE (Scott Anderson), FRANK McHUGH (Wally Shane, alias Harry), Cathy Lewis (Ethel Furman), Lou Merrill (Lester Furman / Ben, the coroner), Stan Farrar (Wheelock), Harry Lang (Cap / George, the jailer), Wally Maher (Elmer / Carl Reisling), David Ellis (Signature Voice / Ted Carroll, the D. A. / Hamill), unknown (“Hotcha” Randall [Gloria Blondell?])
David Ellis substitutes for Joe Kearns.
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