Lilli Palmer stars in this repeated script of an Agatha Christie story adapted by Harold Medford. But the behind-the scenes story about this broadcast – and an accidental flub by Bill Johnstone – offer a glimpse into a curious part of Suspense history about an event that never happened. Details about that are after the episode’s cast information below.
The story is about a newly married woman who believes her husband might have a plan to kill her. It was previously performed in October 1943 with Orson Welles. Details about that and the July 1942 performance are at the blogpost for that episode https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/03/1943-10-07-philomel-cottage.html and at https://archive.org/details/TSP431007 This time, however, the script received the benefit of the bigger budget and lusher production from the Roma Wines sponsorship.
This broadcast was the first and only appearance of Lilli Palmer on Suspense. Her film career began in the 1930s and lasted five decades. At the time of this broadcast, she was married to actor Rex Harrison, a marriage that would last about 15 years. They met when she was performing in films in Britain. They moved to Hollywood in 1945. She was not on radio often. Details about her career as a stage performer, writer, television personality and other roles are summarized at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilli_Palmer
The east and west coast network broadcasts have survived. The east broadcast has the tease for The FBI in Peace and War but what is more distinctive is a flub where Bill Johnstone mispronounces Alfred Hitchcock’s name! The cast does their best to contain their laughter. Announcer Ken Niles does until the very last moment of the closing announcement.
The west coast recording is the best… but it has a clipped opening. About 20 seconds or so is missing at the beginning. The rest of the recording is excellent. There is a complete west coast recording of lower quality. But it is fun to listen to the flub at the end of the east recording. To enjoy the story, listen to the west; to get a glimpse into Suspense history, listen to the end of the east recording. The flub is at about the 28:50 mark, where Johnstone mentions upcoming guests “Dan Duryea, Alexander… (awkward pause) Hitchcock!, and others.” You can tell Johnstone realizes his gaffe and is holding back a laugh. Before Niles announces the network ID, which he barely gets through before starting to laugh, you can hear muffled chuckling in the background.
LISTEN
TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or
mp3
https://archive.org/details/tsp461226
THE CAST
LILLI PALMER (Alix Martin), Elliott Lewis (Gerald Martin), Raymond Lawrence (George), Bill Johnstone (Signature Voice / Voice on phone), Denis Green? (Dick), Wally Maher (Police constable)
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There is a story behind this Philomel Cottage episode of 1946-12-26, and why Alfred Hitchcock's name was mentioned as an upcoming guest yet another time. Philomel Cottage was not originally planned to be presented on this date, but rather The Wax Works, adapted by Mel Dinelli, was. It was mentioned in Variety for this date, and starring Alfred Hitchcock in a dramatic role!
A few weeks before this episode, newspapers and trade magazines (especially Louella Parsons' column) mentioned that Hitchcock was going take a turn before the microphone. It didn't happen, as we now know. As usual, Spier pulled from his “file cabinet of favorites” and selected this script.
There was always an interest in getting Hitchcock involved in radio drama, and the back chattering of him getting there via Suspense was always around, but it never panned out. The Wax Works script was held and held, likely in hopes of getting Hitchcock's calendar to cooperate. We do not know if there was a “rehearsal” or desk reading of the script with Hitchcock that changed his mind and the minds of others about his appearing as a star on Suspense.
It was finally performed on March 20, 1947, without Hitchcock's participation. It starred Claude Rains. A recording of his performance has never been found. It remains a missing episode. (If an AFRS recording is found it would likely be #200 or around that number).
Surely, had “Hitch” been scheduled for the March 1947 performance, it would have been publicized heavily, weeks before the broadcast. If he had appeared, it would have also been reported for multiple days after because his appearance would have been unusual and noteworthy. Instead, all of the publicity about the March 1947 centered on Claude Rains in this unusual “one-man” performance script. The only mentions of Hitchcock in the news at that time were for a potential “Suspense-like” program on NBC... or ABC... he was talking to everyone. As the old saying goes, "when all is said and done, more is said than done."
We now know that the mention of Hitchcock in the closing announcements of Philomel Cottage was not an accident or a prank, but another flirtatious "script-tease" in the Hitchcock-Spier-Suspense dance that only led to more waltzes together but no tying of a contractual knot.
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