1955-02-17 The Man with the Steel Teeth

John Dehner wrote this script and starred in this production about an American reporter who escapes the incarceration and beatings of the Russian KGB who considered him a spy. He is picked up by the police after a cultural event, and charged with numerous crimes, including spying. They torture him but he never confesses. One morning he wakes up in his cell, but the door is open. He takes the opportunity to escape but always wonders if it was a set-up. He later learns that one of his captors wants to escape with him to the West.

The script was originally used in the 1953-03-15 broadcast of Escape. That broadcast starred Harry Bartell. This 1955 broadcast is one of the rare occasions on Suspense where the author and the star are the same person. Antony Ellis had written some scripts but never starred in any.

Dehner’s idea about using “steel teeth” in the storyline may have come from late 1940s news reports about Communist political figure Antonín Zápotocký and future leader of Czechoslovakia. He had such teeth. There were also occasional news reports in the early 1950s that mentioned steel teeth had become “popular” in Russia.

Lubyanka was a real place. The buildings were seized after the 1917 revolution and became the headquarters for the secret police, later known as the KGB. The prison was a two-story building next to the main one. In 1940, many of the prisoners were part of Stalin’s “Great Purge” before they were moved to Siberia and the Gulags. There are museums in the buildings now, but they are supposedly not open to the public but for private tours.

This broadcast is important for its technological history. Classic radio researcher and international entertainer Keith Scott notes that this was the last program recorded on transcription discs that would become part of the CBS archives. Future programs would be recorded on tape. Unfortunately many of those tapes would be erased and re-used. Some transcriptions were made, but by others like ad agencies and performers using an outside recording service. CBS would make tapes for the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS) which would be edited and distributed on 16” discs requiring two parts to its stations. They would later release them as microgroove 16” discs with a complete program on one side. AFRTS would later switch to 12” pressings.

If it was not for the AFRTS discs and home recordists there would be many gaps in the surviving Suspense series recordings. After November 1951, there are only two missing Suspense recordings. They are a repeat performance of A Case Of Nerves from 1956-04-24 and the only performance of Massacre at Little Big Horn from 1956-08-01. AFRTS recordings have proven to be the best sounding recordings for much of the 1957 and 1958 seasons, replacing many home recordings over the years.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550217

THE CAST

John Dehner (Arthur Lutrell), Maria Palmer (Maria), Edgar Barrier (MVD / Soldier), Jack Kruschen (Max Golovin), Robert Boon (Bronislaw), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1955-02-10 Diagnosis of Death

John Dunkel was known mainly for his western scripts for Gunsmoke and Have Gun – Will Travel. This is one of his two original Suspense scripts, and likely his best. A man accidentally overhears a terminal diagnosis of a patient, and he believes that report was meant for him. That bad news drives him to near suicide as the doctor and his wife desperately try to find him and prevent him from taking his life.

At the time of this broadcast, the ability to detect terminal diseases early enough for effective treatment was in its infancy. Most people with terminal diseases would learn too late to have any life-saving treatments, if there were any available. This story may sound strange to modern ears, but many listeners were likely to have had experiences of such fear-inducing situations in their extended families, workplaces, and their social relationships. This was also a time when there was often a family decision with physician consent to not tell terminal patients how sick they actually were. It was an unnerving charade, saying that they were going to be fine, with patients innately knowing their situation, yet be afraid to admit to family members that they actually knew how sick they really were. Terminal illnesses could bankrupt families who did not have medical insurance, leaving survivors penniless if the sick person did not have life insurance. Therefore, many listeners would have understood the actions described in the story. Just a few decades later, numerous medical breakthroughs were made. There were significant developments in early detection methods via chemical analysis and imaging technologies. They would provide hope to a wide range of patients who would have been considered terminal in 1955.

The CBS publicity for the plotline was “The story of a man who thought the only way to escape death was to search for it.” It is the kind of description that can only be understood after listening, and even then, it’s not particularly good or effective.

 The plot device of a negative diagnosis intended for someone else was not a new idea. Classic radio enthusiast and researcher, and performer, Patte Rosebank notes:

The same plot device was used on the November 23, 1947 episode of The Phil Harris - Alice Faye Show. Phil overhears Alice taking to the vet on the phone about their sick dog, and presumes she's talking to the doctor about him. Though her lines are very obviously about the dog (and she's not at all as upset as anyone would really be, who's just been told their pet is dying), Phil is convinced his death is imminent, and (even worse) Alice doesn't care at all.

Researcher Karl Schadow notes “There is also a similar plot in the inaugural episode of Night Beat (January 6, 1950). The script was written by Russell Hughes. Jeanne Bates and Larry Dobkin were cast members of that episode.

A famous comedic treatment about mistaking a negative diagnosis intended for someone else was used on the television series The Honeymooners in the fifth episode of “the classic 39.” Ralph mistakenly believes a veterinarian’s report about a dog is actually about him. The story is A Matter of Life and Death and aired on October 29, 1955. That story was first performed on December 13, 1952 on The Jackie Gleason Show, and was expanded to be one of the “classic 39” series. Could that production, or others, have been the springboard idea that inspired Dunkel to create this much more serious story and write this script?

Dunkel used the plot element of a man with a false terminal diagnosis on the television version of Gunsmoke in the episode Trip West that aired on May 2, 1964.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550210

THE CAST

Jeanne Bates (Martha Davis), Lawrence Dobkin (Dr. Jim Kirk), Jerry Hausner (Nicol the Broker), Barney Phillips (Sergeant), Charles Lung (Druggist / Simon), Truda Marson (Anne / Police Radio), Richard Beals (Everett [the boy]), Helen Kleeb (Mother), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1955-02-03 A Killing in Abilene

Parley Baer stars in the Gil Doud and Antony Ellis story about a lone horseman tracking down his brother's murderer. Rather than revenge, he seeks to bring the killer before a court. In the conclusion, all the accusers realize that the killer was not who they originally believed. Justice is finally delivered.

The original 1950 production starred Alan Ladd. Background and recordings can be found at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/05/1950-12-14-killing-in-abilene.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP501214, which is the site from which recordings can be streamed or downloaded.

Parley Baer gives a fine performance, in stark contrast to the simple and compliant Chester, this role is much more authoritative. This was one of the scripts that help form some of the key ideas about adult western drama that would coalesce to become Gunsmoke. Alan Ladd was an excellent radio performer, and many enthusiasts may prefer that original production to this one, and are not slighting Parley Baer by any means if they do so. There are few Ladd radio performances compared to the constant and steadfast presence of the much beloved Baer who made hundreds if not thousands of radio appearances.

Frank Gerstle’s character was named “Bob” in early scripts but it was changed to “Ben” by the time of broadcast. No reason can be found.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550203

THE CAST

Parley Baer (Jack Mander), Paula Winslowe (Sarah Costen), Jack Kruschen (Needle), Frank Gerstle (Ben Chappie), James Nusser (Sheriff Jake Garvey), Vic Perrin (Lee Burrage), Joe DuVal (Bob / Jim Eakin), Will Wright (Old Timer), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1955-01-27 The Operation

A down-on-his luck man is the patient of a doctor, and uses that status as a ruse. He returns to the office after his earlier appointment, at closing time to pick up his medication. But that’s a ruse; he wants money. While he is there with the office nurse who is attempting to deal with the dangerous situation, two criminals burst into the office. One of them has been shot. His companion demands that the doctor operate immediately to remove the bullet. But the doctor’s not in the office… and the criminal sincerely believes the man attempting to rob the office is the doctor! The criminal threatens them, and the quick-thinking nurse says they will do the operation. In the process, she has to secure the cooperation of the robber who must pretend to be the doctor and be convincing about it. How she guides him to buy time for someone to come and rescue them from the situation makes for a compelling story.

The author is identified as “Charles Jacobs.” That name has befuddled many for a long time. The name is not found in resources that identify short story authors or novelists or movie and television writers or theatrical playwrights. It's too good a script and too complex a plot for the author to not have written anything else. If the author was a “one hit wonder,” there would likely be mention of someone adapting the story. The identity is finally known. The insight came from consulting the Wikipedia page for Antony Ellis where his birth name is revealed as "Antony Ellis Jacobs." A search of Ellis family documents resulted in finding the marriage license of Antony and Georgia Ellis. On the form is written the name of Antony Ellis’ father: Charles Jacobs. It is not known why Ellis chose this script or moment to use a pseudonym. As best can be determined, he only used pseudonyms twice more during his time as producer.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550127

THE CAST

Hy Averback (Carter), Mary Jane Croft (Mrs. Ruth Bell), Herb Ellis (Al), Sam Edwards (Danny), John Fell (2nd Officer), Bill Justine (Officer / Radio voice), John Stephenson (Dr. Bell), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1955-01-20 Study of a Murderer

This is the second broadcast of an exceptional Arthur Ross script, superbly cast with Charlotte Lawrence and William Conrad. He was in the original broadcast and “stole the show” there, but in this broadcast, Lawrence and Conrad are extraordinary together. This is not one of the episodes that you suggest to a first-time Suspense listener. It is challenging to the actors and listeners need time to absorb it all. This is not one of those episodes where you can listen in the background and catch all of its subtleties. Conrad’s acting range may be surprising since he is so often cast in strong roles on Gunsmoke and his TV series, or sinister roles on Escape, The Whistler, and other series. This episode is about the mental illness of a husband, and we hear his condition deteriorate with almost every minute, all through the script, and Conrad’s portrayal. We suffer along with his wife, who after only two years or marriage has to come to terms with his need for psychiatric care. The time of being happy newlyweds was incredibly and tragically brief.

Background about the story and the recordings of the first broadcast are available at these links:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/06/1951-10-01-case-study-of-murderer.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP511001 is where the recordings can be downloaded or streamed

The story had multiple titles. In the broadcast of 1951-10-01, the title was Case Study of a Murderer. The prior week of this broadcast, it was announced as “The Case History of a Murderer.” The script for this 1955 has the title “Study of a Murder.” It was changed once more prior to this broadcast.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550120

THE CAST

Charlotte Lawrence (Beth), William Conrad (Hank), Herb Butterfield (Doctor), Larry Thor (Radio Commentator / Narrator)

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1955-01-13 Final Payment

Harry Bartell stars in a story about “Joe,” one of two Army buddies who try to scam an insurance company by staging a fake car accident. This is no sudden plan; this will take time. His friend “Biff” is the mastermind of it all. To make it work, they have to plan and lay a foundation that would be unassailable in court. The process would take a year or more. It is decided that Joe will move his family, take a job in their new town, buy a car… and an insurance policy. He is to create such a reliable and trustworthy image that the insurance company would be more than happy to increase the value of the policy and not question it. The day comes… Biff is hit by Joe’s car… and it looks like the scam will work… the case goes to court. And then something quite unexpected happens to Biff to disrupt their patient scheme.

The story is by Richard-George Pedicini and Phil Cole and adapted by Antony Ellis.

There are two recordings of this episode. The best recording is a newly available Armed Forces Radio Service recording (AFRS#515) but has slight sibilance (“ess-ing”) issues but otherwise has nice sound. The network recording is very listenable.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550113

THE CAST

Harry Bartell (Joe Thurston), Peter Leeds (Biff Munro), Vivi Janiss (Mary Thurston / Woman), Barney Phillips (Mr. Sheridan), Victor Rodman (Judge), John Larch (Mr. Hirsch), Byron Kane (Jackson Green), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1955-01-06 Murder Aboard the Alphabet

This episode was a missing episode until it was found in a cache of AFRS discs that a group of collectors purchased in 2023. It is now available for the very first time with this blogpost.

William Conrad plays a ship captain with obsessive compulsive disorder who demands that ship maintenance and operations be performed in alphabetical order. When crew members start to be killed, it is suspected that the captain, himself, may be killing crew members in alphabetical order, too! Crew members are terrified and look to the First Mate to keep the captain in line and perhaps lead a mutiny. Could the captain really be the killer? Or is it a crew member who seeks to use the captain’s quirky habit to hide their vile acts?

This is a second broadcast of the script. John Lund starred in the first production. Details are at these resources:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/10/1947-08-21-murder-aboard-alphabet.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP470821 is where recordings can be downloaded or streamed.

The blogpost for the 1947 episode has been updated with more information about the author’s identity and background. This information is repeated here for convenience:

Charles Turrell McNair wrote the script. At age 20 he one of the youngest men to be assigned to a command post in the Canadian Navy. At the end of WW2, he was demobilized, but remained with the Navy and became a public relations officer. He had some journalistic experience but also wrote radio plays that were performed on the CBC. He submitted “Murder by the Alphabet” to Suspense and was paid $350. If that was in Canadian dollars, that would be C$5900 in 2024. The equivalent in US$2024 would be about $3900. He had a successful academic leadership career in the growth of Mohawk College of Ontario. He passed away in 2000. His obituary is at https://www.legacy.com/ca/obituaries/theglobeandmail/name/charles-mcnair-obituary?id=41829405 but it is worth seeking some of the more detailed ones online that were published at that time.

The script was adapted by Antony Ellis.

No network recording has been found. The surviving recording is from the Armed Forces Radio Service and is AFRS#514.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP550106

THE CAST

William Conrad (Captain Godfrey Walker), Vic Perrin (First Mate Marshland), Parley Baer (Higgens), “Tom” Krugman (Second Mate Harvey Goodrem / Priest), Peter Leeds (Chadwick), Jim Nusser (Fitch / Policeman), Howard McNear (Chief engineer Alec McTavish), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-12-30 Odd Man Out

The adaptation of the story of the Irish separatist movement and a bank robbery was made popular by a highly regarded 1947 movie of the same name. The perpetrator of the robbery is dazed and stumbles through dark alleyways, and keeps moving to avoid police detection and arrest. He can hear the police sirens as they try track him down. People are afraid to shelter him for fear of repercussions from others and the authorities. One might turn him in for the reward for his capture. An artist wants only to paint his portrait before the fugitive succumbs to his injuries. There is a young woman who loves him, however, and finds him just before as the story reaches its climax.

The story was adapted by Antony Ellis from the original 1945 novel by British author Frederick Laurence Green.

The first broadcast of the script was in February 1952 and starred James and Pamela Mason. Further information can be found at these resources:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/07/1952-02-11-odd-man-out.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP520211 is where recordings can be streamed or downloaded.

There are both network and Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#513) recordings. The AFRS recording is the better of the two and is new to circulation.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541230

THE CAST

Ben Wright (Johnny), Betty Harford (Agnes), Joseph Kearns (Shell), Charles Davis (Nolan), Richard Peel (1st Police Officer), Dick Ryan (Fencie / Pat), Tom McKee (Murphy), Ray Lawrence (2nd Police Officer), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-12-23 Premonition

The first Antony Ellis production is a John Dunkel story about a husband and wife staying at a ski lodge in the Swiss Alps. They are there for relaxation and for him to finish writing his book. The husband, however, has a vivid premonition of a deadly avalanche in which he and others will lose their life. The images and the sensation were so strong for him that he tells everyone they need to evacuate. They don’t believe him, provide myriad reasons why it could never happen, and that history proves there is no need to be concerned. All of the people at the lodge decide to stay.

You just know what’s going to happen next when you hear the line at about 18:40 when you hear that the husband is writing a “scientific note” about his premonition “when someone finds it.” Call it a… premonition…

It is a good story and production, like many of the Ellis productions will be. The Ellis period has an emphasis on storytelling, relies less on being driven by events in the news, and even tackles some psychological dramas. There will be 93 productions before Suspense replaces him with William N. Robson in mid-October 1956.

There is a sense in this period that CBS was rather ambivalent about radio drama and Suspense in terms of the support they would give it. During the Ellis period there is very little news coverage of the series, and that is a sign that CBS’ publicity effort on behalf of the series was meager, at best. All these years later, it is a great benefit for classic radio enthusiasts to hear these programs because many of the Ellis shows are “hidden gems” because of CBS’ marketing neglect at the time. Robson would be more successful at squeezing the CBS “suits” for promotional and money for fees for higher profile actors. Ellis relied on the radio pros enthusiasts have come to love all these decades later, and the productions benefit from their marvelous skills.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541223

THE CAST

Larry Dobkin (Tony), Charlotte Lawrence (Gwen), Edgar Barrier (Braun), John Dehner (Rouge), Fritz Feld (Landeck), Joe Cranston (Sergeant), Nan Boardman (Madame Rouge), Ben Wright (Radio Announcer)

* * *

Bernard Herrmann stops by to visit Suspense to conduct the orchestra, something he had not done since 1943-09-16 The Cross-Eyed Bear. Lud Gluskin was obviously not available, possibly for some Christmas holiday break. Herrmann’s simple but haunting Suspense theme was used throughout the 20-year run of the series in many different contexts.

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1954-12-16 Pretty Girl

Lynne Allen stars as a pretty college girl knows that fellow students and male faculty are attracted to her, and she has an attraction to older men. She seems programmed to automatically use that attraction to her advantage, but turns suitors away once she has what she wants. The suitors turn into stalkers, and a stalker who is convinced he wants to marry her becomes violent when she turns him away. The broadcast begins when she is in a police station, speechless. Police are determined to understand how that man died in her confrontation with him. The end is a bit creepy as she starts to flirt with a police officer and you realize the undercurrent of trouble that she brings with her in even the smallest of acquaintanceships. You wonder if this could all happen again… and again...

The story is by E. Jack Neuman. Lynne Allen (occasionally billed as “Marilyn” or “Lynn”) was active in radio, including many Macdonnell shows, in the late 1940s and early 1950s. She was in many 1950s TV productions. She passed away at age 49, of cancer, in 1972.

The announced broadcast was “Baby Sitter,” which has a different plotline. That script might never have been broadcast. Newspaper listings were sparse in the non-sponsored era of Suspense. The newspaper plotlines that could be found had this (composite) description:

A young girl finds there are hazards in every occupation, even baby-sitting, especially when a jilted man is concerned in “Baby Sitter,” on Suspense.

The plot of Pretty Girl includes a young girl, and a jilted man, but she’s not a baby sitter, and she’s in college when babysitting was common among high school students. Sure, she’s in an academic environment where long-term older cynical faculty sometimes refer to introductory freshman classes in a derogatory manner as “baby sitting,” but this is not a snide reference in a script title. No newspaper listing of Pretty Girl or a correct published plotline has surfaced. The script of “Baby Sitter” might never have been produced. Or, it could have gone in for a massive re-write and became Pretty Girl. We may never know. If there was an original “Baby Sitter” script, we do not know the author.

Classic radio researcher and international entertainer notes that...

After fifteen shows, producer-director Norman Macdonnell leaves Suspense. He was busy prepping Gunsmoke for television, as well as producing two weekly radio series, Gunsmoke and Romance. Antony Ellis replaces him, and will produce and direct the next 93 shows. Ellis’s associate director is Ken McManus.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541216

THE CAST

Lynne Allen (Emmy Carter), Paul Dubov (Lieutenant Lew Gayle), William Justine (Sergeant Ham Norman), Dolores Pinard [Brown] (Sally), Vic Perrin (Ray Hamilton), Tim Graham (Dr. Walter Church), Ann Morrison (Mrs. Hilda Church), Sam Edwards (Jug), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-12-09 On a Country Road

Harry Bartell and Virginia Gregg star in the third production of the famous script about a couple lost on Long Island south shore roads in a heavy rain. Police have warned that there is an escaped homicidal psychiatric patient in the area. The script was by “one-hit-wonder” Walter Bazar who went on to have a successful career as a newspaper journalist. There were productions in April 1950 with Cary Grant and in January 1954 with Frank and Joan Lovejoy. It was a very popular script. It was also performed later in the series (with Howard Duff and Ida Lupino) and there was a television production, too.

November 1950 production with Cary Grant

• The blogpost for the first broadcast has details about the story, Walter Bazar, the Suspense television production (with the top-down convertible riding in the rain) and other aspects of the story https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/04/1950-11-16-on-country-road.html

• The network and AFRS recordings related to the 1950 broadcast can be downloaded or streamed at https://archive.org/details/TSP501116

January 1954 production with Frank Lovejoy and Joan Banks

• The background for the January 1954 production can be found at https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/09/1954-01-04-on-country-road.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP540104 has download and streaming resources.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541209

THE CAST

Harry Bartell (David), Virginia Gregg (Dorothy), Helen Kleeb (Nellie), Thomas McKee (News Announcer), Jack Carol (Cop), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-12-02 The Shot

William Conrad and John Dehner star in this Edgar-award winning story by E. Jack Neuman. He adapted it from Alexander Pushkin’s 1831 short story and changed the venue to the post-Civil War United States. Six months before this broadcast, the Mystery Writers of America gave it the award. Their determination was based on the October, 1953 broadcast that starred Van Heflin.

Details about the script and the initial broadcast can be found at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/09/1953-10-12-shot.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP531012 is where the 1953 broadcast recording can be downloaded or streamed.

This broadcast is an example of the work of two or radio’s finest actors and what they brought to the medium and the art of radio. Heflin was an exceptional radio actor, unlike many of his movie counterparts, and his 1953 broadcast was very well done, as usual for him. But for many of the scripts that are presented again in the unsponsored, sustaining network broadcasts, without the glitz of Hollywood publicitymongers, the CBS radio ensemble delivers consistently fine and compelling performances. They are often better than the original sponsored presentations.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541202

THE CAST

William Conrad (Lt. Zachary Payton), John Dehner (Ben Rolls), Vic Perrin (The Second), Edgar Barrier (Temple), Parley Baer (Jim Stockwell), Frank Gerstle (Pauk), Marvin Bryan (Quincy), Lynn Allen (Marsha), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-11-25 Shooting Star

Virginia Christine stars in a story of an angry Hollywood actress whose casting in a new film was spurned by a big shot producer. She stalks him and invades his weekend retreat, threatening to harm him unless he changes his mind. She’s deadly serious about it, too. People come to the door for various reasons, but she has him restrained so they can’t see him and he can’t call for help. She even pretends to be the housekeeper, providing assurance that all is fine, speaking with a Swedish accent (which is somewhat of an inside joke to the story). Her revengeful scheme does not work out as she intended. She’ll never get the part she so desperately wanted because she goes just a bit to far with the scheme. This is a good story with fine performances, with another great Joe Kearns portrayal. He plays the narcissistic movie mogul she targets.

The script was by Ruth Bourne, a freelance writer for radio in the 1950s. This was her only Suspense script, and it’s quite good.

Virginia Christine worked in radio for many years. This is her sole Suspense performance. She was doing some work on the Gunsmoke and Romance series around the time of this broadcast for Macdonnell. She would later appear in Have Gun -- Will Travel radio episodes. The role she was most famous for, in a career filled with successful supporting big and small screen roles, was in a series of television commercials. She was “Mrs. Olsen” in the 1960s for Folgers Coffee. YouTube has several of the commercials, such as this one https://youtu.be/TfD6fstnfQA?si=8a_eENG13ZA5RsjT

Christine was married to Fritz Feld, who also did some 1950s Suspense work, but they never appeared on the series together. Christine had a sideline career to tutor actors in Swedish accent (and likely others). She was one of those actors who always seemed to be working on something, with less downtime between gigs than most. She had a long and highly successful career in TV and movies, and voice acting, but never made it big in terms of achieving highly recognizable stardom. She was one of those actors for whom the audience muttered “I’ve seen her before… but I don’t know when… she’s so familiar…” but might never recall her name. Her active career spanned almost 40 years. Wikipedia has an overview of her career and life https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Christine 

This episode was pre-recorded on Wednesday, November 10, 1954. in the Macdonnell period. Rehearsal began at 11:30am on. The show was recorded from 4:15pm to 5:00pm.

No network recording has been located. An Armed Forces Radio Service recording (AFRS#508) has survived. It circulated for many years in below average sound, but this recording is a major improvement and adds greatly to the enjoyment of the episode.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541125

THE CAST

Virginia Christine (Gay Lansing), Joseph Kearns (J. D. Zimmer), John Dehner (Bennie), Sam Edwards (Ed the Delivery Boy), Michael Ann Barrett (Iris), John Larch (Miles / Dave), Jill Jarmyn (Secretary), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-11-18 Blind Date

Shirley Mitchell plays a vaudeville dancer looking for a good time after her final performance in yet another town on the show’s tour. Vic Perrin plays the blind date who traps her in her dressing room. He seems interesting and refined at the beginning, but when uses his knife to open a bottle of wine, she gets the sense that things may not go as planned and she could be in serious danger.

The script is by E. Jack Neuman with Harrison Negley.

The 1949 production starred June Havoc and Charles Laughton. Details about that production and the original script are at these resources:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/02/1949-09-29-blind-date.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP490929 also has links for downloading and streaming the recordings.

There is an inside joke at about 9:55 when she claims she got a fur from “Mr. John Meston.” He was Gunsmoke’s most prolific and important writer.

This episode was recorded on Wednesday, November 17, 1954. Rehearsal began at 11:30am and the recording session began at 4:15pm and ended at 5:00pm.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541118

THE CAST

Vic Perrin (Vincent Hawthorne), Shirley Mitchell (Gloria LeFay), Lee Millar (Bill the Stage manager), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-11-11 The Sure Thing

[NOTE: There is an Escape episode with the same name with different authors and a much different plot. This Suspense episode involves horse racing.]

Hy Averback stars in a Ross Murray about down on his luck bookmaker. He tries to buy into a horse racing syndicate on a hot tip… but that tip was a set-up to frame him for a murder. It’s a good story with a surprising ending.

The original title of this episode was “The Fix.”

The amount of money involved in the story is huge, and only by adjusting for inflation can they be understood. The $250,000 that is bet by Averback’s character is almost $3 million in US$2024. The amounts of money mentioned in scripts like this were selected to rattle the listening audience and keep them listening intently.

A key line in the story that relates to the ending is at about 4:40. Averback’s character brags about how much he knows about people and horses. Listen for it.

When he loses the “hot tip, sure thing” bet for $250,000, he realizes he’s in big trouble. He starts calling around to loan sharks to cover his losses. Things don’t go well after that.

This episode was the first to be pre-recorded in the Macdonnell period. Rehearsal began at 11:30am on Wednesday, November 10, 1954. The show was recorded from 4:30pm to 5:00pm.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541111

THE CAST

Hy Averback (Phil Brannon), Jerry Hausner (Lefty), Clayton Post (Marty), Julie Bennett (Eileen), Peter Leeds (Lester), Jan Arvan (Second attendant / Man), Lou Krugman (First attendant / Roger), Charlotte Lawrence (Barbara), William Oyler (Voice), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-11-04 The Last Letter of Dr. Bronson

John Dehner stars in the third broadcast of the Richard Kreyke story about a doctor who wants to understand what prevents people from committing evil acts. He tests his theory, but learns a hard lesson he was not expecting.

The show was broadcast twice, one as a sustaining broadcast, and the second under the Roma Wines sponsorship. Details can be found as follows:

1943 broadcast with Laird Cregar

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/02/1943-07-27-last-letter-of-dr-bronson.html has information about Kreyke and the background of the story.

• https://archive.org/details/TSP430727 has the streaming and downloadable recordings.

1946 broadcast with Henry Daniell

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/08/1946-08-15-last-letter-of-dr-bronson.html

• https://archive.org/details/460815 has streaming and downloading resources/

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541104

THE CAST

John Dehner (Dr. Bronson), Parley Baer (Dr. Mosher), Howard Culver (Mr. Totten), Paul Richards (Matt Doyle), Virginia Gregg (Dr. Judith Ainsley), James Nusser (Ladurne / Man), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-10-28 The Shelter

Radio veterans Vic Perrin and Joyce McCluskey have this episode mostly to themselves as they play two people waiting at a remote bus shelter waiting for the route’s midnight stop. Like On a Country Road, an escaped lunatic is on the loose. That means there’s a surprise ahead for misidentifying the source of potential danger.

McCloskey’s character is awaiting her bus, and she meets a man there who is intent on conversation. He seems quite odd, and to listen to him you’d be convinced he’s the lunatic (so you know it won’t be him; it’s too early). He clearly has obsessive compulsive disorder, and that’s supposed to lead us believe OCD can make him a killer. We learn at the end why organization and placement of the typical things of life are so important to him… and who the person with psychiatric issues is.

There are clues to the ending and the rationale of the behavior of Perrin’s character throughout. Once you hear the ending, you may want to re-listen to hear the clues you missed and they may suddenly seem obvious… but you missed them on the first listen!

The script is by Don Yerrill, who also wrote for the Cathy and Elliott Lewis series, On Stage. Yerrill lived in Scotland and had his plays performed in the UK and Australia. He did some US television writing in the 1950s. He was a prominent crossword puzzle author, under the name “Tantalus.” His puzzles appeared in the London Times Literary Supplement. He was composing puzzles until age 92. In 2016, his death certificate listed his occupation as “wordsmith.” This is the first of two Suspense scripts prepared by him. The other is the long-missing The Eavesdropper of January 1956 that was recently found as an AFRS recording.

Most of the circulating recordings of this episode are combinations of dull or narrow range, and have background tape noise. This recording is an improvement over what has been available before.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541028

THE CAST

Vic Perrin (Man in shelter), Joyce McCluskey (Woman), Helen Kleeb (Mother), Dick Ryan (Car driver), Herb Ellis (Uncle Will), Frank Gerstle (Radio announcer), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-10-21 Rave Notice

This is the second broadcast of the James Poe story that has an actor shoot his director, whom he hates, then faking insanity to get away with it. The first broadcast starred Milton Berle, but this one is a much better performance with the superbly talented radio veteran Hans Conried. He was in radio, movies, television, and the stage. One of the radio’s busiest actors, his Suspense appearances were quite notable for their versatility. This is a perfect role for him.

His appearance in 1947-02-27 Three Faces at Midnight is thankfully preserved. In the east coast production, the sound effects gun did not fire, and Conried continued to act, ad libbing to buy time for the technician to get the backup gun and execute the effect. The west coast version is a clean reading, with no effect problem. It is interesting to compare the two scenes and how smooth Conried was when the scene was in trouble.

He was also in 1946-12-05 The House in Cypress Canyon and in addition to acting performed the scary sounds heard in the house. Many baby boomers know him best for his recurring television role with Danny Thomas as his “Uncle Tonouse” and his hilarious appearance in I Love Lucy as speech teacher “Percy Livermore” (Lucy Hires an English Tutor, aired on 1952-12-29). Conried could purposely overact when situations called for it; other radio cast members would have difficulty containing their laughter.

The initial broadcast and background information about it can be found at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/04/1950-10-12-rave-notice.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP501012 has the recordings for download.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541021

THE CAST

Hans Conried (Sam), Larry Dobkin (Norman / Judge), Parley Baer (Man / First Doctor), Howard McNear (Gun shopkeeper), Jack Kruschen (Guard 1), James Nusser (Guard 2), Edgar Barrier (Lawyer), John Stephenson (Head Doctor), Eleanor Tanin (Ad Lib scream), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-10-14 Lost

A woman, lost, and wandering the streets of New York City, may have committed a murder. She has amnesia and has little recollection of her most recent hours and days. She asks for help from the police, and soon finds herself in a hospital. “Alice,” as she and they learn, is her name, and the police start to question her. After some case publicity on television, her husband comes to the police and explains they were on an extended stay from San Francisco. He was a songwriter looking for someone to sing his compositions. Alice begins to recall her trip, and that the singer was Joyce Carlisle. The police bring her to Carlisle’s apartment to fill in the gaps of her memory. Then the complete story emerges.

It’s a good script and production. The plot is predictable, but is an enjoyable listen. One of the problems with many radio dramas that are constrained budget sustaining programs is that there are not enough characters to spread around suspicion of guilt prior to revealing the killer’s identity at the conclusion.

The script is by radio veteran Jerry D. Lewis. He was the head writer for This Is Your FBI. Lewis left that series to get into television writing, directing, and producing. This is one of two Suspense scripts penned by him.

The original title of the script was “Lost One.”

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541014

THE CAST

Paula Winslowe (Alice Parker / Nurse), Herb Vigran (Police Officer), William Conrad (Lieutenant Mark Neal), John Dehner (Doctor Corday), Tony Barrett (Vance Parker), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-10-07 Chicken Feed

A lawyer and husband leaves home after an argument and starts driving to get his mind straight. He stops for a cup of coffee to cool his anger, and then realizes he left his wallet at home. What happens after that will cause him to never forget his wallet again. He ends up in a cell for the night, a vagrant, who stiffed the coffee shop for his meal. The thugs in the cell with him think he’s a messenger for the local crime boss. Uh-oh. Everyone gets surprised in this one. This Lawrence Goldman script was a favorite among series producers, and produced three times on the series. It was originally offered with Ray Milland. This is the second broadcast.

Background about the script and other items of interest can be found at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/02/1949-09-08-chicken-feed.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP490908 is where recordings of that debut broadcast can be found.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP541007

THE CAST

Harry Bartell (Ralph Clark), Eleanore Tanin (Waitress / Operator), Vic Perrin (Officer Jim Brady), Michael Ann Barrett (Mary), Edgar Barrier (Slim, the drunk in cell), James Nusser (Pete), Clayton Post (Mr. Phillips), Jack Kruschen (Jerry Nichols), Larry Thor (Sergeant Ross / Narrator)

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1954-09-30 A Little Matter of Memory

After a few weeks off the air, Suspense returns in a new 25 minute format (which was actually more like 24:30). The first episode is a James Poe adaptation of a James Helvick story that originally appeared in the July 1950 issue of the British magazine Lilliput as “Total Recall.” It did not appear in the US until the early 1960s when it was published in the August 1962 edition of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine.

It’s a mistaken identity plot about a couple who live in the remote English countryside. They hunker down indoors when they hear that a mad killer is at large in their area. Joe Kearns plays a clergyman whom they think is the killer, and they knock him out and tie him up. Some of Kearns’ dialogue as the Curate during the visit is quite amusing. You know he’s not the killer because it happens too early in the story. Though a bit predictable, it is an entertaining listen.

“James Helvick” was a pseudonym of journalist and writer Claud Cockburn. He was known for his screenplay of the 1951 Humphrey Bogart film Beat the Devil. He used the “Helvick” name because of his prior association with the British Communist Party in the 1940s. As a skeptical journalist, he used the phrase “believe nothing until it has been officially denied.” He is credited with that saying, but he did not claim its creation. He was related to authors Alec Waugh and Evelyn Waugh, and his granddaughter is Olivia Wilde whom many remember from her role in the medical TV series House.

There were many cast changes before broadcast. Ben Wright was supposed to be the lead role, but became unavailable. Larry Dobkin became the lead. He was originally set to play the Curate, but was replaced by Joe Kearns (a perfect role for him). Edgar Barrier replaced Richard Peel as the Constable. Peel became the killer. These are the kinds of cast changes that could be made more easily with a consistent, skilled, and versatile ensemble group without having to work around the change in schedule of a publicly announced Hollywood movie figure who suddenly could not appear.

The 25 minute format would last only 6 weeks. After that, Suspense would be cut again, to 23 minutes and 50 seconds plus 40 seconds (or more) of “The Suspense March” that would be used as background music for local stations to have announcements for their station’s upcoming programming or other announcements for their area. That short format would last about a year before it would return to a more typical program length. Such was the plight of an unsponsored, sustaining, broadcast series.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

An Internet Archive page is not available at this time.

Download from MediaFire
https://www.mediafire.com/folder/il9zoog6j2442/Suspense_-_A_Little_Matter_of_Memory

The program can be streamed at YouTube https://youtu.be/_zmb3TwqE3o

THE CAST

Larry Dobkin (Edward Mansell), Paula Winslowe (Joan Mansell), Edgar Barrier (Constable), Joseph Kearns (George Beale, the Curate), Richard Peel (Barrington Howard the killer), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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1954-08-10 Never Steal a Butcher's Wife

This is the second offering of this James Poe script about a love triangle in a butcher shop. Yes, a shop with all kinds of sharp objects used for carving and chopping flesh and bone. It’s not a place to confront a jealous and vengeful butcher. It’s a classic Suspense story that culminates in a well-staged but gruesome sequence that surprises at its extent. Kirk Douglas starred in the original, and this stars Hy Averback.

The blogpost for the debut broadcast has details about the story and the production.

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/03/1950-02-09-butchers-wife.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP500209 has the recordings of that broadcast

Hy Averback may be better known by nostalgia fans for his work as a producer and director of television series. He was the voice of the camp public address system on TV's M*A*S*H, and was also the producer of the crazy and fun series F Troop. He played a role in the formation of the Armed Forces Radio Service when he was in its first announcing crew. Information can be found at http://www.smecc.org/start_of_afrs.htm

His very successful career overview can be found at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hy_Averback and at IMDb https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002195

This was the last episode of Suspense for the summer. It returned at the end of September.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP540810

THE CAST

Hy Averback (Harry), Jack Kruschen (Nick), Paula Winslowe (Mary), Lawrence Dobkin (Kraus), Larry Thor (Narrator / Ad Libs / Announcer), Guz Bayz, Ross Murray, Eleanore Tanin, Jill Jarmyn, Marilyn Budgen (Ad-Libs)

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1954-08-03 Good Night, Mrs. Russell

This broadcast is a repeat performance about a woman who visits a particular diner most every work day as her circumstances have her living alone. She befriends the cook at the diner, but he turns out to be unbalanced with an evil streak, and he kidnaps her after misunderstanding a compliment. Virginia Gregg has the lead role.

The original broadcast of this script featured Bette Davis in her only Suspense appearance. Background of that performance and script author Ben S. Hunter, and recordings, may be found at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/02/1949-10-20-good-night-mrs-russell.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP491020 is the page from which recordings can be downloaded.

The 1949 script had “good night” as separate words; the script does not. Nor does this script title have a comma on the cover sheet. These appear to be typos or oversights. The show publicity, direct from CBS to newspapers, has “good night” as two words.

Two recordings have survived, and the network broadcast is better than the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS) recording. The network recording has a somewhat narrow range, but no other defects of note. The AFRS recording suffers from tape damage of wow and flutter and other problems and somewhat tinny sound.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3

https://archive.org/details/TSP540803

THE CAST

Virginia Gregg (Mrs. Russell), Vic Perrin (Henry), Eleanore Tanin, Jill Jarmyn (Diner customers), Gus Bayz, Ross Murray (Ad Libs), Larry Thor (Narrator)

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