Skip Homeier makes his first of two Suspense appearances and stars in Jules Maitland’s story about how little a life can be valued in prison. This is the second script by the ex-San Quentin inmate; he draws on those experiences of prison life and inmate interactions to create a compelling story of that harsh life. He plays a young lawbreaker, Eddie, who is about to begin a one-to-ten year sentence. His youth and inexperience is easy prey for his cellmate, Tommy. He has a scheme to win what passes for money inside the prison walls at Eddie’s expense. Tommy gets him into a game of dominoes where Eddie loses big, and the “money” he owes is peanut brittle. The prisoners barter and gamble with goods, like cigarettes, candy bars, and brittle seems to be very popular among them. Even if convicts don’t like it, they take it in payment because they can easily trade it for something else. Eddie soon realizes that since he lost at the game, and has nothing to pay his gambling debt. His life is in danger and he gets an ultimatum to pay up. Tommy, who got him into this mess, is no help, and actually sets him up for violent payback.
This episode was recorded on August 6, 1957. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and concluded at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time, and with editing, was completed by 7:00pm.
The recording of this episode is a major upgrade replacement of the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS) recording that has been in circulation for decades. The sound quality makes a big difference in grasping the dialogue and effects that recreate the prison experience that Maitland knew first hand.
Skip Homeier was a child actor in the 1930s, and actually had more radio experience before he was ten years old than many guest stars who appeared on the series. When he was 11 on soap operas like Portia Faces Life and Against the Storm. He was active in stage and film productions as “Skippy Homeier.” When he turned 18, he started to use the name “Skip.” He was 27 at time of this Suspense broadcast. He retired from acting when he was 50, and even at that age worked professionally in parts of six decades. Nostalgia fans know him for roles in Star Trek, Outer Limits, and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. Though not a big Hollywood headliner, he was always working in films and television, often playing villains. Wikipedia has a detailed overview of his long career. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skip_Homeier
LISTEN
TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or
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https://archive.org/details/TSP570818
THE CAST
Skip Homeier (Eddie Kipp), John Dehner (Sky Grogan), Peter Leeds (Tommy Marino), Lou Krugman (Guard / Sky’s messenger), Lou Merrill (Chaplain / Captain / Sid), Barney Phillips (Convict at Chaplain’s office / Sergeant), George Walsh (Narrator)
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