Robert Juhren’s second series script stars Jackie Kelk, who plays “Henry,” a deranged man with an unstable sibling rivalry. Kelk was best known on radio as “Homer” on the Aldrich Family and as cub reporter “Jimmy Olsen” on Superman. He’s not as likable in this production, because that character’s rivalry leads to him murdering his brother.
Henry’s argument with Roger was about the rehabilitation of the house they grew up in, or to replace it with a more contemporary home on the same property. Henry is distraught at the idea of dismantling the old house, and his anger leads him to kill Roger. His luck is too good to be true in escaping detection, a least for a while. He uses Roger’s plane ticket to check in for a flight his brother was supposed to take. He then and gives his ticket to a passenger who was denied one because the plane was full. He’s told to just say his brother’s name if asked. Word comes later that the plane crashed, and there were no survivors. He hides his brother’s body in the chimney foundation and walls of the new house that were just poured and partially built that day. As they continue to build the chimney, the shadow it casts in the old house keeps appearing on a wall and intensifies every day. It reminds him of his brother in a ghostly way, but he does not really connect that the chimney is casting its shadow. Separately, the housekeeper notes the strange shadow, and mentions it to the builder. He decides to go ahead, without informing Henry, to disassemble the new chimney and plans to build it in a different spot in the plan. Poor Henry!
The story is like a combination of Inner Sanctum and The Whistler. The crime sounds like an incident in the board game Clue: Henry, with the candlestick, in the library (belated spoiler alert).
This is another story where DNA identification techniques had not been developed yet, and the scripter would need to come up with something else. They’d also need to adjust for modern air travel check-in and identification methods, and all of of the security recordings that airports have. Writers are creative, they’d come up with something.
This episode was recorded on Thursday, September 5, 1957. Rehearsal began at 1:00pm and concluded at 4:00pm. Recording began at that time, followed by editing, which ended at 7:00pm.
There are two surviving Armed Forces Radio Service recordings (AFRS#649 and AFRS#951). There are no network recordings available. The AFRS recordings can be differentiated by their announcements after the Robson monologue.
AFRS#649: Treasury Department and the US Coast Guard
AFRS#951: Folklore story about Mike Fink and a doctor’s advice
Both recordings have some deficiencies, but AFRS#951 is the better sounding recording, and is preferred for listening. The other recording is a little dull-sounding.
Jackie Kelk’s career began as a child in the 1930s when he appeared in theatrical productions. He had a successful career as a supporting player on stage, radio, film, and television. He retired from acting, perhaps, due to a paucity of parts he wanted, in 1959. He passed away in 2002. Details about his career are highlighted at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Kelk
LISTEN
TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or
mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP570922
THE CAST
Jackie Kelk (Henry Harper), Jeanette Nolan (Mrs. Hilmas [Loomis] / Airport P. A.), John Hoyt (Roger Harper), Frank McDonald (Airport Customer / Detective Sgt. Allan), Charles Lung (Man / Airline Clerk), George Walsh (Narrator)
NOTE: The name of Jeanette Nolan’s character was originally scripted as “Mrs. Loomis.” It was changed prior to broadcast to “Mrs. Hilmas.” Kelk slips at about 7:00 and says “Loomis” in error.
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