1958-06-08 The Invisible Ape

Larry Parks stars as a lab technician who decides to experiment with invisibility on himself after a successful test with a chimpanzee. It is a Hank Searls script written as “Michael Frost.” It could be a real hum-drum sci-fi story, but it has its interesting and sometimes amusing moments.

The invisible chimp got loose from the lab and entrenched itself in a house nearby much to the dismay of its owners. There were news reports of strange goings-on there, similar to poltergeists, but it was the chimp going about its day. The folks in the lab realized that because the chimp loved cough syrup, and the news reported that a bottle of the product was seen floating in the air in the home. Parks’ character figured he could find the invisible chimp more easily if he was invisible himself. The lab project could be kept quiet that way, and he realized it could have some other personal advantages. He goes through the process himself, finds the chimp, and it all seems to be going well until he finds out that reversal may not be possible. Animal tests had resulted in the demise of the subjects. Whoops! Now what?

The working title of the script may have been “The Invisible Ape Experiment.” The original planned broadcast date was Sunday, June 1, 1958.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, May 21, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and recording began at 4:30pm. The session included in-studio edits and ended at 6:00pm. Additional production edits were completed at 8:00pm.

One of the words used in the script is a scientific term used in measuring radiation, Roentgen, named after the German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen. The unit of measurement has since been replaced by others.

The only surviving recording is an Armed Forces Radio Service one (AFRS#983) in excellent sound. The network broadcast has not survived. One of the four ads was for GMC Trucks, and another for Simmons bedding. Two ad spots were allocated shortly before broadcast.

Larry Parks was one of Hollywood’s busiest actors in the 1940s, and earned an Oscar nomination for his starring role as singer Al Jolson in The Jolson Story in 1946. In 1951, he encountered some Blacklist problems that nagged his career in the 1950s. He stayed active in lesser roles in movies and television in the 1950s. His career and life are summarized at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Parks

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580608

THE CAST

LARRY PARKS (Joe Taylor), Ellen Morgan (Janice), Larry Dobkin (Dr. Bernstein), Sam Pierce (News Announcer / Director), Byron Kane (Jameson / Patron in bar), Jack Moyles (Pat the barkeep), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-06-01 Rave Notice

Vincent Price stars in the third broadcast of the James Poe story. An actor shoots his director, whom he hates, then fakes insanity to get away with it. He thinks it can work, because he is a remarkably skilled actor, after all. The first broadcast starred Milton Berle, the second starred the wonderful Hans Conried. Of the three, the Conried and Price broadcasts are considered to be the best. Price loved radio, and did it whenever he was able. He brings his special style to the play, and offers a superb performance.

The prior broadcasts and background about them are at these resources:

1950 Milton Berle has the most background on the Poe script

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

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

1954 Hans Conried also mentions some highlights of Conried’s appearances on Suspense

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/11/1954-10-21-rave-notice.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP541021 has recordings for download and streaming

The program was recorded on Wednesday, May 28, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and recording began at 4:30pm, including some in-studio edits. Further editing was done from 6:00pm to 8:00pm, and music was added on Saturday, May 31.

An excellent network recording has survived along with an Armed Forces Radio Service one (AFRS#982). The network recording is preferred because it is in fine sound and is the way it was originally broadcast. The network recording originates from Price’s own collection, which he shared with some of the pioneer enthusiasts of the hobby. It has not been in wide circulation. There are comparatively very few complete network recordings available in this period of the series, which also makes it special. The Armed Forces Radio Service recording is also in fine sound.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580601

THE CAST

VINCENT PRICE (Sam), Peter Leeds (Man / Doctor), Lou Merrill (Norman the director / Man), Barney Phillips (Shopkeeper / Head Doctor), Jack Kruschen (Gun Shop clerk / Murph the 1st Guard), James Nusser (Mahoney the 2nd guard), Jerome Thor (Lawyer), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-05-25 Like Man, Somebody Dig Me

Elliott Reid (in this production he’s “Ted”) stars in a George Bamber script about a beatnik poet who is framed for murder. He’s called “Tennis Shoe,” and is a hitch-hiker. He recently read a poem he composed to the Atlantic Ocean, and now it’s his goal to read the same creative piece to the Pacific Ocean. Everyone is a “square” to him, not as smart as him, and not as “hip” as him. He’s also a prankster, and takes nothing seriously. If something he does creates an inconvenience for others, that makes it all the funnier.

A couple driving to Las Vegas pick him up. The car radio is on and there is a news bulletin that a hatchet murderer is on the loose. (You’ve never heard this one before on Suspense! At this point, the story becomes a convergence of Back Seat Driver and On a Country Road and a collision with Jack Kerouac’s On the Road). The couple worries that Tennis Shoe is the killer, but he tells them he doesn’t own a hatchet, so it couldn’t be him. They make a stop for gas, and leave Tennis Shoe behind to fend for himself. The story progresses and he’s arrested soon thereafter. When the town gets a whiff of the arrest, a crowd forms around the jail demanding justice against him. This doesn’t bode well, but it does turn out okay in the end, but he learns nothing from the experience. The story can be exhausting as a lot of the beatnik stereotypes are overplayed. Tennis Shoe is annoying, self-centered, self-important, and dismissive of everyone all at the same time. That is what is supposed to make him fascinating to others, and listeners, it seems.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, May 14, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and ended at 4:30pm. Recording started at that time, and including some in-studio edits, finished at 6:00pm. Additional production editing continued until 8:00pm. Music was added prior to air time on Sunday, May 25.

This is one of the most polarizing Suspense episodes among fans; some hate it, some love it, others consider it strange. While some will listen once and move on, others may find the very different story, odd main character, and its beatnik jazz music to be very engaging. The music fits the storyline and is an entertaining and effective backdrop to the story.

This production may have had some different appeal in 1958 than it does today. Robson and others must have liked it because they use this script again, with, of all people, Dennis Day! Suspense often made surprising against-type casting decisions. Often it was to get an audience to tune in just for curiosity’s sake.

The surviving recording is from the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#981) and is in excellent sound. It replaces a heavily edited Armed Forces Radio station aircheck in sub-par sound.

No network recording has survived. Two of the ad spots were for GMC Trucks and Best Foods. Two spots were to be allocated closer to the air date.

George Bamber’s first produced Suspense script

The script’s author was 26-year-old George Bamber, just home from his military service. This was the first of many Suspense scripts for him. When he was a teenager, he was a big fan of radio, and science fiction, especially. He had a special fondness for X Minus One. He was always interested in writing for Suspense. William N. Robson, he said, rejected a number of his scripts. This one was approved, however. Robson may have been looking for a script that had a current topical aspect and creative edge to it. Bamber was paid $375 for the script (about $4125 in US$2025). He put the Robson rejections aside and re-submitted the same scripts to the show after it moved to New York. They would be accepted by producer Paul Roberts and others who followed.

Bamber worked hard to make a go of writing for radio and television and ended up taking a job in the paper and wood products industry in public relations and marketing. In his early 50s, he was diagnosed with heart problems and had to leave his job. As he considered his options about what he could do next, he sought something that was more passive without the stresses of office obligations. He decided to become an avocado farmer where the trees, essentially, did all the work. He became so good at that, and at making and selling guacamole from a special recipe, that he and his family won awards at various Southern California food festivals for many years. He was beloved among his fellow growers and food festival attendees. Unfortunately, in 2017, he was killed during a severe storm when a huge tree fell on his car as he was driving along a country road. Suspense used 11 of his scripts, and ABC’s Theatre 5 used 16 of them, with three of those repeats from Suspense.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580525

THE CAST

TED [ELLIOTT] REID (“Tennis Shoe”), Lillian Buyeff (Mary / Old Lady at Funeral Parlor), Bill Quinn (Walter), Daws Butler (“The Cat” / Bronson / Mortician), Barney Phillips (Old Man / George the first cop), Jack Moyles (Charley the second cop / 3rd voice), Sam Pierce (Radio announcer / 2nd voice), Norm Alden (1st Voice), Bill James & Tom Hanley (Ad Libs), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-05-18 Zero Hour

Evelyn Rudie follows up her successful performance in Dog Star about six months earlier, and stars in this new production of the Escape and Suspense favorite. It is a Ray Bradbury story, adapted by Antony Ellis. The plot involves an invasion of Earth that relies on the cooperation of children and the cluelessness of their parents.

Details about the first Suspense broadcast of Zero Hour starring Isa Ashdown and further background can be found at

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/12/suspense-1955-04-05-zero-hour.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP550405 and is where recordings can be downloaded and streamed.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, May 7, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm, and recording began at 4:30pm. That session, which included some studio edits, concluded at 6:00pm. The production staff had its separate editing session from that time until 8:00pm. Music was edited in on Sunday, May 11.

No network recording has survived. Two of the ads on the program were for GM Trucks and Shinola shoe polish. Two ad segments were allocated later.

The surviving recording is from an Armed Forces Radio Service transcription (AFRS#980), and is in excellent sound. Prior recordings were from an aircheck of an Armed Forces Radio station, in subpar sound, and heavily edited.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580518

THE CAST

EVELYN RUDIE (Mink Morris), Lillian Buyeff (Mary Morris / Anna), Ellen Morgan (Helen / Operator), Karl Swenson (Narrator), Vic Perrin (Henry Morris), George Walsh (Suspense Narrator)

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1958-05-11 Subway Stop

Skip Homeier stars in an Arthur Zigouras script about violence and the insensitivity of passers-by to those in need. Thankfully, that scenario can change with the kindness of just one stranger from whom it would not be expected.

Homeier plays a young man, Avery, who is out with some past college friends. They have a long party together, playing poker and drinking, and break up at around 3:00am. Their inebriated state has them behaving badly, including a confrontation with two young toughs in the street. That dissipates, and they break up and head to their homes to get at least a couple of hours sleep before having to go to work. At 5:00, they encounter a man hard on his luck, and Avery gives him some spare change. Avery’s companions belittle the man and Avery for helping him.

Avery goes down into the subway station, has trouble navigating the stairs, tries to buy a token, but can’t find his change to buy one, and misses the train. He goes into the mens room. The same two thugs come upon him and beat him up, likely breaking some ribs. (Then there is a strange high-pitched sound effect at the end of act one that implies he was thrown on the tracks; he wasn’t. The effect seems very out of place.).

At the beginning of the second act, he is on the floor of the mens room again, a homeless man is with him, looking for what he might have on him. He leaves him behind, in serious pain. Avery groggily gets up when he hears a train coming, hoping to find a passenger who might help him. He is turned away. He goes to the token booth, and the attendant does not help him either. A customer comes up and chats with the attendant, and she sees Avery and is convinced he’s hurt. The attendant doesn’t want to call the police because she doesn’t want to cause trouble for him, or for her either. The customer goes away. As more people encounter him, they keep him at arms length, thinking he is a drunk and this is his regular state. They rationalize leaving him as he is because it would be too much trouble, perhaps creating unwanted interactions with police and perhaps newspaper coverage (especially a problem for one couple who are having a secret affair). By the time act three comes things look pretty hopeless. He tries to leave the subway station but can only muster a few steps and has to sit down. He falls asleep. Morning commuters pass by, simultaneously ignoring him while making comments about his condition. Eventually, the very man he gave the change to, the one his friends belittled for him doing so, is back on the scene. He thanked him for his help, and said “I used your dime for a phone call,” which meant he called Alcoholics Anonymous for himself. It took someone who had hit rock bottom in the past, and knew what it was like, to have the empathy to help Avery.

Where is the suspense in this story? This is a different kind of production for the series, but not a different one for Robson. He really enjoyed bringing challenging morality circumstances to his programs.

This is Zigouras’ sole Suspense script. Robson also used a script of his on CBS Radio Workshop. That was Harmonica Solo, 1957-03-24. A graduate of Yale Drama School, Zigouras was mainly a writer and director for the stage, sometimes in smaller cities (Winnipeg was one of them) and also lived for a while in Los Angeles. He also did some acting.

Near the beginning of the story, one of the drunken partiers asks “what’s happened to the elevated?” That refers to the New York subway system’s move from having elevated structures for its trains and stations in its past. Most of the elevated structures were torn down in the 1940s and 1950s and replaced by a combination of train tunnels, roads, and bus service. The party-goers in the story would be of the age to remember when certain streets had “el” service. If they had not been in that spot for a number of years, they would find the removal to be a surprise. Suspense fans also know that the play Sorry, Wrong Number relies on the loud noise of a passing elevated train for its climax.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, April 30, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm, with recording beginning at 4:30pm. Including in-studio edits, that part of the session ended at 6:00pm. Music was added and other edits were made on Sunday, May 4 from 1:00 to 6:00pm.

No network recording has survived. The advertisers were O’Brien Paints and Rit clothing dye, with two spots that were allocated before broadcast.

The surviving recording is from the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#979) and is in excellent sound. It replaces an Armed Forces Radio home-recorded station aircheck that was in poor sound and heavily edited.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580511

THE CAST

SKIP HOMEIER (Avery the Storyteller), Shirley Mitchell (Miss / Honey, Jimmy’s girlfriend), Virginia Gregg (Subway cashier), Barney Phillips (John / Tramp), Bill Quinn (Mike / Jim / 2nd man), Joe de Santis (Bum / Old Man), Tommy Cook (Goober), Jackie Kelk (Din / 3rd Man), Norm Alden (Gruff man / 1st Man), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-05-04 Sundown

Jackie Kelk stars in a Joel Murcott script about a young man whose heart is broken by a gunslinging horse thief who takes away the horse he so desperately loved as a boy. He grows up with a desire for revenge. He hones his shooting skills over the years in preparation for that one day he has a chance for a showdown. That horse thief is feared throughout the area for his gun skills. The boy, now a young man is ready for the impending shootout at sundown. But he does not take into account the full weight of the potential consequences if he is successful. His life may change more than he ever expected.

The script was first produced on Escape on 1950-06-23.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, April 23, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and concluded at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time and with studio edits concluded at 7:00pm. Further editing and the addition of music was done on Sunday, April 27.

No network recording has survived. The advertisers on the day of broadcast were O’Brien Paints, Rit clothing dye, and Ex-Lax, with an additional spot allocated shortly before broadcast.

The surviving recording is from the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#978) and is complete. Prior to this becoming available, the only recording that survived was a heavily edited home-recorded aircheck from an Armed Forces Radio station from the 1960s.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580504

THE CAST

JACKIE KELK (Ben Ford / Boy), Luis Van Rooten (Dan, the storyteller), Charles Seel (Sam), Vic Perrin (Ben’s Father / Cowpuncher / Blacksmith), Bill Quinn (Kirby Hunsacker), Jack Kruschen (Barman), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-04-27 Winner Lose All

John Lund stars in a Ross Murray script about a gambler who makes a deal with the owner of a casino to enrich himself and also increase the business of the establishment. Their “win-win” deal, which allows Lund’s character (Bob Richards) to claim to win large and unlikely amounts of money using a “roulette system” of betting that he developed, works for a while. The publicity generated brings in more players and more income. The owner keeps the majority of the winnings (skimming it for himself) and allows Richards to keep a quarter of it. Richards is supposed to get $50,000, which is $550,000 in US$2025. But that looks puny next to the $200,000 limit that the owner is allowing ($2.2 million in US$2025). That irks Richards, and as he starts inching toward the $200,000, he decides to keep it all for himself. When he tries to get away, the owner is understandably displeased, and punishes Richards in a manner that gamblers find devastating, and lets Richards know who’s boss.

Why is the name “Bob Richards” used in the script? It might be an inside joke. Robert L. Richards was the series editor and a writer under William Spier. Richards’ work as editor brought a consistency to the series productions that was very important for an anthology-based show where different writing styles could result in erratic storytelling quality.

Recorded Wednesday, April 16, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and concluded at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time and with in-studio edits was complete at 7:00pm. Additional edits were completed on April 19.

There is no surviving network broadcast recording. Advertisers for the broadcast were Masland Carpets, O’Brien Paints, Rit clothing dye, and an allocated spot defined before broadcast.

The surviving Armed Forces Radio Service recording (AFRS#977) is in excellent sound and replaces an Armed Forces Radio station aircheck that was heavily edited and sup-par sound quality.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580427

THE CAST

JOHN LUND (Bob Richards), Rita Lynn (Annie), Lou Merrill (Walter Carlin / Travel Agent / Bus Agent), Eddie Marr (Stoney / Cab Driver), Jack Kruschen (Al the Bookkeeper / Thug), Sam Pierce (Wally Campbell / Airline P. A. Voice), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-04-20 Alibi Me

Stan Freberg stars in the second production of a script by “Therd Jefre,” the mysterious author that has been revealed as sisters Ruth and Mae Brandt, Brooklyn-based freelance writers to 1940s NY radio advertising agencies and producers. For decades, their identity was not known until the research done for the 1951-01-04 first broadcast with Mickey Rooney. Their “Jefre” script was adapted for Suspense by three-time Oscar screenwriting nominee Walter Brown Newman.

The identity of “Therd Jefre” and the story of success for this script for the Brandts is fascinating. The script was done twice on Suspense for radio, once on the Suspense TV series, and also on Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Details about that initial 1951 broadcast that starred Mickey Rooney, along with the ups and downs of the Brandt’s radio careers are at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/05/1951-01-04-alibi-me.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP510104 also includes the recordings for download and streaming.

Freberg does well in the part of Georgie, playing a small-time racketeer who murders the rival racketeer he hates most in the world. He muscled into the business that Georgie had established, and now he’s having trouble making ends meet. The racketeer had an upcoming appointment with his parole officer, and Georgie needs an alibi. That proves harder to get than he ever realized.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, April 9, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and ended at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time and finished at 7:00pm including in-studio edits. Production staff continued to edit until 8:00pm.

The only surviving recording is from the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#976) and is in excellent sound. It replaces the prior circulating recording that was a heavily edited Armed Forces Network station aircheck in poor sound.

The length and extent of Stan Freberg’s career is widely appreciated. He was a voice actor in animation in the 1940s, had a recording career for his satirical and parody songs, and was involved in many creative advertising projects. His CBS program was the replacement for the Jack Benny Show, but lasted only 15 weeks when a sponsor could not be found. He refused to have a tobacco company sponsor the program, which limited the options for financial support, and likely annoyed CBS executives. His Wikipedia page is details his long and varied career https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stan_Freberg

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580420

THE CAST

STAN FREBERG (Georgie), Cathy Lewis (Joanie), Geraldine Wall (Mrs. Ettinger), Vic Perrin (Julius), Jerome Thor (Lt. Larkin), Jack Kruschen (Leo the bartender), Eddie Marr (Tim), Richard Beals (Delivery Boy), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-04-13 Win, Place or Die

Frank Lovejoy makes another fine Suspense appearance. He portrays a gambler named Joe, whose debts are so deep that he starts embezzling from his employer. He is rattled when he learns that the company records will be audited soon, and realizes he has to move quickly to cover his tracks. He starts placing more and bigger bets to win back the money, and fails miserably. He soon owes $4600 (more than $50,000 in US$2025), and has no way to pay it. He tries to bet again, but his bookie cuts him off. He says he’s really placing bets for his boss, not for himself. That seems to be okay! Eventually, the head of the gambling scheme contacts the boss and demands payment; he has no clue what he’s talking about. Joe’s boss is curious… he says he wants to meet anyone to whom it is claimed he owes money. Joe sees the situation getting worse, and starts formulating a plan, but it needs an alibi to work. Joe’s personal life is not the best, but he thinks his best chance to get away with it is to see his estranged wife. He will pretend he wants to get back together with her, then ask for her help to take care of a situation. She agrees. He asks her to tell anyone who wants to know where he was this night, that he was with her. He surprises his boss outside the address arranged for the meeting with the man who claims he is owed money. Joe says he wants to help him, and leads him aside to talk privately. This is where the state of everything gets out of control: he shoots his boss in an alley, planning to frame the gambling boss for the act. It works (at least for a little while). Now he can go back and fix the books, but his plan starts to unravel.

The script is by veteran scripter Joel Murcott. He previously used the title concept “Win, Place and…” format for the 1947-04-24 Suspense script Win, Place or Murder. It was a different plotline, but also about gambling on horses.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, April 2, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and concluded at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time and ended with in-studio edits at 7:00pm. Additional edits and the insertion of music was completed on Thursday, April 3, 1958.

The only surviving recording is an edited aircheck of an Armed Forces Radio broadcast. It is listenable, but has narrow range.

The network broadcast had advertising spots for O’Brien Paints and Shinola show polish, and two other spots to be allocated as the date for broadcast approached.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580413

THE CAST

FRANK LOVEJOY (Joe Harper), Joan Banks (Rita), Ellen Morgan (Jeannie), Joe de Santis (Sid Kurtz / Announcer), Bill Quinn (Randolph / Detective), Jack Kruschen (Charlie Harrell), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-04-06 Just One Happy Little Family

Ray Noble returns to the series for his second and final appearance. It is such a darkly funny script that may have been created as something of an inside joke. The plot has two suspected serial spouse murderers get married to become Mr. and Mrs. Dunkel. That may be the first clue to the origin of the plotline. “John Thornton,” credited with the script, and is strongly suspected to be radio scripter John Dunkel. There are no resources of writers, radio personnel, performers, with the name “John Thornton.” That’s often a sign that a pseudonym is being used. Once down that dead end, finding pseudonyms requires a different kind of research, and usually someone spills the beans and reveals it. That’s not the case here, but the suspicion seems warranted based on the character name. There is a possibility that the script was intended to be a practical joke on Dunkel.

This might be a lampoon of various Suspense and other radio mystery plotlines where one spouse desires the wealth of the other and will do so by terminating the other. Or, there is no wealth, but there is insurance that can be collected. And then the two of them take in a border who turns out to be a serial parent and guardian murderer. She has the very strange name of “Golden Link,” a phrase that usually refers to a magical or important combination that makes some kind of positive interaction or result possible.

The lawyer’s name in the story is “Aldergeiss” which is “old goat” in German. That may be an inside joke, too.

If “John Thornton” is Dunkel, he was very familiar with these kinds of story plots, having been a writer for The Whistler. He also wrote for Escape, but was most famous for his work on Gunsmoke and many other radio and television westerns. He had a very successful career that included screenwriting credits.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, March 26, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm, and ended at 5:00pm. Recording started at that time and with in-studio edits concluded at 7:00pm. Additional production work was done in a different studio and finished at 9:00pm. Music was added on Sunday, March 30.

The surviving recording is an aircheck from an Armed Forces Radio station. Its sound is listenable but has narrow range and background noise. The closing “Suspense March” music has been edited out.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580406

THE CAST

RAY NOBLE (Dunkel), LEE PATRICK (Victoria), Shirley Mitchell (Golden Link), David Shiener (Aldergeiss the lawyer), Helen Conrad (Woman), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-03-30 The Sisters

Frances Farmer makes her only appearance in the series and shares the spotlight with Cathy Lewis in the strange and disturbing George Wells story. It is the third production of the script. It starts out almost as an Inner Sanctum plotline when a woman buys a coffin for someone who’s not dead yet and not ill enough to assume their death is imminent. Then there is a curious interplay of two strange sisters whose needs and desires compete and intertwine. Cathy Lewis portrays the delusional sister who lives in the attic. Frances Farmer plays the nefarious one.

Details about the two previous broadcasts and the script can be found through these resources:

1944 with Agnes Moorehead and Ida Lupino

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/03/1944-02-03-sisters.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP440203 and is where the recordings may be accessed and streamed

1948 with Rosalind Russell and Lurene Tuttle

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/12/1948-12-09-sisters.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP481209 and is where the recordings may be accessed and streamed

The program was recorded on Wednesday, March 19, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm, and ended at 5:00pm. Recording started at that time and with in-studio edits concluded at 7:00pm. Additional production work was done in a different studio and finished at 9:00pm.

The surviving 1958 recording is a drama-only aircheck and has narrow range. Its origin is not known but is likely from an Armed Forces Network radio station from a 1960s replay of the program. The recording that lacks its proper opening and closing segments. Robson’s opening monologue, however, is available from the original script:

Murder stories have fascinated man ever since Cain slew Abel. Perhaps because we can sublimate our own homicidal tendencies by reveling in how it was done and who done it. All too rarely do we find a murder story that concerns itself with why the deed was done. Such a one you are about to hear. And you are also about to hear the return from retirement of a great actress in her first radio role in many years, as Miss Frances Farmer stars as Lydia with Miss Cathy Lewis as Ellie in “The Sisters” which begins in exactly one minute.

International entertainer and impressionist, and expert on classic radio history, Keith Scott has added his talent to The Suspense Project. For the Suspense episodes that are missing the introductory monologue by William N. Robson, Keith is supplying readings of those openings from the original scripts in the “voice of William N. Robson.” He has been approved by Warner Brothers, Hanna-Barbera, Walt Disney Company, and Universal Studios, for authorized voicings of many of their most famous cartoon characters. Mr. Scott resides in Australia.

Frances Farmer was a very talented performer who had many hardships in her personal life. She was on stage in the 1930s and had a somewhat successful film career. Problems with mental health issues, and gossip and rumors about them, haunted her career and personal life. By the time she appeared on Suspense, her film career was over, but she was working on television and stage and would continue to do so until her passing away in 1970 at age 56. Details about her life and career and many of the fact or fiction controversies about them are summarized at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Farmer

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580330

THE CAST

FRANCES FARMER (Lydia), CATHY LEWIS (Ellie), Bill Quinn (Jones), Joe Kearns (Mortician), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-03-23 Affair at Loveland Pass

Jim Ameche and Vanessa Brown star in a William N. Robson episode that seems more appropriate for Romance, where it was likely first broadcast on 1952-01-06 (details are not conclusive), than it does on Suspense. She’s driving along a country road and her car breaks down. He sees her and tries to help her out. Then it rains really really hard and they can’t go anywhere. Oh, and there’s news on the radio that there’s a killer on the loose. They have to tough it out in the woods for some mildly funny dialogue. Call it It Happened One Night meets On a Country Road, or something like that. The story’s okay as filler, and Jim Ameche, for all his time acting on radio, handles much of his dialogue as an announcer and not an actor. Vanessa Brown plays the stranded woman as a helpless, sometimes clueless girl. The story finally gets good, but predictable, when they find the killer trying to get her car started to help his getaway from the area. There are also bears in the area, which Ameche’s character dismisses as unimportant and not dangerous. He later finds out they are important and really dangerous. Then he faints. (Spoiler alert; whoops... forgot to mention...).

The program was recorded on Wednesday, March 12, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and finished at 5:00pm. Recording then commenced and was completed with in-studio edits at 7:00pm. Further production edits, along with recording of George Walsh narration and announcements for this episode and perhaps others, were complete by 9:00pm.

For years, the only circulating copies of this episode were heavily edited AFRS airchecks. There is now a fine-sounding complete Armed Forces Radio Service recording (AFRS#973) that is available.

There is no network recording available. The advertisers on the network broadcast included Shinola shoe polish and Ex-Lax.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580323

THE CAST

VANESSA BROWN (Polly Weatherby), Jim Ameche (Stan Torrance), Barney Phillips (Red the killer), James Nusser (Sheriff / Radio announcer), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-03-16 Game Hunt

Everett Sloane stars in the second broadcast a Gil Doud story about game hunters on safari in Kenya. He plays an experienced hunting guide who is losing his desire for the occupation. The inexperienced hunter who hired him, shoots a lion on his own instead of waiting for instructions, wounding it instead of killing it. It is against the law to leave an animal wounded, and they have to pursue the angry and injured lion. They put themselves in great danger and begin to realize that the lion is actually hunting them.

The first broadcast starred Raymond Lawrence with Joe Kearns as the belligerent inexperienced hunter. Background about that broadcast can be found at

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2025/02/1956-04-03-game-hunt.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP560403 is where recordings can be downloaded and streamed.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, March 5, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and concluded at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time, and with in-studio edits, finished at 7:00pm. Additional edits and a recording session for George Walsh for this and upcoming episodes ran from 7:00pm to 9:00pm.

There are multiple recordings of this episode. There is a network recording that sounds like it may have originated from a network feed or a very good aircheck that has had some minor deterioration as it may be some generations from its original recording. It also has a news report after the Suspense broadcast. Nonetheless, it is a good recording. The better recording is the Armed Forces Radio Service one (AFRS#972) that has richer sound.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580316

THE CAST

EVERETT SLOANE (Geoffrey Arcross), Larry Dobkin (Howard Babson), Roy Glenn (Charlie), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-03-09 The Chain

Agnes Moorehead returns to the series for the second performance of the Joel Murcott script as the jealous, selfish, nagging woman who sends chain letters to people associated with her husband’s workplace. The letters result in a death and the breakup of her own marriage.

The original broadcast details and background about chain letters (popular at the time, and were used in political campaigns) can be found at

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/03/1950-04-27-chain.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP500427 and is where recordings can be downloaded and streamed.

The program was recorded on Wednesday, February 26, 1958. Rehearsal began at 3:00pm and finished at 6:00pm. Recording started at 6:00pm and included time for in-studio edits. Further edits were done starting at 8:00pm and concluded at 10:00pm. It was in that session that George Walsh recorded his narrations for this and likely some upcoming episodes.

There are two recordings that have survived. The better recording for listening is a complete Armed Forces Radio Service one (AFRS#970) which replaces prior heavily edited AFRS aircheck recordings in poor sound.

There is a partial network aircheck from station WTOP-AM in Washington, DC that begins with act two. The ads for Rit clothing dye and Ex-Lax are in the recording. The ads for Kent cigarettes and an unspecified allocated ad spot from the beginning of the broadcast and between acts one and two are not because they were broadcast before the recording begins. A very few words of that ad can be heard before Walsh introduces act two. This aircheck recording is preserved for Suspense history purposes. For many years, this partial recording was the only audio of this broadcast.

The ad at the end the aircheck, just before the station ID, is for Sealtest Black Raspberry Royale ice cream. The product was released in 1958, verifying the aircheck recording date.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580309

THE CAST

AGNES MOOREHEAD (Leonora), John McIntire (George Carpenter), Ellen Morgan (Abbe Reynolds / Operator), Jay Novello (Peter Kerchevski), Herb Ellis (Burt Reynolds), Larry Dobkin (Lt. Marsh), George Walsh (Narrator)

John McIntire and Jay Novello played the same roles in the 1950 broadcast.

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1958-03-02 Never Follow a Banjo Act

James Poe’s story is about a singer in the twilight of her career who is asked to train a new crooner for stardom. The story gets much better treatment by Margaret Whiting than it did in Ethel Merman’s disastrous 1954 broadcast. It’s still not right. Somehow, even Bill Robson could not find a way to give a compelling James Poe story and turn it into a memorable and chilling top episode. This 1958 broadcast is much better than the first time around. This might be one of those episodes, had it been written back then, that would have fared better back in the Roma Wines era under William Spier with musical support of then-wife Kay Thompson.

That new crooner who needs mentoring killed his previous singing partner. The murder was covered up by the mob, making it look like an accident. He is mentally unstable, his problems escalating day by day until his new mentor becomes fearful for her life. Her manager doesn’t believe her… until the crooner cracks up on stage.

The Merman broadcast included songs that were appropriate of her style and her era, which were the best part of her performance. There were notable jazz artists providing the music for the broadcast. Background about the story and her cringe-worthy radio acting can be found at

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2024/10/1954-02-01-never-follow-banjo-act.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP540201 and is where the recordings can be found for download and streaming.

This new broadcast is quite different and more believable. Whiting has radio experience and talent, and the songs were ones she often had in her live performances. They were The Gypsy in My Soul from 1947, and Song of the Wanderer, recorded in 1958. The songs can be heard in full at YouTube at these links:

• The Gypsy in My Soul https://youtu.be/5vQNtEUBvbw

• Song of the Wanderer https://youtu.be/tjGdPaGAdbQ

The program was recorded on Wednesday, February 19, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and finished at 5:00pm. Recording commenced at that time, and with in-studio edits was completed at 7:00pm. Additional production edits were done by staff in a different studio from 7:00pm to 9:00pm.

For many years, heavily edited Armed Forces Radio airchecks in poor sound were the only way to hear this episode. Now, there is a complete Armed Forces Radio Service recording (AFRS#970) in enjoyable sound.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580302

THE CAST

Margaret Whiting (Rosie Jones), Eddie Marr (Benny / Croupier voice), Larry Dobkin (Ray Kramm), Shep Menken (Terry Dane), Jack Moyles (Earl White / Drunk), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-02-23 Five Buck Tip

Karl Swenson plays twins in a Harold Swanton story where one brother, Tommy Jardine, is a criminal about to be executed in the electric chair. The scandal of his brother’s crime forced him to change his name to Mark “Heston.” Swanton was known for his work on The Whistler radio and television series. This story has all the elements to fit the format of that "surprise ending" series well. Mark decides to visit his brother and to see his girlfriend, Jackie, first. They spent time together at a restaurant. She comments that Mark is starting to look more like Tommy. In fact, Tommy’s picture was on the front page of newspapers, and Mark could easily be mistaken for him. What is the “five buck tip”? It is $55 in US$2025 value. He accidentally left that at the restaurant when he intended to leave only $1. In the end, listeners are told, it was a wise investment.

He visits his brother, and in the presence of a priest (about whom it is later learned is not the prison chaplain), and a guard, Tommy starts screaming that he is actually Mark and that he is innocent. The chaplain calms things down, and it seems Tommy had done this before. Tommy has some last words for Mark and needs to tie up some loose ends, explaining what to do with the possessions he will leave behind. Mark looks for something to write on, and finds a card. He picks it up, sees the blank side, but flips it over to see what’s there. It’s a copy of Tommy’s prison record. Key point in the story: the space for Tommy’s fingerprints on his prison record are blank.

Suddenly, there is a scuffle that includes the chaplain and the guard and they subdue Mark, with Tommy cheering them on. It is clear that he planned this and had their help. They give Mark an injection to knock him out. They swap Mark and Tommy’s clothes, and begin to prep Mark for the execution! Mark starts to panic and asks to see the warden. The scene shifts to the warden’s office where Tommy (as Mark) is with a crying Jackie. The drama plays out with everyone still in the prison because the prison is in lockdown, as is the procedure for days when there is an execution. The story continues to a surprising and satisfying end.

Swenson starred in the Hummert series Mr. Chameleon where his character played multiple characters in each episode. In this Suspense episode, playing twins must have been a lot less confusing.

The script was first used on LaRosa Hollywood Theater on 1951-10-30 and starred Barry Sullivan. One of the popular Suspense reference books of quite a few years ago cites that this broadcast used the Inner Sanctum script of 1949-05-02, which is incorrect. That episode, The Deadly Double, was written by Ed Adamson and Robert Sloane. Their plotline is quite different, about a woman who claims to be under a hex. Neither the LaRosa show or the Inner Sanctum are in circulation.

Recorded Friday, February 14, 1958. Rehearsal began at 12:30pm and ended at 3:00pm. At that time, the recording session began, including in-studio edits until 5:00pm. Further edits were done in the production studio from 5:30 to 7:30pm.

No network recording has survived. Ads on this broadcast are noted on the script. They were for Kent, Grove Laboratories, and Ex-Lax. Another slot was allocated closer to broadcast time.

The surviving recording is from the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#969). It replaces AFRS airchecks that were in circulation that were heavily edited and in poor sound.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or access FLAC or mp3 recordings
https://archive.org/details/TSP580223

THE CAST

Karl Swenson (Mark Heston & Tommy Jardine), Cathy Lewis (Jackie Cavanagh), Henry Blair (Willie the Hatcheck clerk), Jack Kruschen (Louis the Guard), Jerome Thor (Mike the “Padre”), Ken Christy (Warden), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-02-16 One Chef, Well Done

Maurice Marsac stars in an entertaining Fran Van Hartesveldt script about the rival culinary artists in a huge restaurant. He plays Henri, a newly employed chef in an American restaurant, who learns that the restaurant seems to have a frequent change in head chefs, often under strange circumstances. His first assignment is making sauces, and he is told he can advance in short time. The head chef (Francois, played marvelously by Ben Wright) is expected to be leaving because of his drinking and treatment of the help. He is warned, however, that the chef murders his best friends. Things come to an important point when President McKinley and banker JP Morgan and guests arrive at the restaurant and they are not ready. Henri has to save the day, because Francois is missing, likely passed out. All turns out well, and Henri gives the credit for the success of the meal to Francois. After a while Henri and Francois become friends. It is amusing that Francois refers to bourbon as “American wine” and partakes in some with some great delight, though he knows it is not true. The two of them venture out after their “wine” and have a curious adventure. Henri outsmarts Francois, and we learn the meaning of the show’s title.

The story takes place in 1901, and it is mentioned that there were 45 states. Statehood was achieved by Oklahoma in 1907, Arizona and New Mexico in 1912, and then Alaska and Hawaii in 1959.

The program was recorded on Friday, February 7, 1958. Rehearsal began at 12:30pm and finished at 3:00pm. Recording began at that time, and with in-studio edits, concluded at 5:30pm. Production editing we conducted in a different studio from 5:30pm to 7:30pm.

No network recording has survived. Ads on this broadcast were for Newport cigarettes, Grove Laboratories, and Ex-Lax. Another slot was allocated closer to broadcast time.

There are two Armed Forces Radio Service recordings that have survived (AFRS#669 and AFRS#968). They can be identified by the announcement after the Robson opening monologue:

• AFRS#669: The US Constitution and citizenship

• AFRS#968: The Navy Cross Medal

Both recordings are very listenable, with AFRS#968 as the better of the two.

Maurice Marsac appeared in movies and television for over 40 years, usually remembered for being cast in staff roles in sophisticated restaurants. He was often uncredited, especially early in his career. His long career is profiled at Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Marsac

One of his funniest appearances was as the French waiter in the Steve Martin movie, The Jerk. Bernadette Peters orders escargot and things laughingly deteriorate from there. The scene can be viewed at YouTube https://youtu.be/FS8Z-MDW42U

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580216

THE CAST

Maurice Marsac (Henri), Sandra Gould (Shirley), Ben Wright (Francois), Joe de Santis (Driver / Barman / Mortician), Jack Moyles (Smith / 2nd Mortician), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-02-09 The Long Shot

Herbert Marshall stars in the second broadcast of a Harold Swanton script. Swanton wrote for many series and television, but best known in radio for his scripts for The Whistler. In this story, an Englishman places an ad in the newspaper hoping to find a fellow countryman to drive from New York City to San Francisco. Marshall plays the down-on-his-luck gambler who answers the ad in the hopes of escaping the debts he’s piled up. Ben Wright plays the boring Britisher who is constantly asking questions about London to keep the conversation going in all the hours of driving. Is that what he’s doing? Or is he prepping himself for his own escape to get away with his own problems or encounters with the law?

George Coulouris starred in the first broadcast with Joe Kearns as the annoying Britisher. Details about that broadcast and writer Harold Swanton can be found at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/07/1946-01-31-long-shot.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP460131 is where the recordings can be downloaded or streamed.

This episode was recorded on Thursday, January 30, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and concluded at 5:00pm, which is when recording began. That session and in-studio edits continued until 7:00pm. Production edits continued in another studio until 9:00pm.

No network recording has survived. Advertisers on the broadcast were Kent cigarettes, Grove Laboratories, and Ex-Lax. An additional spot was not assigned until closer to the broadcast day.

Two Armed Forces Radio Service recordings have survived (AFRS#668 and AFRS#967). The recordings can be identified by the announcement after the Robson opening monologue:

• AFRS#668: Attorney General and the Department of Justice

• AFRS#967: Joe & Daphne Forsythe skit about US Savings Bonds

Of the two, AFRS#967 is the better recording.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580209

THE CAST

Herbert Marshall (Kelly Raymond), Florence Walcott (Marguerite Stoddard), Ben Wright (Walker Hendricks), Joe de Santis (Tommy DeWitt / Lieutenant Mack), Norm Alden (Highway Patrol Officer), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-02-02 The Silver Frame

Charles McGraw stars in a William Spier script originally used on Philip Morris Playhouse about nine years earlier. Spier took over that series for its 1948-1949 season, and used many scripts that had been used on Suspense. Some of the new scripts were in the Suspense style, and used, like this one, after Playhouse went off the air. This script was the premiere episode of the PMP Spier season, heard on 1948-11-05, and starred Burt Lancaster.

McGraw plays Steve Gates, an innocent man newly released from jail and wants some revenge on the district attorney who sent him there. A reporter who knows him stops him as he was walking in town. He offers him $1000 as part of a plan to get back at that DA. The reporter and his publisher know that the DA is corrupt, have a strategy to help Gates out. They will set up a crime scene with Gates involvement. He will place evidence against himself for a faked assault and murder of a young woman. He would be arrested. The newspaper already had a planned headline strategy to keep the story at the top of the news. Then, after a short time, she would appear, revealing the DA’s habit of going for quick convictions based solely on the flimsiest circumstantial evidence. He meets her, Silver is her name (and hence the script title), and it’s implied they have some spontaneous romantic time together. They plant the evidence, and he leaves. The newspaper has the story as planned, but there is a bad turn to the story: a burned body of a young woman has been found. Has he been a sucker for a plot to frame him again? It’s an entertaining B-movie style mystery, but will never be in a best Suspense episode list.

The program was recorded on Friday, January 24, 1958. Rehearsal began at 1:00pm and concluded at 4:00pm. Recording began at that time and with in-studio edits was completed at 6:00pm. Production studio edits were done from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. George Walsh’s segments were recorded on Thursday, January 23.

There are two surviving recordings of the episode, both from the Armed Forces Radio Service ( AFRS#666 and AFRS#966). AFRS#966 is the better recording. The two recordings can be differentiated by the announcement after the Robson opening monologue:

• AFRS#667: Creation of the Department of Defense

• AFRS#966: Joe & Daphne Forsythe skit about US Savings Bonds

No network recording has survived. Ad spots were for Newport cigarettes, Grove Laboratories, and Ex-Lax. An additional ad spot was allocated closer to the broadcast date.

At one point in the story a $50,000 beach house is mentioned as the location. That would be about $600,000 in US$2025 value. It is mentioned that the house is in Malibu, and prices for those homes outpaced inflation by a significant amount. Other amounts mentioned in the story are the $10 bill he was handed when he left prison, worth about $110 in US$2025, and a $22.50 suit is about $250.

McGraw’s character’s last name is “Gates.” It’s a little joke: “Gates” would be sometimes be used as a nickname for someone who had spent time in prison.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580202

THE CAST

Charles McGraw (Steve Gates), Tracy Roberts (Silver Fox), Jerome Thor (Farley, the D. A.), Chester Stratton (Lester Malvin), John Hoyt (L. B. Rosson), Daws Butler (Milton / First Detective), Jack Kruschen (Second Detective), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-01-26 Nineteen, Deacon Street

Jerome Thor stars in the second performance of a Larry Marcus and Robert Light script about a necktie sales representative who finds an apartment where he can sleep after the long days of selling his goods. The landlady originally said she had no apartment for him, but after sizing him up, she decides to show him a room that was being held for a tenant who was away. The room was untouched, and had not been lived in, for ten years! It belonged to a young woman, Laverne, who was trying to start a stage career. He senses that she is around… and hears her voice… and her crying. What happened to her? He’s intent on finding out what happened.

Lloyd Nolan starred in the original 1945 broadcast. Details about that broadcast and other aspects of the production can be found at

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/07/1945-11-22-nineteen-deacon-street.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP451122 which is where the recordings can be found for download or streaming.

This episode was recorded on Friday, January 17, 1958. Rehearsal began at 12:30pm and ended at 3:00pm. Recording began at that time, and including in-studio edits concluded at 5:30pm. Post-production edits were done in the early days of the following week.

The exact title is still an open question. The script has a comma after the word “nineteen.” It appears that the CBS publicity department sent newspapers had the title as “19 Deacon Street.”

There are two surviving recordings of the episode, both from the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS#965 and an unidentified recording that is likely AFRS#666). AFRS#965 is the better recording. The two recordings can be differentiated by the announcement after the Robson opening monologue:

• likely AFRS#666: the work of the FBI

• AFRS#965: NATO

No network recording has survived. Ad spots were for Kent cigarettes, Grove Laboratories, and Ex-Lax. An additional ad spot was allocated closer to the broadcast date.

Jerome Thor appeared on Suspense five times, all in 1958. He started on the stage, with many Broadway credits in the 1930s and 1940s. He headed to Hollywood for movies and eventually television, where he had occasional roles through the early 1980s. He did a lot of early 1950s TV work, including a Suspense television episode, Morning Boat to Africa, in March 1950. No kinescope has been found of that production.

He was not related to actor and announcer Larry Thor. Both adopted “Thor” as their stage names. Jerome’s actual name was Jerome Perlmutter. Larry Thor’s name was derived from his last name, Arnlelfur Lawrence Thorsteinson. Larry was best known for his role in Broadway Is My Beat as “Lt. Danny Clover.” Because his voice became so recognizable as a police officer, Elliott Lewis regularly cast him in Suspense in those roles, somewhat as an inside joke, as if there was a rule “if it’s a cop, Larry has to play it.”

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580126

THE CAST

Jerome Thor (Maury Swartz), Paula Winslowe (Landlady), Sydna Scott (Laverne / Voice), Jack Kruschen (Little Joe), Ted de Corsia (Jasper Florenz), Norm Alden (Officer), George Walsh (Narrator)

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1958-01-19 The Crowded Void

Bartlett Robinson stars as a commercial airline pilot who risks flying in adverse weather conditions to get home be with his wife who is expecting their first child. The flight, from San Francisco to Los Angeles (SFO to LAX in terms of airport designations) will be through significant turbulence that is likely to make some of the passengers nervous. Because of bad weather, air traffic is backing up in the skies to land at Los Angeles. The airport has some fog that is slowing down the landings of flights there. The pilot has a decision to make: does he hold the flight until the weather improves, or does he fly home because of the telegram he received that his wife has gone into labor. Weather continues to deteriorate. There is one passenger who is more nervous than the others, and the fears she is expressing may affect the concerns and attitudes of the other passengers. The plotline is complicated by the presence of some military jets near the LAX flight patterns. The pilot, however, decides to make a selfish move to start descending from 8,000 feet against the directions of the control tower, ostensibly to allow him to land sooner. It’s a strange decision. That’s a problem as the military jets are at 7,000. He finally gets wise to his selfishness and ascends back to this assigned altitude. What came over him? How could he lose control of his focus on his primary obligations for the safety of the innocent passengers, the crew, and the other aircraft in the area? Will his co-pilot stop him?

Not many of the listening audience had ever been on a plane, so they probably accepted every situation in this story at face value. When writers, like Searls, included airplanes in their stories, they could get away with “fudging the facts” to move the stories along. That’s not the case today; writers can’t depend on the lack of personal knowledge of their audience about this subject. It was not until the early 1970s that half of Americans had been on at least one flight. There were about 50 million passenger boardings (many more than once because of business travel) in 1958. That number is about 28% of total population at that time. In 2023, there were about 860 million passenger boardings, about 260% of the total population. About 90% of the US population had flown at least once in their lifetime by 2023. In a single year, about 44% of the US population flies at least once in a particular year.

In modern times, the problems with air traffic congestion depicted in this story are minimized by various procedures. Many of these them were adopted to optimize use of fuel, as it was common for planes to circle airports, sometimes for hours in the worst conditions, before being allowed to land. These “holding patterns” occur less frequently today than in the past because of advances in air traffic control technology. These allow for better spacing and sequencing of aircraft, including not letting certain flights take off until a there is certainty that landing slot with minimum holding time is available for them.

The plane in this story is a commercial propeller one, common in the 1950s. Current planes are jets and can fly above the harsh weather, and have much better instruments to navigate such disturbances, and also have more precise weather information. They are also much better in landing during adverse conditions.

Hank Searls wrote the script using the pseudonym “Michael Frost.” He wrote nine Suspense scripts, with seven of them as “Frost.”

As for the title, what is the “void” and why is it “crowded”? A “crowded void” is a situation that is sometimes described as “feeling alone in a crowd.” In this case, the sky is empty, it’s just air, but the weather, the other planes, and the pilot’s professional and personal responsibilities fill it even though the sky is so huge it can barely be filled. The pilot is crowded in, surrounded by passengers and crew, but his mind and motives make him is selfishly alone.

This program was recorded on Thursday, January 9, 1958. Rehearsal began at 2:00pm and ended at 5:00pm. Recording began at that time and concluded, with in-studio edits, at 7:00pm. Production edits continued from 7:00pm to 9:00pm.

There are two surviving recordings, and the Armed Forces Radio Service recording (AFRS#964) is the better recording.

The other recording is from an aircheck in poor sound quality from an Armed Forces Radio station broadcast. It is an unknown station in Atlantic Standard Time. There are multiple stations in that time zone, from the easternmost provinces of Canada down through the Caribbean Islands.

There is no surviving network recording. Advertising spots on the network program were Newport cigarettes, Grove Laboratories, Ex-Lax, and another ad determined closer to broadcast time.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP580119

THE CAST

Bartlett Robinson (Captain Sam Bradley), Ellen Morgan (Jeannie / Sally), Shirley Mitchell (Mrs. Gordon), Dee Tatum (Airport P.A. Announcer / 2nd P. A. Announcer), John Dehner (Mel), Barney Phillips (Doctor Lambert / Air Traffic Voice / Passenger), Sam Pierce (Dispatcher Voice / Approach Controller Voice), Bill James (Baby), George Walsh (Narrator)

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