1949-01-27 The Thing in the Window

Robert Montgomery returns to Suspense in a favorite Lucille Fletcher story. The plotline offers a unique and unscrupulous way to get the apartment you really want to have out from under its current tenant. There’s a housing shortage, and finding a place to live requires some hustle and ingenuity. This is not the right way to do it, but it makes for great drama.

It was first broadcast on 1946-12-19 with Joseph Cotten who had a skill to turn on a sinister undercurrent when it was called for. The background of this story and the recordings of the first broadcast are at

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/09/1946-12-19-thing-in-window.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP461219 and is where those audio files may be accessed.

Montgomery is welcomed back to the series for this performance, less than a year after he was led on and let go by CBS for the hour-long series. This is his final appearance on Suspense.

Many Suspense fans consider the original 1946 Cotten production to be the favorite of the two. Montgomery’s performance is fine, but his characterization does seem forced at times.

This broadcast date was originally planned for Montgomery to star in Odd Man Out, but that story and script was set aside. The 1947 film was still in theaters and it is possible that clearance with the studio for a Suspense performance was not available. It was not produced until 1952-02-11 under Elliott Lewis.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP490127

THE CAST

ROBERT MONTGOMERY (Martin Ames), Miriam Wolfe (Mary / Elaine Landis), Jeanette Nolan (Vivian Landis), Ken Christy (Sergeant), Berry Kroeger (Ronald), Roland Winters (Mr. Anson, the building super), Dave Light (Buster, the dog), Paul Frees (Signature Voice)

COMMERCIAL: Harlow Wilcox (Announcer), Bill Johnstone (Hap), Sylvia Simms (Voice)

###

1949-01-20 If the Dead Could Talk

A Cornell Woolrich short story provides another opportunity for a memorable Suspense broadcast. It was originally published under his pseudonym “William Irish.”

Dana Andrews plays one of a team of three circus trapeze artists, two men and a woman. She gleefully announces that she is freshly engaged to the other male performer. Andrews’ character is so jealous that he buys a gun to eliminate his romantic rival. He quickly realizes that plan won’t work. He “refines” his thinking to staging a performance accident that would ensure his innocence (with thousands of witnesses in the audience!) and ensure his best future opportunity for romance.

There’s a problem on the day of the plan. During the scheduled performance, she inadvertently causes a near accident with her fiancé. He is able to stop himself from falling, but his hands are cut and injured in the near miss. To continue their exhibition, she changes positions with her fiancé since she is the backup acrobat in case he could not perform. This means that she will be the one who will be swinging on the trapeze… what does he do now? His hands are smeared with the Vaseline that were meant to sabotage his rival’s grip and send him falling to the ground. But now, the object of his romantic desire will be the one reaching for his hand. The planned fatal accident was not designed to create her certain demise!

Radio and television veteran Larry Marcus adapted the Woolrich story.

Trouble is My Business by Raymond Chandler with Andrews as star was originally planned for this date. The script was never used on Suspense. It was part of the long range schedule for the hour-long series, but that quickly fell by the wayside once William Spier left and that format began its disintegration.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP490120

THE CAST

DANA ANDREWS (Joe), Peggy Webber (Fran / Patsy the circus fat lady), Tony Barrett (Tommy), Ted de Corsia (Ringmaster / Cop), unknown (Gun salesman), Paul Frees (Signature Voice)

COMMERCIAL: Bill Johnstone (Hap), Sylvia Simms (Operator), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer)

###

1949-01-13 The Too Perfect Alibi

Danny Kaye stars in a complex story written by Martin Stern and adapted by Ken Crossen. It’s a very good script and a very good performance. It is possible to miss some of the important elements of the scheme, so it’s worth paying close attention. Knowing a little New York City geography can help imagine the story and its logistics. The website oldtimeradioreview.com rates this episode five out of five stars, which it deserves.

Kaye’s character, Sam, is generous to the point of annoying people. His sights are set on a young woman, Catherine. She is newly engaged to Jack. Her fiance is upset that the gifts and generosity are meant to embarrass him for his lower social status and the implication that he can’t give her the life she deserves. Jack is right in questioning his motives, but Sam wants more than that. He wants to eliminate Jack and figures his record of generosity will divert the attention of police when they investigate Sam for the murder. Sam also agrees to be the best man for their wedding, which adds to an alibi. He arranges a $20,000 a year job that he arranges for the engaged man, which is more than $250,000 in 2023$US inflation-adjusted terms. How could anyone ever believe that Sam could hold any ill will toward Jack? Then Sam starts to carry out his nasty plan.

Sam tells Jack to drive in from his home in Staten Island to meet him in Manhattan. Sam is attending a big party among wealthy friends, and arranged a time for Jack to meet him outside on the sidewalk. Jack arrives and Sam lures him into a quiet place, murders him, hides the body in Jack’s own car. Sam returns to the party until it ends, building his alibi at every opportunity. He makes a point of meeting or saying goodbye to every possible guest. After the event ends, Sam drives the car to the Staten Island Ferry. Earlier in the day, he had purchased a ferry ticket to avoid the chance a nighttime ticket agent might be able to identify him. He drives onto the ferry, parks the car, and walks up to the deck. He drops the knife used to commit the murder into the harbor waters. When the ferry docks, Sam drives to Jack’s house nearby and leaves the car there. He walks back to the ferry dock for the trip back to Manhattan as a passenger.

In the end, his cover-up is so airtight that the bride-to-be is accused and convicted of the crime! She had argued with Jack earlier in the day. After the conviction, Sam’s guilt gets to him… but no matter whom he tells that he is the real murderer, including the innocent woman, they are all so struck by his past generosity that no one believes he could commit such an act. An innocent woman is executed, and his life is changed forever.

The story is by Martin Stern and adapted by Ken Crossen. It seems the author is better known as Richard Martin Stern, mystery writer. His book, The Tower, was one of two novels that were combined to become the highly successful 1973 movie, The Towering Inferno. He wrote under the names Richard Stern, Martin Stern, and his full name. He was a prolific author, and his long list of published short stories can be viewed at http://www.philsp.com/homeville/fmi/n08/n08890.htm#A94 His Wikipedia profile is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Martin_Stern It is possible that this script was from a short story or from a story outline, hence the need for Crossen’s services. There is no short story with this name that can be found. It may be unique for Suspense or there was a title change for the broadcast. This was the only Stern story used on the series.

Croton is Croton-on-Hudson, now considered a suburb for New York City because of highways and commuter rail connections added in the 1950s and 1960s. At the time of the story, it was a place for summer cottages, weekend getaways, and day picnics in nearby parks for city-dwellers.

The Manhattan address mentioned in the story, 3365 East 56^th Street, does not exist. If there was such an address, it would be in the middle of the East River.

The Staten Island Ferry links the New York City borough of Staten Island with southern Manhattan. The Ferry is a favorite among tourists because of its views of the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan skyline. Cars could use the ferry until 2003.

The title of the play is “The Too-Perfect Alibi.” Coming out of the mid-show commercial, Paul Frees says “A Too-Perfect Alibi.”

How could Sam hide the body in the car? Cars were much roomier in 1949. Current era cars that include compacts and subcompacts are much smaller and aerodynamic for the sake of fuel efficiency than those of decades ago. It would be easy to hide the body on the floor of the back seat area. It would be very difficult to do so in modern vehicles.

The William Saroyan play that is mentioned as a topic of overheard party conversation is likely “Don’t Go Away Mad.” It was being shopped to theatrical producers at the time. It never made it to Broadway, but was produced in other cities over the years, and is still available for local productions. News coverage of Saroyan’s meetings implied that he was asking too much money for rights to the script.

The April 1949 Radio Mirror announced that Suspense won its award for the best radio mystery series. That issue had pictures from the rehearsal for this episode. Kaye and all of the players and effects staff can be seen in photos. (Bill Johnstone is misidentified as John Johnson; must have been bad handwritten notes by the reporter that day). The feature is interesting in that it explains that Leader made rushed revisions to the script before broadcast, likely to ensure proper use of time. There was also a heated discussion about the episode’s music between Lucien Moraweck and Lud Gluskin. These things happened to one degree or another for any episode of any high-profile program. Once the broadcast began, the magic of top-notch radio was created and delivered, with no hint of any rehearsal trepidation. The PDF document of the article is available for review on the same page as the recordings. Many thanks to worldradiohistory.com for their steadfast dedication to historical preservation and it its extensive library of broadcast magazines.

The original plan for this broadcast date was for the adaptation of Agatha Christie's Where There's a Way (from Where There's a Will). It was held for James and Pamela Mason for broadcast on 1949-02-24.

This is the first of two Suspense appearances by Danny Kaye. Kaye was multi-talented, acting in dramas, comedies, stand-up performances, singing, and dancing. He would often do silly songs and slapstick to win the applause of audiences in theater, movies, and television. His career and personal life is too long and too complex to summarize here. An overview can be found at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Kaye The Kaye movie in the theaters at the time of broadcast was A Song Is Born.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP490113

THE CAST

DANNY KAYE (Sam Rogers), John McIntire (Inspector Vanelli), Hal March (Jack Stewart), Mary Shipp (Catherine Gilpin), Ted Von Eltz (D. A.), Paul Frees (Simon Blade / Signature Voice), Johnny Jacobs, Charles LaTorre, Fred Campbell, Bud Widom

COMMERCIAL: Bill Johnstone (Hap), Sylvia Simms (Operator), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer)

The Husbands and Wives, and Other Familial Connections of Suspense

NOTE: This blogpost is updated when continuing research efforts reveal new information.

Many performers met their spouses in their mutual love of their profession. They often performed together on stage or broadcast media. There are other family connections that may have occurred years apart,

These are presented in no particular order. If there are others, please contact us at suspensearchive@gmail.com 

Special thanks to those who assisted in compiling this list: Keith Scott, Barbara Watkins, John Barker, and Craig Wichman.

Performers (couples in the very same episode, one or more times)

• James Mason and Pamela Kellino
• Ozzie & Harriet Nelson
• Howard Duff and Ida Lupino
• Jim and Henny Backus
• Frank Lovejoy and Joan Banks
• Antony and Georgia Ellis
• Elliott and Cathy Lewis
• John McIntire and Jeanette Nolan
• Les Damon and Ginger Jones
• Larry Thor and Jean Howell
• Phil Harris and Alice Faye
• Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester
• Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz
• Jim and Marion Jordan
• Court Benson and Grace Matthews
• Robert Readick and Barbara Kasarr [ADDED 5/16/2025]
• Eddie Albert and Margo appeared together on the Suspense television series, but not on radio. She was in a radio episode, but they were together for the TV adaptation of Black Path of Fear, retitled Revenge. It aired on 1949-03-01. Unfortunately, no kinescope of the broadcast has survived. [ADDED 10/12/2025]

Producers and directors and performers

• William Spier and June Havoc
• William Spier and Kay Thompson (Kay was usually uncredited as a singer)
• Antony and Georgia Ellis (and son Jonathan)
• Paul Roberts and Ellen McRae (later aka Ellen Burstyn)

Other relationships

• Suspense New York productions included music supervisor Ethel Huber and writer/actor Harold Huber. He unfortunately passed away shortly after the show moved from Hollywood to New York in Fall 1959; she continued with the series until its conclusion.
• Editor and writer Robert L. Richards was in two different marriages, editing or co-authoring scripts with Silvia Richards and Pamela Wilcox
• George and Gertrude Fass wrote together for many series, including Suspense
• The same is true for writers Gwen and John Bagni
• Carl Randau and Leane Zugsmith wrote together for radio and the stage
• Bernard Herrmann was musical director for at least one Lucille Fletcher script production
• Actors Fritz Feld and Virginia Christine were married, but appeared on separate episodes
  
• Actors Melville Ruick and Claire Niesen were married, but appeared on separate episodes [ADDED 6/20/2025]
• Orson Welles and Ava Gardner were "an item" at the time of her appearance on the series for 1947-05-01 Lady in Distress. A surprise cameo appearance for Welles as a gas station attendant was hastily written into the script the day of the broadcast by William Spier. It was Welles' first appearance on the show after Donovan's Brain in 1944, and was his final appearance in the series. [ADDED 10/12/2025]

Parent and child (not necessarily in the same program) [ADDED 2/2/2025]

• Gene and June Lockhart
• Ralph and Claudia Morgan [CORRECTED 10/12/2025]
• Antony, Georgia, and Jonathan Ellis (same episode, Kaleidoscope)
• Frank and Bob Readick

Siblings [ADDED 2/2/2025]

• Margaret (starred 3x) and Barbara Whiting (starred 1x, supporting role 1x)
• Sam Edwards and Jack Edwards (multiple appearances, none together) [ADDED 10/12/2025]

###

1949-01-06 To Find Help

This broadcast was planned to be another appearance of Frank Sinatra in the lead role, but it was not to be. Instead, Gene Kelly covers for him. Kelly was a close friend of Sinatra and appeared with him in MGM musicals such as Anchors Aweigh and On the Town. Kelly had appeared on Suspense before and delivered good performances. Agnes Moorehead was in the first broadcast of this script, and Ethel Barrymore has that role in this one. Moorehead’s performance was her usual excellence. Barrymore seems unsteady here and there but her voicing implies a more elderly character, which may make that character to be in greater danger to some listeners than Moorehead’s portrayal did.

Details about the Mel Dinelli script and how it became a movie and a stage play are at post of the initial broadcast:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/05/1945-01-18-to-find-help.html

• https://archive.org/details/450118 which has the audio files for streaming or download.

A network recording and an Armed Forces Radio Service recording (#266) have survived. The network recording is the better of the two. Of the two broadcasts, the first with Sinatra in 1945, and this 1949 one, this Kelly performance is the better of the two in sound quality if you’re just interested in the story.

At the close of the network recording, the microphone picks up someone in the cast with a bad cough.

This was Ethel Barrymore’s sole appearance on Suspense. She was nearly 70 years old for this appearance, and her 60-year career was still in motion. She started in the theater, continued in the movies (four Oscar nominations, an Oscar for None but the Lonely Heart), and television. Her radio appearances were rare, but covered over 25 years. An overview of her life and career is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethel_Barrymore

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP490106

THE CAST

ETHEL BARRYMORE (Mrs. Gillis), GENE KELLY (Howard Wilton), Bill Conrad (Mr. Armstrong / Stevens), Charles Seel (Milkman), Dave Light (Sarah, the dog), Paul Frees (Signature Voice)

COMMERCIAL: Bill Johnstone (Hap), Sylvia Simms (Operator), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer)

1948-12-30 Break-Up

William Bendix returns to Suspense in a story about gangsters and police corruption. He plays an ex-cop who takes a job with a local gangleader. He’s ordered to murder a policeman who was his friend while he was on the force. The story involves drug-running in town and how the gang members themselves were corrupt even among themselves. The ending is a surprise as you find out that no one in the police force knew what the real mission of Bendix’ character was, and what he was willing to sacrifice for the good of the community. It’s a good story and Bendix carries it all quite well.

The author of the original story was Thomas Walsh, a former police and reporter for the Baltimore Sun. He left that position to become a full-time writer in the 1930s, with one of his favorite topics as big city police officers who worked alone. His novel Nightmare in Manhattan became the hit 1950 movie Union Station with William Holden. This particular story, Break-Up, appeared in the March 1934 issue of Black Mask. He was a prolific mystery short story writer.

The title of the story, as originally published was “Break-Up” with a hyphen. Some of the newspaper listings were “Breakup,” without the hyphen. The radio script cover may have been without the hyphen as well. With the inconsistent information about the title, it was decided to retain the format as used in its first print publication since that seems to be the author’s intent.

The story was adapted by Joseph Ruscoll & Walter Brown Newman. Ruscoll was one of the writers for Murder at Midnight, the syndicated series that was directed by Anton M. Leader just a few years earlier. Ruscoll also wrote for Molle Mystery Theater, Murder by Experts, Cavalcade of America, and many other series. He wrote for early television, and passed away in 1956. His script The Creeper was a favorite for Molle and was produced on the Suspense television series, for Alfred Hitchcock Presents in 1956 and posthumously for the 1986 series revival.

Walter Brown Newman was nominated for Oscars for best screenplay three different times in three different decades. He adapted one of the greatest Suspense broadcasts, Three O’Clock, a Cornell Woolrich story, which starred Van Heflin in March 1949.

This story was originally planned for Burt Lancaster, but he starred in The Big Shot a few weeks prior to this broadcast. The change in lead roles worked out well for Lancaster and Bendix as the scripts seemed to fit their voice and skills quite well.

Jack Benny makes a cameo in the final announcements of the show to promote his move to CBS from NBC. The CBS “talent raid” over 1948 and 1949 was a long-term strategic marketing move by CBS to position lock up talented big stars and their programming as they prepared for the growing television viewership.

The beginning of the recording has a low “thump” in the first minute, an indication that there was disc damage of some sort. The dialogue and music are not affected.

This episode marks the return of the Suspense bells and theme at the beginning of the show. Prior Auto-Lite weeks had Frank Martin and Harlow Wilcox announcing the program without any background music.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP481230

THE CAST

WILLIAM BENDIX (Marty Connors), Frances Chaney (Rita), Nestor Paiva (Max Shale), Wally Maher (Kivilan), Ed Begley (Captain Brandt), Herb Vigran (Chick), Tim Graham (Doctor / Gambler), Herbert Rawlinson (Doc Williamson), Sidney Miller (Elevator Operator / Proctor), Paul Frees (Signature Voice)

COMMERCIAL: Bill Johnstone (Hap), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer)

###

1948-12-23 Back for Christmas (Holiday Story)

This episode is a repeat of the script from 1943-12-23 which starred Peter Lorre. This time, it stars Herbert Marshall. The original story was written by John Collier and adapted by Bob Tallman. Details about the 1943 broadcast are at:

• https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/03/1943-12-23-back-for-christmas.html

• https://archive.org/details/TSP431223 at which the audio files may be downloaded.

Why isn’t this story called by its title “Back for Christmas” in the opening announcement? It is referred to as a “holiday story.” It turns out that the re-use of this script was a rushed filler because a much different script was not ready for broadcast for an unknown reason. The original plans were much different.

The announced program was a new script, Rich Man, Poor Man by Myles Connelly. He was one of the behind-the-scenes scriptwriters for It’s a Wonderful Life and was very highly regarded screenwriter. It would have been a pretty big deal to get him involved. CBS publicity had this background:

“What we set out to do,” explains producer-director Tony Leader, “was to combine a heart-warming expression of the Christmas spirit with an exciting, suspenseful drama. With a script like Rich Man, Poor Man, and a star like Herbert Marshall, I believe we have the necessary ingredients.” Marshall plays the role of a “modern Scrooge” who believes that the key to anyone is cash on the line. The story of his disillusionment, and of his discovery of a new life forms a pattern into which a suspenseful plot is woven.

Other publicity emphasized how Rich Man, Poor Man would not have murders or other aspects that were common elements of Suspense. It is unclear why there was a change in plans, but presenting a program that was clearly not the promised non-violent storyline may have led to the use of “Holiday Story” rather than the very recognizable title “Back for Christmas.” The script was used the prior Christmas on 1947-12-24 as an Escape broadcast and starred Paul Frees. Since Back for Christmas was so well-known, perhaps there was concern that listeners would not tune in to Suspense if they knew it was an obvious repeat. Since this was the first Auto-Lite Christmas broadcast, they may have decided that changing to the different name would be better and not discourage listeners.

Ronald Colman was the first announced star for Rich Man, Poor Man. A little while later, CBS announced that Herbert Marshall would replace him. And then the script was replaced, too. There must have been a problem getting the Rich Man, Poor Man ready for production and the decision to switch was made late. The replacement with Back for Christmas never got into the newspapers.

The script for Rich Man, Poor Man is in the KNX Collection at University of California – Santa Barbara. It was never produced.

LISTEN TO THE PROGRAM or download in FLAC or mp3
https://archive.org/details/TSP481223

THE CAST

HERBERT MARSHALL (Wilfred Carpenter), Jeanette Nolan? (Hermione), Betty Lou Gerson (Miriam), unknown (Freddy Sinclair / Bellboy), unknown (Professor Goodenough), unknown (Mrs. Goodenough), Daws Butler (Steward / Clerk), Paul Frees (Signature Voice)

COMMERCIAL: Bill Johnstone (Hap), Sylvia Simms (Operator), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer)

###