Boxcars711 Old Time Radio Pod

Secret Word Is 'Heart' (Aired March 8, 1950) Groucho Marx matches wits with the American public in four episodes of this classic game show. Starting on the radio in 1947, You Bet Your Life made its television debut in 1950 and aired for 11 years with Groucho as host and emcee. Sponsored rather conspicuously by the Dodge DeSoto car manufacturers, the show featured two contestants working as a team to answer questions for cash prizes. Another mainstay of these question and answer segments was the paper mache duck that would descend from the ceiling with one hundred dollars in tow whenever a player uttered the "secret word." The quiz show aspect of "You Bet Your Life" was always secondary, to the clever back-and-forth between host and contestant, which found Groucho at his funniest. It's in these interview segments that "You Bet Your Life" truly makes its mark as one of early television's greatest programs. Directed by: Robert Dwan. THIS EPISODE: March 8, 1950. Syndicated, WNEW-TV, New York audio aircheck. "The Secret Word Is 'Heart'. Participating sponsors. The first contestant is Anna Lingren. Syndicated rebroadcast date: March 21, 1975. Anna Lingren, Groucho Marx, George Fenneman (announcer), Jack Meakin (music). 31:08. Show Notes Ready To Post (2016)

Brother's Keeper (Pts 1&2 COMPLETE) Aired August 29, 1955 The characters are based on the book of the same name (by Max Miller) that was made into a film in 1933 (with Ben Lyon and Claudette Colbert). The adventures of a burned-out journalist in San Diego. The music heard during the program is based on the famous theme from the film. A Portuguese fisherman is suspected of murdering his unfaithful wife. A well-written and well-performed drama, the series might have been a hit 10 years earlier. The story is complete in these two episodes. Larry Thor, Tom Hanley (writer), Gil Doud (writer), Max Miller (author), William N. Robson (producer, director), Dan Cubberly (announcer). THIS EPISODE: August 29, 1955. "Brother's Keeper". An audition program recorded by CBS. The characters are based on the book of the same name (by Max Miller) that was made into a film in 1933 (with Ben Lyon and Claudette Colbert). The adventures of a burned-out journalist in San Diego. The music heard during the program is based on the famous theme from the film. A Portuguese fisherman is suspected of murdering his unfaithful wife. A well-written and well-performed drama, the series might have been a hit 10 years earlier. The story is complete in these two episodes. Larry Thor, Tom Hanley (writer), Gil Doud (writer), Max Miller (author), William N. Robson (producer, director), Dan Cubberly (announcer). 28:10. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

The People In The House (08-18-45) With a known run of at least 52 unique scripts and more doubtful further 39 to 52 scripts, it would appear that the series was in demand for at least four years--in and out of syndication. Given the high quality of NBC Network voice talent in the circulating episodes, one can well imagine that the remainder of the yet alleged, undiscovered, or uncirculated episodes have at least as much to recommend them. Thankfully, as with many other examples of Golden Age Radio productions, many of the existing episodes in circulation can be directly attributed to the efforts of the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service [AFRTS]. True to its genre, the circulating episodes provide some highly compelling supernatural dramas--as well as a subset of fascinating mysteries and detective dramas. There's no reason to expect any less of any new episodes that surface in the coming years. THIS EPISODE: August 18, 1945. Program #18. NBC syndication, WRVR-FM, New York aircheck. "The People In The House". Participating sponsors. Syndicated rebroadcast date: January 10, 1974. Edwin Wolfe (director). 24:59. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

The Chinese Student (Aired February 17, 1950) The Halls of Ivy featured Colman as William Todhunter Hall, the president of small, Midwestern Ivy College, and his wife, Victoria, a former British musical comedy star who sometimes felt the tug of her former profession, and followed their interactions with students, friends, and college trustees. Others in the cast included Herbert Butterfield as testy board chairman Clarence Wellman; Willard Waterman (then starring as Harold Peary's successor as The Great Gildersleeve) as board member John Merriweather; and Bea Benadaret, Elizabeth Patterson, and Gloria Gordon as the Halls' maids. Alan Reed (television's Fred Flintstone) appeared periodically as the stuffy English teacher, Professor Heaslip. The series ran 109 half-hour radio episodes from January 6, 1950, to June 25, 1952, with Quinn, Jerome Lawrence and Robert Lee writing many of the scripts. THIS EPISODE: February 17, 1950. "The Chinese Student" - NBC network. Sponsored by: Schlitz Beer. Dr. Hall uses the opportunity of an address in the Ivy chapel to speak of tolerance and brotherhood, after a Chinese student leaves Ivy because of prejudice. A good show! Barbara Jean Wong, Benita Hume, Don Quinn (creator, writer), Gloria Gordon, Henry Russell (composer, conductor), Herb Butterfield, Ken Carpenter (announcer), Nat Wolff (director), Ronald Colman, Walter Newman (writer), Willard Waterman. 29:34. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

Terminal Island With Guest Orson Welles (Aired September 28, 1943) Hope was surprised and humbled when he and his partner Grace Louise Troxell failed a 1930 screen test for Pathé at Culver City, California. (Hope had been on the screen in small parts, 1927's The Sidewalks of New York and 1928's Smiles. Hope returned to New York City and subsequently appeared in several Broadway musicals including Roberta, Say When, the 1936 Ziegfeld Follies, and Red, Hot and Blue with Ethel Merman. His performances were generally well-received and critics noted his keen sense of comedic timing. He changed his name from "Leslie" to "Bob", reportedly because people in the US were calling him "Hopelessly", although in the 1920s he sometimes used the name "Lester Hope". THIS EPISODE: The Pepsodent Show. September 28, 1943. "Guest Orson Welles" - NBC network, KFI, Los Angeles aircheck. Sponsored by: Pepsodent. The program originates from the Naval Air Station, Terminal Island, California. Bob and Frances take a moonlit buggy ride. The Pepsodent middle commercial features "Miriam" and "Irium." Stan Kenton is introduced and interviewed as "the new band leader" (it was actually his second appearance on the show). Guest Orson Welles appears as a mystic swami to tell Bob's future. Bob Hope, Frances Langford, Stan Kenton and His Orchestra, Larry Keating (commercial spokesman), Wendell Niles (announcer), Jerry Colonna, Barbara Jo Allen (as "Vera Vague"), Orson Welles. 29:56. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

The Human Game (Aired August 1, 1951) As a detective--gentleman or otherwise--Rex Harrison lends a distinctively intelligent and understated confidence to the role. He's not quite as nonchalant as The Thin Man's Nick Charles, not as arrogant as Philo Vance, and not as melodramatic as Sherlock Holmes or Radio's Philip Marlowe. In short, he's both 'just right' and entirely fascinating--and competent--as detective Rex Saunders. Leon Janney's rendition of Saunders' assistant, Alec, complements Harrison's delivery of his Saunders characterization. Not the typical stooge assistant, nor quite as clever as Nero Wolfe's Archie, Leon Janney's Alec is given the same latitude as some of Radio's other more helpful detective assistants. Show Notes From The Digital Deli. THIS EPISODE: August 1, 1951. NBC network. "When They Track Down...The Human Game". Sponsored by: RCA Victor. The system cue has been deleted. Rex Harrison, Edward Adamson (writer), Himan Brown (director), Kenneth Banghart (announcer), Leon Janney, Lesley Woods. 28:08. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

The Secret Of The Mausoleum (Aired February 1, 1965) The Creaking Door was South African Radio's attempt to create a compelling program of highly suspenseful, dramatic thrillers with a supernatural bent for their sponsor, State Express Cigarettes. Some commentators insist it was conceived as a spin-off of the already successful Inner Sanctum episodes that had been syndicated for broadcast in Australia and South Africa during the 1950s. Given the format, one can see the inference, but in fact The Creaking Door stands on its own as a unique, well-produced, engaging supernatural thriller series on its own merit. The etymology of the name, The Creaking Door, bears some reflection. When legendary producer and director, Himan Brown first presented Inner Sanctum as one of three requested sponsorship candidates to Carter Products, he presented Inner Sanctum as The Creaking Door. Carter didn't care for the name, so on the spur of the moment Hi Brown suggested Inner Sanctum as an alternative, and voila, Radio history was made. The emphasis on high production values is perhaps the very reason that several early, morally challenged Radio traders felt they could get away with interspersing many of the Creaking Door episodes with their Inner Sanctum, Mysterious Traveler, and Strange Dr. Weird offerings to a still naive community of radio recording collectors. Although somewhat left-handed, it's still a compliment to both SABC and Springbok Radio that those early 'otr hooligans' managed to get away with the practice for well over 20 years. That takes nothing away from this excellent series in its own right. Show Notes From The Digital Deli.

The Tiger & Brad Ferguson (Aired March 10, 1954) Crime Classics was a United States radio docudrama which aired as a sustaining series over CBS from June 15, 1953, to June 30, 1954. Created, produced, and directed by radio actor/director Elliott Lewis, the program was a historical true crime series, examining crimes and murders from the past. It grew out of Lewis' personal interest in famous murder cases and took a documentary-like approach to the subject, carefully recreating the facts, personages and feel of the time period. Comparatively little dramatic license was taken with the facts and events, but the tragedy was leavened with humor, expressed largely through the narration. The crimes dramatized generally covered a broad time and place frame from ancient Greece to late 19th-century America. Each episode in the series was co-written by Morton Fine and David Friedkin, in consultation with Lewis, although the scripting process was more a matter of research, as the stories were "adapted from the original court reports and newspaper accounts" or from the works of historians. Show Notes From The Old Time Radio Researcher's Group and The Digital Deli.

The Ultimate Threshold (Aired March 31, 1986) The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) began airing a fascinating range of classic, mystery, comedy, documentary, and supernatural drama throughout the 1970s to 1990s to a steadily expanding audience--both in Canada and throughout the northern portions of the U.S. The CBC's extensive Radio offerings were a fairly even mix of organic dramas and comedies showcasing Canada's own great actors, writers and production talent, as well as several popular transcribed, syndicated features from throughout the British Empire and the United States. Indeed many of America's most beloved, popular, versatile and award-winning character actors, musicians, and comedians were Canadian citizens who'd honed their craft in all manner of original Canadian Radio drama.

Sales Resistance (Aired October 5, 1951) The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet premiered on ABC on October 10, 1952, staying until September 3, 1966. The show strove for realism and featured exterior shots of the Nelsons' actual southern California home at 1822 Camino Palmero Street in Los Angeles as the fictional Nelsons' home. Interior shots were filmed on a sound stage recreated to look like the real interior of the Nelsons' home. Like its radio predecessor, the series focused mainly on the Nelson family at home, dealing with run-of-the-mill problems. As the series progressed and the boys grew up, storylines involving various characters were introduced. Many of the series storylines were taken from the Nelsons' real life. THIS EPISODE: October 5, 1951. ABC network. Sponsored by: Heinz Foods. Ozzie shows an amazing lack of "Sales Resistance" and comes up smelling like a rose, literally. Ozzie Nelson, Harriet Hilliard, Verna Felton, Sheldon Leonard, H. J. Heinz, Verne Smith (announcer), David Nelson, Ricky Nelson, John Brown, Lurene Tuttle, Billy May (composer, conductor). 30:41. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

The Lodger (Aired May 19, 1946) Hollywood Star (TimeThe Hollywood Star Playhouse ) , well written and performed, presented many original plays and popular Hollywood stars. Some of those who accepted roles in this great series included Jimmy Stewart, William Conrad, Deborah Kerr, Vincent Price, Harry Bartell and Betty Lou Gerson. Highlights included an episode entitled The Six Shooter and which later became it’s own series staring James Stewart. In 1952, Marilyn Monroe made her radio debut on The Hollywood Star Playhouse. This 30 minute anthology program was heard over three different networks during its three seasons. Many leading Hollywood stars appeared before the microphones for this programs original scripts. Marilyn Monroe made her radio debut on the 08/31/52 broadcast. THIS EPISODE: May 19, 1946. CBS network. "The Lodger". Sponsored by: Frigidaire. The story of "Jack The Ripper." This is a network, sponsored version. Vincent Price, Cathy Lewis, Alfred Newman (music conductor), Milton Geiger (adaptor), Robert L. Redd (director), Wendell Niles (announcer). 30:18. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

Once A Thief (Aired June 5, 2974) Rod Serling is known to most people as the TV host (and some times writer) for The Twilight Zone. A decade later, he returned to TV to host the spooky Night Gallery series. The series was sold to the networks on Serling's name and reputation, but in reality, he had signed away creative control. A few of his scripts were produced, but others were rejected for being "too thoughtful." (We can't have any of that on television, can we?) He was banned from the casting sessions and had no real say on the show. Despite the shabby treatment by hot shot execs, Serling grit his teeth and did his duty. He continued to lead TV viewers through a darkened museum every week, looking at paintings with even darker themes. (It was very similar to the role Orson Welles served two decades earlier as the host to The Black Museum.) When Night Gallery was canceled in 1972, Serling was probably happy to retire from TV and move to upstate New York. He taught at Ithaca College, not far from where he grew up.

Three Thousand Dollars (Aired January 21, 1972) A transcribed syndication of original broadcasts from Lights Out. With its premiere on the nationwide NBC hookup in 1935, Lights Out was billed "the ultimate in horror." Never had such sounds been heard on the air. Heads rolled, bones were crushed, people fell from great heights and splattered wetly on pavement. There were garrotings, choking, heads split by cleavers, and, to a critic at Radio Guide, "the most monstrous of all sounds, human flesh being eaten." Few shows had ever combined the talents of actors and imaginative writers so well with the graphic art of the sound technician. Wyllis Cooper, who created, wrote, and produced it, was then a 36-year-old staffer in Chicago's NBC Studios. Cooper created his horror "by raiding the larder." For the purposed of Lights Out sound effects, people were what they ate. Show Notes From The Old Time Radio Researcher's Group. THIS EPISODE: January 21, 1972. CBS network. "Three-Thousand Dollars". Sponsored by: Ironized Yeast, Energene. Tony the diver doesn't stop at murder nor anything else for money. His last dive is most successful. This is a network, sponsored version. The story is also known as, "Money, Money, Money." Arch Oboler (writer, host), Frank Martin (commercial spokesman). 25:22. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

Rita Malloy (Aired May 1, 1949) Each episode of the program, particularly the Jack Webb episodes, follows the same basic formula; a foghorn sounds and Novak's footsteps are heard walking down the pier. He then pauses and begins with the line "Sure, I'm Pat Novak . . . for hire". The foghorn repeats and leads to the intro theme, during which Pat gives a monologue about the waterfront and his job renting boats. Jack Webb narrates the story as well as acts in it, as the titular character. Playing the cynic, he throws off lines such as "...about as smart as teaching a cooking class to a group of cannibals". He then introduces the trouble in which he finds himself this week. Typically, a person unknown to Pat asks him to do an unusual or risky job. Pat reluctantly accepts and finds himself in hot water in the form of an unexplained dead body. Police Inspector Hellman (played by Raymond Burr) arrives on the scene and pins the murder on Novak. THIS EPISODE: May 1, 1949. Program #7. ABC network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. A corpse in one of Novak's boats leads to the body of "Rita Malloy", beautiful and dead. Jack Webb, William P. Rousseau (producer, director), Tudor Owen, Raymond Burr (doubles), Basil Adlam (composer, conductor), Richard Breen (writer), George Fenneman (announcer). 36:24. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.

The Tell Tale Hands (1950) *The Exact Date Is Unknown." Charlie Chan was the Chinese detective created by Earl Derr Biggers. Over 40 Charlie Chan movies were done from the early 1930's through 1949, all of which starred non-Chinese actors as Charlie. Supposedly working as a Honolulu police detective, Charlie was almost always somewhere else, like Paris, Rio, LA, even Treasure Island…but he did have a wonderful home life, too, with a reported 14 children, including his famous #1, #2 etc. sons, ever intent on helping "pop" solve the case. On radio, Charlie Chan was heard in different series on four networks (Blue, NBC, ABC, MBS) between 1932 and 1948. Walter Connolly initially portrayed Chan as part of Esso Oil's Five Star Theater, which serialized adaptations of Biggers novels. Ed Begley, Sr. had the title role in NBC's The Adventures of Charlie Chan (1944–45), followed by Santos Ortega (1947–48). Leon Janney and Rodney Jacobs were heard as Lee Chan, Number One Son, and Dorian St. George was the program's announcer. Radio Life magazine described Begley's Chan as "a good radio match for Sidney Toler's beloved film enactment."