Stars on Suspense (Old Time Radio)

Latest Episodes:

Episode 209 - Cornel Wilde (Part 2) Oct 15, 2020

Show notes

Hungarian-born actor and director Cornel Wilde displays his versatility at the microphone in a pair of old time radio thrillers. First, he's a pyromaniac fighting his fascination with fire in "The Flame" (originally aired on CBS on October 15, 1951). Then, he's a murderer who charms his victim into taking a fatal ride in "Somebody Help Me" (originally aired on CBS on March 29, 1954).

BONUS - Halloween Haunts: Three Skeleton Key Oct 09, 2020

Show notes

Our month-long Halloween celebration continues with another Friday bonus episode. We'll hear another one of my picks for the scariest Suspense episodes of all time. This week's installment pits Vincent Price, Ben Wright, and John Dehner against a horde of ravenous rats in "Three Skeleton Key" (originally aired on CBS on November 11, 1956).

Episode 208 - Ezio Pinza Oct 08, 2020

Show notes

Ezio Pinza sang on the stages of the greatest opera houses in the world, and he played nearly 100 characters over the course of his long career. When he left the Metropolitan Opera after 22 seasons, he moved to the Broadway stage where he took home a Tony for his role in South Pacific. Sadly, he did very little dramatic radio acting, but he was terrific in his one and only visit to Suspense. We'll hear him as a singer who gives a murderous performance in "Aria From Murder" (originally aired on CBS on January 25, 1951). Then, we'll hear him sing along with Al Jolson in an appearance on The Kraft Music Hall (originally aired on NBC on June 3, 1948).

BONUS - Halloween Haunts: The Hitchhiker Oct 02, 2020

Show notes

With Halloween right around the corner, I've picked five of the most frightening episodes of Suspense for bonus shows that are sure to get you in the trick-or-treating mood. Up first is Orson Welles in Lucille Fletcher's terrifying tale of horror on the highway - "The Hitchhiker" (originally aired on CBS on September 2, 1942).

Episode 207 - Nancy Kelly (Part 2) Oct 01, 2020

Show notes

Tony-winning and Oscar-nominated actress Nancy Kelly returns in two more old time radio thrillers. Best known as the mother of The Bad Seed on stage and screen, Kelly lends her considerable talents and versatility to shows that find her playing a woman plotting to run off with her lover and another woman terrified by a nightmarish omen. We'll hear "The Taming of the Beast," co-starring Helmut Dantine (originally aired on CBS on March 29, 1945) and "A Week Ago Wednesday" (originally aired on CBS on November 29, 1945).

Episode 206 - Pat O'Brien Sep 24, 2020

Show notes

Frequently cast as characters from the Emerald Isle, Pat O'Brien was known as "Hollywood's Irishman in residence." Best known as the street tough turned priest in Angels with Dirty Faces and as Knute Rockne with his famous "Gipper" speech, O'Brien made two visits to Suspense where he played a pair of cops. First, he tells the story of a cataleptic's date with the embalmer's knife in "Dead Ernest" (originally aired on CBS on March 24, 1949). Then, O'Brien is on the hunt for a hit and run killer, but the case may bring him right to his own home in "True Report" (originally aired on CBS on August 31, 1950).

Episode 205 - Eddie Bracken (Part 2) Sep 17, 2020

Show notes

In his final visit to Suspense, Eddie Bracken sheds his lovable and dopey screen persona honed in comedies from Preston Sturges. We'll hear him in "Nightmare," a sixty-minute story from Cornell Woolrich (originally aired on CBS on March 13, 1948). We'll also hear Bracken in the first episode of his radio sitcom The Eddie Bracken Show, where he plays a version of himself closer to his portrayals in The Miracle at Morgan Creek and Hail the Conquering Hero (originally aired on NBC on January 28, 1945).

Episode 204 - Everett Sloane Sep 10, 2020

Show notes

Character actor Everett Sloane broke out in radio and onstage before he moved to movies like Citizen Kane and The Lady from Shanghai. His voice was perfect for radio, with a patrician air that could give a character sophistication or menace. We'll hear him as a man plotting the murder of his business partner in "Alibi" (originally aired on CBS on July 7, 1957). Then, he's a safari guide facing off against a dangerous lion in "Game Hunt" (originally aired on CBS on March 16, 1958).

Episode 203 - Edmond O'Brien (Part 3) Sep 03, 2020

Show notes

For his final Suspense appearance, Edmond O'Brien starred in a grim tale of the frontier pulled from the history books. We'll hear him in "Ordeal in Donner Pass" (originally aired on November 2, 1953). Plus, he stars as "America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator" Johnny Dollar in "The Queen Anne Pistols Matter" (originally aired on CBS on November 4, 1950).

Episode 202 - David Niven Aug 27, 2020

Show notes

Debonair British star David Niven lent a touch of class and charm to his roles during his long Hollywood career. Whether he was racing the globe in Around the World in 80 Days, carrying out a daring commando raid in The Guns of Navarone, or vexing Peter Sellers in the Pink Panther films, Niven was always poised, polished, and highly entertaining. We'll hear him as a con artist plotting an insurance swindle in "Grand Theft" (originally aired on CBS on April 5, 1954). Plus, we'll hear him visit Bob Hope in Reno on The Pepsodent Show (originally aired on NBC on March 5, 1946).

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