Escape and Suspense!

Suspense - The Red-Headed Woman

In "The Red-Headed Woman," Lucille Ball plays a dangerous woman on the run, and Desi Arnaz plays the man... who gets in her way.

Linda is a secretary for the Jenson Company in Kansas City. One day, she gets a call from her fiance, Frank, telling her that he has met someone else. For two years, her life had revolved around him, but now, she decides to live for herself. Linda wants to get away, and for that she needs money, so she steals a gun from her boss and the payroll money from the company safe.

LInda hits the road and drives west towards Texas. On the car radio, there is a news report about a Texas bank robbery and the two dangerous criminals that are now on the loose. Not long afterwards, she meets a man stranded on the side of the road. He asks her for a ride, but she hesitates because he matches the description of one of the robbers. Is he the man the police are looking for? If so, where is his red-headed accomplice?

"The Red-Headed Woman" was written by Nancy J. Cleveland, produced by William Spier, and directed by Norman MacDonnell. Paul Frees was the announcer. This was the first of two appearances that Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz made together on Suspense. (Lucille Ball made four other appearances on Suspense on her own.) At the time this episode aired on November 17, 1949, Lucille Ball was still appearing on the CBS radio show My Favorite Husband. The television show I Love Lucy began in October of 1951.

.  Download Suspense_1949.11.17_The Red-Headed Woman.MP3

(Image of Lucille Ball in Best Foot Forward (1943) from Wikimedia Commons)

Suspense - The High Wall

In "The High Wall," Robert Young plays a man who suddenly finds himself locked away in an asylum for the criminally insane.

Mr. Lewis wakes up in a hospital with no memory of events that have happened within the last six months. He thinks it is December, but then realizes it is summer when he looks outside. The last thing that he does remember was returning home to his wife after being away for three years. He was in a hotel room and there was a knock at the door, but he doesn't remember what occurred after that. What happened between then and now? His friendly nurse Amy is willing to break the rules to help him remember.

"The High Wall" was written by Bradbury Foote and produced/directed by William Spier. This was the third of Robert Young's seven appearances on Suspense. English character actor George Zucco, in the last of his five appearances on Suspense, played the Professor. Cathy Lewis played Amy and Wally Maher played Dr. Dunlap. This episode aired on June 6, 1946.

. Download Suspense_1946.06.06_TheHighWall.mp3

(Image from Wikipedia)

Suspense - Pigeon in the Cage

Suspense's "Pigeon in the Cage" tells the story of a man trapped inside an elevator and the two murderers waiting for him on the outside.

Gerald Brewer is stuck in a small, rickety elevator in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Rogers. He was hanging wallpaper upstairs, but when he tried to leave for the day, the elevator stopped between floors. Brewer wants to get home to his wife, but he is helpless until the owners return.

Soon, one of the owners does return. Brewer can see and hear Mr. Rogers and his girlfriend, Janice, on the floor below, but they don't realize he is there. Mr. Rogers intends to murder Mrs. Rogers when she comes home, and Janice is anxious to get it over with. Brewer tries to hide within the darkness of the suspended elevator, but it isn't long before Mr. Rogers and Janice realize that someone is inside.

"Pigeon in the Cage" was written by Morton Fine and David Friedkin. Elliott Lewis produced and directed. Dick Haymes, in his only appearance on Suspense, played Brewer. Joseph Kearns played Harry Rogers and Charlotte Lawrence turned out a particularly good performance as Janice. This episode aired on May 25, 1953.

.  Download Suspense_1953.05.25_PigeonInTheCage.mp3

This story was presented again on August 11, 1957. Lloyd Bridges, in one of his four appearances on Suspense, played the role of Brewer. Joe DeSantis played Harry Rogers, and Ellen Morgan played Janice. William N. Robson produced and directed.

.  Download Suspense_1957.08.11_PigeonintheCage.mp3

(Images from Stock.xchng and Wikimedia Commons)

Suspense - Snow on 66

"Snow on 66" is a story about a drunk driver named Leroy, who enjoys scaring tourists on the road. Suspense did a number of shows about traffic safety and this episode addresses the dangers of red-neck drunks in pick-up trucks. 

What makes this episode more than just a radio-play about road safety is that it features Grayson Hall, an Academy-award nominated actress. To many she is primarily known for her role as Dr. Julia Hoffman on the 1960's gothic soap opera Dark Shadows, but she was also an accomplished stage actress. "Snow on 66" was the first of her two appearances on Suspense.

Charlie and Flo are newlyweds traveling on Route 66. They have stopped for the night at a motel in a remote town in Arizona, but they need to find a place to have dinner. As they are driving to a nearby restaurant, they run into trouble on the road with Leroy. As the night progresses, they find that they can't seem to resolve the trouble no matter what they do.

"Snow on 66" was written by William N. Robson and produced/directed by Fred Hendrickson. Also appearing were Jimmy Blaine, Gwen Davis, James Dimetree, William Mason and Sam Raskyn.  This episode aired on July 15, 1962.

. Download suspense__1962.07.15_SnowOn66.mp3

(Image of Route 66 from Wikimedia Commons. The Burma-Shave signs read: "Big Mistake -- Make Many -- Rely on Horn -- Instead of Brake -- Burma-Shave.")

Suspense - Shooting Star

Suspense's "Shooting Star" is the story of a Hollywood actress and her peculiar revenge on a studio producer. The star of this episode is Virginia Christine, an actress familiar to most as friendly Mrs. Olsen from Folger's Coffee commercials of the 1960's and 70's.

Gay Lansing is an actress/dancer who has been working for J.D. Zimmer's studio for many years. She has been in one cheap movie musical after another, but she hopes that the studio will give her a serious role in their latest production.

Soon, however, Gay's agent informs her that not only will she not get a part in the new movie, but that J.D. Zimmer has dropped her contract. When Gay finds out that J.D. has gone down to his house in the desert for the weekend, she decides to pay him a visit. Gay wants to convince him, with her gun, to change his mind.

"Shooting Star" was written by Ruth Borne and produced/directed by Norman MacDonnell. Virginia Christine, in her only appearance on Suspense, played Gay Lansing. (She does break into a Scandinavian accent for a few minutes towards the end of this episode.) Joseph Kearns played J.D. Zimmer. Also appearing were John Dehner, Sam Edwards, and John Large. This episode aired on November 25, 1954.

. Download Suspense_1954.11.25_ShootingStar.mp3

Click below to watch Mrs. Olsen in action. Virginia Christine portrayed Mrs. Olsen in television commercials for 21 years.

Video from the Internet Archive.

Suspense - A Little Piece of Rope

"A Little Piece of Rope" stars Lucille Ball in the fourth of her six appearances on Suspense. It is a peculiar tale about a baby-faced actress in Hollywood named Isabelle who turns to a life of crime. Her youthful appearance and acting skills worked against her as a professional actress, but as a thief they serve her well. Isabelle's criminal inspiration came from an article she had once read in a Victorian-era Police Gazette. It had described "vicious females" who dressed as schoolgirls in order to "entice and trap unwary gentlemen."

Isabelle modernizes the scam and carves out a profitable niche for herself by passing herself off as a schoolgirl. She frequents the areas around high schools, where older men trolling for young girls are to be found, and when one offers her a ride, she accepts. Later, she clubs him with her blackjack and takes off with his cash.

Things are going well but one day she gets into a car with a dangerous man. Isabelle soon discovers that he is the strangler that the police are looking for but how can she prove it to them without exposing her own criminal activity?

"A Little Piece of Rope" was written by Virginia Cross. Anton M. Leader produced and directed. Lucille Ball played Isabelle and Berry Kroeger played the strangler. At the time she appeared on this episode of Suspense, Lucille Ball was promoting her own CBS radio show, My Favorite Husband as well as the movie Sorrowful Jones.  This episode aired October 14, 1948.

.  Download Suspense_1948.10.14_Little_Piece_of_Rope.mp3

(Image of Lucille Ball from Wikimedia Commons)

Best or Worst? - Pages From a Diary

"Pages from a Diary" is a peculiar episode of Suspense. The story opens in the bedroom of of a farmer named John. His fiance, Janet is looking for something that will help her understand what has happened to him. She opens his diary and starts reading. From there, John's disembodied voice takes over and reads aloud. The narrative takes us into the mind of a man is suffering from mental illness. It is filled with dream-like imagery and confusion. In the background, the music adds to the mood of turmoil.

This episode's weakness is that it is one long narrative and relies on the listener to stay intrigued. Not everyone will be. At the very end, we learn something that explains the narrative we just listened to. 

This episode works because Jim Backus plays the role of John. Why does Jim Backus keep our attention? Who knows, but he does. Perhaps because this isn't the kind of role he typically played. His wife, Henny Backus, played the role of Janet. Normally, the two authored humor books together, but this episode of Suspense shows a different dimension of their talents. "Pages from a Diary" was written for Suspense by Virginia Bolland.

This episode aired on August 19, 1962.

.   Download Suspense_1962.08.19.PagesFromADiary.mp3

(Image from Morgue File)

Suspense - Deep, Deep is My Love

Suspense producer and announcer William N. Robson introduces the episode "Deep, Deep is My Love" by stating that it is a story about skin divers, "intruding upon a world for which nature never intended them." Here we learn about the dangers of narcosis, or as Jacques Cousteau called it, the "rapture of the deep."  The story takes place at Point Dume, a beach located near Santa Monica, California.

Lloyd Bridges was the star of the television show Sea Hunt (1958-1961) when he appeared on this episode of Suspense. He plays Don, a diver who wants to investigate an unusual experience that occurred during his previous week's dive. Don and his clingy wife Joyce are at odds because she does not want him to go on the dive without her. He wants to be alone but Joyce wants them to do everything together. She relents and he escapes to a tranquil underwater realm where there is a golden girl who really understands him.

The radio play was written by novelist and screenwriter Hank Searls, who later wrote the best selling books Overboard, Jaws II, and Sounding. This episode also stars Marie Lynne, Tracy Roberts, and Bill Quinn. It was broadcast 48 years ago on April 26, 1959.

Download Suspense-59-04-26DeepDeepIsMyLove.mp3

Suspense - Ghost Hunt

Listen to this episode with the lights off.

In this story about a stunt that goes wrong, radio personality Smiley Smith and paranormal investigator, Dr. Reed tour a haunted house in Malibu, California. Their experiences are recorded for playback on Smith's show. The house, known as "The Death Trap," has a bad reputation because four of its residents have committed suicide.

"Ghost Hunt" was adapted for Suspense by Walter Newman from an original story by the renowned ghost story writer Herbert Russell Wakefield. Ralph Edwards, who starred as Smiley Smith, was the creator of Truth or Consequences,This is Your Life, Name That Tune and The People''s Court. According to the website of Ralph Edwards Productions, "At least one Ralph Edwards’ show has been on radio or television every year for the past 65 - a feat unmatched in Hollywood." Joseph Kearns starred as Dr. Reed and Paul Frees, the voice of the "Ghost Host" at Disneyland's Haunted Mansion, was the Suspense announcer.

Suspense aired this episode on June 23, 1949.

Download Suspense.6.23.1949.GhostHunt.mp3

Image from Haunted America Tours.

Suspense-Flesh Peddler

The ventriloquist/comedy act of Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy was a huge success during the "Golden Age of Radio" but ventriloquists and their dummies also made excellent fodder for radio thrillers and horror shows. The ventriloquists portrayed in these shows were often down on their luck, tortured souls working in seedy places -- a stark contrast to the perennially sunny Bergen & McCarthy Show.

(Bergen & McCarthy are pictured here from their appearance in the movie Stage Door Canteen in 1943. Bergen is the one in the turban.)

The Suspense episode "Flesh Peddler" follows a typical "haunted" ventriloquist plot but it remains interesting because of the casting.

This is an old radio show with two performers who are familiar to any Gen-Xer. It stars Deforest Kelly, whom we all know as Dr. McCoy on Star Trek, but it also has Daws Butler, who was the voice of Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Elroy Jetson and numerous other cartoon characters. Anyone who watched cartoons in the 1970's will recognize his voice.

Deforest Kelly plays a booking agent who takes an interest in a ventriloquist act he finds at a carnival. Daws Butler provides the voice of Arthur, the slow-witted knife-thrower. It is unfortunate that they did not choose Butler to play the ventriloquist, given his enormous talent for providing character voices, but this was before he became famous for his work in cartoons.

This show was broadcast on August 4, 1957.

Download Suspense.1957.08.04_Fleshpeddler.mp3