Resurrecting the dead was a subject that prompted interesting episodes from a number of old time radio series. Let's take a look at three of these episodes and the life and death struggles that resulted from experiments gone wrong.
In "The Return from Death," an episode from The Hall of Fantasy, a doctor named Jason Sinclair believes he can bring the dead back to life. Sinclair and his lab assistant persuade a death row inmate to allow them to experiment on his body after his execution. If they can bring him back to life, he will be a free man. Will Sinclair's experiment work? This episode aired on April 6, 1953.
. Download HallofFantasy_1953.04.06_Return_From_Death.mp3
"The Search for Life" from The Hermit's Cave tells the story of a lab assistant who wants his girlfriend to forget her career and marry him. He decides to kill her and then resurrect her in such a way that she will have no memory of her career. What can possibly go wrong with a plan like that? You'll never guess. This episode aired in 1940, the exact date is not known.
. Download HermitsCave.1940_The_Search_for_Life.mp3
"Death Robbery" from Lights Out stars Boris Karloff in a story about a scientist who has succeeded many times in bringing dead animals back to life. He wants to try his experiment on a human, but dead bodies are hard to come by! When his wife suddenly dies in a car crash, he gets his opportunity. Will he be happy with the results? "Death Robbery" takes a while to get where it is going. Most of the action is past the seventeen minute mark. This episode aired on July 16, 1947.
. Download LightsOut_1947.07.16_Death_Robbery.mp3
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Lurene Tuttle practically steals Boris Karloff's thunder in Death Robbery!
Posted by: Stacy Sobotka | October 31, 2008 at 12:11 PM
I agree, Lurene Tuttle's performance pretty much steals the show.
Posted by: cmillinsf | October 31, 2008 at 03:14 PM
So this is one of the early Wyllis Cooper scripts eh? I do like it and wish this series had continued and not been canceled by EverSharp. Anyone know if the other two episodes from the '47 Lights Out series exist anywhere?
Tuttle haha, reminds me of Captain Tuttle from M*A*S*H
Posted by: Kevin | September 08, 2009 at 11:16 PM