The Good Old Days of Radio Show

Today we have The Abbott and Costello Show from February 15, 1945, from Armed Forces Radio, with special guest Rudy Vallee. This is a typical slapstick radio comedy, with lots of hysterical Abbott and Costello wordplay and wacky characters popping in and out (notably Mel Blanc as Vallee’s personal assistant and Sid Fields as Professor Melonhead). They make plenty of jokes about Vallee’s reputation as a supreme megalomaniac, and do a radio version of Jack and the Beanstalk, a bit of a foreshadowing of the Abbott and Costello film from 1952.

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Today we’re going back to the classics. It’s an adaptation of H.G. Wells' classic story, The Time Machine. The episode, originally broadcast on CBS's "Escape" series in 1948, follows the protagonist, Fowler, and his inventor friend, Dudley, as they journey over 100,000 years into the future. They discover a world inhabited by two distinct human species: the gentle, childlike Eloi who live above ground, and the subterranean, cannibalistic Morlocks who prey on them. This may be the only version you ever hear that features two time travelers together, a sharp departure from Wells' original story. But it’s an adaptation that allows more dialogue, something they probably felt was needed for the dramatized version.

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It’s been a bit since we’ve featured "The Adventures of Sam Spade Detective" on the show, but it’s one of our favorite unconventional detective series from vintage radio, and we have a lot of these in sourced from original transcription discs once owned by the show's producer, William Spier. So we’re bringing you one originally broadcast on September 19, 1948, over CBS Radio. The program, a mystery and crime drama, was brought to air by Wildroot Cream Oil Hair Tonic. In this episode Sam Spade investigates Leonard Kilcourse's suspicious gambling losses, which ultimately reveal a deeper plot involving blackmail and a crooked gambling operation.

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Continuing our “August Monster Madness" we have an unusual science fiction radio drama titled "Student Body" from the X Minus One series, originally broadcast in 1956. This is a highly unusual monster story, not concerned so much with scares as venturing into the territory of wondrous curiosity. The story is about a colonial expedition to a planet called Glade, where the scientific team encounters a unique and rapidly evolving indigenous species. To tell you any more than that would go into spoilers, which would be unforgivable with this story. Suffice it to say, it asks “what if,” and what would you do if faced with the strange and the unknown.

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Today we are featuring comedy, with a rare chance to hear this episode of The Henry Morgan Show in better sound quality. This is a later episode from the series from March 28, 1950, originally broadcast on NBC and later rebroadcast by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The show includes performances by Art Carney, Arnold Stang, and the Billy Williams Quartet. Again Morgan’s absurdist observations contrast societal norms and everyday occurrences, such as introductions, phone calls, and serving food, with their often-exaggerated radio portrayals. The host, Henry Morgan, known as the "bad boy of radio," frequently deviates from popular conventions of the period, one of the reasons we can appreciate this show's unpredictable and ahead-of-its-time comedic style so many years later.

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It’s our second in a series of summer “monster movies.” This episode of the horror anthology "Lights Out" is called "Superfeature," written by Arch Oboler. It describes a bizarre scenario where a movie monster steps off the screen into the audience, a concept Oboler uses to explore the frightening potential of the familiar becoming unfamiliar. This horror story bears a lot of resemblance to modern horror, where the plot is minimal, but you get the satisfaction of watching the usual despicable suspects get taken out one-by-one in typical grisly “Lights Out” style.

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Today we are once again pulling transcription discs off the shelves, and we have another "lost" Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy Show AFRS disc from January 16th, 1944. The show includes the comedic banter between ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and his dummy Charlie McCarthy, a skit where Charlie blackmails his principal, and a performance by guest Carmen Miranda, who also participates in a comedic opera sketch. The episode concludes with additional musical numbers, which John notes were added to fill the time void created by the removal of original advertisements.

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This week we are beginning a new series featuring great monsters on radio. We’re kicking off with a 1947 CBS "Escape" episode titled "Taboo," a terrific werewolf story featuring voice actor Paul Frees. The story focuses on a man investigating mysterious disappearances in Eastern Europe, where locals suspect a werewolf. In addition, we have a unique challenge for you in this episode.

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Here’s something rare I bet you didn’t know existed. A 1954 radio pilot of The Honeymooners. Starring the original cast (Jackie Gleason, Audrey Meadows, Art Carney) this audition recording, never aired on CBS, was created for a potential radio series to run concurrently with the television show, which debuted in 1955. The episode itself showcases the familiar comedic dynamic between Ralph, Alice, and Norton, centering on Ralph's hilarious and prideful reactions to believing he's been fired, only to discover he's been promoted. Sourced directly from original transcription discs, this episode offers a glimpse into a radio show that almost was.

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Today we are presenting a rare, previously unbroadcast recording of a Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters (PPB) luncheon from November 15, 1974, honoring renowned radio writer and director Norman Corwin. This two-hour recording features speeches and anecdotes from numerous prominent figures in radio, television, and film, such as Hans Conried, Lynn Murray, Perry Lafferty, Elliot Lewis, Ray Bradbury, Stan Freberg, and William Shatner, all celebrating Corwin's influence and the "golden age of radio." The episode concludes with Corwin's acceptance speech and his plea for a revival of live radio drama.

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