Several years ago my then fiance Kelly told me about a podcast called the Horror. The Horror was a show that replayed old radio horror programming. The programming varied as you could get anything from the 1930s into the 1980s. The programs varied in quality but it was a fascinating look into a long past time. And of course, you develop your favorites of the various shows and I expanded out into other genres. I've surprisingly wandered into the Western genre which has never been a favorite of mine.
Anyways. I figured I would use this post to cover some of my favorite old time radio programs.
CBS Mystery Radio Theater: This is perhaps my favorite of all of the old time radio shows. It came about in the 70s when radio dramas were making a bit of a comeback. This ran from 1974-1982. I like this show because it has the mentality of shows from the 40s and 50s but it has more modern technology so the show is executed a little better. I've actually decided to try and listen to all 1399 episodes of this series. I'm currently at episode 142. Long way to go.
The Shadow: Orson Welles stars as the Shadow in the series for the first year or so of the show. Let's just say, he was awesome in the role. He created this sinister vibe and you truly understood why he was this fearsome figure. This show predates Superman by about a year. The Shadow is considered to be a pulp hero not a super hero. Most episodes involve his sinister laugh and the bad guy dying in some horrible way while the Shadow doesn't do much of anything. The format does change here and there but the bad guy dies about 8/10 times on this show. His replacement wasn't as good honestly. I would just listen to the Orson Welles episodes.
Inner Sanctum Mystery: This is your typical horror/mystery show. You have a host, Raymond Edward Johnson, who introduces the stories and pops in around commercials for some ghoulish banter. There's also a woman that represents Lipton Iced Tea, the sponsor, and she often joins in the banter with Raymond. Honestly, the stories can be a little boring and predictable but the hosts always provide for an entertaining time.
Gunsmoke: I had started listening to the Lone Ranger due to the upcoming movie and Gunsmoke was always something that I had been curious about. I instantly loved this series. It was like graduating from the Lone Ranger to Gunsmoke. With the Lone Ranger no one is ever really hurt and you know everything will be okay by the end of the episode. With Gunsmoke, people die, it's tense, it's gritty and you feel the struggle of the characters. This is just a well acted series. William Conrad stars as Matt Dillion and he does a great job. If you try one Western, listen to this.
Price of Fear: This is a BBC Radio series that stars horror icon Vincent Price as himself. Each episode is a horror story that involves Price and the people around him. Price is mostly just a narrator and witness to horrible events that happen to people around him. The show is always well acted of course and the stories can be pretty fun. I might try to track down the entire series at some point and give it the CBS Radio Mystery Theater treatment.
There you have it, some of my favorite old time radio series. Most of these sites have archive sites or can be found on iTunes via various podcasts. Check them out, you won't regret it.
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