Old Radio

Dracula both on stage and on film, Bela Lugosi was born Bela Ferenc Dezso Blasko in Hungary, on this day in 1882.  In addition to his famous role as the diabolical vampire, Lugosi acted in many horror films, also co-starring with Boris Karloff . He lent his distinctive voice to radio series Suspense , Texaco Star Theatre , Candid Microphone , and Command Performance . Later, the Goth rock band Bauhaus recorded a song called "Bela Lugosi's Dead." Today, we commemorate the man's birth.

On this day in 1942, Suspense debuted on CBS.

On this day in 1906, William Spier "radio's outstanding producer/director of mystery and crime drama" was born.  On this day 110 years later in 2016, you can stream a free episode of one of his better known series: The Adventures of Sam Spade .

On this day in 1942, Suspense made its radio debut!

Ray Milland won an Oscar in 1946 for his work in Billy Wilder's The Lost Weekend.  He also starred in Dial M For Murder, Close To My Heart, and Reap the Wild Wind. But who are we kidding?  You and I love Ray for his role in the CBS blockbuster radio program Meet Mr. McNutley .  The series ran from '53-'54, and starred Ray Milland and Phyllis Avery.  Mr. McNutley was, as his name might imply, a warm-hearted, perhaps absent-minded professor at Lynnhaven College for Women.  The show ran simultaneously on the airwaves and the tube. Plots include Peg buying a new outboard motor for Ray; Ray trying to divine the gender of a new parakeet; and an O. Henryesque miscue involving a mink coat. Milland appeared as a guest on Lux Radio Theatre , Safari, Camel Screen Guild Theatre , and Suspense .

A dancer as a child and actress and sex symbol as an adult, Rita Hayworth was born Margerita Carmen Cansino on this day in 1918. Star of Gilda, Pal Joey, and Separate Tables, the stunning brunette was also once married to Orson Welles and romantically involved with Prince Aly Khan, Aga Khan's son. But let's allow others to worry about her lovelife, her scandals and intrigues.  We're here to celebrate her radio performances: there were many.  She appeared on The Lux Radio Theatre , Gulf Screen Guild Theatre , The Pepsodent Show (hosted by Bob Hope ), Suspense , and Command Performance .  On these top-flight shows, she acted alongside Cary Grant , Cecil B. DeMille, George Burns , and Angela Lansbury . Hayworth was dashing and sensual, and has been recognized by collective memory as one of the great film actresses of all time.

Happy Birthday to Myrna Loy today! Born today in 1905, the film actress was known for her many film roles including opposite William Powell in " The Thin Man " and with Cary Grant in "Mr Blandings." During the Golden Age of Radio , Myrna Loy also appeared in such radio shows as " Good News ", " Lux Radio Theater ", " Screen Guild Theater ", and " Suspense !"

Imagine a dozen voices singing "Happy Birthday" in a sepulchral, raspy Vincent Price voice.   Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was born on this day in 1911 and would forge a career in broadcasting, television, and film. The gothic ghoul who oozed cool graced the airwaves of such programs as Lux Radio Theater , Suspense , Escape , and Hollywood Star Playhouse . Check out the titles of the programs brought to life by Price's mid-century appearances on Suspense : "Fugue In C Minor," "Hands of Mr. Ottermole," "Rave Notice." He also starred in literary chillers "Occurrence At Owl Creek" and Poe's "The Pit and the Pendulum." The Yale-educated Price started his acting career in Broadway and didn't waste much time busting into film, starring in the 1953 flick "House of Wax" alongside Frank Lovejoy and Phyllis Kirk. Price may be the only person born today who has won a "Grim Reaper Award" and ...

Lux Radio Theatre and Suspense gave Peck a chance to shine in productions of "The Yearling," "Gentleman's Agreement," and "Murder Through the Looking Glass." He also appeared in a rendering of Anna Karenina on Screen Guild Theater . Peck was born in La Jolla, CA, and schooled first at St. John's Military Academy and then at the University of California, Berkeley. Without really knowing why, the English major took a role in a stage production of Moby Dick, and a promising career was born. Happy Birthday, Gregory Peck !

Today's entry is a birthday commemoration: on this day in 1903, author Cornell Woolrich came into the world. Woolrich's crime fiction was utterly adaptable, a favorite target for radio producers. His works You'll Never See Me Again and The Black Curtain were adapted by the radio classic Suspense . In fact, each of these was presented more than once. The first time The Black Curtain rolled on Suspense , the cast included Cary Grant and Hans Conried . Other stars of Woolrich adaptations include Joseph Cotten , Robert Young , and William Spier. Woolrich led a lonely, stark life. He lived with his mother in Harlem until her death, after which he drifted from hotel room to hotel room. To make matters worse, he suffered an infection that led to one of his legs being amputated. This life of suffering infused Woolrich's work--his characters, too suffered. Not a cheery story, perhaps, but fans of chilling tales have enjoyed hours of radio based on the work of ...

Sept 3: Happy Birthday,  Alan Ladd Alan Ladd  (born Alan Walbridge Ladd)  debut as a lead in a major motion picture was in 1942 in This Gun for Hire. This collection includes his radio version of This Gun for Hire from  Lux Radio Theater .  Alan Ladd with daughter, Alana Other films that he starred in include, The Great Gatsby, The Blue Dahlia, and The Glass Key. He continued to star in major roles such as the critically acclaimed Shane in the 1950s and until his death in 1964. Remembered both on screen and on the radio as a top-rate performer. This collection hopes to honor the work of Alan Ladd on radio . The second volumes contains the complete collection of  Box 13 , his most memorable role on radio as Dan Holiday. On the first volume there are also examples of some of his best work on the radio from shows such as  Burns and Allen ,  Command Performance ,  Jerry at Fair Oaks ,  Lux Radio Theater ,  Screen Director's Thea...

Today's birthday commemoration goes out to the renowned author Ray Bradbury . About sixty years before the "Green" movement, meant to stave off the destruction of the natural Earth, Bradbury set his stories in Green Town, an analogy for his hometown of Waukegan, Illinois. Green Town was green and inviting and nurturing, yet also the setting for fantastic events like an uncle growing wings and carnivals bringing characters with supernatural powers.  It's no surprise that Bradbury's weird tales in the science fiction genre were adapted for radio, by programs such as Dimension X , X Minus One and Suspense . But did you know that at the tender age of fourteen, the future author of Fahrenheit 451 got his first paying gig as a writer for the Burns and Allen Show? That's right, loyal listeners. Bradbury did something very unique and quirky in his literary career. Feeling the world needed a journal devoted just to his works, he published Futuria Fantasi...

Born (in 1879) into a world with no movies or television or radio, Ethel Barrymore still had something in her genetic code predisposing her to a career in the performing arts. Both of her parents were stage actors, and her brothers Lionel and John would choose that craft as well. Before her 1959 death , the theater star was able to make some high-quality appearances on radio. She managed to log time on quite a few of the big-name shows, including Screen Guild Theater , Suspense , Big Show , and Suspense . On the latter, she played a woman frightened by a psychotic handyman. One of the first generation of the Barrymore dynasty, Ethel Barrymore gets today's birthday wish!

The Bogey to the Bacall of Myrna Loy , William Powell was born today, 1892. William Powell and Myrna Loy paired up for no less than fourteen movies, including TheThin Man , The Great Ziegfeld , and Manhattan Melodrama. It's enough to keep a man busy, but WP still had time to play roles in nearly a dozen episodes of Lux Radio Theatre , one of them an adaptation of The Thin Man .  He also lent his acting chops to The Cavalcade of America and The Kraft Music Hall .  And if you think Loy's partner never appeared on Suspense, think again.  He starred alongside John Dehner and Joseph Kearns in a 1953 adaptation of "The Man Who Cried Wolf."  Other Suspense appearances teamed him with Anne Morrison, Paula Winslowe , and Jack Kruschen. We salute the birthday of the late William Powell .

The Rogers of Astaire and Rogers was born July 16, 1911. The lovely Ginger Rogers was a  captivating dancer and actress would perform more than 10 movies with Fred Astaire and be a romantic focus of his as well. Born Virginia Katherine McMath in Independence Missouri, Ginger would grow up with her grandparents in Kansas City. During this time her mother worked in Hollywood writing scripts. Due to the fact one of her cousins could not properly pronounce her first name, she took on the nickname of “Ginga’.” “Ginga’” moved to Texas where where her mother was working as a theatre critic for a Fort Worth newspaper. During this time, Miss Rogers became fascinated with the stage and started to learn to sing and dance. She became involved vaudeville and the stage, performing in a number of productions. One of her most memorable was Girl Crazy, where she met the choreographer, Fred Astaire , for the first time. By 1929 she had moved onto Hollywood and became a film performer. During th...

Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was born June 30, 1917. This versatile lady would grown to become an inspiring actress, singer, dancer and involved in civil rights . This descendant of notable early American colonists, John C Calhoun; Lena Horne spent a very uninspired childhood shuffling from grandparents to mother to an uncle growing up. Her mother was involved in a roving black troupe and that had an early impact on Horne’s desire to entertain. By 1933, Ms Horne became a part of the Cotton Club in NYC. She later became a part of Noble Sissle’s Orchestra, with whom she made her first recording with Decca Records. She then became the main vocalist for the The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street with NBC . during the 30’s and into the 40’s she made a few low-budget films. In 1944, Lena was featured in the radio mystery program Suspense , which featured her singing and acting as a nightclub performer. Also during the period of WWII , Lena Horne could be heard singing on radio pr...

June 22, 1920 was when American voice and character actor Paul Frees was born. Born Solomon Hersh Frees , his voice range that covered multiple octave levels made Frees a popular pick for voice characterizations over 40 years.  To this day, some of his voice offerings can be found in the Disney company of entrees, including Walt Disney World. Beginning in 1942, Frees would extend his voice to cartoons, and other venues of entertainment...including commercials. While beginning a career in radio, Frees was drafted into WWII and fought in the European theatre. Injured in Normandy , he would would convalescent for a year at home. His return to radio would endear him to millions of Americans as a voice actor in such popular programs as Gunsmoke and Suspense Theatre . In fact, if actor William Conrad was not the voice narration, Paul Frees would be heard giving the voice to Suspense . In the radio drama The Player , Frees handled all the parts; cast and storyteller. Paul F...

William Shakespeare 's biggest claim to fame was...being William Shakespeare . He was born on this day in 1564, so let's take a moment to celebrate performances of Shakespeare works on old time radio . Orson Welles was a lover of the classics who cut his teeth as a stage actor acting in several Shakespeare classics. He produced and directed several, including some for the Federal Theatre Project in the early 1930's. On the air, he brought Shakespeare to life on his program Columbia Workshop , with adaptations of Hamlet and As You Like It. Shakespeare's plays were adapted on such programs as I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again, Suspense, and Theatre Guild . References to Shakespeare characters and phrases inspired titles of episodes of Gunsmoke , First Nighter , and Favorite Story . He is too big a figure in arts and literature not to have made his imprint on old time radio. Happy Birthday, Bard.

April 17: Happy Birthday, Hans Conried Perhaps best known for his voice-over role as Captain Hook in the 1953 version of Disney's Peter Pan , Hans Conried was also a show-hopping radio actor. He was a consummate comedian whose niche was zany doctors and other professionals. Conried's regular gigs were on My Friend Irma , The Burns and Allen Show , and the dramatic programs Suspense and Mercury Theatre on the Air . He made occasional or one-time appearances on Martin and Lewis , Lux Radio Theatre , and Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy . A very fun fact about Conried is that his villainous growl caused him to inspire the character "Robot Devil" on the TV show Futurama . Conried fans will also enjoy this anecdotal story with famed director and author Arch Oboler .

February 7: Happy Birthday, Charles Dickens We salute the author of A Tale of Two Cities, Bleak House, David Copperfield, and many other classics because so many of his works were adapted into radio plays. If you can recall sitting on the floor with the fire crackling nearby, your mom sorting her coupons at the coffee table, and radio actors giving voice to great Dickens dramas, here's what you're remembering, specifically: A Tale of Two Cities on Lux Radio Theatre , 1942, 1945, and 1946 Great Expectations on Theatre Guild , 1953 David Copperfield on Theatre Guild , 1950 A Christmas Carol on Campbell Playhouse , 1939 Dickens' work was also presented on Suspense , Richard Diamond , Escape and Lights Out . Imagine turning on commercial radio today and hearing classic literature instead of gossip about Miley Cyrus or the latest hit song by Justin Bieber.