''Arch Oboler's Plays'' is a radio

anthology series An anthology series is a written series, radio, television, film, or video game series that presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a different ca ...

written, produced and directed by Arch Oboler. Minus a sponsor, it ran for one year, airing Saturday evenings on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

from March 25, 1939, to March 23, 1940, and revived five years later on Mutual for a sustaining summer run from April 5, 1945, to October 11, 1945. Lewis Titterton, an executive at NBC, originated the program's title. Titterton was described as a man who "thought the future of radio depended on the vision of the writer." With the launching of ''Arch Oboler's Plays'', Oboler became "the first writer accorded name-in-the-title status." Christopher H. Sterling, in his book ''Biographical Dictionary of Radio'', wrote, "Oboler, writing about 'the terrors and monsters within each of us,' used his stream-of-consciousness technique to shattering effect and made radio a viable new art form." Oboler used some of the scripts from ''Arch Oboler's Plays'' on his later series, '' Everyman's Theater''. Leading film actors were heard on this series, including

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James Cagney James Francis Cagney Jr. (; July 17, 1899March 30, 1986) was an American actor and dancer. On stage and in film, he was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He won acclaim and maj ...

Ronald Colman Ronald Charles Colman (9 February 1891 – 19 May 1958) was an English-born actor who started his career in theatre and silent film in his native country, then emigrated to the United States where he had a highly successful Cinema of the United ...

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, Van Heflin,

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

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Peter Lorre Peter Lorre (; born László Löwenstein, ; June 26, 1904 – March 23, 1964) was a Hungarian and American actor, active first in Europe and later in the United States. Known for his timidly devious characters, his appearance, and accented vo ...

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, Raymond Massey,

Burgess Meredith Oliver Burgess Meredith (November 16, 1907 – September 9, 1997) was an American actor and filmmaker whose career encompassed radio, theater, film, and television. Active for more than six decades, Meredith has been called "a virtuosic actor" ...

, Paul Muni, Alla Nazimova, Edmond O'Brien,

Geraldine Page Geraldine Sue Page (November 22, 1924June 13, 1987) was an American actress. With a career which spanned four decades across film, stage, and television, Page was the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Geraldine Page, numer ...

, Hester Sondergaard, Franchot Tone and George Zucco. In 2020, the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

included the November 18, 1939 episode, "The Bathysphere", among its inductees to the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

for "cultural, historical and aesthetic importance to the nation’s recorded sound heritage."

References

External links

Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio Logs: ''Arch Oboler's Plays''Vintage Radio Script Library: Six ''Arch Oboler's Plays''
- plot summaries and reviews. American radio dramas 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs Mutual Broadcasting System programs NBC radio programs Anthology radio series 1939 radio programme debuts 1945 radio programme endings United States National Recording Registry recordings {{US-radio-show-stub

See also

References

External links