''Suspense'' is a

radio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, dramatised, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the liste ...

series broadcast on CBS Radio from 1940 through 1962. One of the premier drama programs of the

Golden Age of Radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the earl ...

, it was subtitled "radio's outstanding theater of thrills" and focused on

suspense thriller Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

-type scripts, usually featuring leading Hollywood actors of the era. Approximately 945 episodes were broadcast during its long run, and more than 900 still exist. ''Suspense'' went through several major phases, characterized by different hosts, sponsors, and director/producers. Formula plot devices were followed for all but a handful of episodes: the protagonist was usually a normal person suddenly dropped into a threatening or bizarre situation; solutions were "withheld until the last possible second"; and evildoers were usually punished in the end. In its early years, the program made only occasional forays into

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

. Notable exceptions include adaptations of Curt Siodmak's '' Donovan's Brain'' and

H. P. Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of Weird fiction, weird, Science fiction, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Provi ...

's " The Dunwich Horror", but by the late 1950s, such material was regularly featured.

Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

directed its audition show (for the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

summer series ''Forecast''). This was an adaptation of '' The Lodger'' a story Hitchcock had filmed in

1926 In Turkey, the year technically contained only 352 days. As Friday, December 18, 1926 ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Saturday, January 1, 1927 '' (Gregorian Calendar)''. 13 days were dropped to make the switch. Turkey thus became the ...

with

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

. Martin Grams Jr., author of ''Suspense: Twenty Years of Thrills and Chills'', described the ''Forecast'' origin of ''Suspense'':

On the second presentation of July 22, 1940, ''Forecast'' offered a mystery/horror show titled ''Suspense.'' With the co-operation of his producer,
Walter Wanger Walter Wanger (born Walter Feuchtwanger; July 11, 1894 – November 18, 1968) was an American film producer active from the 1910s, his career concluding with the turbulent production of ''Cleopatra,'' his last film, in 1963. He began at Paramo ...
, Alfred Hitchcock received the honor of directing his first radio show for the American public. The condition agreed upon for Hitchcock's appearance was that CBS make a pitch to the listening audience about his and Wanger's latest film, ''
Foreign Correspondent A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...
''. To add flavor to the deal, Wanger threw in
Edmund Gwenn Edmund Gwenn (born Edmund John Kellaway; 26 September 1877 – 6 September 1959) was an English actor. On film, he is best remembered for his role as Kris Kringle in the Christmas film ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1947), for which he won t ...
and Herbert Marshall as part of the package. All three men (including Hitch) would be seen in the upcoming film, which was due for a theatrical release the next month. Both Marshall and Hitchcock decided on the same story to bring to the airwaves, which happened to be a favorite of both of them:
Marie Belloc Lowndes Marie Adelaide Elizabeth Rayner Lowndes (née Belloc; 5 August 1868 – 14 November 1947), who wrote as Marie Belloc Lowndes, was a prolific English novelist, and sister of author Hilaire Belloc. Active from 1898 until her death, she had a re ...
' "The Lodger." Alfred Hitchcock had filmed this story for Gainsborough in 1926, and since then it had remained as one of his favorites. Herbert Marshall portrayed the mysterious lodger, and co-starring with him were Edmund Gwenn and character actress Lurene Tuttle as the rooming-house keepers who start to suspect that their new boarder might be the notorious Jack-the-Ripper. wenn was actually repeating the role taken in the 1926 film by his brother, Arthur Chesney. And Tuttle would work again with Hitchcock nearly 20 years later, playing Mrs. Al Chambers, the sheriff's wife, in '' Psycho.''">Psycho (1960 film)">Psycho.''Character actor
Joseph Kearns Joseph Sherrard Kearns (February 12, 1907 – February 17, 1962) was an American actor, who is best remembered for his role as George Wilson ("Mr. Wilson") on the CBS television series '' Dennis the Menace'' from 1959 until his death in 1962. He ...
also had a small part in the drama, and
Wilbur Hatch Wilbur Hatch (May 24, 1902 – December 22, 1969), was an American music composer who worked primarily in radio and television. He was born in Mokena, Illinois, and died in Studio City, California.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: A ...
, head musician for CBS Radio at the time, composed and conducted the music specially for the program. Adapting the script to radio was not a great technical challenge for Hitchcock, and he cleverly decided to hold back the ending of the story from the listening audience in order to keep them in suspense themselves. This way, if the audience's curiosity got the better of them, they would write in to the network to find out whether the mysterious lodger was in fact Jack the Ripper. For the next few weeks, hundreds of letters came in from faithful listeners asking how the story ended. Actually a few wrote threats claiming that it was "indecent" and "immoral" to present such a production without giving the solution

1942–1962

In the earliest years, the program was hosted by "The Man in Black" (played by

Joseph Kearns Joseph Sherrard Kearns (February 12, 1907 – February 17, 1962) was an American actor, who is best remembered for his role as George Wilson ("Mr. Wilson") on the CBS television series '' Dennis the Menace'' from 1959 until his death in 1962. He ...

or Ted Osborne) with many episodes written or adapted by the prominent mystery author

John Dickson Carr John Dickson Carr (November 30, 1906 – February 27, 1977) was an American author of detective stories, who also published using the pseudonyms Carter Dickson, Carr Dickson, and Roger Fairbairn. He lived in England for a number of years, and ...

. One of the series' earliest successes and its single most popular episode is Lucille Fletcher's " Sorry, Wrong Number", about a bedridden woman (

Agnes Moorehead Agnes Robertson Moorehead (December 6, 1900April 30, 1974) was an American actress. In a career spanning five decades, her credits included work in radio, stage, film, and television.Obituary '' Variety'', May 8, 1974, page 286. Moorehead was th ...

) who panics after overhearing a murder plot on a crossed telephone connection but is unable to persuade anyone to investigate. First broadcast on May 25, 1943, it was restaged seven times (last on February 14, 1960)each time with Moorehead. The popularity of the episode led to a

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

in 1948. Another notable early episode was Fletcher's "The Hitch Hiker" (aired September 2, 1942), in which a motorist (

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

) is stalked on a cross-country trip by a nondescript man who keeps appearing on the side of the road; however, the first performance of "The Hitch-Hiker" actually took place on '' The Orson Welles Show'' the previous year. "The Hitch-Hiker" was later adapted for television by

Rod Serling Rodman Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was an American screenwriter and television producer best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his Anthology series, anthology television series ''The Twilight Zone (1 ...

as a 1960 episode of ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

''. After the network sustained the program during its first two years, the sponsor became Roma Wines (1944–1947), and then (after another brief period of sustained hour-long episodes, initially featuring Robert Montgomery as host and "producer" in early 1948),

Autolite Autolite or Auto–Lite is an American brand of spark plugs and ignition wire sets headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. Autolite products are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Australia. Until 2011, the Autolite brand was a part of ...

Spark Plug A spark plug (sometimes, in British English, a sparking plug, and, colloquially, a plug) is a device for delivering electric current from an ignition system to the combustion chamber of a spark-ignition engine to ignite the compressed fuel/air ...

s (1948–1954); eventually Harlow Wilcox (of ''

Fibber McGee and Molly ''Fibber McGee and Molly'' (1935–1959) was a longtime American husband-and-wife team radio comedy program. The situation comedy was a staple of the NBC Red Network from 1936 on, after originating on NBC Blue in 1935. One of the most popular ...

'') became the pitchman. William Spier, Norman Macdonnell and Anton M. Leader were among the producers and directors. ''Suspense'' received a Special Citation of Honor

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Foster Peabody, George Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and in ...

for 1946. The program's heyday was in the early 1950s, when radio actor, producer and director Elliott Lewis took over (still during the Wilcox/Autolite run). Here the material reached new levels of sophistication. The writing was taut, and the casting, which had always been a strong point of the series (featuring such film stars as Orson Welles,

Joseph Cotten Joseph Cheshire Cotten Jr. (May 15, 1905 – February 6, 1994) was an American film, stage, radio and television actor. Cotten achieved prominence on Broadway, starring in the original stage productions of '' The Philadelphia Story'' (1939) an ...

Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor whose career spanned five decades on Broadway theatre, Broadway and in Hollywood. On screen and stage, he often portrayed characters who embodied an everyman image. Bo ...

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart ( ; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American actor. His performances in classic Hollywood cinema made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Bogart ...

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Possessing a strong contralto voice, she was celebrated for her emotional depth and versatility across film, stage, and concert performance. ...

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 ...

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however, Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

, Eve McVeagh,

Lena Horne Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American singer, actress, dancer and civil rights activist. Horne's career spanned more than seventy years and covered film, television and theatre. Horne joined the chorus of the C ...

, and

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...

), took an unexpected turn when Lewis expanded the repertory to include many of radio's famous drama and comedy starsoften playing against typesuch as

Jack Benny Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky; February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success as a violinist on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...

. Jim and Marian Jordan of ''Fibber McGee and Molly'' were heard in the episode "Backseat Driver", which originally aired February 3, 1949. The highest production values enhanced ''Suspense'', and many of the shows retain their power to grip and entertain. At the time he took over ''Suspense'', Lewis was familiar to radio fans for playing Frankie Remley, the wastrel guitar-playing sidekick to Phil Harris in ''

The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show ''The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show'', was a comedy radio program which ran on NBC from 1948 to 1954 starring Alice Faye and Phil Harris. Harris had previously become known to radio audiences as the band-leader-turned-cast-member of the same nam ...

''. On the May 10, 1951 ''Suspense'', Lewis reversed the roles with "Death on My Hands": A bandleader (Harris) is horrified when an autograph-seeking fan accidentally shoots herself and dies in his hotel room, and a vocalist (Faye) tries to help him as the townfolk call for vigilante justice against him. With the rise of television and the departures of Lewis and Autolite, subsequent producers (

Antony Ellis Antony "Tony" Ellis (March 1, 1920 – September 26, 1967), born Antony Ellis Jacobs, was a writer, director, and producer of radio and television shows. Biography Ellis was born in England on March 1, 1920. He later moved to the United States a ...

, William N. Robson and others) struggled to maintain the series due to shrinking budgets, the availability of fewer name actors, and listenership decline. To save money, the program frequently used scripts first broadcast by another noteworthy CBS anthology, '' Escape''. In addition to these tales of exotic adventure, ''Suspense'' expanded its repertoire to include more science fiction and supernatural content. By the end of its run, the series was remaking scripts from the long-canceled program '' The Mysterious Traveler''. A

time travel Time travel is the hypothetical activity of traveling into the past or future. Time travel is a concept in philosophy and fiction, particularly science fiction. In fiction, time travel is typically achieved through the use of a device known a ...

tale like Robert Arthur's "The Man Who Went Back to Save Lincoln" or a thriller about a

death ray The death ray or death beam is a theoretical particle beam or electromagnetic weapon first theorized around the 1920s and 1930s. Around that time, notable inventors such as Guglielmo Marconi, Nikola Tesla, Harry Grindell Matthews, Edwin R. Scott ...

-wielding

mad scientist The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as "mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insanity, insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabas ...

would alternate with more run-of-the-mill crime dramas. The series expanded to television with the ''

Suspense Suspense is a state of anxiety or excitement caused by mysteriousness, uncertainty, doubt, or undecidedness. In a narrative work, suspense is the audience's excited anticipation about the plot or conflict (which may be heightened by a viol ...

'' series on CBS from 1949 to 1954, and again in 1962. The radio series had a tie-in with ''Suspense'' magazine which published four 1946–47 issues edited by

Leslie Charteris Leslie Charteris (; born Leslie Charles Bowyer-Yin; 12 May 1907 – 15 April 1993), was a British-Chinese author of adventure fiction, as well as a screenwriter.Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar ''Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar'' is a radio drama that aired on CBS Radio from February 18, 1949 to September 30, 1962. The first several seasons imagined protagonist Johnny Dollar as a private investigator drama, with Charles Russell, Edmond O ...

'' and ''Suspense'', ending at 7:00 pm Eastern Time on September 30, 1962, are often cited as the end of the

. The final episode of ''Suspense'' was ''Devilstone'', starring Christopher Carey and Neal Fitzgerald. It was sponsored by Parliament cigarettes.

Opening introductions

There were several variations of program introductions. A typical early opening is this from April 27, 1943: :(MUSIC ...

BERNARD HERRMANN Bernard Herrmann (born Maximillian Herman; June 29, 1911December 24, 1975) was an American composer and conductor best known for his work in film scoring. As a conductor, he championed the music of lesser-known composers. He is widely regarde ...

'S SUSPENSE THEME ... CONTINUES IN BG) :THE MAN IN BLACK: Suspense! :This is The Man in Black, here again to introduce Columbia's program, ''Suspense''. :Our stars tonight are Miss Agnes Moorehead and Mr. Ray Collins. You've seen these two expert and resourceful players in "Citizen Kane" – "The Magnificent Ambersons" in which Miss Moorehead's performance won her the 1942 Film Critics' Award. Mr. Collins will soon be seen in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Technicolor film, "Salute to the Marines." :Miss Moorehead and Mr. Collins return this evening to their first love, the CBS microphone, to appear in a study in terror by Lucille Fletcher called "The Diary of Sophronia Winters." :The story told by this diary is tonight's tale of... suspense. If you've been with us on these Tuesday nights, you will know that Suspense is compounded of mystery and suspicion and dangerous adventure. In this series are tales calculated to intrigue you, to stir your nerves, to offer you a precarious situation and then withhold the solution... until the last possible moment. And so it is with "The Diary of Sophronia Winters" and the performances of Agnes Moorehead and Ray Collins, we again hope to keep you in... :(MUSIC: ... UP, DRAMATICALLY) :THE MAN IN BLACK: ... ''Suspense!''

Recognition

''Suspense'' was inducted into the

National Radio Hall of Fame The Radio Hall of Fame, formerly the National Radio Hall of Fame, is an American organization created by the Emerson Radio Corporation in 1988. Three years later, Bruce DuMont, founder, president, and CEO of the Museum of Broadcast Communicati ...

in 2011. Since 2007, Radio Classics (Sirius XM channel 148) has been airing episodes of ''Suspense''. The show is also streamed nightly at 7 pm Pacific time on kusaradio.com from the original masters.

Satire

The familiar opening phrase "tales well-calculated to..." was satirized by '' Mad'' as the cover blurb "Tales Calculated to Drive You... ''Mad''" on its first issue (October–November 1952) and continuing until issue #23 (May 1955). Radio comedians

Bob and Ray Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname) *Bob (dog), a dog that received the Dickin Medal for bravery in World War II *Bob the ...

had a recurring routine lampooning the show called "Anxiety." Their character Commander Neville Putney told stories that were presented as dramatic but were intentionally mundane, with the opening line "A tale well designed to keep you in... Anxiety." In the “Chicken Heart” sketch on his Wonderfulness album

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American retired comedian, actor, and media personality. Often cited as a trailblazer for African Americans in the entertainment industry, Cosby was a film, television, and stand-up comedy ...

relates radio programs during his youth “that were scary.” One is Suspense.

Theater

For PowPAC, San Diego actor-director Robert Hitchcox mounted a 2006 stage production recreating two episodes of ''Suspense'', complete with commercials, in a stage set designed like a CBS radio studio.PowPAC: "Wrong Number & the Hitch-hiker"
/ref>

Partial list of episodes of ''Suspense''

1940

1942

1943

1944

1945

1946

1947

1948

1949

1950

1951

1952

1953

1954

1955

1956

1957

1958

1959

1961

1962

Revival

In 2012, John C. Alsedek and Dana Perry-Hayes of Blue Hours Productions revived ''Suspense'' for

Sirius XM Radio Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merger ...

, recording all-new scripts including originals and adaptations of works by the likes of H.P. Lovecraft,

Cornell Woolrich Cornell George Hopley Woolrich ( ; December 4, 1903 – September 25, 1968) was an American novelist and short story writer. He sometimes used the pseudonyms William Irish and George Hopley. His biographer, Francis Nevins Jr., rated Woolrich the ...

, and

Clark Ashton Smith Clark Ashton Smith (January 13, 1893 – August 14, 1961) was an influential American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction stories and poetry, and an artist. He achieved early recognition in California (largely through the enthusiasm ...

. The ''Suspense'' revival is currently airing on nearly 250 radio stations worldwide, and nominated for a Peabody Award.

Season One episodes

# " Cool Air", starring Adrienne Wilkinson & Daamen Krall # "The Pipes of Tcho Ktlan", starring Daamen Krall & Rocky Cerda # " The Return of the Sorcerer", starring Tucker Smallwood & Ron Bottitta # "Proof in the Pudding", starring Adrienne Wilkinson & Christina Joy Howard # "The Devil‘s Saint", starring Daamen Krall & Christopher Duva # "Gag Reflex", starring Daamen Krall & Elizabeth Gracen # " The Graveyard Rats", starring Daamen Krall & Christopher Duva # "An Ungentle Wager", starring Elizabeth Gracen & Adrienne Wilkinson # "The Fire of Asshurbanipal", starring Christopher Duva & Steve Moulton # "The Walls Between Us", starring Adrienne Wilkinson & Rocky Cerda # " The Horla", starring Christopher Duva & Elizabeth Gracen # "Essence", starring Dana Perry-Hayes & Skyler Caleb # " The Hounds of Tindalos", starring Christopher Duva & Daamen Krall # "Madeline’s Veil", starring Dana Perry-Hayes & Rocky Cerda # "Wet Saturday", starring Daamen Krall & Adrienne Wilkinson # "Forest of the Dark Unbound", starring Catherine Kamei & Elizabeth Gracen # "

Who Goes There? ''Who Goes There?'' is a 1938 science fiction horror novella by American author John W. Campbell, written under the pen name Don A. Stuart. Campbell renewed the copyright in 1965. Its story follows a group of people trapped in a scientific out ...

" starring Steve Moulton & Sean Hackman # "De Vermis Manorum", starring Elizabeth Gracen & John Lauver # "The Night Reveals", starring David Collins & Susan Eisenberg # "

Ebb Tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravity, gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide ...

", starring Christopher Duva & Adrienne Wilkinson # "Far Below", starring Daamen Krall & Catherine Kamei # "Behind Every Great Man..." starring Brett Thompson & Adrienne Wilkinson # " Pigeons From Hell", starring Scott Henry & Daniel Hackman # "Red Rook, White King...Black Cat", starring Adrienne Wilkinson & David Collins

References

Sources

Frank M. Passage log: ''Suspense''

External links

''Escape'' and ''Suspense''
*
Old Time Radio Review: ''Suspense''
– episode reviews

– plot summaries and reviews.
''Suspense'' on Way Back When'Podcast Feed'Suspense on Old Time Radio Outlaws
{{DEFAULTSORT:Suspense (Radio Program) 1942 radio dramas American radio dramas CBS Radio programs 1940s American radio programs 1950s American radio programs 1960s American radio programs Anthology radio series Fantasy radio programs Horror fiction radio programmes American science fiction radio programs Edgar Award–winning works Peabody Award–winning radio programs United States National Recording Registry recordings

Alfred Hitchcock

1942–1962

Opening introductions

Recognition

Satire

Theater

Partial list of episodes of ''Suspense''

1940

1942

1943

1944

1945

1946

1947

1948

1949

1950

1951

1952

1953

1954

1955

1956

1957

1958

1959

1961

1962

Revival

Season One episodes

See also

References

Sources

External links