Advertise on podcast: Stars on Suspense (Old Time Radio)

We're celebrating "Noirvember" with Edward G. Robinson and Claire Trevor, two of the stars of Key Largo. Along with Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, they headline John Huston's crime drama about a tense hostage situation in the path of a deadly hurricane. We'll hear Mr. Robinson as "The Man Who Wanted to Be Edward G. Robinson" (originally aired on CBS on October 17, 1946) and Ms. Trevor in "Angel Face" (originally aired on CBS on May 18, 1950). Then they both recreate their roles, with Edmond O'Brien stepping in for Bogie, on The Lux Radio Theatre (originally aired on CBS on November 28, 1949).

We salute one of the all-time great radio actors with his best performances from Suspense. Best known as Marshal Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke, William Conrad lent his voice to hundreds of characters on the air including memorable parts in these episodes. First, he's the captain of a doomed spaceship on its final voyage in "Kaleidoscope" (originally aired on CBS on July 12, 1955). Then Conrad plays every role in the classic chiller "The Waxwork" (originally aired on CBS on May 1, 1956). He stars in a titanic tale of man versus nature in "Leiningen vs. the Ants" (originally aired on CBS on August 25, 1957). And finally, he narrates the story of Agnes Moorehead's long walk home through the darkness in "The Whole Town's Sleeping" (originally aired on CBS on August 31, 1958).

Trick or treat! We're celebrating Halloween with Orson Welles as he stars in some very scary stories from the golden age of radio. First, he plays the count himself in the Mercury Theatre's adaptation of Dracula (originally aired on CBS on July 11, 1938). Next, he's stalked on the highway by "The Hitch-hiker" (originally aired on CBS on September 2, 1942), and finally Welles is a scientist whose grisly experiment consumes his life and threatens the world in "Donovan's Brain," a Suspense two-parter (originally aired on CBS on May 18 and May 25, 1944).

We wrap up our series of classic Hollywood horror with a movie starring a pair of iconic movie monsters. Bride of Frankenstein saw the return of Boris Karloff's creature and the introduction of his mate, she of the high hair and hiss and played by Elsa Lanchester. We'll hear both of them in radio thrillers, plus a pair of radio adaptations of Mary Shelley's classic tale. Ms. Lanchester stars in "Finishing School" (originally aired on CBS on December 30, 1943), and Mr. Karloff headlines "Drury's Bones" (originally aired on CBS on January 25, 1945). We'll also hear a Suspense adaptation of "Frankenstein" (originally aired on CBS on June 7, 1955) and a more traditional retelling courtesy of The Weird Circle.

Rats! Our series of scariest stories from Suspense continues with a showcase of radio sound effects. Listen as a horde of ravenous rodents comes to life in one of the all-time terror treats of the radio era. Vincent Price stars in "Three Skeleton Key" (originally aired on CBS on November 11, 1956).

A killer has his eye on a young woman who can't speak in The Spiral Staircase. Dorothy McGuire, Kent Smith, and Ethel Barrymore star in this classic Hollywood chiller, which we'll hear recreated for radio along with Suspense episodes featuring the cast. Kent Smith co-stars with Margo in "Last Night" (originally aired on CBS on June 15, 1943); Ethel Barrymore appears alongside Gene Kelly in "To Find Help" (originally aired on CBS on January 6, 1949); and Dorothy McGuire stars in "Last Confession" (originally aired on CBS on September 15, 1949). Plus, Ms. McGuire recreates her film role on Screen Directors' Playhouse (originally aired on NBC on November 25, 1949).

Our Halloween series of the scariest stories from Suspense continues with "On a Country Road" (originally aired on CBS on November 16, 1950), a cautionary tale about avoiding shortcuts and keeping your gas tank topped off. Cary Grant stars in this classic chiller with Cathy Lewis and Jeanette Nolan in supporting roles. Listen with the lights out if you dare!

A dream house becomes a nightmare in The Uninvited. This week's October chiller stars Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey as siblings who buy a seaside home and discover it comes complete with a resident ghost. We'll hear Mr. Milland and Ms. Hussey, along with their co-star Donald Crisp, in episodes of Suspense: Mr. Crisp in "Banquo's Chair" (originally aired on CBS on August 3, 1944); Mr. Milland in "Night Cry" (originally aired on CBS on October 7, 1948); and Ms. Hussey in "Firing Run" (originally aired on CBS on November 3, 1957). Then, Mr. Milland recreates his role on Screen Directors' Playhouse (originally aired on NBC on November 18, 1949).

We're counting down to Halloween with some of the scariest stories from Suspense. In our first October bonus episode, Ralph Edwards plays a radio DJ who spends a memorable night in a haunted house in "Ghost Hunt" (originally aired on CBS on June 23, 1949).

In honor of the spooky season, we're kicking off a series of films about things that go bump in the night. First up is the frightfully fun adaptation of The Canterville Ghost with Charles Laughton as a cowardly specter and Margaret O'Brien and Robert Young as the pair who try to help him break his curse with an act of courage. We'll hear the three stars in Suspense stories: Mr. Laughton in "The Fountain Plays" (originally aired on CBS on November 23, 1944); Mr. Young in "You'll Never See Me Again" (originally aired on CBS on September 5, 1946); and Ms. O'Brien in "The Screaming Woman" (originally aired on CBS on November 25, 1948). Then, Mr. Laughton and Ms. O'Brien recreate their screen roles on The Lux Radio Theatre (originally aired on CBS on June 18, 1945).

Take to the seas with Gregory Peck as C.S. Forester's British naval hero in Captain Horatio Hornblower. Peck starred as Hornblower in Raoul Walsh's 1951 swashbuckling adventure, and we'll hear Peck recreate his role on The Lux Radio Theatre (originally aired on CBS on January 21, 1952). But first we'll hear him on a different type of dangerous trip in "Hitchhike Poker" from Suspense (originally aired on CBS on September 16, 1948). Finally, we'll hear a spoof of the film from The Jack Benny Program (originally aired on CBS on September 23, 1951).

Let's win one for the Gipper with Pat O'Brien and future president Ronald Reagan in Knute Rockne, All American. The biopic starred O'Brien as the legendary Notre Dame football coach and Reagan as the player whose struggles off the field inspire his teammates. We'll hear them recreate their roles in a Lux Radio Theatre production (originally aired on CBS on December 2, 1940), as well as episodes of Suspense: Ronald Reagan in "One and One's a Lonesome" (originally aired on CBS on March 23, 1950) and Pat O'Brien in "True Report" (originally aired on CBS on August 31, 1950).

Comedy legends Bob Hope and Lucille Ball head west in the romantic comedy Fancy Pants. Hope is an actor posing as an English butler, and Ball is the rough riding lady he's tasked with teaching the ways of refinement. We'll hear them in Suspense shows - "A Little Piece of Rope" (originally aired on CBS on October 14, 1948) and "Death Has a Shadow" (originally aired on CBS on May 5, 1949) before they reprise their film roles on The Lux Radio Theatre (originally aired on CBS on September 10, 1951).

We wrap up our Hitchcock series with a bonus episode featuring stories from Suspense that were later adapted as episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents on television. Charles Laughton is a patriarch with a problem in "Wet Saturday" (originally aired on CBS on December 16, 1943), and Charles Ruggles' indigestion may have a sinister origin in "Suspicion" (originally aired on CBS on February 10, 1944). A talented cast of radio players brings Ray Bradbury's chilling tale "Riabouchinska" to radio life (originally aired on CBS on November 13, 1947). Claude Rains and Vincent Price hunt for a murderer stalking the streets in "The Hands of Mr. Ottermole" (originally aired on CBS on December 2, 1948), and Herbert Marshall takes a cross-country trip in "The Long Shot" (originally aired on CBS on February 9, 1958). Finally, Stan Freberg finds that committing murder is easy, but covering it up is hard in "Alibi Me" (originally aired on CBS on April 20, 1958).

Shadow of a Doubt was Alfred Hitchcock's favorite of the many classic films he directed, with its small town setting disrupted by the arrival of a dastardly murderer on the run from police. Joseph Cotten played the charming killer, and Teresa Wright was his niece and namesake who discovers his horrible secret. We'll hear Mr. Cotten recreate his role on Academy Award (originally aired on CBS on September 11, 1946) and in a Suspense adaptation of "The Most Dangerous Game" (originally aired on CBS on February 1, 1945). We'll also hear his co-stars Hume Cronyn and Macdonald Carey in Suspense shows: "The One Who Got Away" (originally aired on CBS on November 14, 1946) and "The Missing Person" (originally aired on CBS on May 12, 1952).