Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 7 of 31: "Song of the Slasher"

Today's episode of Inner Sanctum Mysteries is "Song of the Slasher", which was originally broadcast April 24, 1945. This episode concerns a knife-wielding maniac who seems to whistle a tune as he commits his crime. Somehow the police are able to get near enough to hear the whistle yet not catch the man. This story is definitely a bit hard to swallow, but it has a great atmosphere (especially the whistling) and a neat twist in the climax.

This episode was hosted by Raymond Edward Johnson and starred Arnold Moss, Jackson Beck, Lesley Woods and Lawson Zerbe. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.

Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 6 of 31: "The Judas Clock"

Today the Inner Sanctum episode I'd like to revisit is one I've blogged about before: "The Judas Clock", first broadcast April 17, 1945. This is my absolute favourite episode of Inner Sanctum Mysteries, so I'd be cuckoo not to bring it up.

This is the prime episode I turn to when I want to show OTR fans just how good Inner Sanctum can be. The story involves a clock which depicts the Biblical Judas Iscariot. It's not a very happy subject for a work of art and indeed, this clock can kill! The episode is a bit more gruesome than the usual fare on Inner Sanctum -- when I was a teenager I heard it while riding in the car with my family and my mother was disgusted by the violence in this tale. Just remember, it's all in your mind...

This phenomenal episode is hosted by Raymond Edward Johnson and features Berry Kroeger, Santos Ortega, Jackson Beck and Alice Reinheart. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.

Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 5 of 31: "The Bog-Oak Necklace"

Today I'm looking back to the Inner Sanctum episode "The Bog-Oak Necklace", which was originally broadcast April 10, 1945. This story is told largely in flashback as learn how a bog-oak necklace was used to commit murder; in the framing sequences, the necklace has resurfaced and the killer's guilty conscience tears them apart. You won't soon forget the protagonist's first name...

This episode is hosted by Raymond Edward Johnson and stars Miriam Hopkins, Santos Ortega, Lesley Woods and Alan Devitt. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.

Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 4 of 31: "No Coffin for the Dead"

"No Coffin for the Dead" was first broadcast February 20, 1945. This episode dives straight into the action as two men are assaulted by a knife-wielding maniac. The survivor begins an investigation to locate the real killer, but the man he identifies isn't even able to walk. This episode has a very strong climax!

By the time of this episode the series had a new sponsor: Lipton Tea & Lipton Soup. This brought to the show a new commercial spokesperson, Mary Bennett. Her chipper manner is definitely a contrast to Raymond's horrible puns or the grisly actions in the script. Most fans of the series disdain Mary; she definitely has a few moments where her commercials undermine the tension of the play. On the other hand, her back-and-forth with Raymond is occasionally enjoyable.

This episode features Raymond Edward Johnson as the host; the cast includes Les Tremayne, Santos Ortega, Luis Van Rooten and Alice Frost. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.

Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 3 of 31: "The Colorblind Formula"

Today I'm featuring the Inner Sanctum Mystery titled "The Color Blind Formula", which was first broadcast December 6, 1944. This episode involves a scientist who has a created a solution to cure color-blindness. However, it seems the scientist has been murdered and a blackmailer has figured out what's happened. This was a wartime story, which becomes relevant near the end of the episode. This is one of several episodes featuring Richard Widmark, who had a terrific radio voice!

The surviving copy of this episode is version from the Mystery Playhouse hosted by Peter Lorre. The actual program is hosted by Raymond Edward Johnson and the lead role belongs to Richard Widmark. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.

Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 2 of 31: "The Black Sea Gull"

Today I'm looking at the Inner Sanctum Mystery episode "The Black Sea Gull", which was first broadcast March 7, 1943. This episode stars Peter Lorre as a man whose wife dies while promising she will return from death itself. A black sea gull seems to confirm her promise. Peter Lorre always gave 110% on the radio and this program is no exception!

This episode features Raymond Edward Johnson as the host; Peter Lorre stars. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.

Inner Sanctum Halloween Month, day 1 of 31: "The Amazing Death of Mrs. Putnam"

Welcome to my October 2020 Halloween Old-Time Radio theme month! This year I've decided to feature 31 episodes of the series Inner Sanctum Mystery, which was broadcast 1941-1952. It was also the name of a line of mystery books which were promoted on the radio show, and it lent its name (but little else) to a Universal film series. It briefly became a television series in 1954.

Inner Sanctum Mystery is disdained by some fans of old-time radio because among horror fans, it has a reputation for cop-out endings. There are definitely quite a few episodes which hint towards there being some dark supernatural menace which is ultimately revealed as a hallucination, dream or carefully-orchestrated plot by the police to trick the killer into confessing his crimes. But it's not fair to chacterized the series as entirely 'cop-outs'. There are many episodes with no supernatural elements at all and there the show would commit to its content.

We might as well begin with the first episode of Inner Sanctum Mystery: "The Amazing Death of Mrs. Putnam", broadcast January 7, 1941. If you're already familiar with the show you'll find this episode is a little 'off'. The content is mostly a crime-detective story, complete with a bumbling sidekick for the hero. But this modest little program is where it all began!

This episode features Raymond Edward Johnson as the host; the cast includes Alan Devitt, House Jameson and Everett Sloane. The commercial sponsor is Carter's Little Liver Pills. You can listen to this episode at archive.org by clicking here.