Suspense Sundays (27)

"Now let's see... Suspect... Suspectant... Suspend... Ah here we are, Suspense.  The condition of mental uncertainty usually accompanied by apprehension or anxiety.  Fear of something that is about to occur, as 'Do not keep me any longer in SUSPENSE.'"

Suspense was a radio series from 1942 to 1962, claiming to be "radio's outstanding theater of thrills."  I have a fondness for "Old Time Radio" as we call it now, and Suspense is my favorite show.  It sets up weird, dark, scary, or intriguing stories with a plot twist in the end, and all in half an hour.  I love the old-fashion story-telling and I thought it would be fun to give a short review of an episode every Sunday.  

{My archive list of episodes}

"Five Canaries in the Room"

Air date: June 8, 1943

Starring Lee Bowman and Ona Munson

>>Episodes here<<

A young man wants to get home early from a party, but his friends slipped him more alcohol anyway, so he arrives to his apartment a little tipsy. He wants to avoid his fiance and her father who live on the same floor as him, but he also meets an old girlfriend outside of his apartment building. She insists she speak with him, so they both quietly make their way up to his apartment only to discover A) a dead body B) they are in the wrong apartment - but it looks like his fiance’s father’s apartment because he has five canaries. They get the police but the body has been moved, and the room with the five canaries just can’t be the father’s apartment.

Typical mixed room whodunit - when you figure out they mystery of why the room looked different, it’s pretty easy to figure out who the murderer was. The reasoning doesn’t have to be well-developed or interesting - it’s just interesting finding out about the rooms.