I now blog over at The Eyre Guide! This blog is an archive of my past posts.


Sunday, January 6, 2013

Suspense Sundays (28)

Posted by Charlene // Tags: ,
"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.  



"Will You Make a Bet With Death?"
Air date: November 10, 1942
Starring Michael Fitzmaurice and Leslie Woods
Robert Pendrall's Uncle invites him to make a bet.  The Uncle, Mr. Destry, wants to commit murder and if Bob Pendrall can escape him for six months he will give him $25,000.  Bob accepts for the money and to show his rich Uncle he can't get everything he wants.  It's now the last day, and Bob is a bundle of nerves.  He gets on a Haunted House ride at the fair and meets Betty Andrews to whom he tells his story.  He only has five hours left to escape his Uncle, but his Uncle has promised that his method for murder has never failed...

Clever twists!  There are two of them - revealing how Mr. Destry planned to kill his nephew, and how the whole story eventually ends.  It's so interesting how Mr. Destry plays with his nephew and uses expectation to do most of his work for him.  I think their strange, hating relationship could be an interesting story in and of itself.  This is a great, suspenseful story to listen to!


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2 comments:

  1. This is awesome. I think that I would love to listen to an old radio show, especially suspense.

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    1. I think they are so entertaining! Sometimes cheesy, but an interesting window into what was entertainment in the 40s and 50s. And sometimes they have really clever stories. Thanks for commenting!

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