Suspense Sundays (189) The Great Horrel

Suspense was a radio series from 1942 to 1962.  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.  For Suspense Sundays I'll give a short review of an episode.

"The Great Horrel"

Air date: August 22, 1946
Starring Joan Lorring

>>Episodes here<<

The Great Horrel has a mentalist act with his wife who helps feed him information.  Alma Horrel is unhappy in her marriage though and is convinced that her husband can actually read her mind.  Although her husband tells her that's ridiculous.  When she asks him for a divorce, her husband tells her he will never give her up, but he will go on a three month tour of Australia and give her time to rest.  Alma is in love with another man - Paul, so when her husband goes away they immediately go to a lawyer to get a divorce.  Except Alma can't get the words out - her husband is controlling her from Australia!  Alma is sure now that she won't ever get away from her husband - especially since he can also make her commit murder....

Mentalist related suspense = me interested.  I love that this episode has a double twist of a sort - as I wasn't sure which outcome was the real one.  The story is told through Alma's diary as well, so there is the added benefit to the storytelling of not knowing how reliable a narrator Alma is.  She's obviously mentally confused.  The ending was a little less satisfactory to me - in terms of the justice of it, but overall I really enjoyed listening to this one.