The Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society

It’s been a while since we’ve payed a visit to The Hall of Fantasy , so we’re stopping by for an episode entitled, “The Man in Black!” The story features two men who encounter a woman terrified by a person she calls “the man in black.” Once she’s found dead, the men become obsessed with finding out the truth behind this dark-clad figure. Soon, the two are themselves targeted by this mysterious, un...

Happy Thanksgiving! As always, we are most grateful for our listeners and today we’re celebrating with a visit to our Listener Library! Our Mysterious Listener Dave recommended we check out “The Black Room” from CBS Radio Mysterious Theater . Thanks, Dave! The story features a man locked against his will in a light-less, window-less room. The men who subjected him to this peculiar treatment and th...

As the weather turns cold, “The Cabin” from Gunsmoke is the perfect was to prepare for the snow! In this story, Marshal Dillon and his horse get caught in a blizzard and his only hope for survival is to find shelter in a small cabin in the middle of nowhere. But what he finds inside might be deadlier than the storm outside! What desperate situation awaits inside? How can Dillon escape? How long wi...

Happy Halloween! We conclude our Monster on the Air series with this adaptation Sheridan Le Fanu’s novella, “Carmilla,” from Nightfall ! We previously listened to Lucille Fletcher’s adaptation for Columbia Workshop about the mysterious young girl named Carmilla who must suddenly be taken in by a kind man and his lonely daughter. As this daughter and Carmilla grow closer, strange deaths begin to pl...

We continue with Monsters on the Air, our series of monster-themed episodes to celebrate the Halloween season! Our third installment features “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” from NBC Presents: Short Story ! This adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s iconic novella features Victorian chemist Henry Jekyll, whose experiments transform him into a murderous new persona. Soon the compulsi...

This is our second installment in Monsters on the Air, a series of monster-themed episodes to celebrate the Halloween season! This time we’re listening to “No Grave Can Hold Me” from The Mysterious Traveler! The story features The Great Randolph, a magician sentenced to the death for murder. But Randolph threatens that if he dies he will return to take his vengeance on those who convicted him! Wha...

This week we begin Monsters on the Air, a series of monster-themed episodes to celebrate the Halloween season! Our first installment, “Death Prowls at Night,” from the Shadow, features Lamont and Margo taking a ski vacation in a forest that might be home to a werewolf! Is there a real lycanthrope in these woods? Why has Margo suddenly disappeared? What important Shadow-related trivia can be learne...

We’re listening to that classic episode of Suspense written by Lucille Fletcher for Agnes Moorehead! No, the other classic episode. Our Mysterious Old Radio Listener and Patreon supporter Brooke recommended we pay a visit to the Listener Library for “The Diary of Sophronia Winters!” A young woman named Sophronia goes out in the world for the first time and gets caught up in a whirlwind marriage. H...

CBS Radio Workshop adapted John Cheever’s short story “The Enormous Radio” for this week’s episode! It features a married couple whose old radio finally stops working. The replacement they purchase is a large and complicated model that broadcasts more than just classical music. What insights into her friends and neighbors does this new radio provide? What harm will these insights inflict upon the...

Thanks to our Mysterious Listener Emmett whose enthusiasm for Crime Classics brings us to the Listener Library for an episode entitled “The Crime of Bathsheba Spooner!” Based on the true story of the first woman to be executed in the United States, the script depicts her plot to murder her own husband. How did the man really die? Who all would suffer the consequences? Did Joshua do a whole bunch o...

We’re trying something new this week, Let George Do It! In this episode, detective George Valentine is hired by a wealthy man who has been thwarted in his attempt to spend a million dollars! The railroad he hopes to buy is losing money and may be haunted. Why has a different detective been hired to follow this potential buyer? Why was one of the trains stopped in the middle of a desert at night? W...

Our thanks to our Mysterious Listener Mike for this visit to the Listener Library! Mike recommended we check out the episode of X Minus One entitled, “Mr. Costello, Hero.” The script is an adaptation of Theodore Sturgeon’s short story about a space-faring ship’s purser who encounters a passenger with a peculiar world view and a gift for manipulating others. After leaving the ship, the passenger’s...

For this week’s episode, we went to some experts! Specifically we went to Murder by Experts for a story entitled “Conspiracy!” When a torrential rain threatens to wash away a city, a journalist discovers that the storm is a nearly perfect opportunity to get away with murder! Nearly, but not perfect. A witness to the crime runs off into the flood! Will the killer catch up with this witness to the c...

Our mysterious listener Jillion sent us to the Listener Library for an episode of The Chase entitled “Long Distance”! Thanks, Jillion! The story features Jan Miner as the distraught wife of a man about to be executed for a murder he didn’t commit. Having just found evidence to exonerate him, she’s racing against the clock to get someone on the phone who can stop the execution! Can she reach the ju...

We’re listening to one of Arch Oboler’s most Arch Oboler contributions to the famed series Lights Out , an episode entitled, “Murder in the Script Department!” The story features a pair of typists who are obliged to work late into the night to complete a particularly terrifying script for Lights Out . As the evening wears on, a series of unexplainable and terrifying events convince the two women t...

It’s our 300th episode and we’re celebrating with the second half of “Donovan’s Brain,” a special presentation from Suspense! Last week we listened to the first installment, recommended to us by our mysterious listener and Patreon supporter Trevor. Thanks, Trevor! The story features Orson Welles as a scientist experimenting with a brain that has been removed from its body. What sort of strange inf...

We’re on the brink of our 300th episode and we’re marking the event with a special visit to the Listener Library! Our mysterious listener and Patreon supporter Trevor recommended we listen to “Donovan’s Brain,” the first two-part installment of Suspense. Thanks, Trevor! The story features Orson Welles as a scientist convinced he can keep a brain alive even after the body has perished. But the purs...

Our thanks to our Mysterious Listener Jessica for directing us to the Listener Library for this adaptation of a Dashiell Hammett’s short story “Two Sharp Knives,” presented by Suspense! In this episode, a small town chief of police and his assistant arrest a fugitive wanted for murder. But a lot can happen while they wait for the Philadelphia authorities. Is the man truly guilty of the crime? Who...

BIG TOWN! We’re headed to BIG TOWN for an episode entitled “Double Murder,” in which a woman visits the Illustrated Press to get help finding her missing twin sister. As editor Steve Wilson digs into the disappearance, he discovers lies, bribes, and murder! Will he learn what happened to the missing sister? What are the two murders referred to in the title? Is this story avuncular enough? Listen f...

We’re returning to the Weird Circle for an episode entitled “The Doll,” an adaptation of Fitz-James O’Brien’s short story, “The Wondersmith.” The story begins with the creator of an ingenious doll confessing to the murder of a fortune teller. And it only gets stranger from there. What criminal plot first brought the two of them together? What arcane secret makes this doll so special? Would a readi...

This episode of Suspense comes from the Listener Library, recommended to us by our Mysterious Listener, Pip. Thanks, Pip! “Murderous Revision” features a writer of crime stories who loses his job after clashing with his producer over the quality of his scripts. To take his revenge and prove his mastery, he plans to record a murder of his own design. Will this fatal script be any good? Can he succe...

This trip to the Listener Library is at the request of a whole family of Mysterious Old Radio Listeners and Patreon supporters! Our thanks to Tom, Barb, Christy, and Jeff! They’ve sent us to “The Black Tie Affair” from Bold Venture starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall! The iconic duo star as Slate and Sailor, Americans living abroad in Havana, having adventures, and exchanging romantic wit....

This time, we are joined by one of our most generous Patreon supporters, Michael! We’re listening to an episode Michael chose for us, “Dark Side of the Mind” from Nightfall! In this story, a married couple reunite with an old college friend, only to discover that he’s grown more cynical and morose. Why is he so sensitive about talking about his family? Is it related to the mysterious murders in to...

Eric brings us back for another visit to The Shadow, this time with a story entitled, “The Island of Ancient Death!” In this story, Margo and Lamont come to an exotic island at the request of a woman who has seen her own face painted in a horrific mural. What secrets lie hidden within the island’s ancient tunnels? What sort of scientific experiment is this woman’s husband pursuing? What major crim...

This week, we’re listening to another episode of Vanishing Point, the mind-bending Canadian series from the 1980s. “Split Second” is an adaptation of a story by Daphne du Maurier about a woman who leaves her home for a short walk and returns to find the world is not as she left it. Is she the victim of an elaborate crime? Is she suffering from amnesia or hallucinating her own identity? What if Ebe...