Classic Radio Theater with Wyatt Cox

Drama and Science Fiction on a Sunday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The Screen Guild Players , originally broadcast  August 23, 1943, 76 years ago, Skylark starring Ginger Rogers.  A dissatisfied wife decides to divorce her successful but workaholic advertising executive husband, only to find herself torn between him and a charming bohemian lawyer.  Claudette Colbert starred in the...

Variety on a Saturday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, The Chase and Sanborn Hour hosted by Don Ameche , originally broadcast August 22, 1937,  89 years ago, guest Glenda Farrell.  Charlie McCarthy is operating a lemonade stand. Don Ameche and guest Glenda Farrell appear in a skit titled "Lucky Day." W. C. Fields has returned from Hawaii. He tells tales about his Uncle Larceny, the pir...

Comedy and Westerns on a Friday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, Granby’s Green Acres starring Gale Gordon and Bea Benederet , originally broadcast  August 21, 1950, 76 years ago: Granby Breaks Down.  Granby becomes very sensitive to noise. The last show of the series.  Followed by Too Many Cooks starring Hal March , originally broadcast August 21, 1950, 76 years ago, The New System....

Drama on a Thursday First,  a look at this day in History. Then Mr. President starring Edward Arnold , originally broadcast August 20, 1950, 76 years ago, A Man, A Plan, A Canal-Panama!  On the occasion of his 25th wedding anniversary, Mr. President is opposed to the French government building the Panama Canal.  Followed by The Green Lama starring Paul Frees , originally broadcast August 20, 1949,...

Comedy and Westerns on a Wednesday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The Great Gildersleeve starring Willard Waterman , originally broadcast  August 19, 1953, 73 years ago, A Fish Story.  After a day fishing with Leroy, a "fish story" nearly gets Gildersleeve in hot water with the Game Warden.  Followed by George Burns and Gracie Allen , originally broadcast August 19, 1940, 86 years a...

Crime and Drama on a Tuesday First,  a look at this day in History. Then Counterspy starring Don MacLaughlin and Mandel Kramer , originally broadcast August 18, 1949, 77 years ago, The Case of the Desert Explosion.  Man-eating birds of prey are used to execute a betrayer. A smuggler uses "geometry in action."  Followed by Dragnet starring Jack Webb, originally broadcast August 18, 1949, 77 years a...

Crime on a Monday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The FBI in Peace and War, originally broadcast  August 17, 1955, 71 years ago, The Weakest Link.  A criminal conspiracy unravels due to a compromised participant  Followed by Frontier Gentleman starring John Dehner , originally broadcast August 17, 1958, 68 years ago, Wonder Boy. A young man with a very fast draw is bound to become a...

Crime and Westerns on a Sunday First,  a look at this day in History. Then Counterspy starring Don MacLaughlin and Mandel Kramer , originally broadcast August 16, 1949, 77 years ago, The Case of the Statue of Death.   An electric eye is outsmarted. A gift of appreciation causes the death of an innocent woman. Molecules of murder! Followed by Dangerous Assignment starring Brian Donlevy , originally...

Crime on a Saturday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The Adventures of Sam Spade Detective starring Howard Duff , originally broadcast  August 15, 1948, 78 years ago, The Critical Author Caper.  Spade is hired to find Gabrielle Leggitt, who has disappeared. The author of murder mysteries plays an important part in the case.  Followed by Nick Carter Master Detective starring Lon Clark...

VJ Day and Crime on a Friday First,  a look at this day in History. Then some of the sounds of this date 81 years ago, August 14, 1945, beginning with a Gabriel Heatter commentary the evening before the announcement, then excerpts of various broadcasts around the country, HV Kaltenborn with commentary on the end of the war, and the Fred Waring Show with a live shortwave report from special comment...

Crime on a Thursday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, Boston Blackie starring Dick Kollmar , originally broadcast  August 13, 1946, 80 years ago, The Diamond Smuggler.  Momma and Poppa Adams are in reality diamond smugglers and perhaps poisoners. Followed by Dangerous Assignment starring Brian Donlevy , originally broadcast August 13, 1949, 77 years ago, Alien Smuggling Ring. Steve's f...

Comedy and Westerns on a Wednesday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, George Burns and Gracie Allen , originally broadcast August 12, 1940, 86 years ago, Gold Rush Gracie.  George remembers his career in vaudeville and how he met Gracie.  Followed by The Great Gildersleeve starring Willard Waterman , originally broadcast August 12, 1953, 73 years ago, Deciding on a Lake Cabin. Gilderslee...

Variety on a Tuesday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, Abbott and Costello , originally broadcast  August 11, 1948, 78 years ago, Lou is a Delegate to the UN. Costello almost gets a part acting in a movie with Katharine Hepburn and then gets an offer to work for the U.N.O. as a diplomat.  Followed by The CBS Radio Workshop , originally broadcast August 11, 1956, 70 years ago, Only John...

Drama on a Monday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, Lights Out , originally broadcast August 10, 1943, 83 years ago, Sakhalin.  Political intrigue and man's inhumanity to his fellow man on a frozen Siberian island.  Followed by Frontier Gentleman starring John Dehner , originally broadcast August 10, 1958, 68 years ago, The Cat Man.  The story of an itinerant Irishman, his sixty-two cat...

Drama on a Sunday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, Quiet Please starring Ernest Chappell , originally broadcast  August 9, 1948, 78 years ago, The Thing on the Fourble Board.  A creature from beneath the earth climbs up an oil well pipe to the surface.  Followed by Dragnet starring Jack Webb , originally broadcast August 9, 1951, 75 years ago, The Big Screen.    With the help of the L...

Variety on a Saturday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, The Chase and Sanborn Hour hosted by Don Ameche , originally broadcast August 8, 1937, 89 years ago, with guest Wendy Barrie.  Nelson Eddy makes his first appearance on the show in this classic broadcast. Detective Charlie McCarthy has already managed to wreck Edgar Bergen's brand-new car, setting up plenty of laughs. Actress Wendy...

Drama on a Friday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, Mystery in the Air starring Peter Lorre , originally broadcast  August 7, 1947, 79 years ago, The Marvelous Barastro.  The classic about the circus magician and his blind wife...and her ultimate horror. Followed by The Adventures of Sam Spade Detective starring Howard Duff , originally broadcast August 7, 1949, 77 years ago, The Champ...

Crime on a Thursday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, Jeff Regan Investigator starring Frank Graham and Frank Nelson , originally broadcast August 6, 1950, 76 years ago, There's Nothing Like a Pork Chop When Supper Rolls Around. A Dictaphone tells too much and a leggy blonde tells too little. Followed by Under Arrest starring Joe DeSantis , originally broadcast August 6, 1950, 76 years...

Comedy and Westerns on a Wednesday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The Milton Berle Show , originally broadcast  August 5, 1947, 79 years ago, A Salute to the Great Outdoors.  Milton rents a cabin in the mountains to get away from it all and de stress.   Followed by The Great Gildersleeve starring Willard Waterman , originally broadcast August 5, 1953, 73 years ago, The Water Commiss...

   Crime on a Tuesday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, Dragnet starring Jack Webb , originally broadcast August 4, 1949, 77 years ago,  Benny Trounsel.  A small-time narcotics user named Benny Trounsel has been beaten to death shortly after tipping the cops to a new narcotics ring in town.  Followed by Escape , originally broadcast August 4, 1949, 77 years ago, Leiningen Versus the Ant...

Drama on a Monday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The CBS Radio Workshop , originally broadcast  August 3, 1956, 70 years ago, Subways Are For Sleeping starring Byron Kane.  A fine adaptation of the fascinating short story about a homeless man (but not a bum!) in New York.  Link to the original article - https://harpers.org/archive/1956/03/subways-are-for-sleeping/ Followed by Fronti...

Westerns and Crime on a Sunday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, Dangerous Assignment starring Brian Donlevy, originally broadcast  August 2, 1950, 76 years ago,  Vienna Mystery.   Steve Mitchell is sent to the U.S. consulate in Vienna to recover documents that have been stolen. Followed by Confession , originally broadcast August 2, 1953, 73 years ago, Esther Phillips.  A bored housewi...

Variety on a Saturday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, The Chase and Sanborn Hour hosted by Don Ameche , originally broadcast  August 1, 1937, 89 years ago, with guest star Bruna Castagna.  Charlie McCarthy is taking a correspondence course on how to became a detective. Contralto Bruna Castagna sings an aria from "Mignon." It's Charlie McCarthy's birthday today, time for an argument w...

Westerns and Crime on a Friday First,  a look at this day in History. Then, Gunsmoke starring William Conrad , originally broadcast  July 31, 1960, 66 years ago, Stage Smash.  After Marshal Dillon arrests Cleary Small, his brother Nort wrecks the stage and kidnaps Kitty to exchange for her brother. Followed by Have Gun Will Travel starring John Dehner , originally broadcast July 31, 1960, 66 years...

Crime on a Thursday First, a look at the events of the day. Then, I was a Communist for the FBI starring Dana Andrews , originally broadcast  July 30, 1952, 74 years ago, Draw The Red Curtain.  Cvetic is assigned to help the Party take over an actor's guild. Followed by Boston Blackie starring Dick Kollmar , originally broadcast July 30, 1946, 80 years ago, Freighter Swan.  A tale of mutiny and mu...