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Inner Sanctum Mysteries - Single Episodes

(4,566 Sterne; 128 Bewertungen)

INNER SANCTUM MYSTERIES

The anthology series featured stories of mystery, terror and suspense, and its tongue-in-cheek introductions were in sharp contrast to shows like Suspense and The Whistler. The early 1940s programs opened with Raymond Edward Johnson introducing himself as, "Your host, Raymond," in a mocking sardonic voice. A spooky melodramatic organ score (played by Lew White) punctuated Raymond's many morbid jokes and playful puns. Raymond's closing was an elongated "Pleasant dreeeeaams, hmmmmm?" His tongue-in-cheek style and ghoulish relish of his own tales became the standard for many such horror narrators to follow, from fellow radio hosts like Ernest Chappell (on Wyllis Cooper's later series, Quiet, Please) and Maurice Tarplin (on The Mysterious Traveler). When Johnson left the series in May 1945 to serve in the Army, he was replaced by Paul McGrath, who did not keep the "Raymond" name and was known only as "Your Host" or "Mr. Host" (Berry Kroeger had substituted earlier for a total of four episodes). McGrath was a Broadway actor who turned to radio for a regular income. Beginning in 1945, Lipton Tea sponsored the series, pairing first Raymond and then McGrath with cheery commercial spokeswoman Mary Bennett (aka the "Tea Lady"), whose blithesome pitches for Lipton Tea contrasted sharply with the macabre themes of the stories. She primly chided the host for his trademark dark humor and creepy manner. The Creaking Door: The program's familiar and famed audio trademark was the eerie creaking door which opened and closed the broadcasts. Himan Brown got the idea from a door in the basement that "squeaked like Hell." The door sound was actually made by a rusty desk chair. The program did originally intend to use a door, but on its first use, the door did not creak. Undaunted, Brown grabbed a nearby chair, sat in it and turned, causing a hair-raising squeak. The chair was used from then on as the sound prop. On at least one memorable occasion, a staffer innocently repaired and oiled the chair, thus forcing the sound man to mimic the squeak orally. Guest Stars: Its campy comedy notwithstanding, the stories were usually effective little chillers, mixing horror and humor in equal doses. Memorable episodes included "Terror by Night" (September 18, 1945) and an adaptation of "The Tell-Tale Heart" (August 3, 1941). The latter starred Boris Karloff, who was heard regularly in the first season, starring in more than 15 episodes and returning sporadically thereafter. Other established stars in the early years included Mary Astor, Helen Hayes, Peter Lorre, Paul Lukas, Claude Rains, Frank Sinatra, and Orson Welles. Most of the lead and supporting players were stalwarts of New York radio. These included Santos Ortega, Mercedes McCambridge, Berry Kroeger, Lawson Zerbe, Arnold Moss, Leon Janney, and Mason Adams. Players like Richard Widmark, Everett Sloane, Burgess Meredith, Agnes Moorehead, Ken Lynch, and Anne Seymour, also found fame via the Inner Sanctum Mysteries. Out of more than 500 programs broadcast, only about 200 remain in circulation, sometimes minus dates or titles. Information taken from www.wikipedia.org From the Old Time Radio Researchers Group. See "Note" Section below for more information on the OTRR.

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.

License

Chapters

Amazing Death Of Mrs Putnam

25:15

The Tell-Tale Heart

26:42

The Death Ship

27:10

Hunter from Beyond

5:24

Island of Death

28:31

The Man from Yesterday

29:26

Death Has Claws

30:53

Dead Reckoning

29:24

Study for Murder

22:28

Black Sea Gull

28:41

The Horla

20:52

The Skull That Walked

29:43

The Melody of Death

26:23

The Silent Hands

25:53

Death Is a Joker

30:48

Dead Man's Vengeance

20:20

The Voice on the Wire

29:05

The Color Blind Formula

24:59

Desert Death

29:30

Death Is an Artist

29:30

Death in the Depths

29:43

No Coffin for the Dead

29:37

The Bog-Oak Necklace

29:24

The Judas Clock

29:35

Song of the Slasher

29:19

The Girl and the Gallows

28:22

The Black Art

28:30

Dead to Rights

29:34

Musical Score

29:32

Death Across the Board

29:41

Portrait of Death

29:49

Dead Man's Holiday

29:30

Dead Man's Debt

29:21

Dead Man's Deal

29:27

The Murder Prophet

28:58

The Last Story

23:45

Terror by Night

29:09

The Lonely Sleep

29:39

The Shadow of Death

28:48

Death by Scripture

26:39

Death by Scripture

30:03

Till Death Do Us Part

26:53

Till Death Do Us Part

28:33

The Corridor of Doom

29:15

The Wailing Wall

29:18

Boomerang

29:55

The Dark Chamber

25:13

The Dark Chamber

29:50

The Undead

29:15

The Undead

29:44

The Creeping Wall

29:35

The Edge of Death

29:33

The Confession

25:10

The Confession

28:31

Blood of Cain

29:44

Skeleton Bay

29:39

The Man Who Couldn't Die

29:24

I Walk in the Night

26:54

I Walk in the Night

29:37

Strands of Death

28:40

Death Is a Double-Crosser

24:22

Death Is a Double-Crosser

29:39

Lady with a Plan

28:39

Make Ready My Grave

24:21

Make Ready My Grave

29:40

You Could Die Laughing

28:55

Detour to Terror

29:31

Eight Steps to Murder

29:41

I Want to Report a Murder

24:52

Spectre of the Rose

26:21

Murder Comes at Midnight

25:12

The Dead Laugh

26:01

Death's Old Sweet Song

29:34

Death Bound

29:51

The Ghost in the Garden

25:12

Don't Dance on My Grave

25:58

Over My Dead Body

24:40

Till Death Do Us Part

29:12

Death out of Mind

24:13

Tempo in Blood

24:22

The Doomed

24:55

The Magic Tile

24:21

Death Demon

29:43

The Eyes of My Murderer

25:34

Murder Takes a Honeymoon

24:11

The Murder Ship

25:18

House of Doom

25:52

Death Rides a Riptide

24:55

Hangman's Island

26:15

Murder by Prophecy

24:50

Death of a Doll

25:02

Deathwatch in Boston

26:29

Cause of Death

24:14

Murder Faces East

23:40

Between Two Worlds

24:07

Fearful Voyage

25:20

Murder Comes to Life

26:07

Mark My Grave

26:28

Mark My Grave

25:18

The Devil's Fortune

25:32

Death Demon

25:52

Birdsong for a Murderer

25:20

Flame of Death

26:15

Only the Dead Die Twice

24:59

Appointment with Death

25:58

Death Wears a Lonely Smile

24:42

The Death Deal

25:30

The Unburied Dead

25:42

The Corpse Is Lonely

25:41

Death on the Highway

25:31

Corpse Without a Conscience

25:06

Pattern for Fear

25:47

Deadly Fare

26:07

Dead Heat

24:20

Mind Over Murder

24:13

Death's Little Brother

26:13

Murder Rides the Carousel

24:27

The Vengeful Corpse

28:08

Honeymoon with Death

23:48

Catch a Killer

26:19

The Devil's Workshop

26:08

Image of Death

26:12

Night Is My Shroud

25:12

Corpse for Halloween

26:09

Wish to Kill

24:14

Beyond the Grave

24:38

The Enchanted Ghost

21:44

Killer at Large

25:17

The Scream

24:23

The Hitch-Hiking Corpse

24:14

Skeleton Bay

29:26

Murder Mansion

23:41

Beneficiary -- Death

29:41

No Rest For The Dead

29:02

Twice Dead

29:35

The Smile of Death

14:08

Man from the Grave

15:06

The Unforgiving Corpse

29:46

Birdsong for a Murderer

21:40

Terror by Night

22:58

Death Pays the Freight

23:06

Death for Sale

24:51

The Listener

23:58

The Murder Prophet

24:06

Murder off the Record

25:04

The Magic Tile

24:37

The Corpse Laughs Last

25:13

No Rest for the Dead

25:16

No Rest for the Dead

29:19

Strange Passenger

23:10

The Meek Die Slowly

23:18

Till Death Do Us Part

24:17

The Corpse Nobody Loved

23:24

The Dead Walk at Night

23:05

The Judas Clock

26:13

Bewertungen

Raymond himself is worth the price of admission alone!

(5 Sterne)

a landmark series for suspense and horror - and Raymond's hosting, with his ghoulish puns, are the icing on the cake.Many of the great actors of OTR can be heard on this series throughout its run. And while more of these are mystery than horror, there are suspenseful moments galore - though that doesn't mean there are no good frights along the way! A highly recommended classic.

Mystery Playhouse Versions

(5 Sterne)

The Mystery Playhouse was an Armed Forces Radio (AFRS) that took programs like Inner Sanctum, Molle Mysteries, Mr & Mrs North, etc. and rebroadcast them for the Armed Forces with the commercials removed. The time that was used by the commercials would be used for the intro by someone like Sergeant X. Some would have a preview of the next episode aired. The Inner Sanctum episodes that were also Mystery Playhouse episodes would have the Inner Sanctum intro by Raymond or the Host.

(5 Sterne)

This is by far the best of the old timers. I'd heard about this show from my parents and uncles when I was a kid in the 50's but only found it lately through Old Time Radio Research and what a thrill it was listening for the very first time!

The Smile of Death

(3 Sterne)

I really enjoy suspense and this podcast did not disappoint. What I didn’t like was that it left me wanting more. I was confused when the dialogue stopped because I felt like the story was still developing when the last lines were said. I really enjoyed the actors themselves and the tone of the voices with each character because they matched exactly with the aura of their intentions. The title was what got me interested in this particular episode but I feel like the smile described in the podcast was not developed enough to be the main descriptor. The smile was scary, yes, but it was only mentioned at the end and nothing came of it. What does the smile indicate? More than just that the man is haunting them. Why is he smiling? If I were him I would have a frown because the wife clearly does not love him and the man who gave him the room was completely rude. Does he have a trick up his sleeve? I’m clearly just disappointed with the ending.

Question

(5 Sterne)

Can anyone explain to me why The Mystery Playhouse is introducing some of these shows? I have some mp3's of Mystery Playhouse and that show quite often introduced episodes of other shows like Mr. and Mrs. North, Sam Spade, and a few others I can't remember. I'm quite confused over this because Mystery Playhouse wasn't like AFRS as it did broadcast shows that weren't episodes from other OTR shows and were either classic short stories or original stories written just for Mystery Playhouse. I'd really appreciate either a repose or just an answer on my confusion. Thanks! Inner Sanctum is one of my favorite OTR series and it's so awesome to hear 149 episodes in one place!

!!

(4 Sterne)

I really wasn't expecting to enjoy that as much as I did. This episode really brought out my love for mystery stories like the ones I used to read as a kid. The suspense was great and the way the story was crafted really set the scene and made me use my imagination. It surprises me that all that was used to create this story were some sound effects, a couple different characters, and some great dialogue. The only thing I didn't like were some of the creepy sound effects and the narrator was funny but made me feel a little uncomfortable. However, neither of those things bothered me too much to not enjoy the story.

Does anyone know the piece of music at the end of a few episodes?

(5 Sterne)

A few of these fun stories that are recorded here were re-broadcast over the Armed Forces Radio Service, like "Deathwatch in Boston." After the show there is an interesting musical piece that I am puzzled about. Does anyone know what the name of this ending music might be? The program itself is great fun and is best listened to in the evening!

What happened to the Bromo Seltzer commercials

(5 Sterne)

In looking over these programs, I could only find a few with the original Bromo Seltzer commercials. The one in particular was "The Vengeful Corpse" (1949). When Lipton Tea sponsored the program, the recordings were duplicated for copyright purposes. These recording have since found their way into the hands of collectors. The programs sponsored by Bromo Seltzer were re-released as AFRS recordings and the commercials were edited out.