[josemas]

Finished up that Gang Busters collection and all the episodes of Thrills of the Highway Patrol and Call the Police that I could find.  Still listening to Calling All Cars (there's tons of episodes of this series available).

Nearly finished with that second Our Miss Brooks collection.

About a third of the way through the Tarzan serial "The Diamond of Asher" and thinking of checking out some episodes of Chandu.

On the musical front I recently listened to an episode of Jazz International from 1960.

Best

Joe

[narfstar]

Listened to some XM Christmas in July episodes of various shows on our annual trip to PA and back

[alfje]

OST from "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers".

[bowers]

Downloaded several episodes of "The Avenger" OTR program for our trip to California. The Avenger is sort of a Shadow knock-off, and these episodes really weren't all that great. Predictable scripts and a so-so cast made these pretty boring. (Good thing the airline served complimentary beer and wine all the way home- Go Skyways!) On the other hand, the Avenger pulp stories written by Paul Ernst were actually very good. Cheers, Bowers

[narfstar]

I have all or nearly all the Avenger paperbacks and enjoyed them even more than Doc Savage
I did not like the OTR

[bowers]

I couldn't agree more, Narf! Cheers, Bowers

[josemas]

I have all or nearly all the Avenger paperbacks and enjoyed them even more than Doc Savage
I did not like the OTR

I remember being very disappointed too when I first listened to The Avenger radio series.  I was expecting something along the lines of the pulp stories and instead got The Shadow knock-offs (as Bowers so aptly labeled them).

A real missed opportunity.

Best

Joe

[Menticide]

Ghostland Observatory the Robotique Majestique album. These guys are so unique and different. You'll either love them or hate them. I saw some concert footage on PBS one night and I was hooked. Definitely worth checking out, you may not like it, but if you do, you will certainly love them.

[josemas]

Finished up that second Our Miss Brooks collection, listened to a few more episodes of Calling All Cars from 1934, am about half way through the Tarzan radio serial "The Diamond of Ashir" and started listening to the first Chandu serial storyline from 1948.

Also started a collection of Literary Classic adaptations-
A couple episodes of NBC half hour show Author's Playhouse from 1944-which did a fine job adapting some H. G. Wells short stories. 
A Mercury Theater episode of "A Tale of Two Cities" (1938) -Mercury, under the helm of Orson Welles and with it's hour long format consistently did some of the best adaptations of these types. 
A Lux Radio Theater take on "The Count of Monte Cristo" (1939)- Lux did adaptions of movies and since the movies that adapted classics sometimes took liberties---well you get the point. Still the show had great production values with host Cecil B. DeMille and many top Hollywood stars appearing on the show over the years making it almost always entertaining.

Best

Joe

[bowers]

Mercury/Campbell Theater and Lux Theater did, indeed, do some very good adaptations of the classics. I haven't heard the Author's Playhouse series yet, but I plan to remedy that situation very soon- thanks for the tip. I've been listening to "Charlie Chan"- good but not great. Also collecting more episodes of "The Creaking Door", which is similar to "Suspense" but without the big-name guest stars. Cheers, Bowers

[josemas]

Almost through with the Tarzan serial "The Diamond of Ashir" which I've been listening to this Summer.  The second half had the action picking up with Tarzan battling prehistoric creatures.  Also continuing along with my 1948 Chandu serial-about a dozen episodes into it now.

Finished up that collection of literary classics with The Lux Radio Theatre-"Les Miserable" and a couple Studio One adaptations, "The Return of the Native" and "Wuthering Heights".  I had just recently watched the Studio One television adaptation of "Wuthering Heights" and it was interesting to note that both adaptations seemed to be based more on the MGM movie version than on the Emily Bronte book.  Go figure.

Started a Jack Benny collection called The Gang's All Here that concentrates on the entire cast of the show so while there are a good half dozen or so episodes of the Jack Benny Program there are also episodes of various other shows that showcased the supporting cast.

Also just started a Lum 'N Abner collection.  The few scattered episodes of this show that I've heard over the years never really grabbed me.  We'll see how I do with a more concentrated dose.

For musical enjoyment I've been listening to episodes of G. I. Jive- a series that started during WWII which was broadcast to the servicemen overseas.  Lots of good swing, boogie-woogie and popular music of the era.

And finally I checked out some vintage BBC radio shows.  From the war years I listened to The Will Hay Programme and episodes of Tommy Handley's I.T.M.A. (It's That Man Again).  From the 1950s I sampled Life With the Lyons (a sort of Ozzie and Harriet with Americans Ben Lyon, Bebe Daniels and their real life children playing themselves) and Hancock's Half Hour (Sid James always cracks me up in this later one).

Come October I plan to be sampling a variety of horror/suspense/mystery programs.

Best

Joe

[josemas]

Well I ended my September OTR listening by finishing my Tarzan serial, "The Diamond of Ashir" and checking out a few more vintage BBC shows such as Bandwaggon with Arthur Askey and the wartime Merry Go Round which featured Much Binding in the Marsh (which would spin off into it's own show after the war).

Come October I began piling on the thrillers with episodes of such shows as Suspense, The Creaking Door, Lights Out, Weird Circle, Inner Sanctum, The Sealed Book, Quiet Please, The Witch's Tale, Creeps By Night, The Whistler, The Haunting Hour, and The Strange Dr. Weird.

Still working my way through that Lum & Abner collection and the collection featuring the supporting cast of the Jack Benny Show in the various other shows they appeared on.  One of the most interesting of the later was a one man, no budget show that Mel Blanc did for the AFRS during WWII called Are You a Genius?   Mel's "guests" on the two shows featured were Porky Pig and Bugs Bunny.

Musical OTR has consisted of episodes of G. I. Jive (1940s) and Country Hoedown (1950s) lately.

And finally I'm still squeezing in episodes of my 1948 serial Chandu the Magician here and there.

Best

Joe

[paw broon]

I note the mention of old BBC radio shows and wondered if any of you can get BBC Radio 4 Extra online.  If so, they run vintage and more recent BBC comedies, serials and one offs.  Here, every evening we get one of the following:- Hancock; Goon Show; Men From The Ministry; Navy Lark; Round The Horne.  And, regularly, a Paul Temple serial (either an original or one of the excellent recent remakes.)  Lots more.

[josemas]

I've listened to a number of BBC radio shows at BBC Radio 4 Extra, Paw.  Mostly comedies.  A very good source for sampling some of their output.

I haven't tried any of the Paul Temple serials yet but your championing of it has me curious to give it a go.

Best

Joe

[josemas]

Finished up October with more OTR spookers including episodes of Dark Fantasy, Strange Adventure, Cabin B-13, Obsession, Appointment with Fear, Hall of Fantasy, The Hermit's Cave, The Unexpected, Mystery in the Air, and a neat 13-part adaptation of Frankenstein from 1938.

Finished up my Jack Benny and co. collection with episodes of A Day in the Life of Dennis Day, Fitch Band Wagon, and The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show. 
Also finished up my lengthy collection of Lum & Abner episodes from 1942.  I will admit that finally after getting to listen to a long consecutive run of these episodes the show did begin to grow on me.  Even if the main characters often come across as a rural/small town version of Dumb and Dumber.

Paw's mention of Paul Temple and Sexton Blake had peaked my interest in those characters.   
Upon doing a bit of searching I found a collection of Sexton Blake radio episodes from 1967 and have listened to the first couple of those (very 1960ish music on these). 
Also caught the last three episodes of an 8-part Paul Temple serial on BBC Radio4.  The lengthy format gives these plenty of room for plotting and character development.  Now I'm hoping to catch one from the beginning.

And finally I managed to squeeze in a few episodes of the Chandu the Magician serial.

Best

Joe

[narfstar]

I am always amazed at how many OTR I have not tried that sound good. I guess I like to listen to what I know I like. Listened to Whistler on the way back from Thanksgiving in Alabama. Still one of my all time favorites.

[bowers]

I'm currently listening to "The Kraken Wakes", a multi-chapter 1965 CBC production. Really quite good. I believe BBC also did an excellent version. I found one episode of "Tales of Fatima" starring Basil Rathbone as... Basil Rathbone! The actor plays himself as a mystery buff helping the police solve crimes. Fatima seems to be a mysterious spirit/voice who gives the listener a cryptic clue to solve the mystery, and is also the brand name of the cigarette company that sponsored the program. Played very light-heartedly and lots of fun. The only episode I could find was "Time to Kill". Anyone know where I can find some more? Cheers, Bowers

[paw broon]

Paul Temple and the Madison Mystery, the remake of the lost 1949 radio production.  The writer, Francis Durbridge, had a very successful formula formula, "Everybody is lying, nothing is as it seems"

[profh0011]

The other day I finally got around to listening to the BBC radio adaptation of DR. NO. It really brought back memories, as I read the novel around 37 years ago!!!  One thing that generaly bugs me about the movie is that they removed any sense of "mystery" in the first 10 minutes.  Bond walks into M's office and is asked, "What do you know about toppling?"  In the novel, this isn't even mentioned until the dining room scene.  The whole book up to that point is one big MYSTERY!  What is this weird Chinaman doing on that island? Why is he so OBSESSED with total secrecy, isolation and security? Bond has NO IDEA... until the guy TELLS him.

It's rather funny how the baddie's entire scheme comes to light as a result of investigations and complaints related to The Audobon Society.  Yep, those damned birds. World domination derailed by nature-lovers!!

I also like the way that Honey did NOT need rescuing in the book, she got free herself, and she helped Bond get out of the giant octopus pen. Whatta girl!  Honeychile Rider was my favorite of all of Fleming's "Bond Girls", though I must confess, the voice of the actress in this did nothing for me. (But the, neither did Ursula Andress... SHE was way sexier in WHAT'S NEW PUSSYCAT.)

I found it a bit humorous that "the armorer" had a pronounced Scottish accent.

I didn't know ANY of the actors involved in this thing... except for one.  David Suchet did the voice of Dr. No. And it was IMPOSSIBLE to tell. The voice, the accent, the inflection, the performance, it was all positively one of the SICKEST, most GROTESQUE things I have ever run across in a radio or audio drama. I always figured Fleming's Dr. No was somewhat like Fu Manchu (as I said, it's been ages since I read it, apart from the newspaper comic-strip version), but the character Suchet created was just in a weird, warped, perverted class of his own. This is a guy who genuinely DESERVED to be killed by being buried under a mountain of BIRD S***!!!  

[josemas]

Found out that my local library had a number of the BBC releases of the Paul Temple radio series and listened to the complete Paul Temple and the Gilbert Case from 1954.  I look forward to listening to more of these.
Squeezed in a couple more episodes of the 1967 BBC Sexton Blake series and the Chandu the Magician serial, the first episode of MGM's Good News series (from 1937) that promoted their current films and the last few episodes of Creeps By Night that I could find.
Mostly however I've been working my way, for the first time, through the perennial Christmas favorite (from 1937) The Cinnamon Bear.  Lotsa' fun.  Not sure if I'll have it finished by Christmas though.

Best

Joe

[PreveFerrib]

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[josemas]

Finished up The Cinnamon Bear serial shortly after Christmas.  For those who've never heard it, it is a 26 episode kid's serial designed to be run between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Lots of wacky characters.  Fun in the way that L. Frank Baum's Oz stories are.  It was a perennial Holiday favorite for many years on OTR.

Got back into my Chandu the Magician serial after the Holidays, squeezed in a couple more episodes of the 1960's Sexton Blake show (really enjoying these) and finally ran across an episode of the CBS Radio Mystery Theater which is an OTR show that I actually remembering hearing first run. The episode was an adaptation of Dracula (actually it just adapted one part of the book) with a much too old Mercedes McCambridge as Mina Harker.  The show was from May 1974 and was preceded by 15 minutes of news which was almost exclusively Watergate related.  Nixon was in real trouble by this time and would resign a few months after this broadcast.

Best

Joe

[bowers]

I've also been catching up on episodes of CBS Radio Mystery Theater. What an excellent program it was! My favorite episode was about some malicious shadows closing in on a small group with only a sputtering candle to keep them at bay. (Similar to A. Merrit's novel "Creep, Shadow, Creep".) Wish I could find the name of that program. The wife and I were listening to this one while driving past some very strange and impressive rock formations under the light of a full moon. Shadows everywhere! What a powerful medium radio can be. Cheers, Bowers

[profh0011]

I just finished watching THE GANGSTER CHRONICLES (1981) for the first time since the 80's. One thing I can't figure is, WHY did they replace narrator E.G. Marshall halfway thru the mere 13 episodes?  (I first encountered Marshall listening to THE CBS RADIO MYSTERY THEATRE in the early 70's.)

[josemas]

Well this past month I got through another week's worth of Chandu the Magician, the very first episode from the 1967 Sexton Blake series (I've been listening to these in no particular order and just happened to get that one this go-round), the first three CBS Radio Mystery Theater episodes (from January 1974), and a few 1937 episodes of the comedy-variety show Shell Chateau then being hosted by comedian Joe Cook.
Finally I tracked down that neat six-part 1965 CBC adaptation of The Kraken Wakes that Bowers recommended awhile back.  I really like this approach where they get a number of half hour episodes to adapt a book rather then trying to cram it into one hour (or even half hour) episode.

Best

Joe