Episode 350: The Most Dangerous Game

[00:00:08] Speaker A: The mysterious old radio listening society. Live from the Bryant Lake bowl. Good evening, creeps. Please welcome to the stage your mysterious hosts, Eric, Tim, Joshua, and special ghoulish guest star, Shannon Custer. [00:00:35] Speaker B: Look out. [00:00:44] Speaker C: Welcome to the mysterious old Radio Listening Society, a podcast dedicated to suspense, crime and horror stories from the golden age of radio. I'm Eric. [00:00:53] Speaker D: I'm Tim. [00:00:53] Speaker A: And I'm Joshua. [00:00:54] Speaker B: And I'm Shannon. We love mysterious old time radio stories, but do they stand the test of time? That's what we're here to find out. [00:01:02] Speaker D: Tonight to celebrate our 350th episode. [00:01:06] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:01:10] Speaker D: Thanks for taking the cue. We are joined by a live audience to listen to Orson Welles in the 1943 suspense adaptation of the most dangerous game, based on the short story of the same name by Richard Connell. [00:01:23] Speaker C: Radio's outstanding theater thrills premiered on CB's in 1942 and continued for 20 years, making it one of the medium's longest running anthology programs. Known for its big name stars, high production values and sophisticated scripts, suspense raised the bar for dramatic radio and 80 years later remains one of radio's most highly regarded series. [00:01:46] Speaker A: The most dangerous game was first published as the Hounds of Zarath in Collier magazine in January 1924. It won an O. Henry Award that same year and is frequently cited as the most popular short story ever written in English. Many versions of the story exist on film, radio and television. Some are direct adaptations. Others borrow or perhaps steal iconic elements of the story. [00:02:20] Speaker B: The first and arguably most famous adaptation of the most dangerous game was the 1932 pre Code horror film produced by Ernest B. Schoetzak. I was gonna ask how to pronounce that. And Shade Sack. His name is now Shosak and Marion C. Cooper. Shotzak and Cooper devised the film as a way to offset the costs of their next film, King Kong. Not only did the two films share the same producers, the same jungle set, the same co director, they also shared the same four stars, Fay Ray, Robert Armstrong, James Flavin and noble Johnson. [00:03:03] Speaker C: Tonight's suspense adaptation features one of radio's most famous figures, Orson Welles, best known for his 1938 version of the War of the Worlds, produced and performed by the Mercury Theater. On the air, he also famously portrayed such iconic radio characters as Harry Lyme and the Shadow. His voice can be heard in many episodes of suspense, most notably the Hitchhiker and Donovan's brain, as well as in the introduction to the true crime program, the Black Museum. [00:03:34] Speaker A: And now let's listen to the most dangerous game from suspense, first broadcast September 23, 1943. [00:03:45] Speaker C: It's late at night and a chill has set in you're alone and the only light you see is coming from an antique radio listen to the sounds coming from the speaker. Listen. Listen to the music and listen to the voices. [00:04:14] Speaker E: Suspense. This is the man in black. Here again to introduce Columbia's program suspense. From Hollywood, we bring you as star Mister Orson Welles. Who this evening begins a four week engagement as guest of these proceedings. In the interests of prime suspense. Mister Wells and the producer of this series. Have scheduled four radio stories. Which they feel are particularly distinguished in our chosen field. The first of these is the most dangerous game by Richard Connell. And so, with the performance of Orson Welles in the character of General Zarov. And Keenan Wynn as Sanger Rainsford, who learned from Zarov what was the most dangerous game. We again hope to keep you in suspense. [00:05:28] Speaker F: I haven't much time. Any moment now he may come in. And when he does, I'm going to kill him. It's him or me, and I'm going to do my best to make it him. Or maybe it sounds crazy to you. I guess it does. Would have sounded crazy to me a few days ago. When I was with Whitney on the yacht. I was on a pleasure trip. A pleasure trip. How are I? How could I or anyone realize then the horror and torment I was to go through? How was I to know of Ivan and the death Swamp and the hounds? How was I to know of Zarov? Think of it. It was only four nights ago that the ship went down. We'd been talking about this island ship, trap island Boyd. And he said it was called on the charts. He was sleepy and started on down below to turn in. I was mixing myself a nightcap when I looked up and saw it. A tremendous reef racing at us out of the fog. I screamed out a warning, but it was too late. We were right upon it. The ship exploded right on top of Whitney and members of the crew. I alone was standing safe out on the prowl. But the force of the explosion hurled me into the blood warm waters. Terrified at the suddenness and surprise, my stomach weak and sick at the thought of the others. The sea was eddying furiously around the sinking remnants of the ship. And a certain cool headedness came to me and made me swim desperately away. Or I might not have lived to go through the horror which was soon to come. I struck out to the right in the direction of the island about which Whitney had been telling me. I had no recollection of how long I swam. But all at once I heard the muttering and growling of the sea breaking on the rocky shore. With my remaining strength, I dragged myself from the swirling waters. All in gasping, my hands raw. I at last reached a flat place. At the top, I flung myself down at the jungle edge. And tumbled headlong into the deepest sleep of my life. When I awoke, I was in a stranger. Having no idea how I ended up. [00:07:46] Speaker G: Well, Ivan, our friend, seems to be awakening. [00:07:50] Speaker F: I. Where. Where is this? Where am I? [00:07:55] Speaker G: Do not be alarmed, my friend. My man Ivan, found you out on the cliff. He brought you here to be taken care of. [00:08:05] Speaker F: Thank God there's life on this island. I hardly believed. [00:08:09] Speaker G: Few people do. Yes, you are quite safe here in my castle, mister. [00:08:14] Speaker F: Rainsford. [00:08:15] Speaker E: Rainsford. [00:08:15] Speaker F: I'm Sanger Rainsford of New York. [00:08:17] Speaker G: Rainsford. Sanger Rainsford. [00:08:20] Speaker E: Yes. [00:08:20] Speaker G: Well, it is indeed a very great pleasure and honor to welcome you, Mister Sanger. Rainsford. You are the celebrated hunter? [00:08:31] Speaker F: Yes, yes. You know me? [00:08:33] Speaker G: By reputation only. I've read your book about hunting snow leopards in Tibet. You see, my name is General Zarov. I am not English, Mister Rainsford. But I went to a good school. Perhaps you recognize the colors of my tie. No, it makes no difference. I've lived too long in the jungle to be a snob. [00:08:51] Speaker F: Well, I. Well, I can't tell you how happy I am to meet you, general. [00:08:56] Speaker G: And I can't tell you how happy I am to meet you, Mister Rainsford. Come. We shouldn't be chatting here. We can talk later. You must be hungry. [00:09:03] Speaker F: Yes, I am rather. [00:09:06] Speaker G: What if Vaan thought you'd like a robe? He's drying your clothes for you. [00:09:11] Speaker F: Oh, thank you. [00:09:11] Speaker G: Ivan's an incredibly strong fellow. But you mustn't mind his looks. His ears were cut off in battle. And he has the misfortune to be deaf and dumb. He is sensitive about his appearance. A simple fellow, really, but I'm afraid, a bit savage. He's been in our family for years. Follow Yvonne, if you please, Mister Rainsford. I was about to have my luncheon before you awoke. You can have it together now. Does the robe fit you all right? [00:09:37] Speaker F: Well, yes, yes, perfectly. Thanks. [00:09:38] Speaker G: I'm so glad. [00:09:39] Speaker F: You have quite a collection of heads here. Lions, tigers, elephants, moose, bears. I don't believe I've ever seen a more perfect specimen. [00:09:47] Speaker G: They are nice. I take great pride in them. [00:09:49] Speaker F: You have good cause. [00:09:51] Speaker G: Coming from you, Mister Rainsford, that is a great compliment. Here we are. You sit over there. [00:09:56] Speaker F: Thank you. [00:09:56] Speaker G: Not at all. 91. We do our best to preserve the amenities of civilization here. Forgive many lapses, of course. Well, off the beaten track, you know. Sho shoe. Sho shoe. Sho. Shoe. This is my little pet, Mister Rainsford. As a hunting falcon, Shu Shu is of no further usefulness in the field. But I am fond of its company in my naught. Little sweetheart. Patience, my darling. I know you're hungry. My dear. Dear. We hunt tonight. [00:10:35] Speaker F: Your. Your heads are really remarkable, general. That. That cape buffalo is the largest I've ever seen. [00:10:41] Speaker G: Yes, that fellow, he's a monster. [00:10:43] Speaker F: Did he charge you? [00:10:44] Speaker G: Hurled me against a tree, fractured my skull. Left me the scar, and I got the brute. [00:10:50] Speaker F: I've always thought the Cape buffalo is the most dangerous of all games. [00:10:53] Speaker G: Oh, no, no, you're wrong. Wrong, sir? The Cape buffalo is not the most dangerous game. Ivan, the wine. [00:11:05] Speaker F: How does he understand you? [00:11:06] Speaker G: He reads my lips. I think you like this champagne, Mister Rainsford. Ivan chills it expertly. No, no. The cave of buffalo is not the most dangerous game. Here in my preserve on this island. I hunt more dangerous games. [00:11:23] Speaker F: Oh, is there a big game on this island? [00:11:25] Speaker G: The biggest. [00:11:26] Speaker F: Really? [00:11:27] Speaker G: Oh, it isn't here, naturally. Of course, I have to stock the island. [00:11:33] Speaker F: What have you imported, general? Jaguars. [00:11:35] Speaker G: Jaguars? I hope you like filet mignon, Mister Rince. [00:11:37] Speaker F: I do, very much. Thank you. Is it jaguars, general? [00:11:40] Speaker G: No, no, no. Hunting jaguars ceased to interest me some years ago. I exhausted their possibilities. You see? No thrill left in jaguars, you understand. A real danger. I live for danger, Mister Rainsford. We will have some capital hunting, you and I. I shall be most glad to have your company. Yes, but you'll be amused, I know. I think you may say in all modesty. That I've done a rare thing. Yes. I've invented a new sensation. May I pour you another glass of champagne, Mister Rainsford? [00:12:15] Speaker F: Thank you, general. [00:12:16] Speaker G: God makes some men poets. Some he makes kings. Some beggars made a hunter. My hand was made for the trigger. My father once said that made for the trigger. My whole life has been one prolonged hunt. I've hunted every kind of game in every land. It'd be impossible for me to tell you how many animals I've killed. Grizzlies and your rockies. Crocodiles and the ganges. Rhinoceroses in East Africa. This in Africa. By the way, that Cape buffalo hit me and made me up for six months. As soon as I recovered, I started for the Amazon to hunt jaguars. But I'd heard they were unusually cunning. They weren't. They were no match at all for a hunter with his wits about him. The high powered rifle. I was bitterly disappointed. I was lying in my tent with a splitting headache. One night, a terrible thought pushed its waves in my head. Hunting was beginning to bore me. And hunting, remember, had been my life. I've heard that in America. Businessmen often go to pieces when they give up the business. That's been their life. Yes. [00:13:24] Speaker F: Yes, that's so. [00:13:25] Speaker G: I have no wish to go to pieces. I must do something now. Mine is an analytical mine, Mister Rainsford. Doubtless that is why I enjoy the problems of the chase. [00:13:39] Speaker F: Oh, no doubt, gentlemen. [00:13:39] Speaker G: So I asked myself why the hunt no longer fascinated me. You are much younger than I am, Mister Rainsford. And have not hunted as much. But you, perhaps can guess the answer. [00:13:47] Speaker F: What is it? [00:13:48] Speaker G: Simply this hunting had ceased to be what you call a sporting proposition. It had become too easy. I always got my quarry. Always. It's no greater bore than perfection. Cigarette? [00:14:01] Speaker F: Nothing. [00:14:01] Speaker G: No animal had a chance with me anymore. Not a chance. That is no boast. It is a mathematical certainty. The animal had nothing but his legs and his instinct. Instinct is no match for reason. When I thought of this, it was a tragic moment for me, I can tell you. It came to me as an inspiration. What I must do. [00:14:25] Speaker F: And that was? [00:14:28] Speaker G: I had to invent a new animal to hunt. [00:14:32] Speaker F: A new animal? You're joking. [00:14:34] Speaker G: Not at all. I never joke about hunting. I needed a new animal. I found one. So I bought this island, built this castle. And here I do my hunting. The island is perfect for my purposes. There are jungles with a maze of trails in them. Heroes swamps. [00:14:51] Speaker F: Yes, but the animal. The animal, General Zara. [00:14:54] Speaker G: It surprised me with the most exciting hunting in the world. No other hunting compares with it. For instance, every day I hunt. I never grow bored now. For I have a quarry with which I can match my wits. [00:15:10] Speaker F: Yes, but you still have. [00:15:11] Speaker G: I wanted the ideal animal to hunt. So I said, what are the attributes of an ideal quarry? And the answer was, of course, it must have courage, cunning. And above all, it must be able to reason. [00:15:28] Speaker F: Well. No animals neither. [00:15:29] Speaker D: Neither? [00:15:31] Speaker G: There is one that can. [00:15:33] Speaker F: One. But you can't mean. [00:15:38] Speaker G: And why not? [00:15:40] Speaker F: Well, I. I can't believe you're serious, General Zarov. You're just joking. [00:15:44] Speaker G: Joking? I'm quite serious. Speaking about hunting. [00:15:48] Speaker F: Hunting? You're speaking about murder. [00:15:51] Speaker G: Well, dear me, that unpleasant word. I think I can show you that your scruples are quite ill founded. Yes, I hunt the scum of the earth. Sailors from tramp ships, lascars, japs, mongrels. A thoroughbred horse. A hound is worth more than a score. [00:16:07] Speaker F: But these are men. [00:16:09] Speaker G: Precisely. That is why I use them. It gives me pleasure. They can reason after a fashion. So they are dangerous. [00:16:19] Speaker F: Where do you get them? [00:16:21] Speaker G: We visit my training school. It's in the cellar. I have about a dozen pupils down there now. They're from the spanish box San Lucar. That had the bad luck to go with the rocks out there. A very inferior lot, I regret. The poor specimens. More accustomed to the deck than to the jungle. [00:16:38] Speaker F: Other class, you know. [00:16:40] Speaker G: It's a game, you see. It's a sort of game. I suggest to one of them that we go hunting. I give him a supply of food and an excellent hunting knife. I give him 3 hours start. I am to follow. Armed only with a pistol. Of the smallest caliber and range. If my quarry eludes me for three whole days. He wins the game. If I find him, he loses. [00:17:10] Speaker F: Suppose he refuses to be hunted? [00:17:13] Speaker G: Why give him his choice? Of course. He need not play that game. If he does not wish to. If he does not wish to hunt. I turn him over to Ivan. Ivan once had the honor of serving as official knouter to my old king. And he has his own ideas of sport. Invariably, Mister Rainsford. Invariably they choose the Huntley. [00:17:38] Speaker F: And if they win? [00:17:40] Speaker G: To date, I have not lost. I do not wish you to think me a braggart, Mister Rainsford. Many of them afford only the most elementary sort of problem, I assure you. Occasionally I strike a tartar. Remembers the tartar, don't you, darling? Yeah. Yes, he almost did win. I eventually had to use the hounds. [00:18:10] Speaker F: The hounds? [00:18:11] Speaker G: Yes. This way, please. I'll show you. You see? Wait a moment, I'll open the window. Hello, boys. Rather good lot, I think. They let out Athenae every night. Anyone should try to get into my castle or out of it. Something extremely regrettable would occur to them. But enough of this. Come. I will show you a collection of heads. I'm quite sure you've never seen before. Join me in the library for coffee. [00:18:45] Speaker F: I hope that you will excuse me tonight, general. Oh, I'm really not feeling well at all. [00:18:50] Speaker G: Indeed, I know what it is. My old complaint. Ennui boredom. You need some excitement. Tonight we'll hunt. Hey, Mister Rainsford, you and I. [00:19:03] Speaker F: You're wrong, general. I won't hunt. I won't murder. [00:19:07] Speaker G: As you wish, my friend. The choice rests entirely with you. But may I not venture to suggest. That you will find my idea sport more diverting than Naivan's? My dear fellow, you don't mean that. [00:19:24] Speaker F: You plan to hunt me? [00:19:27] Speaker G: My dear fellow, have I not told you I always mean what I say about hunting? This is really an inspiration. I drink to a foeman worthy of my steel. At last. [00:19:43] Speaker F: I simply can't believe it. This must be some sort of dream. [00:19:48] Speaker G: You'll find the game worth playing, Mister Rheinsford. Think of it. Your brain against mine. Your woodcraft against mine. Your strength. Your stamina against mine. Outdoor chess. And the stake is not without value, eh? And if I win, I'll cheerfully acknowledge myself defeated. If I do not find you by midnight of the third day, my sloop will place you on the mainland near a town. Or you can trust me and give you my word as a gentleman, not a sportsman. Of course. You, in turn, must agree to say nothing of your visit here. [00:20:18] Speaker F: I will agree to nothing of the kind. [00:20:21] Speaker G: Oh, well, in that case. But why discuss that now, three days hence? We can discuss it over a bottle of oeuf decoud. Unless. Well, your choice, Mister Rainsford. [00:20:36] Speaker F: I'm a hunter, you know. My choice. [00:20:38] Speaker G: Ivan here will supply you with hunting clothes, food and knife. I suggest you wear moccasins. They leave a poorer trail. I suggest to you that you avoid the big swamp in the southeast corner of the island. We call it death swamp swamp. This quicksand there. Well, I must beg you to excuse me now. We always take our siesta after our lunch, don't we? Shoo. Shoo. Yes. Come, my little pet. You'll hardly have time for a nap. I fear, mister Rainsford, you'll want to start. Of course, I shall not follow till dusk. Hunting at night is so much more exciting than by day, don't you think? Well, au revoir, mister Rainsford. Au revoir. I. [00:21:35] Speaker F: I'd fought my way through the bush for 2 hours, repeating to myself over and over again, I must keep my nerve. I must keep my nerve. My whole idea at first, was to put distance between myself and General Zarov. And to this end, I had plunged along through the thickets, spurred on by the sharp rolls of something very much like panic. Now I had got a grip on myself. [00:21:53] Speaker G: I'd stopped. [00:21:54] Speaker F: I was taking stock of the situation. I saw that straight flight was futile. Inevitably, it would bring me face to face with the sea. Well, I'll give him a trail, I muttered. And I struck off from the rude. [00:22:05] Speaker G: Path I had been following. [00:22:05] Speaker F: And into the trackless wilderness. I made a series of intricate loops. I doubled back on my trail again and again, recalling all the lore of the fox hunt. All the dodges of the fox night found me exhausted, my hands and face lashed by the branches on a thickly wooded ridge. My need for rest was imperative, and I thought I played the fox. Now I must play the cat of the faith. A big tree with a thick trunk and outspread branches was nearby. And taking care not to leave the slightest mark, I climbed up and stretched out among the bridge. Limbs. Rest brought me new confidence and almost a feeling of security. Even so expert a hunter as General Zarov cannot trace me here, I assured myself. An apprehensive night crawled slowly by my mind, keenly alert for any sound, any warning. Heart of the dawn, an instinct I never knew existed, like an animal must possess, and held me to look far off in the distance, in a westerly direction. Sure enough, following the trail with the sureness of a bloodhound, came General Zarath. Nothing escaped those searching black eyes. No crushed blade of grass, no bent twig, no mark, no matter how fine in the moss. My heart pounding furiously, I slid down quickly from the tree and struck off again into the woods. I knew I had to do something desperate. I knew that I had little time in which to do it. 300 yards from my hiding place I stopped where a huge dead tree leaned precariously on a smaller living one. Throwing off my sack of food, I took my knife from its sheath and began to work with all my energy. The job was finished at last, and I threw myself down behind a fallen log 300ft away. I did not have to wake long. [00:23:43] Speaker G: Sho shoot. Patience, patience, my darling. You'll be fair. Rainsford. Rainsford. Rains. [00:24:05] Speaker F: Got him. [00:24:10] Speaker G: Rainsford. If you are within sound of my voice, as I suppose you are, let me congratulate you. Not many men know how to make a Mali man catcher. Luckily for me, I too have hunted in Malacca. You are proving interesting, Mister Rainsworth. Hmm, very interesting. The tree brushed my shoulders. I jumped back. I'm going to have a wound rest. It's only slight. I shall be back, Mister Rainford. I shall be back. [00:25:01] Speaker F: It was flight now, a desperate, hopeless flight that carried me on for hours. I don't know where I got the strength. I kept telling myself over and over again that I must keep my nerve. I was competing with a monster super huntsman. Dusk came, then darkness, and still I managed to press on. The ground grew softer under my moccasins. The vegetation grew ranked denser. Insects bit at me savagely. Suddenly, as I stepped forward, my foot sank into the ooze. I tried to wrench it back, but the muck sucked viciously at my foot like a giant leech. With a violent effort I tore my foot loose. I know where I was then. Death swamp and its quicksand. The softness of the earth had given me an idea. I stepped back from the quicksand, a dozen feet of so. And began to dig. When the pit was above my shoulders, I climbed out. And from some hard saplings. Cut stakes. And sharpened them to fine points. These stakes I planted in the bottom of the pit. With the points sticking up as fast as I could. I wove a rough carpet of weeds and branches. And with it covered the mouth of the. And wet with sweat and aching with tiredness. I crouched behind the stump of a lightning char tree. Oh, I knew Zarov was coming. I could hear the paddling sound of his feet on the saunter. Zarov was coming and coming fast. He was not feeling his way along foot by foot, crouching there, I could either see him nor see the pit. I lived a year and a minute frozen. Every muscle tensed. [00:26:42] Speaker G: Very good, Rainsford. Very good. You've done well. You're burmese tiger pips has claimed one of my finest towns again. You score, I think, Mister Rainsford. I'll see what you can do. Against my whole pack? I'm going back to get them now. Thank you for a most amusing evening. [00:27:23] Speaker F: At daybreak, lying near the swamp. I was awakened by a sound that made me know I had new things to learn about fear. It was a distant sound, faint and wavering. But I knew it. It was the baying of a pack of hounds. I could do one of two things. I could stay where I was and wait. That was suicide. I could flee. That was postponing the inevitable. I had put my very last hope into that tiger pit. For a moment, I stood there thinking. All at once, an idea that held a wild chance came to me. Tightening my belt, I headed away from the swamp. The baying of the hounds drew nearer. They would be on me any minute now. My mind worked frantically. I thought of a native trick I had learned in Uganda. I caught hold of a springy young sapling. And to it fastened my hunting knife with a blade. Pointing down the trail. With a bit of wild grapevine, I tied back the sapling. Then I ran for my life. Puddles raised their terrifying voices as they heard them. And felt the fresh scent. I knew then how an animal at bay feels. At last I had to stop to get my breath. The bang of the hounds stopped just as suddenly. And with it, my heart stopped too. They must have reached the knife. Excitedly, I shimmied up a tree and looked back. My pursuers had stopped, all right. But the hope that had been in my brain when I climbed. [00:28:31] Speaker A: Died. [00:28:32] Speaker F: For in the shallow valley. I saw that general Zarath was still on his feet, but Ivan was not. Apparently had come along to hold the hounds. The knife, driven by the recoil of the springing tree, had sprinted through his chest. I'd hardly tumble to the ground when the pack took up the cry again. Nerve, nerve, nerve, nerve, I panted as I dashed along. A blue gap showed between the trees, dead ahead. The hounds were almost on top of me. I forced myself on towards that gap. I reached it. It was the shore of the sea. Across a cove, I could see the gloomy gravestone of the castle 20ft below me. The sea rumbled and hissed. I hesitated. [00:29:06] Speaker E: I heard the hounds. [00:29:07] Speaker F: Then I leaped far out into the sea. Far. The sea was good to me. And I'm here in the general's bedroom, waiting for him. Three days are up and I've eluded him. But now I must go further. In a moment, we will meet, he and I, and he will be unarmed. Only one of us is going to live. You understand that? Now. [00:29:54] Speaker G: Quiet, Sushu. Shushu. You must be. Be patient, dear. You must forgive me. You're hungry, I know. Shusha prince. [00:30:12] Speaker C: But. [00:30:13] Speaker F: General. [00:30:16] Speaker G: Rainsman, how on earth did you get here? [00:30:20] Speaker F: Swam. I found it easier and quicker than walking through the jungle. [00:30:23] Speaker G: I congratulate. You've won the game. [00:30:30] Speaker F: Oh, no, general. I'm still a beast at bay here. Get ready, General Tsarov. [00:30:37] Speaker G: Swords. Yes. [00:30:38] Speaker F: Two of them. [00:30:40] Speaker G: I see. Oh, very good. Very good wrench. But one of us, then, is to furnish a repast for the hounds. The other will sleep in this. This very excellent bed. Excellent on that, Rinsford. [00:31:47] Speaker F: It was just as my late host said it would be, a very excellent bed. [00:32:08] Speaker E: And so closes the most dangerous game by Richard Connell. Starring Orson Welles. Tonight's tale of suspense. Mister Wells was General Zarov and Keenan Wynn. Rainsford, this is your narrator, the man in black, who conveys to you Columbia's invitation to spend this half hour in suspense. Next week, same time, when Orson Wells will again be our star in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's story, the Lost Special. The producer of suspense is William Speer, who tonight also directed the broadcast. And who was Bernard Herman, the conductor? Lucian Mariwick, who composed the original score. And private Jack Anson Fink, the radio author, collaborated on tonight's suspense. [00:33:06] Speaker G: This is CB's, the Columbia Broadcasting System. [00:33:19] Speaker C: That was the most dangerous game from suspense. Here on the mysterious old radio Listening society podcast. We are recording live at the Bryant Lake Bowl Theater in Minneapolis. And we are celebrating our 350th episode of this podcast. Thank you. Thank you all. For those of you listening who aren't from the Twin Cities area, the Bryant Lake Bowl Theater is a achieve national fame and recognition for an amazing space for not only theater and bowling, believe it or not, bowling in the name. [00:34:01] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:34:02] Speaker C: But some of the greatest food you'll have. It was on diners, drives and dine ins or some show. I didn't watch it, but I heard it was on a show. My mom told me. So. Yeah, that was interesting to hear that. You know, last time I heard that, I was forced to read it in high school. So. [00:34:22] Speaker B: Sorry. [00:34:24] Speaker C: Huh. [00:34:25] Speaker B: The applause sign just came up behind me. [00:34:30] Speaker A: Eric, read something. Applaud. [00:34:33] Speaker C: Oh, yeah, I know. Oh, we forgot to do this part. Once again, I'm Eric. [00:34:37] Speaker G: I'm Tim. [00:34:38] Speaker A: I'm Joshua. [00:34:39] Speaker B: And I'm Shannon. [00:34:40] Speaker C: So here's. I have so many questions, but my first question is, is this considered by radio? Old time radio geeks and aficionados, nerds, whatever. As a great episode, is this considered a classic? [00:34:58] Speaker A: You're taking quite the shortcut. Our podcast. [00:35:00] Speaker C: I gotta get out of here for. [00:35:02] Speaker A: Us to decide that. I've never had you cut to the chase so quickly. Are you. Is this our last episode? [00:35:09] Speaker C: 349 too many. [00:35:13] Speaker A: Let's google what other people thought for our podcast. [00:35:17] Speaker C: That's a great idea. My point being is, you know, like people will say, oh, the hitchhiker and everybody. There's kind of an agreement that that's a really good thing on the forbel board. Is this got that kind of following? I need to know before we get. [00:35:30] Speaker A: Into this, is that gonna affect your opinion? [00:35:33] Speaker C: Yeah, man. [00:35:34] Speaker D: I want to be cherished. If you say anything bad about it. No, I just want to be storm our homes. [00:35:39] Speaker C: I want to be on the right side of this. [00:35:41] Speaker A: I think this is generally considered the lesser adaptation of the most dangerous game. There was another adaptation done on Escape in 1947 with a different script that was a little truer to the short story. This one, I think, was highly influenced by the 1932 film. It shares a lot of the alterations that the film did. [00:36:06] Speaker C: Right. And that was going to be my next question. How much does this differ from the short story? [00:36:12] Speaker A: It's pretty close. It's mainly in the beginning and the ending. Yeah. [00:36:20] Speaker C: In the book it's not on an island and at the end there's a giant pizza party. But other than that, dead arms. [00:36:26] Speaker A: See, basically everything that happens in the short story does happen in this episode of old time radio. Yes. [00:36:34] Speaker C: So is it a good adaptation? Did they do well or did they miss? I'm not jumping to the end. I'm just wondering. [00:36:41] Speaker D: We just assumed Joshua read it and. [00:36:43] Speaker C: Yes, it's exactly right. [00:36:45] Speaker B: Well, how many people had to be in school? How many people had to read it in school because I did? Or was that just a few hands up? [00:36:54] Speaker D: But I kind of assume even you don't know, like, the most dangerous game that you got. Like, oh, it's the story with the guy in an island who's getting hunted. [00:37:02] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:37:03] Speaker A: That's my first question about this radio adaptation. Let's set aside the quality of the production for a second and just ask that question. When a story like this becomes so much part of the cultural awareness even if you have no idea where it originated, like, man hunts other Mandy, that's. [00:37:25] Speaker B: All we learned about it. It was like man versus nature, right? [00:37:30] Speaker A: Does that automatically kill a certain amount of suspense? It's already an uphill battle to a certain extent. [00:37:39] Speaker B: Well, it. Yes. And it also made me really fearful of short stories because they were all terrible. They were so scary. There was like someone got stoned and women just put rocks in their pockets and, like, walked into the next seat. English class was like, the short story is gonna be. [00:37:58] Speaker A: This was a darker time. And then it was like, hey, how about the metamorphosis to sort of just lighten things up a little bit? [00:38:06] Speaker C: Right. [00:38:07] Speaker B: But yes. If you know the premise right, then it's. [00:38:10] Speaker D: But it is the challenge of an adaptation of, like, the first tense scene over dinner of these civilized, like. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I got it. I know it's gonna happen. [00:38:19] Speaker A: They clearly wanted to create a vehicle for Orson Wellesley. And so they give a lot of space to this conversation, this dance around a topic that listeners now and listeners at the time know what the reveal is. [00:38:37] Speaker D: Go hunt. Gotta go hunt them. Go get him out of the jungle. Go hunt. [00:38:41] Speaker C: Get to the hunting castle. Unbelievable amount. 15 minutes of this is Orsone. We get it. We got the setup. What I'm getting at, though, in all sincerity, this story is based on the action, the suspense of how this guy survives the hunt. That's the most interesting and exciting part of this entire story yet to you. [00:39:09] Speaker A: To me, it's like the 20 minutes vaudeville act with Orson and Shooshu. That's where all the fun comes from. And that is the highlight of this to me. [00:39:21] Speaker C: So the guy, what's the sidekick's name that doesn't have ears? And he's Ivan. Ivan. That actor's stealing money. [00:39:28] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:39:29] Speaker C: He came in and went er. And. [00:39:31] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:39:32] Speaker C: Cha ching. [00:39:33] Speaker A: It sounds a lot like when you wake me up from a nap. Honestly. [00:39:39] Speaker D: He'S savage. [00:39:40] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:39:40] Speaker C: Also, the actor playing Zuzu, the hunting falcone. That actor's stealing money. [00:39:46] Speaker A: That's a good bird. [00:39:47] Speaker B: That was pretty good bird. [00:39:48] Speaker C: But that's an easy pay to. [00:39:49] Speaker A: I have no idea if that's what an actual falcon sounds like, but that seems like an exotic bird. [00:39:54] Speaker C: No, I actually, the National Falcon association is here. [00:39:58] Speaker B: No, there is actually no. [00:40:02] Speaker D: Falcons are very eloquent. They can speak very clearly. [00:40:09] Speaker A: But I think that General Zarov says that this is his retirement. Retired hunting birds. Perhaps what falcons sound like in the later stages of life. [00:40:21] Speaker B: Well, the falcon auditioned for the lead, but then they gave it to Larson Wells. He was like, fine, I'll just be the retired falcon. [00:40:31] Speaker C: And the actor's playing the dogs stealing money. [00:40:36] Speaker A: I'm gonna honestly say I think the animal sounds are a highlight of this episode compared to other old time radio shows where it is just literally someone going. [00:40:47] Speaker C: Mean, Paul, freeze. [00:40:48] Speaker B: Paul, freeze. That was good, though. [00:40:50] Speaker C: Paul, freeze. [00:40:51] Speaker A: Doing all the animes I thought were good. They did not. [00:40:53] Speaker C: I thought it was great. [00:40:54] Speaker A: I thought it was until they screamed. The hound that fell onto the trap sounded a little like McGruff. The crime dog fell into a tiger trap. Sounded very human, didn't he? [00:41:04] Speaker B: That was sad. [00:41:05] Speaker A: Ticker fired out of crime. [00:41:08] Speaker C: I'm telling you right now. The dog barking was that's recorded record sound effect. [00:41:14] Speaker B: That is not people. [00:41:16] Speaker C: But the bird and Ivan are humans doing that. But those. But the dog dying was human. [00:41:25] Speaker A: Yes. [00:41:25] Speaker C: Yeah. I don't know. Nothing beats escape for animal sounds. So it doesn't compare to that. The show, escape for the people. What did everybody take it to? I don't know anything. [00:41:37] Speaker D: I will also speak up in favor of the dinner scene, which I very much. [00:41:40] Speaker B: I like. The dinner scene. [00:41:42] Speaker D: The Zarov. Like, what's your story, man? [00:41:46] Speaker B: Yeah, like, what happened to you, right. [00:41:49] Speaker C: Where do you make your money? How did you. [00:41:51] Speaker B: Yeah, he bought an island. [00:41:53] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:41:55] Speaker A: Now I'm blurring the story and the scripts. I don't know the story. It mentions that he invested money. Here's an interesting thing about this adaptation, because it's 1943, they snip out any reference that he is russian. [00:42:08] Speaker C: Yeah, they. [00:42:09] Speaker A: Because it's World War Two. They're an ally. It's just like he's from somewhere else, but very americanized, very anglicized. [00:42:16] Speaker D: Yes. I still call myself a general, but I speak nothing about it. [00:42:19] Speaker B: Yes. And the men that he hunts, there was some definite post Pearl harbor slurs going on in that. [00:42:26] Speaker A: That is because in the story, the Chinese. [00:42:32] Speaker B: They just shifted the hate. It worked out really well. But it is interesting, given in the timeframe, though. [00:42:39] Speaker A: But it is Rainsford who pushes back against that and doesn't see these racial or class distinctions as anything that should allow you to hunt them. [00:42:48] Speaker B: Right, right. [00:42:48] Speaker A: He's super enlightened. He goes, but they're men. [00:42:56] Speaker B: He's like, I do love. It's a classic Orson Welles moment when he says something like murder. That's such a distasteful word or whatever. [00:43:05] Speaker C: Anytime Orson. Well, says murder the way he says murder. [00:43:10] Speaker A: And any show he's in, I honestly, all jokes aside, think Wells performance is. [00:43:17] Speaker B: I think it was really good. [00:43:18] Speaker A: He's very detached. He's certainly over the top. But the character is over the top. [00:43:23] Speaker B: Very over the top. [00:43:24] Speaker A: And compared to, like, Leslie Banks in the 1932 film. I mean, let's watch that now. Yeah. Ed Wood would be like, hey, tone it down, Leslie Banks. This is a bit much. I thought Wells performance was really fascinating. He also does something. Wells is the only one I hear do this in old time radio, where he ad libs a little in the script, he talks over the other actor. He fills those spatial in a way that is very familiar to contemporary listeners. But at the time must have driven the radio actors crazy. Cause not your turn. Keenan wins trying to deliver his line. And Wells is, like, making cooing sounds to shoo shoe. Right? He's like. [00:44:08] Speaker B: And I remember in the story, too, that when it's brought up at the dinner that, okay, I'm gonna hunt you now. It felt like there was no choice. But for some reason in the radio program, it was like he went, no, well, fine. I guess I being hunted. Like, I would just be like, kill me here. Like, I'm not. Do you know what I mean? [00:44:31] Speaker A: You got me. [00:44:32] Speaker B: You got me. I just find that. So it was interesting in the radio version. It really made me realize that he was like, well, I guess I have to do this. [00:44:39] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:44:39] Speaker D: And they didn't push him out, though, Ivan. But they also say, like, he's been with us for years. Definitely can't speak. He's practically falling over. So. [00:44:46] Speaker C: And he's deaf. How hard could it be? [00:44:48] Speaker A: Hide from the guy in the story was a torturer for the Tsar. So, like, he has a little more cred in the story. I'm gonna run around the jungle for a while before I die instead of being slowly tortured to death by Ivan. [00:45:04] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:45:05] Speaker C: All right. [00:45:05] Speaker B: I just would have said no. Absolutely not, sir. [00:45:11] Speaker D: I will take that boat and leave now. Thank you very much. [00:45:15] Speaker C: Good day. [00:45:18] Speaker A: You know the old saying that comedy is tragedy plus time, but I also think comedy is also horror plus time. Comedy is also suspense plus time. At some point, you become desensitized to the things that maybe had a little more life when people first read the story or heard this radio show. Because I think one concern that this story brings up is that idea of what war might do to you. Does it degrade your morality? Because we have Zarov, who has escaped the russian revolution. It's not said in the story, but that's implied. And in the story, he basically questions how Rainsford could have this sort of quaint idea of the value of human life after what he saw in the war. He just says it explicitly. This is post World War one. [00:46:11] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:46:11] Speaker B: You have no idea. [00:46:12] Speaker A: Yeah. I think when kids are made to read it today, they're like, what are these weird guys fighting on the island for? Right. And that stuff is no longer in the front of our mind as we experience it. [00:46:22] Speaker B: Yeah, that's such a good point. [00:46:24] Speaker A: And we've seen every tv show do a version of this. It's MacGyver being hunted on an island. [00:46:31] Speaker B: I'm sure there's a Simpsons. Is there a Simpsons there? [00:46:33] Speaker A: Simpsons? There's the Brady Bunch episode. [00:46:37] Speaker B: Right? [00:46:38] Speaker C: But he finds the idol. [00:46:40] Speaker A: Dallas is like, screw this. I'm hunting Brady's. [00:46:45] Speaker C: There's a MacGyver version. [00:46:47] Speaker A: I don't know. I would just assume this is Prime MacGyver territory. I'm just hypothesizing. [00:46:53] Speaker B: What was the name of the swamp again? [00:46:55] Speaker C: Oh, death Swamp. [00:46:56] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:46:57] Speaker C: Which means this is how that. See that swamp? Yeah. People who died there. What do you wanna call it? Death swamp. [00:47:07] Speaker B: And then he's like, avoid the death swamp. [00:47:09] Speaker C: Death swamp. We call it Death Swamp. [00:47:11] Speaker D: Maple Glen. [00:47:16] Speaker B: This doesn't seem so bad. But that's that prince's bride joke, right, about the. Doesn't matter. But it's the. It just made me laugh because it was like. We call it the death swamp. [00:47:28] Speaker C: It's also a speed metal band. [00:47:30] Speaker B: What is Death Swamp? [00:47:32] Speaker D: What else? I like to stay away from Death Swamp. Bring a coat. Stay warm. [00:47:35] Speaker B: Yeah, right. [00:47:36] Speaker A: Get a head start. I'm taking a siesta with shu shu. [00:47:40] Speaker C: The shu shu. Not Zhuzhu. [00:47:43] Speaker A: I heard shu shu. [00:47:44] Speaker B: Shu shu. It's not. [00:47:45] Speaker A: Shushu's funny. So I go with shush. [00:47:47] Speaker C: Cause in my head, it was a little kid from wonderful life. [00:47:50] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:47:51] Speaker C: Which made it a lot more interesting. [00:47:54] Speaker A: I'm wondering if Marlon Brando heard this episode before playing Doctor Moreau in that 1996 travesty of the doctor. [00:48:03] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:48:04] Speaker A: I mean, so I just went down a really. [00:48:06] Speaker D: I know conversation I could have about something that is not the story. [00:48:10] Speaker A: Yes, but juju has a little mini me quality to the bird. [00:48:15] Speaker C: Yep. So you guys, that whole setup of him talking for 15 minutes, you. You were okay with that. You think that creates suspense? Tension, right. [00:48:28] Speaker D: It's also the line between civilized people talking over wine and cigars. And now we're gonna kill each other in the jungle. [00:48:35] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:48:35] Speaker C: Look, in the Bourne movies, like, we know what's going on. And now he's running. Right. Like we're gonna kill Jason Bourne. Good. Go get him. And then that's 3 hours of the. [00:48:42] Speaker B: Week nobody says good. [00:48:44] Speaker C: Yeah. That's a direct quote from that show. [00:48:47] Speaker A: No, I think we're maybe making two different distinctions here of what is. [00:48:53] Speaker B: That's a gentle we. [00:48:54] Speaker A: Yeah. By we, I mean me and you, Eriche. I think that the long, drawn out scene with Wells as Zarath is better done than the action part of it. I think you're saying. I would have just liked more action. I think the action as given is nowhere near as interesting as the scene. [00:49:18] Speaker B: I agree. [00:49:19] Speaker A: At dinner over wine and discussing ordering. [00:49:23] Speaker C: Of one another, the end fight scene, there's two ways to look at that, and I find it brilliant. There's no narration. No, there's no real understanding what's going on. And yet it's all here. [00:49:35] Speaker A: And they're fighting over a bed, and. [00:49:36] Speaker C: Then he goes out a window. Out a window. Falls to his death. Nobody tells us that. I think that's an amazing piece of radio drama production, the way that's done. [00:49:46] Speaker B: And how quick it goes, too. It's not this prolonged, right? Yeah. [00:49:50] Speaker C: And yes, I would like more of that since we're here. Right. With people. How many people like that? Six minutes of talking or whatever it was. Clap. How many people thought it was too much? Did you see who clapped? They all get a drink. I'm just kidding. I only have one drink ticket. [00:50:20] Speaker A: Here's where I think they lose a lot of tension. And that is when Rainsford jumps into the ocean. Beat. The ocean was good to me. And now I'm in his bedroom. [00:50:34] Speaker B: The ocean was good to me. I loved that. Yeah. [00:50:37] Speaker A: And so the tension kind of immediately evaporates. We know he's waiting there and that there's going to be a fight. He already has the upper hand. I think if Rainsford had jumped into the ocean. And then we cut to Zaroff's perspective walking into his bedroom, you know, getting on his PJ's, talking to shoo shoe, and then he jumps out of the curtains, or he's already in bed. There's a lot of weird subtext at the end here. [00:51:07] Speaker C: What are you imagining? [00:51:10] Speaker A: It's a weird moment in the short story as well as in here. The prize is my bed. [00:51:16] Speaker B: My bed. [00:51:17] Speaker C: Here's my assumption on that, and I could be wrong. [00:51:20] Speaker B: That's what I'd write my english paper on in my. [00:51:23] Speaker A: I didn't, and that's why I didn't do as well as you. [00:51:26] Speaker C: I always assumed that end is he takes over. [00:51:32] Speaker A: Oh. [00:51:32] Speaker B: And he becomes. [00:51:33] Speaker C: He becomes him, and he starts doing it. He's a former hunter, and then he gets the comfort and all the luxury and all that. And he. Him saying this is very comfortable bed is indicating, I like this, and I like this. [00:51:46] Speaker B: But he doesn't kill people. [00:51:48] Speaker C: Yes, that's my assumption. Then he goes, and what are you thinking in his pajamas? [00:51:54] Speaker A: I think that's a fair reading of the ambiguity in that. He first kills a hound, then he kills Ivan, and he just kind of works his way up the food chain, and he's technically escaped. Right. Zaref thinks he's dead. He does not need to come back and kill him in his own bedroom. [00:52:16] Speaker D: Although support my theory, he's theoretically saving lives of people in the future who would be just to play non devil's adventure. [00:52:24] Speaker B: Maybe opens, you know, a theme park with dinosaurs. [00:52:32] Speaker D: The most dangerous small world. [00:52:37] Speaker C: Then that cruise, that three hour cruise got trapped. [00:52:40] Speaker D: And it also struck me just how quickly those dogs ready to eat Zarov? [00:52:46] Speaker B: Yeah. They're not taken good care of. No, they're mean dogs. [00:52:51] Speaker C: That's another thing. You know my rule. Any movie, story, whatever. You kill a dog, I'm out. Don't kill the dogs. Don't kill the dog. Marley and me, you guys should all be. No, that's a terrible movie. Don't kill the dogs. [00:53:05] Speaker A: In all fairness, Rainsford did not intend to kill the house. [00:53:09] Speaker C: I don't care. The guy wrote the story, and in the story, he said, now he's gonna accidentally kill a dog. You're a bad person. [00:53:17] Speaker A: He's a big game hunter. He kills animals for fun, though, so that's. [00:53:22] Speaker B: I don't care. [00:53:22] Speaker C: The author of this made a choice to kill a dog. In the story, you're out. [00:53:27] Speaker D: That dog was a Nazi. [00:53:36] Speaker C: Now I get it. [00:53:41] Speaker A: That's why you scream like that. [00:53:45] Speaker C: That's why that dog smokes like this. [00:53:48] Speaker B: Theme to Hogan's heroes started poof. [00:53:55] Speaker C: Hey, by the way, the end of this, they mentioned the next show by Doyle. We did that, right? [00:54:02] Speaker D: No, we did the inferior version again that everyone afterwards said, like, do you know the Orson Wellesley version? Like, yes. We didn't do that one. [00:54:13] Speaker C: Yeah. Because I kind of liked the lost special that we did. Right. [00:54:16] Speaker D: Thank you. [00:54:17] Speaker C: Yeah, I liked it. [00:54:18] Speaker A: It would be much better with Orson Welles, Tim. [00:54:20] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:54:21] Speaker A: Yeah. And then the next one in the series is Philomel Cottage, the adaptation of. [00:54:25] Speaker C: The, which we've done on stage. [00:54:27] Speaker A: We've performed it, but we've never featured on the podcast, so we certainly should. [00:54:31] Speaker D: Is there a better version? [00:54:32] Speaker A: No, it's just the one. And then another episode called Lazarus walking, which might be like Lazarus physical therapy after being raised from the dead. I don't know what it's about. [00:54:45] Speaker D: Lazarus, come forth now. Go back. [00:54:47] Speaker G: Come forth. Come forth. [00:54:49] Speaker A: All right, that'll be $5,000. [00:54:56] Speaker C: Oh, preach. I just got a bill for something that I don't know what. I thank you for the tennis ball. You're trained. Okay. Yeah. That's the $1,000 right there. Sure. [00:55:12] Speaker A: Does anyone have any last thoughts on this before we go to our final vote? [00:55:15] Speaker C: I want to see the last. It seems to me there are other episodes we could have done for 350. That sounded better. Wow. Oh, I'm sorry. [00:55:22] Speaker A: Oh, Eric should have left that last note. [00:55:25] Speaker C: I'll vote. I'll start the voting. Look, I think Orson rolls is great, and he's amazing in this. [00:55:31] Speaker B: So did he? [00:55:32] Speaker C: Yup. That is such a fact. And I like the production value, sound effects. The music's really good, really matches it. I think it's flows really well. All of that. My only caveat with this is, and I think it sends a test of time in that what you said earlier is true, that we know the story so well, or things like it, that we're just waiting for it to happen, but I think that it still works as a story. So that didn't bother me at all. What bothers me is I would have liked, and this is my compromise, four more minutes taken off of the conversation. Just four minutes. You can, instead of 15, have some wine. [00:56:16] Speaker B: I'm gonna kill you. [00:56:18] Speaker C: Instead of 15 minutes, how about eleven? [00:56:21] Speaker D: Support you on that. Like, instead of, here's five animals we've hunted, maybe just three animals we've hunted. [00:56:26] Speaker C: There's all sorts of. How about this? We don't need to know that much about the ship going down at the beginning. Like, we can sum that up quicker. Do you know what I'm saying? [00:56:37] Speaker A: That was pretty quick, Eric. It was like, hey, I'm on a ship. It blew up. Oh, I'm on an island. It was like that fast. [00:56:43] Speaker C: Want to see me right there? Quicker. Where am I? Last I remember, the ship was sinking. [00:56:48] Speaker B: Looney tunes. [00:56:49] Speaker G: Boom. [00:56:51] Speaker B: And it's just Looney tunes for sure. Then it's. [00:56:55] Speaker C: I think it dragged a little at the beginning. [00:56:57] Speaker A: Oh, you don't remember the original story? Right. You know, the ship does not blow up. He drops his pipe in the water. [00:57:03] Speaker B: And falls overboard and falls over. Yeah. [00:57:10] Speaker C: He so deserves to be hunted. [00:57:15] Speaker B: Smoking kills. It's true. Leave the pipe. Just leave it. [00:57:23] Speaker F: Wow. [00:57:25] Speaker A: It's weird because he called it death pipe. [00:57:34] Speaker C: It definitely stands the test of time. It's not one of my all time favorites. And I'm not even gonna go with classic. I'm gonna say it's pretty good. And it is literally, because it drags too much at the beginning for me. [00:57:48] Speaker D: I think this is a really good adaptation of a story that is hard to adapt, to really carry the same punch it originally had. And all the context that I'll say we spoke about. Even though, I mean, Joshua, I love the angel parts of it. Both the cat and mouse dinner and the cat and mouse hunting part, I guess. [00:58:10] Speaker A: Keep going. You're doing great. [00:58:11] Speaker C: Thanks. And the nazi dog. [00:58:17] Speaker D: That subtext was hard to find, but I sussed it out. I would not call it a classic because I think it's a tough adaptation to do, really, in a sort of. This is a monumental. Has the same impact as the story kind of story anymore. They did a good execution of the story and represented it well. And I totally agree that Orson Welles delivered a high quality, bombastic performance for a bombastic role. [00:58:48] Speaker C: Yeah. It was pretty much him playing him. [00:58:51] Speaker A: No, I think that. [00:58:52] Speaker D: Comfortable? Yeah. [00:58:53] Speaker A: Yeah. It was great about it is that it was Orson Welles playing General Sarov, playing Orson Welles, playing General Zara. It was like russian dolls. It was. It was great. But I think people are a little hard on him. I think this is a really strong performance from him. But I think the script is not very good. It's clunky. I agree with you. The dinner scene could retain all of its attention. I know. Yeah. We were even recording this. So you can just rewind and hear me say, I agree with you, Eric. I agree with you, Eric, over and over again. It could be slightly shorter. [00:59:27] Speaker C: The Vikings won, and now this. Best day ever. [00:59:34] Speaker A: Yeah. So I don't think Keenan win. We didn't talk about. That is very strong. Kind of gives a kind of radio announcer performance. It's over enunciated, and I don't really believe he's ever in any kind of threat whatsoever. So I think it stands the test of time in so much as we are still ripping off this story today. Definitely not a classic, other than a really well chosen role for a week of Orson Welles radio appearances on suspense. [01:00:05] Speaker B: Yes. I love Orson Welles so much. I love that there was a person doing a falcon voice. I love. I did not like what's his face, the New York guy that fell out of the boat. I thought he sounded like he was just maneuvering some tough traffic that day. Do you know what I mean? I did this and then I did that. I didn't feel his terror, you know, but, yeah, I think it's. I love Orson welles. I love his voice. [01:00:34] Speaker A: Imagine this with William Conrad. [01:00:35] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, to be that scared. I know. Yes. So agree. Absolutely, 100%. But I thought it was fun, and I loved that dinner scene because I could just see everything going on and how weird that was. Just the whole idea of him. Yeah. Just dropping that in conversation and, yeah, it was pretty great. [01:00:58] Speaker C: Well, let's find out how many of you, by applause, didn't like it at all? [01:01:05] Speaker D: Oh, it's okay. [01:01:08] Speaker B: That was one solitary clap. [01:01:11] Speaker C: I hated it so much, I don't even want to clap. How many of you thought it wasn't a classic, but it stands the test of time? How many of you think it's a classic? [01:01:30] Speaker B: Oh, excellent. Yeah. [01:01:32] Speaker C: Nice. How many of you think the dog was a Nazi? Totally makes sense. All right, Tim, tell him stuff. [01:01:46] Speaker D: Hey, thanks for coming to the show. Thanks for listening to the episode. Please go visit ghoulishdelights.com, comma. That is the home of this podcast. You'll find other episodes there. All these episodes we have. You can vote in polls, leave comments, let us know what you thought about them. And you can also find links to our store if you want to buy any swag. And to our Patreon page. [01:02:06] Speaker A: Yes. Go to patreon.com themorals and become a patron. Do we have any patrons here tonight? [01:02:12] Speaker B: Yay. [01:02:12] Speaker A: Yeah. [01:02:13] Speaker D: Thanks for coming. [01:02:14] Speaker A: They're awesome people, and you should be like them. Support this podcast. It supports the podcast. It supports our live performances. We thank you very much. We're glad to see. See you here tonight. And please become a patron. [01:02:25] Speaker C: There's a lot of perks to becoming a patron. You can find out on our Patreon. [01:02:28] Speaker A: Yeah, there's bonus podcasts. There's Zoom, happy hours, where we surprise get together on Zoom and talk about old time radio. I do a mysterious old book club if you would like to join me for that. Eric is weirdly not a part of that. [01:02:44] Speaker C: The mysterious old radio listening society is also a theater company. We do live on stage recreations of classic old time radio shows and a lot of our own original work. We have been performing monthly for eight years somewhere. Yeah. Thank you. Aw, yeah. And so if you want to see us do radio drama and old time radio on stage, the four of us doing our own sound effects, music, everything, just go to ghoulishdelights.com and you find out where we're performing and what we're performing and how to get tickets. And if you're a patreon, we record it, audio and or video. And that's part of being a patron, so you get that as well. So if you're not in the Twin Cities area or you're not available that night, but, yeah, come see us performing live. What's coming up next? [01:03:33] Speaker A: Next is part two of our live celebration of our 350th episode. We're going to be doing a q and a. We are going to be answering listener questions and our audience questions. So until then, thank you, everybody. Thank you so much for coming out.