Episode 394: Keeper of the Tomb

[00:00:16] Speaker A: The mysterious old radio listening society podcast. 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. [00:00:36] Speaker B: I'm Tim. [00:00:36] Speaker C: And I'm Joshua. [00:00:37] Speaker B: We love mysterious old time radio stories, but do they stand the test of time? That's what we're here to find out. [00:00:43] Speaker A: This week I brought us an episode of the South African series High Adventure entitled the Keeper of the Tomb. [00:00:50] Speaker B: The version of High Adventure produced in South Africa is often mentioned together with the series of the same name that was originally broadcast on the Mutual Network in 1947. It moved to NBC, got canceled in 1950, and then went back to Mutual from 1953 to 1954. But none of that really matters because it's not really clear if the two series have anything in common beyond the name. [00:01:11] Speaker C: The South African version was directed by Henry Diffenthal. Only eight episodes still exist, and while many sources claim the series ran from 1972 to 1985, most of the extant episodes are supposedly from 1969. So maybe that's not right. [00:01:28] Speaker A: What we're trying to say is we don't know much, and what we do know is probably wrong. Nevertheless, let's listen to the Keeper of the Tomb from High adventure, first broadcast July 26, 1969. [00:01:41] 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 to the music and listen to the voices. [00:02:32] Speaker D: High adventure. Tonight's story by Ron Evans is entitled. [00:02:48] Speaker E: Keeper of the Tomb. For several years I've been waiting to tell you this very strange and frightening story. Even now I'm wondering whether I'm doing the right thing by making some of the facts public. But here goes. Some years ago, I was contacted by an old friend, Julie Richards, whom I knew from university days when we studied archaeology and anthropology together. She begged me to come out to South Africa, where she was on vacation as she'd found something that would intrigue me. My name is Mark Hyland, and in company with my assistant, Tom Raglan, we flew from London to Johannesburg. Julie met us there in a hotel, where she unwrapped a stone fragment from a cocoon of tissue paper. [00:04:05] Speaker F: Take a look at that, Mark. What do you make of it? [00:04:08] Speaker E: You're not having us on, are you? [00:04:09] Speaker F: No, it's no joke. I found that fragment only last week on a large farm in the Northern Cape Province. [00:04:15] Speaker D: Oh, let me see. It's definitely of Egyptian origin. Two complete hieroglyphs. [00:04:21] Speaker F: Yeah, but what's it doing here? That's the $64,000 question. [00:04:25] Speaker E: Do you know what it's a part of, Julie? [00:04:27] Speaker F: Well, Mayan and Aztec archaeology is my specialty, but. Well, I'd say it's part of a free. [00:04:33] Speaker E: You're wrong. This was once part of a tomb marker. [00:04:37] Speaker F: A tomb marker? [00:04:39] Speaker E: But it couldn't be. [00:04:40] Speaker D: I agree with Mark. The hieroglyphs form a name. There's a slight difference from the Egyptian hieroglyphs we know, but it is decipherable. Where exactly was it found? [00:04:49] Speaker F: On a farm owned by a man called Dirk Fender. Here, I'll show you on the map. Now, it's just there in the northern part of the Cape Province. It's in a valley surrounded by three hills with a small river running through it. [00:05:01] Speaker E: You know what this means, don't you? [00:05:03] Speaker F: Tell me. That's why I sent for you. [00:05:05] Speaker E: Somewhere in the vicinity of where you found this stone fragment is a tomb of Egyptian origin. [00:05:10] Speaker F: But what'd it be doing here? [00:05:12] Speaker E: That's what we're going to find out. A discovery like this is the dream of every archaeologist. A find which could sensationally revise our present knowledge of ancient history. Two days later, we arrived at Dirk Fenter's farm and carefully went over the ground where Julie had found the stone. Stone? There was nothing. For three days we stayed at the farm as Dirk's guests each day combing the valley in vain. At dinner on the third evening, we'd almost given up hope. [00:05:55] Speaker D: But why go back to Cape Town tomorrow? You're welcome to stay as long as you like. Well, as a matter of fact, I appreciate the company. That's very kind of you, Doug. I'd like to, but I think we're. [00:06:06] Speaker E: On a wild goose chase. [00:06:08] Speaker F: No, no, I disagree. Mark, how did that stone come to be lying in the valley? As you say, it's only a fragment. So the rest, it must be out there somewhere. [00:06:18] Speaker D: Oh, buried more than likely. Again, it could have been planted there by some joker. Well, it's happened often in the past, you know. Some more Hawaiian, Julie? [00:06:25] Speaker F: Oh, yes, please. [00:06:26] Speaker D: Near where the marker is, there's usually a very deep, narrow shaft. But that's more than likely a collapsed in by now. If it exists, you know, I wonder. [00:06:36] Speaker F: What do you wonder, Dirk? [00:06:37] Speaker E: There is such a hole. [00:06:38] Speaker D: It goes through the rock on the side of the hill, nears the stream. [00:06:41] Speaker E: There is? [00:06:42] Speaker D: Well, how big is it? [00:06:43] Speaker E: Oh, it's very narrow. [00:06:46] Speaker D: Say about 2 foot in diameter. It's deep Though almost bottomless. [00:06:50] Speaker F: Has anybody been down it? [00:06:52] Speaker E: Not likely. [00:06:54] Speaker D: You know, one of my sheep fell down once, so I've had it covered by a bold ever since. That could be what we're looking for. [00:07:01] Speaker F: How deep is it, I wonder? [00:07:03] Speaker D: Well, I threw some stones down before I covered it and I didn't hear them hit bottom. I'm going down there. [00:07:08] Speaker F: Hey, not without me. [00:07:08] Speaker E: Or me. [00:07:09] Speaker D: If that is the tomb entrance. I don't want to miss any of the glory. [00:07:14] Speaker E: We arrived in the valley very early in the morning. Dirk came with us, saying he would stay on the surface in case anything went wrong. He also brought two walkie talkies so we could keep in contact with him. As we prepared for our descent, several of the farm workers joined us to assist with the ropes. I was the first to go down. Long coils of rope had been joined together to form one continuous length which it was hoped would reach the bottom. I went down slowly, my legs steadying me. Still, I descended lower and lower until I felt sure there must be no more rope left. On the verge of abandoning hope, the sides of the shaft suddenly widened and I was for a minute dangling freely until my feet touched the bottom. I was trembling and breathless with excitement when I switched on my battery operated fluorescent lantern. Hello up there. [00:08:12] Speaker D: Can you hear me? [00:08:13] Speaker E: Hello there. Mark. [00:08:14] Speaker D: What's down there? What we've been looking for. [00:08:17] Speaker E: It's a stone chamber. Empty, apart from a lot of old animal bones. Definitely man made. [00:08:23] Speaker D: And yes, there are a number of hieroglyphic inscriptions on the walls. [00:08:27] Speaker E: They're bringing up the rope now, so I'll be joining you soon. [00:08:29] Speaker D: Put Julie on. [00:08:30] Speaker E: Tom. [00:08:31] Speaker F: I heard what you said. So we found the tumor. [00:08:34] Speaker D: I wouldn't go that far. [00:08:35] Speaker E: Julie. [00:08:36] Speaker D: There are no doors to be seen down here. [00:08:38] Speaker E: It's just an empty chamber. [00:08:39] Speaker D: But come on down and take a look for yourself. [00:08:42] Speaker F: Just you try and start. Weeds. Tom's just being lowered down now. [00:08:53] Speaker E: Within the hour, all three of us were examining the chamber walls. [00:08:58] Speaker D: I can read some of it, but there's a lot of difference in them compared to the Egyptian forms. Yes, it's very odd. [00:09:06] Speaker F: This is going to surprise you, Tom. You see that symbol there? What would you say if I told you it was mayhem? [00:09:13] Speaker D: I say you were wrong. Similar, perhaps. [00:09:15] Speaker F: It's mayhem. Definitely. I. I've seen that symbol. Oh, and that one too many times. On the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. [00:09:22] Speaker E: It's strange. I wonder if there could be an historical connection. Theories have been put forward that the Central and South American civilization stemmed originally from the ancient Egyptians. [00:09:34] Speaker F: But it was assumed they sailed in region boats from the Mediterranean. [00:09:37] Speaker D: What if they'd immigrated through Central Africa to here, then across to the southwest, and from there to South America in both? Well, it's a feasible theory, Mark. The current and winds would automatically carry them there. [00:09:47] Speaker F: Incredible. But it could be so, I admit. And this is pretty good evidence to support the theory. [00:09:53] Speaker E: Well, we've established one thing. This is or was a tomb. But why it's empty is a mystery. [00:10:01] Speaker D: Well, according to this, it belonged to Princess Nerini, a first daughter of Lord Tagash. We'll come down here tomorrow with a. [00:10:07] Speaker E: Camera and photograph the hieroglyphics. [00:10:09] Speaker D: Then we can translate them at leisure. [00:10:11] Speaker G: Oh. [00:10:12] Speaker E: What was that blast? Part of the rope has come away. Only a few yards, though. Thank heaven. [00:10:18] Speaker D: I'll call up Dirk and tell him. [00:10:19] Speaker E: To lower it some more. [00:10:21] Speaker D: Hello, Dirk? Can you hear me? [00:10:25] Speaker E: Dirk? Are you there? [00:10:27] Speaker D: Hey, take a look at the end of this rope. It's been burned away. [00:10:30] Speaker F: It can't be. [00:10:31] Speaker D: Dirk, will you come in, please? [00:10:34] Speaker E: The radio's dead. Oh, no. [00:10:36] Speaker D: It's as though the batteries are finished. Well, here, let me take a look. Oh, you're right. It's better than the dodo ever was. [00:10:44] Speaker F: But that means we're trapped down here. [00:10:46] Speaker E: I'm afraid so. But when Dirk gets worried, he'll be. [00:10:49] Speaker D: Sure to send somebody down. [00:10:52] Speaker E: I just have to wait. [00:10:53] Speaker D: I'll carry on studying these hieroglyphics. [00:10:55] Speaker E: The mark. [00:10:56] Speaker F: What if Dirk doesn't send down help? [00:10:58] Speaker E: Don't worry about it, Julie. He's sure to. The hours dragged by and the air in the chamber became foul. The fluorescent lamp began to dim. My watch read seven in the evening. We took turns in shouting up the shaft, but got no reply. We were literally entombed. [00:11:22] Speaker D: I'm thinking that there must be another way out of this chamber. Or at least a hidden annex to it. [00:11:27] Speaker F: Tom's right. We must look before the lamp fades out altogether. [00:11:30] Speaker E: I've just thought of something. [00:11:32] Speaker D: Why didn't we. [00:11:35] Speaker E: What's that noise? Do you hear it? [00:11:38] Speaker D: It sounds like wind, but there is none. [00:11:41] Speaker G: Leave me. Leave me. [00:11:46] Speaker F: I see. [00:11:47] Speaker E: No, it can't be. [00:11:48] Speaker F: What I tell you too well. [00:11:49] Speaker D: Izuni, let's stand here. [00:11:51] Speaker G: Leave my tomb. Leave it? [00:11:56] Speaker E: That mark. [00:11:57] Speaker D: It is a void and trick of the wind. [00:12:00] Speaker F: What wind? I can't feel any. [00:12:02] Speaker D: Oh, relax. Their imagination's running right from the effect of being cooped up here. [00:12:07] Speaker F: Nonsense, Tom. I heard it clearly and so did you. Now, please, just listen, all right? [00:12:13] Speaker E: It'll make you happy. [00:12:14] Speaker G: Leave my Tomb in peace. [00:12:19] Speaker E: Go. [00:12:22] Speaker C: Go. [00:12:23] Speaker F: Can you doubt that? [00:12:24] Speaker E: No, I can't. [00:12:26] Speaker F: It's scary, but keep calm. What we're witnessing is a psychic phenomenon. Oh, I. I know you're probably cynical about it, but I've had some experience of seances back in the States. You can see my parents were spiritualist. [00:12:40] Speaker E: Hocus pocus then. [00:12:41] Speaker F: Do you doubt that was the voice we heard? Well, no, but laugh if you want to, but there's a spirit trying to make contact with us, telling us to leave this tomb. [00:12:52] Speaker E: We'll ask it how. I'll be only too glad to obey. [00:12:56] Speaker F: At the moment if you'll be quiet. That's precisely what I intend to do. Now, please listen and don't laugh. [00:13:04] Speaker G: Hello. [00:13:06] Speaker F: Are you trying to tell us something? [00:13:12] Speaker G: Go away from this place quietly. [00:13:17] Speaker E: Quiet. [00:13:19] Speaker F: We. We'd like to go, but we're trapped. [00:13:24] Speaker G: It was I who trapped you. [00:13:27] Speaker F: Why are we doing you harm? [00:13:31] Speaker E: Yes. [00:13:32] Speaker G: I want peace. You are disturbing me. [00:13:37] Speaker F: Why did you trap me? [00:13:39] Speaker G: I want to speak to you. The presence of your bodies in this chamber has developed enough power for me to speak. [00:13:52] Speaker F: What do you want to tell us? [00:13:55] Speaker G: I want to warn you not to disturb my tomb. You must go away. Never return. [00:14:07] Speaker F: Are you Princess Nerini? [00:14:11] Speaker G: Yes. This is my resting place. Here are my treasures. My earth. [00:14:23] Speaker E: But there's. [00:14:24] Speaker D: There's nothing here. [00:14:26] Speaker F: Let me do the talking. [00:14:28] Speaker G: My treasures are here. If I am to let you go, you will see them. [00:14:37] Speaker F: You will show us how to leave Nerini. [00:14:40] Speaker G: Only if you swear on your lives not to reveal what you have found and see. [00:14:49] Speaker F: On our life? [00:14:51] Speaker G: It is written that my tomb will remain undiscovered for many more centuries to come. What is here is not for your knowledge. [00:15:04] Speaker D: It's an archaeologist's dream. [00:15:07] Speaker G: Do you swear? [00:15:10] Speaker F: I do. On my life and honor. [00:15:15] Speaker E: Yes, I swear too. Why are you Tom? [00:15:19] Speaker G: All must swear. Without your oath, I cannot reveal the way out. [00:15:26] Speaker E: All right, I swear. [00:15:30] Speaker G: Turn out your light and you will. [00:15:33] Speaker F: See me. [00:15:35] Speaker G: Where I point. You will pull at the time. Stone blocks. [00:15:42] Speaker F: Thank you, Princess Nerini. [00:15:45] Speaker G: Rest in peace. [00:15:50] Speaker D: I don't believe it. [00:15:53] Speaker E: Oh, she's beautiful. We blinked in amazement. The princess stood in a corner, bathed in a shimmering phosphorescent light. Her hand seemed to rest on the chamber wall. It was as Julie had exclaimed. Princess Nerini was beautiful. And certainly no figment of my imagination. As we stared, rooted to the spot, the apparition dulled and began to fade. Her voice was heard for the last time. [00:17:02] Speaker G: You will enter my burial chamber through here. From there, you will go down a Tunnel to where there is water. Swim under and you will reach sunlight. Goodbye, and be sure to keep your vow. [00:17:28] Speaker E: She's gone. Oh, what an experience. [00:17:32] Speaker D: You can say that again. [00:17:34] Speaker E: I've heard of spiritual materialization, and now I believe. Well, that's a fact. [00:17:38] Speaker D: Anyway. Let's get at those blocks and see if all this is true. There's a lot of dust and cobwebs. Yes, there is a bit of givulous block. See where it projects, Tom. Pull outwards. That's right. [00:17:54] Speaker F: I want to. [00:17:56] Speaker D: Careful. Watch your feet. [00:18:01] Speaker F: Oh, look, it's gone right through. [00:18:03] Speaker D: Stand back. I'll pull this bottom block away. [00:18:06] Speaker C: Right. [00:18:08] Speaker D: Oh, great. There's plenty of room for it to get through. Give me the lung, Julie. I'll go first. [00:18:14] Speaker F: Hey, it's a big chamber. [00:18:16] Speaker E: And. [00:18:16] Speaker D: Oh, gee, you. You've got to see this lot in here. You go next to me. [00:18:20] Speaker F: Thanks. [00:18:22] Speaker D: It's incredible. [00:18:25] Speaker F: Oh, this makes Tutankham's burial chamber look like a downtown pawn shop. [00:18:30] Speaker E: So these are Princess Narini's earthly goods. [00:18:33] Speaker D: There's enough to restock the British Museum twice over. And most of it. [00:18:48] Speaker E: Princess Marini's treasures were as incredible as her apparition. Though our lamp was dimming, the glitter of the gold artifacts made so many centuries ago were affected back in clear detail. [00:19:00] Speaker D: You see this? It's eighth density, at least eighth. [00:19:04] Speaker F: Let me see. Now that. [00:19:05] Speaker E: Approximately 4,500 years ago. Let me see a. Tom. Yes, I agree. 8th dynasty. Egyptian. What a find. [00:19:14] Speaker F: Yeah, but one which we must forget about. [00:19:17] Speaker D: Oh, look at it. [00:19:18] Speaker E: It. [00:19:18] Speaker D: It's beyond belief. [00:19:19] Speaker E: It. [00:19:20] Speaker D: Understanding. There's the doorway to the passage on the other side of the chamber. [00:19:23] Speaker E: Let's go. [00:19:23] Speaker D: Oh, please, Mark. Let's examine the contents of this chamber. There's no time, Tom. The lamp is fading too quickly. Come on. Oh, very well. [00:19:39] Speaker C: Hear that? [00:19:40] Speaker F: She was right. There's water down there. [00:19:42] Speaker D: I can't hear much of a swim. [00:19:43] Speaker E: You will swim, all right, if it's the only way of saving your skin. We entered another chamber, the furthest part of which was formed by a natural cavern. Water flowed gently through from the darkness on our right. [00:20:00] Speaker D: Which way would we have to swim? [00:20:02] Speaker E: Downstream. This is part of the river that flows through the valley. [00:20:05] Speaker F: Dark and murky, it gives me the creep. [00:20:07] Speaker D: Wish there was some other way. [00:20:08] Speaker E: There isn't. [00:20:09] Speaker D: We better strip down to our underclothes. [00:20:10] Speaker E: And not waste time. Come on. [00:20:11] Speaker F: Now you've mentioned time. What time is it? [00:20:15] Speaker E: Just after midnight. [00:20:16] Speaker F: We've been down here almost 18 hours. [00:20:19] Speaker D: Seems more like 80. [00:20:21] Speaker E: We'll have to leave the lamp here and our clothes. [00:20:24] Speaker F: That'll confuse the archaeologists if they ever rediscover this tomb a few centuries from now. [00:20:29] Speaker E: Yeah, that's a fact. [00:20:30] Speaker D: I think the 8th Dynasty Egyptians had fluorescent hand lamps. Are you ready? [00:20:36] Speaker F: Yeah, but it's freezing calm. [00:20:37] Speaker D: Stop lingering, Tom. The sooner we get this ordeal over, the better. [00:20:42] Speaker F: Who's going in first? [00:20:44] Speaker E: I shall. You see the way the water swills. [00:20:47] Speaker D: Under that rocky shelf over there? [00:20:49] Speaker E: Yeah. [00:20:49] Speaker D: That's where we'll have to swim underwater. [00:20:51] Speaker E: I'm praying it isn't far. [00:20:53] Speaker D: Oh, you. You aren't the only one. You follow me, Julie all right? I think so. [00:21:04] Speaker E: It was not as hard as I'd imagined. The water swept me forward under the shelf and I banged my head a few times on the rocky roof of a tunnel. Then suddenly I burst to the surface in broad daylight. The current pushed me to one side and I climbed up the bank. As I turned, Julie emerged from the side of the hill with Tom almost immediately behind her. I helped them both to the bank and we sat in the warm sunlight to regain our breath. [00:21:33] Speaker D: Oh, thank heaven that's over. I thought that tunnel was never going to end. [00:21:37] Speaker F: Something's wrong, Mark. [00:21:39] Speaker D: Oh, that sunlight's so warm and comforting. I'd never seen anything wrong if it were right under my nose. [00:21:43] Speaker G: It is. [00:21:44] Speaker D: I'm sorry, Julia, I'm not with you. [00:21:47] Speaker E: What is it that's wrong? [00:21:49] Speaker F: The sunlight. What time did you say it was? Just before we went into the water? [00:21:54] Speaker E: Grief, you're right. I make it just after midnight. [00:21:59] Speaker D: What does your watch say, Tom? Well, the same. [00:22:02] Speaker F: Maybe the dampness stopped your watch at midday. [00:22:04] Speaker D: No, no, not both our watches. And look where the sun is. [00:22:07] Speaker F: It's morning. [00:22:08] Speaker D: For some odd reason, our watches have been running slow. [00:22:11] Speaker E: Well, I suppose they must be some rational explanation. [00:22:14] Speaker D: Who cares anyway, so long as we're safely out of that trap. [00:22:18] Speaker F: I suppose you better go and see what happens to Turk Center. Britney's got a lot of explaining to do. [00:22:23] Speaker D: Are you going to tell him about the tomb yet or. Or leave it till later? [00:22:26] Speaker F: What do you mean by that, Tom? You know darn well we're not going to mention the tomb at all to. [00:22:31] Speaker D: Anyone ever come off a Julie. You surely don't believe in that rubbish. I mean, well, it's absurd. [00:22:37] Speaker C: Mumbo. [00:22:38] Speaker D: Mumbo jumbo and all that. Better not call it nonsense. Tom, you made a bow in there. Oh, please, Mark, you're not going along with that too? Well, it was some kind of an hallucination. I don't know But I'm sure a psychiatrist would have a name and explanation. If you mention one word about that tomb to a living soul, you'll be very sorry. I promise you that. If you don't dig up that hillside, I will. And I'm darn sure I won't let you stop me. If you really think I could forget what's in that burial chamber. It could set me up for life. I'd be famous around your senses. Tom, for heaven's sake. [00:23:11] Speaker F: You made a vow on your own lifetime. Now remember that. [00:23:14] Speaker D: Ah, yes. [00:23:15] Speaker E: To a spook. [00:23:16] Speaker D: I think the confinement down there is. [00:23:18] Speaker E: Going to get ahead. [00:23:19] Speaker D: I'm telling Bednar. And in a few weeks this hillside will be ripped out, you know. [00:23:23] Speaker F: Tom, what's the matter? [00:23:24] Speaker E: Oh, it's. [00:23:25] Speaker F: It's nothing. [00:23:26] Speaker E: It's. It's just a. [00:23:28] Speaker D: A crook in. In my neck. [00:23:30] Speaker E: It's. [00:23:30] Speaker D: It's probably from that damned icy water gone very pale. My legs gone about none tune. Well, anyway, as I was saying it, in less than a month. [00:23:41] Speaker F: Tom, what's happening to you? [00:23:43] Speaker D: No, it's my other legged. [00:23:45] Speaker E: Oh. [00:23:46] Speaker F: Did it hurt? [00:23:46] Speaker D: It is cramped. [00:23:47] Speaker E: Here, let me massage it for you. [00:23:49] Speaker D: No one don't touch me. [00:23:51] Speaker F: We better try and get him to the farm, Marquis. [00:23:53] Speaker D: Julie's right, Tom. Come on, help me here. Come on. [00:23:56] Speaker F: Come on. [00:23:58] Speaker C: Come on. [00:23:59] Speaker E: Tom. [00:23:59] Speaker F: Oh, no. No. [00:24:01] Speaker D: Let go of me. [00:24:03] Speaker F: My whole body's on fire. [00:24:13] Speaker E: It took five terrifying minutes for him to change from a living human into what looked like a wizened, mummified corpse. [00:24:25] Speaker F: Mark, what are we gonna do? [00:24:28] Speaker D: What's happened to him? [00:24:29] Speaker E: I don't know. I've never seen or heard of anything like it before. [00:24:34] Speaker F: It's for breaking his oath to Princess Narini. There's no other explanation. [00:24:38] Speaker E: My boggles, Julie. Things like this just don't happen. [00:24:43] Speaker F: But it has, Mark. Just before our eyes. [00:24:46] Speaker D: Hey, Mark. [00:24:48] Speaker E: Julie. [00:24:48] Speaker D: It's Splinter. [00:24:49] Speaker F: What are we gonna do? He'll see the body and. [00:24:51] Speaker E: And we must take him into our confidence about this. I just hope he's superstitious and believes it. [00:25:00] Speaker F: You'll be giving away the secret, Mark. You end up the same way as poor Tom. [00:25:05] Speaker E: It's a risk I'll have to take. I hope Princess Marini understands that I'm only doing this for the sake of her too. [00:25:13] Speaker D: Hey. What did happen to you two? That was quick. How did you get out? [00:25:18] Speaker E: Quick, did you say? Yes. [00:25:20] Speaker D: You only went down the shaft. Let me see you. Less than two hours ago. I was going to wait another hour and then send one of my farm hands Down. So just a tunnel into the stream, is it? [00:25:30] Speaker F: Not quite. [00:25:31] Speaker D: Hey, what's lying on the ground there? Where's Tommy? [00:25:34] Speaker E: That is Tom. [00:25:35] Speaker D: Ah, you're joking, man. [00:25:36] Speaker E: That's not. [00:25:37] Speaker F: Yes, it's Tom. Dirk, a lot of strange things have been happening. [00:25:42] Speaker E: Are you serious? [00:25:44] Speaker D: That's dummy. [00:25:45] Speaker E: Let's go to the farmhouse, Doug. [00:25:46] Speaker D: I've got a long and complicated story to tell you. After seeing what happened to Tom, I won't so much as go near that valley again, Mark. You can be sure of that. Hey, but what about his body? There'll been inquiry into his death. You'll have to tell the truth. [00:26:31] Speaker F: And we daren't tell the truth. It'll be suicide. [00:26:35] Speaker D: Now what if Tom had decided to break his oath before you swam out? [00:26:39] Speaker E: I see what you're getting at. He'd still be inside the tomb. [00:26:42] Speaker F: You're suggesting we put him back down there, Dirk? [00:26:45] Speaker D: Have you a choice, Julie? He broke his oath and paid the penalty. Now why should you be made to pay the penalty? [00:26:50] Speaker E: Also, Dirk's right, Judy. [00:26:53] Speaker D: Only us three know how and when he died. Now leave it to me to Handley's disposal this afternoon. Meanwhile, you'll have to report his death down the shaft. Say he fell or something like that. [00:27:05] Speaker F: We'd be telling a lie. [00:27:07] Speaker E: I know how you feel, Julie. A lie it is, but a very necessary one. There's no other way out. We'll get changed and drive into town. We followed Dirk suggestion. Tom Raglan's withered and dried out body was lowered into the upper chamber of the tomb and a large boulder was rolled over the top of the shaft. Shortly after, Dirk sold his farm and came to live in England, where he died some months ago. Over the years, I've often been tempted to reveal my dreadful secret, but courage always failed me. Last year Julie Richards started to tell it and Julie died. By now you're probably wondering why I've told you the story and why I haven't suffered same fate as the others. I saw my doctor this morning and I learned that by the time you hear this, I shall already be in a place where Princess Narini cannot hurt me. [00:28:35] Speaker D: High Adventure is produced by Anne Freed. [00:28:37] Speaker E: And directed by Henry Dippenthal. [00:28:42] Speaker A: That was the keeper of the tomb from High Adventure, here on the mysterious old Radio Listening Society podcast once again. I'm Eric. [00:28:51] Speaker B: I'm Tim. [00:28:51] Speaker C: And I'm Joshua. [00:28:53] Speaker A: And that was my pick this week. Something that I literally stumbled upon when I'm trying to find episodes. There's all sorts of things I do to inspire what I want to bring to the podcast. And I typed in adventure radio. There's a list. Going down the list. And I'm like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. What's this? Go listen to a few minutes. No, that's like. And then I came across this and I listened to another episode, not this one. And I went, I really like that. And so then I said, okay, I'm going to listen to another one. Just to say I did something more than just listen to one and send it. Now listen to this one. And I sent it. I'm going to stop there because I am so, so curious. I have zero idea. And I know you guys pretty well what you think of this. I can't wait to find out. What did you think? [00:29:57] Speaker C: Stony silence. We're furious. No, no. [00:30:04] Speaker B: It's such an interesting dynamic. I felt the parts I enjoyed the most were the standard, like, we're going down a cave where the simple sort of business from getting to A to B, which, you know, in a treasure seeking adventure, like, that's not no small thing. But then things like. And then the ghost princess comes and talks to you. Like, that was kind of. Okay, let me actually, let me take a running start at this. [00:30:33] Speaker C: Leave. [00:30:34] Speaker B: Get out. We can't. [00:30:36] Speaker C: We're trapped. [00:30:37] Speaker B: Yes, I trapped you. [00:30:39] Speaker A: Come on, lady jerk. [00:30:41] Speaker B: Move. Trap us down here. And then tell us to leave end parentheses on that. But it's sort of like the big showpieces seemed like a little underwhelming, but just the simple business of an adventure story. I thought it was a lot of fun. They did a great job on. [00:31:01] Speaker C: I'm kind of in that same camp, but it breaks down into two halves for me. Very much enjoyed the first half. It felt surprisingly grounded in a sense of credibility. Reality may be too strong, but I thought the mystery of. Wait, how did an Egyptian tomb marker get all the way from Egypt down to South Africa? That's compelling. I want to know that as well. And then the theory that Egyptians went down the continent, stopped in South Africa before crossing the ocean, becoming the Mayans. Like, all this stuff. I like, wow, this seems like I could buy into this. And then I felt it lost me because it switched gears so hard. It set me up to be like, okay, this is adventure y. But maybe based in a little bit of reality. It wasn't so much the ghost princess showing up. I was like, okay, obviously there's gonna be some kind of a keeper in the tomb. You don't have a tomb without a keeper. And it's in the title, I think where it lost me was when is it? Julia suddenly was like, oh, this is a spiritual communication. My parents were psychics. And it just had that, like, suddenly I knew that trope kind of thing, that the plot demanded her to authenticate this move. And then it kind of went downhill from there for me, where it missed, I think, a lot of what was intriguing about its own plot. For example, I love the idea and got really excited toward the end that they can't, under threat of death, tell anyone about this tomb. And yet there they are with a dead body. And I thought, that's the story. Do you go to prison or are you just instantly murdered by this curse of the princess? And then it was like, no, we'll just explain it to Dirk. He'll cover it up. We'll throw it in there. That's. It's cool. And anyway, he died of natural causes. And for some reason, we don't know why, Julie decided to just sort of spill the beans and she died. And I have something terminal. So I'm telling you this story. It just felt like a kind of wet noodle ending to me when I. [00:33:32] Speaker B: Was trying to do some research on this series and like, first blush, like what's high adventure? And was looking at what the older Mutual Network one was. It was described as stories that were based on heroes who thrive on strength of character rather than strength of arms or anything like that, which I thought was. Even though now that's not what this series was. It's an interesting way to look at this. Of the story is about can you. [00:34:00] Speaker C: Keep your word, ultimately. But it also thrives kind of adjacent to that on this idea of heroes who are using their intelligence and expertise and knowledge of the real world up to a certain point. Up to that point at which the princess appears and speaks to them. Which is a nice creepy moment. [00:34:20] Speaker E: But. [00:34:21] Speaker B: And it's not said as much, but it's like based on what you've done rather than what you've said. You are forcing these people to go through your secret treasure where you just want peace. Like, just leave me at home with my stuff. [00:34:33] Speaker C: Yeah. Here, Go through this door and look at everything. You can't possibly have. [00:34:39] Speaker B: Yes, jerk myself. But it is not just, well, I'm forced to put this curse on you. I want to put this curse on you. [00:34:48] Speaker A: Right. [00:34:49] Speaker C: The whole of the Julia, going from a legitimate archaeologist to my parents happened to be psychic at all. These seances just bug me. Sorry. [00:34:59] Speaker B: Did you like it? [00:35:01] Speaker E: Wow. [00:35:03] Speaker A: I loved every second of this. That was so Fascinating to sit and listen to both of you just now. Those are all things that. Not in my head. So, first of all, based in. What did you say? Not reality, but credible. Credible credibility, number one. I like that. I like. Hey, what's this thing? Where'd it come from? It says this. [00:35:31] Speaker B: It's a really great way to make us like characters because they seem smart. I mean, they just. Narratively, it's like this character is saying smart things. So I trust them, so I'll go along with whatever they do. [00:35:43] Speaker A: The dialogue written was not hokey or weird or over the top or expositional. It was natural. [00:35:52] Speaker C: The performances of that, except for the whole psychic explanation. That was a little. [00:36:00] Speaker A: That was, to me, her saying, this is scary and weird. I'm going to cling to some kind of explanation for what's going on. Okay, so maybe we're having a psychic thing here where we're all hallucinating at the same time. So going back, I thought the acting was tremendous and grounded and real and not over the top and not wacky. Superman kind of. You know what I mean? [00:36:32] Speaker C: Wow. [00:36:34] Speaker A: I mean, the radio show aimed at kids. Superman kind of wacky. [00:36:39] Speaker C: And the new movie and the new. [00:36:42] Speaker A: Well, just the dog just doing it to make Tim mad. So then they can't look at my stuff anymore. So then they find a reason to dig or whatever, and they go down and they find the tunnel. I love the supernatural element. I love that they're trapped down there. I. I love how the keeper then says, I'll make a deal with you. You know, like this spooky thing. And they're, again, the reactions. And we've talked about this a lot with me. I loved how the reactions were written and performed. I felt their fear, their confusion. And then they're like, okay, we can't make up top line. And then she says, well, you know, I'll let you out. There is a way out. It's very secret. I liked the process of them getting out from the sound effects. I loved how they created the space for me. Little things like, oh, look where the. How the water's moving over there. That must be where we dip under. Narratively cool little moment. And there's a lot of these, but I'm using this as the example. I went under. I surprisingly went fast because the current took me where I was supposed to go, so it wasn't hard. Bumped my head a few times on the top of the. These aren't necessary. But really smart. Yeah, man. And that. I can feel it like, oh, oh, oh. Oh, I'm on the other side. Then they're in the sunshine. I love the idea that very little time has passed and they've been down there for 18 years. That wasn't right. But they've been down there a long time. And then. And Joshua brought it up. I love the ending of this where he says, screw that. I don't tell people. And he dies with not only pain at first, that becomes, don't touch me. Oh, my God, I'm on fire. And then the description that it took five minutes where they watch this guy, and then he mummifies, right? And then they're like, oh, my God, what are we gonna do? And this is where it becomes gruesome human humanity to me. Ah, drop them down the hole. So they got to pick this buddy of theirs up and just drop down this hole and never speak of it again. To argue against your wet noodle. Wrap up. He's at the top. Say, you know, because I'm thinking this whole time, well, how are you telling this to us then, buddy? And then he says, so, you know, we kept it a secret. And sure as bleep, you know, we. She started to say something. She died. And so we all, you know, one guy died naturally. And. Yeah. And I finally found out that I'm going to die so I can finally get this story out. To me, that's not a weak ending. That's an explanation as to why we're hearing the story. And it makes sense to hear it that way. There's a not only a moral but a humanity to this of, wow, we just discovered the greatest. First of all, we could have been rich. We could have been famous. Look at all this crazy stuff. And we've had to keep that a secret, otherwise we'd die. That must have been an excruciating way to live and horrifying to spend your whole life knowing that. [00:40:12] Speaker B: The twist of it that they're not saying explicitly is because I'm going to die, I can now tell the story in full. And so now everyone can know this. [00:40:21] Speaker C: Yeah. And is he dooming everyone? Are they all going to go amazing? [00:40:24] Speaker B: We didn't make any promises. [00:40:28] Speaker A: My reaction at first was I felt like this was a really short and great version of Indiana Jones. And I'm going to tell you, I love those movies. And this had all that element of it in a shorter version, of course, a lot less action. And I think what sold it for me, you guys, is I thought it was extremely grounded in its writing and its performance, coming from a place of truth instead of hyperbole, overacting ridiculousness. And so I just really loved it. And the one I heard before, also really good. I love that one too. [00:41:11] Speaker C: So question for you. [00:41:13] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:41:13] Speaker C: Do you. When they say they threw the other guy into the pit who died a horrible death, did they just never speak of him again or did they throw him down there to say, oh? Because I thought they said something like, oh, we'll say he just fell down that pit. [00:41:31] Speaker B: Yeah, they did. [00:41:31] Speaker C: But then what my question is then, do the emergency responders, do someone show up and go down into. Isn't that essentially like telling them there's something down there? Like, how do they go down there and not find what they find? [00:41:45] Speaker A: Yeah, that's a good point. You're right. [00:41:48] Speaker C: These are things that in Inner Sanctum I wouldn't pick apart. So it's this double edged sword. I agree with you about the groundedness of this, but that the groundedness of it made me pick apart the sort of Inner Sanctum style elements that were sprinkled throughout. Whereas if it were in a different radio show, I'd be like, cool, and just move on. Because it created a world in which I accepted those things. [00:42:11] Speaker B: I suppose in my head it was just like, it's a farm in South Africa. Like, you know, the sheriff, if they tell him at all, like, yeah, guy. [00:42:18] Speaker C: Died, the sheriff's like, oh, I fell in that hole. I'm not going down there. Yeah, I'll take your word for it. [00:42:22] Speaker B: Sheep died down there. [00:42:23] Speaker A: That would be my back writing. [00:42:26] Speaker C: I think you have to fill that in because they all went on and lived a life and nothing happened to them, but. And maybe that's it. [00:42:33] Speaker B: And I think maybe nobody liked that guy because of his accent. [00:42:38] Speaker A: I liked his accent. It was better than Conrad's accent in the last show. [00:42:43] Speaker E: Wow. [00:42:45] Speaker B: Superman. And now this. [00:42:50] Speaker C: Get out. [00:42:50] Speaker B: I've trapped you here. [00:42:55] Speaker A: All right, I got a big reveal for you. So I was writing another play, radio play. It's a serial, as you guys know. And so I will purposely write myself into a cliffhanger with no idea how that cliffhanger is going to end, because I love trying to figure out how to end it. So I go perform these, and then this cliffhanger and they go, okay. And. And I had written myself so badly into a corner this last few months with the story of they had all discovered these people, an underground cavern, huge underground cavern full of Viking warriors, 700 years old that had never seen the light. [00:43:39] Speaker B: Right. [00:43:40] Speaker A: And I didn't know what to do So I wrote it and I finished it, and I hated it. Hated it. Because what it turned out to be was what I wrote the first time was, so they're all World War II Nazis who escaped the war and then were pretending to be Vikings. And I went, okay, done. And I woke up next morning and I was like, I hate what I wrote so much, but I don't know what else to write. How am I going to end this? Well, I'm gonna take a break because I got some research to do because we got a podcast coming up. And I listened to this and I went, there it is. I stole this. The Vikings basically tell my heroes, listen, you tell anybody in the Vala, which is a prophet, magic prophet in Viking lore, the Vala here is going to put a curse on you. And if you ever tell anybody of our existence, you will die immediately. They go to the surface, they make the promise they won't tell anybody that the Vikings live. And one of the guys goes, screw that, I'm telling someone, and he dies horrifically in front of them, convincing the rest of them, oh, I guess that was real. We'll never talk about it again. So I not only got something to bring to the podcast that I really liked, but I got something I could steal and finish this play. [00:45:01] Speaker C: This. [00:45:01] Speaker A: Writing the script. [00:45:02] Speaker C: I don't think we. At least Tim and I spent enough time thinking of old time radio show as stuff we can steal from. I think we really. [00:45:11] Speaker A: Well, it wasn't the intent. I was listening for the podcast and I'm like, I'm enjoying this. And went, wait a minute. This just gave me my out in this other project I'm working on because I kind of loved it. I love the idea of people sworn to secrecy for life on the threat of death, and they all have to hold in this really gigantic secret. People collectively having a secret in real life doesn't usually come with. And you will mummify and burn internally in five minutes. [00:45:45] Speaker C: Your enthusiasm for this, I apologize. Just making me hate it more. Not because I want to hate what you love, but because, like, I just. [00:45:55] Speaker B: Hate seeing you happy. [00:45:56] Speaker C: No. Hearing you wax so poetically about the stakes just makes me even that much more adamant about how much that's the story I wanted. [00:46:08] Speaker A: Right? [00:46:09] Speaker C: I wanted it to save enough time for them to live through that. Or even with a deaf piece of writing, you could leave it as a very short bit at the end, but I didn't think they brought that across. The finishing line. This idea of how much I live with. Cause he didn't no. He in narrating good performances, but he didn't sound that much different or that much tired or worn out than he did in the flashback scene. So like, to me that was one of the most intriguing parts of it. And also the part where they had a dead body but they couldn't tell anyone honestly how it died. And it looks really suspicious and weird and you have this mummified figure and anyone who sees it is going to be full of questions. I also thought the assumption that Dirk would just say okay with it was their hopeful thinking. And I thought, oh, the final twist is going to be like, they have to now negotiate with Dirk. And Dirk's like, oh, no, that sounds weird. Cool, right? [00:47:05] Speaker B: Well, the, the thing I struggle to say now is like, what medical examiner is going to look at this mummified body and go, someone here murdered them 400 years ago? It's a mummified body. Yeah. [00:47:19] Speaker A: I don't know, but you just wrote my next episode. [00:47:24] Speaker C: But even 400 year old doctor, I would have loved that dialogue. We can say we found him down in the tomb. No, we can't say we found a tomb. Right. This trap, I'm not sure what it is, but leaning more into how to explain anything that just happened is instant death. [00:47:40] Speaker A: Well, let's vote because I would love to start the vote and I'll just say that was really fun. I don't think it's a classic. I think it was really well done, fun and written in. Performed in a way that doesn't make me go, okay, we're. We're aiming at 15 year olds. You know what I mean by that? This is more Indiana Jones to me than it is Superman radio show. Sorry to do it again, but wow. Or Lone Ranger even. How's that? Can I go that route? [00:48:09] Speaker C: No, that's. [00:48:10] Speaker A: And so I loved it. I'm going to listen all of them. And I had a deep down hope, small, tiny hope that the one, at least one of you would go, yeah, that was great. [00:48:27] Speaker C: But you've got to come into our worlds in which we require no validation for any outside source when it comes to things we like. [00:48:35] Speaker B: I just go home and cry and I pillow and that's all I need. [00:48:41] Speaker C: Vote. [00:48:43] Speaker B: As you say, it's a good treasure hunting story and I love a good treasure hunting story. It's got some flaws, particularly as it goes, but as Joshua said, the early parts where they're really setting up the situation sets up a good situation. These are interesting characters doing interesting stuff. I should have said this during the podcast, but like the scenes of we're having dinner with the guy who owns this farm and he's excited, like, I'm lonely out here. You guys stay all you want. And he's weirdly cool about this. And then the. The rope down and they're the thin cave that suddenly widens out. And now I'm just hanging in the middle of air above. I don't know how far. Like this is cool and exciting. And it really was when that princess showed up that it's it I, to me, it lost momentum. So the actual vote then is. I think it stands the test of time. I don't think it has flaws, but I don't think those flaws are dated flaws. [00:49:39] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:49:40] Speaker A: Right. [00:49:41] Speaker C: Yeah, I agree with Tim. I mean, there's lots that I don't like that stands the test of time. Most things on streaming right now. [00:49:49] Speaker A: Right. [00:49:50] Speaker C: It obviously wasn't a classic to me. It's a fascinating piece in that I think it strengths ended up being its weaknesses for me because it didn't fulfill the promise of its strongest concepts. So that's both. Both a compliment and a dig little archeology joke. Although back to that conversation with Dirk in the farmhouse. The other thing that struck me about that conversation is that did he know the he's so lonely. He knew the entire time where this was because they're all like, oh, I knew they were all like, well, we're gonna leave now. Wait, wait, wait. Have you looked in that tomb, like, hole? Dirk, don't leave. [00:50:39] Speaker A: All right, Tim, tell him stuff. [00:50:41] Speaker C: Please. [00:50:41] Speaker B: Go visit ghoulishdelights.com home of this podcast. Now, you can get your podcast episodes from any podcast episode server. That's not the right terminology, but if you go to our website, you'll find a link to our store. You can buy some swag. You can also find other stuff that we do, information about our live shows, and you'll find a link to our Patreon page. [00:51:02] Speaker C: Yes, go to patreon.com themorals and become a member of the mysterious old Radio Listening Society. Membership has its perks, ladies and gentlemen. You have bonus podcasts. You have Zoom Happy Hours, where you get to hang out with other listeners and with your hosts. Zoom Book Clubs, in which you get to nerd out with mostly me. But occasionally Tim joins us and Eric even joined us for a discussion of Dracula. So once every six years, Erica might be on a book club. [00:51:31] Speaker A: So why are we doing Dracula again? [00:51:34] Speaker C: Actually, don't tempt us. So go to Google. Go to patreon.com themorals and become a member today. [00:51:47] Speaker A: And the mysterious Old Radio Listening Society Theater Company does recreations of classic old time radio shows and a lot of our own original work live on stage. Come see us performing radio drama by going to ghoulishdelights.com and there you will see how to get tickets and where we're performing and what we're performing. And we'd love to see you there. But if you can't make it being a Patreon, also, we record the audio of those performances and we make that audio record those audio recordings available to you, as well as another perk, what is coming up next. [00:52:22] Speaker B: Up next is the Roman an episode I chose from a series called the Croupier. Until then, leave. Get out. We can't. We're trapped. Yes, I trapped you. [00:52:36] Speaker A: Come on, lady.