Sometimes images that our own mind conjures can be more horrific and entertaining than any artist can offer. OTR (Old time radio), as it is known by aficionados, proves this. Get ready to find out for yourself how scary and fun OTR can be, as each week The Monster Club.Com will bring you a brand new full episode of an old time horror radio show. Shows featured will include favorite episodes from "The Creaking Door", "Lights Out", "Witch's Tale", "Suspense", "Innersanctum" and more.
This week The Monster Club.Com presents an episode from "Dr. Weird" called "Journey Into The Unknown". This episode of Dr. Weird is about a scientist whose experiments go tragically awry, turning him into an ape! Click the radio to start the story......
Although the first radio stations began broadcasting in 1920, it wasn't till the golden age of radio that horror shows were broadcast. Radio was a wonderful arena for horror due to the endless possibilities for sound effects. Often, a spooky voice would tell a story while sound effects conjured up the images of thunder and lightening and other atmospheric surroundings
One of the early horror style shows was "The Shadow". The show ran from 1930 - 1954 and featured Orson Welles. "The Shadow" told the tale of an unseen mystery man with supernatural abilities, whose aim was to right the wrongs of evildoers, protect the innocent and punish the guilty. Orson Welles was also famous for the one time 1938 Halloween broadcast of "War Of The Worlds". "War Of The Worlds" was a very real sounding report / broadcast of Martians landing on Earth. Meant as a Halloween practical joke, it backfired when multitudes of people were panicked and begin to flee from what they assumed was a real Martian landing. Other shows from the golden age include "The Hermit's Cave", "Suspense", "The House of Mystery", "Escape", "The Mysterious Traveler", "The Witches Tale" and "Lights Out".
With the advent of television, radio slowly evaporated, although "Lights Out" made the transition to television in 1949, featuring Frank Gallop as host and Jack La Rue as narrator. The old time radio horror show, "Witch's Tale" is reported to have served as inspiration for EC Comics, which virtually visually presented old time radio style story telling. In 1992 Mystery Playhouse honored the golden age of horror radio with a set of trading cards, "Tune in for Terror", featuring art that depicted scenes from famous horror radio broadcasts. OTR continues to be enjoyed by people around the world thanks to the magic of the Internet.