Project Audion: Classic Audio Dramas for Modern Times

Suspense is one of classic radio's most highly-regarded dramas -- with good reason. It sustained a remarkably high quality level of dramatic tension for 20 years, as the many surviving recordings attest. But a handful of episodes are lost - and Project Audion now recreates one of them. "The Life of Nellie James" was intended as Suspense's premiere, but circumstances pushed it back to the third episode. It was performed once, live, on July 1, 1942, but never heard again. Until now -- as Project Audion, kicking off its fifth season, brings together a transcontinental cast in a live transcription of "The Life of Nellie James" from the original 1942 script. A dreadful murder takes place in the Simon James home, and justice is done ...or is it? It's a tale well-calculated to keep you in ...Suspense!  Before the show, there is an interview with Suspense scholar Dr. Joseph Webb, where we discuss what makes "Suspense" so special. Our cast features a mix of players, including folks returning from Project Audion episode #1 and professional voices who are brand-new to Audion. Patte Rosebank in Canada Tim Burns in Kansas Andy Hartson-Bowyer in Virginia Richard Huitema in Florida Mel Rose in Pennsylvania Pete Lutz in Texas  Art Brown in California Denny Thompson in Colorado Frank Guglielmelli in Pennsylvania Sharon Grunwald in New Jersey while Larry Groebe produced and directed from Texas

A spy caper always makes for a good show. Start with a suave man of mystery, sprinkle in some far-off exotic locales, and stir in some evil enemies of democracy and beautiful women. The result: James Bond? No, "The Man Called X" -- which broadcast several hundred episodes on network radio from 1944 through 1952. Unflappable British actor Herbert Marshall originally played American agent Ken Thurston, AKA the man called X.  Project Audion now recreates the very first episode of "The Man Called X," from a script which has not been heard since its premiere in July 1944! The action of "The Cage of Europe" is set in wartime Lisbon (you know, where Ilsa flew off to in "Casablanca." Audion's recreation features voice actors performing live on both sides of the Atlantic for this half hour of what was described as in 1944 as a "comedy-mystery," and which eighty years later is still highly entertaining! Featuring -- David Ault in England Jack Ward in Canada Laura Mirsky in New Jersey George Taylor in Tennessee Jane Beverley in New Jersey Jeff Billard in Massachusetts Caleb Fisher in Virginia Joe Mendell in England Robert Stevenson in Indiana Larry Groebe produced and directed from Texas

The "Damon Runyon Theatre," a syndicated radio series from 1949 relating stories of New York's "guys and dolls" -- mobsters and dames, gamblers and frails, saints and sinners -- which newspaperman and sportswriter Damon Runyon colorfully brought to life in decades of short stories. They may have been gangsters, but they often had hearts of gold underneath - plus a unique present-tense way of speaking which has come to be known as "Runyonesque."  The Damon Runyon Theatre recorded 52 charming half-hour versions of his stories, and those got writer Casey Keller (Beakman's World, The Love Boat) wanting more. So he's written a new episode, and Project Audion brings you the world premiere of his Runyonesque tale, "Ringside Rosie."  Our transcontinental cast is captured live in performance, just like they things did 1949, for a delightful story about a doll who loved boxing, and the guy who loved her. Our cast includes: Duane Noch in New Jersey Don Paul in California Andy Hartson-Bowyer in Virginia Jacob Palka in Illinois Stanley Dyrector in California Paul Arbisi in Illinois Reg Platt in Texas Susan Platt in Texas Casey Keller in California with the production under the supervision of Larry Groebe in Texas

Just premiered for the International Jack Benny Society annual convention, and now available to all: a "new" episode of the classic Jack Benny radio show newly penned exclusively for Project Audion by Bob Hope comedy writer Robert L. Mills. Here, Jack and the gang do a send up of the movie "Witness for the Prosecution" - with W. C. Fields in a guest-starring role.  Here's what Mr Mills said after hearing the final product: "This as near perfection as any living humans could possibly recreate a 75-year-old radio show. You performed miracles producing this and the program will take its place among the best work you've ever done." As Jack would say... "Well!” That's a tribute to the cast and crew. Go ahead - join our virtual studio audience and laugh at the efforts of these talented voice actors... John Bell in Alabama Pete Lutz in Texas Ken Jeffries in California Carl Thomas in Texas Bob Beaumont in California Angela Young in Florida Harry Middlebrooks in CA Norman Cline in Kentucky Bob Mills wrote the script in LA While back in Texas,  Larry Groebe oversaw the production

Premiering tonight (2/9) at 9 PM Eastern, Project Audion recreates a shocking tale of love, hate, conspiracy, and murder - all the more so for being a true story that took place in 1778. "The Crime of Bathsheba Spooner" tells the story of the first woman executed for murder in the United States. It was the audition script for a new CBS radio drama series - "Crime Classics" --  a sort of mid-century predecessor to today's true-crime podcasts, created by some of radio's finest actors, writers, directors, and musicians. Audion's rendition of "The Crime of Bathsheba Spooner" works from the uncut audition script, including material that never aired seventy years ago. In addition, we visit with Andrew Noone, author of a recent book on the 1778 murder, trial, and execution. Join us and listen to the modern passions that inflamed Revolutionary America!

Peter Lorre is an actor with such a distinctive voice and presence that even now, 60 years after his death, he's still instantly identifiable. It's surprising he didn't do more radio dramas, but he did host and star in "Mystery In The Air" in 1947. As a summer replacement show, there were only 17 episodes, and only 8 or so recordings exist -- so Project Audion asked Pete Lutz to create a NEW Mystery in the Air script. The result is both light-hearted and supernaturally spooky, and thanks to our transcontinental cast of talented voice actors, sounds just like an unheard episode from this terrific vintage series: Pete Lutz in Texas Lothar Tuppan in California Jeff Billard in Massachusetts Geri Elliff in Texas Angela Young in Florida John Bell in Alabama Bob Beaumont in California with Larry Groebe handling sounds, music, and production

EXTRA! EXTRA! Read all about it! Big Story radio drama recreated by Project Audion! Newspaper reporters were once heroic figures - exposing rackets and corruption, taking down the powerful and giving voice to the powerless. The "Big Story" series from audio drama's original classic era (the mid 20th century) celebrated the newspaper reporter - selecting true headlines and converting them into gripping dramas, much like Dragnet did with police.  Audion's December offering is a story set during the Christmas holiday, and while there IS an appearance by Santa Claus and a happy ending - this is a drama, pure and simple - of murder, greed, and redemption. Hmmm...maybe a Christmas theme after all! Our cast reaches from Canada to across the United states to recreate this lost original script just as it was done back then, so you can hear it for the first time since December 20, 1950! Our cast: David Phillips in Virginia Donna Patton in Tenessee Trevor Rines in Canada Sean Massey in Texas Julie Hoverson in Washington Dana Gonsalves in Texas Scott McKinley in New Jersey Ken Raney in Texas and Larry Groebe produced, directed, and handled sound and music.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s the Phil Harris-Alice Faye radio series was a masterclass in radio comedy. Harris (charming, egotistical, smooth, Southern) and Faye ( grounded, smart, and only occasionally the movie star) were surrounded by eccentric regulars like Elliot Lewis as Phil’s band buddy Frank Remley, and Walter Tetley as the little kid Julius - and each week the happy result could be heard in the gales of laughter from the live studio audience. Today, Harris is best remembered as the voice of Ballou the Bear in Walt Disney's Jungle Book, but former Bob Hope comedy writer Robert L. Mills fondly recalls the Harris-Faye radio shows of his youth, and has penned a pitch-perfect recreation for our coast-to-coast Project Audion cast to perform. We promise you a half-hour's classic entertainment! Our cast -- Pete Lutz (Phil Harris) JoAnne Kurman (Alice Faye) John Bell (Frank Remley) Bob Beaumont (Willie / Mr. Scott) Angela Young (Julius / Miss Bluecross / Customer) Ken Jeffries (Announcer) Robert L Mills (Druggist, Scriptwriter) Larry Groebe (Producer/Director)

Who was it who made that phone call to the emergency room -- the one that set off the horrible chain of events that took place in The Dark? Project Audion recreates the episode "The Dark" from LIGHTS OUT - one of classic radio's most imaginatively gruesome shows. It's an episode show that hasn't been heard in its complete form since January 1938! "Lights Out" was the work of  master radio dramatist Arch Oboler, and he memorably redid "The Dark" 25 years later as a highly abridged adaptation for an LP called "Drop Dead" - the only recording you could hear until now. But Project Audion worked from the original half-hour 1938 script to deliver extra thrills and chills, and leading to a climax where -- well, that would be telling, wouldn't it? Who's afraid of The Dark? You will be! Our cast features:  Jacob Palka in Illinois  Douglas Herrman in California  Denise Cline in Kentucky  Robert Stevenson in Indiana  Sounds, production, and direction by Larry Groebe in Texas

The Lone Ranger has got to be the most famous fictional character to come out of old time radio...every generation knows him, even if they don't know his radio origins. And those radio origins go WAY back - the Masked Man has been around 90 years, since 1933! But  the radio version of the Lone Ranger has hundreds of episodes we'll never hear - because the show wasn't recorded from 1933-1937. A shame, because these earliest years would let us listen to the series and characters evolving into the forms everyone knows. A 1934 episode simply wasn't the same as a 1954 episode in story, characters, and even sound. But thanks to historian Martin Grams, Jr. , who provided us with some scripts from 1934, Project Audion actors have now recreated one. We selected episode #266 (October 12, 1934), a story of a cattle rancher, the coming of the railroad, and a "greasy half-breed" named Magdalena - yup, definitely less sensitive and streamlined than subsequent shows. You'll hear the show as we think it would have sounded in 1934...from the original 78rpm music cues to a period-accurate Silvercup bread commercial. Our cast even includes one actor who performed on Ranger radio shows during the 1950s. Now 93 years young, Chuck Daugherty is a living link to those thrilling days of yesteryear...

The short-lived noirish radio detective series "Pat Novak for Hire" is probably better loved now than it was in the late 1940s, thanks to its darkly-comic quips and the dry-as-dust performance of Jack Webb in the title role, just before his breakout turn on "Dragnet." Pat Novak - the man, like the show - was one of those "hard-boiled" types - he may bounce or crack, but he doesn't break easily. Pat Novak shows are famed for their Raymond Chandler-esque plots and style, where the lead character never met a crook or a lady he couldn't describe with a delirious simile. Project Audion presents a brand-new episode penned for Project Audion by long-time network television writer Casey Keller. Mr Keller's script and Project Audions transcontinental cast matches the late-1940s originals blow for blow, dame for dame, gunshot for gunshot, metaphor for metaphor. Step  into the perpetual foggy night of the San Francisco waterfront to meet "Pat Novak, For Hire." Pat Novak: PETE FERNBAUGH (WV) Jocko Madigan: TOM KONKLE (CA) Inspector Helleman: TEE QUILLAN (TN) Hannah Gordon: JOANNE KURMAN (CA) Stripper 1: DONNA PATTON (TN)) Stripper 2: JULIE HOVERSON (WA) Jack Silver: KIM TITUS (TX) Announcer/Goon: LOTHAR TUPPAN (CA) Goon: BOB MILLS (CA)  Coroner: CASEY KELLER (CA) Written by Casey Keller Sound, Direction, and Production by Larry Groebe  

It's the year 2090. There are signs that a pandemic is coming - a pandemic which will kill millions of innocent people - again. Because it's happened before. But this time, just maybe, we know what - or who - is causing it...and a chance to stop it. That's the setup for "Syndrome Johnny," a lost episode from a nearly-forgotten science-fiction anthology radio drama from 1953 called "Tales of Tomorrow." The television version of "Tales of Tomorrow," which actually came before the radio edition, is considered one of the first serious scifi video series. The TV edition spawned the radio offshoot, which hoped to fill the void of the recently-cancelled and now-classic series "Dimension X," adapting stories from Galaxy Magazine. Failing to find a sponsor, it only lasted a few months. The sound quality of the few recordings that survive is mostly quite poor, and our recreation "Syndrome Johnny" doesn't survive at all.Our transcontinental cast performs in the classic audio drama tradition - live in one uninterrupted take - to recapture the spirit of this pioneering science fiction show for a national audience for the first time in 70 years.  In our cast: Trevor Rines, Canada Tim Burns, Kansas Jack Ward, Canada Greg McAfee, California Rhiannon McAfee California Gary Layton, Texas and Larry Groebe, Texas

Project Audion revisits one of the funniest, most beloved radio comedies of the 20th century. Fibber McGee and Molly tickled the radio audience for so long - more than a quarter of a century - that it spawned the very first-ever spinoff shows... and recurring gags like Fibber's hopelessly overstuffed closet and quips like Molly's "t'ain't funny, McGee" remained part of shared American pop culture long after the series left the airwaves. Part vaudeville act, part sitcom, the series stared real-life couple Jim and Marion Jordan who were indeed former vaudeville comics. Don Quinn's scripts and a large cast of supporting characters who stopped by 79 Wistful Vista kept the laughs rolling. Now, Robert L. Mills (former comedy writer for Bob Hope) has wonderfully recreated the style of the show at its peak in a new script penned just for Project Audion. In it, Fibber thinks he's come up with a brilliant and practical new invention - for once, does his boasting have merit? Listen to our transcontinental cast and laugh!  Our cast: Fibber McGee: John Bell, AL Molly / Teeny: Holly Adams, NY Harlow Wilcox: Ken Jeffries, CA Wallace Wimple: Dana Gonsalves, TX Mayor LaTrivia: Bob Beaumont, CA Doc Gamble: Frank Guglielmeli, PA Old Timer: Harry Middlebrooks, CA Gildersleeve: Larry Groebe, TX Leroy: Carolyn Threlkeld, KY Produced, directed, and mixed by Larry Groebe  

Project Audion recreates an extraordinarily rare, early lost episode of the classic audio drama "Suspense." When CBS premiered the the show in June 1942, it wasn't immediately evident that it would become one of the all-time great radio dramas, running for 20 years and nearly 1000 stories. Indeed, in this (just Suspense's fifth-ever episode, from July 15, 1942), while all the typical ingredients are in place (in this instance, a murder aboard a moving train) the show hadn't quite yet settled into the style that would soon define classics like 1943's "Sorry, Wrong Number."  Heard for the first time in 80 years, our recreation of this lost Suspense episode -- "The Witness on the Westbound Train" -- is taken from the single known surviving script. It features the same transcontinental cast of vocal actors who appeared in Project Audion's very first episode, along with additional talented voices who have appeared in Project Audion shows during the past three years. The cast: MARK: Pete Lutz, TX JOE: Doug Fain, KY DORIS: Patte Rosebank, Canada CONDUCTOR: Denny Thmpson, CO LAWRENCE / RANDOLPH: John Mauldin, TN BILL / BAGGAGEMAN: Dick Huitema, FL ANNOUNCER / WAITER: Robert Stevenson, IN DIRECTION / PRODUCTION / SOUND: Larry Groebe, TX