Suspense - Quiet Desperation (#256)
Channel: Old Time Radio Researchers
Date: 2023-10-18

Suspense: 08/07/47, episode 256
Brought to you by the Old Time Radio Researchers, courtesy of The Suspense Project

Walter Abel makes his only series appearance as a bank employee who sees an opportunity for a big score by stealing financial instruments, staging his death by accident, and then fleeing west to start a new life. The plan, which includes his masquerading as his bank’s president, is going along well until he bungles it when his impatience turns him into a murderer. 

Scripting veterans George and Gertrude Fass authored this episode, and it’s not one of their best. It’s worth a listen because Walter Abel does a fine job, especially in the character’s solitary moments, keeping the story and his character interesting, even though he’s incompetent and despicable, and the script is somewhat weak.

There are two surviving versions, and each has a different time to network ID. The intended coast of each recording is not known. These markers may be helpful if that detail becomes known. One recording is 12 seconds to ID (“12s”) and the other is 10 seconds (“10s”). Times are approximate:

12s at 9:30 “I gulped down some food at the cafeteria, pick...picked up my bags at home and went to the station”

10s at 9:13 “I gulped down some food at the cafeteria, picked up my bags at home and went to the station”

The 12s recording is preferred. The 10s recording has disc damage after the 15-minute mark where the change of discs occurs. There is strong surface noise on that disc, and removing it by audio processing makes the rest of the recording dull and mildly distorted. The 12s recording is not perfect, but its problems are very minimal and still offers enjoyable listening.

The cast: WALTER ABEL (Homer Bigelow), Cathy Lewis (Hester Vail), Wally Maher (John Pearson), Will Wright (Corbin Vandergriff), Jerry Hausner (Desk clerk), Joe Kearns (Signature Voice / Emil), Frank Albertson (Scott)

For more information visit https://suspenseproject.blogspot.com/2023/10/1947-08-07-quiet-desperation.html