Listening to the earliest episodes of Suspense under the direction of William Spier, it’s not hard to understand how this show which started out as a sustaining summer replacement with almost no budget grew into a bar by which quality old time radio is often judged. Spier not only took control of every minute detail of each episode, but he also imbued his staff, his cast, and his technical crew with ownership. He worked diligently with each member of his crew, from the sound effects man to the musical directors to the actors, to be sure that every piece of every show fit exactly. Berne Surrey, the sound effects man, felt this influence more than others, according to interviews. Surrey was tasked more than once with coming up with sound effects just minutes before, if not while an episode was already in progress, including providing the dying moans for a character when the actor missed the cue.

 

It’s no surprise that, with the amount of care Spier crafted his entire run of Suspense, that it became the show it did. Even though the pool of actors he had to draw from originally consisted of mostly standard hands at radio, that changed as the show grew in popularity, especially after Roma Wines picked up sponsorship. Actors from Vincent Price to Gene Kelly to Agnes Morehead to Van Johnson came calling, wanting to be a part of the top notch phenomenon Spier had created. He didn’t lay out the red carpet for them, however. Spier believed that Suspense should be more than a job for an actor, it should be a challenge. He showed this by often casting actors against type, taking usual villains and turning them into romantic leads, for example. The quality of Suspense would not suffer under his watch, but Spier wanted to make sure every actor gave their best.

 

Enjoy twelve stellar shows of mystery, thrills, chills, action, and adventure in Suspense, Volume 28, restored to Sparkling audio quality by Radio Archives.