William Spier began his tenure with Suspense by informing his entire crew, cast included, that the way many of them knew radio shows to be done was going to change with Suspense.
At the beginning, budgets were tight, with Suspense being a sustained program, but even when the program hit its stride once Roma Wines came on board as the sponsor, William Spier’s original message to those involved with Suspense did not change. From day one throughout Spier’s entire tenure as Producer-Director, every person involved in Suspense would be expected to give their best work and beyond. This led to each cast and crewmember truly being an integral part of the hallmark program fans today know Suspense to be.
A prime example of Spier’s philosophy involved the use of sound effects on Suspense. Sound effects man Berne Surrey, who was used to being given a list of the necessary effects for each show just a few hours before the broadcast, now found himself working side by side with Spier to plot out where the various sounds would be most effective and just what they should be in each episode.
Even with this almost obsessive plotting, though, Spier also trusted his team to create and improvise when necessary. Surrey was faced several times with coming up with a sound effect that Spier called for just before the show was to go on the air. This included actually groaning for a dying man when he fell to the ground when the actor didn’t, as well as shoving an ice pick into a head of cabbage to mimic an ax splitting a man’s head, a sound effect that actually caused Surrey to injure himself.
Tremendous storytelling coupled with finely crafted action and production value is what awaits you, as you will hear in Suspense, Volume 14 from Radio Archives. Enjoy 6 hours of this classic program restored to Sparkling audio quality.
The Lucky Lady
Thursday, February 14, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
Consequence
Thursday, February 21, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
The Black Path of Fear
Thursday, March 7, 1946 - 30:00 - AFRS, no commercials
No More Alice
Thursday, March 14, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
The Lonely Road
Thursday, March 21, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
Out of Control
Thursday, March 28, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
Post Mortem
Thursday, April 4, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
The Name of the Beast
Thursday, April 11, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
The Night Reveals
Thursday, April 18, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
Dark Journey
Thursday, April 25, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
Crime Without Passion
Thursday, May 2, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
The Plan
Thursday, May 16, 1946 - 30:00 - CBS, sponsored by Roma Wines
