Halloween Fright Night
Season 07, Episode 03
October 30, 2019
Radio stories to shiver your spine
Re-Imagined Radio presents a live performance of "Halloween Fright Night" by Metropolitan Performing Arts and other community volunteers at Kiggins Theatre, Vancouver, Washington. We sample from "The Locked Room Mystery," "Murder Castle," and "Knock at the Door" from Lights Out, "Thing on the Fourble Board" from Quiet, Please!, and "Chicken Heart" from Suspense. All iconic horror and suspense stories from radio's golden age.
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Background
The idea behind this episode was to dramatize the best parts of several iconic horror programs from radio's Golden Age. We chose these for the shiver they might bring to our live audience, and with hopes they might be known by audience members. There was also the fact that actors like to dress up and some brought costume changes for each sample.
Finally, there was the challenge of creating a live remix. Could we create a narrative from the samples choosen that would carry the audience's imagination for the duration.
Production
Contents
"The Locked Room Mystery"
Lights Out, episode #90, October 21, 1925, by Willis Cooper
A novelist, struggling to write a murder mystery, locks himself in his office only to be interrupted by
a stranger who resembles the story's murderer.
Cast
John F. Barber as Announcer/Narrator
Derek Nolan as Chase and Kerrigan
Audrey Bacon as Taylor
Ian Hanley as Stewart
"Murder Castle"
Lights Out, February 16, 1938, by Arch Oboler
Young women applying for jobs in a private home disappear. One day the sister of one of these missing
women knocks on the door and brings a reckoning.
Cast
John F. Barber as Announcer/Narrator
Derek Nolan as Stewart
Audrey Bacon as Ella
Arianna Dorenbosch as Betty
Ian Hanley as Policeman
"Knock at the Door"
Lights Out, March 2, 1938, AKA "Mother in Law," by Arch Oboler
A woman and her mother-in-law have a difficult relationship. The woman has a plan. The mother-in-law has
revenge.
Cast
John F. Barber as Announcer/Narrator
Barbara Richardson as Loretta
Audrey Bacon as Mrs. Kruger
Larry Taylor as Freddie
"Thing on the Fourble Board"
Quiet Please!, episode #60, September 8, 1948, by Willis Cooper
A mysterious, and dangerous, creature is brought up from miles underground by a drilling crew in Texas.
A crew member tells the story to a listener who does not realize his part in the story.
Cast
John F. Barber as Announcer/Narrator
Larry Taylor as Porky
Ian Hanley as Billy
"Chicken Heart"
Suspense, by Arch Oboler
A chicken heart is kept alive outside its original body by a scientist. When a lab accident causes the
chicken heart to grow to enormous size and threaten to consume the world, the scientist tries
frantically to find a solution. Will he be successful?
Cast
John F. Barber as Announcer/Narrator
Derek Nolan as Dr. Alberts
Arianna Dorenbosch as Intern
Audrey Bacon as Mrs. John C. Halop
Ian Hanley as Fire Department Captain
Barbara Richardson as Mayor
Credits
Writtren, Produced, Hosted by John F. Barber
Promotional Graphics by Laura Evancich
Sound Design by John F. Barber
Producer's Notes
This Halloween special combines some of the most iconic horror and suspense stories from radio's golden age, performed live for a contemporary audience. The combination creates a unique theatrical experience that honors radio drama's rich tradition.
Live audience count: 100. Streamed live on KXRW-FM
(Vancouver, WA), KXRY-FM (Portland, OR).
— John F. Barber
Promotion
Press
Anonymous. Live Radio Drama Features Frightful Tales for Halloween. The Reflector, 28 Oct. 2019.
