The Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society

For our 250th episode we listen to an adaptation of a landmark detective story, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Final Problem," presented by The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes! In this broadcast, Sir John Gielgud's Sherlock Holmes attempts to once and for all put an end to the criminal machinations of Orson Welles' James Moriarty! Will the World's Greatest Detective be able to outsmart the Napoleon of Crime? How far will Holmes go to succeed? Which of your hosts didn't know how this story would end the first time he encountered it? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

Join us this week for an adaptation of Ray Bradbury's short story, "Kaleidoscope," presented by Suspense! A group of astronauts suddenly find themselves in a hopeless situation, one that forces them to confront how they've lived their lives. Some are content, others bitter. But does any of that matter when facing death? Are we all just floating through life, isolated and scared? Are we going to listen to every different adaptation of this story ever recorded? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

It's been almost 250 episodes and we are still discovering shows we've never listened to before! This week, we check out Up for Parole! Based on real cases, the show presents stories as told by convicts addressing a parole board. This installment, "The Case of Clarence Hogan," features a ranch hand whose hard life led him to being jailed as a cattle rustler and an accessory to murder. What path can lead a man to commit such an unusual crime? Will the parole board grant him his freedom? What's the famous Billy Martin "Cow Story"? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

We’re paying another visit to our Listener Library for an episode of Suspense recommended to us by our Patreon supporter, Marc. Thanks, Marc! This production adapts A.M. Burrage’s story, “The Waxwork,” and features a one-man performance by William Conrad! In this story, a journalist in need of cash bargains to pass the night in a room inside a wax museum. In this hall, each figure depicts a notorious killer, and as the hours pass, a creeping terror begins to invade the journalist's thoughts. Is this fear a product of his own imagination or is something more going on? Is William Conrad up to the task of a solo performance? Why does our discussion include Doctor Who and puppet blood? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

Our Patreon supporter James suggested that we listen to “The Blind Beggar Dies” from The Shadow! In this story, the enigmatic vigilante seeks justice for the murder of a blind man and fights to protect the city's poor. But even the power to cloud men's minds may not be enough to save him if the enemy knows his plan! How will the Shadow bring these vicious killers to justice? What requirements must a person meet to stand on the corner and ask for money? If fighting crime doesn't work out, does the Shadow have any skills that would allow him to succeed as a live entertainer? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

Many thanks to our Patreon supporter Chris for suggesting we take up the challenge of this Theatre 10:30 episode, "Trespassers Will Be Experimented Upon!" written by Anthony Lee Flanders. This strange narrative features a brilliant scientist and his acclaimed sex-symbol wife racing through a storm to a castle in Saskatchewan. There, they will come face to face with...the Baron! Their battle of wits will not only determine who possesses the superior mind, but also reveal the source of the scientist's genius. Where do the loyalties of the Baron's split-tongued servant lie? How dark and/or bizarre can this story get? How should one translate, "Glllyggh...Uhlyygg"? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

Our thanks to our Patreon supporter Jules for suggesting this episode of Lights Out, "Subbasement!" The story features a husband grudgingly granting his wife a tour of his subterranean workplace. Beneath the city's department stores, the buildings are connected by a dark tunnel that seems to be abandoned as the couple make their way through the darkness. Why has chosen this evening to provide his wife with this tour? What unexpected surprise does Arch Oboler have waiting for them? Will Eric be forced to pay Tim & Joshua $100? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

We're beginning 2022 with a little enticement to join our Patreon page! When our patrons checked out their monthly bonus content in August of last year, they got an installment of the members-only series, Secrets of the Mysterious Old Radio, which featured "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz," from Escape! And as it happens, they voted to declare this episode the second best from 2021! Now we're sharing it with everyone as a little taste of all the great stuff that comes with membership. Please have a listen and consider joining the amazing community of MORLS fans whose support keeps this podcast going!

Happy New Year! We are celebrating every last drop of the holiday season, ending the year with our traditional presentation of different adaptations of Charles Dickens' other famous ghost story, “The Signal-Man.” The first time we did this, we listened to the 1956 Suspense version featuring Sarah Churchill. This time around, we return to Suspense in 1959 featuring Ellen Drew. As before, this story depicts a curious stranger who encounters a rail worker beset by visions. Why does he seem to be receiving some otherworldly warning? How will this version compare to those we have already heard? What would have happened if we had listened to this version first instead of the 1956 production? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

Merry Christmas! It's time for another visit from our favorite fat man, Nero Wolfe! Legendary actor Sydney Greenstreet brought Rex Stout's famous detective to life throughout The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe! In this episode, "The Case of the Slaughtered Santas," Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin are called upon to solve a series of murders in which all the victims share a distinctive occupation! Why would someone want to kill a series of Saint Nicks? Is this the work of a madman or is it laying the groundwork for a bank robbery? How can you tell if a person is a "theatrical"? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

Our holiday celebration continues! Tim is again offering a gift episode to his co-hosts! This time, his selection is a present for Joshua, "Murder on the Train" from The Adventures of Leonidas Witherall! The series is based on a run of detective novels by Alice Tilton, a pen name used by Phoebe Atwood Taylor! The episode features the titular detective travelling by rail with his housekeeper, Mrs. Mollett. But when a dead body turns up, its time for Witherall to track down the killer! How will he identify the murderer? Which two Shakespeare plays has Benny seen? Has Joshua already heard this before? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

To celebrate he holidays, Tim is offering gift episodes to his co-hosts! The first offering is a present for Eric, "The Locomotive Ghost" from The Mysterious Traveler! In this story, two men engineer a train wreck in order to steal the fortune on board. But a strange old man warns them that trains are living things and that there are consequences for taking such a life. Is there really a pantheon of supernatural trains? Can these thieves escape their fate? Will Eric like it? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

For this episode, we are joined by our esteemed Patreon supporter, Atticus! Atticus has brought us an episode of CBS Radio Workshop, "A Pride of Carrots!" Written and narrated by the novelist Robert Nathan, the story concerns the first astronauts to reach Venus and the fantastical creatures they find there. Will the Earthmen be able to escape the absurd machinations of the Venusians? Does the political satire still hold up after all this time? Did Atticus just sneak an episode of Rocky and Bullwinkle into our podcast? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

This week we're listening to "The House of Death," an episode of The Mysterious Traveler recommended to us by to esteemed Patreon supporter, Patricia! Thanks, Patricia! The story features two elderly sisters whose extended visit with their nephew and niece seems to have become permanent captivity or worse, a death sentence! But despite their failing health, they'll make every attempt to get help or to escape! Why are they being kept in the house? Will these two and their cats survive this ordeal? Is our understanding of debtors' prisons and poorhouses at all accurate? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!

This episode of Escape was recommended to us by to our esteemed Patreon supporter, Tim! In "Four Went Home," a small group of soldiers held in a German POW Camp must weigh their options near the end of World War II. The longer they remain imprisoned, the more likely they are to be executed by their captors. But an escape attempt could be just as fatal! When the stakes are this high, which gamble will these men choose? What sort of small talk do they make when they think they're all going to die? How will we delineate between Tim and Tim? Listen for yourself and find out! Then vote and let us know what you think!