Suspense: 02/15/54, episode 538
Brought to you by the Old Time Radio Researchers, courtesy of The Suspense Project
William Holden stars in the series adaptation of one of the more important science fiction stories of that time. It was this story that helped fuel much of the interest in UFOs in the early 1950s. Listening today, it seems to grab every stereotypical aspect of UFOs and extraterrestrial visitors and seems somewhat silly. It should, but it was this 1949 short story that started many of them in popular minds. So many of these details were new when that original story was published. It was this short story that fed the expectation about aliens and Earthlings would find each other and interact. Smart aliens always seem to come with a warning about Earth’s interest in atomic bombs and our self-destructive nature. It’s rarely about conquest. The aliens are always upset about the lack of peace on the planet, as they had left violence behind very long ago, and the earth stubbornly clings to such aggression. Aliens don’t have to know our language to communicate because they innately have the powers of telepathy of ideas and concepts, and to grasp subtle nuance.
Holden plays a brilliant young Air Force pilot. He was selected to make the first test flight in a top-secret experimental rocket-jet plane designed to take man into areas of space never before explored. The challenge is that this rocket will travel at a rate of speed to which no pilot has ever been subjected. All goes well until he reaches an altitude of 210,000 feet, 40 miles straight up, when he suddenly sees another spaceship coming towards him. There is a ping against his glass canopy, followed by the hissing of air as the pressurization inside his cabin begins to go down. He awakens in an alien ship and has the incredible experience of conversing, without speech, with its occupant. After receiving an important message that Earth is being watched and there is great concern for its future, he is returned to his ship and resumes his flight. There is great skepticism when he returns to report what happened. One lingering fact gives his amazing account credibility: he was away for 10 hours with only 10 minutes of fuel, yet landed safely, and told of the events competently and completely.
The Graham Doar story was adapted by Morton Fine and David Friedkin. It is a very curious how Doar’s story became adapted and broadcast so many times. Yes, it became that popular.
Researcher James Elfers noted that The Outer Limit had significant effects in the manner that UFOs and aliens were depicted in all media after it. The story was used in radio and television broadcast often compared to others in the period. The Outer Limit was quickly picked up by Escape (1950-02-07), then Dimension X (1950-04-08). CBS used the story in its brief brush with sci-fi in its series Beyond Tomorrow (1950-04-18) and had even used it in their audition recording used internally and with potential advertising sponsors.
This pre-Sputnik, pre-Space Race, pre-moon landing story seems very odd to listen to now considering how much has been learned about the difficulties of traveling in space, and how all these decades later, there remain harsh practicalities that limit travel between planets that push such endeavors further out to the future that the 1950s sci-fi writers, and scientists, believed. The story obviously had great staying power, no matter what you think about it. It was on a CBS show twice and an NBC show once, and twice on television in two series (admittedly, around half of the US households did not own a television yet when they were broadcast). Yet, Lewis still ran with it, adjusting the Escape script as required, believing it was worthwhile to give it the larger audience of Suspense.
The cast: WILLIAM HOLDEN (Bill Westfall), Edgar Barrier (Guardian Yegton), Bill Johnstone (Colonel Henry), Jack Kruschen (Countdown / Alien Zzyl), Hy Averback (Joe), Joseph Kearns (Hargrove), Jerry Hausner (Tower Voice), Harry Bartell (The Major), Charles Calvert (Crew Chief), Larry Thor (Narrator)
COMMERCIAL: Tom Holland (Hap), Byron Kane (Judge J. Raymond Tiffany), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer)
GUEST FOR THE AUTO-LITE CHARITY PROMOTION: Judge Raymond Tiffany, President of the National Society for Crippled Children & Adults. The organization became better known for its Easter Seals fundraising campaigns. He was a very influential judge and active in numerous local and national charitable organizations, especially Rotary International. Sadly, he would pass away just two years after this broadcast at age 67.
1 окт 2024
