Stars on Suspense (Old Time Radio)

This week, I'm sharing another of my favorite movies - Carol Reed's classic noir drama set on the streets of postwar Vienna The Third Man. Orson Welles makes one of his most memorable screen appearances as the charming rogue Harry Lime, and Joseph Cotten is Holly Martins, Lime's friend who struggles to face the truth about his pal's criminal nature. We'll hear the two stars in Suspense shows - Welles in "The Dark Tower" (originally aired on CBS on May 4, 1944) and Cotten in "Fly By Night" (originally aired on CBS on September 28, 1950). Then, Cotten recreates his film role in a Lux Radio Theatre presentation (originally aired on CBS on April 9, 1951), and finally Welles stars again as Lime in an episode of the radio series The Lives of Harry Lime - "Clay Pigeon."

My month of favorite movies continues this week with Superman - the 1978 film that brought the Man of Steel to the big screen and still holds up as one of the best entries in its genre. We'll hear two of its stars: Glenn Ford, who played Jonathan Kent, the adopted father of the future Superman, and Jackie Cooper, who ran the Daily Planet newsroom as editor Perry White. Ford stars in "The End of the Road" (originally aired on CBS on February 6, 1947) and Cooper stars in "The Clock and the Rope" (originally aired on CBS on December 5, 1947). Then, we'll hear the inaugural episodes of Superman's radio series - a six-part story that brings him from Krypton to Metropolis and to his first showdown with a supervillain (originally aired between February 12 and February 23, 1940).

For April, I'm featuring some of my favorite movies with their stars appearing in tales well calculated to keep you in Suspense. First up is Witness for the Prosecution, Billy Wilder's engrossing courtroom drama adapted from the story by Agatha Christie. We'll hear the stars of the film - Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester, Marlene Dietrich, and Tyrone Power - in radio thrillers as well as a recreation of the Christie story. Real-life husband and wife Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester star in "The ABC Murders" - another Christie story (originally aired on CBS on May 18, 1943). Ms. Dietrich stars in "Murder Strikes Three Times" (originally aired on CBS on February 16, 1950), and Mr. Power headlines "The Guilty Always Run" (originally aired on CBS on March 22, 1954). Then we'll hear "Witness for the Prosection" presented on The Mollé Mystery Theatre (AFRS rebroadcast from May 31, 1946).

Our month-long series of Best Picture winning movies and their stars concludes with All the King's Men - the story of a populist politician who rides into office in an anti-corruption campaign and leaves mired in scandal. We'll hear its two Oscar-winning stars in episodes of Suspense: Broderick Crawford in "Dutch Schultz" (originally aired on CBS on October 26, 1953) and Mercedes McCambridge in "America's Boyfriend" (AFRS rebroadcast from July 21, 1957). Then, The NBC University Theatre presents a radio adaptation of the Robert Penn Warren novel that inspired the film (originally aired on NBC on January 16, 1949).

Our parade of Best Picture winners continues with Billy Wilder's The Lost Weekend - a harrowing portrayal of alcoholism that also netted a Best Actor Oscar for its star, Ray Milland. We'll hear Mr. Milland, along with his co-stars Jane Wyman and Howard Da Silva, in episodes of Suspense, plus a radio recreation of the film. Mr. Da Silva stars in "You Take Ballistics" (originally aired on CBS on March 13, 1947), Ms. Wyman stars in "Catch Me if You Can" (originally aired on CBS on February 17, 1949), and Mr. Milland stars in "Chicken Feed" (originally aired on CBS on September 8, 1949). Then Milland and Wyman reunite in The Lady Esther Screen Guild Theatre (originally aired on CBS on January 7, 1946), and Ray Milland joins Jack Benny in a spoof of the film (originally aired on NBC on March 10, 1946).