Escape | Old Time Radio

Escape presents “Green Splotches,” originally broadcast on CBS on March 31, 1950. This is episode 104 of the series’ Richfield Oil-sponsored Friday run, adapted by William N. Robson from T. S. Stribling’s science-fiction story “The Green Splotches.”

A scientific expedition in the Andes encounters an unsettling mystery marked by strange green traces. As the explorers press farther into the South American wilderness, their assumptions about intelligence, technology, and the unknown are tested. William Conrad and Paul Frees head the cast.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered aud...

Escape presents “The Power of Hammer,” originally broadcast on CBS Radio on October 15, 1950. Commonly listed as episode 128 of the series, it was the third episode of Escape’s 1950–51 season.

In the Belgian Congo, safari guide Sam Kelly joins an official expedition into dangerous jungle territory controlled by Hammer, a fugitive white ruler whose influence over a remote tribe has made him a serious outlaw. Harry Bartell stars as Kelly, with Jack Kruschen as Hammer; the script was by Antony Ellis and Gil Doud, and Norman Macdonnell directed.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextu...

Escape presents “How Love Came to Professor Guildea,” originally broadcast on CBS on February 22, 1948, as episode #36. Adapted by Les Crutchfield from Robert Hichens’s 1900 supernatural story, the production was directed and produced by William N. Robson.

In London’s West End, the fiercely rational Professor Guildea dismisses love, compassion, and faith—until an unsettling, unseen presence seems to enter his home and challenge everything he believes. Luis Van Rooten stars as Guildea, with Parley Baer as Father Murchison, the troubled professor’s friend and confidant.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short clos...

Escape presents “Operation Fleur De Lys,” originally broadcast on CBS on July 14, 1947. This early Escape episode is identified as episode 2.

In occupied France in 1944, American OSS agents Duke and Hill parachute behind enemy lines to aid a small Maquis resistance force and disrupt German supply routes ahead of the Allied invasion. Adapted for radio by William N. Robson from a story by Stewart Alsop and Thomas Braden, the tense espionage drama stars Jack Webb, Elliott Lewis, and Harry Bartell.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently clea...

Escape presents “A Sleeping Draft,” originally broadcast April 5, 1953. Cataloged as episode 5304, this CBS Escape drama is adapted by S. A. Bolte from a short story by Weston Martyr and directed by Antony Ellis.

A British convict transport sails from London toward Australia with hundreds of dangerous prisoners locked below deck. As sickness, stolen money, hidden weapons, and mounting distrust threaten discipline, the captain and his stern guard must contend with the formidable Jonathan Abbey. Ben Wright stars with John Dodsworth and Richard Peel.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short clos...

Escape presents “The Sire De Maletroit’s Door,” originally broadcast on CBS on August 4, 1947, as episode 5. This sustaining broadcast adapts Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1878 story, with Elliott Lewis and Peggy Webber featured in the cast.

In France in 1429, young cavalier Denis de Beaulieu seeks refuge from a nighttime patrol through an inviting open door—only to find himself in the forbidding home of the Sire de Maletroit. Les Crutchfield’s radio adaptation, directed by William N. Robson, turns a desperate escape into a darkly romantic confrontation of mistaken identity and noble authority.

Escape presents the original broadcast wi...

Escape presents “The Most Dangerous Game,” originally broadcast on CBS on October 1, 1947, as episode 8. Adapted by Irving Ravetch from Richard Connell’s celebrated short story, the drama stars Paul Frees as Sanger Rainsford and Hans Conried as General Zaroff.

After becoming separated from his yacht near a remote Caribbean island, renowned hunter Rainsford reaches shore in search of help. What begins as refuge in an isolated estate becomes a tense test of nerve, ingenuity, and survival against an unnervingly sophisticated host.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and ge...

Escape presents “The Red Mark,” originally broadcast on CBS on February 21, 1950. Often listed as episode 111, this tense drama was adapted by Les Crutchfield and Manny Grotnik from a short story by John Russell, and directed by William N. Robson.

At a French penal colony in New Caledonia, convict-barber Dumai and his young friend Bijou find themselves caught in the shadow of the colony’s feared executioner and his troubled wife. William Conrad stars as Dumai, with Harry Bartell, Will Geer, and Barbara Whiting.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closin...

Escape presents “El Guitarrero,” originally broadcast on CBS on April 19, 1953. Episode numbering varies among surviving guides, which list it as either episode 172 or 179. Written by E. Jack Neuman and directed by Antony Ellis, the drama features Eddie Firestone and Jack Kruschen.

In Mexico, an American poet seeks the help of El Guitarrero when the poet’s wife is kidnapped for ransom. Their uneasy alliance leads into a tense confrontation, with guitar music lending the story much of its distinctive atmosphere.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently...

Escape presents “The Bird of Paradise,” originally broadcast on CBS on March 11, 1954. Common sequential listings identify it as episode 205, though numbering varies among surviving catalogs. John Dehner stars as fortune hunter Andrew Harben in this adaptation by John Meston of a short story by John Russell, directed and produced by Norman Macdonnell.

Harben’s pursuit of a rare bird-of-paradise takes him through the East Indies and across the Solomon Sea to a remote tropical island. There, the promise of a valuable prize brings competing ambitions into uneasy conflict.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produc...

Escape presents “The Country of the Blind,” an archival episode of the CBS Radio adventure series Escape. This local archival recording is one of several Escape adaptations of H. G. Wells’s classic short story, dramatized for radio by John Dunkel.

After surviving a fall in the high Andes, mountain guide Juan Nuñez finds a hidden valley whose people have lived without sight for generations. Certain that his vision gives him an advantage, Nuñez struggles to explain a world the villagers neither know nor need—while becoming drawn to Medina-Saroté, the daughter of an elder. Paul Frees, Edmo...

Escape presents “The Man Who Won the War,” originally broadcast on CBS on February 28, 1950 (episode 100). This alternate archival recording features Ben Wright, John Dehner, and Paul Frees in a William N. Robson adaptation of Robert Buckner’s story.

In October 1914, British destroyer commander Edward Bradman patrols the North Sea near the Flanders coast when a desperate signal from shore forces him to weigh a difficult wartime decision. Set amid the uncertainty of World War I’s opening months, the drama brings naval danger and divided responsibilities into sharp focus.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly pr...

Escape presents “The Man Who Liked Dickens,” originally broadcast on CBS on December 21, 1952 (episode 162). Adapted by John Meston from Evelyn Waugh’s 1933 short story, the drama stars Terry Kilburn and Joseph Kearns.

In the remote Brazilian jungle, a weakened English traveler, Paul Henty, finds refuge with the isolated Mr. McMaster, whose devotion to Charles Dickens is as remarkable as it is unsettling. This darkly ironic tale of survival and hospitality was directed and produced by Antony Ellis.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio...

Escape presents “Misfortunes Isle ALT2,” originally broadcast March 21, 1948, and generally listed as episode 33. This CBS seafaring adventure was adapted by Les Crutchfield from Richard Matthews Hallet’s story “Misfortune’s Isle,” with William N. Robson producing and directing.

In 1790 Manila, American trader Captain Arad sees opportunity in the pirate threat near Borneo. With his friend Yang Po and their crews, he sets out toward Misfortune’s Isle on a dangerous voyage shaped by colonial politics, uncertain alliances, and the perils of the sea. Paul Frees stars as Arad, joined by Virginia Gregg and William Conrad.

Escape presents the o...

Escape presents “20 the Country of the Blind,” episode 4903, originally broadcast March 20, 1949. This CBS adaptation of H. G. Wells’s “The Country of the Blind” was written by John Dunkel and produced and directed by Norman Macdonnell, starring Edmond O’Brien as mountain guide Juan Nuñez.

After surviving a perilous journey in Ecuador’s high Andes, Nuñez finds an isolated valley community whose understanding of the world challenges everything he knows. Berry Kroeger and Peggy Webber co-star in this fantastical adventure of discovery, communication, and belonging.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual intro...

Escape presents “The Return,” originally broadcast on CBS on April 1, 1954, as episode 208. This Kathleen Hite drama was directed by Norman Macdonnell and features Lawrence Dobkin and William Conrad.

In a walled North African city, a weary traveler confides in a blind beggar about his wish to leave hardship behind and find a perfect refuge. The beggar offers a path toward that dream, setting the traveler on an unsettling, parable-like search for the life he believes he wants.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audi...

Escape presents “23 Leiningen Vs the Ants,” originally broadcast May 23, 1948. This archival recording is identified as episode number 4805. William Conrad stars as Leiningen in Robert Ryf’s radio adaptation of Carl Stephenson’s “Leiningen Versus the Ants,” directed by Norman Macdonnell.

At an isolated Amazon jungle plantation, Leiningen receives a dire warning from a district commissioner: an immense army of deadly ants is advancing. Determined not to abandon his land or the people depending on him, he prepares to face an unstoppable force of nature with nerve, planning, and every resource available.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly...

Escape presents “A Shipment of Mute Fate,” originally broadcast March 28, 1948. This archival recording is identified as episode 4803.

At Venezuela’s port of La Guaira, zoologist Chris Warner insists on bringing a captured bushmaster snake aboard the liner Chancay for its voyage to New York. Captain Wood fears the consequences of carrying such dangerous cargo, while a tense shipboard search turns the crossing into a voyage of mounting dread. Harry Bartell, Berry Kroeger, and Peggy Webber star in this adaptation of a Martin Storm story, produced and directed by Norman Macdonnell.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newl...

Escape presents “Evening Primrose,” originally broadcast on CBS on August 25, 1949. This archival recording is identified as episode 4908. Adapted by John Dunkel from John Collier’s short story, it stars Harry Bartell and Vivi Janiss.

Disillusioned poet Charles Snell seeks solitude by hiding in a vast department store after closing, only to find that its shadowed aisles may not be as empty as they seem. Directed by Norman Macdonnell, this eerie fantasy transforms a familiar store into a strange after-hours world.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently...

Escape presents “The Vanishing Lady,” originally broadcast on CBS on February 1, 1948. This archival recording is episode 4802. Written and directed by William N. Robson, the drama adapts Alexander Woollcott’s celebrated “vanishing lady” tale.

At Paris’s Great Exposition, Cynthia Winship takes her ailing mother to the Grand Hotel Universal. A brief search for a doctor and medicine turns into a disorienting ordeal as Cynthia tries to make sense of what has happened. Joan Banks stars as Cynthia, with Hy Averback and Peggy Webber.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing anno...

Escape presents “Conqueror’s Isle,” originally broadcast on CBS on January 11, 1953. This archival recording is identified as episode 5301 and adapts Nelson S. Bond’s short story “Conqueror’s Isle.”

Years after his wartime bomber vanished over the South China Sea, Fleet Air Arm Lieutenant Brady is found adrift and placed under medical observation. As he recounts a storm-lashed flight and an emergency landing on a remote island, his physician struggles to accept the extraordinary tale. John Stevenson stars.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio...

Escape presents “Snake Doctor,” episode 4802, originally broadcast February 14, 1948. This CBS production was adapted by Fred Howard from Irvin S. Cobb’s short story “Snake Doctor,” with William N. Robson producing and directing.

Along Cashier Creek in southern mountain country, a wary local farmer becomes increasingly unsettled by an isolated neighbor known as the Snake Doctor, who makes his living capturing cottonmouths and rendering their oil. William Conrad stars in this tense tale of superstition, jealousy, and creeping fear amid the creek bottoms and venomous water moccasins.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introducti...

Escape presents “The Second Class Passenger,” episode 4801, originally broadcast January 10, 1948. This West Coast airing of the CBS suspense series adapts Perceval Gibbon’s 1913 short story, with William N. Robson serving as writer and producer.

During a shore excursion from a German mail steamer in Mozambique, mild-mannered passenger Dawson agrees to retrieve a fellow traveler’s heavy bronze curio. As night and tropical rain close in, a shortcut through the port’s unfamiliar streets leads him into mounting danger. Harry Bartell stars as Dawson, with Jeannette Nolan and Cathy Lewis.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly prod...

Escape presents “17 Leiningen Vs the Ants,” episode 4801, originally broadcast January 17, 1948. This CBS drama is the West Coast performance of Robert Ryf’s adaptation of Carl Stephenson’s “Leiningen Versus the Ants,” produced and directed by William N. Robson.

On an isolated Amazon plantation, Leiningen refuses to abandon his estate and its people when a district commissioner warns that an immense, deadly army of ants is approaching. William Conrad stars as Leiningen, with Lou Merrill as the commissioner, in a tense adventure of preparation, resolve, and man against nature.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced con...

Escape presents “The Fourth Man,” originally broadcast July 7, 1949, as episode 4907. This CBS production stars Lawrence Dobkin as narrator and adapts John Russell’s short story for radio by Irving Ravetch.

Near Nouméa in the South Pacific, three escaped French penal-colony fugitives and an indigenous pilot are stranded on a makeshift raft. With water running low and trust fraying under the tropical sun, survival depends on judgment as much as endurance.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio for a more consistent listening experie...

Escape presents “Papa Benjamin ALT1,” originally broadcast on CBS on January 24, 1948, as episode 27. This alternate production adapts Cornell Woolrich’s story “Papa Benjamin,” written under his William Irish pen name, for radio by John Dunkel and directed by William N. Robson.

In New Orleans’ French Quarter, struggling jazz bandleader Eddie Bloch searches for the sound that can restore his fortunes—and finds himself drawn toward Papa Benjamin and a sacred chant whose power he does not fully understand. Frank Lovejoy stars, in a supernatural-tinged drama distinguished by its jazz setting and prominent orchestral score.

Escape presents the original b...

Escape presents “Classified Secret,” originally broadcast on CBS on April 12, 1953. Written, produced, and directed by Antony Ellis, this espionage drama stars Parley Baer and Miriam Kruschen.

Charlie Rader boards an eastbound bus from North Hollywood bound for New York, only to find that his fellow passengers may know far more about him—and the secret he carries—than they should. As the coach crosses the Southwest, a chance acquaintance named Julie Spaulding joins him on an increasingly uneasy journey.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned...

Escape presents “Command” (also listed as “Command”), originally broadcast May 26, 1950. This archival recording is episode 5005.

Adapted by William N. Robson from James Warner Bellah’s Western short story, this CBS frontier-cavalry drama follows young Lieutenant Flint Cohill as he clashes with the seasoned Captain Nathan Brittles during a dangerous patrol in the American Southwest. Harry Bartell and John Hoyt star in a tense story of duty, judgment, and the burdens of command.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio for a more consistent listening...

Escape presents “a Shipment of Mute Fate,” originally broadcast March 13, 1949. This archival episode is identified as episode 4903. John Lund stars in this CBS Escape production, adapted by Les Crutchfield from a story by Martin Storm and directed by Norman Macdonnell.

A voyage from Venezuela becomes a voyage of terror when a live bushmaster snake is no longer securely contained aboard an ocean liner. With the ship at sea and nowhere to run, passengers and crew face a silent, deadly danger in this tense maritime thriller.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a sh...

Escape presents “The Fourth Man,” originally broadcast April 25, 1948. This archival recording is identified as episode 4804. Adapted by Irving Ravetch from John Russell’s South Seas story, the CBS drama was directed and produced by William N. Robson.

Four very different men are crowded into a life raft in the South Pacific off Nouméa. With three fugitives from a French penal colony among them, the struggle to survive becomes a tense test of fear, judgment, and trust. The cast includes Berry Kroeger, Joseph Kearns, and Jay Novello.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced context...

Escape presents “27 the Country of the Blind,” originally broadcast June 27, 1948. This local archival recording is identified as episode number 4806.

Adapted by John Dunkel from H. G. Wells’s classic story, the drama follows mountain guide Juan Nunez, lost high in the Andes, as he discovers a remote valley cut off from the outside world. There he encounters a community whose understanding of reality challenges everything he knows. Paul Frees stars as Nunez in this CBS Radio production directed by William N. Robson.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announ...

Escape presents “30 the Man Who Stole the Bible,” originally broadcast on CBS on August 30, 1951. This archival episode is cataloged as episode 5108. Written by John and Gwen Bagni and produced and directed by William N. Robson, it stars Sam Pearce as traveling salesman Cummings.

In Mardi Gras-era New Orleans, Cummings takes a Gideon Bible from hotel room 302 just to pass the time while awaiting a call. Soon, suspicious strangers, a questionable house detective, and unnerving costumed figures make the little book seem far more dangerous than it first appeared.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly prod...

Escape presents “Action,” originally broadcast July 21, 1949. This archival recording is identified as episode 4907. Joseph Kearns stars in this CBS production, written by Les Crutchfield and directed by Norman MacDonnell, adapted from a short story by C. E. Montague.

High in the Swiss Alps, experienced mountaineer Christopher Bell faces a solitary climb across a dangerous glacier as darkness closes in. When a cry for help carries across the ice, endurance, fear, and the necessity of action collide on a sheer mountain face.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and...

Escape presents “A Shipment of Mute Fate,” originally broadcast July 7, 1950. This archival recording is episode 5007, identified in Escape logs as episode 118.

In La Guaira, Venezuela, young zoologist Chris Warner prepares to bring a dangerously venomous bushmaster snake aboard the ocean liner Chancay. At sea, an uneasy voyage becomes a tense shipboard ordeal in close quarters. The production was adapted by Les Crutchfield from a story by Martin Storm, directed and produced by William N. Robson, and features David Ellis and William Conrad.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing anno...

Escape presents “She,” originally broadcast on CBS on July 11, 1948. This adaptation of H. Rider Haggard’s classic adventure novel is commonly listed as episode 46, though episode numbering varies among surviving catalogs. The radio adaptation is credited to Les Crutchfield and features Berry Kroeger, Larry Dobkin, Kaye Brinker, and William Conrad.

Archibald Holly, Leo Vincey, and their servant Job journey into remote Africa, where they discover an isolated civilization ruled by the beautiful, formidable queen known only as She. Their expedition leads them into a mysterious realm—and toward the secret of Leo’s connection to its powerful ruler.

Escape presents “The Man Who Won the War ALT2,” originally broadcast on CBS on February 28, 1950. Cataloged as episode 100, this local archival recording is a World War I naval drama adapted, produced, and directed by William N. Robson from a story by Robert Buckner. Ben Wright stars as Commander Edward Bradman, with John Dehner and Joseph Kearns among the supporting cast.

During a tense North Sea patrol off the Flanders coast in October 1914, an English destroyer’s commander must weigh a desperate signal from shore against the demands of war. Framed by a later British inquiry into Bradman’s wartime...

Escape presents “Three Good Witnesses,” originally broadcast January 31, 1948, as episode 4801. This CBS thriller was adapted by John Dunkel from a Harold Lamb story and directed by William N. Robson.

American engineer Humphrey Ward rides the Taurus Express from Istanbul toward Syria during wartime, where a ticketless young woman, an accommodating conductor, and uneasy fellow passengers turn a routine journey into a tightening web of suspicion. Morgan Farley stars as Ward, with Jack Webb and Jeanette Nolan.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio for...

Escape presents “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz,” originally broadcast on CBS on August 29, 1948. This archival recording is episode 4808.

In Les Crutchfield’s adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s fantastical tale, college student John Unger accepts a summer invitation from his fabulously wealthy friend Percy Washington. At the Washington family’s hidden retreat on a Montana plateau, extraordinary luxury, guarded secrecy, and a legendary diamond create an increasingly uneasy atmosphere. Sam Edwards stars as John Unger, with John Dehner as Mr. Washington.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing an...

Escape presents “How Love Came to Professor Guildea,” episode 4802, originally broadcast February 22, 1948. This local archival Escape recording adapts Robert Smythe Hichens’s supernatural short story, with a radio adaptation by Les Crutchfield and production and direction by William N. Robson.

In foggy London, the brilliant but emotionally detached Professor Guildea dismisses love, compassion, and faith—until a troubling presence seems to enter his home and his life. Seeking help from Father Murchison, Guildea confronts an eerie mystery amid the watchful concern of his servant, Pitting, and Napoleon the parrot. Luis Van Rooten stars as Professor Guildea, with Parley Baer as...

Escape presents “Three Skeleton Key,” originally broadcast on CBS on August 9, 1953. This archival recording is episode 5308.

Adapted by James Poe from Georges-Gustave Toudouze’s short story, this tense tale follows lighthouse keepers Jean, Louis, and Auguste on a rocky outpost off French Guiana. When rats overrun the isolated station, their small refuge becomes increasingly difficult to defend. Ben Wright, Paul Frees, and Jay Novello star.

Escape presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio for a more consistent listening experience.

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