(124) Magic Island - Island Being Raised

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Harold's Old Time Radio

Episode 124: Magic Island – Island Being Raised

Date: June 15, 2026
Host: Harold's Old Time Radio
Series: Radio Shows from the Golden Age

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Overview

This episode features a dramatic installment in the "Magic Island" radio adventure series, centered on the suspenseful events as the mysterious Magic Island—home to the technological colony of Euclidia—begins to rise from the ocean depths. The central theme is a tense engineering and rescue mission, with Captain Tex Bradford and companions strategizing to prevent a mass escape from the submerged colony, while Mrs. Gregory, Jerry, and Joan anxiously monitor the situation from a nearby ship. The episode blends high-stakes action, inventive problem-solving, and emotional camaraderie characteristic of Golden Age radio drama.

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Key Discussion Points & Segment Breakdown

Setting the Scene: Tension Above and Below Water

Timestamp: 00:30–01:24

• The episode opens with two vessels: a small rocket plane drifting above the submerged city and a passenger vessel racing toward the scene.
• Context is set: Captain Bradford and his companion (Elaine), aided by the submarine commander, have landed above Euclidia and are in the midst of a precarious operation.
• Mrs. Gregory, Jerry, and Joan await news, emphasizing the separation and danger.

Quote:
"Grainger knows. When you're a procurement manager for an office park..."
(Note: This is an advertisement and can be skipped)

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Underwater Sabotage: The Solvent Plan

Timestamp: 01:24–03:07

• Captain Bradford describes placing bottles of a powerful solvent around key submarine locks to prevent Euclideans from using the exits:

  • The solvent is dangerous and must be deployed carefully.
  • Elaine: "Did you descend deeply enough for your purpose?" – [01:47]
  • Bradford: "I sure did. Planted two bottles of that solvent of mine where they won’t even dare to touch one of the submarine locks..." – [01:51]

• Discussion reveals the intent to contain the colony and prevent harm:

  • Bradford: "We want to do this without hurting anyone. If we can." – [03:01]

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Risk and Resources: Tactical Decisions

Timestamp: 03:07–04:46

• Elaine and Bradford discuss logistics for the next step—guarding the airlock—even though it will nearly exhaust their remaining fuel.

• Procedural caution:

  • Bradford: "Those two bottles ever banged together and broke, that stuff would eat a hole through this boat before we could move." – [03:33]
  • They coordinate lines and signals for safety during underwater operations.

• Bradford prepares for another dive while Elaine provides coverage and contingency plans.

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Communication Breakdown & Rising Stakes

Timestamp: 04:46–07:21

• Mrs. Gregory attempts radio contact with Bradford while he’s underwater; Elaine briefly responds, signaling they are busy.

• As Bradford surfaces, a sudden disturbance in the water is observed:

  • The island is being raised, as overheard while Bradford had his ear to the lock.
  • Elaine: "The surface of the water is disturbed over a large area." – [06:28]
  • Bradford: "They're raising the island again." – [06:36]
  • This triggers panic; calculations indicate only about five minutes ("300 seconds") until the surface is breached.

• Urgency rises to devise a plan before Euclidians can make a mass escape.

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Desperate Plans and Coordination

Timestamp: 07:21–08:43

• Elaine proposes a risky, last-ditch plan, and urges Bradford to inform the Gregory boat as a warning.
• Elaine: "Our plan will probably fail. It is only fair to warn them what to expect." – [07:29]
• Bradford: "Bradford to Gregory boat. Bradford calling Gregory boat. Hello? Hello? I don't get them." – [07:32]
• After several tense attempts, Jerry finally answers, confirming the urgency and danger.
• Radio Operator: "Get all of this and get it quick, kid, we’re going to have trouble. The island is being raised again, Jerry." – [08:12]

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The Gregory Boat Reacts: Helplessness and Hope

Timestamp: 08:44–11:00

• Mrs. Gregory, Joan, and Jerry scramble to make sense of the situation.

• Doubt and concern surface in their dialogue:

  • Jerry: "Well, I'll try, Mrs. Gregory, but the trouble's on the other end and we can't do a thing to help them." – [09:03]
  • Joan: "Is there nothing we can do...?" – [09:56]

• Jerry laments their distance from the Magic Island, noting the seeming impossibility of reaching Tex in time.

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Creative Deception for Morale

Timestamp: 11:00–End

• Jerry devises a plan to spare Mrs. Gregory worry:
  • Use a portable transmitter to fake reassuring messages as if from Elaine, buying peace of mind.
  • Joan: "But what can I say?"
    Jerry: "Just so your mother thinks Tex and Elaine are still afloat and doing all right." – [11:17]
  • Joan agrees, understanding the importance of maintaining hope.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Bradford: "We want to do this without hurting anyone. If we can." [03:01]
  Shows the ethical dilemma at the heart of their mission.
• Elaine: "If that happens, we are powerless." [06:40]
  A moment of rare vulnerability from the otherwise composed submarine commander.
• Jerry: "Well, this won't help the captain a bit...but it will help your mother a little. Keep her from worrying for a while and that'll be something." [10:12]
  A touching shift from action to caring for one another emotionally.

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Conclusion & Tone

The episode is a classic Golden Age radio adventure: fast-paced, plot-driven, and rich in ingenuity and resourcefulness. The dialogue balances technical problem-solving with authentic concern and teamwork. As the episode closes, listeners are left on a cliffhanger with the fate of the protagonists uncertain, but with the resolve of their companions undiminished. The characters' quick thinking and emotional resilience shine through, inviting listeners back for the next dramatic chapter.

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Transcript

[Grainger Narrator]

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[Narrator]

4,000 miles from Los Angeles, a small rocket plane drifts on the surface of the water. 400 miles from Los Angeles, a small passenger vessel races southward at its none too good full speed on the boat. Mrs. Gregory, Jerry and Joan are waiting patiently in the radio room for news of Captain Bradford. But the captain and his companion are a little too busy to be sending any radio messages right now. When the girl submarine commander who has joined the Gregory party and Tex Bradford landed their stolen rocket plane on the position directly above Euclidia, they found that the Euclideans had made one unsuccessful attempt to escape and were planning another. In the rocket plane, the girl sits alone, looking anxiously into the water, down into the mysterious depths which conceal the underwater city of Euclidean.

[Joan]

Give me your hand.

[Mrs. Gregory]

Here.

[Elaine]

Captain Bradford.

[Jerry]

No.

[Elaine]

Do not attempt to remove your helmet in the water. Come aboard.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Well, that was quite a dive with only a helmet.

[Elaine]

It was remarkable. Did you descend deeply enough for your purpose?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

I sure did. Planted two bottles of that solvent of mine where they won't even dare to touch one of the submarine locks, much less open one.

[Elaine]

That is splendid, Captain. Now I will not need to use more of my limited supply of magnetic bombs.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Good thing we may have other uses for those little gadgets.

[Elaine]

Do you wish to suspend your solvent over the surface lock at this time?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

That's not what. I'm sure finding these glass globes full of the solvent is a good deal like laying a mine. It's no fun to have to go down there and pick them up ourselves.

[Elaine]

They are set to break very easily, are they not?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Yes, if they contact anything metallic. Naturally, I couldn't have them going off every time a fish swam into them. But I hung them where they would be touched by the leading edge of the lock gate the moment it started to move.

[Elaine]

And at the surface lock, the procedure would be the same.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Yeah, just about, though I think I put the bottles where they'd have to strike them to turn the valve. Without the valve to flood the lock, they can't use It Very good.

[Elaine]

Except as you have noted, in an emergency we might have to use that lock to enter Euclidea.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

That's the trouble. We couldn't get any more than he could get out. Of course, I could try getting the solvent loose without breaking both bottles. But it wouldn't be any too easy.

[Elaine]

I will do as you say.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Have to risk it. I guess if we don't bottle them up while we have a chance, they'll finally get desperate enough to come out in spite of the flood that will pour in there. And some of them will make it.

[Elaine]

Surely enough of them to cause trouble for us.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

More important than that, enough water would get in there to drown everyone else in the colony. We want to do this without hurting anyone. If we can.

[Elaine]

Then I suggest we place your solvent to guard that airlock immediately.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Will it use all our gas to taxi over there?

[Elaine]

Almost, but we have little choice.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Okay, let's go.

[Elaine]

Very well. In a few seconds we will drift over the location.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Well, don't worry about using the gas to hold us there. I'll take this line down with me. And if you drift a little, I can get back easy enough.

[Elaine]

I will hand the solvent to you after you are in the water as I did before.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

That's safest. Those two bottles ever banged together and broke. That stuff would eat a hole through this boat before we could move.

[Elaine]

We are practically over the lock now.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Okay, I'll get out then you hand me the bottle.

[Elaine]

Will you secure this line about your waist?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Maybe I'd better at that. I might run into a little surprise of some kind down there. They could be watching us, you know.

[Elaine]

I presume they are. But I think you are in no danger from that. Everyone on Euclidean knows of your solvent. And they realize that any accident to you would flood the colony.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

I hope they do realize it. Well, here I. Wait a second until I get this line trailing freely in the water.

[Radio Operator]

Now.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Okay, pass out the bottles one at a time.

[Elaine]

Here is the smaller one.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Got it.

[Elaine]

And here is the larger.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Fine. Now keep this door open. Once I'm down, feel this line and keep it fairly tight. If I give you two quick ones, use some gas dragging me away from there. Don't wait to try and pull me in.

[Elaine]

I understand perfectly, Captain. Here is your helmet.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

These little helmets are pretty good at that. I'll make it as quick as I can.

[Patricia Gregory]

Patricia Gregory to Captain Bradford. Hello, Tex. Waiting for your report. Patricia Gregory to Captain Bradford. Hello, Tex. Patricia Gregory to Tex Branford. Hello, Texas. Waiting for your report. Can you hear me? Hello, Tex calling as you requested. Can you hear me, Elaine?

[Elaine]

Raleigh to Gregory boat. Call you later. Working now. Call you later. That is all.

[Patricia Gregory]

I will wait for your call.

[Elaine]

The captain should now be coming up. All is not well with him. I there two sharp jerks on the line. I will pull him to safety.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

I'm all right, Elaine. Be with you in a minute.

[Joan]

I will help you with the line, Captain. Did you lose your helmet?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

No, I took it off. Be all right in a minute.

[Elaine]

Let me have your hand.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Okay, here I come. Oh, boy. Thanks.

[Elaine]

Were you underwater long without your helmet?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Just about as long as I could hold my breath. Seemed like half a day, but I suppose it was about a minute.

[Elaine]

You are very cold, Captain. This night air, with that slight breeze and your wet clothes.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

No, I'm all right.

[Elaine]

You will go into the rear compartment and dress yourself in dry clothes immediately.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

But we've got work to do. I heard those Euclideans say.

[Elaine]

What you heard them say can wait. I will be in a most unpleasant position if you become ill.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

I guess you're right. No, no, no time. Look over there, Captain.

[Elaine]

The surface of the water is disturbed over a large area.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Right. And that's what I heard them talking about when I took off my helmet to put my ear against the wall of that lock.

[Elaine]

What is happening?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

They're raising the island again.

[Elaine]

Raising the island?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

That's what they're doing.

[Elaine]

If that happens, we are powerless.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Just about as far as I can see. How long will it take them to get that thing above water?

[Elaine]

The island was accidentally disabled and partially flooded during that artificial volcanic eruption. They will have to raise it very slowly. I would say 300 seconds before the ceiling of the island could possibly reach the surface.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

That water's moving around a lot over there now.

[Elaine]

Maybe nearer the surface than I calculated. I am sure, however, that it will take 300 seconds to bring the floor of the island above the surface. After we see the tops of the surface chambers.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

And in five minutes we've got to figure how to capture 300 people with a dozen exits to safety and all the arms and ammunition on Euclidia. And we've got just two little bottles of solvent.

[Elaine]

I have a desperate plan, Captain. Will you risk it with me?

[Captain Tex Bradford]

I'll try anything.

[Elaine]

Then call your boat quickly. Tell them what's happening.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

What good will that do?

[Elaine]

Our plan will probably fail. It is only fair to warn them what to expect.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Right. Bradford to Gregory boat. Bradford calling Gregory boat. Hello? Hello? I don't get them.

[Elaine]

Try it again. And hurry. The island is rising.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Bradford Calling the Gregory boat.

[Radio Operator]

Hello? Hello?

[Narrator]

Hello.

[Radio Operator]

Bradford calling Gregory boat. Hello? Hello. Bradford calling Gregory boat. Hello, can you hear me?

[Jerry]

It's Tex.

[Joan]

Yes, Jerry. Answer him at once.

[Radio Operator]

Bradford to Gregory boat. This is a hurry up. Answer at once.

[Jerry]

Hello, Tex. Jerry hall on Gregory boat to Captain Bradford. Go ahead, Tex. Go ahead.

[Radio Operator]

Get all of this and get it quick. Kid, we're going to have trouble. The island is being raised again, Jerry.

[Joan]

The island?

[Jerry]

Yeah, they're raising it.

[Radio Operator]

Did you get that?

[Joan]

Oh, Jerry.

[Mrs. Gregory]

What is it?

[Joan]

Wait, Mother.

[Jerry]

Yes, Tex, I got it. Raising the island.

[Radio Operator]

Right. Elaine says we've got about five minutes to plan some way to stop them. If we don't, well, you're going to be running into trouble when you get here.

[Jerry]

What are you going to do?

[Mrs. Gregory]

Let me take you, Jerry. Hello, Tex. Can we do anything?

[Radio Operator]

Don't know what it would be erasing the island, and it looks hopeless.

[Mrs. Gregory]

We'll keep coming, Tex. Full speed ahead. Oh, Tex. We'll help if we get there in time.

[Radio Operator]

Afraid you won't make it, Pat.

[Jerry]

But hold it.

[Radio Operator]

Hold it a minute.

[Mrs. Gregory]

Tex. Tex, what happened, tex?

[Jerry]

No use, Mrs. Gregory. I heard a set cut out.

[Mrs. Gregory]

There was water.

[Elaine]

I know.

[Mrs. Gregory]

I heard rushing water.

[Joan]

Yes, Mother, but we can do nothing.

[Mrs. Gregory]

We'll see if you can find anything wrong with this radio, said Jerry.

[Radio Operator]

I.

[Jerry]

Well, I'll try, Mrs. Gregory, but the trouble's on the other end and we

[Mrs. Gregory]

can't do a thing to help them.

[Jerry]

Guess not. And they're raising that magic island again.

[Mrs. Gregory]

I thought the island was destroyed accidentally in that eruption.

[Joan]

Perhaps they had a reason for allowing

[Mrs. Gregory]

us to believe that Terry. Is the set all right?

[Jerry]

It's perfect, Mrs. Gregory. Text. Just quit sending, that's all.

[Mrs. Gregory]

Joan, run and get Mr. Johnson. Have him turn the wheel over to the quartermaster. Get him in here at once.

[Joan]

Yes, Mother. I will go at once.

[Mrs. Gregory]

I'm Jerry.

[Jerry]

Yes, Mrs. Perkins.

[Mrs. Gregory]

Get the engineer and the skipper. Send them to me as fast as you can.

[Jerry]

But what will you do?

[Mrs. Gregory]

I'll stay with this radio. Get those men in here.

[Jerry]

But I will as quickly as I can, Mrs. Gregory. Hey, Joan, wait a minute.

[Joan]

I am in a hurry, Jerry.

[Jerry]

I know it. But wait a minute.

[Joan]

But, Jerry, Mother told me to hurry and send Mr. Johnson to her.

[Jerry]

Yeah, and I'm after the skipper and McLeod the engineer, but a couple of seconds won't hurt anything.

[Joan]

What is it?

[Jerry]

Well, I didn't want to say anything in front of your mother, but this looks mighty bad. Well, never get there in time to rescue Texan.

[Joan]

I feel that, too, Jerry. Is there nothing we can do not

[Captain Tex Bradford]

a blame thing from here.

[Jerry]

If we were in 500 miles of that plain Magic island, we could try for it with this little plane lashed to the deck. But 4,000 miles? No chance.

[Joan]

Then if you are so helpless, why did you stop me? I should be completing my mother's orders.

[Jerry]

I've got a crazy plan. If you'll help me with it, I will do anything. Well, this won't help the captain a bit. Oh, but Jerry, wait till I finish. It won't help the captain, but it will help your mother a little. Keep her from worrying for a while and that'll be something.

[Joan]

Oh, yes, Jerry. If we can help Mother maintain her peace of mind, we will be accomplishing something right.

[Jerry]

And here it is. Now, there's a little portable transmitter, a pack outfit in Texas cabin on this boat.

[Joan]

But what good will a radio do?

[Jerry]

Will you wait till I finish this?

[Joan]

Yes, Jerry.

[Jerry]

Well, as soon as I send Mac and the skipper to your mother. Hey, wait a minute. Here's the skipper now. Hey, skipper. Hi, Mrs. Gregory. One Two and McLeod in the radio shack right away. Will you please tell Mac? Aye, and hurried up.

[Captain Tex Bradford]

Aye.

[Jerry]

Now, your message to Johnson can wait a minute. Here's what I'll do. The minute those men are out of sight and you get Johnson the radio shack, come right into Texas cabin. I'm going in there right now and set up the pack transmitter.

[Joan]

What will you do with it?

[Jerry]

Well, you can sound like Elaine, can't you?

[Joan]

Not very well, I am afraid, Jerry. I have never learned to speak easily as you do.

[Jerry]

All right, I'll fix that, too. I'll fix the microphone so your voice will sound pretty bad. Mrs. Gregory won't be able to tell who it is. Now, I want you to pretend to be Elaine. You're sending your mother a message as if Elaine was a.

[Joan]

But what can I say?

[Jerry]

Oh, anything.

[Mrs. Gregory]

It doesn't matter.

[Jerry]

Just so your mother thinks Tex and Elaine are still afloat and doing all right. You can say that everything is all right and that you'll be too busy to talk for a few hours.

[Joan]

Excellent, Jerry. I will say that the captain and I are too busy for radio communication. But all is well and we will send further information when possible.

[Jerry]

Ah, now you've got it. Hurry and send Johnson to your mother. Then run for Texas cabin, and the minute you get there, we'll call this boat and you can cheer up your mother.