Transcript
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Relic radio.
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This is Relic Radio. Sci Fi Old time Radio Science fiction stories from relicradio.com.
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The Mutual Broadcasting System presents the Mysterious Traveler. Written, produced and directed by Robert A. Arthur and David Cogan and starring tonight, two of radio's foremost actors, Lawson Zerby and Cameron Prudhomme in an original radio drama titled Zero Hour.
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This is the Mysterious Traveler inviting you to join me on another journey into the realm of the strange and the terrifying. I hope you'll enjoy the trip, that it will thrill you a little and chill you a little. So settle back, get a good grip on your nerves and be comfortable if you can, as you hear the story I call Zero Hour.
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Our story tonight begins in the large, luxurious office of Dr. William Jackson, a noted psychiatrist. Dr. Jackson, a tall, intelligent looking man in his late 50s, is seated in a chair beside a fireplace reading a patient's case history as he reads. The door to his office is quietly opened and Keith Roberts, a slender, nervous man of 35, peers into the room.
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Pardon me, Doctor. Oh, it's you, Mr. Roberts. Come in. Thank you.
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Is there anything I can do for you, Doctor? I. I just couldn't stay in my room. I must talk to you. I simply must. Now. Won't tomorrow do? No, no, It'll be too late then. It's got to be tonight. I see. Well, here, take this chair by the fire, please. Thank you. Doctor, I know you're my final hope that if you don't find me sane, they'll put me away. This is my last chance. I must make you see that my story is true. Are you sure it can't wait till tomorrow? No, no, every minute counts. Even now. Time is running out. You sound as though an overwhelming disaster were about to happen. Yes, yes, Doctor, that's just it. A disaster such as the world has never known is about to happen. It will affect every human being on earth. Suppose you start from the beginning and tell me everything. From the beginning? Yes, well, I suppose it all began that day six months ago in Philip Cromwell's office. Cromwell is the fellow who publishes my books. I'm a writer, you know. Yes, I know. Well, Cromwell told me that he had acquired the literary rights to the life of the world famous scientist Professor Dana Freedberg. And I was the man who would write the professor's biography. I think that day, Doctor, was the happiest in my life. I was to have the opportunity to talk to Professor Dana Friedberg every day and grow to know him innocently. He was a scientist and humanitarian who I, like countless thousands, have Admired and respected for years. Well, it was with a certain feeling of excitement that I arrived at Ardmore, Pennsylvania, where the professor lived and taught. I registered at the inn and then phoned the professor's secretary for an appointment. Professor Friedberg lived in a small cottage. Now, as his housekeeper led me to his study, I could see the house was plainly furnished. The study itself was overflowing with books. They were everywhere. And there amidst the books, sat the professor himself. White haired, small, puffy, on a pipe. Come in, Mr. Roberts, come in. Thank you, Professor. Here, let me remove the book from this chair so you can sit down. So you are the young man who is going to write my biography? Yes, sir. I want this book to do justice to your life, Professor. To make people realize what you've contributed to humanity. I might have contributed a great deal more if people only understood men of science. How do you mean, sir? Scientists work and think in terms of the future. Scientific research has always been handicapped by men who had no faith in the visions of science. Well, don't you think, professor, science has achieved so many miracles that people aren't as skeptical as they once were. I wish I could agree. But believe me, Mr. Roberts, if I were to advance the theory that there is a civilization on Mars, many people would say that old Professor Friedberg is in his doses. Yes, I suppose you're right. You speak of a civilization on Mars. Do you. Do you have any theories on that? None at all, my friend. But it is quite possible there is a civilization on Mars. One even more highly developed than our own. Well, I find the idea quite intriguing. We scientists here on Earth are planning atomic powered ships. Ships that will be able to fly to other planets. Who knows, perhaps Mars or some other planet is far in advance of us scientifically. Perhaps we will wake up one morning to find that we have visitors from another planet. Strange, isn't it? When we think of such things, it's always we who will fly to another planet. It never occurs to us that another planet may reach us first. Exactly. And yet, who knows? At this very moment a rocket ship or some other type may be on its way to Earth. Yes, my friend, things may be happening on other planets that we here on Earth cannot even comprehend. Yes, I have learned one important fact in this long life of mine. Anything is possible.