Transcript
Benjamin (Ben) Wellington (0:00)
Would you hand me that please?
Joseph Cotton (Holly Martins) (0:01)
Thank you.
Benjamin (Ben) Wellington (0:04)
Now, let's see. Survey Survive.
Joseph Cotton (Holly Martins) (0:08)
Susanna.
Benjamin (Ben) Wellington (0:09)
Suspect. Ah, here we are. Suspense. Meaning held in doubt, expressing doubt. The state of being uncertain, undecided or insecure. State of anxious expectation or waiting for information such as to keep one in suspense. Therefore delay acquainting him with what he
Daemon Van Weston (0:31)
is eager to know.
Benjamin (Ben) Wellington (0:33)
Suspense.
Host/Narrator (0:52)
Hello and welcome to Stars on Suspense with more Hollywood legends in radio's outstanding theater of Thrills. All this month I'm sharing some of my favorite movies and we're continuing this week with the Third Man, Carol Reed's classic film noir about a man who comes to post war Vienna for his best friend's funeral and who discovers secrets that put his life and the life of the woman he loves in danger. I'm not going to say any more because if you've never seen the Third man, there are twists and surprises aplenty. All of it plays out to a memorable zithers score composed by Anton Karras, and it features a great cast. Joseph Cotton is the American pulp novel writer who arrives in Vienna determined to solve the mystery of his best friend's death. Trevor Howard is the British military policeman who both helps and hinders his efforts. Alita Valli as his late friend's girlfriend, a woman who soon catches Cotton's eye. And of course, Orson Welles in what's arguably his best big screen performance. I first saw this movie in my 10th grade English class after we read Graham Greene's novella that served as the treatment for the screenplay. It's a beautiful movie. The cinematography is gorgeous, the score is haunting and the performances are brilliant. If you've never seen it or if you haven't seen it in a while, I cannot recommend it enough. You can rent or buy the Third man digitally through your preferred retailers. As of this recording, you can stream it via Prime Video and you can get it on Blu Ray and 4K, but the latter is available as an exclusive order only from the Lionsgate Limited website. Today we'll hear Messrs. Wells and Cotton, two frequent co stars in episodes of Suspense. Wells stars as a mercurial actor, a real stretch in the dark tower from May 4, 1944. And Cotten plays a man on the run in Fly by night from September 28, 1950. Then Joseph Cotton recreates his film role on the Lux Radio Theater Theater, an episode from April 9, 1951. Ted de Courcia steps into Orson Welles shoes for this production, but we'll still hear Orson Welles as Harry Lime, not in a recreation of the film but in his own radio series, a show produced in England and syndicated in the States, it's the Lives of Harry Lime. And we'll hear the episode Clay Pigeon. We'll head to Vienna, but first it's Orson Welles and Joseph Cotton in suspense. We'll kick things off with the Dark Tower right after these messages.
