The Horror! (Old Time Radio)

Episode: Devil’s Due by Lights Out

Release Date: August 23, 2025
Podcast Host: RelicRadio.com
Original Air Date (Lights Out): April 26, 1939

Overview

This episode of The Horror! presents the chilling radio drama “Devil’s Due,” originally from the series Lights Out. The episode immerses listeners in a tale of crime, guilt, and supernatural retribution, as two hardened criminals encounter a shadowy figure who claims to be their “silent partner.” What begins as a noir-infused crime saga unfolds into a nightmarish descent—culminating in a confrontation with the devil himself.

Key Discussion Points & Story Breakdown

1. Setting the Stage: Criminals on the Run

• [01:51] - The story opens in a fog-laden city where Mitch Rosinski and Cookie Donate, fresh from a murder, seek refuge.
• The atmosphere is tense; Cookie is shaken by supernatural fears ("I felt something...Little hoops close to me, but there ain't nothing there to see." – Cookie Donate, [03:39]).
• Mitch brushes off Cookie's unease, maintaining a cold pragmatism.

2. Enter The Stranger

• [04:40] - At a deserted warehouse, a mysterious, well-dressed stranger appears, knowing their names, noting their crimes, and offering to hide them.
• The stranger’s demeanor is calm, ominous, and unearthly ("You are called Mitch Rosinski. And you are Cookie Donate." – The Devil / Beelzebub, [04:49]).
• Despite Cookie’s protests, Mitch is enticed by the stranger’s knowledge and promise of safety.

3. The Devil’s Bargain

• [08:23] The stranger reveals himself as their “silent partner,” claiming to have always been involved in their crimes.
• He proceeds to replay a series of their past atrocities in disturbing detail, as if dragging them through a supernatural “accounting.”
• Memorable Montage of Crimes:
  • Torture and murder of an old man during a robbery ("Her hot needle through his fingernails." – The Devil / Beelzebub, [11:12])
  • Kidnapping and mutilation of a young woman for ransom ("I'm going to send one of those pretty fingers to your old man." – Mitch Rosinski, [14:42])
  • Robbery and sadistic murder of a German baker ("Let's just drop a few little drops on your neck...Sort of oil it, you might say." – Mitch Rosinski, [18:36])
• The stranger comments on each act, often with chilling approval ("You handled that job very well, my friends." – The Devil / Beelzebub, [15:35]).

4. The Revelation

• [24:07] As the duo’s unease mounts, the stranger’s true identity is revealed:
  • "Do you have any doubts? I am Beelzebub. Or Abaddon. Or Belial. What you will, Lucifer, if it pleases you. Your partner, my friends." – The Devil / Beelzebub ([24:17])
• Cookie and Mitch realize they haven’t made a deal with a gangster—this is a supernatural reckoning.

5. The Climax: Eternal Punishment

• [25:03] The Devil summons his infernal minions and demands his “due”—their souls:
  • “Here are two black souls, coals for our fires. Two hearts to redden the flames of Inferno.” – The Devil / Beelzebub ([25:10])
• Amid fiery visions and hellish soundscapes, Mitch and Cookie are symbolically (and literally) claimed by the Devil.

6. Epilogue: The Crime Discovered

• [27:07] The scene shifts to police at the warehouse, investigating the bizarre deaths.
• Clues suggest something unearthly—a burnt sulfur smell, clawed bodies, and cloven hoof prints.
• Notable exchange:
  • “It looks like a huge flaming claw reached out and scooped the hearts out of them… Maybe it is the devil's work.” – Police Sergeant ([28:48])

Notable Quotes & Scenes (with Timestamps)

• “We are meant to call from out of the past. Stories strange, weird tales.” – The Devil / Beelzebub [00:31]
• “We tell you this, Franklin: so if you wish to avoid the excitement, tension of these magnet play we urge you…to turn off.” – The Devil / Beelzebub [00:39]
• “Have we not had a partnership? And until now, I have not shared in the spoils.” – The Devil / Beelzebub [23:41]
• “Do you have any doubts? I am Beelzebub? Or Abaddon? Or Belial?… Lucifer, if it pleases you.” – The Devil / Beelzebub [24:17]
• “You are accepted into our confraternity. The confraternity of blood and blackness, of souls damned to eternal fires…Come with me into the depths where the flames are hottest.” – The Devil / Beelzebub [26:08]
• “Look, two of them come out. They're dead. Sure they are. And man, look at the hole scooped in…the out of their chests. Claw marks too, look like.” – Police Sergeant [28:48]

Important Segment Timestamps

• [01:51] – Mitch and Cookie's tense escape
• [04:40] – First meeting with the Devil-stranger
• [08:23] – The Devil reveals he’s their “silent partner”
• [11:12] – Grisly flashback: torture of a robbery victim
• [14:42] – Ransom victim’s finger is cut off
• [18:36] – Baker is tortured with hot oil
• [24:07] – The Devil reveals himself
• [25:03] – The Devil claims their souls
• [27:07] – Police investigation, supernatural evidence revealed

Tone & Style

The episode artfully blends tough-guy gangster lingo with the macabre, keeping a brisk, clipped pace punctuated by moments of escalating dread. Dialogue crackles with 1930s bravado, yet is consistently undercut by growing supernatural horror.

Conclusion

Devil’s Due is a haunting blend of crime drama and supernatural reckoning. As the “silent partner” collects his infernal payment, listeners are reminded that the wages of sin may indeed be death—delivered not by man’s justice, but by forces far darker.

For old-time radio fans and horror enthusiasts, this episode stands as a classic tale of conscience, retribution, and the inescapable due demanded by the devil.