The Relic Radio Show

Episode Title: Bold Venture and Scarlet Queen
Date: October 28, 2025
Host: RelicRadio.com

Overview

This episode of The Relic Radio Show resurrects two audio treasures from the golden age of radio:

• Bold Venture: “Four Invitations to Death” (January 14, 1952) starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall as they unravel intrigue in Havana.
• The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen: “Redbeard and the Bag of Pearls” (December 17, 1947) featuring Captain Philip Carney and his adventures in the South Pacific.

Both stories are packed with classic adventure, witty dialogue, and suspense that showcase why old time radio still “stands the test of time.”

Segment 1: Bold Venture – "Four Invitations to Death"

Main Theme

A murder at Shannon’s hotel leads Slade Shannon and Lady Sailor into a web of revenge, mistaken identity, and unresolved guilt tracing back to a tragic maritime incident years before.

Major Discussion Points & Plot Progression

• Mysterious Collapse

  • [02:00] Slade (Bogart) helps move a guest, Mr. Johnson, who faints in the hotel lobby.
  • Mr. Johnson’s wife, Rita, shows apathy and disdain:
    • Rita: “Imagine a husband of mine fainting in the lobby of a hotel. John Johnson Junior. Fifty years old and doesn’t know how to behave.”

• The Threatening Letter

  • [03:23] A mysterious note is delivered:
    • Sailor (reading): “Goodbye, Shannon. Goodbye, dead man.”
  • There are hints of vengeance and a connection to a past tragedy at sea.

• Murder and an Uncaring Widow

  • [06:36] Johnson is found shot dead in Slade’s room.
  • Rita’s reaction is chillingly indifferent:
    • Rita: “Me cry for that pig? He chomped his way into his grave. I warned him.” [07:46]

• Investigation and Police Warnings

  • [09:13] Detective Lasalle warns Slade: He was the intended target—there's a killer avenging a death from years before; four men were marked, two are now dead.
    • Lasalle: “Four men have been promised death. Two have got it… they thought they killed you, Slate. That makes you precisely. Two are dead. And there is still a third and a fourth.” [12:45]

• Comic Relief: Timbro, the Undertaker

  • [10:07] Timbro offers his “calm, satisfactory, reasonable service” for Slade’s alleged corpse.
    • Lady Sailor: “Give him the pitch, Tiny Tim.”
    • Timbro: “Senor, you are not dead. I have been made up a fool... I need the money so badly.”

• Unraveling the Past

  • [21:27] Slade recalls a fishing voyage six years ago, a life raft, and a woman washed overboard—her husband later accused Slade and the others of murder.
  • The killings are revealed as revenge for this event.

• Confrontation on the Rooftop

  • [24:10] The killer confronts Slade on a rooftop, seeking his final vengeance:
    • Killer: “You knew my wife, too. A woman who drowned out there. Out there in the ocean. Couldn’t be helped. You all tried to tell me that... Pedro Avrillo didn’t have a chance to whimper. He was stabbed in the back. And you whimper. Whimper. Plead for your life, Shannon. You’re the last one.”

• Climactic Struggle and Resolution

  • [24:48] Slade overpowers the attacker.
  • The cycle of revenge is halted, justice is served, and moments of warmth and humor return.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Vintage Banter:
  • Lady Sailor: “You’re just saying that because I put my hair up last night. You’re such a man.” [03:18]
• Droll Undertaker:
  • Timbro: “Delicious…He should come in cans. Senorita, you have just had the honor of being kissed by Timbro. Do you undertake?” [09:59]
• Police Warning:
  • Det. Lasalle: “Walk quietly in Havana, Senor Shannon. The third death waits for you.” [12:45]
• Rooftop Standoff:
  • Slade: “Come and get me, mister. Whimpers Whimper. Did you hear anything yet, mister?” [24:38]

Key Timestamps

• [02:00] – Moving Mr. Johnson; tension between Rita and Slade
• [03:23] – Arrival of the threatening note
• [06:36] – Discovery of Johnson’s body
• [09:13] – Police investigation; Slade named as intended victim
• [10:07] – Timbro the undertaker, comic interlude
• [21:27] – The life raft revelation, setting up the revenge motive
• [24:10] – The killer’s rooftop confrontation
• [24:48] – Climax and aftermath

Segment 2: The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen – "Redbeard and the Bag of Pearls"

Main Theme

Captain Philip Carney learns that ancient taboos and modern greed collide when he and his crew are swept into violence over a cache of stolen pearls—and his mate’s flaming red beard sparks unexpected local mythology.

Major Discussion Points & Plot Progression

• Arrival at Hull Island

  • [28:11] Captain Carney and crew, including Gallagher with a new “burning red beard,” arrive to deliver supplies but find trouble brewing between local islanders and pearl poachers.

• The Hostile Welcome

  • [30:31] Carney meets Ray Lebrado, a pearl diver pursued by angry natives for violating sacred ground.
    • Lebrado: “These pearls... They’ll go $40,000 on skin... The Gilberts think nobody should dive there. It’s sacred.”
  • The Scarlet Queen crew, seen as allies, are caught in a cultural crossfire.

• Siege and Betrayal

  • [37:11] The local chief approaches with peace, but is shot by Lebrado's men, escalating the conflict.
  • [38:42] Carney and Fenrick are taken hostage. Gallagher is captured by natives to pay for the chief’s death.
  • [39:50] Lebrado proposes a deal: escape the island together, using Queen to get away, but Carney resists.

• Native Justice and Gallager’s Ascendancy

  • [47:21] Gallagher, thanks to his red beard, is elevated to the mythical status of a returning ancestral hero and avoids execution:
    • Gallagher: “They got a legend that a guy with a beard and hair like I’m sporting floated into Beirut island in the Gilberts three or four hundred years ago and he turned into quite a leading light. They think I’m him, come back to save their pearls!” [48:18]
  • He uses his new authority to orchestrate the rescue and recovery of their ship.

• Reclaiming the Scarlet Queen

  • [50:05] Gallagher and Carney lead a team of swimmers to retake the ship from Lebrado’s crew.
  • [51:46] Pearls and Lebrado are surrendered to the natives.

• Departure and Mythic Afterglow

  • [54:13] The Scarlet Queen sails for Christmas Island.
  • [55:08] Gallagher reads from a Pacific Islands handbook, finding that the legendary white-red bearded man may not be so mythical after all.
    • Gallagher: “How do you like that? It’s right there for anybody to read...”
  • Humorous exchange about Gallagher’s resemblance and multiple wives legend.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Cultural Collision:
  • Narrator: “You break a taboo, you’re asking for trouble. You asked for it, now you got it.” [34:57]
• Accidental Messianic Figure:
  • Gallagher: “They think I’m him, come back to save their pearls... All I gotta do is wag this beard. How many you want, 50, 100, or the whole blaster pack?” [48:53]
• Lighthearted Close:
  • Gallagher: “I told ‘em I had a scarlet queen.” [55:31]
  • Narrator: “After what she got you out of. To the Queen.”

Key Timestamps

• [28:11] – Scarlet Queen’s log and landfall at Hull Island
• [30:31] – Meeting Ray Lebrado, learn about the pearl taboo
• [37:11] – Shooting of the native chief and ensuing siege
• [47:21] – Gallagher’s red beard and the local legend revealed
• [50:05] – Rescue and retake of the Scarlet Queen
• [54:13] – Final log, reflection & toasts to Queen

Memorable Moments

• Rita’s Apathy (Bold Venture): Her total lack of emotion at her husband’s death upends expectations and sharpens suspicion.
• Timbro the Undertaker (Bold Venture): Offers gallows humor and breaks the tension with his persistent sales pitch for funeral services.
• Gallagher’s Red Beard (Scarlet Queen): Becomes the key to survival and heroism, as local myth and fact blur.
• Historic Connection (Scarlet Queen): Discovery that the “white-red bearded man” legend mirrors Gallagher’s sudden fame.

Summary

This episode offers vintage thrills and humor:

• In Bold Venture, the past is never dead, as a murder mystery peels back layers of guilt, vengeance, and survival.
• In Scarlet Queen, myth and reality merge as a red beard saves the day, navigating between Western cynicism and Pacific ritual.

Original wit, gritty repartee, and pulpy suspense shine, making these golden age radio journeys as rich as ever.

For More Episodes

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