Tagged: Doc Savage

BOX 13, DAN FOWLER, OPERATOR 5, JACK BENNY, AND MORE! FROM RADIO ARCHIVES!

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  • February 27, 2012

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

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February 24, 2012
 
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NEW Radio Set: Box Thirteen, Volume 4

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“Adventure wanted. Will go anyplace, do anything. Box Thirteen.” These words sent Dan Holiday, reporter turned author, into mystery and action for fifty-two episodes of ‘Box Thirteen’, a stand out radio program produced in 1948-49. Holiday, played by screen star Alan Ladd, checked his box at his paper, the Star-Times, each week and every single time launched himself into a brand new adventure.
 
The basic premise of the show is simple. Interested in writing the most successful and thrilling stories possible, Dan Holiday places an ad in the paper he works for – the Star-Times. Apparently prospering as a mystery writer, Holiday rarely charges a fee to any of the colorful clients that cross his path, most of whom need his assistance in one way or another.
 
“Box Thirteen” stood out amongst its contemporaries for more than one reason. The device Holiday uses to get his story ideas is one aspect of Box Thirteen that adds to its different flavor. Even though this technique, placing an ad in a paper advertising for adventure, was not a new one, actually present in at least one other old time radio show at the time, the way it was handled within this show was special. Holiday wasn’t a retired cop or a super secret agent with no war to fight. He was a guy who wanted to live the stories he wrote about so he’d write better books. He had no intention of making money directly off of helping someone out of a jam or being locked away in an asylum or any of the other calamities he intentionally encountered over fifty-two episodes. Thanks to Ladd’s portrayal, Holiday used the want-ad gimmick to better the lives of those he came into contact with in this unique way whenever he could.
 
Some sources cite that Alan Ladd played Dan Holiday as somewhat stiff and wooden in the early episodes of Box Thirteen. By the last episodes in the series, however, all agree that Ladd made the character and the show itself what it was always intended to be – a showpiece for what Alan Ladd could really do. Hang on tight and read over Dan Holiday’s shoulder as he learns what danger and death awaits him when he checks in at the Star-Times. All the mystery, suspense, and pure adventure you can handle await you in Box Thirteen, Volume 4, the last episodes in this classic program. This Six hour collection is available now on Audio CDs for $17.98 from Radio Archives!

 
This already fantastic collection of a Classic Adventures series also comes with incredible new artwork! Pulp Artist extraordinaire Doug Klauba brings Dan Holiday as played by Alan Ladd to visual life! A print of this great piece can be yours in one of the newest additions to the Pulp Book Store, The Art of Doug Klauba! Get this artwork as a poster in the new store featuring the varied and awesome work of Doug Klauba!
 

ra219-250-7001215 Many works from the Golden Age of Radio had their origins in other mediums. A best selling book, a movie, a hit Broadway play. Some even went on to have their time in the spotlight on TV. One show to rise out or grow into all of these mediums and become a part of radio history as well was a stand out unique soap opera called “Claudia.”

“Claudia” was based on the literary works of Rose Franken, a writer, novelist, playwright, and theatrical director who had first written about the Naughton’s in the mid-1930s. By the end of the decade, the highly popular short stories had been brought together into a series of best-selling novels which, in 1941, were adapted by Franken into a Broadway play starring Donald Cook as David and a young actress named Dorothy McGuire in the title role. Claudia Naughton was a breakout role for McGuire; the sincerity, simplicity, and captivating charm which she brought to the part made the play a long-running hit and soon brought her to Hollywood to reprise the role in the 20th Century Fox film version, released in 1943 and co-starring Robert Young as David. Based on that film’s success, in 1945, RKO Pictures starred McGuire and Young in “The Enchanted Cottage” and 1946 found them together again in “Claudia and David,” a sequel to the earlier film.
 
Heard today, “Claudia” remains wonderful entertainment, notable for both its lighthearted tone and the believable interplay between its characters. Claudia, a bit younger than her years, is often impulsive, sometimes irresponsible, usually perky, and just a bit flighty. As she matures, she becomes a unique mixture of enthusiasm, incompetence and over-confidence — deeply in love with her somewhat older husband David, but frequently naive and too likely to trust in her insecurities rather than her instincts.
 
Claudia, Volume 9 continues Radio Archives’ collection of the complete run of this classic series. Restored to the best and clearest audio quality possible, these shows sparkle and are best heard in the way they were presented, in fifteen minute chapters every single day. Whether you enjoy them as they originally aired or can’t wait and sit through them all at once, Claudia, Volume 9 continues a wonderful episodic tale of a woman and the man she loves living life the way most of their listeners did and do. This volume can be yours today on Audio CDs for only $17.98.
 

by Tommy Hancock

 

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It’s often amazing and sometimes atrocious when a character begins in one medium and then is translated into other venues. Sometimes the essence of the original concept and story are maintained and fans simply get a different version of the tale they love. Other times, alterations made for whatever reason are so dramatic that whatever results from said changes is a pale imitation, if not something completely different than where the idea began. There is that rare instance, though, of something beginning one way, then being interpreted slightly differently through a different lens, so to speak.
 
Or in this case, through a radio speaker.
 
Casey, Crime Photographer, Volume 1 contains twenty episodes of good old-fashioned pulpy, fun, action packed newspaper mysteries that any fan would enjoy! Originally created for Black Mask magazine by writer George Harmon Coxe, the character that headlines this show was originally known as Flashgun Casey. And those original tales as well as the novels to follow were written in the trademark detective pulp style of two fisted hard boiled action made famous by Black Mask. Coxe imbued the initial version of his camera wielding newspaper photographer with a thirst for justice, a nose for news, and enough grit and iron to take on any thug or crime boss. Thankfully for fans of such stories, those aspects of Casey survived into the radio show, even though the sobriquet of ‘Flashgun’ didn’t for the most part.
 
Even though Casey can be heard doggedly pursuing right and wanting to spread wrongdoing all over the front page of the Morning Express, there was a not all that subtle shift in the character by the time he made it to radio. This was not uncommon in the days of radio, to take especially a rough-hewn hard boiled type and lighten him up a bit for his audio incarnation. There’s multiple examples of this attached to some pretty well known characters. Unfortunately, there’s usually something lost when this occurs, a particular aspect of the character that just doesn’t survive the translation. A prime example of this that comes to mind is the Wally Maher version of ‘Michael Shayne’ (The Jeff Chandler version, also available via Radio Archives, nails the character solidly by the way). Maybe the portrayal comes off as too soft or downright goofy or the stories get feathery. Not so with “Casey, Crime Photographer.”
 
One of the major appeals of this show is the fact that the writers and producers built a likable, interesting supporting cast around Casey. There’s Miss Anne Williams, Casey’s very own reporter and love interest; Captain Logan, the almost standard irascible police contact; and Ethelbert, the most enjoyable owner and bartender of Casey’s favorite watering hole, the Blue Note. Each of the episodes in this collection follow a standard formula for the show. Casey and Ethelbert embark upon banter that leads to Tony Marvin, the announcer, opening the show and hawking the sponsor, Anchor-Hocking Glass. Then oftentimes the mystery or crime that Casey and Anne have to track down for the paper is reported to them while sitting again at Ethelbert’s bar. From there, each show contains a good balance of humorous repartee, well paced action and twists, and Casey showing the flashbulb blazing heroic side of himself Coxe imbued him with while maintaining a likability that added to the mass audience appeal of the character.
 
Throw in the fact that two of the best possible voices for the two best characters in “Casey” are present in this collection and you can’t lose! Staats Cotsworth, although not the only actor to voice Casey, owned the role the longest and definitely left his mark on it with his jovial baritone voice. John Gibson’s high tenor portrayal of Ethelbert clearly stands out in every episode, making the role that Gibson played for the entire run of the radio show one of the favorites among fans.
 
Casey, Crime Photographer, Volume 1 is that rare case where listeners get both the original take on the character wrapped in new interpretations…and it works! Available from Radio Archives for $29.98 on Audio CDs, this is a series that needs to be yours today! Get the picture?

 
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In the flood of pulp magazines featuring the hard-hitting exploits of a single hero, only one magazine read as if its stories had been torn out of the headlines. That was G-Men, starring the closest equivalent to Eliot Ness and his Untouchables the pulps dared offer up.
 
The origins of this exemplary series are obscure. Leo Margulies, editor-in-chief of the Thrilling chain, may have been eyeing rival titles such as Secret Service Operator #5 and Secret Agent X, thinking there’s gold in fictionalizing the exploits of undercover men. Early in 1935, Margulies let it be known in the trade that he was planning to issue Secret Service Detective Stories—a bland and uninspiring title if one was ever floated.
 
But Secret Service Detective Stories never materialized. In April, James Cagney starred in a blockbuster film, G Men.  That July, a radio program by that same name debuted to strong ratings. It later became even more famous as Gang Busters. Pulp editors always looked to Hollywood and the headlines for inspiration. Margulies didn’t need to be hit over the head.  He scrapped the Secret Service concept and appropriated the popular title, which had been coined by gangster George “Machine Gun” Kelly when, after being surrounded by armed F.B.I. agents in 1933, threw up his hands and cried, “Don’t shoot, G-Men! Don’t shoot, G-Men!” Or so the legend goes. G-Man stood for Government Men, specifically F.B.I. agents.
 
These were the days of iron-fisted Federal Bureau of Investigation director J. Edgar Hoover battling back the gangster tide that was overrunning major cities all across America. Seeing the local law-enforcement was outnumbered and outgunned—if not compromised—by organized crime he reorganized the old Bureau of Investigation into America’s first national police force—sanctioned to cross state lines in the pursuit of justice. In the pulps, the urban menace of mobster crime had given rise to The Shadow and all the superhuman crime-fighters who followed.
 
Five years into this ever-shifting reality, Margulies and his editors must have decided the reading public was ready for a crime-crusher who didn’t wear a black cape or a weird mask, and who operated within the law. They were ready for the real deal.
 
So they created Special Agent Daniel Fowler. Young but hardened, the product of the FBI’s new scientific investigation methods, Fowler and his aides, Larry Kendal and Sally Vane, formed a special roving unit of the Bureau, willing and able to rush to any state in the Union to combat counterfeiters, extortionists and sundry foreign spies.
 
To write the exploits of such a non-nonsense hero, they understood that they needed a writer of a different cut than the boys who were grinding out The Phantom Detective every month. Maybe they tried a few of their Phantom authors and they flopped. In any case, they called in George Fielding Eliot, a former major in U. S. intelligence.
 
Titled after an underworld slang term for kidnapping, with the Lindbergh baby kidnapping fresh in the public consciousness, and inspired by the notorious Purple Gang, the premier exploit of Dan Fowler and his team was called Snatch! It was an instant success among readers who had been reading daily newspaper accounts of the F. B. I.’s successful crusade against John Dillinger and “Baby Face” Nelson, and other otherwise-unstoppable Public Enemies. Their bodies were fast piling up—filled with government lead, with no sign of The Shadow or the Spider anywhere in real life.
 
Seared by crime, trained by Hoover, and motivated by a stern sense of justice, Special Agent Fowler went on to a long and successful career spanning nearly two decades, and a single 1937 film, Federal Bullets. Only the death of the pulp magazine industry put an end to his fame.
 
In order to do justice to this riveting hero, we’ve recruited the impeccable-voiced Richard Epcar to narrate Snatch! If you like Richard’s hard-hitting performance as much as we do, expect to hear a big announcement regarding Richard Epcar and Radio Archives next month. We can’t wait!
 
Available for only $14.98 on Audio CDs, 5 Hours of G-Man Action from Will Murray’s Pulp Classics and Radio Archives!

 
by Derrick Ferguson
 

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The more audiobooks produced by Radio Archives that I listen to, the more impressed I am and the more I’m getting hooked on them. What I really enjoy first off is the mixture of music and sound effects that make the audiobooks a little closer to audio dramas than just a straight reading of the text. Which isn’t a bad thing, depending on who’s doing the reading. For White Eyes we’ve got Richard Epcar who has a clear, firm, muscular voice, which is just what you want for a Doc Savage adventure.
 
And what an adventure it is! In White Eyes, Doc Savage is up against one of the most formidable villains he’s ever faced. The mysterious White Eyes dresses entirely in white. His skin is the color of porcelain and his eyes have no pupils. He appears to have supernatural abilities such as his mastery of The Blind Death. A horrifying method of murder, it turns the eyes of its victims as blank and as white as cue balls.
 
There’s quite a lot of eccentric supporting characters running around here, including a goodly number of New York’s criminal element. These criminals are bonded together into an army by White Eyes to seize Doc’s source of wealth: the Mayan gold that was bequeathed to him by his father in The Man of Bronze, Doc’s first recorded adventure.
 
It’s an ambitious scheme and one I found highly intriguing as for a change, it’s the criminals who go on the offensive to challenge Doc and his crew.
 
As an added bonus, there are two interviews with Will Murray where he gives interesting and entertaining background information about Doc Savage and Lester Dent in general and White Eyes in particular. Being a writer myself, I’m always fascinated to hear how another writer goes about crafting his stories.
 
Out of the two highly excellent Doc Savage audiobooks I’ve listened to so far, I’d have to give White Eyes the edge. That’s not to say that Python Isle suffers at all. It’s an outstanding Doc Savage adventure and well worth your time and money. But I’d have to say that White Eyes is probably my favorite out of the two. Tell you what, why not go listen to both of ‘em then get back to me and we can argue about it, okay? Get your copy for $31.98 on Audio CDs from Radio Archives!

 
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The Best Pulp From Yesterday for Your Digital Reader Today! That’s what Will Murray’s Pulp Classics line of eBooks from Radio Archives brings you! Thrill to Heroic Tales of Pulp Icons like The Spider and Chill to the Machinations of Villains like Doctor Death! Two fisted action and high octane adventure written by the Authors who defined Pulp Fiction forever!
 
These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and feature the original full color cover. Will Murray’s Pulp Classics line of eBooks are of the highest quality and feature the great Pulp Fiction stories of the 1930s-1950s.
 
Two new eBooks starring the violent vigilante adventures of the Master of men! The Spider, America’s best-loved pulp-fiction character of the 1930s and 1940s, erupts guns blazing in these two exquisitely reformatted classic tales!
 
The Spider #3 Wings of the Black Death
Like the consuming flames of a prairie fire the dread news spread: “The Spider has gone mad! He will massacre us all!” But Richard Wentworth, never more sane, was even then gambling life itself in one desperate effort to save the city which cursed his name — from the awful ravages of man-spread plague!
 
 
When night falls you’ll think of Zara. You’ll see those eyes of his glowing with the very fires of hell — and you’ll be glad that the Spider prowls the night to help mankind. For Zara rose from Underworld filth… to enslave all peoples. And his crowning glory was saved for the Spider — Master of Men — whom he swore to make an idiot, the clowning jester of Zara’s court!
 
As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written “Meet the Spider” especially for this series of eBooks.
 
Joining the Spider are three names well known to Pulp Fans and characters full of intrigue, adventure, and excitement all their own!
 
Operator #5 – April 1934 
#1 The Masked Invasion

by Frederick C. Davis writing as Curtis Steele
Invisible, secret, deadly, the masked empire wielded its dread power of darkness throughout the nation. Havoc and ruin followed the terror-torn thousands who fled the country to escape the Thirteenth Darkness. America, faced with certain disaster, placed her chance of survival in one man’s capable hands — and prayed that the warrior gods might smile once more upon the miracle man of her Secret Service — Jimmy Christopher! Jimmy Christopher, clean-cut, square-jawed and clear-eyed, was the star of the most audacious pulp magazines ever conceived — Operator #5. As a special Bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of Operator #5 eBooks.
 

Dan Fowler: G-Man – October 1935 
Snatch!

by George Fielding Eliot writing as C.K.M. Scanlon
Into the arena of the endless war which society wages on the criminal has stepped a new and gallant warrior — G-Man Dan Fowler, special agent of the Department of Justice. In this classic tale, Fowler takes to the trail of the Grey Gang — that band of masked killers who laugh at the Law while committing every heinous crime known to humanity! Dan Fowler, special agent of the Department of Justice, appeared as a long-running series inside G-Men Detective magazine from 1935 to 1953. Join him as he battles the brutal instruments of crimedom in this fast-paced battle against the minions of the lawless.
 
Doctor Death – February 1935 
#1 12 Must Die
by Harold Ward writing as Zorro
Who Is Doctor Death? A mad old wizard with the power to summon loathsome gray horrors from hell’s attic, decrees that the country’s 12 most famous men must die as carrion for his ghostly vultures. Only one man has a clue to the strange power of Doctor Death and that man faces torture and death to combat the master of carnage. The maddest of the Mad Scientists — Doctor Death — starred in his own bizarre pulp magazine in early 1935. Standing against him were the Secret Twelve, a band of the top U. S. civil and business leaders, headed by Jimmy Holm, a millionaire criminologist and occultist. One of the rare unabashedly supernatural series the pulps ever produced.
 
All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you purchase this eBook from RadioArchives.com you receive all three formats in one ZIP file: PDF for PC or Mac computer; Mobi for Kindle; and ePub for iPad/IPhone, Android, Sony eReader, and Nook. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook novels to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
 
Jump Feet First into Classic Pulp with eBooks for only $2.99 each! All Radio Archives eBooks are available at the Kindle Store.

 

 
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Radio Archives is proud to count the International Jack Benny Fan Club as one of the newest members of the Pulp Book Store! The Fan Club’s store features 39 Forever: Second Edition, Volume 3 written by Laura Leff and Martin Gostanian. This book is part of a series that focuses on Benny’s career and illustrates the impact that he had as a comedian and an individual on the entertainment industry and society at large. In the following interview, Laura and Martin discuss their personal interest in Jack Benny as well as the Fan Club itself and the importance of Jack Benny to fans, listeners, and Pop Culture Enthusiasts today.
 
Radio Archives: First, could you share something about yourself and how you developed your interest in Jack Benny?
 
jackbennypose-8445599Laura: The short version is that it all started for me with the 1958 Warner Brothers’ cartoon The Mouse That Jack Built. It portrayed many of the classic radio characters as mice, and included a rare live-action sequence with Jack at the end. Later, I was drawn to reruns of Jack’s programs on a Detroit station in the late 1970s, and then decided it was high time to start the Jack Benny Fan Club.
 
Martin: Along with family, friends and my mother’s cooking, my earliest memories starting in the early 1960s revolved around and were defined by television. To be sure, I loved to read and my interests were varied, from history to math. But when it came to TV, I was just simply obsessed by it, there’s no other way to put it. Through it all, my preferences always lead to comedy, physical as well as verbal and literate humor. My first memory of Jack Benny was his weekly TV series in 1963 when it was on Tuesday nights right after Petticoat Junction – that is why I usually watched it. I will admit I gravitated to whatever physical comedy and sight gags that Jack would either instigate or had become the butt of, but it wasn’t until I had become fascinated with what was dubbed “old-time radio” that was resurfacing on local radio stations in the late 1960s that I really first discovered who Jack Benny really was.
 
It was when I was becoming more mentally discerning that I had latched onto Jack’s deft comedic skills. I started to fathom his virtuosity and his escalated absurdist vision of the world he inhabited, which constantly plagued him and bordered on the surreal. This rewarded audiences with not only what he espoused but also how he expressed his finely calculated wit. Such was the sum total of his greatness as a communicator. I had grown to understand and cherish the subtleties as well as the broad mental conjuring that only Benny’s radio comedy could evoke so superbly and unfailingly – and which had been translated so organically and envisioned so imaginatively when adapted for television. As a writer, I also have a true reverence for the scribes Benny employed who helped shape, hone and perfect Jack’s peerless humor for the ear as well as the eye.
 
In adulthood, I appreciated most the genuineness and universality of his comedy that other more astute pundits and mavens of comedy have already attested more eloquently and precisely. After over 45 years, the more I listen and watch Mr. B, the more I am in sheer awe of his depth, influence and humanity.
 
Radio Archives: What is the background/history of the International Jack Benny Fan Club?
 
Laura: I started the club when I was 10, and have to credit Jay Hickerson for giving it the first boost of publicity. Once upon a time there was no Internet (*GASP!*), and you had to get the word out by connecting to other people and groups who were interested in the same kinds of things that you were! Through 32+ years of accumulating members, shows, information, technology…progressively everything comes together. Today we have an extensive Web site, monthly chats, a newsletter that is published three times per year, audio and video libraries, and lots of resources to help members connect with the things they love most about Jack Benny, his life, and his work.
 
Radio Archives: What do you think there is about the legacy and work Jack Benny has left behind that still makes him popular today?
 
Laura: The major factor is that his comedy was based on character, not topical humor. Everyone still knows someone who is cheap, who thinks they do something very well (like play the violin) when they really don’t, someone who is silly and naive (like Dennis), etc. The characters are people to whom you can relate immediately without running for Wikipedia (“Who was Wendell Wilkie again?”). I have had many members tell me how they enjoy listening to the shows with their children, and even use them as bedtime stories.
 
Martin: Jack’s esteem in the pantheon of American entertainment is celebrated to this day for a variety of reasons. First and foremost was his “everyman” character persona that was so empathetic, sincere and endearing to audiences. His comic logic of inflating his own sense of self and in reacting to the inanities of life that unmercifully and hilariously confronted him revealed his mastery of humor and his ingenuity in connecting with audiences. On a larger scale, Jack’s influence and legacy stemmed from the acknowledged achievements that he innovated or epitomized on radio: character-driven humor, the running gag and the ensemble comedy.
 
Admittedly, there are a good many people, mostly under thirty, who have never seen or even have heard of Jack Benny. However, when they delight in the uproarious antics of sitcom favorites such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Cheers, Seinfeld, Friends and 30 Rock, they indirectly know who Jack is because he set the standards for the character-driven, ensemble comedy. And when these same deprived viewers are treated for the first time to Jack’s unique brand of humor, whether from radio or TV, they most always are rewarded with belly laughs, a true sense of appreciation for such a comedic talent and an earnest desire for more Mr. B.
 
By far the greatest testament to Jack’s comedy legacy is readily apparent in late night network talk shows. As learned author and television scholar David Marc observed in his essay, “Lending Character to American Comedy,” hosts such as Johnny Carson, Dick Cavett, David Letterman (and more recently Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien) are “heirs to the mechanics of the Benny inheritance.” He perceptively noted that these stars (and well as other post-primetime “desk-and-sofa” scions since Marc’s 1993 observations) have developed their own versions of the “Benny stare” to minimally express “their personal aggravation with onstage occurrences” and in beseeching viewer support, all while “creating identity with audiences and picking up laughs in the bargain.” In one regard they are like Benny in that each is an “everyman” who tries to make sense of the world around them, all while juggling the vainglorious as well as the self-deprecating within their comic repertoire. Carson was the most vocal on air about his love for Jack and the influence Benny’s comedy wielded in shaping Johnny’s own comic vision, which in turn still serves as the hallmark for any successful comedy-variety talk show on late night TV.
 
Radio Archives: Comedy is a slippery slope as far as timeliness. Does Benny’s work transcend that and if so, what about his work appeals to a modern audience?
 
Laura: Many things don’t age well because people simply don’t understand them any more, or can’t relate them to their own personal experience. For example, consider immigrant humor of the early 20th century. People understood it in the context of that society, and experiencing it today can provide a sociological study of how people were struggling to make the transition into American society. Yet the Irish washerwoman or the Yiddish peddler is largely an artifact of the past, inspiring question marks over the heads of most people who don’t have a first-hand memory of the Reagan administration (and many who do).
 
While you get the very occasional topical joke on Jack’s program, it’s in the larger context of character with which people can connect. Stinginess aside, who doesn’t laugh at Jack playing a broken-down Tarzan opposite Carol Burnett as his put-upon Jane? It’s still character-based, with the humor of a robust young couple growing older in amusing ways.
 
Martin: The timeliness of Jack’s comedy lies in the individuality of Jack’s persona and how he is simply trying to rationalize the world around him, regardless of the scenario. How Jack interprets and reacts to a situation or a condition under one pretense while cleverly revealing his true motivation or hidden agenda resonates with and relates to audiences across all generations because it speaks to our emotional make-up and traits in its many shades through the prism of human behavior.
 
On the whole, people aspire to the same things Jack does: we want to be loved, we want to excel, we want to be respected, we want to know the how and why of situations affecting us, etc. His comic slant is predicated on and motivated by these universal desires and goals. Moreover, Jack’s exaggerated and likeable comic outlook was tinged with self-deprecating humor, yet he carried the veneer of a vulnerable, genteel and harmless fussbudget. The dynamics of Benny’s outward appearance clashing but coexisting with his visceral inner agenda only enhanced the hilarity. Again, comedy emerging out of a well-developed character.
 
This contrasts to comedy that heavily relies on topical references that are soon dated and eventually rendered arcane or obtuse. True, Benny did use topical references and idioms of the day, but the contexts were so broadly used that latter-day audiences unfamiliar with such timely citations could usually get the gist of the joke or outrageous allegory regardless of the era when they first occurred or still had prominence in the then-current culture.
 
Jack Benny endures as an eloquent comic presence and influence who appeals to modern audiences because he was most human and humane of them all in the 20th century. And thanks to the wonders of digital entertainment and the internet, Jack will continue to attract, amuse and amaze legions of new fans in the generations ahead.
 
jack-benny-2963645Radio Archives: What is the goal and purpose of the Fan Club as well as your mission in terms of sharing Jack Benny with today’s listeners/readers/fans?
 
Laura: We are a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit, with the official purpose being to educate people about the life and work of Jack Benny and his associates. We do so by preserving and making material available through our libraries, online resources, and other publications. We also do ongoing research for books such as the 39 Forever series and the newsletter to provide a growing body of knowledge about Jack Benny, expanding the context of understanding who he was as a person, an artist, and one of the foremost comedians of the 20th century.
 
Learn about one of the greatest comedic talents in history by visiting the International Jack Benny Fan Club’s page in the Pulp Book Store!
 

 

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Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows! The pulp era’s greatest crimebuster journeys to Maine on golden quests in two thrilling pulp novels by Walter Gibson writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, The Shadow and G-man Vic Marquette hunt enemy agents sabotaging maritime shipping from a mysterious Castle of Crime. Then, a sea captain’s dying words lead to serial slayings along the long-buried trail to a Dead Man’s Chest and Cuban gold! This instant collector’s item reprints the classic color cover paintings by George Rozen and Graves Gladney and the original interior illustrations by Edd Cartier and Paul Orban, with historical commentary by Will Murray. Yours for only $14.95!
 
The pulp era’s greatest superman returns in classic pulp thrillers by Laurence Donovan and Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc and Patricia Savage attempt to discover the secret behind the baffling series of “black spot murders” that confounds the law. Then, an auction gallery bidding war leads to the abduction of Monk Mayfair. Can the Man of Bronze uncover the sinister secret of The Terrible Stork in time to save his right-hand aide? This special collectors edition showcases the original color pulp covers by Walter M. Baumhofer and Modest Stein, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and a behind-the-scenes article by Will Murray, writer of nine Doc Savage novels. Yours for only $14.95!
 
The double life of Police Commissioner James Gordon is explored in a pair of two-fisted thrillers that inspired classic Batman stories! First, The Whisperer goes undercover to close down a “School for Murder” that prepares teenagers for criminal careers! Then, Wildcat Gordon investigates corruption in the trucking industry in “Murder on the Line.” BONUS: an adventure of Norgil the Magician by The Shadow’s Maxwell Grant! This historic collector’s item showcases both original color pulp covers by Spider artist John Newton Howitt, classic interior illustrations by Paul Orban and golden-age great Creig Flessel, and historical commentary by Will Murray and Anthony Tollin. Now at Radio Archives for $14.95!

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The Spider, Volume 22 – 1935 & 1940 Variant Cover Editions 

Pulp fiction’s legendary Master of Men returns in two classic novels from the Golden Age of Pulp Fiction, written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “Overlord of the Damned” (October 1935), the Boss unleashes horrible death with his demonic acid guns… with a vat of the same deadly corrosive reserved for those who talk too much! With his beloved Nita van Sloan a hostage to a terrible doom, the Spider faces the soul-tearing prospect of planting the Spider seal on his friend Stanley Kirkpatrick, Commissioner of Police! Then, in “Dictator’s Death Merchants!” (July 1940), The jaws of death gape open when El Crocodilo feasts! With uncanny skill, he forestalls even the Spider’s best attempts to trap him. Striking without mercy, this menace from the past rises anew by demolishing a banking institution each night, in a mad scheme to take control of nothing less than all of America’s finances! This volume is available in two editions and features the original artwork from the October 1935 or the July 1940 edition of “The Spider” magazine. Both versions feature reformatted text and original interior illustrations to accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 

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Classic Reprints! New Pulp Tales! History, Pop Culture, and Much More! Where do you find the finest of these? In the Pulp Book Store! And in the Treasure Chest, you find unbelievable deals from the following Publishers!
 
The Lord of the Vampires Returns and you can get him for 20% off original price. Dracula Lives by Joshua Reynolds is a page turning chill ride and can be yours at a steal!
 
Puttin’ The Monthly Back into Pulp, Pro Se Productions offers the finest in modern Pulp Magazines! For the month of February, pick up any or all of the first three issues of Pro Se Presents at an amazing 25% off each copy!
 
The greatest Minds of the 19th Century go to battle with the most evil forces known to man! Buy Modern Marvels: Viktoriana by Wayne Reinagel and get 5% off the regular price for the entire month of February!
 
Just click on the Treasure Chest on the Pulp Book Store Page for these terrific offers! And enjoy the best that these companies and more have to offer in the Pulp Book Store!

 
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By Art Sippo

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Four scientists were stranded on Cormoral Island when the Kendall Foundation of St. Louis that funded their expedition went bust. They were rescued by a passing ship, the Meg Finegan. It should have been a coincidence, but one of the scientists KNEW it would find them. He also started knowing a lot of other things before they happened. Professor Macbeth Williams was a hydrologist and the heir to a 500 million dollar fortune. He had taken the job on the expedition to escape from the pressure of managing his family fortune. He did not think his judgment skills were up to par. Now he was literally predicting poker hands before they were dealt and showing keen insight into future events. But Professor Williams was a man of science and did not place any stock in such things as precognition. But even after landing in Miami, the prediction kept coming. His fellow stranded scientists see this as a good thing and they insist to Williams that maybe he does have enough in sight to manage his vast fortune. But he was frightened that he might be losing his mind. He needed to get professional help to set his mind at ease. So he decided to call on the greatest Psychiatrist of his time: Dr. Clark Savage Jr.
 
But as he attempted to make contact with Doc Savage, strange things start happening. The telegrapher who took his initial message was murdered. Thugs in New York attacked Doc at his headquarters to prevent him from going to Macbeth Williams’ aid. Doc Savage becomes intrigued. There is an enormous fortune at stake, and its unwilling heir suddenly manifests almost supernatural insight which he thinks is a sign of madness. Meanwhile nefarious influences are working to isolate this heir from Doc Savage’s help. Something does not add up.
 
Can Doc Savage figure out this puzzle? Is Macbeth Williams really a prophet? Why are criminal elements interested in him? Is this an elaborate scam to get access to the Williams family fortune?
 
This was the penultimate adventure of the original Doc Savage pulp series. The story harkens back to the heyday of the series with the literary polish that marked many of the later stories. Don’t miss this one! Get it and another Doc Classic today in Doc Savage #15 for $12.95 from Radio Archives!

 

Comments From Our Customers!
 

Dominick Cancilla:
Thanks again for the assistance and for the great customer service (as usual). I have a six-hour drive tomorrow for work and The Green Llama will be keeping me company. I will certainly continue to buy every pulp audiobook you put out.
 
Eugene Dungan:
I am getting ready to order The Green Lama audiobook. I have all of the audiobooks that you have published. I sure am enjoying all of the audiobooks that you have put out so far.
 
Bobby McGowen Jr.:
I have been getting all of The Spider ebooks and I love them.
 
Bryan Pears from the United Kingdom:
Do you have any Operator 5 eBooks available? I have just bought The Spider eBook “City of Flaming Shadows” and was really impressed.

 
If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!

 
The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

PULP ARK 2012 AWARDS ANNOUNCED!

  • News
  • February 26, 2012

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Tommy Hancock, Editor in Chief of Pro Se Productions and Pulp Ark Coordinator, announces that voting has closed for the 2012 Pulp Ark Awards, the first awards given in association with this inaugural Pulp creators’ conference/convention.

The Winners of the 2012 Pulp Ark Awards are-
BEST NOVEL-Yesteryear by Tommy Hancock (Pro Se Productions)

BEST COLLECTION/ANTHOLOGY-Four Bullets for Dillon (Pulpwork Press)

BEST SHORT STORY- The Devil’s Workmen by Barry Reese-The Avenger: The Justice Inc Files (Moonstone)

BEST COVER ART-Hugh Monn, Private Detective-by David Russell (Pro Se Productions)

BEST INTERIOR ART-The Adventures of Lazarus Gray-George Sellas (Pro Se Productions)

BEST PULP RELATED COMIC-All Star Pulp Comics #1 (Airship 27 Productions)

BEST PULP MAGAZINE-Pro Se Presents (Pro Se Productions)

BEST PULP REVIVAL-The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage by Will Murray (Altus Press)

BEST NEW PULP CHARACTER- John Blackthorn Created by Van Allen Plexico (White Rocket Books)

BEST AUTHOR-Teel James Glenn

BEST NEW WRITER-TIE Sean Taylor And Chuck Miller

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD-Howard Hopkins

The awards, 8X10 engraved wooden plaques, will be awarded in the middle of Pulp Ark, the evening of Saturday, April 21, 2012. Hancock stated that all winners as well as nominees are encouraged to attend, but any winners who could not would receive their awards by mail. Pulp Ark thanks all who nominated, all who voted, and congratulations to all the nominees and especially to the winners of the Pulp Ark 2012 Awards!

For any questions concerning Pulp Ark, contact Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net or follow Pulp Ark news at www.pulpark.blogspot.com

PULP OBSCURA ADDS TWO CLASSIC CHARACTERS FROM PULP’S GREATEST CREATOR!

  • News
  • February 10, 2012

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Pro Se Productions, an up and coming Publisher in the New Pulp field and known for original characters, announces today an exciting addition to its first foray into classic Pulp characters, the PULP OBSCURA line.
As previously announced, Pro Se Productions in conjunction with Altus Press, the premier producer of Pulp Reprints as well as the Publisher of The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage written by Will Murray, will be producing collections of New Pulp tales based on characters that Altus is reprinting.  These characters will not necessarily be the better-known Pulp characters, but rather largely unknown and forgotten heroes and villains from Pulp’s Golden Era.  Although many of these characters, such as Richard Knight, the aviator hero featured in the first PULP OBSCURA volume from Pro Se, are currently in the Public Domain, Pro Se reveals today that not only will there be volumes of PULP OBSCURA involving characters requiring permission and licensing to use, but the two characters currently in question were created by possibly the best known and respected Classic Pulp Author ever.
“Pro Se is absolutely proud,” Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor-in-Chief of Pro Se Productions stated, “to be able to say that with the sanction of the representative of the heirs of Norma Dent, PULP OBSCURA will include collections featuring brand new tales written by modern writers of two heroes created and originally written by Lester Dent.” 
Later in 2012, Altus Press has plans to reprint the original stories written by Lester Dent of two of his characters, both falling into the ‘gadget detective’ category, a particular niche that Dent often wrote in and one that definitely carried over into his Doc Savage stories.  These two characters, Foster Fade, the Crime Spectacularist and Lynn Lash will appear in Altus reprint editions and will also appear in anthologies of New Pulp tales featuring the characters as companion volumes to the Altus reprints.
“I can’t really express,” Hancock said, “how absolutely cool it is to be able to be a part of bringing two classic Dent characters back to life in a sense.   Although some Pulp Fans, particularly Dent devotees, are aware of Fade and Lash, they are largely unknown characters to many readers today.  To be able to not only have their original adventures in print again with Altus Press, but to also be producing and creating brand new stories to continue where Mr. Dent left off and to bring awareness to not just these characters, but to the wonderful variety of characters that still live from the Pulp Age as well as the lesser known work of Dent himself, its simply astounding for me to even be associated with it.”
Although definite dates for publishing have not been established, Hancock stated that recruiting the writers for the first two anthologies, one featuring each character, would begin immediately and would follow the same standard applied to previous PULP OBSCURA titles.  Anyone interested in having the opportunity to propose a tale for either THE NEW ADVENTURES OF FOSTER FADE, THE CRIME SPECTACULARIST VOLUME ONE or THE NEW ADVENTURES OF LYNN LASH VOLUME ONE simply needs to email Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net.   Those interested will then, according to Hancock, be given an opportunity to make proposals in the coming days.
“Thanks,” Hancock stated, “to Matt Moring from Altus Press for coming to Pro Se and wanting to bring new life to all these classic characters that have sat dormant far too long. And much appreciation to Will Murray and the Dent heirs for allowing Pro Se and the writers we’ll gather to be a part of something the man many of us consider the best Pulp creator ever started.”

THE SPIDER GOES EBOOK! ALL OF ALTUS NOW AVAILABLE! DRAMA AND THE GREEN LAMA AND MORE!

  • News
  • January 27, 2012
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January 27, 2012
 
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NEW Radio Set: Claudia, Volume 7
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Soap Operas in the heyday of Radio were very similar to one another. For the most part, their content was predictable, but deeply engrossing. Soap operas played on the apparent human need for intrigue, insider knowledge, gossip, and the satisfaction that comes from knowing that, no matter how tedious or dull or awful your life is, someone out there has it much worse than you do.
 
But, in 1947, a new soap opera debuted that was far different – far more quiet and gentle and down-to-earth – than its strife-ridden forbears. This show brought listeners more than the ‘tune in tomorrow’ hooks its peers produced. Listeners tuned in day after day for the interesting, fully developed characters, the light-hearted banter between them, and the familiarity of their day-to-day situations. This soap opera, probably more of a light drama in modern terms, is “Claudia.”

“Claudia” told the tale of Claudia and David Naughton, newlyweds, just beginning their married life. Young, enthusiastic, and very much in love, they weren’t suffering from any medical maladies or suspicions of infidelity. Instead, they were simply facing the many challenges of any new marriage – finding an apartment, getting used to each other’s quirks, and learning to live together on a daily basis. Claudia, a bit younger than her years, is often impulsive, sometimes irresponsible, usually perky, and just a bit flighty. As she matures, she becomes a unique mixture of enthusiasm, incompetence and over-confidence — deeply in love with her somewhat older husband David but frequently naive and too likely to trust her insecurities rather than her instincts.
Heard today, “Claudia” remains wonderful entertainment, notable for both its lighthearted tone and the believable interplay between its characters. In a feat that is rare where old time radio is concerned, Radio Archives has been able to locate and preserve the entire eighteen-month run of “Claudia” – 390 episodes in all – with no missing shows, allowing you to enjoy the complete series on a day-by-day basis. This collection offers 24 episodes of “Claudia” and marks the midway point of the remaining volumes. Claudia, Volume 7 and the series as a whole are a real treasure for radio enthusiasts to enjoy for many years to come and are available today from Radio Archives! Six hours on Audio CDs for $17.98.

by Tommy Hancock
 

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Old Time Radio is responsible for at least the longevity of so many character types that the public have enjoyed for decades and still today. One of those is the brassy Brooklyn dame who while seeming ditzy to some, actually brings a bit of her own wisdom of the world to every predicament she finds herself in, of which there are many. If you haven’t guessed it, I’ve just described one Maisie Revere, often out of work entertainer and just as often consistent entertainment as the heroine of The Adventures of Maisie.
 
Portrayed by Ann Sothern, MGM starlet and the originator of the Maisie role in a series of high grade B movies for the studio, Maisie came to life on the radio waves in 1949. Although this is actually the second series to feature the character, it’s the only series of which any episodes are known to exist.
 
From the cracker jack opening of Maisie’s heels clicking, a man asking her “Hiya babe! Say, how ’bout-“ and a slap and Maisie saying, “Does that answer your question, buddy?” the stage is set in each episode for Sothern to play brassy and funny to the hilt. And she does this with a style and a sort of rough grace that adds credence to the character. Maisie sounds and moves within each episode as you would expect a girl from Brooklyn who finds herself in non-Brooklyn type situations constantly to sound and move. And although, by her own account, Maisie may not be the highest limb on the tree intellectually, her view of the world around her and how those she encounters mistakenly see things is simultaneously hilarious, refreshing, and enlightening.
 
On so many levels, “The Adventures of Maisie” is most definitely a comedy, leaning heavily toward screwball in a few of the episodes on this collection. But something else manifests from the crucible of mixing Sothern’s acting and dead on voice with the skill of the writers and the quirky plots of this show. Whether Maisie is having to work off rent as a hotel clerk and mistakenly rents a room to phony royalty or pretends to be a lady herself and almost nabs her a Lord all her own or rooks a snobby diva out of her stylish clothes by convincing her she’s a near dowager, there is something that comes out of each episode more than guffaws and giggles.
 
Played with that street rough, yet simplistic delivery Sothern brings to the role, Maisie Revere delivers quite a bit of Brooklyn spun philosophy as she stumbles in and out of trouble. You don’t have to listen hard to hear her ideas on rich people, authority, and even her own place in the crazy world she lives in. This adds a distinct appeal to the show as a whole, making it not only a solid old time radio comedy, but also something with a bit of insightful veritas to it as well.
 
The Adventures of Maisie, Volume 1 is definitely a comedy worth having in your collection and one that is one step above the ‘lighter fare’ of its audio peers. Available today from Radio Archives, 10 hours of Maisie on Audio CDs for $29.98.
 
 
Radio Archives always strives to be the best and continually improve our products. We embarked on a massive project two years ago to update the artwork for the 200 Old Time Radio CD sets available.
 
This project is now complete and all orders are now shipping with the newest artwork. Take a look at the Covers which we upgraded this week.
 
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Radio Archives wants to share its excitement with YOU! From now until February 29th, 2012, you can add any of the new artwork for Radio Archives sets you already own to your collection for absolutely FREE with your next order! Add to the experience of the programs you already enjoy with these creative pieces of art!
 
The process to upgrade your Radio Archives covers is simple! First, search the Radio Archives website to find the set you own. Then copy the Product Description. As an example, the Product Description would look like this:
Mystery Is My Hobby – 10 hours [Audio CDs] #RA132
 
You then paste the Product Descriptions of all the sets you want updated into the comments section of your next order. The artwork will be sent free of charge along with your order!
 
This offer expires on February 29th and artwork can only be provided for products currently offered on RadioArchives.com. Radio Archives appreciates your business and wants you to have the newest Cover Artwork so that you have the best quality product, both inside and out!
 
 
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A more unlikely multi-media success than the jade-robed Buddhist monk who fought crime under the nom de guerre of The Green Lama would be hard to imagine.
 
Conceived in 1939 at the behest of the editors of Munsey Publications to compete with the juggernaut that The Shadow had become in print, on radio and in film, The Green Lama was the creation of writer Kendall Foster Crossen, who was asked to think up a hero who could lure mystery-minded readers away from The Shadow’s loyal legion of followers. Inspired by a Columbia University student named Theos Casimir Barnard, who had journeyed to far-off Tibet to plumb the occult mysteries of Lamaism, Crossen concocted millionaire Jethro Dumont, who did the same.
 
It was an outlandish concept. While The Shadow possessed the power to cloud men’s minds after his time in the East, The Green Lama relied on other, even weirder, powers—including the ability to become radioactive and electrically shock opponents into submission! He carried a traditional scarf, which he employed to bind and befuddle opponents and possessed a knowledge of vulnerable nerve centers which he put to good use in hand-and-hand combat. Being a practicing Buddhist, it would not do to pack a pair of .45 automatics a la The Shadow!
 
Writing as Richard Foster, Crossen produced The Case of the Crimson Hand, which was published in the April, 1940 Double Detective under the equally colorful title, The Green Lama. That first installment raised the magazine’s circulation several notches. Amazingly, the Lama was a hit. Thirteen additional stories followed over the next four years, with provocative titles like The Case of the Hollywood Ghost and Babies for Sale. Assistants ranging from ordinary Manhattanites to a professional magician came and went with every adventure, which often involved emerging super-criminals and Fifth Column menaces.
 
RadioArchives.com has selected The Green Lama to be the first 2012 release in its acclaimed Will Murray Pulp Classics line of audiobooks. His first case and its sequel, Croesus of Murder, are presented in one set, voiced by the talented Michael McConnohie. Thus, the hero of a dozen different incarnations has found a new world to conquer! You’ll never encounter another hero anything like him. Om Mani Padme Hum! The Green Lama knows! Will Murray’s Audio Pulp Classics #5 The Green Lama is available now!
 
The Green Lama, by Kendell Foster Crossen, first appeared in the April 1940 issue of Double-Detective magazine. Copyright © 1940 by The Red Star News Company. Copyright renewed © 1968 and assigned to Argosy Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved. “The Green Lama” is a trademark controlled by Argosy Communications, Inc. Produced by arrangement with Argosy Communications, Inc.
 
by Derrick Ferguson
 
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Being both a Doc Savage fan from way back (I bought my first Doc Savage Bantam paperback back in the 1970’s) as well as a fan of Old Time Radio I was more than eager to check out the audiobook PYTHON ISLE. And I was not disappointed. Channeling the spirit of Lester Dent/Kenneth Robeson, Will Murray wonderfully captures the relentless sprint of headlong excitement that I feel is essential to a Doc Savage adventure.
 
PYTHON ISLE is based on an actual outline written by Lester Dent back in the 1930’s but rejected for reasons that are explained by Will Murray himself in one of two extra interviews where he explains how he found the outline and turned it into a finished novel. It’s an added bonus to an already entertaining package.
 
Like the best of any Doc Savage adventure, PYTHON ISLE begins with a situation that immediately promises this is going to be a humdinger of a supersaga. A gang of ruthless diamond smugglers catches sight of a plane crash landing into the water near their ship. At first fearing it’s the law, they quickly mount a rescue upon seeing that the plane has been repaired with gold plating. There are only two passengers aboard. A man carrying a bamboo tube sealed at both ends and an astoundingly beautiful woman who speaks no language anybody can understand. Both are dressed in clothes that haven’t been worn since Biblical times. The man has but a single objective in mind: find Doc Savage. And we need no more to get the adventure started.
 
As always, my opinion of an audiobook depends mainly on the voice I’m listening to. If the voice is boring and puts me to sleep, what difference does it make how terrific the story is? I’m delighted to say the voice of Michael McConnohie is anything but boring. He doesn’t just read the story, he performs it and I’m simply flabbergasted by the diversity and range of his voice. In passages where there are two or three different characters talking it actually sounds as if there are distinct and separate voices talking to each other. In addition, his straight reading of description sounds more like the narration of a genuine old time radio drama than just a reading of the text. It’s wonderful to listen to.
 
So should you listen to PYTHON ISLE? Absolutely. If you’re a Doc Savage fan there’s no way that you cannot have this in your collection. And if you have a friend you want to turn onto Doc Savage, pulp adventure or audiobooks, this is an excellent way to do so.
 
 
 
NEW Product Line: Pulp eBooks
 

A growing leader in providing Pulp Fiction in a variety of forms to modern fans, Radio Archives adds one more line to its ever growing number of Pulp Products! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, already known for fantastic audio book versions of Classic Pulp tales now also features eBooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classic eBook line will spotlight original Pulp characters in their original tales from the Golden Age of Pulp Fiction! This exciting new line debuts with four stories of Norvell Page’s Master of Men himself – The Spider!
 
Thanks to the modern technology of digital publishing and eBooks, collectors and fans can experience stories from the original Pulps of the early 20th Century in an easy, affordable fashion. Referred to by some as ‘today’s pulp,’ eBooks are similar to Pulp magazines in the sense that digital eBooks, like their Pulp counterparts were, can be easily and inexpensively produced and sold to customers! Add to that the absolute top quality production that Radio Archives brings to this project and Will Murray’s Pulp Classic eBooks are a must have for every fan from the novice to the hardcore Pulp Collector!
 
Will Murray’s Pulp Classic eBooks are available now for only $2.99! And not only do you get the eBook for that fantastic price, but you get it in THREE different formats. With the ever evolving technology of today, Radio Archives recognizes that readers may have different devices that read different eBook files and may change devices as well. To this end, each Will Murray Pulp Classic eBook will be delivered to you as a .mobi file, an .epub file, and a PDF, making the eBook readable on The Kindle, iPad, The Nook, and most e-readers, computers, and smart phones!
 

The four titles kicking off the eBook line feature The Spider, the vengeful vigilante from the past that lives as a Pulp icon today! Each eBook contains the tale as originally written when it appeared as well as an introduction from Will Murray to acquaint readers with the character they’re going to encounter as well as original cover art!
 
 

 
New Spider titles will be released every two weeks, as well as surprises yet to come!
 
With the addition of The Spider eBooks, The Pulp Book Store is quickly becoming the best place to find everything Spider. From audio books by Radio Archives to exquisite Pulp reprints and replicas from Girasol Collectables and new tales of the Spider from Moonstone Books, The Master of Men is alive and well in The Pulp Book Store!
 
Stay tuned, Pulp fans, for the best in Pulp eBooks from Will Murray’s Pulp Classics and Radio Archives!
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Horror in Gold, a brand new Doc Savage novel written by prolific pulp veteran Will Murray, has been released by Altus Press. Set in 1936 Manhattan, the story opens with an inexplicable wave of human detonations that brings legendary scientist-adventurer Doc Savage into the investigation to confront a strange new type of terrorism.
 
Murray, who won acclaim for his tenure ghostwriting Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir’s Destroyer action-adventure series and his works of original fiction and pop culture history, knows his subject well.
 
The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage is a continuation of the well-received novels he wrote for Bantam Books back in the 1990s, which he worked on with Doc Savage’s creator and original writer, the late Lester Dent.
 
These new posthumous collaborations will be published under the familiar pen name of Kenneth Robeson.
 
“Horror in Gold is a CSI-style Doc Savage story,” Murray said. “Most of the action takes place in and around Doc’s skyscraper headquarters, which we see in more detail than ever before. With ordinary Gothamites falling victim to the most grisly murder method ever recorded, Doc spends a lot of time in the city morgue and in his super-scientific laboratory assembling the pieces of the puzzle. In between, the action never stops, as Doc and his men race to prevent an escalating tragedy—culminating in an explosive climax around a dormant Alaskan volcano which shouldn’t be rumbling to life, but is!”
 
The author hasn’t strayed far from Dent for the basis of this new tale.
 
“This story is based on an unused Doc Savage plot Lester Dent wrote in 1935, but was considered too visceral to be published in the pages of Doc Savage Magazine back then. To live up to its potential, I wrote the most jaw-dropping opening chapter of my 50-novel career. I introduce one of the most vicious super-criminals in pulp history, The Alchemist, and a half-forgotten member of the original Doc Savage cast returns after an absence of almost 80 years,” he said. Buy this NEW 330 page Doc Savage novel in trade paperback today for only $24.95. The cover is a beautiful Doc Savage oil painting by the talented Joe DeVito.
 
 
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With the addition of 31 new titles from Altus Press, the prolific Pulp reprint publisher’s entire catalogue is now available from the Pulp Book Store.
 
One of the leaders in Pulp today, Altus Press provides the reading public with top of the line reprints as well as professionally designed collections, comprehensive Pulp academic works, and new material, including The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage written by author Will Murray.
 
From new adventures of Doc Savage to reprints of classic Pulp characters like the Black Bat and even more obscure creations such as Armless O’Neill and Senorita Scorpion, Altus Press has something to offer every Pulp reader!
 
Altus Press answers the needs of a growing fan base for Pulp, readers finding something in these classic stories that appeal to modern sensibilities. The company takes its overall mission very seriously-to produce the best quality product possible. And every single title, close to 100 top of the line collections, novels, and other works, from Altus Press is now featured in the Pulp Book Store!
 

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The Knight of Darkness battles evil supercriminals in two action-packed pulp novels by Walter Gibson writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, in a never-reprinted 1932 epic, The Shadow seeks to unmask The Five Chameleons, master villains whose uncanny ability to blend with their surroundings rivals his own. Then, the Dark Avenger feels the savage sting of The Wasp in his first confrontation with one of his deadliest foes. This double-novel reprints the classic cover paintings by George Rozen and Graves Gladney and the original interior illustrations by Tom Lovell and Earl Mayan, with historical articles by Will Murray. Get it now for $14.95!
 
The pulp era’s greatest superman returns in two classic pulp thrillers by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc and Patricia Savage enter an Arctic abyss where dinosaurs and prehistoric humans survive, and race against Japanese agents to uncover the secret of The Time Terror that could change the outcome of the war. Then, a series of crimes committed by “graduates” of the Man of Bronze’s Crime College threaten to destroy Doc’s reputation. What is the sinister secret of The Talking Devil? This special collectors edition showcases both color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of eight Doc Savage novels. Yours for only $14.95!
 
 
The double life of Police Commissioner James Gordon is explored in a pair of two-fisted thrillers that inspired classic Batman stories! First, The Whisperer goes undercover to close down a “School for Murder” that prepares teenagers for criminal careers! Then, Wildcat Gordon investigates corruption in the trucking industry in “Murder on the Line.” BONUS: an adventure of Norgil the Magician by The Shadow’s Maxwell Grant! This historic collector’s item showcases both original color pulp covers by Spider artist John Newton Howitt, classic interior illustrations by Paul Orban and golden-age great Creig Flessel, and historical commentary by Will Murray and Anthony Tollin. Now at Radio Archives for $14.95!

Pulp fiction’s legendary Master of Men returns in two classic novels from the Golden Age of Pulp Fiction, written by Norvell Page under the pseudonym of Grant Stockbridge. First, in “Overlord of the Damned” (October 1935), the Boss unleashes horrible death with his demonic acid guns… with a vat of the same deadly corrosive reserved for those who talk too much! With his beloved Nita van Sloan a hostage to a terrible doom, the Spider faces the soul-tearing prospect of planting the Spider seal on his friend Stanley Kirkpatrick, Commissioner of Police! Then, in “Dictator’s Death Merchants!” (July 1940), The jaws of death gape open when El Crocodilo feasts! With uncanny skill, he forestalls even the Spider’s best attempts to trap him. Striking without mercy, this menace from the past rises anew by demolishing a banking institution each night, in a mad scheme to take control of nothing less than all of America’s finances! This volume is available in two editions and features the original artwork from the October 1935 or the July 1940 edition of “The Spider” magazine. Both versions feature reformatted text and original interior illustrations to accompany each story. Available now for $14.95!
 
 
 
 

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On the hunt for quality Pulp Fiction, both classic and new? In search of great prices? Then dig into the Treasure Chest, exclusively featuring products for the Pulp Book Store! Just click on the Treasure Chest on the Pulp Book Store Page and you’ll find fantastic monthly discounts on an everchanging variety of items from our various stores! From everyone from the avid Pulp Fan to the casual reader, the Treasure Chest offers great deals on wonderful products from The Pulp Book Store!
artsippo-2836781Review of “Brand of the Werewolf” from Doc Savage, Volume 13

By Dr Art Sippo

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Doc Savage and his crew travel to Canada to visit his only known living relatives: his Uncle Alex Savage and his cousin Patricia.
 
On the train, Doc receives a message from his uncle telling him to stay away. He leaves the cabin to investigate leaving his crew there. While he is gone, his men are stricken with unexplained unconsciousness. When Doc returns to the cabin he finds them and emblazoned on the wall is a hideous face that is a cross between a man and a wolf. The Brand of the Werewolf!
 
When they arrive at the Savage ranch they discover that Alex Savage has been murdered after the alleged message had been sent. The ranch is under attack by local thugs and mysterious forces that the local people attribute to the loup-garou a half-man/half-wolf monster. He moves among the inhabitance with impunity using his powers to subdue them and then kill them at will.
 
Meanwhile Patricia Savage has taken charge of the ranch. She is also guarding a mysterious Ivory cube that belonged to her father which the thugs have been trying to steal from her father and now from her. Pat is a tall striking woman with bronze colored hair like her cousin’s, who is mentally and physically strong enough to fight to defend her property. But as her superstitious ranch hands desert her, she cannot hold out against the enemies ranged against her.
 
Enter Doc Savage and his crew of adventurers. Now the odds are more even, but can even they defy the power of the Werewolf? With his entire physical and mental prowess, can Doc Savage defeat a supernatural monster?
 
This was the story that introduced Patricia Savage as a recurring character in the Doc Savage series. It was the most popular story in the original Bantam reprints form the 1960s and remains a fan favorite. This is a classic story from the golden age of the 1930s. And it along with another Doc Savage classic can be yours in Doc Savage Volume 13 for $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 
Comments From Our Customers!
 
Joseph (Joe) Cierniak

I have ordered from RadioArchives in the past and have nothing but praise the for merchandise’s quality and great customer service response. Ah, you guys do business just as it was done in my younger days. It was called trust. I’m not against (positive ) change but how many companies out there today would ship an item(s) and trust the purchaser to pay the bill. Not many. Thanks again. Received my order in today’s mail for Volume 2 of Suspense. Wow, what service!
 
Jim McCuaig:
Great quality, folks – a pleasure to be able to hear these shows like they sounded when they were new.
 
Tom C. Miller:
Just wanted to thank you for the prompt shipping of my last order. Your record time in attempting to ship same day as ordered is much appreciated..
 
If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!
 
The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
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Exploring The Power Of The Centipede with Chuck Miller

  • News
  • January 24, 2012
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One of the great things about being part of the all pulp staff is the ability to read great pulp.  The Black Centipede was given to me generously by Chuck Miller, and the book is a fascinating read.  This doesn’t have a very one dimensional approach to it.  Heroes could very easily be villains, and even the staunchest villain has some heroic qualities to them.  The dark side of humanity is made commonplace, and Chuck Miller does it seamlessly.  The characters are believable and they feel human, much more so than many other stories.
 Chuck himself is a fascinating man.   I discuss with him Black Centipede, his other projects and the nature of man.
All Pulp:  Who were your writing influences growing up?
Chuck Miller:  I guess comic books would be a major one, since i’ve been reading them since literally as far back as I can remember. When I was 8 years old, I was given a copy of the Complete Sherlock Holmes, which made a huge impression on me. I’m a die-hard Holmes fan to this day. And not just the Conan Doyle stories– I really love a lot of the pastiches that have sprouted up, beginning with The Seven Per-Cent Solution and The West End Horror by Nicholas Meyer. I loved the way Meyer involved Holmes with genuine historical persons and events, and I do the same thing with the Black Centipede. In Creeping Dawn,  he has encounters with Lizzie Borden, H.P. Lovecraft, Frank Nitti, and William Randolph Hearst.
I also started reading the paperback reprints of the Shadow and Doc Savage stories when I was still a pre-teen, and those stuck with me. I very much preferred the Shadow, because he was so mysterious and had an air of the supernatural about him, though there was never any hint of the occult in any of the stories. Later on, I got into the Nero Wolfe books by Rex Stout, and those would become a major influence in terms of narrative voice. I was really captivated by the way Archie Goodwin’s personality came across in the writing, and I try to do the same thing myself, as best I can. Just about everything I do is in first person. I like to get really deep inside a character’s head, and I’m really not very comfortable as an omniscient third person.
There have been a huge number of influences on my writing, in terms of both style and content. Hunter S. Thompson, Philip Jose Farmer, Flannery O’Connor, William S. Burroughs, Dorothy Parker, Raymond Chandler, Philip K. Dick… it just goes on and on, really. I have taken a little something from each of them. And not only books, but movies and music as well. I bring in a lot of very diverse elements. It has been said that my work is very unique and original. The fact is, the Centipede is very derivative character, but he is derived from so many wide-ranging sources that he appears to be completely original.
AP:  Why pulp?
CM:  That happened sort of by accident. About 20 years ago, I came up with an idea for a comic book called  The Optimist.  It never went anywhere, but I had a huge cast of characters I had created for it, and they continued to simmer in my head after the project was finally abandoned completely back in 2001.

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A couple of years ago, I decided to really get serious about the writing. I’d always wanted to do it, and I was in a position where I could devote a lot of time to it, so I did. For subject matter, I went back to The Optimist. The original concept was a post-glory-days superhero saga, vaguely similar to The Watchmen. I didn’t want to do a comic book– and had nobody to draw it even if I had– so I just did it as an ordinary prose piece. The protagonist, Jack Christian, was a grown-up superhero kid sidekick whose mentor had died under dodgy circumstances 12 years earlier. Jack, a down-on-his luck alcoholic by this time, returns to the city of Zenith, where the tragedy took place. He encounters a number of retires heroes and other oddballs. Among these was the Black Centipede, who was originally intended to be a fairly minor character. I wanted him to be a genuine oddball– he is based in part on William S. Burroughs– and he was the only character cast in the mold of a traditional pulp action hero from the 30s.
So, anyhow, I wrote this novel, and the Centipede started stealing scenes. He ended up with a much bigger role. When I finished, I started promoting it myself on the web, making it available for free in hopes of attracting a publisher. It really didn’t stir up much of anything, though.
At one point a friend of mine told me she didn’t think many people would want to sit and read an entire novel online, and suggested I do some shorter pieces if I really wanted to get noticed. Since The Optimist didn’t lend itself to that, I decided to explore the past of one of the supporting characters. The Centipede was the obvious choice for this. I wrote a story set in 1957, “Wisconsin Death Trip.” I enjoyed doing it, so I went ahead and wrote a novella called Gasp, Choke, Good Lord, an homage to the EC horror comics of the 1950s, guest-starring the infamous Doctor Fredric Wertham, author of Seduction of the Innocent, and EC publisher William M. Gaines. And I posted all of this for free on a blog I put together. I created a rather elaborate history for the Centipede, which included him being not only a “real-life” crime fighter, but also the star of a highly-fictionalized pulp adventure magazine published by William Randolph Hearst.
Well, to cut a long story short, I got noticed by Tommy Hancock of pro Se Press, who was very enthusiastic about my work. After a bit of back and forth, it was decided that I should write a novel for Pro Se, which I did. That novel was Creeping Dawn: The Rise of the Black Centipede.
AP: What did writing Creeping Dawn teach you as an author?

CM: I’m not entirely sure. I guess I learned to tell a story with a specific word count. Now that it’s published, and I have read it in book form, I noticed several things I really didn’t like about it, and i have tried to avoid those while writing the next one.

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AP: One of the things that I really found fascinating with Creeping Dawn was how you write about the more monstrous parts of people.  From Lizzy’s past to William’s own acceptance of things.  You make it seem so normal.  I’m kind of jealous, but also wondering where those ideas came from.  Is this something you’ve always thought?  Or did it just fit the context of your story?

CM: All of that comes from my own life.  My mother died when I was very young, and my father just sort of went nuts after that. He deteriorated mentally and emotionally for about five years, and then ended up killing himself. And I had a front row seat for the whole thing. So I have always been conscious of this darkness in the world, that seems to be just under the surface of everything. That is somewhat analogous to what the Black Centipede refers to as the “Dark Power,” though in his fictional world, it is more literal and manifests itself in more overt ways. But, in my own life, I’ve always been aware that things and people are not really what they seem to be, not exactly. And if you look even just a little way beneath the surface, you’re apt to find a nasty surprise.

But I don’t think you have to give in to it. I think there is good in the world, too, but sometimes you have to wade through some pretty toxic sludge to find it. In “Creeping Dawn,” the young Centipede seems to believe that the darkness is the true power, the only thing worth striving to understand. But, being the kind of person he is, he doesn’t want to give himself over to it. Instead, he decides to oppose it, as a way of measuring its scope and capabilities. In the beginning, he isn’t motivated by a desire to see justice done. He is simply curious. He wants to understand the world in a way nobody else ever has. Quite a bit of hubris on his part, really.

In the second section of “Creeping Dawn,” which is set six years after his experience with Lizzie Borden, we see how he becomes a crime fighter, and how he goes about establishing himself in the city of Zenith, in a series of events that revolve around the rise of a shadowy new crime lord called Doctor Almanac. In the beginning, the Centipede is very ruthless and reckless and he ends up in trouble with the law and the press. But his cause is taken up by newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. Hearst is a fascinating historical figure, whose public and private life make him a great cast member for the Black Centipede series. Through some devious and underhanded maneuvering, Hearst transforms the Centipede– in the mind of the public, anyhow– from a dangerous, psychotic vigilante into a national hero. In addition to this, Hearst launches a Black Centipede pulp adventure magazine, featuring highly fictionalized accounts of our hero’s adventures. This is another example of how things appear to be a certain way, but are really something entirely different. The real Black Centipede is not the Doc Savage-style paragon the public perceives.

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The Centipede is a celebrity akin to Doc Savage and other classic pulp.
Nothing is black-and-white. But there is right and wrong, I believe. Sometimes it takes even a good person a long time and a lot of mistakes to make the distinction and choose one or the other. Most of my villains have some heroic qualities, and most of my heroes are criminals at heart. They do kind of believe they are somehow above the rest of society, and have a right to disregard the rules. Life is a process, a constant parade of choices. A villain can choose to be noble, a hero can choose to act deplorably.

In “Blood of the Centipede,” the next book in the series, the Centipede gets a bit of a moral compass in the form of Amelia Earhart, who has been asked by President Roosevelt to keep an eye on our hero. I don’t want to go into any more detail about that now, except to say that, as the series progresses, we will see our hero evolve in some interesting and unexpected ways.

AP: If you had to pick just one scene, what was your favorite in Creeping Dawn and why?

CM: I guess the one I had the most fun writing was the Centipede’s accidental invasion of doctor Almanac’s secret headquarters. I got a kick out of
 describing his sort of gleeful approach to lethal violence. And then, of course, that whole episode led up to his first encounter with Stan Bartowski, a Zenith police officer who becomes a friend. He’ll be an important mainstay character throughout the series. He’s also sort of a comic foil, since a lot of things the Centipede says to him sail right over his head. I put a lot of humor in the stories, and strive to strike a good balance.

AP: Can you tell us a bit of where you want to take the Black Centipede. He’s gone from supporting character to a mainstay.  Would you be happy to continue writing him or are there are other things you like to work on?

CM: I don’t think I’ll ever tire of the Centipede. He’s pretty versatile, and I have lots of plans for him. But I do have a number of other characters I want to develop into their own series. “The Incredible Adventures of Vionna Valis and Mary Jane Kelly” is one of these. http://theblackcentipede.blogspot.com/2011/09/their-first-adventure.html

It deals with a peculiar pair of “psychic detectives.” I’ve done a couple stories that I posted on my blog, but they have yet to be officially published. However, they live in the same world as the Black Centipede, and they appear briefly in the second Centipede novel. So does Doctor Unknown Junior, a very businesslike sorceress whose adventures I want to get out there one of these days.


AP: Are you working on anything else at the moment?

CM: I have something coming out in February from Pacific-Noir Press. “The Bay Phantom Chronicles Episode One: The Return of Doctor Piranha” is the first tale of the Bay Phantom, a 94-year-old, retired pulp-era masked hero based in my old home town of Mobile, Alabama. In this one, he is befriended by Janie Marie Colson, a young college student who is helping him write his memoirs. Complications arise when the Phantom’s arch-foe, 98-year-old Doctor Piranha, is released from federal prison after serving a 70-year sentence.  Piranha, of course, swore revenge– no matter how long it took…

And I am involved in the Pulp Obscura project from Pro Se and Altus Press, which will be coming out throughout 2012.

Classic Music, Pulp AudioBooks, and Pulp Book Store Specials and More from Radio Archives!

  • News
  • December 30, 2011
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December 30, 2011
 
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NEW Radio Set: The Railroad Hour, Volume 3
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“Ladies and Gentlemen, The Railroad Hour!” This opening line, delivered by announcer Marvin Miller, along with whistles, hissing steam escaping from smoke stacks, and other train sounds heralded the beginning of each episode of one of the most beloved, often sought after music programs of the golden age of radio! Gordon MacRae, noted baritone, acted as conductor as he led listeners through recreations of musicals, operettas, and even the careers of some of the greatest American composers and lyricists each week. You can take the same ride now on The Railroad Hour, Volume 3.

 
Sponsored by the Association of American Railroads, The Railroad Hour presented vest-pocket versions of some of the most popular and beloved musicals and operettas of all time – everything from the romantic melodies of Victor Herbert and Sigmund Romberg to the modern musical comedies of Jerome Kern, Richard Rodgers, and Lorenz Hart. In these lush and tuneful half-hours, star and leading man Gordon MacRae was joined by a host of leading ladies. In his role as host and leading man, MacRae generally narrated the programs, giving listeners the basic structure of the plot as the show went along.
 
The job of adapting massive musicals and full-scale operettas into a 45 minute format, the original length ‘The Radio Hour’ ran when it debuted initially on ABC, fell to Jean Holloway and the writing team of Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. Holloway, who herself was also a singer and musician, had earlier written for such programs as “The Kate Smith Hour” and “Mr. President”, while Lawrence and Lee had honed their writing skills as two of the first staff members of the Armed Forces Radio Service during World War II. All three had considerable knowledge of both music and theater; Lawrence and Lee, in fact, would in later years write the Broadway classic “Auntie Mame” and its musical counterpart “Mame”, as well as such well-known plays as “Inherit the Wind” and “The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail”.
 
The Railroad Hour, Volume 3 is a special collection of this classic program. First appearing on ABC, The Railroad Hour was a 45-minute program. This collection is six episodes from that run, shows that provide not only outstanding entertainment for today’s listeners but that also stand as a tribute to the talent and production techniques that went into their creation so many years ago. Enjoy Classic Music and Classic Radio at its best by getting The Railroad Hour, Volume 3 today for only $17.98 on Audio CDs or $11.98 as a Digital Download!
 
by Tommy Hancock
 

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“If you like high adventure, come with me. If you like the stealth of intrigue, come with me. If you like blood and thunder, come with me…”
 
Simply reading those words inspires someone to step up, ready to tackle whatever action and trouble might come their way. When you hear Captain Bart Friday say them at the opening of each episode of Adventures by Morse, you’ll be ready to run off and join the circus, the Foreign Legion, the Merchant Marines, and all before lunch!
 
Best known for his classic pulpy I Love a Mystery and the serial drama One Man’s Family, Carlton E. Morse stands out as one of the best writers from the era of old time radio. A series from Morse that is, in my opinion, as good as his best known works, is the one with his name in it. Adventures by Morse is similar in format to I Love A Mystery. Both shows have strong male leads and center on men who encounter guns, fists, mysteries, and more danger than a Sam Peckinpah film on speed can muster before they finally win the day. Although I Love A Mystery is better known and for valid reasons, it’s a show that is sometimes action centered, other times focused on the ‘Mystery’ in the title, and at times has some inconsistencies due to this. Adventures by Morse, on the other hand, is unabashedly squarely set in the pulpy Adventure genre and captures the atmosphere and the pacing that modern listeners will recognize as being one of the reasons they love the Indiana Jones movies.
 
The series is straight forward, just like a roundhouse in a South Seas Island bar fight. Captain Bart Friday and his cohort Skip Turner get mixed up in strange escapades involving exotic locales, strange villains, and mystical magical encounters with damsels, goons, and life and death moments aplenty! This collection includes two serials, “The City of the Dead” and “The Cobra King Strikes Back.” Both of these stories are dead on adventure tales, stories that sweat blood and danger and move at a clip that keeps the listener tangled up in all the twists and turns. Comparing the two, I prefer City of the Dead only slightly due to the fact it builds tension a bit better than The Cobra King Strikes Back. Having said that, the performances in The Cobra King are a bit more spot on, but not by much. All in all, both of these cliffhanger laden serials in Adventures by Morse, Volume 1 deliver in every way a good adventure tale should! Available on Audio CDs for $29.98 and for digital downloads for $19.98 from Radio Archives.
 
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The Jade Ogre – High Adventure for All Pulp Fans
ra406-350-6929550The audiobook of Will Murray’s monumental Doc Savage adventure The Jade Ogre is a feature-length excursion into one of the Bronze Man’s most exotic adventures.
“The Jade Ogre makes a wonderful listening experience,” Producer/Director Roger Rittner says. “Will has packed a cast of colorful characters, plus mystery, intrigue, action, adventure, and a bit of mysticism into an heroic tale. It’s an epic adventure to be savored.”
Based on an outline by Lester Dent, the massive The Jade Ogre carries the listener from the fog-shrouded streets of 1935 Chinatown San Francisco, to the crumbling ruins of an ancient temple in Cambodia.
 
Accompanied by his aides Monk Mayfair and Ham Brooks, his cousin Pat Savage, and a cast of unique characters, Doc races to unlock the secret of the Jade Ogre, a fantastic Oriental villain who unleashes death in the form of disembodied flying arms, capable of disintegrating its victims in a flash of fire. But the lethal flying arms are merely the cover for a more deadly menace – the mysterious Jade Fever, which strikes down its victims with a deadly virus that turns its victims green as jade.
Narrator Michael McConnohie essays every role in the story with unerring vocal impressions that give life to Murray’s distinctive characters.
In addition to the 36-chapter story, the 12-CD set includes two bonus audio features: a continuation of Will Murray’s discussion of the creation of Doc Savage, and his memory of creating The Jade Ogre from Lester Dent’s notes, plus how Pat Savage has contributed to the Doc Savage canon.
The Jade Ogre is available now from RadioArchives.com at $37.98 for the deluxe 12-CD set, or $25.98 for instant digital download.
ra403-250-8936177For over-the-top thrills, you can’t beat Prince of the Red Looters, the first audiobook from RadioArchives.com featuring the pulp hero, The Spider.
“With extensive sound effects and complete period music score, Prince of the Red Looters is an almost ‘cinematic’ experience for listeners,’ says Producer/Director Roger Rittner. “Customers are telling us it’s like a movie playing in your mind.”
Narrating Norvel Page’s propulsive prose, stage and screen stars Nick Santa Maria and Robin Riker give life to the sword fights, escapes, insurmountable odds, nail-biting suspense, and unexpected twists in Prince of the Red Looters.
Prince of the Red Looters is available in a 6-CD deluxe set at just $19.98, or as an instant digital download at just $14.98.

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A nameless mystery man with a wartime past in the Intelligence service. Declared dead by the Department of Justice. Now backed by a shadowy group of powerful philanthropists, to infiltrate the Underworld and crush crime in all of its hideous manifestations.
 
Secret Agent “X” was one of the most unusual pulp adventurers ever, and also one of the most action-filled continuing characters in its day. Now The Torture Trust, the latest entry in RadioArchives.com’s Will Murray’s Pulp Classics audiobook series, provides thrills and chills to pulp and audiobook fans alike.
 
The Torture Trust introduces the mysterious nemesis of the most nefarious criminals the pulp writers could dream up. In it, Secret Agent “X” pits all his secretive skill and devious daring against a criminal triad that wields face-destroying acid as an instrument of blackmail.
 
Read by noted voiceover actor Dave Mallow, The Torture Trust takes listeners into the dark and sinister world of this fantastic mystery man.
 
Scoop, the online blog about pulps, comics, and all things collectable, says, “The Torture Trust is a danger-a-minute audio introduction to this fondly remembered pulp avenger of the 1930s. The Torture Trust will provide thrills and chills to pulp and audiobook fans alike. “
 
The deluxe five-CD set of The Torture Trust is just $14.98. The instant download version is just $9.98.

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Python Isle, RadioArchives.com’s first Doc Savage audiobook, continues to delight listeners. In Booklist, the 100-year-old journal of the American Library Association, Kaite Mediatore Stover says that Python Isle, the first Doc Savage audiobook from Radio Archives.com, “takes listeners on a breathless, roller-coaster adventure ride. Michael McConnohie’s masterful pacing keeps the tension and suspense tighter than a python’s grip, and a superb blend of sound effects and music enhance the mood, lending the production a cinematic feel.”
 
The full-cast NPR series The Adventures of Doc Savage presents special adaptations of “Fear Cay” and “The Thousand-Headed Man” by Roger Rittner and Will Murray. Featuring a full cast of voice actors, extensive sound effects, and period music score, The Adventures of Doc Savage is non-stop action in 13 exciting installments.
 

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A super-criminal emerges in White Eyes, the second Doc Savage audiobook from RadioArchives.com. From his skyscraper headquarters high above the streets of New York City to the sugarcane fields of Cuba, Doc Savage races to crush gangland’s latest uncrowned king. White Eyes features dramatic narration by Richard Epcar, cover art by Joe DeVito, plus fantastic extras.
 

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The first Black Bat audiobook, Brand of the Black Bat, is a stirring story of crime and corruption, and of a courageous avenger – district attorney Anthony Quinn – determined to track down the vicious gangster who robbed him of his brilliant career, all the while thwarting Captain MacGrath of the N.Y.P.D., who suspects Quinn and the Black Bat are one and the same. Michael McConnohie reads this fantastic tale.
 
RadioArchives.com resurrects the wild and wonderful Doctor Death, one of the rare unabashedly supernatural pulp series. Equal parts Doctor Frankenstein and Albert Einstein, with a dash of Fu Manchu, Doctor Death’s supreme goal in life was to crush civilization. His first fatal foray into reversing mankind’s fortunes, 12 Must Die, is now available in an audiobook read by television and animé star Joey D’Auria.
 
 
By Larry Josephson, Bob & Ray’s long time producer
 
Bob & Ray are classic American humorists who started in 1946 at WHDH, Boston. Bob was a disc jockey, Ray a newscaster. They riffed during the handoffs, something like local news anchors do today, only funnier. The station liked them so much they were given a daily afternoon show, “Matinee with Bob & Ray.” When Red Sox or Braves games were delayed by rain Bob & Ray filled in with their special brand of humor. Some of these shows are included in our RadioArt® Bob & Ray albums.
 
In 1951 NBC brought them to New York to work on Monitor and to do a nightly 15-minute television show that followed the Camel News Caravan. Cloris Leachman or Audrey Meadows played Linda Lovely. On radio Ray did all the female characters like Mary McGoon and Mary Backstayge in falsetto. For the television show, they shot Ray from the neck down wearing a house dress.
 
During their 40-year career, Bob & Ray appeared on just about every radio and television network, and on major local New York stations WOR, WINS, and WHN. I invited them to perform at a conference I organized for public radio producers and managers held in Glen Cove, NY in the spring of 1981. They were a big hit with the 20- and 30-something audience. I called Bob & Ray the next day to ask them to do a series for NPR, The Bob & Ray Public Radio Show. They had been off the air for several years, but were busy doing commercials for a wide range of clients, including Piels Beer. They played Bert and Harry Piel in a legendary series of animated spots. Great advertising, lousy beer! Many of their commercials, including the Piels spots, are on our albums. (BR004, BR006, BR009. BR015, BR017, BR018)
 
The NPR shows are captured on the Best of Bob & Ray, Volumes 1-4, BR001-BR004). In 1984 I produced two sold-out concerts in Carnegie Hall. The Carnegie Hall shows turned out to be Bob & Ray’s farewell performances (Ray died in 1990). They are captured on our album, “Bob & Ray: A Night of Two Stars, recorded live in Carnegie Hall.” (BR 026).
 
Bob & Ray’s targets–commercials, infomercials, game shows, soap operas, fatuous radio shrinks, bloviating politicians, rigged contests, and public service announcements from corporations who “really care” about the environment—are still with us in the cable age, only more so.
 
Bob & Ray is for smart people: they’re satirists, not comedians. They don’t tell jokes like Bob Hope or do stupid physical comedy like The Three Stooges. Many of their routines run more than 4 minutes. The joke slowly builds until it explodes in your mind.
 
Bob & Ray were admired and imitated by every comedian and humorist of their time, including Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, David Letterman, George Carlin, Garrison Keillor, Kurt Vonnegut and Andy Rooney. Many of them “borrowed” Bob & Ray material and characters. Keillor’s “writer,” Nattily Dressed, is very close to Bob & Ray’s Nattily Attired. Lifting material has long been a part of comedy tradition. Bob & Ray were inspired by two old time radio shows, “Vic and Sade,” and by Raymond Knight’s “Cuckoo Hour.”
 
Their signature routine, “The Slow Talkers of America,” belongs in the comedy pantheon alongside Abbot and Costello’s “Who’s on First?” and Jack Benny’s “Your Money or Your Life.”
 
Some of my favorite things about Bob & Ray include their sheer intelligence and talent; their acute ear for language, cant and cliché; their sense of timing; the hundreds of characters they created, all performed either by Bob or Ray, including the immortal Wally Ballou (–ly Ballou); the lovable Marys (McGoon and Backstayge) and affable dolts like Webley Webster. Their work is deeply moral. They used humor to express their anger at the corruption and stupidity of much of American culture. And to make people laugh.
 
I’ve devoted 30 years of my life to collecting and restoring Bob & Ray recordings for old and new fans. Bob & Ray’s humor is ageless. You needn’t have heard “Mary Noble, Backstage Wife” to enjoy “Mary Backstayge, Noble Wife,” absurd on its face. Knowing the original adds to your enjoyment of the parody, but it works either way. The one exception might be “Awful Godfrey, “a thinly disguised Arthur Godfrey, who was, by reputation, a vain and viscous man (he famously fired singer Julius LaRosa on the air for “lack of humility”). Bob & Ray’s parody of Godfrey skewers him expertly. Bob’s impression of Godfrey is uncanny.
 
We offer more than 100 hours of Bob & Ray and Jean Shepherd on CD, including “The Very Best of Bob & Ray,” 5 hours on 4 CDs, selected from all of our CDs (BR024). It’s the perfect starter album, and makes a great gift. The booklet includes a long, insightful essay on Bob & Ray by the Canadian critic, Kerrie Mills. Worth the price alone.
 
I’ve remained Bob & Ray’s producer for all these years simply because they make me laugh. When asked how their partnership lasted 40 years, they replied, “We made each other laugh.” (They also didn’t spend much time together after work.) I hope the current generation of Bob & Ray fans will buy these CDs and pass them down to their children and grandchildren, keeping Bob & Ray alive forever. I’m pleased that Bob & Ray have now joined the Radio Archives collection.
 
Enjoy!
 
Hang By Your Thumbs, and don’t forget to Write If You Get Work.
 
-Larry Josephson, proud to have been Bob & Ray’s producer for 30 years and counting.
 
 
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Doc Savage and his beautiful cousin Patricia battle threats to national security in pulp classics by Evelyn Coulson and Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, while testing an experimental plane for the Army, Renny disappears after his airship is engulfed by The Yellow Cloud. Then, what has transformed Monk, Ham and Johnny into cowardly Men of Fear? The incredible secret could end the war, unless Nazi agents seize it first. This special collectors edition showcases the original color pulp covers by Emery Clarke, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, author of eight Doc Savage novels. Available now for $14.95!
 
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The Pulp Era’s strangest mystery man returns in two more epic adventures by Paul Ernst writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, can Justice, Inc. prevent secrets of an ancient civilization buried for centuries in The River of Ice from destroying the modern world? Then, scientists in Paris, Berlin and Montreal exhale fire as they die, setting The Avenger on the trail of The Flame Breathers and a deadly secret that threatens to plunge the world into a fiery infernal! BONUS: a thrilling adventure of Police Commissioner James Gordon, a.k.a. The Whisperer! This classic pulp reprint showcases H. W. Scott’s classic pulp covers, all the original interior illustrations by Paul Orban, and historical commentary by Will Murray. This fantastic reprint is only $14.95 in the Pulp Book Store!
 

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Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows! The Master of Darkness, agent Clyde Burke and Secret Service agent Vic Marquette investigate deadly plots in two thrilling pulp novels by Walter Gibson as “Maxwell Grant.” First, The Shadow’s investigation of The Embassy Murders unearths a sinister plot that threatens world peace. Then, the kidnapping of Clyde Burke leads The Shadow and his agents on a winding murder trail through New Jersey’s Hills of Death. BONUS: a two-fisted adventure of Police Commissioner James Gordon, a.k.a. The Whisperer! This instant collectors’ item features both classic cover paintings by George Rozen, the original interior pulp illustrations by Tom Lovell and Edd Cartier and historical commentary by popular culture historians Anthony Tollin and Will Murray. And it can be yours for $14.95!
 
 
 
 
 
 
Three fantastic Pulp Replicas featuring classic Pulp Heroes and Tales and designed to give readers and collectors the experience of holding an actual pulp!
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Already the best place to find Classic and New Pulp tales and Pulp related products from the best companies in the business, The Pulp Book Store goes itself one better! The Treasure Chest, the place to find great deals, now exclusively features products for the Pulp Book Store! Just click on the Treasure Chest on the Pulp Book Store Page and you’ll find fantastic monthly discounts on an ever changing variety of items from our various stores! Check the Treasure Chest now to see what great discounts await everyone from the avid Pulp Fan to the casual reader! The Treasure Chest is Open now in the Pulp Book Store!
 
 
 
 
artsippo-8988702Review of “Doc Savage, Supreme Adventurer” from Doc Savage, Volume 15

By Dr. Art Sippo

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In December, 1932 Lester Dent was assigned the job of writing the first story for the planned Doc Savage Magazine. To assist him, the magazine’s editor, John Nanovic, wrote a brief story showcasing the Doc Savage character and his five associates. It was entitled Doc Savage, Supreme Adventurer. Doc and his five men travel to Central America and find a lost tribe of Indians who possess a massive treasure in God. Doc’s father had arranged for this to be his son’s legacy. But corrupt government officials in the Central American country want to hijack the treasure for themselves. They already killed the elder Savage and now they are trying to kill Doc.
 
The portrait of Doc and his aides in this story is not quite what we have come to know through the Classic pulp series. Dent recast the characters and rewrote the story to give us the initial Doc Savage saga “The Man of Bronze.” Along the way he crafted a cast of unforgettable characters upon whom he had left his own literary stamp.
 
But the story “Doc Savage, Supreme Adventurer” is the first Doc Savage story ever written and is of significant importance in the origin and development of the series. As a bonus, this story contains the complete text of the letter Clark Savage Sr. had written to his son which was only quoted in part in “The Man of Bronze.” Every true Doc Savage fan needs to read this story. We are indebted to Anthony Tollin and Will Murray for including it in their reprint series.
 
Get your copy of this piece of Doc Savage History, ‘Doc Savage, Supreme Adventurer’ along with another classic Doc Savage Pulp tale today in Doc Savage Volume 15 for only $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 
Comments From Our Customers!
 
Dominick Cancilla:
I’m loving all the audiobooks!
 
Kenneth D. Schwartz:
Just listened to Music of the 1930s, Vol. I and every show in this collection is a gem, even if hearing Harry Richman singing about “darkies” and “pickaninnies” made me cringe. I understand that those were the times. But thanks for another marvelous collection.
 
Tom C. Miller:
I wanted to thank you for all of your support in offering old-time radio shows. I especially like it when you describe where your transcription discs came from and how they were preserved. Moreover I am continually surprised how much of the stuff was actually saved over the years. Thanks for bringing it alive again.
 
Barney McCasland:
Jade Ogre took me longer to read, due to its length, but it was great! As always, Michael McConnohie was the perfect narrator. I enjoyed The Torture Trust, but not nearly as much as the other series. I thought Dave Mallow did an excellent job of narrating it. Really excited and anxious for audio pulps 2012. Keep up the great work!
 
If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!
 
The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.

Doc Savage and the 30% Off Peril!

  • Uncategorized
  • December 20, 2011

Over on Facebook, William Patrick Murray posted the following: “‎30% off the hardover DOC SAVAGE: THE DESERT DEMONS. Today (December 20) only. Just type 20DEC in the discount code box on checkout. This book will be so affordable….”

You can find Doc Savage: The Desert Demons novel at http://www.lulu.com/product/hardcover/doc-savage-the-desert-demons/16232886

About Doc Savage: The Desert Demons-

Doc Savage and his band of specialists confront a threat unlike any they ever before faced–weird rust-colored clouds that consume man and machine alike! Set in 1936 Hollywood, this is the first adventure to star the Man of Bronze in nearly 20 years, and the first of a new series, The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage.

A BIG NOSE, A JADE OGRE, PULPWORK, PRO SE, AND BOB & RAY-ALL FROM RADIO ARCHIVES!

  • News
  • December 16, 2011

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

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December 16, 2011
 
From Radio Archives To You – Lightning Fast Delivery!
 
Running out of time to order that last great gift for someone on your list? No problem at Radio Archives! With our Lightning Fast Service, you can place your order by 7:30 PM Eastern and we will ship your order the same day!
 
Flat Rate ground shipping to the West Coast takes 3 to 5 days and only 7 to 8 days if you live on the East Coast. Priority Mail takes only 2 to 3 days for delivery! Order Saturday morning and receive your order on Monday. With Radio Archive’s Lightning Fast Service, you can order through December 21st using Priority Mail for Christmas Delivery!
 
Radio Archives also offers Digital Downloads and Gift Certificates that are delivered instantly! Lightning Fast Service for you from Radio Archives!
oldtimeradio-3479358 NEW Radio Set: The Jimmy Durante Show, Volume 3

He butchered the English language. He sang as if he gargled with gravel. He dropped pearls of wisdom disguised as one-liners. And he had a nose that got everywhere ten minutes before he did. All of this and a genuine love for his craft and the people who enjoyed it made Jimmy Durante a star in the Golden Age of Radio and makes The Jimmy Durante Show, Volume 3 a must have for fans today.

 
Nicknamed “Schnozzola” for his oversized nose, Jimmy Durante first came to prominence as a teenager, playing New York’s restaurant and nightclub. Bitten by the show-biz bug, he dropped out of school in the eighth grade and soon joined a musical comedy trio that wowed nightclub audiences with its boisterous unpredictability, Durante’s aggressive interaction with the musicians, and his penchant for destroying pianos in mock frustration took the group into Vaudeville and onto Broadway, where Durante became a star.
 
Jimmy continued his Broadway success in a string of popular shows and revues throughout the 1930s. But he didn’t limit himself solely to the Great White Way. On the radio, Durante’s broad delivery, overwhelming personality, and penchant for mangling his words only increased his popularity with laugh-hungry Depression-era audiences. In 1943, Durante relocated to Hollywood, where he was signed to headline a CBS series titled “The Camel Caravan”. Initially co-starred with Garry Moore, the mismatched duo instantly clicked as a team, ratings went through the roof, and Durante’s patented brand of language mangling and outraged interaction with the orchestra introduced him to radio audiences all over again.
 
When Moore left the show in the fall of 1947, Jimmy Durante signed a contract to host a new series on NBC for the Rexall Drug Company. The Jimmy Durante Show proved just as popular as its predecessor.
 
The Jimmy Durante Show, Volume 3 consists of five hours of what makes Durante a legendary character. His tirades with the orchestra and whatever star crosses his path, his gruff, yet playful singing voice, his deliberate degradation of English verbiage, and of course his own jokes about his very own nose endear him to fans, old and new. Also, Durante is a statesman, philosophizing in pithy one-line comments on the world, on society, but most of all on how we should all get along. Taken directly from original master recordings and fully restored for sparkling audio fidelity, The Jimmy Durante Show, Volume 3 is proof that Jimmy Durante can still leave ‘em laughing! Find out for yourself by getting this great collection for $14.98 on Audio CDs and $9.98 as a digital download!

 
 

“Personal Notice: Danger’s my stock-in-trade. If the job is too tough for you to handle, you’ve got a job for me, George Valentine.”
 
Have a High Adventure Holiday with the all purpose hero himself! Let George Do It, Volume 1 for only 99 Cents! Follow George and his Girl Friday Brooksie through all the harrowing twists and turns of each and every startling, fantastic case!
 
Swing into action with George in 10 hours of wonderfully restored audio CDs for only 99 Cents with a $35.00 Order! Just add Let George Do It, Volume 1 to your shopping cart, and then add $35.00 or more worth of additional merchandise to your cart as well. Before checking out, be sure to enter the coupon code BONUS to Let George Do It for just 99 Cents.
 
 
With Christmas approaching faster than eight reindeer pulling a sled, The Treasure Chest is the best place to find last minute gift ideas at fantastic prices. For this most special of Holidays, every DVD in the Treasure Chest is now discounted 70%! Classic Movies, Timeless Television, and More! Something for everyone on your list can be found in The Treasure Chest and at a remarkable 70% off!
 

Up, Up, and Away with classic serial super heroics! The complete 1948 and 1950 Superman Theatrical Serials on 4 DVDS! Classic Crooning From Hollywood’s Golden Age with Bing Crosby: The Screen Legends Collection!
 
Ride the Range with the likes of The Cisco Kid and Zorro, each one featured in his own 3 DVD set! Laugh at the antics of Harold Lloyd and Burns And Allen, all taking center stage in their own DVDs! Thrill to the original classic King Kong! Fly off into adventure with Sky Captain and The World of Tomorrow! Sing under the Western Sky with Roy Rogers in three of his classic films! Guffaw at the Country Comedy of Lum and Abner in three movies! Enjoy the hilarity of one of History’s Greatest comics as Jack Benny is featured in two different sets!
 
Inventory of these DVDs are getting low. This is the last week they will be available as we are removing the remaining DVDs from the website after Christmas.
 
Great DVDs! Unbelievable Prices! And all at Christmastime! The Treasure Chest is full of Holiday Gift Ideas for You!
 

 

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Like your Action Fast Paced? Happy about Horror and Suspense? Needing that extra tickle that only Comedy can Provide? Enjoy Music and Variety from a bygone Era? And want that and more this Christmas? Then Radio Archives is just the place for you! Restored to the highest audio quality possible, the best in Old Time Radio is available here, like these awesome collections.
 
Ride the High Seas with History’s Greatest Privateer! Fight Pirates, hunt for treasure, and write history alongside one of the most legendary seafarers ever! Get on Board with Afloat with Henry Morgan, Volume 1. Seven hours on audio CDs $20.98 or as a Digital Download for $13.98!
 

 
Remember Archie and Jughead? Betty and Veronica? And all the Gang in Riverdale? Yep, that’s right, those fantastic characters from Archie Comics took stage front and center in their own Radio show, The Adventures of Archie Andrews! Go along with Archie and the Gang as they get in and out of hilarity each episode in this 7 hour collection, available on audio CDs for $20.98 or as a Digital Download for $13.98!
 
Great Mysteries, Witty Humor, and a Fantastic Singing Voice to beat! This and more you’ll find in Richard Diamond, Private Detective, Volume 1. Starring Dick Powell, this classic radio detective program set the standards for many of the shows to follow, both on radio and television, and features the earliest work from the fantastic Blake Edwards! And this clever criminal catching can be yours, 10 hours of a Singing Sleuth for $29.98 on audio CDs and $19.98 as a digital download!
 

 
Thrill to one of the greatest and most controversial performers ever, putting his vision out for the audience to hear with The Mercury Theatre on the Air! This 10-hour collection is Orson Welles at his creative pinnacle, doing adaptations of classic works his way and providing us with some of the best audio drama ever! And it can be yours for $29.98 on audio CDs and $19.98 for the Digital Download!
 
Six Guns! Guitars! Knee slapping Cowboy Comedy! All this and more can be found on All Star Western Theatre! A perfect mix of everything audiences loved about Saturday Matinees comes together in this classic Cowboy variety program! Saddle up for 10 hours of All Star Western Theatre for $29.98 on audio CDs and $19.98 as a Digital Download!
 

 
Suspense! Adventure! Pulse Pounding Action! And Twists You don’t see coming! And all of that in fifteen minute doses! That’s what you get on The Unexpected, Volume 1. Featuring some of the greatest stars of classic radio, The Unexpected, Volume 1 puts the listener right into the thick of the action and just when you think you know where it’s headed, it takes a turn to The Unexpected! Thrill to this one of a kind suspense program, 5 hours on audio CDs for $14.98 and Digital Download for $9.98!
 
Want to get a taste of what Classic Radio was like all in one Collection? If so, then The Classic Collection is for you! In addition to thirty full-length original broadcasts, you’ll also hear a series of insightful interviews with many of the people who created and starred in some of the best-loved shows of all time. Twenty full hours of delightful entertainment on audio CD for $39.98!
 
“Get this and get it straight: crime is a sucker’s road, and those who travel it end up in the gutter, the prison, or the grave…” The immortal opening of one of the most popular and best produced detective dramas of Radio’s Golden Age! Join Raymond Chandler’s modern day Knight on the mean streets of Los Angeles in The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, Volume 1! 10 hours of Crime Solving at its best for $29.98 on audio CDs and $19.98 for Digital Download!

 
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The Jade Ogre – High Adventure for the Holidays and Beyond
  ra406-350-2596923The RadioArchives.com audiobook of Will Murray’s monumental Doc Savage adventure The Jade Ogre is sure to delight fans of audio adventure this holiday season … and into the New Year.   “The Jade Ogre makes a wonderful listening experience,” Producer/Director Roger Rittner says. “Will has packed a cast of colorful characters, plus mystery, intrigue, action, adventure, and a bit of mysticism into an heroic tale. It’s an epic adventure to be savored.”   Based on an outline by Lester Dent, the massive The Jade Ogre tells the story of one of Doc Savage’s most exciting and exotic adventures.   Accompanied by his aides Monk Mayfair and Ham Brooks, his cousin Pat Savage, and a cast of unique characters, Doc races to unlock the secret of the Jade Ogre, a fantastic Oriental villain who unleashes death in the form of disembodied flying arms, capable of disintegrating its victims in a flash of fire. But the lethal flying arms are merely the cover for a more deadly menace – the mysterious Jade Fever, which strikes down its victims with a deadly virus that turns its victims green as jade.

 

“The Jade Ogre will carry the listener from the fog-shrouded streets of the Chinatown of 1935 San Francisco, to the crumbling ruins of Cambodia, as the armless and ruthless Jade Ogre attempts to blackmail the world with his lethal Jade Fever,” author Will Murray says in his liner notes.

 

Narrator Michael McConnohie essays every role in the story with unerring vocal impressions that give life to Murray’s distinctive characters.

 

In addition to the 36-chapter story, the 12-CD set includes two bonus audio features: a continuation of Will Murray’s discussion of the creation of Doc Savage, and his memory of creating The Jade Ogre from Lester Dent’s notes, plus how Pat Savage has contributed to the Doc Savage canon.

 

The Jade Ogre is available now from RadioArchives.com at $37.98 for the deluxe 12-CD set, or $25.98 for instant digital download.

 

 

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Just in time for that last-minute holiday gift, RadioArchives.com brings to audiobooks Secret Agent “X”, the man of many identities.

 

A nameless mystery man with a wartime past in the Intelligence service, declared dead by the Department of Justice, and backed by a shadowy group of powerful philanthropists, Secret Agent “X” infiltrates the Underworld to crush crime in all of its hideous manifestations.

 

The Torture Trust, the audio version of the very first Secret Agent “X” adventure, introduces the mysterious nemesis of the most nefarious criminals the pulp writers could dream up. In it, Secret Agent “X” pits all his secretive skill and devious daring against a criminal triad that wields face-destroying acid as an instrument of blackmail.

 

Read by noted voiceover actor Dave Mallow, The Torture Trust is a danger-a-minute audio introduction to this fondly remembered pulp avenger of the 1930s.

 

The Torture Trust, the latest entry in RadioArchives.com’s Will Murray’s Pulp Classics series, will provide thrills and chills to pulp and audiobook fans alike.

 

The deluxe five-CD set of The Torture Trust is just $14.98. The instant download version is just $9.98.

 

The Spider Offers A Unique Listening Experience

 

For over-the-top thrills, you can’t beat Prince of the Red Looters, the first audiobook from RadioArchives.com featuring the pulp hero, The Spider.

 

“With extensive sound effects and complete period music score, Prince of the Red Looters is an almost ‘cinematic’ experience for listeners,’ says Producer/Director Roger Rittner. “Customers are telling us it’s like a movie playing in your mind.”

 

Narrating Norvel Page’s propulsive prose, stage and screen stars Nick Santa Maria and Robin Riker give life to the sword fights, escapes, insurmountable odds, nail-biting suspense, and unexpected twists in Prince of the Red Looters.

 

Prince of the Red Looters is available in a 6-CD deluxe set at just $19.98, or as an instant digital download at just $14.98.

 

More Audio Adventures Ideal for Holiday Giving

 

ra401-200-9885039ra402-200-3248343Listeners continue to discover and delight in Python Isle. In Booklist, the 100-year-old journal of the American Library Association, Kaite Mediatore Stover says that Python Isle, the first Doc Savage audiobook from Radio Archives.com, “takes listeners on a breathless, roller-coaster adventure ride. Michael McConnohie’s masterful pacing keeps the tension and suspense tighter than a python’s grip, and a superb blend of sound effects and music enhance the mood, lending the production a cinematic feel.”

 

The full-cast NPR series The Adventures of Doc Savage presents special adaptations of “Fear Cay” and “The Thousand-Headed Man” by Roger Rittner and Will Murray. Featuring a full cast of voice actors, extensive sound effects, and period music score, The Adventures of Doc Savage is non-stop action in 13 exciting installments.

 

A super-criminal emerges in White Eyes, the second Doc Savage audiobook from RadioArchives.com. From his skyscraper headquarters high above the streets of New York City to the sugarcane fields of Cuba, Doc Savage races to crush gangland’s latest uncrowned king. White Eyes features dramatic narration by Richard Epcar, cover art by Joe DeVito, plus fantastic extras.

 

ra405-200-5570279The first Black Bat audiobook, Brand of the Black Bat, is a stirring story of crime and corruption, and of a courageous avenger determined to track down the vicious gangster who robbed him of his brilliant career, all the while thwarting Captain MacGrath of the N.Y.P.D., who suspects Quinn and the Black Bat are one and the same. Michael McConnohie reads this fantastic tale.

 

RadioArchives.com resurrects the wild and wonderful Doctor Death, one of the rare unabashedly supernatural pulp series. Equal parts Doctor Frankenstein and Albert Einstein, with a dash of Fu Manchu, Doctor Death’s supreme goal in life was to crush civilization. His first fatal foray into reversing mankind’s fortunes, 12 Must Die, is now available in an audiobook read by television and anime star Joey D’Auria.

 

 

 
 

Pulp Fans know how their favorite writers work magic with the English Language.  The Pulp Book Store is now proud to feature the works of two men who influenced radio, television, movies, and even modern day Pulp writers with their subtle manipulations of the Language, bringing humor and philosophy out of every day situations into the every day lives of Americans.  Now a part of The Pulp Book Store: Bob and Ray!
 
Bob Elliott & Ray Goulding, legendary American humorists, were loved by fans and by fellow humorists, comedians and broadcasters. Every humorist and comedian from 1946 to the present was influenced by Bob & Ray, including Johnny Carson, David Letterman, Jay Leno, George Carlin, Al Franken, Garrison Keillor and Kurt Vonnegut, who wrote: “Their jokes turn out to be universal…because much of life presents itself as the same dilemma: how to seem lusty and purposeful when less than nothing is going on.”
 
Bob & Ray’s 40-year career began at WHDH, Boston. Bob was a disc jockey, and Ray a newscaster. When the Red Sox games were delayed on account of rain, they began to amuse each other to fill the time. Soon they had a daily show of their own, “Matinee with Bob & Ray,” an improvised, madcap exercise in controlled chaos. Over their long career, they created more than a hundred characters, all played by Bob or Ray. Wally Ballou, the hapless journalist, Mary McGoon, whose recipe for frozen ginger ale salad prefigures Martha Stewart; Biff Burns in the sports room, Webley Webster, Barry Campbell, a third rate actor with an ego the size of the universe, Mary Backstayge, Noble Wife whose pals travel the world in search of goofy adventure.
 
Their humor is subtle, dry, intelligent and clean. Bob & Ray have a keen ear for language, how it is used and misused by the con artists, hucksters and hustlers who populate radio and television. Their humor is timeless. Bob & Ray ‘s satire of soap operas, game shows, radio shrinks and other self-appointed “experts,” and commercials, is as pertinent today as it was in 1946. 
 

Bob And Ray were wizards of comic timing and practiced linguistic legerdemain like no other pair before or since!  If you enjoy your humor the way you enjoy your Pulp, clever and delivered subtly and sharply, then the Pulp Book Store now has what You’re looking for!  Bob And Ray!
 

 

Tired of giving the same old ties and gift boxes of sausage and cheese for Christmas? Bored with shopping the usual places, browsing the same sites day in and day out? Then stop! Radio Archives has just the place for you to shop and fill every need on your Christmas list with unique collectibles and fantastic books and more! The Pulp Book Store!

Pulp Fiction, thought by many to be an artifact of the past, a lost treasure of days gone by, is alive and well, both the classic tales and New Pulp stories! And the best Tales and Providers of Pulp can be found right here at The Pulp Book Store!

 
The Pulp Book Store provides both Pulp enthusiasts and those who are simply curious a one-stop opportunity to browse and shop the best the Pulp market in all its many facets has to offer every single day!
 
Pulp Fiction, even though its heyday was in the early 20th Century, has been popular as long as it has existed and continues to excite readers today. Often fast paced, action packed, and full of fantastical ideas, over the top characters, and imaginative adventures, Pulp can be about cowboys, aliens, ancient gods, two-fisted detectives, bigger than life gangsters, femme fatales, and so many other sorts of characters as it reaches into nearly every genre imaginable.
 
Pulp is also all about variety. Not only are there classic and new pulp stories, but nearly every genre has stories within it that are clearly pulp. Be it science fiction, hard boiled crime, rootin’ tootin’ westerns and so many others, Pulp discriminates against no genre. This, along with the resurgence of Pulp publishers and its popularity, is why Radio Archives has established the Pulp Book Store.
 
“The concept’s easy,” according to Pulp Book Store Manager, Tommy Hancock. “The convenience for the consumer is amazing. If someone is a fan of a particular company, they usually just go to that publisher’s site and nowhere else and that’s fine. But, speaking as a fan myself, most of us enjoy Pulp stuff from a variety of sources. With The Pulp Book Store, I can go and find several companies providing and promoting books I want. Each company in The Pulp Book Store has its own ‘store within a store’ designed as they want it to draw attention to their wares.”
 
If you’re interested in Pulp Classics, then the Pulp Book Store features the best in Pulp Reprint Publishers. Ride along with the well remembered classic Pulp heroes as they fight wrong and make right! Or, if your interest leans more toward more obscure characters, you’ll find those too in some of the great replicas and reprints produced by leading publishers in the Pulp world, all right here at The Pulp Book Store!
 
Looking for something new? Pulpy tales written by modern writers and using either original characters or simply new stories about existing characters, are growing in popularity. Pulp icons blaze new trails in original adventures, such as Will Murray’s all new Doc Savage novels. A pantheon of modern original heroes step front and center to keep up the good fight as well. New tales in a classic style keep Pulp Fiction current and alive and can be found here at the Pulp Book Store!
 
And it’s not simply about books! Pulp has reached its adventurous tentacles into other mediums as well, including posters and audio drama! And you’ll find examples of that as well in various stores here at The Pulp Book Store!
 
If you purchase several products from several publishers, everything is shipped to you in the same box. Our Flat Rate ground postage means that no matter how many companies you buy from, you pay only one small amount for postage and you pay for everything together. Possibly the best news, Place your order by 7:30pm Eastern Time and your order is mailed the same day. Unbelievable but true.
 
“If Pulp is a part of your life or not, then browse the Pulp Book Store and enjoy,” says Hancock. “If you end up there out of curiosity or by accident, then please look around. We’re sure there is something offered by our many Publishers that will intrigue you. Regardless, Pulp is here to stay. The Pulp Book Store is the one stop shop for the Best in Classic and New Pulp today!
 
Christmas Discounts From The Pulp Book Store To You!
 
As their gift to you, several Publishers in the Pulp Book Store are offering limited time only discounts to you this Holiday Season! From Now through December 30th, take advantage of the Christmas Specials from the Best Providers of Pulp Today!
 
Whether or not you’re looking for modern action adventure, new tales of heroes stranded on lost worlds, or a brand new take on the return of the Lord of the Vampires, You’ll find that and more in the Pulpwork Press store! And, as a special Holiday offer, Pulpwork Press is offering a 20 % discount on ALL merchandise in its store! Through December 30, 2011, thrill to the New Pulp adventures of Dillon, Dracula, The Gantlet Brothers, the Dire Planet and so much more at 20 % Off!
 
Masked men! Sword Wielding Women! Private Eyes from the Future! Psychotic heroes from the Past! Pro Se Press puts the Monthly Back into Pulp with its regular production of new books as well as its magazine, Pro Se Presents, each month! And, just in time for Christmas, Pro Se offers 20% off of ALL titles currently in the Pulp Book Store! Titles like The Rook, The Adventures of Lazarus Gray, Fortune’s Pawn, YesterYear and more at a 20% Discount! From Pro Se Press to You, Happy Holidays!
 
Not only can you find the Best in Pulp Today, but from now until December 30, 2011, You can find it at a great price here in The Pulp Book Store!

 

 

The Man of Bronze battles the supernatural in classic pulp thrillers by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc Savage follows his stolen dirigible to a magic island and discovers the lost city of Ost, in an expanded novel with never-before-published text from Lester Dent’s original manuscript. Then, Renny Renwick awakens in the body of a fugitive gangster after encountering a strange impish man. What is the bizarre connection between the One-Eyed Mystic, a stolen military secret and a Nazi plot? This classic pulp reprint features the original color pulp covers by Robert G. Harris and Modest Stein, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of eight Doc Savage novels.
 
The Shadow’s true identity takes center stage in two classic pulp novels that inspired the classic 1940 Shadow movie serial. First, explorer Kent Allard is invited to join The Green Hoods, a hooded secret society whose true purpose is an enigma. Then, airplanes carrying wealthy passengers disappear over the Rockies, setting The Shadow on the trail of the criminal mastermind called Silver Skull. PLUS “Prelude to Terror,” a 1939 radio classic. This instant collector’s item showcases both classic pulp covers by George Rozen, the original interior illustrations by Edd Cartier and commentary by popular-culture historians Ed Hulse and Will Murray.

 
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Review of “Crooks Go Straight” from The Shadow, Volume 11

By John Olsen

“Crooks Go Straight” was originally published in the March 1, 1935 issue of The Shadow Magazine. This story follows the reformed lives of two ex-crooks, Steve Zurk, a bank robber, and Jack Targon, a swinder. But both have recently been pardoned by the governor, and are now free men.
 
Aboard the Eastern Limited, headed for New York, Zurk and Targon discuss their past lives and their bright future. Both are determined to go straight and make a success of their lives. In the compartment next door, The Shadow listens to their conversation via a small wire. Although his usual task was to harry men of crime, The Shadow had more than once aided ex-crooks to go straight. And this was one of those times.
 
And so, two ex-convicts begin their new lives. Crooks have gone straight. Or have they? There are sudden murders. Robberies. And signs point to one of the two. Or perhaps, both! Only The Shadow can solve the mystery. Only The Shadow can uncover the true mastermind behind the scheme. Only The Shadow can clear the innocent and unmask the guilty.
 
This story features Cliff Marsland, Hawkeye and Harry Vincent in major roles, with Clyde Burke and Burbank taking minor ones. Police Commissioner Ralph Weston and Detective Joe Cardona appear to represent the law. And The Shadow appears in his disguise as Lamont Cranston. Moe Shrevnitz appears briefly, and is described as a reserve agent of The Shadow. I always considered Moe to be a full-time agent, but keep in mind that his was an early tale of The Shadow.
 
The story features that strange vial (spelled phial, here) of purplish liquid which restores The Shadow’s strength after being injured in a two-story fall. It’s been used in other stories, and always intrigues me because of its vague power. We’re never told exactly what it is, but its effect is immediate. Are we talking about some illicit narcotic, here? Somehow, I wouldn’t be surprised.
 
“Crooks Go Straight” and one other Shadow classic can be yours today in The Shadow, Volume 11 for $12.95 here at Radio Archives!
 

Comments From Our Customers!
 

John  Skelton:
I really enjoy your old time radio products and your great service. These old time radio programs are very enjoyable to listen to as you know.
 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!
 
The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

ALAN LADD, SECRET AGENT X, PHILIP JOSE FARMER AND MORE! AND IT’S STILL CHRISTMAS AT RADIO ARCHIVES!

  • News
  • December 9, 2011

RadioArchives.com Newsletter

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December 9, 2011
oldtimeradio-4247958   NEW Radio Set: Box Thirteen, Volume 3

Alan Ladd, a legend of the silver screen, brought his trademark tough guy with a heart to the airwaves in ‘Box Thirteen’, a pulpy mystery adventure radio program. Produced by his own Mayfair Productions from 1948-1949, Ladd returned to his radio roots as Dan Holiday, the central character in this thrilling show.

 
For fifty two episodes, Holiday, a reporter turned fiction writer, checked Box Thirteen at the Star-Times, finding thrills and chills in every response to the want ad he placed stating ‘Adventure Wanted.’ Russell Hughes, who hired Ladd at KFWB, scripted most of the show’s episodes. Rudy Schrager provided the often light, sometimes atmospheric music for Box Thirteen and Vern Carstensen doubled as the show’s director and announcer. Well-known radio actors also contributed their voices over the entire run of Box Thirteen, adding to the high quality of this tightly budgeted program.
 
Although Box Thirteen bears similarities to other mystery and action programs of the time, something that stands out is how Ladd portrayed the show’s mostly hard-boiled protagonist. Dan Holiday, a reporter trying to make his way as a fiction writer, has no police training, no investigator’s license, no skills that identify he could handle rough and tumble action and multitudes of thugs every episode. Yet, that’s exactly what he did week in and week out and thanks to Alan Ladd, Holiday was more than believable. Over the show’s run, he proved his worth as both a hard-boiled, ready for anything action hero and an everyman dealing with what troubles came his way with little more than his wits.
 
Ladd gave his portrayal of Dan Holiday his sardonic wit as well the edge to his voice that added unpredictability to everything he said. He also provided a subdued ever-present sense of humanity. Listeners knew that Holiday would always win out, but sat on the edges of their seats anxiously, unsure of just how he would pull it off each show.
 
Listen to the fantastic episodes included in this third volume and ride along with Holiday as he uncovers the twists and turns each new response to his ad brings him. Box Thirteen, Volume 3 contains the further adventures of this hard-boiled everyman, each show restored to the highest quality possible, thanks to Radio Archives. The Seven hour collection is $20.98 for the Audio CD version and $13.98 for the Digital Download version!

 
 

 
“Enemy to those who make him an enemy…Friend to those who have no friend!”

 
Ready to have a Pulpy Christmas? Then join everyone’s favorite safecracker turned crimefighter on Boston Blackie, Volume 1 for only 99 Cents! Have your own Holiday Hijinks listening to Blackie track the criminals and one up Inspector Faraday in every humorous, exciting episode!
 
Ride along with Blackie in 10 hours of wonderfully restored audio for only 99 Cents with a $35.00 Order! Just add Boston Blackie, Volume 1” to your shopping cart, and then add $35.00 or more worth of additional merchandise to your cart as well. Before checking out, be sure to enter the coupon code BONUS to get Boston Blackie set for just 99 Cents.
 
* * *
Still looking for that perfect present for that Special Person on your list? Then dig deep into the Radio Archives Treasure Chest for the best Holiday Deals Possible! This Christmas season, Every single DVD we offer is available at 60% off its regular price! Ride the range with Roy Rogers! Fly high with Superman! Chuckle along with the likes of Jack Benny!
 
Take a peek in the Treasure Chest and you’ll find Great Presents like:
 

Bing Crosby: The Screen Legends Collection – 3 DVDs of classic Crosby movies. Normally priced at $26.98 now $10.79, 60% off!
 
The Jack Benny Show – Hilarious collection of four classic episodes from his CBS television series. Normally $6.98 now $2.79, a 60% discount
 
TV’s Greatest Shows – Laugh, Cry, and Thrill to 7 DVDs worth of classic Television Episodes from TV’s Golden Age! Normally $29.98 now $11.99  – Unbelievably discounted 60%!

 
Superman – The 1948 & 1950 Theatrical Serials Collection – 4 DVDs of two of the earliest screen portrayals of the Man of Steel – Normally $39.98 now $15.99 – A 60% discount!
 
Best of The Cisco Kid – 35 half hour TV shows on this 3 DVD collection of the classic Cisco Kid TV Series- Normally $14.98 now $5.99 – A 60% discount!
 
Zorro – The Masked Avenger, Old Mexico’s swashbuckling sword wielder on 3 DVDs – Normally $14.98 now $5.99. Available now at 60% off!
 
Just like your Christmas tree, the Treasure Chest is full to the brim with the best Gifts for Everyone!
 
Merry Christmas from Radio Archives!
 
 
Classic Radio And Christmas Go Great Together!
 

Everyone Loves a Good Comedy, Mystery, Drama, and even a touch of Horror now and then! And You can get all of that and more this Christmas for those special to you from Radio Archives! Just look at a few of the treasures you can find here at Radio Archives.
 
Blast off with Sci Fi Fun with Space Patrol, Volume 1! Follow the exploits of Commander Buzz Corey in charge of a thirtieth-century police-keeping force operating from a man-made planet known as Terra. Assisted by his protégé Cadet Happy, Corey struggled to maintain law and order on the interplanetary frontier against the villainous likes of Mister Proteus, Agent X, Prince Baccaretti , known as The Black Falcon! A Science Fiction Classic, Space Patrol, Volume 1 is ten hours of space faring laser blasting fun! Available now from Radio Archives on Audio CDs for $29.98 and Digital Download for $19.98.
 
Follow intrepid ace cameraman Casey as he tracks down the biggest stories in the city! Casey, Crime Photographer, Volume 1 collects 20 episodes of the Adventures of Casey and his camera along with his reporter Girlfriend Annie Williams, Captain Logan of the Police, and Blue Note bartender Ethelbert! This show is the prefect blend of action, mystery, and humor! Get ten hours on Audio CDs for $29.98 or via Digital Download for $19.98 today!
 

ra169-200-8340142The adventures of the Biggest Man West of the Rio Grande can be found on Luke Slaughter of Tombstone! Thrill to the escapades of Slaughter, a cattleman tougher than rawhide, faster than a rattler, and just deadly enough to survive! This frontier adventure is a fantastic Old West tale of six guns, steers, and outlaws galore! Enjoy Luke Slaughter of Tombstone, a total of eight hours on Audio CDs for $23.98 and Digital Download for 15.98!
 
If you’re thinking Medical Melodrama is a modern invention, then you need to listen to the father of them all! The Story of Dr. Kildare, Volume 1 focuses on a young doctor and his crotchety mentor, Dr. Gillespie (played by Lionel Barrymore) as they deal with the day to day issues that arise for their patients! Tender moments, medical mysteries, and a bit of action makes The Story of Dr. Kildare, Volume 1 a great collection! Available for $29.98 on Audio CD or Digital Download for $19.98!
 
Hear All the Best Classic Radio this Holiday Season! Wonderfully restored to beautiful sound quality and available from Radio Archives!

 
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The Mysterious Secret Agent “X” Comes to Audiobooks!
  Just in time for that last-minute holiday gift, RadioArchives.com brings to audiobooks Secret Agent “X”, the man of many identities.   A nameless mystery man with a wartime past in the Intelligence service, declared dead by the Department of Justice, and backed by a shadowy group of powerful philanthropists, Secret Agent “X” infiltrates the Underworld to crush crime in all of its hideous manifestations.   The Torture Trust, the audio version of the very first Secret Agent “X” adventure, introduces the mysterious nemesis of the most nefarious criminals the pulp writers could dream up. In it, Secret Agent “X” pits all his secretive skill and devious daring against a criminal triad that wields face-destroying acid as an instrument of blackmail.  

Read by noted voiceover actor Dave Mallow, The Torture Trust is a danger-a-minute audio introduction to this fondly remembered pulp avenger of the 1930s.

 

The Torture Trust, the latest entry in RadioArchives.com’s Will Murray’s Pulp Classics series, will provide thrills and chills to pulp and audiobook fans alike.

 

The deluxe five-CD set of The Torture Trust is just $14.98. The instant download version is just $9.98.

 

The Jade Ogre – High Adventure for the Holidays and Beyond

 

The RadioArchives.com audiobook of Will Murray’s monumental Doc Savage adventure The Jade Ogre is sure to delight fans of audio adventure this holiday season … and into the New Year.

 

“The Jade Ogre makes a wonderful listening experience,” Producer/Director Roger Rittner says. “Will has packed a cast of colorful characters, plus mystery, intrigue, action, adventure, and a bit of mysticism into an heroic tale. It’s an epic adventure to be savored.”

 

Based on an outline by Lester Dent, the massive The Jade Ogre tells the story of one of Doc Savage’s most exciting and exotic adventures.

 

Accompanied by his aides Monk Mayfair and Ham Brooks, his cousin Pat Savage, and a cast of unique characters, Doc races to unlock the secret of the Jade Ogre, a fantastic Oriental villain who unleashes death in the form of disembodied flying arms, capable of disintegrating its victims in a flash of fire. But the lethal flying arms are merely the cover for a more deadly menace – the mysterious Jade Fever, which strikes down its victims with a deadly virus that turns its victims green as jade.

 

“The Jade Ogre will carry the listener from the fog-shrouded streets of the Chinatown of 1935 San Francisco, to the crumbling ruins of Cambodia, as the armless and ruthless Jade Ogre attempts to blackmail the world with his lethal Jade Fever,” author Will Murray says in his liner notes.

 

Narrator Michael McConnohie essays every role in the story with unerring vocal impressions that give life to Murray’s distinctive characters.

 

In addition to the 36-chapter story, the 12-CD set includes two bonus audio features: a continuation of Will Murray’s discussion of the creation of Doc Savage, and his memory of creating The Jade Ogre from Lester Dent’s notes, plus how Pat Savage has contributed to the Doc Savage canon.

 

Listen to a sample of The Jade Ogre.

 

The Jade Ogre is available now from RadioArchives.com at $37.98 for the deluxe 12-CD set, or $25.98 for instant digital download.

 

The Spider Offers A Unique Listening Experience

 

For over-the-top thrills, you can’t beat Prince of the Red Looters, the first audiobook from RadioArchives.com featuring the pulp hero, The Spider.

 

“With extensive sound effects and complete period music score, Prince of the Red Looters is an almost ‘cinematic’ experience for listeners,’ says Producer/Director Roger Rittner. “Customers are telling us it’s like a movie playing in your mind.”

 

Narrating Norvel Page’s propulsive prose, stage and screen stars Nick Santa Maria and Robin Riker give life to the sword fights, escapes, insurmountable odds, nail-biting suspense, and unexpected twists in Prince of the Red Looters.

 

Prince of the Red Looters is available in a 6-CD deluxe set at just $19.98, or as an instant digital download at just $14.98.

 

More Audio Adventures Ideal for Holiday Giving

 

ra401-200-3185589Listeners continue to discover and delight in Python Isle. In Booklist, the 100-year-old journal of the American Library Association, Kaite Mediatore Stover says that Python Isle, the first Doc Savage audiobook from Radio Archives.com, “takes listeners on a breathless, roller-coaster adventure ride. Michael McConnohie’s masterful pacing keeps the tension and suspense tighter than a python’s grip, and a superb blend of sound effects and music enhance the mood, lending the production a cinematic feel.”

 

The full-cast NPR series The Adventures of Doc Savage presents special adaptations of “Fear Cay” and “The Thousand-Headed Man” by Roger Rittner and Will Murray. Featuring a full cast of voice actors, extensive sound effects, and period music score, The Adventures of Doc Savage is non-stop action in 13 exciting installments.

 

A super-criminal emerges in White Eyes, the second Doc Savage audiobook from RadioArchives.com. From his skyscraper headquarters high above the streets of New York City to the sugarcane fields of Cuba, Doc Savage races to crush gangland’s latest uncrowned king. White Eyes features dramatic narration by Richard Epcar, cover art by Joe DeVito, plus fantastic extras.

 

ra405-200-9464962The first Black Bat audiobook, Brand of the Black Bat, is a stirring story of crime and corruption, and of a courageous avenger determined to track down the vicious gangster who robbed him of his brilliant career, all the while thwarting Captain MacGrath of the N.Y.P.D., who suspects Quinn and the Black Bat are one and the same. Michael McConnohie reads this fantastic tale.

 

RadioArchives.com resurrects the wild and wonderful Doctor Death, one of the rare unabashedly supernatural pulp series. Equal parts Doctor Frankenstein and Albert Einstein, with a dash of Fu Manchu, Doctor Death’s supreme goal in life was to crush civilization. His first fatal foray into reversing mankind’s fortunes, 12 Must Die, is now available in an audiobook read by television and anime star Joey D’Auria.

 

 

 
 
Pulp Fiction, both Classic and New, is replete with strong, larger than life characters, those figures who against all odds strive and struggle to make sure the world is better for what they do! And that’s not just the heroes featured in great Pulp tales. It applies as well to the writers, the authors of the great adventures we thrill to with the turn of every page. Meteor House Publishing, launched in 2010, centers on one of these iconic creators, a man known for reinvigorating Pulp after it was long thought dead as well as breathing his own version of life into other genres, even to the point of starting an entire fictional Universe where famous literary characters knew and were even related to each other.
 
“Meteor House was launched with our first book, The Worlds of Philip José Farmer 1: Protean Dimensions,” reports Michael Croteau, one of the owners of Meteor House. “I started out as a book collector, because no one warned me it was a gateway to more serious hobbies, like creating a website about my favorite science fiction author, Philip José Farmer. That led to me meeting Phil and working with him on various things like doing his official website, selling photocopies of unpublished manuscripts for him, publishing the fanzine Farmerphile from 2005 to 2009 and even being an organizer of the annual FarmerCon gatherings. The latest manifestation of this addiction is being one of the owners of Meteor House and the editor of the Worlds of Philip José Farmer series of anthologies.”
 
A legendary author for his unique views on literature and how to tell stories as well as innovations that are still reverberating through fiction today, Philip Jose Farmer was a juggernaut of creativity, imagination and production, leaving Meteor House with material aplenty as well as the mission of making sure Farmer’s work and impact continues to be recognized into the future.
 
“Our initial goal, “Croteau says, “is to keep bringing Farmer fans “new” material to read. Sometimes that means reprinting an article about him that was published over fifty years ago in an obscure fanzine and nearly forgotten, like Randall Garrett’s essay, “The Bite of the Asp.” Sometimes that means publishing an interview with Farmer from the 1990s that was never printed, or a speech he gave in Denmark in 1977, or a short story found in his files that was never sold. It can also mean new stories in Farmer’s worlds by other writers, similar to what new pulp authors are doing with vintage pulp characters.
 
For those unfamiliar with Farmer’s work or who just have a general sense of it, his connection to Pulp may be tenuous. Meteor House recognizes his impact on the Pulp field and Croteau explains why Farmer was involved with Pulps.
 
“Farmer was a child of the pulps and a life-long fan of them. In fact you can say he was a champion of the pulps. Countless science fiction fans throughout the 1970s and 80s were introduced to Tarzan of the printed page, not of the movies and tv shows, and Doc Savage through Farmer. In fact, I personally had never heard of Doc Savage before I discovered Farmer’s biography of him, Doc Savage: His Apocalyptic Life in the early 1990s. Along with his other biography, Tarzan Alive, these two books launched the Wold Newton Universe which goes hand in hand with new pulp.
 
“Anyone who has ever read Farmer’s great comic novel, Greatheart Silver can tell how much he loved the pulps. And Farmer is a great example for new pulp writers. How you don’t have to do the expected, how you don’t have write firmly stuck in a narrow genre. Look at his Khokarsa series. He did the meticulous world-building you normally only find in science fiction, but Edgar Rice Burroughs and H. Rider Haggard were his primary “sources.” He then used this world, a vast civilization in Central Africa 12,000 years ago, to write adventure stories worthy of Burroughs and Haggard.”
 
Meteor House currently features its two titles in the Pulp Book Store! The Worlds of Philip José Farmer 1: Protean Dimensions is a tour through Farmer’s many creations, featuring essays by the likes of Randall Garrett and James Gunn, interviews with Farmer, stories set in Farmer’s expanded worlds by Chris Roberson, David Bischoff, Rhys Hughes, and other SF/F talents, and previously unpublished fiction and more by Farmer himself.
 
The Worlds of Philip Jose Farmer Volume 2: Of Dust and Soul takes another trip through Farmer’s imagination, featuring essays by the likes of Charles Platt and James Sallis, stories set in Farmer’s expanded worlds by Spider Robinson, Mary A. Turzillo, and others and featuring an all new novella by Philip José Farmer & Christopher Paul Carey, along with much more by Farmer himself.
 
Meteor House, according to Croteau, definitely intends to produce more quality work. “We are taking things one step at a time and growing slowly. We have plans for other books, Farmer related and otherwise, but nothing we can talk about just yet.”
 
Meteor House Publishing is a fantastic example of what people who love fiction and an author’s work can do with their passion and dedication. The Pulp Book Store is honored that Meteor House is one of the Publishers featured in the Store!
 

 

The Man of Bronze battles the supernatural in classic pulp thrillers by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, Doc Savage follows his stolen dirigible to a magic island and discovers the lost city of Ost, in an expanded novel with never-before-published text from Lester Dent’s original manuscript. Then, Renny Renwick awakens in the body of a fugitive gangster after encountering a strange impish man. What is the bizarre connection between the One-Eyed Mystic, a stolen military secret and a Nazi plot? This classic pulp reprint features the original color pulp covers by Robert G. Harris and Modest Stein, Paul Orban’s classic interior illustrations and historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of eight Doc Savage novels.
 
The Shadow’s true identity takes center stage in two classic pulp novels that inspired the classic 1940 Shadow movie serial. First, explorer Kent Allard is invited to join The Green Hoods, a hooded secret society whose true purpose is an enigma. Then, airplanes carrying wealthy passengers disappear over the Rockies, setting The Shadow on the trail of the criminal mastermind called Silver Skull. PLUS “Prelude to Terror,” a 1939 radio classic. This instant collector’s item showcases both classic pulp covers by George Rozen, the original interior illustrations by Edd Cartier and commentary by popular-culture historians Ed Hulse and Will Murray.
 

 
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artsippo-3928082

Review of “The Polar Treasure” from Doc Savage, Volume 6

By Dr. Art Sippo

After a concert, blind Violin virtuoso Victor Vail is given an urgent message to see an old friend, Ben O’Gard. Preparing to do so, it turns out this is actually an attempt to kidnap him. As multiple thugs drag Vail towards a taxi a bronze cyclone intervenes. Doc Savage had come to the concert to speak with Vail about performing an operation that might restore his sight. Even though Victor Vail had been born blind, Doc still thought that he could give him some form of vision. Doc handily thwarts the kidnap plot but comes upon a deeper mystery. Fifteen years earlier during the Great War, Victor Vail and his wife and daughter had been aboard the liner Oceanic when it was chased into the arctic ice pack by a German U-boat. It became trapped there and one day, Victor was suddenly rendered unconscious. When he awoke he was told by Ben O’Gard that the ship had been crushed by the ice and his family killed. Only a handful of the crew survived. A fight then ensued between Ben O’Gard and the evil Keelhaul de Rosa over which of them would take Victor with them. O’Gard and his men prevailed and escaped taking Vail with them. Ever since he returned, Vail has been menaced by a man with “clicking” teeth whom he can hear but no one else has been able to see.
 
Doc Savage is intrigued. The official story of the Oceanic was that it had been lost at sea and a review of its manifest showed that it had been carrying $50 million dollars in gold and diamonds. Victor Vail unwittingly held the secret of the location of the lost liner hidden on his body. Suddenly Ben O’Gard was no longer a hero, but a venal villain.
 
Doc Savage is in a race against time. The two villainous factions gain access to the location of the wreck and are on their way there. Can Doc and his crew arrive there in time to thwart them? And what really happened to the passengers and crew of the Oceanic?
 
This is one of the earliest Doc Savage adventures and still one of the best! Get The Polar Treasure and another full Doc Savage Tale today in Doc Savage, Volume 6 for $12.95 from Radio Archives!
 

Comments From Our Customers!
 

Barney McCasland:

I am looking forward to more Doctor Death. I’m now listening to The Jade Ogre. I’m only a few chapters in so far, but I think the potential is there for it to be much better than either Python Isle or White Eyes. Michael McConnohie is awesome! I like the fact that the last few books have been coming out so quick. More! More! More!

 
Larry Black:
Thanks a million for the super deals and the excellent quality of your product! I look forward to hours of great viewing and listening pleasure and to many more years of a continuing GREAT relationship.

Luke Hackenberg:

I read your newsletter via the AllPulp blog and it really comes out like an entertaining publication rather than just a rundown of ads. You guys are really putting out some great quality products right now — keep up the great work! Honestly, my intention is to be buying all of your new audio productions. It’s exciting to see you focusing on ramping up the line so enthusiastically. And I also like the availability of the downloads though my intention is to buy the hard copies, listen, and then donate to my local library so others can enjoy and word of your products can be spread.

Rodger Johnson:

Being a long time customer, I like the way you keep getting better with your product lines. My favorite new thing is the Pulp audiobooks, you can’t put them out fast enough,they are very well done….

 

If you’d like to share a comment with us or if you have a question or a suggestion send an email to Service@RadioArchives.com. We’d love to hear from you!
 
The products you’ve read about in this newsletter are just a small fraction of what you’ll find waiting for you at RadioArchives.com. Whether it’s the sparkling audio fidelity of our classic radio collections, the excitement of our new line of audiobooks, or the timeless novels of the pulp heroes, you’ll find hundreds of intriguing items at RadioArchives.com.
 
If you no longer wish to receive our newsletter, or if this newsletter has been sent to you in error, please reply to this e-mail with the subject line UNSUBSCRIBE and your name will immediately be removed from our mailing list.
 

GUEST REVIEW-DOC SAVAGE’S LATEST BOOK ‘HORROR IN GOLD’ BY WILL MURRAY

  • News
  • December 8, 2011

ALL PULP GUEST REVIEWS-
HORROR IN GOLD
The Newest in The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage
by Will Murray
Coming Soon from Altus Press!
Review by Jim Beard
Amazing Alchemical Adventure
“Horror in Gold” – A Review

horroringoldsm_cvr-1591510
HORROR IN GOLD, the new Doc Savage novel from Will Murray and Altus Press, opens with one of the best Doc first chapters ever. It’s a real humdinger. The rest of the book’s not too bad, either.
Once I really got into the story, that old comforting feeling of visiting with Doc and his amazing aides swept over me. That’s one of the highest compliments that I can pay Murray; it’s like coming home to read one of his modern Doc tales. As many of you well know, it’s almost impossible to divine where Lester Dent ends and Will Murray begins, or vice versa. HORROR IN GOLD is no exception, and I believe it will please even the most discriminating Doc enthusiasts.
When I was give the advance pdf of the book to read, one of the things I hoped lurked within its pages was one of the great super villains of old – and, lo and behold, I got it. Complete with a so-called “infernal device,” the book’s villain is larger-than-life, an improvement on the adversaries who populated THE DESERT DEMONS, Murray’s previous Doc tome.
Special notice should also be given to the author’s use of Long Tom here, not exactly the most popular of the aides; just wait until you check out the specialized use for Long Tom’s false teeth. It sounds goofy on the surface, but its just one of many fun bits that Murray includes. Monk and Ham are, of course, predominant in HORROR IN GOLD and just when I thought I had had just a bit too much of their incessant bickering – Murray almost never lets up on the gas on that score – the two men have one of the very best scenes in the book, an atypical moment that sticks with me long after I finished the story. And you can’t beat Monk being compared to Alley Oop, either.
Doc Savage here is the classic Doc of legend and gets right in to the thick of the troubles almost immediately. I also have to not that the while THE DESERT DEMONS plunked itself down squarely on the west coast, HORROR IN GOLD is very much a New York City adventure and Doc’s fabulous headquarters is put to very good use. It becomes almost a real place through Murray’s many scenes set therein. There’s also a fantastic section with the “go-devil” car, as Monk calls it, and a very, very unfortunate criminal. Top-notch stuff.
One of the things I love most about the original pulps is there use of the language of their times – slang, to be precise. Murray creates a reasonable facsimile of that here, especially with what spills out of Monk’s mouth. One phrase in particular that’s used as an exclamation – “I’ll tell a man!” – fascinates me, as I had never heard it before. And then, of course, there are the archaic spellings, like “to-day” and the book’s illusion of the 1930s is complete.
Alas, Pat Savage has something akin to a brief cameo, but I thoroughly enjoyed Murray’s use of Lea Aster, Monk’s secretary. In fact, after this, I would be very eager to see here again and again in this new Doc era.
Are there any caveats to my enthusiasm for HORROR IN GOLD? Perhaps only that it breaks away a little too abruptly towards the end to a completely new location and characters that don’t populate the bulk of the narrative. But, Will Murray rolls out the pulp action so smoothly and so in line with Lester Dent’s sensibilities that any gripes become minor quibbles when the entire package is looked at as a whole.
In all, HORROR IN GOLD whets my appetite for more – which is a good thing.

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