frankenstein conquers the radio

Lately, I've been devoting time to organizing my collection of old time radio programs. When I'm in an old time radio mood, I wander over to the Internet Archive and download anything that looks appealing. Sometimes it is. Other times, not so much. Once I've listened to a show, I'll pass judgement upon it and decide if it's worthy of a place in my permanent collection. Some are removed because of poor audio quality. Others because of general cheesiness of plot and dialogue. Others because the inclusion of racist and sexist stereotypes makes me want to hurl my MP3 player against a wall. But I digress. There are many radio programs that I truly love.

Often episodes are added to the archive individually or as complete series, but occasionally you discover that someone has taken the time to assemble and upload a collection of radio shows on a particular theme. Like Frankenstein's monster. Frankenstein Conquers the Radio is a small collection of old time radio programs featuring adaptations of, or homage to, the classic story. The quality of these programs varies. They range from episodes of Weird Circle and Favourite Story all the way to some un-named British radio comedy. The monster has been lurching across the airwaves since the invention of radio.

I first stumbled upon this collection last fall. It was interesting to listen to various adaptations of the Frankenstein story. But now I found my finger hovering over the Delete key. Then I hesitated. The centerpiece of this collection, and the one that stopped me from hitting the Delete button just yet, is a 13-part serial from the early 30's. It stars Australian radio actor George Edwards (who doesn't sound at all Australian here) and who, displaying an affinity for classic horror, went on to star in the (much better) radio version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde the following year. Sure the story is a little slow-moving. Yes, Baron Frankenstein's voice takes some getting used to. But it is atmospheric and it's a faithful adaptation of the original story. Reason enough to grant it a reprieve. Especially with Halloween and long dark nights quickly approaching.