INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(4979, '0119', 'episode', 'J. Kydd', '', 'BTW, on second listen, a couple of notes:\r\n\r\n- Remember "The fall of Gentryville"? Remember how the devil (who is a REALLY self-centered, prideful, hideous creature) kept making sure "Ginny" in that show knew how worldly he was by saying "Don''t say ''goodbye''. Say ''au revoir'', or ''ciao'', or ''auf widersehen''", etc.?)\r\n\r\nI kept remembering that when Satan was fumbling about trying to make sure the couple knew how worldly he was when saying British terms and then correcting them with American terminology, i.e. "Lift, oh, er, ''elevator''." in this show.\r\n\r\nThe faces of Satan were fascinating in the RMT, and none of them were good. (i.e. the worldly womanizer who could not stand to have his advances denied in "The fall of Gentryville"; Ian Martin''s guttural, groaning, cackling, thing who invades a woman in "Speak of the devil"; Norman Rose''s schemer who could set a man up to make millions but always had to bum some coins to pay for a cup of coffee in "Transmutations, Inc."; Robert Dryden''s mysterious, cellar-dwelling creature in "Crack in the wall"; the fork-tailed thing which left the nostrils of a drunkard to enter those of a man who had suffered a fatal skull injury in "Possessed by the devil"; etc.)\r\n\r\n- I don''t know whether this would be perceived as an insult or a non-insult today, or even if it could be said in a show in this politically correct day and age, but...I''d forgotten about this dialogue between Hecht and Rowland around the 4:27 mark (and my apologies in advance to anyone out there who''s offended, because that''s not my intent):\r\n\r\n\r\nHECHT: "Here it is...H.S.M. Apollion(sic?). That''s our fairy godfather".\r\n\r\nROWLAND: "Don''t call him that."\r\n\r\nHECHT: "I don''t care how gay he is...the apartment''s all I care about."\r\n\r\n\r\nNo, I just realized who they''re talking about (and remember his collection of torture items in the closet...no metaphor intended, or maybe there was!)...I''m almost assured that there''s NO WAY this dialogue would make it on a CBS program today.', '2013-03-27 15:18:13', 1, '0c59cba38969c94880955647e72abcff', '112.200.20.61'),
(4980, '0119', 'episode', 'Jercs Soltes', '', 'I can only imagine it may not have been intended as it seems. The word "gay" used to have another meaning once, long before it became the word that defines the gender preferenced.\r\n\r\nOf course, seeing the "fairy godfather" might make it suspect, nonetheless. I just can''t allow myself to believe that an intellectual writer for the RMT would be so thoughtless and free with a word that was not in the mainstream and rarely used in corporate media, such as CBS.\r\n\r\nI could be wrong, too!', '2013-03-24 23:39:02', 1, '548dae5ed3cdda92ca9a6de427a83964', '112.200.20.61'),
(4981, '0119', 'episode', 'Marcy', '', 'I would have agreed were it not for the "fairy godfather" context (and remember that Martin''s character, before he revealed himself :evil: , was a single, somewhat fey-sounding man).\r\n\r\nThis also was before political correctness really took hold (though maybe it already had in New York City) but in a way maybe it could have been included to make us less sympathetic to Hecht''s character (though not Rowland''s) and to show him to not be as innocent, or rather, "good", as he first appeared.', '2013-03-24 23:39:05', 1, '98c84ed74436cc3b0c837cb094b35f25', '112.200.20.61'),
(4982, '0119', 'episode', 'Kit-Kat', '', 'I tend to agree with you. When I first listened to the show, I heard the comment and paused... I rewound my iPod a few notches and listened to it again. Sure enough, there it was. I didn''t think much of it until now, and of course, it certainly makes sense. I guess I just don''t want to believe that an RMT writer would use such a cold device. But as you said, there was no such thing as PC back then. Oh how times have changed!', '2013-03-24 23:39:24', 1, 'fc6be4adb5719a4957521e94f55f60ff', '112.200.20.61'),
(4983, '0119', 'episode', 'Noel L.', '', 'Now this was a good episode!\r\n\r\nThe only complaint is that the ghosts were pretty light in the storyline.\r\n\r\nThis is one where the good people don''t win out in the end. CREEPY! For the supernatural/creepy side of things, this one is great. What more is there to say other than, this one is one of the top episodes!', '2013-03-24 23:39:39', 1, '33d7f38ac6ccb2cb908300e7166aaa9a', '112.200.20.61'),
(4984, '0119', 'episode', 'Darle', '', 'Not the brightest at navigation, I didn''t find a newer Show Of The Week posted, so I thought it would be cool to go to the older ones. I listened to this one over the weekend, the 30th anniversary of its initial broadcast.\r\n\r\nThis was the kind of stuff that made us turn the lights on and check under the bed for monsters. No surprise twists, we know right off the bat that His Satanic Majesty is going to torment this nice young couple; we just don''t know if they''ll be the lucky ones that get away. Nice little horror tale with chilling sound effects and a wicked, shiver-inspiring ending. I give it a 3.5, though I don''t know if my rating fits the ballot, so I voted for Bucahanan and left my chad hanging in between the 3 and 4. Now I''m going to read what you other listeners wrote, and then I will post on "The Chinaman Button," one of my all-time favorite episodes.', '2013-03-24 23:39:40', 1, '5e9bcd7dd42b24f3bb7c3942de48acf5', '112.200.20.61'),
(4985, '0119', 'episode', 'Marc', '', 'Great catch on that "gay" comment. When I heard it I hadn''t realized that that it was preceded by "fairy godfather." Very clever, though much more subtle than the phallic images in Walt Disney movie posters.\r\n\r\nI disagree with the thought a line like that would never be written or pass through censors in today''s world... the airwaves are full of ethnic and sexual punch lines. The word "gay" was coming in vogue back then (1974), but it was not as universally understood as it is today. I would venture to say that the vast majority of people 35+ (and "straight'') would have missed that line''s punch altogether, though I''m sure in NYC it was understood and appreciated. And I don''t believe it was written to make us dislike the character, otherwise he''d have been far more mean-spirited and said "fag" or something more derogatory. I think it was more of an inside joke, a reference that only "hip" people would get and the rest would miss, like something in "The Simpsons."\r\n\r\nI agree that in those days, few who might have been offended by the remark would make a stink about it; on the other hand, it is exactly the kind of pun my gay friends would have been the the first to make. (Have you seen the new guy on Comedy Central? His name slips the memory, but there are few analogies, cliches and innuendos of gay culture left unspoken.) Sort of like the rule that only Richard Pyor, Eddie Murphy or LL Cool J can say the "N" word. It''s not necessarily the word, but the intent, and I think Ian was just being clever and hip. Now, the "devices" in the closet? Who knows?', '2013-03-24 23:39:40', 1, '97f8d0b593e1c3fc663e46b1b734bb03', '112.200.20.61'),
(4986, '0003', 'episode', 'Chris', '', 'When I first started listening I thought this one may not be all that good. But after a couple minutes it soon became very compelling. I rate this 4 out of 5 delusions for very good. :) This shows idea and plot obviously have been played in different degrees in many programs. There was a Twilight Zone that played on this similarly. The soldier in that case was aboard a ship and by his mistake caused the death of all his ship mates. The more recent years example of the idea of cheating death was the "Final Destination" movies. The acting in this episode are very good as well. They all play the parts excellently. Take a listen. This on is definitely near the top of my fav list of shows! Check it out! ', '2013-03-24 23:39:41', 1, 'e80dd83ea60d5e61b624a5ab27ad9685', '64.136.212.123'),
(4987, '0371', 'episode', 'Susie Q.', 'tiger_lux@yahoo.com', 'I *thought* Aunt Hester sounded like the witch from the Wizard of Oz -- no wonder, she was played by Margaret Hamilton! I loved it when she was talking w the cat and the parrot. ', '2013-03-24 23:39:42', 1, 'c937c1aa6a22f7dfaa37a08fa8e1a007', '74.131.171.8'),
(4988, '0194', 'episode', 'boston mike', 'mkelly1us@yahoo.com', 'Very entertaining episode.  Kate Reid was especially good in her only cbsrmt appearance.  Satisfying ending.\r\n', '2013-03-20 00:33:15', 1, '2b21a5421e65c1f17059ec0ea339054f', '209.6.128.81'),
(4989, '0497', 'episode', 'Anna', '', 'Good choice! I had to listen to it this morning while I was preparing more audio CD''s of CRMT for my mother. This was a good episode with that element of right and wrong that has been commented on very often on this page.\r\n\r\nSo, a good man comes to America, is forced to pay protection money to the mob, and he doesn''t want to do that. Then his family is killed and he takes the law into his own hands. I liked the twist at the the end. I really likes twists in the stories. If I wasn''t expecting it, that is even better. A man could let the mobster die or give him his blood to save his life. For me it was a good morality question. I am not going to dwell on the question of what ethics were ignored by the medical employee at the hospital who let priviledged information become public. I am also going to ignore the fact that people with money ususally get off in court cases. Overall, this was yet another great story', '2013-06-19 23:00:26', 1, '0c2a84af243f7b0d3181a7aec8a2e3c4', '112.200.20.61'),
(4990, '0497', 'episode', 'Jack', '', 'In the RMT''s "The Venus d''Ile" Robert Dryden warns Norman Rose not to put his ring on the finger of a statue that is eponymous with the program title. Dryden''s character says something to the effect of: "I was going to say this is sacreligious but...that''s not the right word."\r\n\r\nWell, in describing this show I want to say this is the best story of vengeance I''ve ever heard but..."vengeance" isn''t the right word, either.\r\n\r\nOne of playwright Sam Dann''s best ever for the RMT, if not his very best, IMO. This is one I always enjoy listening to, even though it has no supernatural or quasi-supernatural elements whatsoever.', '2013-03-24 23:39:54', 1, '7373d13ff44997af48a0fffa3c0ab750', '112.200.20.61'),
(4991, '0497', 'episode', 'Justin Ralph', '', 'In my humble opinion this is a perfect episode. It''s one of my top ten favorite Mystery Theater plays of all time. Sam Dann''s script is simple, but inspired, moving, and full of truth. Also, Howard daSilva is one of my favorite RMT performers and he''s terrific in this.\r\n\r\nI''ll leave all discussion and analysis to others. As for myself, I''d give "The Only Blood" a 10 if I could.', '2013-03-24 23:39:55', 1, '30b301ec54eafd41427cb28efdb2ebfb', '112.200.20.61'),
(4992, '0497', 'episode', 'Willmon Ryan', '', '\\"I thought his blood would be as base and as common as sewage.\\"\r\n\r\n- Anthony Boda in \\"The only blood\\"\r\n\r\n\r\nGreatness from Sam Dann. Sorry that I didn\\''t put the quote in my response earlier.', '2013-03-24 23:39:56', 1, 'eb6cd640a4acfde20c7f9a72c5c6d3a9', '112.200.20.61'),
(4993, '0497', 'episode', 'Lester', '', 'This is certainly an admirable episode, entirely worthy. It held me all the way through, but not in any kind of mystical or diabolical way. More like a great book that you just can''t put down. I thought the acting was some of the best I''ve heard in an RMT show. Also, the sound effects and score were notable.\r\n\r\nAnd I''m sorry to nit-pick, but there was, for me, one little flaw in this episode that after listening a second time I couldn''t escape.\r\n\r\nWhen the man is on the hospital bed in dire need of blood, he begins to beg. He begs for his life. He begs to the man whom he swore to kill. It just didn''t sit well with the rest of the program. I had to suspend disbelief and assume the man was loopy on pain medication and couldn''t help what he was saying, but then when asked if he would return the effort, he very coldly, callously, and consciously said, "No."\r\n\r\nAgain, I may be just persnickity about it, but this was a vital bit of the overall finale of the plot. Had he declined the idea of receiving the blood of his nemesis, which would have made a heck of a lot more sense, then the story would have fallen right there. It''s such a minor detail, but such an important element in completing the tale.\r\n\r\nI gave the show a 4.4 and still consider it one of the top shows I''ve heard. Had this little bit not bothered me, I''d have rated it higher.\r\n\r\nThanks for an excellent choice! I look forward to the next show!', '2013-06-19 23:06:57', 1, '37bb6d0a93107f3abae136bbb3ffa3bf', '112.200.20.61'),
(4994, '0497', 'episode', 'Jimmy N.', '', 'I enjoyed the episode and the ongoing moral dilemmas. I appreciate Sam Dann''s work because of the great depth, strong characters and good lines. I thought the gangster''s daughter overacted and her credibility was strained with the "two Al Culvers" bit (or whatever his name was, I heard it yesterday). I found it difficult to swallow that her dad could be so well known that it could appear in a newspaper article, a notorious mob boss accused of murder, and she would be the only one that didn''t know it was her own dad. I hope that private girl''s school she was trying to get into doesn''t give intelligence pre-entrance exams. "Duh, yeah, honey, that''s my bullet-proof car. I need it to protect me from errant golf balls when I drive by the country club..." Other than that, though, a very nice play.', '2013-03-24 23:39:57', 1, '771cd6f0541b01b7901154f6a6d5cf43', '112.200.20.61'),
(4995, '0497', 'episode', 'Jhace', '', 'I have to say, that''s a very interesting point. Especially about the car. Nice observation!', '2013-03-24 23:39:58', 1, '2871eac8ed4db9d493efcb58c6981744', '112.200.20.61'),
(4996, '0497', 'episode', 'Larry', '', 'Hate to sound sexist but...how would the average girl tell the difference between a bulletproof car and a regular one, such as this bulletproof BMW?\r\n\r\nI''ve never seen "The Sopranos", but when did Tony''s daughter learn that her father was involved in things other than the "waste disposal business"? Doesn''t she try to believe that her father''s interests are legitimate?', '2013-03-24 23:39:58', 1, 'c9a0e752c7588be9bb772f2555b6da33', '112.200.20.61'),
(4997, '0497', 'episode', 'Mac', '', 'Devil''s Advocate here... this show takes place in 1934. I think it would be obvious if Dad were tooling around in a bulletproof car. The only person who was driving that kind of car would have been FDR, and his bulletproof Packard Limo was a 1937 model.\r\n\r\nIt would have been outrageously expensive to own a bulletproof car back in the 1930''s, as is further illustrated in your link of an $88,000 BMW.\r\n\r\nDarling daughter requires the aid of suspended disbelief in this tale, for even if she weren''t the dryest match in the box, she''d HAVE to notice that Daddy''s car was awfully different from the Lombardo family next door (sorry, OTR humor).\r\n\r\nI''m also another person who never watched the Soprano''s. Sounds as though the writer''s of the show were trying to humanize the "family." I should watch it one of these days.', '2013-03-27 15:00:57', 1, 'e68f98c4b0ce00d57a4de244a603972d', '112.200.20.61'),
(4998, '0497', 'episode', 'Kris Klosterman', '', 'I listened and logged this episode a year ago - gave it a 10 out of 10.', '2013-03-24 23:39:59', 1, '1419d05a26ee4ebf581620985eab9a9b', '112.200.20.61'),
(4999, '0497', 'episode', 'Jerome Juggs', '', 'good points but...how would she know it was a bulletproof car?\r\n\r\nAnd what if Daddy (who she knew was rich) told her he bought it from a head of state somewhere who needed such protection, and that she believed him? I know we think she is gullible, but she''s also innocent, and innocent people do have a tendency to trust other people (and sometimes, sadly, can have that virtue taken advantage of.)', '2013-03-24 23:40:15', 1, '3fdc80c7852578f28fa80e57508855f6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5000, '0497', 'episode', 'Mac', '', 'Trust me, I think she''d know something was up with a 1930''s bulletproof car, since the bulk armor it wore would be several inches thicker than your average 30''s vehicle.\r\n\r\nAnd true, innocent people do often trust people a bit too openly, but unless this young woman was a complete dolt, I don''t see how a person could buy into it without questioning.\r\n\r\nI''m just saying, is all.', '2013-03-24 23:40:16', 1, '90b0439465f86aabeb5ffd6b2597a840', '112.200.20.61'),
(5001, '0497', 'episode', 'June A.', '', 'Maybe I''m wrong, but I just get this feeling that a girl attending an upscale women''s college isn''t going to be asking about 1/4 inch armor plate lining the driver''s compartment (what if it wasn''t visble, but was covered by some other material?) or why her Daddy''s car has a 452 cubic inch, 16 cylinder motor? I''ll bet that was a big point of discussion at her sorority house.\r\n\r\nThere are some things which could be questioned on this story (though not much, IMO) but this one really didn''t bother me that much...but maybe that''s just me.', '2013-03-24 23:40:17', 1, 'f18809b1d6ca9c9cf51e510d13ebd9f2', '112.200.20.61'),
(5002, '0497', 'episode', 'Oscar', '', 'This is wonderful, friendly debate (that was actually started by Kizer, not me - I am only the Devil''s Advocate here, pushing the strain of the topic!)\r\n\r\nThanks for the pictures and the link. I honestly would have to agree that in true life, an upscale broad (using lingo of the era) would likely have no concern about how Daddy brings in the bacon, nor the kind of car he drove, as long as she was taken care of.\r\n\r\nAgain, like I said, tho, if disbelief is suspended, and we assume that she is not concerned about these things (which is quite different that not being observant enough to notice the hulking metal machine parked in the driveway), then so ends any question of the matter. However, I still think the girl was a bit tortoisey.\r\n\r\nLastly, my only gripe regarding the show itself can be found in my original response to the post. I enjoyed it thoroughly and I''ve enjoyed our debate as well!', '2013-03-27 15:01:11', 1, '81149cd46d1ab712bdc21d5b4cba6939', '112.200.20.61'),
(5003, '0497', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'Sorry, folks. I am loving this discussion and I realize I was just stirring the pot when I brought that stuff up.\r\n\r\nI am enough of a fan of radio drama to appreciate the challenge of writing depth into a play of 40 minutes in length. And also to appreciate that a suspension of disbelief and an ability to indulge fantasy will add much to the enjoyment of these and similar programs. God knows I prefer this entertainment to what today are referred to as "reality" programs. At least Al Corley''s daughter is fictional; and Paris Hilton is supposed to be "real?"\r\n\r\nI promise I won''t get nit-picky again with anything that might seem too corny or too much of a stretch (well... maybe not promise). The fact is, I really enjoyed the episode. The naive daughter not realizing her daddy was a famous thug certainly didn''t spoil the overall impact of the work. I guess, like many reviewers and critics in our society, I was just trying to find something different to say.\r\n\r\nNice car research, dude. Now, what about a blood type so rare that, in a town large enough to support a wealthy organized crime boss, only two people have it.... (okay, I know, I promised! I''m just joshin'' witchya).\r\n\r\nIn case the ghost of Sam Dann is about to e-mail me a virus, let me say that he is my favorite CBSRMT writer.', '2013-03-24 23:40:18', 1, '3496302e4de381f89268c95cda41d620', '112.200.20.61'),
(5004, '0497', 'episode', 'Oscar', '', 'Honestly, I don''t know much about cars and I''m pretty sure I wouldn''t know it was a bullet-proof car if my Dad owned one. Besides, maybe he has his daughter chauffered in a different car. What has it got to do with the main theme of the story anyways?\r\n\r\nAlso, Fizz, I find it totally believable that the guy would beg for his life if he was dying. Most anyone would. Especially this guy--he''s a taker, not a giver (except to his daughter). The moment of truth is when he is forced to admit he wouldn''t do the same for Boda. And, hey, in the end, that admission saved his life.\r\n\r\nLet''s play a game: If the story were turned around and Boda was lying there dying, do you think he''d beg? I doubt it. I think the begging was very much in line with how the mob boss was characterized--he had worldly power, but was a weak person.', '2013-03-24 23:40:19', 1, '38c8a21b39bc4a5965e7ec4f2fde2245', '112.200.20.61'),
(5005, '0497', 'episode', 'Alex', '', 'I don''t know... the way it was presented, he wanted to kill Boda. Again, in a drug induced state, I could accept the begging, but his delivery of "NO." when asked if he''d do the same was too sober.\r\n\r\nI''d have expected him to say something more on the lines of, "You? You''re the donor? I''LL KEEL YOU BEFORE I TAKE YOUR BLOOD!!" as he lunges from the bed at Boda''s throat.\r\n\r\nHis whole, "No, please, help me... I don''t want to die!" routine was thin for me.\r\n\r\nThis is, of course, perception, so our difference in view is good. You got me to rethink my own analysis of the drama... even though I still think it was a wimpy plot twist.\r\n\r\n---\r\n\r\nKizer - haha! thanks for spurring on the conversation. I enjoy a discussion in which there are differences in opinion, perception, and facts that can be drawn out to prove a point (ie, Texas'' cars).\r\n\r\nWithout this, we end up having a dullsome review of each show where everyone just reiterates the plot and says, "Good show."\r\n\r\nThere''s selections I''ve made in the past, hoping to drum up some controversy (Beyond Belief is one), but nothing much happened in that thread. We''re very lucky when an episode combines the elements of great writing, with believable situations, and identifiable characters, only to have one small thing be a glaring lucifer to the certain listeners.\r\n\r\nI applaud our discussions and hope we have many more ahead...\r\n\r\nNow, if only UNTIL NEXT TIME were here to join in with the discussion. Say, where is he?', '2013-03-24 23:40:19', 1, 'dc84153f2da5e1cb16e790ff928cdaa8', '112.200.20.61'),
(5006, '0080', 'episode', 'Jan Michael', '', 'I really enjoyed this episode. It had interesting characters and an eerie, intriguing plot. The acting and production values were top-notch. Also, I noticed that the music was especially good. There seemed to be some new music written for this one, in addition to the usual incidental themes, which really enhanced the dark sense of foreboding.\r\n\r\nIt is also an excellent dramatization. Guy de Maupassant\\''s original story is engaging, but extremely short---barely 8 pages long. Presented as a brief unsettling anecdote, the tale is told by the magistrate to a group of ladies at a party in Paris. In the original story there is no insane wife and no betrayal by the magistrate with regard to sending the letter to America---in fact, his friendship with Sir Rowell is not nearly as close. Their acquaintance is only casual. Also, the hand is already there chained to the wall. The next thing our narrator hears, Rowell is dead, and he must go to investigate the grisly murder.\r\n\r\nThe original story is effective because it is so short, giving very little foreshadowing, so the final outcome with the hand is a shocking, mysterious revelation. Ian Martin has done a skillful job of adapting the story into a play by adding just enough plot elements and foreshadowing to increase the dramatic conflict, as well as the suspense. In doing so, he successfully sustains the story for 40-odd minutes and, despite major plot additions, makes the play feel the same as the original short story.\r\n\r\nThere is only one really important thing omitted from Martin\\''s adaptation. In the original, De Maupassant cleverly gives us the option of a rational explanation for the murder. This, I think, is a master stroke. By casting doubt into the reader\\''s mind at the end, he leaves us feeling, somehow, even more unsettled. Too bad it was left out of the radio play.<br>', '2013-03-27 14:30:23', 1, '2fa02f2dabedfb3d013a09b414023ffc', '112.200.20.61'),
(5007, '0080', 'episode', 'Almero', '', 'In fact, here''s the original story by de Maupassant. I was thinking this might be a fun one to ask: "Which is more fun to hear...the adaptation or the original?" I don''t want to put down the latter, but I do think the RMT had some occasionally good adaptations. One thing about Martin''s version...in retrospect, he gives us a big clue at the beginning to how all this could have happened.\r\n\r\nI, too, loved the music. This was one of the scariest RMTs I can remember from my original listening days, and hearing it again, it''s that "do-re-mi-fa-so-la-so-fa" in minor chords (done in three separate versions...one a simple one with (I think) some kind of mallet instrument and a harp(?) right after Alexander Scourby''s character says he''ll have to satisfy his curiosity about Sir John Rowell, one using violins when Sir John is bringing his "gift from America" in to unwrap it, and the full instrumentation one with low piano notes at the beginning, played both when Sir John is facing off with Scourby like a gunslinger, and also when Sir John''s prediction has come true). Call me a wimp, but that music gave me chills in my younger days.\r\n\r\nThis was one of both Scourby''s and Guy "Sir John" Sorrells best roles on the RMT, IMHO.', '2013-03-24 23:40:20', 1, '196f35896bf1a58cf482ae7e244498a2', '112.200.20.61'),
(5008, '0080', 'episode', 'Rodney', '', 'I agree about RMT''s adaptations. In fact---not to get off the subject---but I would even go so far as to say that they were more than occasionally excellent, especially in the case of the many Guy de Maupassant stories they adapted. Their version of "Diary of a Madman" was horribly spine-chilling, suspenseful and, at the very end, extremely satisfying as well. They took the one or two page original by de Maupassant, which is chillingly effective but very simple, and expanded it into something really amazing. (Can''t recall who did the adaptation on that one.) I think the RMT version of Poe''s "Tell-Tale Heart" also expands upon the original quite effectively, not to mention that it provides Robert Dryden with perhaps his most wonderfully disgusting lecherous-old-man role. (Then there''s Fred Gwynne who, as usual, is just incomparable.)\r\n\r\nBut, back to "The Hand"----I''m very curious to find out where in the story Martin foreshadows an explanation to the crime. I''ve actually heard the episode twice pretty recently, but I just can''t remember where it would be. Could you possibly send a private message to clue me in? (I wouldn''t want to spoil it for those who haven''t listened yet.) Thanks!', '2013-03-24 23:40:20', 1, '0cabec9a8b414ca068744451bf7bd1aa', '112.200.20.61'),
(5009, '0080', 'episode', 'GPat', '', 'But, back to "The Hand"----I''m very curious to find out where in the story Martin foreshadows an explanation to the crime.\r\n\r\n"GOT him - right under the englishman''s nose!"', '2013-03-24 23:40:21', 1, '1355a1c590d8e1b2fdc89544c03c53ea', '112.200.20.61'),
(5010, '0080', 'episode', 'Hanni', '', 'I liked this one. It had me worried that the wife was imprisoned against her will and the husband was going to kill the cop if he found out that he had that letter. Then he ended up finding out when "the hand" showed up in the mail. What a description they gave of that hand. Eeeeuuuuwwww! I was wondering how it fled the scene and then to hear the cop found it on the dead man''s grave, I figured it was going to go on a killing spree or something. Of course, by that time the hour was up and we''re left guessing as to what became of the hand. Maybe it turned over a new leaf and went straight.', '2013-03-24 23:40:24', 1, 'df618cece1b1bacf5f5bd0a008896435', '112.200.20.61'),
(5011, '0080', 'episode', 'Jenny', '', 'Ok, I finally listened to the program for this week and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Though I''ve never read the original story, I think Ian Martin did a great job of painting a terrific picture for the imagination. The description of the hand was excellent and other details (such as the description of the trophy room) were so vivid they were made believable. I''ll bet a few people think story was hokie but I imagine I would have been terrorized had I heard this play as a kid. As an adult, I could appreciate the fine production so I rated this program as a 5/5, though I rounded up from a 9/10. Great pick!', '2013-03-24 23:40:25', 1, '37d41a24725184cb4a5592923e91e9f5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5012, '0080', 'episode', 'D. Memering', '', 'Great to see you posted a link to the original story. I''ll be reading it directly. I agree with the comments regarding the music as it was chilling in it''s effectiveness. Again, this show would have scared the crap out of me as a kid and this is one measure I use to judge a program.', '2013-03-24 23:40:25', 1, '018b36268d0537d2382ba51cbbd2feb9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5013, '0080', 'episode', 'Rod', '', 'What a great story! I did not get to it until the end of this week. It was worth the wait. Thanks!\r\n\r\nPardon the pun in the subject line. I couldn''t resist.', '2013-03-24 23:40:26', 1, '059cf5a96402ffe878dfe241d52e1369', '112.200.20.61'),
(5014, '0080', 'episode', 'Kris Klosterman', '', 'If anyone complains about the pun it''s because they didn''t think of it!', '2013-03-24 23:40:27', 1, '9d97645d1131c8b8a396cf0adc7e0e22', '112.200.20.61'),
(5015, '0080', 'episode', 'Kristle', '', 'Two last things:\r\n\r\n- I''d read that de Maupassant was apparently inspired to write The hand (or whatever the original title was) when one of his professors showed him a box containing a desiccated hand. What''s the old saying: "With friends like these..."?\r\n\r\n- it''s interesting to note where the inspiration for some of these plays and adaptations came from as well. Others have noted that these stories more often than not are apparently inspired by more than one tale.\r\n\r\nI listened to The Hand a few times and kept thinking I''d heard something before. (Cue the RMT music.) Sir John Rowell, in the original story, and Richard Rowell added in Ian Martin''s adaptation. Two english brothers, one of nobility yet also with unanswered, possibly sinister motives. The other de-knighted yet physically stronger, in a different country a long way away, hopefully (in his brother''s view) forgotten yet apparently very much a rival...with Sir John wanting to keep his bounty and never see his brother again. Richard and John, John and Richard...\r\n\r\nThen it hit me...for this play, Martin mixed de Maupassant''s The Hand with elements from Robin Hood. (Remember King Richard the Lion-hearted and Prince John in that tale, which itself was apparently cobbled together?)\r\n\r\nI LOVE the RMT!', '2013-03-27 15:01:19', 1, 'b15524b0c69bf5df67be7cd81fc807ff', '112.200.20.61'),
(5016, '0080', 'episode', 'Resty', '', 'this episode has just made it to my top 5 list.\r\ni really enjoyed this one. i read the origonal story but i must say i like the rmt show better. i usually like to read a story more than listen to or watch an adaptation. i like the part about the wife. not knowing if she was being held as a prisoner. who do you believe? the man or the wife? the discription of the hand , very gripping.', '2013-03-24 23:40:28', 1, 'ac394ab7eb8993a2921e188ce83b0397', '112.200.20.61'),
(5017, '0080', 'episode', 'Erik Lensherr', '', 'I listened to and rated this one some time ago. I called it a "Kafkaesque tale of lost love and redemption." While the main character is not as tragic as Kafka''s hero in "Metamorphisis", he is similar.\r\n\r\nThis is perhaps the best work I''ve heard by Elspeth Eric. My opinion of her does not need to be aired again. Suffice it to say I always listen to her work waiting to be disappointed -- or occasionally disgusted.\r\n\r\nI truly enjoyed this one and was pleasantly surprised.', '2013-03-24 23:40:29', 1, 'c989203d8d1623fd1b396e95ea8c7eab', '112.200.20.61'),
(5018, '0080', 'episode', 'June A.', '', 'To date my all time favorite for CBSRMT and OTR in general. A feast of auditory delight.', '2013-03-24 23:40:29', 1, '3168f7e096a52405ee9d11e7fe48ff33', '112.200.20.61'),
(5019, '0001', 'episode', 'Ronald ', 'Ronaldjleckfor@hotmail.com', 'Thanks for doing this! This was a big thing i looked forward to when I was growing up in the mid to late seventies!', '2013-03-24 23:40:30', 1, 'bb851e81db12f10e4564f6f2f3403ca3', '107.217.236.249'),
(5020, '0929', 'episode', 'radiohead', 'mstone@courier-journal.com', 'Best Elspeth Eric episode...and one of the Top 5 CBS RMT classics. Robert Dryden''s voices are great; the storyline is engaging. To borrow a line from the episode, I could all but kiss this radio script...', '2013-03-12 03:08:40', 1, '66851e1d7f6075adaaf179cfdad27f53', '96.28.56.3'),
(5021, '0041', 'episode', 'ev', 'yvonyapo@gmail.com', 'Just what the Dr. ordered.', '2013-03-12 04:31:22', 1, '4059b183ac20739dfa1ae68e0ebfd66f', '70.197.64.160'),
(5022, '1231', 'episode', 'Rob', 'Incland@sbcglobal.net', 'In this episode, the one friend is visiting the other in jail (they are not both prisoners)<br>', '2013-03-12 15:26:38', 1, '4303284a34cfb00cc2aef5c736ff49b7', '174.231.64.207'),
(5023, '0412', 'episode', 'Celena', 'cbhval@gmail.com', 'What an unexpected gem this story is.  Excellent voice work by Fred Gwynne, and a really wonderful story from Mark Twain on just how human and prone to temptation we all are.  Like many of Twain''s works, it''s seeped in a realistic view of how most often it is our transgressions that makes equals of all mankind.', '2013-03-12 17:56:04', 1, '592401c515b9d66acedb7d557bab8ee5', '174.31.81.93'),
(5024, '0080', 'episode', 'Grace', '', 'I really enjoyed this episode. It had interesting characters and an eerie, intriguing plot. The acting and production values were top-notch. Also, I noticed that the music was especially good. There seemed to be some new music written for this one, in addition to the usual incidental themes, which really enhanced the dark sense of foreboding.\r\n\r\nIt is also an excellent dramatization. Guy de Maupassant''s original story is engaging, but extremely short---barely 8 pages long. Presented as a brief unsettling anecdote, the tale is told by the magistrate to a group of ladies at a party in Paris. In the original story there is no insane wife and no betrayal by the magistrate with regard to sending the letter to America---in fact, his friendship with Sir Rowell is not nearly as close. Their acquaintance is only casual. Also, the hand is already there chained to the wall. The next thing our narrator hears, Rowell is dead, and he must go to investigate the grisly murder.\r\n\r\nThe original story is effective because it is so short, giving very little foreshadowing, so the final outcome with the hand is a shocking, mysterious revelation. Ian Martin has done a skillful job of adapting the story into a play by adding just enough plot elements and foreshadowing to increase the dramatic conflict, as well as the suspense. In doing so, he successfully sustains the story for 40-odd minutes and, despite major plot additions, makes the play feel the same as the original short story.\r\n\r\nThere is only one really important thing omitted from Martin''s adaptation. In the original, De Maupassant cleverly gives us the option of a rational explanation for the murder. This, I think, is a master stroke. By casting doubt into the reader''s mind at the end, he leaves us feeling, somehow, even more unsettled. Too bad it was left out of the radio play. Read the story and see what you think.', '2013-03-24 23:41:04', 1, '2cc76ff0ac27a746384422650662e764', '112.200.20.61'),
(5025, '0080', 'episode', 'Alfred N.', '', 'In fact, <span><a href=\\"http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;index=aps&amp;keywords=The%20Hand%20by%20Guy%20de%20Maupassant&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=cbs-rmt-20\\" target=\\"_blank\\" title=\\"The Hand\\">here\\''s the original story by de Maupassant</a></span>. I was thinking this might be a fun one to ask: \\"Which is more fun to hear...the adaptation or the original?\\" I don\\''t want to put down the latter, but I do think the RMT had some occasionally good adaptations. One thing about Martin\\''s version...in retrospect, he gives us a big clue at the beginning to how all this could have happened.\n\nI, too, loved the music. This was one of the scariest RMTs I can remember from my original listening days, and hearing it again, it\\''s that \\"do-re-mi-fa-so-la-so-fa\\" in minor chords (done in three separate versions...one a simple one with (I think) some kind of mallet instrument and a harp(?) right after Alexander Scourby\\''s character says he\\''ll have to satisfy his curiosity about Sir John Rowell, one using violins when Sir John is bringing his \\"gift from America\\" in to unwrap it, and the full instrumentation one with low piano notes at the beginning, played both when Sir John is facing off with Scourby like a gunslinger, and also when Sir John\\''s prediction has come true). Call me a wimp, but that music gave me chills in my younger days.\n\nThis was one of both Scourby\\''s and Guy \\"Sir John\\" Sorrells best roles on the RMT, IMHO. <br>', '2015-02-04 04:11:58', 1, '733850e476a18b1108614b4acd1438dd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5026, '0080', 'episode', 'Antonel Ross', '', 'Thanks for providing a link to the original story---that''s a great idea!\r\n\r\nI agree about RMT''s adaptations. In fact---not to get off the subject---but I would even go so far as to say that they were more than occasionally excellent, especially in the case of the many Guy de Maupassant stories they adapted. Their version of "Diary of a Madman" was horribly spine-chilling, suspenseful and, at the very end, extremely satisfying as well. They took the one or two page original by de Maupassant, which is chillingly effective but very simple, and expanded it into something really amazing. (Can''t recall who did the adaptation on that one.) I think the RMT version of Poe''s "Tell-Tale Heart" also expands upon the original quite effectively, not to mention that it provides Robert Dryden with perhaps his most wonderfully disgusting lecherous-old-man role. (Then there''s Fred Gwynne who, as usual, is just incomparable.)\r\n\r\nBut, back to "The Hand"----I''m very curious to find out where in the story Martin foreshadows an explanation to the crime. I''ve actually heard the episode twice pretty recently, but I just can''t remember where it would be. Could you possibly send a private message to clue me in? (I wouldn''t want to spoil it for those who haven''t listened yet.) Thanks!', '2013-03-24 23:41:04', 1, 'bcb81cfe8aebc4745668d7b0e514ee2f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5027, '0080', 'episode', 'Teddy', '', 'But, back to "The Hand"----I''m very curious to find out where in the story Martin foreshadows an explanation to the crime.\r\n\r\n"GOT him - right under the englishman''s nose!"', '2013-03-24 23:41:04', 1, '171af2001aaa8bf79887455f6101f6fa', '112.200.20.61'),
(5028, '0080', 'episode', 'Dennis G.', '', 'I liked this one. It had me worried that the wife was imprisoned against her will and the husband was going to kill the cop if he found out that he had that letter. Then he ended up finding out when "the hand" showed up in the mail. What a description they gave of that hand. Eeeeuuuuwwww! I was wondering how it fled the scene and then to hear the cop found it on the dead man''s grave, I figured it was going to go on a killing spree or something. Of course, by that time the hour was up and we''re left guessing as to what became of the hand. Maybe it turned over a new leaf and went straight.', '2013-03-24 23:41:04', 1, '6d106ce143470b9d8681b4b616affe41', '112.200.20.61'),
(5029, '0080', 'episode', 'Aljohn', '', 'Ok, I finally listened to the program for this week and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Though I''ve never read the original story, I think Ian Martin did a great job of painting a terrific picture for the imagination. The description of the hand was excellent and other details (such as the description of the trophy room) were so vivid they were made believable. I''ll bet a few people think story was hokie but I imagine I would have been terrorized had I heard this play as a kid. As an adult, I could appreciate the fine production so I rated this program as a 5/5, though I rounded up from a 9/10. Great pick!', '2013-03-24 23:41:05', 1, '0c887336bdd38a0851e2efe34c424ef3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5030, '0080', 'episode', 'Jackson', '', 'Great to see you posted a link to the original story. I''ll be reading it directly. I agree with the comments regarding the music as it was chilling in it''s effectiveness. Again, this show would have scared the crap out of me as a kid and this is one measure I use to judge a program.', '2013-03-24 23:41:05', 1, '62607f5b9d0d638325ef90a3f77caeba', '112.200.20.61'),
(5031, '0080', 'episode', 'Glenn', '', 'What a great story! I did not get to it until the end of this week. It was worth the wait. Thanks!\r\n\r\nPardon the pun in the subject line. I couldn''t resist.', '2013-03-24 23:41:05', 1, '3a0ad589d9300bb3b313c277a927d0a0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5032, '0080', 'episode', 'D. Lisbon', '', 'If anyone complains about the pun it''s because they didn''t think of it!', '2013-03-24 23:41:05', 1, '211f5dc7bc39b260fd68739a71b258c5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5033, '0080', 'episode', 'Lyndon B.', '', 'Two last things:\r\n\r\n- Storytellermommy, I\\''d read that de Maupassant was apparently inspired to write The hand (or whatever the original title was) when one of his professors showed him a box containing a desiccated hand. What\\''s the old saying: \\"With friends like these...\\"?\r\n\r\n- Steve, it\\''s interesting to note where the inspiration for some of these plays and adaptations came from as well. Others have noted that these stories more often than not are apparently inspired by more than one tale.\r\n\r\nI listened to The Hand a few times and kept thinking I\\''d heard something before. (Cue the RMT music.) Sir John Rowell, in the original story, and Richard Rowell added in Ian Martin\\''s adaptation. Two english brothers, one of nobility yet also with unanswered, possibly sinister motives. The other de-knighted yet physically stronger, in a different country a long way away, hopefully (in his brother\\''s view) forgotten yet apparently very much a rival...with Sir John wanting to keep his bounty and never see his brother again. Richard and John, John and Richard...\r\n\r\nThen it hit me...for this play, Martin mixed de Maupassant\\''s The Hand with elements from Robin Hood. (Remember King Richard the Lion-hearted and Prince John in that tale, which itself was apparently cobbled together?)\r\n\r\nI LOVE the RMT!<br>', '2013-03-27 15:01:29', 1, '4348cdf77a7938c24bc604938e7e9465', '112.200.20.61'),
(5034, '0080', 'episode', 'Tony Mend', '', 'this episode has just made it to my top 5 list.\r\ni really enjoyed this one. i read the origonal story but i must say i like the rmt show better. i usually like to read a story more than listen to or watch an adaptation. i like the part about the wife. not knowing if she was being held as a prisoner. who do you believe? the man or the wife? the discription of the hand , very gripping.', '2013-03-24 23:42:17', 1, 'a1a53ba1698703d91a5bb5aa5997115d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5035, '0080', 'episode', 'Chunie N.', '', 'I listened to and rated this one some time ago. I called it a "Kafkaesque tale of lost love and redemption." While the main character is not as tragic as Kafka''s hero in "Metamorphisis", he is similar.\r\n\r\nThis is perhaps the best work I''ve heard by Elspeth Eric. My opinion of her does not need to be aired again. Suffice it to say I always listen to her work waiting to be disappointed -- or occasionally disgusted.\r\n\r\nI truly enjoyed this one and was pleasantly surprised.', '2013-03-24 23:42:18', 1, 'b410fd5abead2d554ed8be13ef8bced9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5036, '0080', 'episode', 'Lex', '', 'To date my all time favorite for CBSRMT and OTR in general. A feast of auditory delight.', '2013-03-24 23:42:18', 1, '6bca3f7c7b5c9831f5b905d4b7df4d78', '112.200.20.61'),
(5037, '0080', 'episode', 'T. Feria', '', 'It was 30 years ago today...\r\nthe RMT did a whale of a play...\r\n\r\nHBD (#30) to "The hand".', '2013-03-24 23:42:19', 1, '89475bb87bbafabe7c09451a8889a803', '112.200.20.61'),
(5038, '0080', 'episode', 'Freddie S.', '', 'While at my daughter\\''s doctor\\''s appointment the other day I came upon a <span><a href=\\"http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;index=aps&amp;keywords=National%20Geographic%20magazine%20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=cbs-rmt-20\\" target=\\"_blank\\" title=\\"NatlGeographic\\">National Geographic magazine that did a fine story on the French island of Corsica</a></span>, where this story was based.\r\n\r\nIt gave a lot of information on the \\"vendettas\\" de Maupassant and E.G. Marshall talked about in this episode. It also made me want to visit there...beautiful looking place out in the Mediterranean.\r\n\r\nMAN, this was an excellent RMT episode.<br>', '2013-03-27 14:35:50', 1, 'fdbddbc808148b544b46f3dac736a9d4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5039, '0080', 'episode', 'Emily H.', '', 'Yet another good episode. I was, as others already noted, creeped out by the hand description. And I did wonder about the wife and why she was kept locked up--was she really crazy?\r\n\r\nMy two questions that aren''t answered are:\r\n1. What was the past story? What did the brother do and why would the wife want to contact him?\r\n2. Is there some reason why the hand didn''t die? Is this there something unearthly or evil that the main character did to deserve this revenge?\r\n\r\nI will just have to imagine an answer for myself!', '2013-03-24 23:42:20', 1, '27065e370fb5e80bfe9f8fc6c3b8133e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5040, '0111', 'episode', 'Greta', '', 'This is a great episode, and one of my favorites. It also seems an appropriate choice since the last episode I listened to was about trying to change your future and this one is about trying to change your past.\r\n\r\nMercedes McCambridge is one of my all-time favorite RMT performers, with her wonderfully weird husky voice---I love her in the good ones as well as the not-so-good ones. This is definitely one of the good ones. And she pretty much carries the entire show. Any lesser actress, I think, could not have made this character''s choices believable.\r\n\r\nI especially love the ending ----how Dottie could actually make the same mistake again is just almost unbelieveable----but her punishment is great. A nice illustration of how those green pieces of paper that we value so highly are really, in the greater scheme of things, worth nothing at all. It reminds us that each of our values is always a choice---an important choice for which we must take individual responsibility. Sam Dann did a bang-up job on this one. It''s an inventive little existential parable about human weakness, with a wonderfully, wickedly clever twist at the end for poor ol'' dumb Dottie.', '2013-03-27 15:15:13', 1, '86540412865ac34fa0c02b41b39d3e55', '112.200.20.61'),
(5041, '0111', 'episode', 'Lind Tate', '', 'I''ll make this post brief, as I may not be on the same lines as others about this episode.\r\n\r\nWhenever I watch a movie, tv program, or listen to an RMT episode, where a character has a chance to redo something, rectify something, or even in situations where poor decisions lead to unfortunate circumstances, I usually blurt out one word when the concept finally hits me: "Dope!"\r\n\r\nThat''s what I blurted out twice in this episode. Now, Mercedes McCambridge, for me, is one of those actors for the RMT that usually makes me change to another episode. Her drawn out, over the top style of acting often leaves me with a need to gargle and listen to 40 minutes of silence. I think because (I say this with affection) she kind of reminds me of my own melodramatic mom. I can only listen to her go on for about 30 minutes or so before I must fabricate some reason to simply get off the phone or out of the moving car.\r\n\r\nDespite my obvious lack of passion for the actress, the story was just too over the top for me. Desperation forces folks to do crazy things, but if one were to live with the guilt of another''s death for 20 years, I really believe they would ammend things, given a second chance.\r\n\r\nThe way she blew it in the end just made me blurt out "dope" with a slight head shaking. The first time I heard this episode, I think I did the same thing.\r\n\r\nI really enjoyed the sinister man character. Not quite the devil, but certainly devilish enough. Just the way he said the word "opportunities" was enough to get me on his side. hehe\r\n\r\nOverall, I gave the episode a 3.5. Production was spot on, as always, and honestly, the performances were very well done. I just don''t walk a straight line after listening to M.M. and with a story that just fell down a flight of stairs (for me), my score is reflective.\r\n\r\nThanks for the pick and I look forward to next time!', '2013-03-27 15:01:42', 1, '48033b663d7d185b6f80fb4e5f1a2bee', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5042, '0111', 'episode', 'Jerby', '', 'I am still in awe of rediscovering RMT as an adult so all the episodes I have listened to have seemed really good to me. I loved the show for being scary and spooky as a kid. Now, as an adult, I realize the work that went into it, the dedication, and the amazing fact that people, so recently, put drama on the radio. So that is a review of the whole series.\r\n\r\nNow this particular episode. The actor''s voices were all right to my ears, so I didn''t have a need to object to that. The story for me on this one was okay. I enjoyed it. I guess the only new twist on the "going back in time to change a mistake" theme was the ending. I like that Dotty got her due in a way that was quite appropriate. She wouldn''t put back the money so she went where money didn''t matter. Very good twist for me.\r\n\r\nCan''t wait for the next one!', '2013-03-24 23:42:22', 1, '1c20f8ac52721cd8866649c578052968', '112.200.20.61'),
(5043, '0111', 'episode', 'Willmon Ryan', '', 'Eric the Red and (the late) Mercedes McCambridge...now THERE''S a combination! Bet she had HIM washing the goblets after a few years.\r\n\r\nThanks for the pick, though I found myself thinking the same. "DOPE!" Then again, how many of us have said: "Ohhh, if we could only go back to our (usually teenaged) years with the wisdom we have now..." The RMT writers so often used grown-up wisdom in their own plays...I get the feeling someone said "OK, let''s take this person back with her wisdom, but also with her old desires, immaturity, etc." At least, I got the feeling this was so.', '2013-03-27 15:30:38', 1, '7e02e29c1b720459cdacfeee0acf642e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5044, '0457', 'episode', 'Jeff L. Oliver', '', 'I enjoyed this one. I heard it recently as well. It left me thinking in several different directions. Was it fate for the 3 predictions to happen, or did he make them happen by believing they would? Maybe if he hadn''t seen the fortune teller, (charlatan - liked that word!) the 3 pieces would have still happened, but fit together differently. The story seemed to say towards the end that he was a phony, but was he? His predictions did come true (although the character only commited attempted murder, and I wouldn''t consider his wife to have murdered him.)\r\n\r\nIf someone tells you something bad will happen to you, you will obviously try to stop it. If it doesn''t happen, then you may feel gratitude toward the person because you believe knowing ahead of time allowed you to prevent it (as the character tried to.) Or, if it does still happen, then the fortune teller''s prediction was correct. He wins either way. Hmmm\r\n\r\nThis story made me think about whether or not someone can change their destiny, or if it is already laid out. It is creepy sometimes to think of the smallest decision - or a split second in time can throw your future on a wildly different course. I was very intrigued by the movie "Frequency" which was the opposite idea of changing the past (which of course creates a paradox.)', '2013-03-24 23:42:31', 1, 'a861c6e3fb4aa7cb209dfa6892964410', '112.200.20.61'),
(5046, '0457', 'episode', 'Paulo G.', '', 'WOW! This is one with a twist at the end. I should have seen it coming, but I didn''t.\r\nI just love that as I am listening to these shows, my husband and I react to the story as if it were real. He said "This guy is such a wacko!" I think that indicates how well the actors come across as real people, not just actors. I am copying this one for my mother right away!\r\n\r\nIt was a great episode. Please, keep suggesting your best picks here Steve!', '2013-03-24 23:42:32', 1, '8f8b89e213bce0656d664a62d8345573', '112.200.20.61'),
(5047, '0457', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'OK, I can take a hint.\r\n\r\nhehe... I know that feeling, Steve!\r\n\r\nI did catch the show, but I just purchased a new system and should have it online in a day or so. Once I do, I''ll be posting again on a regular basis.\r\n\r\nI''ll save my comments for then. Thanks for choosing it!', '2013-03-24 23:42:33', 1, '25b083288d193b68643f4712f067dbe5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5048, '0457', 'episode', 'Antonel Ross', '', 'I''ll look forward to hearing your comments. Glad everyone else seemed to like it. I thought this was a fun witty mystery, and it sounded like the actors were having a great time performing it. (I sure had a great time listening to it!)', '2013-03-24 23:42:33', 1, '45eac369dae0539e31c3f660c8900d10', '112.200.20.61'),
(5049, '0457', 'episode', 'Vince', '', 'thanks for recommending this episode. A couple of thoughts:\r\n\r\n1. We''ve talked about the morality aspects of the RMT, and of how some plays they aired then might not make it today.\r\n\r\nOne such play was also written by this episode''s original author, Oscar Wilde. The play is "Picture of Dorian Gray". I''ve seen it done on something like a Hallmark play back in the 70s, and I watched it when my Dad was still alive and I was junior high age. (I was so naive in those years that I had no clue what issues Gray, and Wilde, were grappling with.) There are what today would be some very sensitive subjects in that play/story...no pun intended.\r\n\r\n2. Interestingly, in "Picture of Dorian Gray", like "The Saxon Curse", the main character''s female love interest is named "Sybil".\r\n\r\n3. Was it Evie Juster who played Aunt Clementine? She did some strange phasing of her voice while in character...at one moment she''d sound like Ms. Juster (always one of my favorite female RMT voices), then the next she''d sound like the marooned-aristocrat millionaire''s wife in "Gilligan''s Island". At times I expected her to start saying "Thuuuuston...dahhhling."\r\n\r\nPaul Hecht is a consummate radio actor, and always sounded good in cultured roles (i.e. the doctor he played in the RMT''s "The captain of the Polestar" or "Premature burial".)\r\n\r\n4. Excellent twist at the end. Crime never pays...pretty much always the message on the RMT.', '2013-03-27 15:15:23', 1, '38d05e4a036b9eae10387af79b6b8137', '112.200.20.61'),
(5050, '0457', 'episode', 'Gregory Hupp', '', 'Anyone who is interested in the works of Oscar Wilde might enjoy the films (1990s?) called Salome''s Last Dance, based on the play by O.Wilde.\r\n\r\nI read quite a bit of his work years ago, and though Dorian Gray is perhaps his finest and most mainstream work, along with the Importance of Being Earnest, this tale is certainly worthy of recognition. His witty, epigrammatic style is a testament to the class of society he often offended, yet delighted. I always found his insolence to be refreshing.\r\n\r\nThis was a fabulous adaptation and stays true to the original (titled, Lord Arthur Savile''s Crime).\r\n\r\nThe only thing this tale seems to leave out, is how obnoxious and over-bearing the wealthy woman truly is. In the original story, she is often heard to "shout at the top of her lungs" to guests and relatives.\r\n\r\nThis small bit of info is the only thing that does not clarify exactly why the main character wants to poison her in the first place.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, without droning on, this was a wonderful tale that explores a question similar to The Chinaman Button and many other RMT shows, "If you knew you were going to commit a murder AND get away with it, what would you do with this information?"\r\n\r\nAs oft as Wilde loves to tease the society folk, it is my suspicion that in his own mind, this was pure fanatasy for him, likely derived from his own relations and upbringings.\r\n\r\nA morality test which the main character refuses, but inevitably embraces. A caustic embrace, which of course, eventually costs him his own life.\r\n\r\nI gave the show a glaring 4.9/5.0 and thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it. Thanks for a great pick!', '2013-03-24 23:42:35', 1, '66ccec685a2a0d93f5a321924b009eaa', '112.200.20.61'),
(5051, '1039', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'I liked this one quite a lot. Although it only had a wisp of a plot and the ending was a bit abrupt and anti-climactic, the three main characters somehow "rang true". They were likable, engaging, and their dialog was well-written. I guess you''d call it a character piece.\r\n\r\nElspeth Eric seems to have written countless stories about child abuse, so I can only assume that it must''ve been something she either experienced personally or was very close to. A number of her stories, in my opinion, are very maudlin and have a self-pitying tone. [i:8026739407]Beyond Belief[/i:8026739407], however, is successful because it avoids self-pity----it''s about survival, as illustrated through the past tragedies of two of our main characters. "Do you want to live, or do you want to die?" My feeling at the end is that, now that Helen has regained her memory, she''ll be OK. She''ll live. Maybe she''ll even stay in New York with these kind people, two strangers who''ve been a better family to her within the space of a month or so than her own mother ever was.', '2013-03-24 23:42:35', 1, '9a91ecb0b152f29c3dfa280809769331', '112.200.20.61'),
(5052, '1039', 'episode', 'Lance', '', ' I can''t exactly call this a "mystery" tale, though finding out who Helen was could qualify it. This is more of an audio biopic-style tale about four characters. Each one lending their personal story to bridge a relationship to not only one another, but perhaps the audience as well.\r\n\r\nEach one is a survivor and each one deals with their survival differently. A suspicious, older woman, who endured Auschwitz and the loss of her family; a kindly worn gentleman whose heart collapsed after his family tragedy, yet was able to rise from the ashes into a seat of wisdom; a young girl whose tragic life led to her own collapse and eventual dispossession from identity; and finally, a beaten and forgotten mother whose unknown tragic life led her to hide herself and her child behind a locked door of abuse and neglect.\r\n\r\nSurvival is something we rarely talk about, but we ask each other about every day in saying, "How''s it going?" or "How was your weekend?"\r\n\r\nWe all cringe when the response we get to these questions is "Not so good..." because it awakens us from our living slumber of existence in a world where we want everything to be "okay."\r\n\r\nThe truth is, the real world is merely a fish tank and we are all swimming to survive. "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming..." is what Dory says in Finding Nemo. We are all surviving and I can bet buttons to bacon that we have all survived "something" that has molded us into whom we are right now.\r\n\r\nOur flesh is our armor and we wear our battle scars on the inside and out. We all have them and we all survive.\r\n\r\nI think that''s the point of this tale and most of the tales of Elspith Eric. While this is not my favorite RMT show of all time, it certainly struck a cord with me enough to remember it. I even remember where I was when I listened to it (driving along a New England shoreline among trees, boats, and beaches trying to find my way back to Route 495).\r\n\r\nI gave this show a pretty solid 4.7 as the production was great, acting was superb (though the actress playing Helen always seems to grind my ears after a while). However, the story was a bit thin in some areas. A good story, but a little thin. I blame this on the 45-minute time frame.\r\n\r\nI hope it was a decent pick! Best wishes,', '2013-03-24 23:42:36', 1, '3d951ffe69f2cf9ee4a935162ca6afbe', '112.200.20.61'),
(5053, '1039', 'episode', 'Joey Dona', '', 'I enjoyed this episode, but it wasn''t in the vein that I remember of the mystery shows. I was hoping for something scary or creepy and this was a real mystery. Who was the girl? What did she do to lose her memory? Although I did enjoy listening as always.\r\n\r\nNow that I''ve listened to it, I want to know what she will do next. What happened to her off-kilter mother? This one left me with questions instead of the creepy-crawly feeling in my neck.', '2013-03-24 23:42:37', 1, '12be4874e0d31fc467a9b3c52547f202', '112.200.20.61'),
(5054, '1039', 'episode', 'Will Summers', '', 'This one seemed more short story like to me as well. It didn''t have the normal mystery theater twist to it. It did keep me listening, and was easy to follow. I got the feeling that things were better as a child...her mother said things were okay until she was interested in boys, and I can see mother teaching her how to make "chicken fried steak" at home.\r\nI think her mother had serious issues that she couldn''t deal with her daughter growing up, although it is hard to believe she would turn so emotionally and physically abusive overnight. Maybe she was scared of Helen repeating mistakes she made...don''t know what happened because the father was already gone. Was is me, or did "Helen" have a more northern accent until after the scene with her mother, then I started hearing more of the southern influence?\r\nThey leave us hanging, but I doubt they would just send Helen back. Her mother didn''t seem interested in having her. Helen was so upset she wanted to kill her mother :shock: and she finally dissociated herself from her identity probably to avoid that. They threw in that she was valedictorian of her high school...possibly to hint that she was able to rise above her less than ideal situation and would be okay.\r\nSome children from abusive homes turn out troubled and possibly violent. Others seem to be more sympathetic and try even harder to be productive members of society. I have never caught on to the formula for which way they will go. Helen seems intelligent and polite, and nothing like her mother.', '2013-03-24 23:42:37', 1, '672a99100f9ba34cb03bca5a1658907a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5055, '0309', 'episode', 'Kimberly Clarrise', '', 'I thought that this was a haunting episode.\r\n\r\nNotice how Carl Erich, before his treatment, makes these guttural grunts and moans, evoking images of some type of animal...and that''s precisely describing the self-centered, inhuman, immature desires of those who were at the heart of Naziism. A very nice metaphor the scriptwriters and actor pulled off.\r\n\r\nSometimes I like hearing Mystery theatre episodes that are in a similar vein. In this case, I''d also recommend (sorry, don''t have the episode numbers) "The serpent''s tooth", "The rise and fall of the fourth reich" "The ghosts of yesterday" and "The memory killers". "The serpent''s tooth" in particular has some similar (though more malignant) elements as "Goodbye Carl Erich".', '2013-03-27 15:15:28', 1, 'e5a4195b5310dc83cfc81079a6f11896', '112.200.20.61'),
(5687, '0080', 'episode', 'Kurt', '', 'The MUSIC that plays the first time (after Sir John\\''s target practice), then while Scourby is talking describing the hand (as you said above) and throughout the episode is, I believe, excerpted from the Twilight Zone (original) episode \\"Mr. Denton on Doomsday\\". Every TWZ music cue had a name, and this one was called \\"Fear\\". Amazingly, they only played a few notes from it and only used it once, apparently, in the whole Rod Serling TWZ Series.<br>', '2013-04-01 16:41:40', 1, 'adee82697ed1f9e1e5667c87d0243f29', '64.136.211.54'),
(5056, '0309', 'episode', 'Smith', '', 'What strong characters! Good story, but the characters really stood out for me. I gave it a 4.', '2013-03-24 23:42:38', 1, '51678838574d9bdfdea1aac7694aace0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5057, '0309', 'episode', 'Dantz S.', '', 'Goodbye Karl Erich…â€All good Germans are brothers.â€\r\nSo! Das ist sine antwort! Ich bin nicht OTRDAVE! Ich bin Until Next Time! Verstehen?\r\nKarl Ericih…..really a good boy when it comes down to it. He is devoted to his WW1 father by idolizing his bayonet and helmet Ultimately; he is devoted to his ignorant, fearful and abusive mother He is seeking an idol, while being damaged. Is his corruption directly related to Nazism or a crazy upbringing? . Ultimately, he devotes to the “one great manâ€. Nameless at this point but inevitably Hitler. Talking is his weak point. “Talk to meâ€ He hears the truth. He is reverted to his origin. Despite Hitler. You see? Hitler is a poor replacement…and this is manifested in a human drama, nay, a travesty, as Karl Erich. He reverts to his pitiful self, which may be redemption. He sees the feet of clay of his God. What else is expected in the natural, real world? It is so simple here..â€Good Bye Karl Erichâ€ His source, his origin was weak, and the foundation (Nazism) even a poorer foundation. He is left speechless…back to his origin. It is a painful and powerful story. If one has difficulty having sympathy for a Nazi, then one misses the point……….Until Next Time…………By the by…I selected this show, for those who don’t speak German.', '2013-03-27 15:27:39', 1, '79130b81dd84b1f6d26768e83ed0c85b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5067, '0261', 'actor', 'Joe', 'Heyblue57@yahoo.com', 'I wa always madly in like with Morgan Fairchild in the 1970s & 1980''s.  now, replaying episodes of CBSRMT, looking to relive memories, I''ve rediscovered her through her sultry voice. She''s great to fall asleep to.', '2013-03-24 23:42:40', 1, 'f86fa51c2c58552bc18dabfa6b992662', '76.216.53.58'),
(5068, '0074', 'episode', 'Patrick', '', 'ONLY THE DEAD REMEMBER. Very hard, very harsh, very good. Drama with surprises and characters that count. Drama-10\r\n\r\nThis was one of the first CBSRMT’s I had the pleasure to listen to. I have listened to it perhaps 5-6 times over the last couple of yr. The story is more than a mystery, which is a minor point and really only presented as such in the end. The issue of Revenge vs. Justice is really compelling here. It is interesting to consider that if Eddie accomplished his objective he would have murdered an innocent man. A little deeper still and one might say he killed himself, as his misspent obsession resulted in his own death. The central drama and strain is hard on all of them. Even the ultimately disgusting lawyer (an oxymoron?) Tom is revealed to remember…and the weight of his guilt kills him. Is this Justice resolved? The title is interesting because everyone but the dead remember!………a minor point. I hope the esteemed members (lawyers included) enjoyed the show.\r\n\r\nI have invited a friend to join this site and the discussion panel. His name is Phil (user name unknown). If you should see his post please make him feel welcome. Like the Budweiser commercials we hear on our episodes…..he is the “King of OTRâ€. He is the most knowledgeable and devoted fan of radio drama I know. But, this quality pales when considering what a great guy he is….generous and pleasant. He has a good brain too. So, if you are here Phil…….Welcome!!!!!!!!!!!!', '2013-03-24 23:42:42', 1, '5cacd9fa6d0c7c0702e3b94f3253a825', '112.200.20.61'),
(5061, '0309', 'episode', 'Evedan', '', '.......and please forgive my indirect complaints.', '2013-03-24 23:42:42', 1, '9663ada2970d931ada46fd125778c9b3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5062, '0309', 'episode', 'Lester', '', 'I listened to the show while I was hard at work. It was just okay.\r\n\r\nThen it came time to post my thoughts, but I held back. I didn''t feel I gave the show a proper "listen." So, I listened to it again.\r\n\r\nWoah.\r\n\r\nIt always blows me away how much more you gain from listening to a show more than once. This is a prime example. It began, for me as a yet another World War II episode, which there are a great deal of in the RMT collection. I just went with it, despite tales of this period not being my particular favorite.\r\n\r\nThen the show moved to a dark, painful place, war aside. Or perhaps, war within, if you catch my meaning. The battle which Carl Erich was dealing with internally must have been horrific. Add in a vicious, mentally and physically abusive mother... oh my!\r\n\r\nBut how diabolical of the RMT writers that take us from that place into one of hope and victory. The scene in the bakery. It was the schoolyard chump standing up to the bully. And with the Dr.''s providence peering in from the background. Fabulous!\r\n\r\nBut again. Again! The writer''s take us into that darkness, begrudgingly and knowingly. We all know what to expect. In the case of Carl Erich, it was simply unfair. We all know where it could lead him. When the friend who invites him to move in mentions the "meeting," I closed my eyes and thought, "ugh."\r\n\r\nBut the final deliverance of the Dr.''s words were like a hen dropped into a deep well. I admit missing it the first time. It generated a unique smile on my face, while saddening me with reality.\r\n\r\nThis was a fine episode. Unlike many others I''ve heard. You could take many other historical scenarios and put them into the mix instead of WW2, and the effect could be similar. The redemption. The unholy retribution. woah.\r\n\r\nIn a strange way, this tale reminds me of when I was a young art student and I discovered the work of Dr. Theodore Seuss Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss. We all know of his work with The Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham, but when I came across his Oscar winning works that were products of his absolute despise of the Nazi regime (Hitler in particular), I was much like that hen dropping into the well. It changed my perspective. It made me realize that there MUST be a point to the work I create. For if there is no point, then the work is pointless. Much like the life of Carl Erich.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, again I ramble! If you''d like to see Seuss'' political work from the ''40s.\r\n\r\nI gave this episode a very rare 5. An excellent selection. Thank you!', '2013-06-19 23:00:46', 1, '5712c22c5fcdf46be96037f06ad54d61', '112.200.20.61'),
(5063, '0309', 'episode', 'Reese', '', 'I thought this episode really resonated on an emotional level moreso than any other episode I''ve ever heard.', '2013-03-14 01:11:35', 1, '4f7dc93f5a06d047500e581d6fbef04f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5064, '0309', 'episode', 'Larsen C.', '', 'I liked this episode. At first you feel pity for the mother because she can''t get the doctor to listen to her, then you feel pity for Carl when the doctor learns about his problem and no longer for the mother when you learn that she is abusive to Carl. Then feel joy at Carl being able to over come his inablility to speak and to confront the people in the bakery. Then when Carl becomes involved with the Third Reich you become angry at him and wish he could see the error of his ways. And in the end when he learns that the doctor is a Jew and represents something that he has been taught is something that is so below his station he becomes dumb again and you no longer feel sorry for him, but feel some satisfaction that he got what he deserved. That maybe a little unfair I guess, but this episode really brought out a lot of emotion and so I gave this episode a high mark.', '2013-03-14 01:11:39', 1, 'ffd42166e7668ad070d4a9556fecc6e4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5065, '0309', 'episode', 'Bing', '', 'Goodbye Karl Erich was a very good RMT and interesting in many ways. I had heard Kevin McCarthy in the Sherlock Holmes adaptations but he handles the central european accent nicely without overdoing it. And talk about multi-tasking -- Bryna Raeburn! At least 3 roles I counted. I thought the \\''old diary\\'' angle was effective in this show ... but I was a bit disappointed after the show was over. I was psychologically prepared for the Doctor ending up in a concentration camp or something, and the man who orders his execution is Karl, and by saying goodbye, the Doctor makes the same gesture so many Jews made in the camps -- you may be killing me, but I have won, because you have lost your humanity. The diary angle would have been perfect with this conclusion, as a testament to one man\\''s fate. Everything seemed to be pointing that direction, just as in history -- the seduction of young, idealistic men, who slowly turn away from their \\''old\\'' morals. So I was let down by the end which I thought was melodramatic. But that does mean I was captivated up until the end, and the story caused my imagination to create its own conclusion, which makes it a very good story. And the purpose of something like RMT is to make your mind into a theater.', '2013-03-14 01:11:47', 1, '0c0970743fdd51876c8c0048d41f449b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5066, '0309', 'episode', 'Red', '', 'I always thought this was a rather odd episode. The plot is somewhat melodramatic and some of performances a little over-the-top, but it is definitely an episode that haunts you after a careful listening. It particularly casts a light on the prejudices we have and how they only have validity as long as we can dehumanize those we hate. We can hate a stereotype but it''s another thing entirely when that stereotype is revealed as a human being...especially if it is a human being we love. Perhaps it was listening to stories like this as a kid that helped me learn to be more open as an adult when it comes to accepting and embracing the differences in others.', '2013-03-14 01:11:44', 1, 'b399e92c2e553e1c4fd3eac8a008c7d8', '112.200.20.61'),
(5069, '0074', 'episode', 'Phil', '', 'Howdy folks,\r\n\r\nFirst of all, thanks for the warm welcome Dave. I am flattered. I get most of my knowledge of OTR from listening, listening, listening! That and the fact that I spend WAY too much money building up my OTR book library (36 books and counting). Anyway, enough about me....\r\n\r\nSince we are supposed to be honest in our evaluations of the episode, I will try to be from the start. When the show first started and it was revealed that this was a "war incident" episode, I thought to myself "oh, man, not another one." I think the "secret among war buddies" stories have been overdone to the point of being just plain boring, especially since Vietnam. That was my general thoughts on the episode for the first two acts. The third act, however, was when it all came together and the mystery unravelled. As much as I was initially turned off by the war buddies theme, by the time the third act got under way, I HAD to hear how it turned out! That, I think, is what makes a good story good. It holds your interest until you reach the point where you just have to know what happens next. I knew something was up with the lawyer (Tom) and that he was more central to the story than just the so-called "voice of reason". I didn''t think of it until Dave mentioned it in his review about how Eddie would have murdered an innocent man had he accomplished what he set out to. Obsession can be dangerous and blinding, as seen in the character of Eddie. Overall a pretty good episode. One I will "remember" (and no, I''m not dead) :?', '2013-03-24 23:42:42', 1, '2715ad670890283c273a2e968c42a486', '112.200.20.61'),
(5070, '0074', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'If a show says \\"Rip me!\\"...then rip it. No doubt about your having heard more of these stories than I, for it never occured to me as \\"another war buddy story\\". ........Also, if possible, try to post a comment before reading other\\''s reviews. This is a goal, not a directive and something we all have strayed form here and there. The forum does ask for it...and I think for good reason. ...Anyhow, good to see you and am looking forward to future reviews from you.', '2013-06-19 23:01:05', 1, '2cca44aa4576d3161b2dc5a9ffe7eb36', '112.200.20.61'),
(5071, '0074', 'episode', 'Raine', '', 'Good show. l loved the quote \\"toothbrush, razor and revolver.\\" Look forward to the next show!!!', '2013-03-24 23:42:43', 1, 'b40546dc9f048b66a461ba40f844700a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5072, '0074', 'episode', 'Alfred N.', '', 'I dunno. The show itself was well put together, but the story for me just never picked up. It left me quite flat. The pace was lulling... enough so that it took me four "listens" to really hear it (I kept falling asleep).\r\n\r\nPerhaps had I been in that kind of situation, I might be able to understand better, but the whole concept of someone holding a grudge for twenty years (or whatever it was), was a stretch. Most people would have let it go and simply mourned the loss. But, I suppose it is possible, especially under these conditions.\r\n\r\nWhat was a let down for me, though, was when the episode got to the part where Liz became involved. She seemed to come out of nowhere and had no real purpose to the tale. When Bill asked "How did you know I was supposed to go with Eddie?" her reply was, "Because, Bill, I have faith in you!"\r\n\r\nShe remained involved only enough to give information that Bill could have found out anyway, making the "waitress can I have a newspaper" scene near to silly. The entire discussion is disjointed... THEN Tom appears, again out of nowhere, but at least he''s part of the story.\r\n\r\nWhen Liz calls to warn Bill, again, the story goes silly - Bill just ignores her. Hunh? It just didn''t make any sense. Why even bother putting Liz in the story at all? The character, in my opinion, didn''t offer enough of a misdirection to be a good device.\r\n\r\nFinally, when Tom slipped up and mentioned the waitress, I just rolled my eyes. I''m sorry, but that was just too easy. I didn''t actually see it coming, but there was a lot of emphasis put on Myers... perhaps too much. Enough to make me realize that something else was going on.\r\n\r\nThe ending left me with a slight yawn. In the end, I felt bad for Myers, a character we barely got to know. Bill turned out to be slightly annoying in the end, and Tom became ridiculous. "I wanted us to get caught!" or "I was trying to save our lives!" If a man could hold a secret like that for twenty years, it seems odd that he''d go so puddly in the final hour.\r\n\r\nThere are episodes of Scooby Doo with more intricate plot twists and revelations.\r\n\r\nOverall, I gave the show a 2.9. Production was very good, acting was good, but the story left me feeling like I just watched a Matlock episode.\r\n\r\nAs always, thanks and very best wishes!', '2013-03-24 23:42:44', 1, '8c855abcb2b2a1f1e0946677b77576ef', '112.200.20.61'),
(5073, '0074', 'episode', 'Jerome Juggs', '', 'It is interesting to consider that if Eddie accomplished his objective he would have murdered an innocent man. A little deeper still and one might say he killed himself, as his misspent obsession resulted in his own death.[/quote:b9879ace1c]\r\n\r\nI love how you worded this UNT, very good! But, I revert to my feeling that the episode, for me, was a stretch on the far side.\r\n\r\nAny reasonable person would not have spent 20 years dwelling and focusing on revenge, without perhaps at some point thinking, "What if Myers didn''t do it?" I mean, it was TWENTY years we''re talking about... that''s a mighty long time to obsess over something, especially something so serious. Mind you, Eddie may not have been a reasonable person, so there is certainly room for interpretation, right?\r\n\r\nAnyhow, nice post UNT!\r\n\r\nAnd PHIL - welcome! I look forward to hearing more from your perspective as well!!', '2013-03-24 23:42:44', 1, '91b533aef1fabbcbfd03b03867167a41', '112.200.20.61'),
(5074, '0074', 'episode', 'Jed', '', 'There are episodes of Scooby Doo with more intricate plot twists and revelations. \r\n\r\n........OK, I really enjoyed reading your review, and am glad somebody has humorously slammed an episode with such deleightful style, but the above quote is beyond belief. I have a 4 and a half yr old and have seen more than my share of Scoobie Doo! This tale was Shakespearian'' compared to Scooby Doo.', '2013-03-24 23:42:45', 1, '70db5eec4bc932264e90653ef85bde44', '112.200.20.61'),
(5075, '0074', 'episode', 'Roy', '', 'hehehe... okay, maybe the Scooby Doo comment was a bit of a stretch! ', '2013-03-27 15:01:45', 1, '4f8076205003269d1c5c3c073bb0ce10', '112.200.20.61'),
(5076, '0074', 'episode', 'Lance', '', 'What I want to know is how did Eddie survive 20 years looking for this guy? I mean travel is expensive, and piano players don''t top the list of best paid professions.', '2013-03-24 23:42:46', 1, '08f64811123461357001eae726c08605', '112.200.20.61'),
(5077, '0074', 'episode', 'Phil', '', 'What I want to know is how did Eddie survive 20 years looking for this guy? I mean travel is expensive, and piano players don''t top the list of best paid professions.\r\n\r\nGood point, I usually think of little things like that (my wife hates it), but on this one I didn''t. The obsession obviously played a huge role in his life.', '2013-03-24 23:42:47', 1, 'd3e2405fe2f8cca025fb694ad546940b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5078, '0074', 'episode', 'Red', '', 'I believe it was Bill who said to Eddie, "We always figured you''d hit it big writing songs for Broadway" (something to that effect), so I would safely assume he worked not only as a piano player but also a songwriter.\r\n\r\nSince many of the characters, especially the waitress, seemed to know "the song" which he played often and which was being played even after he was killed, it may also be safe to assume "the song" was a hit and was well-known, if not even being a "one-hit wonder." The hit song, however, would lead me to also guess that perhaps Eddie had a string of minor hits and maybe even penned a few minor scores for off-Broadway shows.\r\n\r\nAdd any compensation from his musical career to any money he received from his military service. Also, let''s suspend disbelief and imagine he even had a trust fund. Or perhaps he had a relative that passed away and left him a handsome estate.\r\n\r\nPersonally, I like to imagine that Eddie pressed the Chinaman Button and in a strange twist of fate, he received a large sum of money from a wealthy cousin in South Africa who suddenly "passed away."\r\n\r\nBut that''s just me of course.', '2013-03-27 15:01:50', 1, '9f662ea6e2672c5753bd3bf8b04b7b4f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5079, '0044', 'episode', 'John Mina', '', '"They''re after me! They''re after me."\r\n\r\nGuy de Maupassant, poor guy, apparently ended up crazy as a loon. Sad that his genius (I think his "The hand" was a classic...certainly was a strong RMT play) may have also been a curse to him.\r\n\r\nI thought the Horla sounded like air raid sirens. Interesting episode.', '2013-03-24 23:42:48', 1, '877aaf526e4475f678ae252006d4d054', '112.200.20.61'),
(5080, '0044', 'episode', 'Lisa', '', 'I like this episode a lot. I like the original story on which it''s based, and I like the twist Sam Dann added by making De Maupassant himself the narrator of the story (in the original it is just a nameless first-person narrative).\r\n\r\nDe Maupassant had syphilis from his 20''s, and began to suffer from mental illness toward the end. About 30 or 40 of his stories reflect his descent into madness, actually a very small percentage of his output. I think he wrote something like 300 works altogether.\r\n\r\nAnyway, I am especially fascinated by his description of the Horla because it is a near-perfect clinical description of how it feels to suffer from an anxiety attack---the weight on the chest, the feeling of being suffocated, of panic, and of losing one''s strength and sense of control. It is obvious that De Maupassant was desperately trying to describe, and to come up with an explanation for, what was physically happening to him as his mental illness became worse. I find it fascinating, sad, and compelling. Also, the theme of madman as prophet---the idea of a person with deep insights that no one else understands being considered insane---is one of my favorite literary themes. The vast majority of people are so smugly confident in their beliefs, and so very comfortable that they are right and sane. . . it''s important that these things are called into question from time to time.\r\n\r\nI thought the performances and production values of this episode were all top-notch, and that Sam Dann''s decision to make the play reflect De Maupassant''s real life was extremely clever. De Maupassant actually was put in a sanitarium, just as in Dann''s script. He died a year later. (The original story of The Horla ends rather differently.)', '2013-03-24 23:42:49', 1, '80cac6ec2f652719cc7bbb02b015cbed', '112.200.20.61'),
(5081, '0044', 'episode', 'Roland Abot', '', 'I did not like this one as well as some of the others. I guess I just have a problem with people that think they are losing their minds or to think that some superior race is taking over our minds.', '2013-03-24 23:42:49', 1, '006065498340d32558d7648ed96f1701', '112.200.20.61'),
(5082, '0044', 'episode', 'Jatt', '', 'I had a tough time rating this one. While I agree with Bill -- I don''t prefer the "mind puzzle" stories because they are so hard to follow -- no matter how well you think you have it figured out - the fantasy character of the genre allows the author to throw a curve no matter how unrealistic. But I also agree with Steve that this story was really very well done. I was playing it at work and had to re-listen to several parts - and even then may have lost the flow of things. I will rerun it tonight when I turn in and hope I don''t fall asleep. Despite my preference for more traditonal mysteries - I gave it a four for artistic merit -- it presented the tale with great talent and direction.', '2013-03-24 23:42:50', 1, 'ddf5bd04403b6e50f715426cbb9a9bd6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5083, '0044', 'episode', 'Reese', '', 'i enjoyed this one and was glued to it . i probbably looked a bit strange gazing off into space while at work. maybe i didn''t look much different than i usually do. :lol:\r\ni''ve seen this theme in several sci fi shows. star trek classic for one.\r\ni liked the idea of not knowing if mr. M was sane or not. i think maybe he was not mostly because there was no physical description of the Horla.\r\n\r\nthe one man acting alone is also exciting to me. Invasion Of The Body Snatchers comes to mind.\r\nthe sound of the Horla wasn''t scary enough to me.\r\n\r\nthe acting was good in this one. accents were believable to me. tho the doctor didn''t have a french accent did he? i''ve listened to 2 shows set in Paris in the last 2 days. i can only take so much!', '2013-03-24 23:42:51', 1, 'a97d65b4f40306be32245989456351f9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5084, '0044', 'episode', 'Rannie', '', 'My enjoyment of this tale comes from being both a true story (in part) and the subject matter itself.\r\n\r\nWhenever I come across a book, film, or performance that involves a character experiencing things that nobody else seems to be aware of, completely freaks me out. I often wonder how diseases like schizophrenia target certain people and not others. Same with Alzheimer''s.\r\n\r\nI find the descent into a state of mental health where reality and fantasy weave into the same daydream to be truly frightening.\r\n\r\nThis episode was really well done and helped open up the door, for me, to an author I have not read before.\r\n\r\nThanks, Steve for the link to the Horla text. I''m looking forward to reading it.\r\n\r\nOverall, I enjoyed this one. Best wishes,', '2013-03-24 23:42:51', 1, 'c5d68d8e6c0e6ee2ddd6f5d2dad36cc4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5085, '0044', 'episode', 'Mel Angelo D.', '', 'Hmmmm. I just wasn''t thrilled with this one at all. The background to the author was good, and I enjoyed how the episode bleeded back and forth between reality (author) and the story... but the air-raid sound thing kind of ruined it for me.', '2013-03-24 23:42:52', 1, 'e1c6a1d0503cba2958afcc0f7dfd3c9a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5086, '0044', 'episode', 'Anna Miranda', '', 'I\\''ve listened to this program a few times now and I must say it\\''s improved with subsequent listenings. I find the story to be very tragic, given the realism of Guy De Maupassant\\''s fate with dementia. What a terrible waste of a brilliant mind. But then again, how much of his brilliance was borne from his disease? I give the program a solid 4.', '2013-03-24 23:42:53', 1, 'ced2ecc9f499ffb8ccd00bd22f375c4d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5087, '0233', 'episode', 'Jarred', '', 'I love this retelling. It"s done tastefully and they give credit to Poe who inspired the story.\r\n\r\nNorman Rose was perfect as Mr. X.\r\n\r\nGreat selection!', '2013-03-24 23:42:53', 1, '55133c91038435bdf85006c6907a1a16', '112.200.20.61'),
(5088, '0233', 'episode', 'Shane', '', 'My favorite male (Rose) and female (Seldes) voices on the RMT are great on this. I agree that Rose was well-cast...I''ve never quite heard him this cool-sounding even when he was a bad guy in other roles. Great choice! I also like Tony Roberts in his part.', '2013-03-24 23:42:54', 1, 'a3e0eb6d2bbb0978d68136c5d21ee125', '112.200.20.61'),
(5089, '0233', 'episode', 'Jeff L. Oliver', '', 'I liked this modernized version of Poe''s classic tale. The writing was solid and the subject matter, a formula for a weapon of mass destruction, was relevant with today''s political climate. Our protagonists were likeable and the tale made us think, "What would I do if put in the same situation?" There was certainly enough to make this tale a worthy retelling of the original.', '2013-03-24 23:42:54', 1, '304bebb08e987a8ab7deca9a760f2bdb', '112.200.20.61'),
(5090, '0233', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'I was ready for \\"yet another version\\" of this one, and to be honest, I kind of sneered. In high school, we spent weeks on this one in a Lit. Class... then in college, it was covered extensively in another course. It was enough to cause the aforementioned sneer.\r\n\r\nHowever, perhaps knowing the tale so well as it was, I was delighted with this adaptation. It was well played and Mr. X (Norman Rose) was especially convincing. I just loved the updated version of it overall. It was fresh and still grasping.\r\n\r\nExcellent choice on this one!! Thanks,', '2013-06-19 23:07:08', 1, '3b11b2e7f03973d97272ea8dd975d843', '112.200.20.61'),
(5091, '0233', 'episode', 'Joanne N.', '', 'Well, I guess I''ll have to play odd-man-out this week. I really didn''t care for this version of the story at all. I often do enjoy RMT''s modernized adaptations. For example, I think their version of The Tell-Tale Heart is excellent---very compelling. But this one just didn''t work for me. I thought the whole trick ending was pretty hokey AND predictable, and that Mr X was pretty over-the-top. Actually, I thought he was pretty funny. He had me crackin'' up. :lol:\r\n\r\nAlso, overall, I just don''t care for secret agent, spy counter-spy, or mental torture scenarios. Yeah, that was a really controlled experiment. Psychiatrists standing by to stop the test at the first signs of mental breakdown? Give me a break. Now if the guy had been a really top-flight secret US government agent, he would have figured out how to knock off Mr X with a ball-point pen or a wad of chewing gum or something. Or maybe the wife seduces Mr X and then gives him a few Emma Peel karate chops and throws him in the pit. THAT would have been a good story!', '2013-03-24 23:42:56', 1, 'b6aca17ee7d00de9b9a3916fedb6f9fb', '112.200.20.61'),
(5092, '0233', 'episode', 'Rannie', '', 'I agree with you for the most part on the secret agent stuff. But I do like the mental torture stories. I think they are one of the most effective stories in radio because it''s the easiest story through which to build tension.\r\n\r\nI enjoy them I think more than most RMT fans. That''s why I liked "Out of Sight" so much while almost nobody else liked it. I was able to overlook the gratuitously overt feminist message and enjoy a good story. Not something I always accomplish with other types of stories.\r\n\r\nBTW, I had to put a script of Sam Dann down there with Elspeth''s worst entry. Take my advice, avoid "My Kingdom for a Horse" at all costs! There must be an error in the credits because it sounded very little like Dann and a lot like Eric.', '2013-03-24 23:42:56', 1, '42bd796f030314dac0fe797227fae55b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5093, '0233', 'episode', 'James', '', 'I gotta tell ya, I''m beginning to see your point about Elspeth Eric. I''ve been listening to a lot of episodes lately and, with the sole exceptions of The Transformation, The Walls of Jericho, and possibly ...Bobby Deland, I can''t even make it all the way through many of her plays. She definitely wrote some of the worst. (Mind Over Matthew, P! U! What a stinker!)\r\n\r\nHowever, her adaptation of The Transformation is still my very favorite episode, so I gotta give her some credit. It''s really a gem. (Although I think Mary Shelley''s awesome storytelling probably has more to do with why I like it than anything else. Also Kevin McCarthy''s performance and the overall high production values---Hi Brown did a bang-up job producing and directing that one.)', '2013-03-27 15:02:03', 1, '4422f9d8bb29ec0fc981ce139464cf52', '112.200.20.61'),
(5094, '0233', 'episode', 'Gracie Anne S.', '', 'not a bad show but i really like the origional so i was a bit biased against it.\r\ni never had the feeling that the man and wife were in real trouble. it was like watching a tv. series when you know the stars won''t get killed off.\r\n\r\nmr. x was good. i think if he would have acted a little more psycho i would have been more worried. maybe because i was sucked into BLIZARD OF FEAR ( good show) i was more cautious this time.\r\n\r\nthe wife''s strength of will was a good part of THE PIT.\r\ni onlt gave it a 3. maybe i was too rough.', '2013-03-24 23:42:58', 1, '2cf0ed2ec36587bf633c13d1020ecced', '112.200.20.61'),
(5095, '0046', 'episode', 'Brian Pontillas', '', 'This one really kept me on the edge of my seat. A farmer who it seems has never been sick a day in his life has an accident and injures his arm. He is unable to go about his usual day to day life. He finds a mysterious black bag, finds out his wife has some health problems. I won''t spoil the rest. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did.', '2013-03-24 23:42:58', 1, '4a9317be6467a66a6bd63d3ce5db196c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5096, '0046', 'episode', 'Nate Panambers', '', 'Alex Harper and his wife, Judy, live on a farm where Alex has suffered a recent injury to his arm. He speaks with his doctor and learns that his arm will never been completely healed and worse, that his wife has a serious heart condition. During the tale, Judy becomes audibly upset when she happens upon a man "without a face" who wants to "communicate". After her story is reinforced by other''s who have seen the strange looking man, Alex and Judy find a black doctor''s bag behind their barn. Eventually, they open the bag and find prescriptions in bottles that are unlike anything they''ve seen before. The prescriptions are for some of the most hideous diseases known to man. Alex puts some of the appropriate powder on his arm and has a miraculous and complete recovery.\r\n\r\nWarning: Plot spoiler ahead. The story is excellent. The characters keep us guessing and we learn of several points where the plot is forshadowed. For instance, we learn that the man in black is a "new kind of man" early in the story. Later we learn he is a fururistic reaper. His medicines are actually a prescription for death and I can imagine him without a mouth, as a metaphor for a silent grim reaper, dressed in a black hooded cape. The exterminator is portrayed with a very strange voice that seems a bit contrived but I think it actually helps to give us a futuristic bent. Excellent choice for a show.', '2013-03-24 23:42:59', 1, 'c5f8c9c5e0a41b55a1ad37edaca7250d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5097, '0046', 'episode', 'T. Feria', '', 'This story about a farmer who’s arm has recently been injured in a farming accident is a good one. Sometimes, people are willing to try anything to restore their health and this story is a very good example of that. The farmer’s wife tells him one morning of strange lights she had seen the night before and he is not sure he believes her. She leaves to go to the doctor and he finds a black bag that looks like a doctor’s bag but he cannot open it. He learns from the doctor that his arm will never quite be the same and also that his wife has a heart condition. As she returns from the doctor, his wife very excitedly tells him of a man , dressed in black that she had just seen. Apparently he does not have a mouth but was trying to comminicate with her. . The strange man’s existence is verified by authorites about the same time the black bag is accidentally opened. The bag contains vials with pills or powders in them with the names of diseases that that are fatal to humas. The farmer puts some powder on his arm and it is healed. The farmer assumes the vials contain cures. The farmer meets the stranger without a mouth when he comes for the bag and who tries to tell him these vials are not what they seem and that fortunatly he chose to use one that did not harm him. The farmer doesn’t understand him so he knocks the strange man out and gives his wife a pill for heart attack. When the stranger wakes up the farmer tells him that he gave his wife the pill. This is when the farmer learns that the pills are used for exterminating the overpopulated place where the stranger comes from. The farmer is heartbroken that his wife is now dead.\r\n\r\nI like this show, although some clues to it’s ending are easy to figure out and are quite classic, you still aren’t sure till you hear the ending what will happen. The man in Black and the wife’s reference that she had just seen death and also the stranger mentions that his people have not learned to curve their reproductive powers are some of the clues. If there are people out there, we always think that they are more advance than we are and probably have hope that they will have answers or cures for us. We are so eager to live forever.\r\n\r\nA very good show that I haven’t heard before. Thanks for picking this one out.', '2013-03-24 23:43:00', 1, '6113f1b59990f742442426ce705c7406', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5099, '0046', 'episode', 'Guillian M.', '', 'the timing was marvelous for me on this one. Listening to it scratched a mental itch that I''ve had for 20 years now.\r\n\r\nWhen I first heard this on the radio, I was completely surprised by the disturbing twist at the end - this must be why it stuck with me for so long. I can even remember where I was and what I was doing when the stranger revealed the true function of the pills, but I don''t remember anything else leading up to that point.', '2013-03-24 23:43:00', 1, '59411d9c09c5cc8bb9dd3febd60106dc', '112.200.20.61'),
(5100, '0046', 'episode', 'Ricky B.', '', 'This one was truly a captivating tale. It is funny how a newbie just mentioned that as one of his favorites.\r\n\r\nIt''s the cautionary tale of messing with forces you don''t understand and jumping into something before you know all the consequences (like I did owning a boat).\r\n\r\nIt also speaks to the desperation one must feel when they are losing someone they love.', '2013-03-24 23:43:01', 1, '99819332311f82acf235fa81db8950e6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5101, '0046', 'episode', 'Jercs Soltes', '', 'This story certainly has its'' spooky elements. A guy in black and with no mouth for one thing. A "lunatic" on the prowl who is a mutation for another. The use of the music in the first 2 acts is really effective..it is suggestive and alluring..... "What the hell is going on here?", that is what it is saying. Something deadly. It is dangerous. It is ominous. We know the dog is a gonner when chasing a guy who leaps over walls and practically flies. Something "far away" is going on. Is this guy an alien? Is he a "freak" of nature? The suggestion with the story in the first two acts, musically and thematically is of a sense of danger. A sense of an outsider. We have a couple with health problems (something to fear and dread in itself.) The third act twists this. The meaning is ultimately clarified. There is a suggestion of another possibilty. There is hope! A cure!!!!!! The cure even works, as our adventurous, if not foolhearty protagonist discovers with his white powder. Forget the warnings of the first two acts! This cure works. "I, in my desperation and mistrust of my doctor friend ( humanity, logic and science) know what is best for my wife. I''ll give her this unknown medication!" Horahh Horahh! Damn Fool. The story then reveals itself. The outsider to be feared is ourselves, only represented in a future sense. Man is folly. Nature is supreme. Our future rules out. Inevitable?Nature creates a future man that replaces the present! Man''s own future and nature replace the present moment ( it is a given that the past, present and future run together in this story ) for an advantage...the advantage of technology. Surely, this modern, advanced fellow is no physical match. He gets rather easily knocked out! But on a mental and technological plane, watch out. He reigns supreme and will have his way. That is the scary element of the story. His folly in his day is an uncontrolled reproduction to the point that "ony the higher forms exist" in his day. His technology is the tool to seek an answer for his humanity\r\n(a prediliction of absolute supremacy). Replace others from another time! That''s the solution. The hell with them! With ourselves! The future of man is more folly as well, despite his technology. The drive is overwhelming! If he replaces the present (a past to his future) he devoids his own existance. What price be paid? In both time spans? A wife. A future. His knowledge at the time is sufficient to understand that if he changes the past he changes the present (his future). Like our single minded protagonist, he thinks narrowly and of himself only. Despite our well spoken futuristic friends'' verbage, his goal is our destruction. (and his own?). Human nature? Destroy the past, replace the future.The show is scary for it''s indirect perception and representation of us. The forces at work are not pretty. Hope it isn''t reality. ...9.5.', '2013-03-24 23:43:02', 1, 'a4fdf4da815227a1a31fd89c58bb653c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5102, '0046', 'episode', 'Agnes', '', 'I liked this show. It has that spooky "beyond this world" undertone that made the series so great, where you know something is going on that isn''t just bad, it''s supernatural. You just had to know there was something really wrong about the "doctor''s" bag Alex finds. And when Michael finally speaks up it is definitely creepy. But the tie-in with the mental hospital kept me guessing ... there seemed to be a deranged lunatic on the loose, but he just kept appearing in different places with no apparent purpose. That slow, winding plot development was a hallmark of the whole series. I like having the original ads - one had Art Linkletter (there''s a major figure from my youth) and another admonishes everyone to conserve energy. This was my first Show of the Week and I really enjoyed listening to it.', '2013-03-24 23:43:02', 1, '2cffbea9b58be3e157e89b8c53ff98b9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5103, '0046', 'episode', 'Dwarde Malcolm', '', 'Well, keep on listening and giving your reviews...its too much fun to pass by.', '2013-03-24 23:43:03', 1, '4ead62b4382ff4c3d95324602067eb75', '112.200.20.61'),
(5104, '0046', 'episode', 'Martha', '', 'I liked this one.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, when I read about different people seeing the same alien faced man I thought of the movie "Signs"...however, the twist with him instead being an "advanced", futuristic man was a nice one.\r\n\r\nAnd Marshall''s ending with how the man would ask how his arm was healed was quite poignant. My heart sunk along with the husband''s as the future man was telling him what he was going to find at his house after his wife took the "medicine".', '2013-03-24 23:43:03', 1, '38378231b784afcf9bdc9485eb518b3c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5105, '0046', 'episode', 'Denver Delovino', '', 'Great to have you join the ''SHOW''. Don''t be afraid to wade in on the past show''s of the week as many of us read the logs faithfully and would welcome your opinions. It''s a great way to start listening and enjoying with us. For me, I think I listen more closely and pay attention to details when I''m reviewing for the show.', '2013-03-24 23:43:04', 1, '0198442b2b4f9b74c4239580b0800731', '112.200.20.61'),
(5107, '0046', 'episode', 'Charles', '', 'This is an interesting program. I would say that it didn\\''t go quite the direction that I expected. A number of twists and turns to think about kept it interesting. There are good lessons in programs like this but you can\\''t fault people for doing whatever they need to do to stay alive. Hopefully we won\\''t see an increased number of people without mouths running around (although I know a few people that would be better off that way).', '2013-03-24 23:43:05', 1, 'e5d4a5239709c5a7979a8530d73ffa03', '112.200.20.61'),
(5108, '0046', 'episode', 'Mitch B.', '', 'The wife had a heart condition that required dietary changes. Her prognosis was favorable. The farmer had that carefully explained to him. His folly killed his wife......She was not about to die until he interveened.', '2013-03-24 23:43:05', 1, '2ac49a8faced02026fe3ec841097c522', '112.200.20.61'),
(5110, '0046', 'episode', 'Ben P.', '', 'i guessed the ending early on so wasn''t too suprised.\r\n\r\ni liked the escaped psycho with no mouth part. that was creepy.\r\n\r\nthe farmer was willing to try unknown meds too quickly for me. but some people do that sort of thing .', '2013-03-24 23:43:06', 1, '503fbe74f4e67774670940bad15aa891', '112.200.20.61'),
(5111, '0048', 'episode', 'Lex', '', 'Women''s Lib hits outer space, but the "lady astronaut" gets cold feet when she feels the mission is jinxed, and that she is the source of the jinx. Upon achieving orbit, the ship is sucked into a time warp and the three astronauts are studied by the local intelligences that brought them there.\r\n\r\nThis is one of those episodes that today is a little goofy and predictable. At the time though, it was pushing the equity and equality issue. Reminds me of a commercial I heard in some of the episodes about the femals college graduate being offered a job in the typing pool because she''s pretty enough, etc.\r\n\r\nThe beilevability factor in this one (and I''m pretty good at suspending disbelief) was low - first woman in space, would have to be bright and sensible... but prone to superstition, then turns out to be the strong bond in the group... seemed to vacillate too much for me. Otherwise it was a fun episode.', '2013-03-24 23:43:07', 1, '5e5c114daf86e5fddeb6fa854cc83da5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5112, '0048', 'episode', 'Joyce R.', '', 'This episode is sort of a time capsule of some of the attitudes about women that were in the air in the 70\\''s. On one hand, you have the liberation issue with the first woman astronaut. Even so, the writer can\\''t but help include sexist comments and attitudes about her character. Thankfully, we\\''ve come a long way in 30 years.\r\n\r\nI enjoyed the pure sci-fi set-up of this episode, a rarity for the mystery theater. The story was not unlike the shows that X-Minus One and Dimension X used to do back in the 40\\''s and 50\\''s.', '2013-03-24 23:43:07', 1, '119dbb17bc86d5629e44b79c297253a1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5113, '0048', 'episode', 'John Richard V.', '', 'I picked up on the "Women''s Lib" angle when I heard it as an adult. But that was secondary to me as I liked the story itself.\r\n\r\nI liked the fact that they never saw their tormenters. I thought it was good sci-fi. It is schlock for sure, but as I stated earlier, I liked that stuff and still enjoy hearing it.', '2013-03-24 23:43:08', 1, '1e39f6caef10d295b063e4d2c94c3b4d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5114, '0048', 'episode', 'Jorge B.', '', 'I must confess this episode wasn''t my cup of tea...\r\n\r\nWhile I like science fiction... even some that would fall into the category of cheesey... or campy (much of the original series Star Trek) I had a hard time getting past some of the writing in this episode.\r\n\r\nFor example that scene where everyone winds up with a knife... ??? :?\r\n\r\nAnyway thank you for the listen. I can''t remember ever hearing this episode before.', '2013-03-27 15:02:07', 1, '9a2951879a11f84530ae7e5098ea638b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5115, '0048', 'episode', 'Janice M.', '', 'In listening to this show I was reminded of The Outer Limits, Twilight Zone, Dimension X, etc. I especially like RMT episodes that go into genres other than horror and mystery. It was hard not to anticipate the ending of this show, because the whole theme of testing the human race and finding them just far enough above total scum to be worthy of existing has been done in so many sci-fi stories. But I liked the show because it was sci-fi and because the characters were believable. Radio transmissions and strange voices from space are effective in radio drama.', '2013-03-27 15:15:38', 1, '21b28f5c2dfe80df81cb6806af864ba6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5116, '0048', 'episode', 'Johnart M.', '', 'I agree with Janice M. that these are like the outer limits or some show like that. The one major thing I got out of this was the references to skylab (1 or 2 they never mentioned). Thats something I recall watching a lot when I was a kid, all the skylab stories. Anyways back on track, I thought the story was not the best sci-fi story ever aired on CBSRMT yet it was good. In essence it reminded me of some old movies I would watch as a kid like Forbidden Planet or The Day The Earth Stood still, not so much for the stories being the same or similar, but more for the feeling you get while listening to it, the feeling that we are not alone. ', '2013-03-24 23:43:10', 1, '62855ea985829b93ee164283bfa1d50f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5117, '0048', 'episode', 'Jorge B.', '', 'Those old sci-fi movies were what this episode reminded of.\r\n\r\nIt didn''t seem to be that popular with listeners here. Schlock is an acquired taste, I guess.\r\n\r\nThanks for listening', '2013-03-24 23:43:10', 1, '457a32f8eab4628f10cb1e1de9a68ee6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5118, '0048', 'episode', 'Antonel Ross', '', 'I listened to this on a very busy Friday (August) the 1st and I LIKED it. TOTALLY different from what I was expecting.\r\n\r\n- Of all the RMT regular actors, Jack Grimes (who in the RMT''s "Graven Image" played a San Jose based country music singer named Jody Barnes, or as he pronounced it: "Jody BAHnes") was the one I''d have picked "Least likely to play an alien"...but he didn''t do badly.\r\n\r\n- I liked the "Navy/Marine" banter. (Anyone remember the Jack Nicholson flick "The last detail"? Sailors and marines can have lots of fun together in social gathering at times.) It appeared Ian Martin did some serious research into what mission control or at least astronauts might say.\r\n\r\n- All the actors had an "old time" radio feel about them...for some reason their voices sounded as if they could have been heard on a play 40 years earlier. Can''t put my finger on it but it was good.\r\n\r\n- This sort of reminded me of an original Star Trek episode called "Arena"...where Captain Kirk met the lizard man.', '2013-03-24 23:43:11', 1, '3c7149ae75106dfb402d4b7f84dd826b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5119, '0048', 'episode', 'Drake', '', 'women''s lib was all over the place back then. most writers used a sledge hammer just like they did in this one.\r\nthe slang used in the show really date it. i was told in 9th grade good writers don''t use slang. i understand they were showing how hip they were by using it. i always cringe and hope i didn''t sound that foolish back then. the slang now-a-days has the same effect on me. bling bling. :roll:\r\nouter limits did a better job with this plot but the sky lab part made it more real.\r\nthe ESP waves the woman speaks of were also all over the place. star trek and IN SEARCH OF... always acted like it really existed. that makes the shows seem a bit childish to me now. i''m sure i ate it up at the time.', '2013-03-24 23:43:12', 1, '528cfcd78a9d031cc93aaea7fbd34c8d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5120, '0301', 'episode', 'Larry Hall', '', 'First, as evidenced by the post-show AIDS commercial, the program I have listed as a 1975 broadcast must have been a rebroadcast as I don''t think the disease we know as AIDS was given a name until the 1980''s. Further, the Volkswagen commercial notes a 1990 model car.\r\n\r\nThis play centers on a man who hears the calling of his youth. He begins to imagine life in the past and he longs for the music, culture, and simplicity of his glory days as a 19 year old. Unfortunately, people around him have moved on and are unable to imagine the time he envisions. His relationship with his wife has been strained for years and though she finally sees and hears people from earlier days, she is unwilling to go back in time.\r\n\r\nI thought this was a terrific selection. I listened to it late at night, when I usually fall asleep, but found I was mesmerized by this story. In many regards, I can relate to the main character because I visit my younger days everytime I spin up a CBSRMT program. The acting was excellent and though I suspect some reviewers will think the play moved too slowly, I liked the pace and felt it was necessary to provide us with the detail the show needed. Anecdotally, I''ve noticed that more of my male friends would go back to their high school days than would my female friends and this is certainly the case for my wife and me. As such, I certainly have an affinity for our main character. I rated this program as a 4/5 but my vote would actually be a 4.5/5 if half points were permitted by the polling system.', '2013-03-24 23:43:12', 1, 'bd4061b3d6973d14a6e70057dfcb48d7', '112.200.20.61'),
(5121, '0301', 'episode', 'Dennis Austria', '', 'I also think this is one of those programs (and there were SO many of them on the RMT) where at story\\''s end you could say \\"and the moral of the story is...\\"\r\n\r\nIf I were going to try I\\''d guess the moral of this story is...\\"The past is over and gone...live for the future\\". (Strangely, my own Mom told me just yesterday of some saying like \\"If you live in the past you\\''ll forget about the present\\", which would be equally applicable here.\r\n\r\nThe main character in the story is voiced by the talented Howard DaSilva, who (if a report I\\''ve read on the Web is correct) may have been one of the few if not only RMT players to have been at one time \\"blacklisted\\" as a communist. No matter his political beliefs he turns in a strong performance as a daydreaming executive of a company that\\''s in deep financial trouble. I forget the actress\\'' name who plays his wife but I always think she sounds like original Saturday Night Live alumni Jane Curtin...(it won\\''t be my first choice, but if I get the opportunity I\\''ll going to put as this as a dynamite CBS RMT play called \\"The house on Chimney Pot Lane\\", where this same Jane Curtin-sounding actress had a great set of roles). His wife is also an executive with their firm yet, unlike her husband, she sees both the gravity of their situation and a possible way out.\r\n\r\nFriends, I\\''ve been there where I was such a daydreamer I was blinded to reality. DaSilva\\''s character is there, unfortunately for him, and as a result his marriage isn\\''t in that good of a shape, either. He wants to restore the latter, however, and is convinced he can do so if he takes his wife away from the present and back to their college days when he was a happy, carefree, dashing young man. In fact, he\\''s able to do so himself, going back to a bar owned by a friend of his during the college days who was killed in World War II. When he goes to the bar it\\''s a lively happy place, filled with music, booze and good times, and it\\''s a great place for him to run away from his current troubles.\r\n\r\nProblem is, whenever he hires a taxi to take him there he has to put up with taxi drivers who raise their eyebrows at him because the building where the \\"bar\\" is an abandoned, broken, destined-for-demolition wreck of a structure. And the taxi drivers don\\''t know what he\\''s going through well enough to tell him: \\"Dude, all those happy people from your past you see in that bar? Today they\\''re all dead...\\"\r\n\r\nEXCELLENT choice for a show... I hope as many people as possible hear the program and live looking ahead of rather than behind them.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:55:28', 1, '683c96de53c18664f3bec3e95a3bf4c0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5122, '0301', 'episode', 'Danny K.', '', 'This was a well-written melodrama and you can never go wrong with Howard Dasilva. I did not know that he had been blacklisted.\r\n\r\nI think this episode is so appealing is because it appeals to something that is in all of us. It''s not hard to sympathize with teh guy who is sacrificing a bleak future for some time in a joyful past.\r\n\r\nI have listened to this episode before and enjoyed it as much the second time as I did the first.', '2013-03-24 23:43:14', 1, 'd1cd181489757bf4f4698d082e80cd6d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5123, '0301', 'episode', 'Len', '', 'I enjoyed this episode particularly for the lead actor who always does a fine job. (The story reminded me the Twilight Zone episode called "Static" in which an eldery man in a boarding house begins to hear old time radio programs on his radio and longs for the past. He can''t convince anyone he is actually hearing live broadcast of these long gone shows, not even his one-time fiancee who also lives in the boarding house. Even the music that is playing in the bar in in this CBSRMT episode is heard in that Twilight Zone episode. ) The ending of this story was definitley a downer but also inevitable I guess.', '2013-03-24 23:43:14', 1, '44db4c19f635e3f3d1612bca1911b3f9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5125, '0301', 'episode', 'Lance', '', 'This is a repeat broadcast from 1991 according to a Volkswagen commercial at the end, as well as a Tom Bodett/Motel 6 spot that wasn\\''t from 1975 - then an AIDS P.S.A.\r\n\r\nAwesome program! I like the concept behind this one. The acting was excellent. The story line was good. I was locked in from the beginning. I never lost interest at all.\r\n\r\nAs someone who likes old things and things from the past (as I assume most of us do) this was right on target. Really a great program with a sad ending but it made sense - as much as these things do, and there is a good lesson in it as well.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:55:39', 1, '08985fded1e0ea9cad4e668ceeeb3532', '112.200.20.61'),
(5127, '0301', 'episode', 'Fred', '', 'It was one I do not yet have.\r\n\r\nLet me begin by admitting that I am not a big Tammy Grimes fan. I also should acknowledge that I prefer episodes that contain more of an element of terror or at least suspense. “Tales of the macabreâ€ if you will.\r\n\r\nThat said, I enjoyed this episode. I think Howard Da Silva is one of the finest actors ever cast by Mr. Brown.\r\n\r\nEveryone who has ever experienced a professional set back can relate to Bill’s desire to go back to a happier time. A time when your whole life stretched before you. I found it appropriate that Zelda was able to see that the bar was not reality and that everyone there was dead. She had no desire to live in the past. Most of us have probably attended or will shortly attend our 20-year high school reunion. Having attended mine last fall, I can tell you that the sexes were divided by their topics of conversations. The women talked about their children, families and careers. They were very grounded in the here and now. We men obsessed over who scored which touchdown or sank a game winning foul shot. Stories of pranks and good times 20 years past dominated the male portion of the conversation.\r\n\r\nI feel that the message in the ending was-no matter how inviting the past may appear, if you try to live there the present will fall apart around you.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:55:49', 1, '3461a588a950bd6a4d53d336436a3002', '112.200.20.61'),
(5128, '0301', 'episode', 'Bruce', '', 'I\\''m glad you were able to get the program and it\\''s great to see your comments. I have to agree that I really like the stories of the macabre. That said, I also enjoyed this program because I could sure relate to enjoying moments from the past. I think most OTR listeners would say they enjoy the past but it\\''s critical to maintain a healthy balance. It\\''s perfectly healthy to enjoy the familiarity of the past, live for the day and look forward to the future.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:56:33', 1, 'ebe41ba07fa0bef343144b52fe95a79a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5129, '0301', 'episode', 'Jim Enobay', '', 'Come Back With Me\r\n7/2/1975\r\n\r\nA man overwhelmed with the pressures and cynicism of the present seeks out the comfort and safety of the past. While the neighbourhood of his youth has declined into a state of danger and disrepair, his mind recreates the people, places, and pleasures of the past. His wife worries about his ability to cope but accompanies him briefly on his journey into the past, and both reach their own conclusion about the future.\r\n\r\nI thought that Teri Keane gave a particularly strong performance as the beleagured wife.', '2013-03-24 23:43:17', 1, 'b0f2965bfbe0c143b8a7bfc5c4e56b6e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5130, '0301', 'episode', 'Lawrence', '', 'This is an interesting episode. The host (EG Marshall) seemed more philosophical than in other shows, and also more omniscient. The main character''s dementia is never really explained, other than unhappiness in the present. But I think that is a good thing, and one of the strengths of the series, that it left things hanging (and often troubling). Howard DaSilva was in a lot of episodes, at one point (around the Bicentennial) he was starring in shows and was also in some of the commercials broadcast around it! I was a bit confused by the AIDS commercial just before the epilogue, that puts this broadcast no earlier than the early ''eighties. At any rate, another good show.', '2013-03-24 23:43:17', 1, '17bb7e46e6b97b419387953c35d25381', '112.200.20.61'),
(5131, '0301', 'episode', 'Joey Dona', '', 'Any time I hear a show has been written by Sam Dann I know it will be a good one. The acting was great and it was not slow at all.\r\n\r\nGoing through tough business times, a man travels back to a nightclub of his youth. His old friends are there, the good times and music . This is also where he met his wife. Even though the building is&nbsp;condemned&nbsp;and there is no one there, he keeps going back because he can hear the music and see and interact with the people. He is reliving his youth and much happier times of his life. When he brings his wife there, she sees all of these people and tells him she wants to leave because she notices that all of these people that they are seeing are already dead.\r\nThe desire to relive the good, worry -free life of his past has a fatal result when the nightclub building is knocked down with him in it.\r\n\r\nI liked this show and the idea that if you live in the past you lose the present and the future. It\\''s something I try to remember every day of my life.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:56:41', 1, '106a75c9efaa38b65e58762031246c87', '112.200.20.61'),
(5132, '0301', 'episode', 'Mr. B.', '', 'a pretty good show over all. my tastes tend to be more on the horror side though.\r\n\r\nalthough this story has been done before this did keep my interest.\r\ngood acting. well written.', '2013-03-24 23:43:19', 1, 'd8a5414c9def9ea3cb4c60f869f3704c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5133, '0967', 'episode', 'Geron', '', 'I tried with this one. Really did. I kept an open mind and listened to it until the very end, but it just kept getting sillier and sillier. I did get a good laugh out of the plant that kept eating itself, though. :lol:\r\n\r\nProblem is, it''s obvious this story wasn''t supposed to be funny. (Unlike, say, "Garden of the Moon" with Kim Hunter, which, although suspenseful, was also a bit tongue-in-cheek; a sort of campy dark comedy. I enjoyed that one a great deal.) This "science fiction" tale sounded like it was written by someone who''d never actually read any real science fiction.\r\n\r\nIf this story had been stripped of its pseudo science fiction trappings and written instead as a sort of psychological fantasy, it might have worked a little better. As it was, the thing was just a mixed-up, dim-witted mess. I thought it was almost as bad as Elspeth Eric''s "Mind Over Matthew," At least "...Intrastar" had a shred of a plot, though. A silly plot, but a plot nonetheless.', '2013-03-24 23:43:19', 1, '71ec4557140a2c8df1187d77680ae42d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5134, '0967', 'episode', 'Avee', '', 'First of all, the commercials on this were great:\r\n\r\n1. How often did one get to hear Norman Rose advertising jewelry for sale at J.C. Penney? (He''s still my favorite RMT voice.)\r\n\r\n2. Did you hear the "Guess how many Massachussetts legislators have smoked pot" promo? Bet they wish they''d been on "Sierra Alpha 638" instead of this show. :lol:\r\n\r\n3. That CARE commercial about joining hands "For CHIIIIILLLDREEEEEEN" (not belittling the noble cause at all, but the howling voices of the female singers) was a real blast from the past I recall hearing over and over.\r\n\r\nThis episode could have had a bit stronger ending. It had promise, and the aforementioned Rose, Robert Dryden, Brynna Raeburn and Gordon Heath do good work...wish they''d had a tad more script to work with. Still, an interesting listen for a quiet afternoon.', '2013-03-24 23:43:20', 1, '9f31dda7554e879237a410e43711efb3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5136, '0967', 'episode', 'Donald Clarence', '', 'I enjoyed this episode, although it did not live up to what others told me about it.\r\n\r\nThe only thing I found silly about it was "Lord Z" name. Otherwise, I think it had a well developed strong character and a reasonably decent plot. I didn''t think the sci-fi element was central to anything, being peripheral at best.\r\n\r\nI gave it a 7 in my log and a 4 here.\r\n\r\nOne thing that hurt was I finally figured out that Bryna Raeburn is the voice of "Goldilocks" in those absolutely dreadful Diet 7Up commercials from 1974. It pains my ears to even think about them. ". . .this one is JUST RIGHT!"', '2013-03-24 23:43:21', 1, '40a147f57f994f6d2ccf4fda46824044', '112.200.20.61'),
(5137, '0967', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'I have to admit, I await the Sunday evening with giddy, schoolboy anticipation. Not being much of a TV watcher, the last time I had this kind of excitement over a program was back when the show St. Elsewhere was running on Wednesday nights. Boy, I liked that show!\r\n\r\nAnyhow, I saw the title of this episode and thought, "ahh. hmm. Intrastar. I bet it''s one of those out-of-body shows." I guess I was right.\r\n\r\nIt was enjoyable, although my audio file seemed awfully muffled in comparison to others. The show itself reminded me of an Ed Wood styled B-picture of the 50s genre. The characters were there, but for me just not all that alluring. I, too, found the self-eating plant to be funny!\r\n\r\nIn all, it was a fun listen and I''m ever grateful that this website and the show of the day inspires us all to tune in. Thanks!\r\n\r\nI''m giving this show a 3.5 stars.', '2013-06-19 23:05:51', 1, '5e68e10c78154332472c8f5b3e1fc2da', '112.200.20.61'),
(7919, '0038', 'episode', 'terence jones', 'terence.jones22@yahoo.com', 'this was a pretty good story!', '2014-11-25 06:31:55', 1, '7e5aeb2b2a48a01bc63897df7063872c', '205.185.236.96'),
(7934, '1139', 'episode', 'Ronnie Joe', '', 'I listened to CBSRMT from the mid 70''s to it went off the air in the 80s. It remains one of the bright sides of my life. E.G. Marshal was a great host and voice for the show. I just want to thank you for the opportunity to listen to this great radio show again. I an 61 years old and I listened to CBSRMT while working full time and going to college full time at the University of Texas.  I am retired from AT&T. it was a part of my life. Thank you again,', '2014-11-28 00:56:31', 1, '0b8e96bc49efa453976874f98e511acb', '64.136.211.54'),
(5139, '0967', 'episode', 'Gerard A.', '', 'cbsrmt doesn''t seem to do sci fi very well. OUT OF SIGHT is another example.\r\n\r\nthis show reminded me of a Star Trek episode where powerful beings are thought to be gods. i wonder if all radio sci fi ends up sounding like a B movie. X Minus One and Dimension X come to mind.\r\n\r\nreincarnation seems to be a common thread in quite a few rmt shows. i wonder if the writers were putting their own beliefs into the shows or just exploring new things. the idea of going to another planet to wait to be reassigned to a new body to come back to earth to do it all over again is a bit depressing to me. my friend Bob had a similar religious view. he used to think he would go through life supposedly learning the answers to three questions and when he died God whould ask the three questions. if he knew the answers he could go to heaven. if not, he had to go back to earth as someone else to learn the answers he missed .\r\n\r\nBob has since then been saved.\r\n\r\nback to the show. i found the love triangle too much. lord Z''s helper didn''t seem too bright. his plan wasn''t thought out too well. if this was how things really worked we''d be in a lot of trouble. it seems they can make a new god , or destroy one, any time they want to. it seemed a lot like the Greek gods. all very chaotic.\r\n\r\nhow old was the guy that was destroyed ? would his bones have turned to dust?\r\n\r\ni gave this show a 3. it was not one i''d listen to again but comparing it to other sci fi episodes it was average. BETWEEN THEESE WORLDS i thought was better.\r\nthe other type of episode rmt seems to fail at is the romantic triangle with- no- suspense kind. THREE WOMEN and GHOST AT THE GATE are good ( or bad ) examples of these.', '2013-03-24 23:43:23', 1, '743e0a1a689f109ddf3e3883cc3c6f73', '112.200.20.61'),
(5140, '0967', 'episode', 'Lorrie Jane A.', '', 'first, let me say my copy was a bit hard to hear... for some reason the story didn''t ''''grab'''' me, i pretty much lost interest in itBUT did listen all the way thru... i just thought the writing could have been better, to MAKE me want to find out what happens next kind of thing... i like the whole thing of reincarnation, that kind of story, but this didn''t do anything for me, although the actors always give it a good try !!...if i were a writer, i wouldn''t mix sci-fi with reincarnation as aplot .... later !!', '2013-03-24 23:43:23', 1, '9f9244e7d11e72416738cf2b1b830695', '112.200.20.61'),
(5141, '0967', 'episode', 'J. Byrd', '', 'Well it took half a dozen times to actually get all of the way through it (kept falling asleep even though the last few days I was way past the 1/2 way point in listening.\r\n\r\nI liked it alright and have a decent copy (not that I\\''d have a clue how to upload it but would try if someone wanted to walk me through). I had the commercials and couldn\\''t believe my ears on that one. I was trying to figure out if it was a joke but came to the conclusion that it probably wasn\\''t.\r\n\r\nBack to the show. It was definitely far out but that\\''s part of what CBSRMT is all about for me. It wasn\\''t my all time favorite (don\\''t have one yet) but it was interesting. Perhaps it\\''s my background in social work (which I\\''ve never practiced outside of earning the degree) where I worked with the mentally ill. These sort of fantasies were the sort of things *some* of my \\"clients\\" (during internships) thought were reality. They\\''d talk about stuff we couldn\\''t see, etc.\r\n\r\nThe one thing that had me really confused was \\"lord Z\\". I thought for sure it was a woman until they referred to it as a \\"he\\". LOL. It was definitely and unusual voice. I was also surprised that that lord Baltos was stupid enough to make the 2 return trips to earth knowing he was breaking the major rules that would end life as he knew it. One would *think* a \\"lord\\" would be a bit smarter.\r\n\r\nThanks for finally getting me to listen to this show. I\\''ve been meaning to for a long time. Now if I hurry I can catch up to this week\\''s show before the next one comes out.', '2013-03-24 23:43:24', 1, '6b8537cb462b7169415f4003e8d48f6a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5142, '0967', 'episode', 'Denny Perdue', '', 'I enjoyed reading your perspective on this program. I tend to go through life using my logic circuits so it''s very refreshing to hear the perspective of a person who''s trained from a social point of view.', '2013-03-24 23:43:24', 1, '3cba0ea2bc29e3ad17270985ab028a4f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5143, '0967', 'episode', 'Jasmin', '', 'I am listening to the show right now. It is a very poor quality recording that I have. Almost dificult to listen to. I wonder how many different recordings are out there and if ther is anything of higher quality available. I will attempt to muddle through here with the recording I have and post back later on my take.', '2013-03-24 23:43:25', 1, 'f7fdcbc02099ef8fc6bd200a462d1855', '112.200.20.61'),
(5144, '0191', 'episode', 'Linda', '', 'I thought this was a really good Christmas script with a clever concept---the magic Santa suit. I always like Howard da Silva, and rest of the adult cast was great.\r\n\r\nThe idea of casting a real child as Jennifer was a good instinct, I think. However, this is where the whole show falls apart. Since the entire production essentially rests on the shoulders of Jennifer Swallow, they needed a really perky, winning child actor who knew how to deliver her lines. The charm of the story lies in how well she can convince Howard da Silva''s character---most of the play consists of scenes between the two of them. Unfortunately, the kid they cast just didn''t make the grade. She spoke her lines in a sort of monotone which became very difficult to listen to after a very short time. Too bad, because the rest of it was really a nice little Christmas fable. Gave it a 2.', '2013-03-24 23:43:26', 1, 'b4e5f604d8caa0830530d2da60fa8581', '112.200.20.61'),
(5145, '0191', 'episode', 'Harry', '', 'I liked this episode. I listened to this one a couple of months ago and thought then that I should listen again just before Christmas. I do have to agree with Steve that the young girl that read her part was quite unemotinal, but I still liked the show.', '2013-03-27 15:15:56', 1, 'fce49ccadf242dba22ef9befa508b0b2', '112.200.20.61'),
(5146, '0191', 'episode', 'John Richard V.', '', 'I can''t help but think it would have been improved by someone like Sarah Jessica Parker reading the part, but I thought she was adequate.\r\n\r\nI loved the story and thought it was tasteful and poignant. I gave it a 4.', '2013-03-14 14:31:14', 1, 'bbbfa9add5e84c7336e5876d7d2be93f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5147, '0191', 'episode', 'Glenn', '', 'it looked like you either liked it or hated it. well maybe hate is too strong.\r\n\r\ni thought it was ok but not a KEEPER for me. i''ve only listened once , maybe if i listen again. maybe not. i figured it was a Christmas story but i was hoping for a Christmas Carol-like show.\r\n\r\ni''m slowly being turned off by child actors. no wonder it''s such a big deal when a good one comes along. Shirley Temple where are you when we need you?\r\n\r\nsorry if i come across as a scrooge.\r\n\r\nMERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!\r\n\r\nGOD bless us all , everyone.', '2013-03-14 14:31:18', 1, '3aa058f341d9c7404667e9a618aeb250', '112.200.20.61'),
(5148, '0191', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'First off, I don\\''t know if you all experienced the same audio problem as I did, but I almost gave up on this one within three minutes... it sounded like a 45rpm record played at 33rpms... slow mo!\r\n\r\nAll the voices were distorted and (I say this in my best Barry White voice) extremely low. The little girl sounded like a slow-witted young boy.\r\n\r\nI managed to ignore the audio problem of my file and listen through. I thought it was a great story and fairly well told. It was a bit fantastical, but I enjoy that kind of thing. I loved the whole .61¢ for the suit!\r\n\r\nMy only wish is that they hadn\\''t kept the whole thing going after Jasper died. It just sounded like filler to me and unnecessary, albeit a good tale.\r\n\r\nI give it a solid 4 based on story, concept, and production. Great choice for the time of year too! And if anyone is looking for a good Christmas movie to rent this year, the film FAMILY MAN with Nicolas Cage is a really terrific sleeper.\r\n\r\nBest wishes and have a very happy and safe holiday season!!!<br>', '2013-03-25 21:45:35', 1, 'ae39c5709c7d43b5a86c92802ec9b7c0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5149, '0191', 'episode', 'Jeremy Bushong', '', 'I just heard this for the first time two Fridays ago.\r\n\r\nIt''s funny, they could have gotten a child actor who still wouldn''t have sounded like a kid from semi-tough circumstances.\r\n\r\nAs it was, they got a girl who sounded authentically like she was from semi-tough circumstances yet didn''t really sound like a child actor.\r\n\r\nBut with da Silva, whose work I like more and more each time I hear it (and the irrepressible Ian Martin as Santa) it still worked for me. I liked the friendship that da Silva''s character eventually developed with both the girl and Santa.\r\n\r\nHave a blessed Christmas, everyone!', '2013-03-14 14:31:24', 1, '5798e7f31995de9d97cfe534058b3af3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5150, '0191', 'episode', 'B. Martin', '', 'First, I have to let everyone know that my copy of this program is flawed in that the recording is slowed and the voices are impacted. With that said, I just felt the child actress was annoying. I don''t know how much of this was related to the poor quality of my copy but I tend to believe she would have bothered me on the best of recordings. The story was good and I would a have rated this program very highly but it was hard to get over her obvious script reading and poor inflection (I cringed when she giggled with Jasper because it was so contrived).', '2013-03-24 23:43:27', 1, '88d5b4321c4714cff9059b2c11bca8ba', '112.200.20.61'),
(5152, '0191', 'episode', 'Rannie', '', 'I am catching up on the last couple of shows of the week because I''m trying to get back into the habit *and* they''re both shows I''ve wanted to listen to for some time but hadn''t.\r\n\r\nI enjoyed this show quite a bit. I had to quickly switch from the one in the set I have to a high quality one that someone from the cbs_rmt YahooGroup had posted last year because of weird skipping and jumping of the voices. It was segmented with weird gaps between the words as if two conversations were spliced together or something. Once I switched to the better version (whew!), I thought it was a nice story. I didn''t have problems with the little girl (although I''m very much *not* the critic when it comes to these things so it would be rare for me to pick out stuff that most of you found).\r\n\r\nI loved that the santa suit renter came down to just the price she needed as a kind gesture and then poof wasn''t really there when it was time to return the suit.\r\n\r\nI also love when a grump turns into a nice person again (or for the first time). It''s always nice to think of people making changes like that.\r\n\r\nAs far as their giggling, I always like to think of children as having a special way of reaching people who could use a laugh through their infectious laughter--even if it might be slightly obnoxious or even completely obnoxious. Part of the "magic" is in the actual moment including the facial expressions, body language and surrounding circumstances such as an "inside joke"--things that we''re not able to see with our eyes with a program like this. I guess I figure that sometimes people need to find the humor in things to feel better about life and it seemed to fit the situation here.', '2013-03-24 23:43:28', 1, '959d50cbcf154a6c5268fb47d480fec5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5153, '0144', 'episode', 'Andrew', '', 'What a terrific program! This play was stacked with interesting characters, dialogue and content. One hardened criminal drew our sympathy and another, less likeable criminal, garnered respect for being true to his word.\r\n\r\nOne great example of our authors subtle touch happened in the third act. Linda brings our main character his last meal of coffee and a rare hamburger... just as he likes them. A great job of forecasting that the grim reaper still had his number.\r\n\r\nA question: I know that daylight saving time was conceived in the 1700''s but was it in practice before the energy crisis of the 70''s? I ask because I wonder if this story''s terrific end was inspired by national/global issues that occurred when it was written.', '2013-03-24 23:43:28', 1, 'd6c93a07547b90eb4f526d0ad0cb15d6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5154, '0144', 'episode', 'Hubert W.', '', 'This episode was not my cup of tea. Only occasionally do I enjoy revenge curse stories and, even then, only when the curse is thrown by an innocent person who was wronged by someone greedy, crooked or evil (As in, say, The House of the Seven Gables---the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Not the RMT version, which alters the original story.) At least there''s a sense of justice involved. In Deadline for Death, our "protagonists" are both crooks, so I really can''t find myself caring too much about how the curse plays out. Neither one of the characters drew my sympathy, and certainly not my respect.\r\n\r\nAlso, this play has kind of a one-note plot. I mean, from the beginning we already know the curse came true. It''s being recounted by the two dead criminals. So the whole thing just becomes an end-game---listening to Sammy become more and more paranoid, tortured by Johnny''s ghost, until we find out how he ended up dying. (SPOILER ALERT) The one interesting little twist comes at the end of the second act, when Sammy''s girlfriend reveals that he''s lost his mind and has no sense of how much time has passed. It foreshadows the idea that his own guilt-feelings kill him.\r\n\r\nDespite the script, though, the acting and production values were good and the little plot twist mentioned above was interesting, so I give this one a 2.', '2013-03-14 14:32:37', 1, 'd573c7137deda81ef6873be51422b995', '112.200.20.61'),
(5155, '0144', 'episode', 'Donna', '', 'This sounds like a modern "The Tale Tell Heart". I enjoyed it but this type of plot is not my favorite.', '2013-03-14 14:32:43', 1, 'b68b86abe6155e98e4ea187115fcafa4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5156, '0144', 'episode', 'Jatt', '', 'Hey, very good point! I hadn''t thought of that, but it is something of a twist on "The Tell-Tale Heart" plot---being eaten up by one''s own guilt. (By the way, has anyone heard the CBC Nightfall version of "Tell-Tale Heart"? Omigosh! It is one of the creepiest radio dramas I''ve ever heard! And very true to the original. Well worth checking out if you haven''t heard it.)', '2013-03-14 14:32:46', 1, 'c84893da42bd57372f029af23275e34f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5158, '0144', 'episode', 'Michael', '', 'Yes, I have it. And I''m glad to share it, however I don''t currently have a Streamload account so I don''t have a way of getting it to you right now. I don''t know if there''s another way to send it to you online, but I should have an account within 2 or 3 weeks, so if no one else on Streamload ends up having it I can get it to you at that time. Quite a few of the CBC Nightfall shows are extremely creepy. Their version of "The Monkey''s Paw" is good too. Unlike RMT, though, their stories are strictly horror-oriented.', '2013-03-14 14:32:50', 1, 'b56c4a11095ad9fc222d9826ab7ce50f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5159, '0144', 'episode', 'Jercs Soltes', '', 'I really enjoyed this show and gave it a five!\r\n\r\nThe script built the tension nicely. Knowing the outcome does not necessarily spoil it. The character''s paranoia and fear keep you on edge.\r\n\r\nI didn''t see it as resembling the tell-tale heart. Our anti-hero didn''t have any feelings of guilt. Just fear.\r\n\r\nI''m not big on the suspense thriller, but this one is pretty good.', '2013-03-14 14:33:11', 1, '910b8d7091620770b513fc10236b6719', '112.200.20.61'),
(5175, '0696', 'episode', 'Leeanne', '', 'EXCELLENT! I really enjoyed this episode! Spooky and baffling. It had me guessing the whole time.<br><br>', '2013-03-31 14:05:27', 1, '58779daa32a78216d33e246b4f220b78', '112.200.20.61'),
(5176, '0696', 'episode', 'Harry', '', 'I liked this episode. I can fully understand how one can be completely disorented in the fog since we have had fog here for the last two weeks. It has not been very dense this year, but it does get depressing.', '2013-03-14 21:17:47', 1, 'b1b5aa218c1697f7937d70f6c54245ee', '112.200.20.61'),
(5177, '0696', 'episode', 'Jane S.', '', 'Hmmm. This is an interesting story to take apart. The title, the content and the conclusion are consistant: as a mystery (and particularily on radio) we too are in the fog here. Hearing is more relied upon than seeing. It doesn''t help our protagonist that he has to deal with altered perceptions due to weather conditions and a concealed murder while being "shell shocked." Our hero here is searching for reality testing in a difficult situation. He falls in love (at first sight in this fog, he must have been mighty close) and this both helps to ground him, because she is "so real" and get him into a predicament because she is soon to be a real corpse. We soon learn she has been bumping into others before, fog or no fog. What I found interesting is the conclusion''s left over mysteries. Why was the murderer not interested in framing O''Reilley? Is it because he is simply a decent fellow betrayed? Unlike many murderers, this one appears to have a conscious regarding all others outside of the victim. Who was Sprage? I like that these questions are not answered because it is also true to life, that is we often are left with less than all the answers, we must continue to search. In other words, we remain "In the Fog". Perhaps we mystery lovers are mystery lovers because we enjoy being in the fog while simultaneously working our way out of the fog (mystery, bafflement, what have you). Heck, our reviews of the weekly shows have some elements of this, no?\r\n\r\np.s. Our murderer here is about the calmest, most self possessing fellow I''ve come across. He is shell shocked, or was, and had his pretty lovely betray him, and as we know this leads to murder on the CBSRMT. He commits the murder, the ineluctable consequence of his wife''s perfidy, but then orchestrates circumstances afterward much as the detached observer he claims to be. Hmmm? More mystery. Things that went bump in the night were bumped off! I liked Sprage.', '2013-03-14 21:17:51', 1, 'e7091de0a2d48220984e190864626091', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5161, '0144', 'episode', 'Lucy', '', 'Couple of thoughts:\r\n\r\n- I''ve heard the RMT''s adaptation of "The telltale heart" and I can see some similarities. However, Arnold Moss (who besides acting in has penned a couple of interesting tales for the RMT) seemed inspired heavily by the old Twilight Zone with this one, off the top of my head by Judgment night (recurring judgment), A stop at Willougby (a guy playing mind games with himself) and Dead man''s shoes (A gangster living in fear of his life due to a partner he was responsible for killing and who promised to kill him in return).\r\n\r\n- This one was TWZ cool, not as much for the plot as for the execution of it. (No pun intended). The music was all right, but the sound effects were bowling pin hitting, hoodlum-frisking, mirror breaking cool, IMO.\r\n\r\n- This was a role that in later years might have gone to an actor like Larry Haines. Himan Brown or whomever was casting director made a better choice: Joe Julian, a blue collar radio guy (you Ohio RMTers, he was a former announcer at WLW-AM in Cincinnati) who sounded like he was Sammy Rogers. Julian and Michael Tolin were made for each other in this play. (Julian didn''t do much at the RMT, but he was the gruff sounding yet kindly Uncle Pietro ("That''s ''Pete'' kid, and don''t you forget it!") in "The horror within", and also acted in "Hurricane" and "You only die once".)\r\n\r\n- How many RMTs do we get to have a cast of characters (heard or not) named Johnny, Sammy, Benny, Tommy, Vinnie, Joey, Luigi and Little Red Mike?', '2013-03-14 14:33:24', 1, '2618f78d73554823cdb7b3ad40913000', '112.200.20.61'),
(5162, '0144', 'episode', 'Jadelson', '', 'even tho i did know where this was going to end up i enjoyed it. i especially liked the twist when we find out hoe much time has actually passed. i liked the broken mirror scene. my favorite character was the little red guy. slightly damon runnion-like.\r\n\r\ni thought for a short time that the girlfriend might end up killing the guy because of the way he treated her.\r\nsometimes i pick the least likly suspect for a crime trying to out smart the cbsrmt writers.\r\ni gave it a 4.', '2013-03-14 14:33:28', 1, '3153f22ca1bb75ae1ef791082c28311e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5163, '0144', 'episode', 'Rayvine', '', 'Good enertainment...the power of the conscious, or at least a guilty conscious? The name Johnny Promise and the acting of Joseph Julian make for a unique sounding episode. The conclusion was inevitable. It reminds me of a terrific Cornell Woolrich novel "Night has a thousand eyes", where a similar natural irony does in our protgonist Baddie.', '2013-03-14 14:33:31', 1, '5a7f1f3679461192c2bb14442f56ca7b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5164, '0022', 'episode', 'Sharon', '', 'Gang,\r\n\r\nThis is probably the last time I''ll request a "double header". However, these are two of my all time favorite shows on the RMT, and when I listened to them again I had to request these two because:\r\n\r\n- They''re both written by Ian Martin.\r\n- He plays, in both episodes, a kindly but slightly befuddled doctor.\r\n- There are vampires in both, but they''re not the "Count Dracula" stereotype.\r\n- In fact, one could say the concept of "applied vampirism" is in play. Someone is either intentionally or untentionally getting something of benefit besides just staying alive.\r\n- The "protagonist" has bad things happen to his family.\r\n- In both episodes, the one we come to view as the protagonist decides he has to...well, I''ll let you listen.\r\n\r\nTwo notes:\r\n\r\n- John Beal, the "Time and again" lead, was once thought to be the next Jimmy Stewart. I''ve yet to hear him turn in a bad performance on the RMT, even when he''s saddled with a not ideal script.\r\n- I always compliment the RMT music. Listen to the music sequence immediately after his wife has died, when he''s getting ready to leave his doctor''s office. That segment there (to E.G.''s outro of the segment) was, IMO, an example of the RMT at its finest.', '2013-03-24 23:43:38', 1, 'd370e56ea4fa665665497bd24b50b516', '112.200.20.61'),
(5165, '0022', 'episode', 'Nate Panambers', '', 'It must have been early hits like this one, along with \\"The Chinaman Button\\", \\"Lost Dog\\", and \\"Out of Sight\\" (Next week\\''s selection) that attracted an early fan base.\r\n\r\nI love the haunted timepiece stories. I always wondered if the clock in this one might have been made by the same clockmaker as the clock in \\"Hickory, Dickory, Doom\\".\r\n\r\nThe music is great in this one. I should more carefully analyze music in my reviews since it does a great deal to establish mood.\r\n\r\nAn excellent selection. I really enjoyed hearing this one again.', '2013-03-14 14:34:32', 1, '343082f57d91a77158b061281e43a44c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5166, '0022', 'episode', 'Chuck', '', 'Looks like we have two shows of the week... this morning listened to both and the subject is Vampyres. This one would be a clock that kills via what I would call blood proxy. Changing blood to water or something else either way sucking the life out of the blood from a distance eventually killing the donor. Of course what would one do with that extra thirteenth hour alone, I think we all strive for that extra hour in the day to do an almost forgotten project or I guess alone time is good. I give this one a strong 3. I am always a sucker for a good clock story, dang where did I put my copy of A Clockwork Orange.', '2013-03-14 14:34:37', 1, '9a919ce2c8a94ba2278ec591c4696d83', '112.200.20.61'),
(5167, '0022', 'episode', 'Frankie', '', 'The show was good but not one of my favorites.\r\n\r\nI guess I had a hard time with this story because of the protagonists relationships. The protagonists clearly has a bad relationship with his mother-in-law as demonstrated by their outward hatred of one another. He also doesn''t seem to have much of a relationship with his wife who is emotionally distant at best. When his wife dies under mysterious circumstances he doesn''t seem very distraught. In fact he is so obsessed with the clock that the passing of his wife doesn''t seem very important at all. Yet when his mother-in-law succumbs and he finds out about the other victims, he comes to the conclusion that the clock must be silenced. Given his obsession with the clock and his lack of feeling toward the victims (particularly his wife and mother-in-law) I had a hard time identifying with his decision at the end.\r\n\r\nI think this story could have been made a lot stronger if the mother-in-law had been "bitten" by the clock first. An escalation of his concern over what was happening would also have made the ending more plausible. Finally, if he had a strong loving relationship with his wife we might have better understood his decision at the end and would have felt more compassion for his predicament.\r\n\r\n\r\nHaving said that, I always enjoy the special effects and found them to be very compelling in this episode.\r\n\r\nOn to the second episode...', '2013-03-14 14:34:42', 1, 'c4748375527b613c497735bffc285e8e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5168, '0022', 'episode', 'Miles', '', 'I reviewed this in my listening log and gave it a perfect score - one of my favourite episodes.\r\n\r\nWhat I found compelling about this episode was the exploration of ones own moral limits. What would you do to be able to have those extra hours every day?\r\n\r\nVery similar notion to The Chinaman Button (Episode 15, January 20, 1974) which aired exactly a week earlier - would you cause the death of an unknown person to achieve your own goals?\r\n\r\nHow will we be affected once we have made that decision.\r\n\r\ngood pick!', '2013-03-14 14:34:45', 1, '9093f9bbd9c8aa57be62237ed16f5915', '112.200.20.61'),
(5169, '0022', 'episode', 'Johann', '', 'Took me a while but I have caught on to the double-show... In this one the clock-maker Ethan actually refers to "the mechanical vampire." Didn''t entirely grasp the significance of the "perpetual motion machine" he keeps referring to, but it does fit into the overall concept. Of the two shows this week I preferred this one slightly over the other. At the beginning the idea of finding the testament at a curio shop reminded me of Hickory Dickory Doom. I haven''t heard too many of the really early shows, they definitely have a different "look" to them (more polished maybe, and the music tends to be more prominent, not just as emphasis). And EG Marshall sounds more like Raymond (the "horror host" of Inner Sanctum in the 40''s from which his narrator was derived, along with the squeaking door) than in later seasons, especially the way he says "pleasant ... dreams?". I will definitely check out some more of the 1974 shows.', '2013-03-14 14:34:49', 1, 'c907659784febb44b815f66d5d1c820c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5170, '0022', 'episode', 'Alex', '', 'This is one of those episodes that I can listen to over and over. I like the use of the narration to tell the story and to give us a sense of how the main character is reacting internally to all that is going on.\r\n\r\nThe one thing in the episode I find a little lame is the idea that the main character is obsessed with developing a perpetual motion machine and so he loves having an extra hour a day to work on it. WHY he is so set on developing such a thing is never explained. It just seems like a weird plot detail that never goes anywhere (other than it fits with the "time" theme of the episode.)\r\n\r\nI like the sound effect that is used when the clock is activated. It''s perfect.\r\n\r\nThis episode has always reminded me of "Little Shop of Horrors" since it too tells a story of a shopkeeper who keeps around a seemingly harmless object (a plant) that feeds on the blood of others and in return gives the shopkeeper what he has always dreamed of.', '2013-03-14 14:34:52', 1, '786405ce2b7aca21a7444045a0b166b1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5171, '0022', 'episode', 'Wences', '', 'The clock in this episode is certainly sinister and our main character sure seems to enjoy the extra time he gains each day. Everything comes at a price and the clock exacts a rather hefty fee.<br><br>', '2013-03-14 23:09:50', 1, '6dd10f7a14c2a4371e7ed09c53a73a8e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5172, '0022', 'episode', 'Grace', '', 'i enjoyed this one and was glued to it til the end.\r\ni''ve seen several shows lately where the main character tells his story in a confession.\r\ni don''t think i''d be tempted by the extra 2 hours a day even if nobody had to die for them.\r\nthe clock maker had no redeeming qualities. he was selfish. at first i thought his mother-in-law was the bad guy ,even the doctor didn''t like her. later i realized the guy was a jerk.\r\nthe twilight zone version of this was funnier but this show was anything but funny.\r\ni gave it a 5.', '2013-03-14 14:34:58', 1, 'a8b07e69f77582482d60571bad0ee057', '112.200.20.61'),
(5173, '0022', 'episode', 'Patti', '', 'Only behind "The Hand" as the best I''ve heard so far. Creepy. Suspenseful....and a nice tough of revenge on the sister.', '2013-03-24 23:43:39', 1, '9bb69141370e9d33a59dbc94b7c01f14', '112.200.20.61'),
(5174, '1133', 'episode', 'Hayley', 'surra scopcis', 'Another weird tale from Elspeth Eric. ', '2013-03-14 14:35:02', 1, 'd133f5c83a2d1cec596edbac033d4493', '216.180.167.121'),
(5178, '0696', 'episode', 'Benjie F.', '', 'I thought the central character was exceptionally well developed. The \\"shell shock\\" instantly makes him sympathetic. His desire to help the woman despite his own building panic makes him admirable.\r\n\r\nThe elusive Dr. Sprague was well played by Griffis and I liked the way he just disappeared in the fog.\r\n\r\nThe fog was a nice setting, adding a gothic sense of eeriness to the play.\r\n\r\nI gave it a 4.\r\n\r\nThanks for a great selection.', '2013-03-14 21:17:53', 1, 'a680775319f1e7282d043453dc95e174', '112.200.20.61'),
(5179, '0696', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'There are so many good shows, yet so many \\"not so good\\" shows, too.\r\n\r\nThis one, as I said was great because I lived in that area of Boston for awhile. It felt right at home. The only thing missing was the dreadful accent (which I shed many years ago! whew!), \\"I pahked my cah in Hahvahd Squayah.\\"\r\n\r\nAs I mentioned in a post for The Horla, subjects that deal with mental stability always intrigue me and frighten me. The way the main character dealt with his \\"condition\\" in the foggy situation was uplifting. I kept waiting for him to freak or something, but he handled everything rationally and calmly.\r\n\r\nI gave it a 5 because it is one of the few episodes that kept me thinking about it after hearing it, and one of the few that I\\''ve listened to twice.<br>', '2013-03-31 14:02:39', 1, 'd31bc09d73c84b2fd8a75c7d2cd2ed04', '112.200.20.61'),
(5180, '0696', 'episode', 'Hank', '', 'This was a great program and I think the story was enhanced for me because I recognized several of the locations from my past travels to Boston. The author did a fine job of using Boston as a setting and it occurred to me that other authors have gone to great lengths to create entirely fictious settings. Consider another terrific program we reviewed, "A Holiday Visit", which was set in Runyanville, OH. I recall looking for this location on a map only to find that it doesn''t exist.\r\n\r\nI''ve never experienced a Boston fog but my imagination was certainly piqued when the victim of our story let out her blood curdling scream. This was a scream for the ages and I have to say, I haven''t heard a more realistic presentation on any radio program.&nbsp;<br><br>', '2015-01-06 16:18:32', 1, '3e5916693f1f8ce333cb22f299733b03', '112.200.20.61'),
(5692, '0330', 'episode', 'Mike in Grand Rapids', 'incident57@hotmail.com', 'Anyone else notice "Mary Richards" is the name of the nanny? Same as a popular early 70''s sitcom lead...\r\n', '2013-04-01 14:22:50', 1, 'cae00fc1dae1fe10c6948ad90577d23e', '144.160.5.25'),
(5187, '0154', 'episode', 'Steve', '', 'What with all the sweating and swearing, I sure hope your attic floor turned out well. Glad you enjoyed the show! (I really like that first five minutes too.)', '2013-03-27 15:02:16', 1, '44ec0fa70834b223189035c92d192e10', '112.200.20.61'),
(5182, '0696', 'episode', 'Kriston L.', '', 'Runyanville, OH. I recall looking for this location on a map only to find that it doesn''t exist.\r\n\r\nAs I recall from the description they gave of its location, I envisioned it being somewhere near where Bowling Green, Ohio is located.', '2013-03-14 21:18:05', 1, 'e148c5c6fb225fd464cf9490bdbf7a2a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5183, '0696', 'episode', 'Antonel Ross', '', 'good one,\r\ni enjoyed the setting in the fog, the waterfront and the early 1900\\''s time frame. nothing good ever comes from the fog. it reminds me of turn of the century london and jack the ripper.\r\nit\\''s interesting, last week i listened to a book on tape . it was TO HELL AND BACK by Audy Murphy. he describes several of his comrads suffering from shell shock. they seemed normal until the enemy artillery started falling. one guy was sent back to the aid station several times but kept coming back to the front line out of sense of duty. as soon as the shelling started he freaked out . i wonder what happened to those guys when they got home.\r\nback to the fog. i was completely spellbound . i couldn\\''t figure out what had happened or why. i couldn\\''t believe our hero could have done it. i hoped not anyway. when i heard the real murderer\\''s story i jumped at it. i knew he had done it. i wasn\\''t sure if the killer was going to try to frame our hero . i was torn. it sure would have added to the plot but i didn\\''t want our guy to go through any more bad stuff.\r\nthe ending wasn\\''t a surprise to me but i enjoyed the story very much. i gave it a 4.\r\nhey i just realised the actors didn\\''t have boston accents! i wonder if that would have made it better or worse?', '2013-03-14 21:18:08', 1, 'a0972044826ad3faa6987db48abf3b14', '112.200.20.61'),
(5184, '0154', 'episode', 'Steve', '', 'Terrific program. The characters were extremely well developed and the program was compelling. My only complaint stems from my opinion that the end was far too predictable. Our villian was the type I love to hate...smart, crafty, devious and ruthless....but he made a mistake that cost him. Mercedes McCambridge was terrific as our heroine and the warble to her voice added to the tension.\r\nOne side note I''d like to offer: After the program was over, I noticed that we weren''t introduced to any sort of policeman or detective in this play. I applaud the author because too often these characters steal time from the development of other characters. Our villian''s brother could have been replaced with a detective but I definitely like the choice of a family member as our hero.\r\nGreat choice', '2013-03-14 21:18:13', 1, 'a9826975e426156b5fdb3d9d441e2db1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5185, '0154', 'episode', 'Raymond D.', '', 'Hey, glad you liked it! I really enjoy this episode. I agree with you that the ending is a bit predictable, and, after a few listens, I also wonder why the imaginative Nikki doesn''t just tape record Guy''s confessions early on. In addition, I can believe he killed the alchoholic wife using the upped dosage of sleeping pills, but I don''t quite buy that Nikki''s sister would just throw herself out the window (mainly because I have a fear of heights myself! :shock: )\r\n\r\nBut an airtight plot is not what I listen to this one for---as you mentioned, it''s the strong characterization and acting. I love this story because of its wonderful, almost soap-opera like, characterizations. The villain is such an oily, arrogant jerk, you just hate his guts. The entire cast is perfect. McCambridge is always a special favorite of mine. So deliciously melodramatic, and what a voice! I love when she says to Guy, "You are EVIL, you''re a DEVIL!!" Despite the predictability of the ending, you hate Guy so much it''s still very satisfying to hear them trap him.\r\n\r\nAlso, it''s a nice lean, economically written story with just 3 characters. (I always prefer the ones with fewer characters.) And I like the fact that they launch right into the meat of the story first thing, right at the sister''s funeral. This one is extremely engaging and a lot of fun.', '2013-03-14 21:18:14', 1, '8c64fd9dd6de029e50a099d9a2477622', '112.200.20.61'),
(5186, '0154', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'I listened to this one installing a floor in my attic. It was great because the laborious task of cutting, fitting, nailing, swearing, and sweating was sidelined by my focus on the show. hehe\r\n\r\nI really enjoyed this one. It may have been somewhat predictable, but in like the old Columbo shows, you often knew what was coming yet the fun was in seeing how it would all play out to catch the \\"bad guy.\\"\r\n\r\nI have to comment that the first five minutes of the show were really well done (the whole scene in the funeral parlour). The actors gave excellent illusion to being in front of the dead sister. The mental image created was nicely done.\r\n\r\nThanks and happy days ahead!', '2013-06-19 23:06:13', 1, '3fc513337974eee1343d47b7340decbc', '112.200.20.61'),
(5188, '0154', 'episode', 'Nate Panambers', '', 'I gave it a 4.\r\n\r\nThe anti-hero was wonderfully written and developed. He was arrogant enough to be unlikeable, but was never a caricature. MCambridge turned in a great performance, as always.\r\n\r\nI liked the story, the script, and the acting. If all those elements are there, it''s a great show! This was a great one.', '2013-03-14 23:04:35', 1, 'e6d5ece9c7a05055cdd3fa9565e686fb', '112.200.20.61'),
(5189, '0154', 'episode', 'Brian Pontillas', '', 'I think you put your finger on the most important thing that makes this episode work so well---the fact that Guy is never a caricature. I hadn\\''t really thought specifically about it before. He\\''s believable, despite being so over-the-top arrogant, so, as an audience, we can\\''t help but identify with Nikki. You just gotta hate the guy.', '2013-03-14 23:04:50', 1, 'adb44da1ce51ade70474b1daa1e94830', '112.200.20.61'),
(5190, '0154', 'episode', 'Norbert', '', 'Happy Birthday, Steve!\r\n\r\nThis show kept me on the edge just waiting and trying to figure out how that evil Guy was going to be caught. My mind was also busy trying to guess how he got his victims to kill themselves (had a quick flashback to the one where the Nazi prison camp official was saying he never killed anyone, they killed themselves). They did a great job making us hate Guy (both setting him up with a good script and his acting).\r\n\r\nReally enjoyed the show and a new record for me lately, heard the show in one sitting. LOL', '2013-03-14 23:04:40', 1, '276340467b54e69c665e2d666ae88151', '112.200.20.61'),
(5246, '0649', 'episode', 'Hank', '', 'I listened to Eric''s adaptation of Shelley''s "The Transformation" before I did any sort of rating.\r\n\r\nHowever, in the plot summary, I referred to it as a "Kafkaesque tale of lost love and redemption." I''ve listened to about 450 episodes, so it''s hard to remember much about that particular one, but I must have liked it.', '2013-03-14 23:15:20', 1, '41743d07f46aaa0e63fade6996be5249', '112.200.20.61'),
(5192, '1096', 'episode', 'Hammond', '', 'Ladies and gentlemen,\r\n\r\nWe''ve talked before about the inspiration for certain episodes, and also the similarities between The Twilight Zone and the RMT, both being in the CBS stable.\r\n\r\nI''m certain that this particular episode was inspired by what some have written is one of the better episodes of TWZ, penned by Rod Serling himself, called "The lonely". It''s told, however, as though the way events unfolded and the circumstances in which they occured were reversed, with an RMT twist at the end, of course.\r\n\r\nThe woman above in the TWZ episode was named "Alicia" (the actress was Jean Marsh, pictured with the fine character actor Jack Warden as he was readying to hit her with a shovel), while the woman Marian Seldes plays in this RMT episode is named "Amelia".\r\n\r\nMaybe you''ll think I''ve got ElspethEricitis (though this episode was penned by Henry Schlesser) but...this show was the second most haunting one to me after "Star Sapphire". At least no children were harmed in this episode - then again, it depends on the definition of "children". It''s one I found myself wanting to listen to again to pick up script details, and I also think some of Ms. Seldes'' most powerful lines are when she doesn''t say a word...', '2013-03-14 23:04:53', 1, 'caa168599d3d1a1d750f6b6392939b0c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5193, '1096', 'episode', 'Elliot', '', 'I have not listened to the episode yet, but will do so post-haste. I only write this in advance because I was so amazed and delighted to see the photo of Jean Marsh. I had no idea she\\''d done American TV shows so early on, especially a classic like Twilight Zone. I remember her fondly, of course, as Rose the maid on \\"Upstairs, Downstairs.\\" (I believe she wrote and produced at least some of that series, if not all of it.) She also played the evil Queen Bavmorda to perfection in Ron Howard\\''s fantasy film \\"Willow\\" many years later. Both Jean and Marion Seldes are very similar types of actress and two of my favorites. I\\''m anxious to hear this episode!', '2013-03-14 23:04:59', 1, '234aaad8625b46215b2a8b2cfe7f4e30', '112.200.20.61'),
(5194, '1096', 'episode', 'Brian Pontillas', '', 'Well, I listened to the RMT episode, then I read the Twilight Zone script.\r\n\r\nI have to say that, although they both involve female robots, the two stories are as different as day and night. The Lonely is a truly beautiful, sad, and compelling humanist tale that broke my heart. (I must admit to being choked up just reading it.) Its themes are concerned with loneliness, kindness, love, and, ultimately, loss. Life Blood, on the other hand, is about revenge, retribution, and deciet. I felt it \r\n\r\nto be very hollow, empty. In The Lonely, the robot technology serves to make a person''s life better, more bearable, less lonely----Alicia becomes more than a mere machine, so her loss at the end of the story is truly cathartic. In Life Blood the robot is designed solely to ruin a person and never becomes anything more than an object. I much prefer the former.\r\n\r\nI would have given Life Blood a 2, but I''m so happy to have been introduced to The Lonely (a Twilight Zone I''ve never seen before) that I''m giving it a 3 instead. Thanks, Tex, for the extra effort you went to, providing the Twilight Zone info and link. I''m grateful for having been introduced to such a fine story, even if it didn''t turn out to be the show episode.', '2013-03-14 23:05:04', 1, '2b682202ac39c80b6a7b57651190f558', '112.200.20.61'),
(5195, '1096', 'episode', 'Roland Abot', '', 'This was a very enjoyable episode. I enjoy sci-fi a lot, but this one nicely brought the whole "robot" theme away from computers and space ships and put it nicely into everyday life. It was nice to accept her role as a robot without all the runaround of how she looked, acted, etc. But I did have a question and a couple of comments on the episode as it relates to the genre of "robots":\r\n\r\nFirst off, does anyone know if the voice of Gerald, the friend, is played by Ed Flanders? He''s perhaps my favorite actor and the voice is astonishingly similar to his, so it wouldn''t surprise me.\r\n\r\nSecond, this is not the most original concept. It immediately reminded me of a Star Trek episode called, Requiem For Methuselah (Feb 14, 1969) written by Jerome Bixby, in which the gang is on a mission to find an antidote from a man named Flint. They arrive at his planet and meet his daughter, who eventually, Kirk begins to fall for. Of course, we find out later that she is indeed Flint''s "creation" and this causes a caustic struggle between Kirk and Flint over the girl''s affections.\r\n\r\nStar Trek: The Next Generation''s character of Data is likely inspired by this kind of story as well.\r\n\r\nAlso, Isaac Asimov''s book called I, ROBOT (1950) laid the foundation from which sci-fi writer''s used as a guide in creating stories about robots. He introduced the famous, THREE FAMOUS LAWS OF ROBOTS:\r\n\r\n1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm;\r\n2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law;\r\n3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the first two Laws.\r\n\r\nIt seems that the writer of LIFE BLOOD may or may not have been aware of these "laws." I did wonder why she didn''t defend herself against the fatal attack at the end... hmmm...\r\n\r\n(Further discussion on this topic might be better suited in the "Off the Air" room)\r\n\r\nAnyhow, thanks for another wonderful episode!! I give it a 4.3 overall.\r\n\r\nbest wishes,', '2013-03-14 23:05:07', 1, '990ab55209fd957af217a5ba1a46864e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5196, '1096', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', '\\"Only by pride cometh contention.\\" - Proverbs 13:10\r\n\r\n\\"Come on and be my party doll...come on and be my party doll...\\" - \\"Party doll\\", performed by Buddy Holly\r\n\r\nThe \\"Gerald\\" character was played by Gordon Gould. (Not to be confused with the man of the same name who apparently invented the LASER.) Gould was often a \\"second banana\\" character who was with the RMT from its first year (I heard him as a doctor in \\"Wave of terror\\" from 1974) to its last (he was co-lead character with Norman Rose in the very sullen \\"Sand Castles\\" (by Elspeth Eric) in 1982). In a similar role like this one, he played the recalcitrant scientist who helped Nat Polen find a deadly, flawed invisibility formula in the RMT\\''s \\"I thought I saw a shadow.\\"\r\n\r\nAs for the \\"I, robot\\" rules, that\\''s fascinating. The only problem was, Amelia was essentially an extension of her \\"uncle\\", Dr. Arthur Moore, who was playing by HIS own rule rather than Asimov\\''s, and that rule was:\r\n\r\n\\"You (Amelia) will do what I want, when I want it, and HOW I want it.\\" He was a very prideful man.\r\n\r\nSteve, I think we\\''re alike in how we see things...I said that this and \\"Star Sapphire\\" haunted me the most of all the RMT episodes, and they both did leave somewhat a bitter taste in my mouth (and you\\''ve pretty much agreed with me on the latter point).\r\n\r\nWith \\"Sapphire\\" the reason was obvious: the hints, in whatever form, of child abuse, and to a lesser extent of a husband who was ready to kill his wife. (Both sins were intertwined.) With \\"Life Blood\\" (which my then 11-year-old daughter tipped me off to) I had to listen to this a few times to get a clearer picture of why I was bothered.\r\n\r\nRespectfully said, in my reply above I said \\"Life Blood\\" was inspired by the TWZ \\"The Lonely\\" but was essentially reversed. (When you get to watch it you\\''ll see what I mean. I can still remember Jack Warden\\''s character, a convicted murderer, imploring his friend: \\"It was self defense\\"...and I believed him. And this was a tremendous TWZ episode. You felt for both Warden\\''s and Jean Marsh\\''s characters.\r\n\r\nIn the end, the only sympathetic character in \\"Life Blood\\" seems to be Gordon Gould\\''s Gerald, but...\r\n\r\n- Note how Amelia, in one dinner outing with Ralph Bell\\''s character, almost breaks down into tears (effectively almost humanizing her) when he says one particular thing. Note how he in turn almost breaks into laughter. Who is the emotionless, robotic one there? Up to that point, he seemed to show about as much emotion as her, and it was telling that his happiest moments were when she seemed to be the most hurt.\r\n\r\n- Note how Dr. Arthur Moore (in conjunction with thoughts above) says Amelia\\''s purpose is \\"to please men\\" (Precisely what \\"The Lonely\\''s\\" \\"Alicia\\" was apparently created to do). Note how even when she\\''s not doing something good, (as near story\\''s end) she\\''s STILL trying to please any man who asks her.\r\n\r\n- I also got to thinking back of the times how, when I was young, filled with hormones, unmarried and quite foolish, I would have LOVED to have hooked up with Amelia.\r\n\r\n- Note, last of all, how quiet Amelia is in her final moments on the show. Then I realized...that\\''s exactly how quiet she was when Dr. Moore was showing Dr. Gerald the very thing which gave this RMT show its title.\r\n\r\n(BTW, here are shots (no pun intended) of \\"Alicia\\''s\\" final moments in \\"The Lonely\\", where as I recall she was as quiet as \\"Amelia\\"):\r\n\r\n\r\nI personally don\\''t think in our lifetimes (or ever) we\\''ll ever have an Alicia, or an Amelia. I think women, and humans, are just too complex of God\\''s creations to be duplicated.\r\n\r\nBut even though I can\\''t put it into words, yet, Steve, I think at the bottom of this what really got me was summarized by Gerald, when he was trying to calm Ralph Bell\\''s character after the latter man was exploding into violent rage. \\"Don\\''t get mad at her, she\\''s just a robot.\\" It was like when one sees someone about to fly into similar rage at a child or (no similar value intended) a pet when they\\''ve accidentally spilled something, wet on something, or whatever. You know the child or animal just made an innocent mistake but they\\''re about to face some overly harsh wrath because of it.\r\n\r\nThen again...she did indeed start \\"dating other men\\", according to Gerald.\r\n\r\nMore directly, Amelia seemed virtuous, but I tend to think, according to the script, that she did indeed end up spending some time alone with Bell\\''s lecherous character at his friend\\''s apartment after he gave her the ring she wanted. (And either she gave in to him only up to a point before their marriage, or she was one SERIOUSLY lifelike woman. Hmmmm...)\r\n\r\nSorry for the long response, Steve. I think the \\"rage\\" paragraph above is really what ended up haunting me on this. That, and the fact that (according to this) there was so much promise in the creation of Amelia, but her creator just wasted it on his own prideful ambitions. She was, in the end, still just a pawn caught up between two prideful men, one lecherous and one vengeful. And while she did some things that weren\\''t good, one wonders whether she had any more capability to judge and choose right and wrong that the machines we\\''re typing on to post messages on this forum.\r\n\r\nBTW, John Beal was cool...<br>', '2013-03-27 15:27:51', 1, '8c49348fb65133fc84dc91f123aee579', '112.200.20.61'),
(5685, '0575', 'episode', 'Charles', 'carterchas@yahoo.com', 'I remember hearing this on its first run, and the that was the first time I had heard "Mystery Theatre".    I was 10 years old.  Our TV wasn''t functional, then, so I listened as often as I could after that (which was on Friday and Saturdays only because Mystery Theater came on around 10 p.m. CST around then, and I wasn''t allowed to stay up late on weeknights).        \r\n', '2013-03-29 14:15:48', 1, '9be8fd78940b2604af7d3d4b7c4e7a75', '98.199.95.65'),
(5197, '1096', 'episode', 'Robemar', '', 'Alrighty. I''ve been away for awhile, stressed and busy with he demands of life. I''ve missed listening to OTR and CBSRMT quite a bit and have prescribed for myself a weekly dose of the Show of the Week to help out. I anticipated the selection since last night, worked today and eagerly found the choosen show. Upon listening I was immediately reminded of a Star Trek episode, "Requiem for Methuselah" which has a love struck Kirk fighting over a complex, multitalented, kind, intellegent and beautiful woman, who unfortunetly turns out to be a robot. (Come now, who could blame him!) Well, the similarities soon end here. Our woman, Amelia, in " Life Blood", subtly and not so mechanically played by Marian Seldes is more programable than Kirk''s Rayna. Rayna, aside from the spare parts, was too human. Amelia is pure input! Thus, her programming reflects the mind, and more importantly the heart of her creator, Arthur Moore ( John Beale). What is programmed is carried out, and Moore wishes to avenge his ego against an offending fellow scientist who happens to also be a womanizer, Harry Burton played by the almost always wonderful Ralph Bell. In fact, Moore is so obsessed that he creates this robot for the sole purpose of hurting Burton. The analogy of the story surfaces when we discover that Moore has placed 10 yr worth of his own blood into Amelia to make her all the more real and consequently ruins himself. Thus, his hate and obsession for revenge robbed him of life....much like hypertension and heart disease might with those that continue to carry similar grudges against elements in life. :?: It''s about ruination as a result of intentions that are destructive and self serving. As regards the acting, I find episodes with John Beal and Ralph Bell nearly consistantly good, because they are that good. When I hear Ralph, I feel like I''m with a friend :!: I had not ever listened to a show made so late in the series either, and was pleased to find that good episodes exist here too.', '2013-03-24 23:43:40', 1, 'e7951cb113ce34def67f599e4557bb3c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5198, '1096', 'episode', 'Willmon Ryan', '', 'Wow! Though I don''t want to read the comments until I listen to the program, looks like we have a lot of discussion going. Great job!', '2013-03-24 23:43:40', 1, '443fa67fc1a278e28e3aaae8f3142664', '112.200.20.61'),
(5199, '1096', 'episode', 'Luella Cooper', '', 'For the record, according to the CBSRMT Guide, the character is Jarrell Thornton.', '2013-03-15 00:37:45', 1, '5e5755d68020806e3e9736f92de66fea', '112.200.20.61'),
(5200, '1096', 'episode', 'Nadine', '', 'Note how Amelia, in one dinner outing with Ralph Bell\\''s character, almost breaks down into tears (effectively almost humanizing her) when he says one particular thing. Note how he in turn almost breaks into laughter. Who is the emotionless, robotic one there? Up to that point, he seemed to show about as much emotion as her, and it was telling that his happiest moments were when she seemed to be the most hurt.\r\n\r\nIt is an interesting thought. She must have learned and developed feelings at some level. Or it is an inconsistancy with the story? Still, I think she is less human the the Ralph Bell character...being a scum bag is an exclusively human quality. Don\\''t know too many lower life forms that manipulate others for ego satisfaction. The scene gives vulnerability to Amelia and provides us with more reason to despise the greasy Harry Burton.', '2013-03-24 23:43:41', 1, '61439fa9d8f26470399b1d59844ed35c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5201, '1096', 'episode', 'Vice G.', '', 'I must absolutely agree with you that Amelia was a pawn created to satisfy the doctor''s pride. She actually didn''t do anything wrong, as she was only doing as she was programmed to do. Maybe it''s just that I feel that Alicia was perhaps a better programmed robot than Amelia. Alicia actually seemed to gain a certain humanity by the end of the story, whereas Amelia never had that chance due to the vengeful circumstances surrounding her creation. That is sad and disturbing.\r\n\r\nThere are all sorts of stories, ranging from "Pinnocchio" to Mary Shelley''s "Frankenstein" to Osamu Tezuka''s "Astro Boy", to "2001, A Space Odyssey," that examine humankind''s responsibility toward the creations it brings into this world. With the exception of Pinnocchio, the other three artificial intelligences listed above are initially cast out by their creators as abominations. But all of them must learn to survive in this world, despite being cast out. (Well, except for HAL in 2001, who becomes meglomaniacal and must be shut down.)\r\n\r\nRobots serve many roles in literature, one of the most important being that of a mirror held up to humanity. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the journey of the robot in fiction is a compelling metaphor for the ethical, moral, and spiritual struggles we all must tackle in life--they are looking to their creator for answers, answers that are not necessarily forthcoming. The various ways they cope often reflect the various ways we cope. The robot is a more palateable way for us to view our own human weaknesses impartially. It is also a warning that we must bear all responsibility for the creations we bring into this world, so we should think carefully before we act.\r\n\r\nWell, I''ve gotten a little stream-of-consciousness here, so I''ll wrap it up. I guess I''m just trying to say that Amelia never becomes more than what she was created for, largely because she was created for the wrong reasons. She is a sad pawn created by a selfish "god", if you will----whereas Alicia does become "real" because of love. And that is an encouraging and beautiful message for us all.', '2013-03-24 23:43:42', 1, 'a6f9edbb7d665dfd3f46a664bd7c883f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5202, '1096', 'episode', 'J. Praeter', '', 'First, let me post the conversation I referred to where Amelia seemed to nearly break down in tears. It takes place just as Harry is giving her a box containing an engagement ring:\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON: "Open the box...well, do you like it?"\r\n\r\nAMELIA: "It''s very nice."\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON: "''Very nice''?" That''s an engagement ring. I''m asking you to marry me."\r\n\r\nAMELIA:"I...realize."\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON:"That''s all you have to say? ''I realize''? I''ll bet I''d get more reaction from a robot..."\r\n\r\nAMELIA:(obviously shaken)"Don''t you ever say a thing like that! Never! That''s disgusting!"\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON:"Well, well, well, well, well...a reaction at last. You...you ARE exquisite."\r\n\r\nAMELIA: "Promise me you''ll never use that word again."\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON: "Ah, what''s wrong with ''exquisite''?"\r\n\r\nAMELIA: (still distraught) "It''s nothing to joke about...you KNOW the word I mean."\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON: (Chuckling with amusement) "Ha ha ha...I can think of a LOT of words some ladies might object to but ''exquisite''...\r\n\r\nAMELIA: (pleading) "HARRY!"\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON: (calms himself but still chuckling)j"All right, all right...ha ha ha...it will never pass my lips again."\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nThen, (with Azimov''s robot rules in mind vs. her creator''s intentions)...this quote from Dr. Arthur Moore, at around the 38:03 mark of the program:\r\n\r\n\r\nDR. MOORE: "She was designed to be irresistable, and also controllable...only...by me. She was created to please men...and she has."', '2013-03-24 23:43:42', 1, 'b99457f1a5342be115a6a75294a7cd4a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5203, '1096', 'episode', 'Rodney', '', 'both "Amelia" and Star Sapphire''s poor orphan girl Edna O''Reilly were pawns. (The latter possibly sexually, but more definitely as a means to kill an unwanted wife.)\r\n\r\nBut here''s where it''s hit me...they were both abused. "Life Blood", like "Star Sapphire", is a tale of abuse. More specifically, they were subject to abuse from a father figure.\r\n\r\nThink of it. Moore, Amelia''s creator, admits that she''s designed to be controlled by him, and she has indeed brought men pleasure...most importantly, to HIM, by helping him exact vengeance on an old nemesis.\r\n\r\nHowever, that exchange with the ring is even more telling about his character. I''m ill at ease to use the term "self-loathing" because that phrase itself has been misused. However, here it''s clear...Amelia HATES the thought, concept or however she "understood" it, of a "robot". Therefore, she apparently must have been disgusted, and probably filled with hatred of herself.\r\n\r\nAnd WHO was the only person that could have given her that programming? Her "uncle", who was essentially her "father". (Just as Fred Gwynne promised he might become to "Star Sapphire''s" orphan girl.)\r\n\r\n(BTW, when you watch "The lonely" you''ll see again how I said it''s the reverse of "Life Blood"..."Alicia" came with a set of instructions, and she''d freely talk with her new owner about herself as a robot and the range of things she could feel. Also, it''s interesting that both "Life Blood" and "Star Sapphire" came out in the same 1980 season.)\r\n\r\nPoor Amelia...she was caught between two men who would abuse her in one way or another, and was given just enough programming that she could apparently feel "hurt" at the thought of being a robot. Both she and "Sapphire''s" orphan were indeed no more than instruments to achieve a goal.\r\n\r\nWow...even for an essentially 45-minute play these RMT scripts were deep. They were some true gems.', '2013-03-24 23:43:43', 1, '5c7d741630445a869bbf6a6453f26bf4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5204, '1096', 'episode', 'Lyle S.', '', 'Very well thought out, Texas. In fact, your comments seem to reinforce the theme presented in that episode of Star Trek I''d mentioned as well... the struggle for control by men who want her for their own lust/control/needs. Very interesting thread!', '2013-03-24 23:43:44', 1, '91d9cf1d45a987da14c1ebbf2a52e5e3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5205, '1096', 'episode', 'Grant G.', '', 'Yes, I agree----thematically Star Sapphire and Life Blood are the same. They both involve an abusive \\"father/daughter\\" relationship. Guess that\\''s why I find them distasteful. Despite the ugliness of the situation, I\\''m glad that at the end of S.S. the orphan girl ends up with a mother and the \\"father\\" is out of the picture. Come to think of it, the nutty professor gets his in the end of L.B. too. Still such sad and wasteful situations though. They leave me a bit cold, and with a bad taste in my mouth.', '2013-03-15 00:37:41', 1, 'c1ed747117bcefc54439b8e6f0637e4f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5253, '0848', 'episode', 'Ella', '', 'I thought the story had excellent potential but ended up so so. It does a good job in demonstrating sad horrors of war, but unfortunately in an entirely predictable manner. This predictabilty occurs when the story veers off and attemts to be mysterious! I''m torn about this one. The themes are important and disturbing. Somehow the presentation, for this listener, did not live up to the stories potential. EG asks us about courage and cowardice after the first act. I certainly don''t think we can absolutely call our main character a coward, He was panic struck when involved in his first battle and seeing his friend shot. His reaction was to run. He, and his shot friend, recognized there was nothing to do for the injury. If the story is trying to place an indirect "curse" on him for running then I think this rather inapropriate. This was a person of conscientious character and would likely have suffered far more with awareness and guilt vs being brain dead for some 60 plus yr. So what''s the point? I wonder. It was an incidental consequence-being shot, I realize this. However, the story is built on the result of being shot. THEREFORE I WONDER IF IT IS TRYING TO REPRESENT SOME FORM OF PUNISHMENT. Again, without this incidental consequence the awareness would have been a bigger self punishment. So, it seems to be done for the sake of telling a story, and therefore limits the stories true potential. Drama-3.', '2013-03-24 23:43:44', 1, 'cac20715ff9337c1d7ea97cb0bed2da8', '112.200.20.61'),
(5254, '0848', 'episode', 'George', '', 'I don''t believe the author is trying at all to represent a form of punishment in our protagonist''s mental condition. (Perhaps self-punishment, in the form of guilt feelings.)Rather, I think it''s a sad illustration of what often happened to (and does happen to) boys who are too young to be faced with such things. That''s why I think the fishing scene is so brilliant, as I mentioned before. It''s a perfect metaphor. A pastoral, innocent scene: Two happy, clueless friends fishing and excitedly discussing joining up, when one of the boys fishes up a horror from beneath the water. This is especially great foreshadowing, considering that we later deal with his mental state, and that water is often used as a metaphor for the unconscious mind. And what do they do? They push it back beneath the surface. Well, what else can they do? It terrifies them. There are marvelous layers of emotional, and thematic, depth in this scene.\r\n\r\nPlus, I do think it''s obvous he feels guilt, despite the fact that he couldn''t have done anything for his friend. People often feel such guilt when a loved one dies. Guilt and helplessness. It doesn''t make sense, anymore than war does, but it happens. This is a finely crafted piece of fiction, delicate, sensitive, and insightful. It''s about ordinary people placed in extraordinary and terrible circumstances. It is not, I think, a story meant to be analyzed in broad, simple sweeps. As in any truly great piece of fiction, there is more to it than first meets the eye.', '2013-03-24 23:43:45', 1, '813efde667649312c068d3c7e34f4172', '112.200.20.61'),
(5207, '1096', 'episode', 'Wally Myers', '', '"Come on and be my party doll...come on and be my party doll..." - "Party doll", performed by Buddy Holly\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nCorrect me if I''m wrong, but wasn''t that Buddy Knox that did "Party Doll"? I used to sing the song in a college band way too long ago and that sticks in my mind.\r\n\r\nAnd now back to the real discussion.', '2013-03-14 22:59:47', 1, 'eea29276a27aa30065c5e5a4dbca08bc', '112.200.20.61'),
(5208, '1096', 'episode', 'Jeremy Bushong', '', 'This one did closely resemble a Twilight Zone episode. I gave it a 4.\r\n\r\nI, too, enjoy the sci-fi element and thought that Burnett incorporated it nicely without being gratuitous.\r\n\r\nI wish it had been cast a little different. I''ve never much cared for Gordon Gould''s voice.\r\n\r\nNice pick!', '2013-03-14 22:59:52', 1, 'c3929f52c20329907bd318372c17de09', '112.200.20.61'),
(5209, '1096', 'episode', 'Jake', '', 'It was an interesting and believable enough to be scary (as far as the thought of someone actually being able to do it). I need to relisten to the last act, though. I found myself waking up at the end and probably missed a few minutes of the story.', '2013-03-14 22:59:54', 1, '9fbf077fb41a9090970c5b5f51f0edae', '112.200.20.61'),
(5210, '1096', 'episode', 'Gregory Hupp', '', 'Okay, I definitely missed a lot of the last act including the end! It was rather disturbing and violent at the end there. I guess the \\"mad scientist\\" \\"had it coming\\" when he died while the robot was being destroyed.', '2013-03-14 22:59:56', 1, '8fb5d455e5971fb5872f3fa8cf299f93', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5211, '1096', 'episode', 'Mr. Moore', '', 'We''ve got a thread about the CBS RMT playwrights elsewhere...it''s interesting to note that this episode''s author Murray Burnett apparently wrote (and was handsomely compensated) the play which became the basis for "Casablanca."\r\n\r\n\r\nI listened to the show again this week to try and find the "stimuli" he put in the script which Marian Seldes'' character responded to. It was interesting that she took the lead on a conversation pretty much only when the subject was about "Nita Raven" and Harry Wilkerson''s breaking off the engagement to her. Otherwise, she seemed to be programmed to respond in 10 word sentences or less.\r\n\r\nHer favorite phrase seemed to be "very nice". (I think Dr. Moore said it once, too.) As I said, this was a fascinating one to relisten to.\r\n\r\n(BTW, \r\n\r\n- I think she was supposed to be lifelike...that''s what fooled Jerrall. Now, I got the feeling that she spent some time (right after he gave her "Nita''s" engagement ring) with the wolfish Dr. Wilkerson at his "friend''s apartment", and whatever they did...well, apparently (as I said earlier) either she set some premarital limits or she was quite a replica of an actual woman.\r\n\r\nBTW, I don''t think the rules of marriage as they''re being debated today would apply to this episode. This wasn''t a question of whether a man could marry a robot he fell in love with (as the fellow on the TWZ episode was pretty much ready to do) but of a man marrying a woman that he didn''t know was a robot. Dr. Moore was quite aware of the eventual consequences...he told Jerrall that the latter "wouldn''t want to marry her."', '2013-03-27 15:37:17', 1, '1d941e8d32ecfcc239945e76607a093c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5212, '1096', 'episode', 'Elen', '', 'BTW, I don''t think the rules of marriage as they''re being debated today would apply to this episode. This wasn''t a question of whether a man could\r\n\r\nWell, like I said, I probably suffer from the emperor''s new clothes syndrome and was reading too much into it. But it is strange how my mind flitted around a number of political/social issues while listening to this episode. Apart from the superior "The Assassination," (my favorite CBSRMT of all times), very few of the shows I''ve listened to so far have had this effect.\r\n\r\nAnyway, you''ve brought me back down to earth...', '2013-03-14 23:00:02', 1, 'b2f75737d8614360987654116e4064da', '112.200.20.61'),
(5213, '1096', 'episode', 'Reslie', '', 'No problem...thanks for the "heads up" on that program.\r\n\r\nActually (though this really should be for another thread) I think the RMT was ahead of its time on some issues. It was unfettered by political correctness of later decades.\r\n\r\n(Case in point: "The Twilight Zone" ran another episode: "The howling man", about some monks who''d imprisoned Satan and how a guest they took in overnight accidentally let him out. If you''ll go to that page and scroll all the way to the bottom you''ll see a cane-looking object (they called it "The staff of truth") locking the door. You''ll also see the actor John Carradine, but I digress... The staff was what held Satan in.\r\n\r\nI read in a very good book on every TWZ episode that the director or someone had originally written for there to be a cross on the door, but that it was replaced by the "staff of truth" because someone was afraid other religions might be offended. And this was in the year [i:b704734432]1960[/i:b704734432].\r\n\r\nFast forward 21 years to the RMT''s "The Raft", which aired in 1981. I counted no less than [i:b704734432]four[/i:b704734432] scripture references quoted in that episode, three by E.G. himself, including one directly mentioning Jesus'' admonition to Peter "What doth it profit a man to gain the world but lose his soul?"\r\n\r\nIf, in fact, I had a dollar for every time I''ve heard a biblical reference on the RMT, I believe I''d honestly have a couple hundred dollars in my pocket.)\r\n\r\nWith that in mind, it was fascinating some of the subjects the RMT (with E.G. at the helm) tackled:\r\n\r\n- Islamic terrorism ("The terrorist")\r\n- Presidential candidates fathering out-of-wedlock children ("Guilty secret")\r\n- Homosexuality and licentious living ("Picture of Dorian Gray")\r\n- Abortion ("The phantom lullaby", "Wave of terror", even though the latter had some not-so-good elements as well)\r\n- Child abuse (The aforementioned "Star sapphire")\r\n- Celebrity misadventures (not a strong enough term) of the day ("The primrose path" appeared to be based on the Patty Hearst kidnapping/conversion)\r\n\r\nThe writers seemed to look at these and other subjects through a totally different lens than so many of today''s scriptwriters do...and they ended up looking at some issues more objectively. IMO, that''s part of what made this so memorable.', '2013-06-19 23:09:26', 1, '71a0d3ae9dec6234421024dc8148a03d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5214, '1096', 'episode', 'Lyndon B.', '', '"The Primrose Path[''s]" overt resemblence to the Patty Hearst situation is unmistakable.\r\n\r\nTalking about political correctness, Some of the things women say or are said about women would just be slammed today.\r\n\r\nOne episode, I don''t remember the title, a man and a woman go through some sort of of ordeal. At the end, the guy says "Good thing you thought to bring the lighter." She replies, in her most feminine voice, "Well, I''m ready to let you do all my thinking for me from now on."', '2013-03-14 23:00:07', 1, 'c90b6d63e018fd6ae1a0405c638808df', '112.200.20.61'),
(5215, '1096', 'episode', 'L. Bell', '', 'Ladies and Gents: I was reminded in reading this of my reaction to a very fine CBSRMT episode, "Under Grave Suspicion", where Ralph Bell and Patricia Wheel have a "modern" relationship. It ends in betrayal and the rage carried in the dialog is, I think, unique to my experience with otr thus far. The role of the woman here is modern and liberated, where pretty much everything goes because she (and he?) are unprepared for a relationship that involves "commitment no matter what". Life does what it does, and this couple falls apart, but the wonderful insight of the show is the consequence of treating a spouse cheaply.........this one needs to be put up for a show of the week.', '2013-03-14 23:00:10', 1, 'f790c9064789d72281597da851f9bab5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5216, '1096', 'episode', 'Lance', '', 'Heck, in "Life Blood" alone there were some lines that I just wouldn''t expect todays scriptwriters to include:\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n(Not verbatim, but pretty close as I''ve listened to this more than once now)\r\n\r\n(At a restaurant)\r\n\r\nHARRY WILKERSON: "Who is ''Amelia''? What is she? Where did she come from?"\r\n\r\nAMELIA: "I''m just a woman, Harry. Just a simple, predictable woman.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nWe''re in a time when such a line would be interpreted by many as an insult to femininity.\r\n\r\n(On a subnote, with "Amelia''s" earlier reaction to the word "robot", one almost wonders how confused she was programmed to be on this subject.)\r\n\r\nI loved the voice of Marian Seldes. All the regular RMT female performers seemed to have the ability to have both a feminine voice and a tough feminine voice. Even when she was in the latter category, (as in a very interesting show I''m listening to now "The search for Myra", where she plays a housewife who was apparently married only for her money) she could always sound so vulnerable. In movies or the small screen that might not be as noticeable, but in radio it worked so well for her, IMO, as an actress.\r\n\r\nI just listened to "The Primrose path"...not a bad show.\r\n\r\ntremendous comparison! I remember "Under grave suspicion". It''s funny you should mention that show, because I thought Ralph Bell in "Life Blood" basically played a reprise of that role...both in "Blood" and "Grave Suspicion" he was a well-educated "modern" who didn''t care that much for the sanctity of marriage (remember, he said in "Life Blood" that he made a similar vow to his then-wife to be Nita Raven that they "wouldn''t stop living" (a.k.a. sleeping around) in the same way that in "under grave suspicion" he and his wife agreed to have an "open" marriage.) In both shows, he comes to the realization that he wants one woman, and comes unhinged and then kills her.\r\n\r\nI''d thought of the similarities between these two shows before but had forgotten about it before you jarred my memory on this thread...', '2013-03-14 23:00:12', 1, 'aa0a9fb023866b4fddc7a590e83dea43', '112.200.20.61'),
(5217, '1096', 'episode', 'Jatt', '', 'Ok, I see there have been several posts regarding this program and it''s very tempting to read before I write. I''ll just have to write quickly so I can enjoy the discussion.\r\n\r\nI enjoyed this program even though it felt dated to me. In fact, part of the reason it was fun to listen to was the fact that it was so campy. As a general comment, I find that the programs that were most ''cutting edge'' for their time are the programs that really don''t hold up very well. Anyway, back to the play at hand. Again, I liked the program but the story was certainly strange and it''s hard to imagine that someone would go to such lengths to exact revenge. Further, I really didn''t understand the purpose for the author tying the creator''s blood (and life) to that of the robot. I''m hoping there are some comments to clarify this for me.', '2013-03-14 23:00:14', 1, 'be0b2a5f0d06928b5c9b2bd5d5494fe0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5218, '1096', 'episode', 'Aljohn', '', 'good question.\r\n\r\nEver heard the saying: "Harboring bitterness is like drinking rat poison and expecting the rat to die?"\r\n\r\nI think summed it up best about the "blood" part you wondered about. (BTW, I did too, but scriptwriter Murray Burnett in fact had his "good guy" asking the same thing, then being promised by Dr. Moore that he''d tell him some day if he helped him with his scheme.) Dr. Moore was consumed by bitterness, which happens to so many if not all of us from time to time yet is an equally dangerous occurence for each of us.\r\n\r\nSo often, when we harbor the bitterness which compels us to seek revenge of some sort all we do is hurt our own life. That happened here, to the extreme. I''d not thought of it ''til he said it, but U_N_T pretty much summarized this plot...Dr. Moore put so much of himself into seeking revenge that when it happened, it deeply and permanently affected not only his adversary (who went through extreme humiliation in breaking off his engagement) but also Dr. Moore himself.', '2013-03-14 23:00:17', 1, '291ffaff23dc544b34e3965acdb18512', '112.200.20.61'),
(5219, '1096', 'episode', 'Jack Cassidy', '', 'Folks,\r\nYour comments are terrific. I missed so much about this program and I definitely have to listen again now that I''ve read your comments. I feel a bit guilty for not seeing some of the darker elements of this program but I guess this is exactly why I enjoy the show of the week. Your comments have completely changed my perspective and I think Kurt (Texas) deserves a great deal of credit for 1) selecting a terrific program for discussion purposes and 2) for leading us in a terrific dialogue. Great job everyone!', '2013-03-14 23:00:21', 1, '0369dbb5bb00d355368a5f55946b65a1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5220, '0841', 'episode', 'Dick', '', 'Well, odd is probably the word to define this episode. I really enjoyed speculating what was going to happen next. what plot twist was going to jump out. I was fairly dissapointed with the ending to this episode. I think a good episode that should be added to the scheduel is "The Elixer of Death" this episode is bizzare as all get out.', '2013-03-14 23:00:23', 1, '91733a6921d5836d6d4e463034c9e725', '112.200.20.61'),
(5221, '0841', 'episode', 'Neil Tull', '', 'A light hearted tale that is fun the first time......so so the next, and blase the third. It is unique though....... . To tell the truth, I changed my mind on this show after listening to it again last week. Not that this is a terrible show, it''s just ok. I do remember thinking it was fun the first time. I promise my next selection will be full of horror, blood and have immense socio/psychological implications.', '2013-03-27 15:16:21', 1, '161f59a3e933be8bd8694f9e3b543259', '112.200.20.61'),
(5222, '0841', 'episode', 'Paul Boggs', '', 'As you can see, I errantly posted this show. To make things right, I''ve credited the selection as a random choice and placed Until Next Time on top of the list as our pitcher for next week. My apologies....I''ve just had a bad couple of days and wasn''t thinking straight when I posted the show.\r\n\r\nAs for, "The Rich Osterich", I thought the program was interesting in that I liked the circus setting but I thought the production and plot were on the weaker end of the CBSRMT spectrum. The twist was a bit halfhearted and predictable. Can someone tell me the name of the actor who played the reporter? His voice is so clean and clear that there is something almost unbelievable about it. I''m not sure I can put words to my thoughts but somehow he just doesn''t project the same feeling as some of our other great actors.', '2013-03-14 23:00:32', 1, '46896f87b3047dda37e315684dfca9e6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5223, '0841', 'episode', 'Vickie B.', '', 'The reporter, Jim Simon was played by Don Scardino. Scardino was featured in some 27 episodes.', '2013-03-14 23:00:28', 1, '2d48070cc0c9fd730b87bd84bae10080', '112.200.20.61'),
(5224, '0841', 'episode', 'Dragonman', '', 'Oddly enough, this was one of the very few cassette tapes that I had that has somehow survived all the years in the aging process. \r\n\r\nBack to the storyline. It''s a cute story but that''s really about it. It delves into the "con game" that is understandably predictable. The plot seems somewhat shallow and lacks any real character development (difficult at best due to the time constraints). Overall, I enjoyed it but felt that this particular type of show doesn''t envelope the true essence of the CBS RMT. My best guess is, for a program to make "Show of the Week", that the bar is set substantially higher.', '2013-03-27 15:28:10', 1, '127ee9eeb5904b5fbe27f4a6090669c9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5225, '0841', 'episode', 'D. Lisbon', '', 'I had listened to this show before. While it isn''t the cleverest story, it is an example of the humorous (in a quirky way) side of RMT. Some of my favorite shows in the series are from this angle, so I''m glad one of these type made it to the show. A couple of others I''ve heard are Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater (780102) and Ignorant Armies (780908). I remember the former from when I was listening to the show as a teenager. I didn''t start listening until late 76- early 77 and by then the series had started to branch out in different directions. At any rate although this particular show isn''t outstanding, ''its all good'' in terms of having access to these shows at all, especially after 25 years. Keep em'' coming.', '2013-03-14 23:00:40', 1, '3aa46924cc40435b16daacb1eebc266e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5226, '0841', 'episode', 'A. Lambert', '', 'I liked this show OK. It was kind of light hearted and a little different than many of the others. I really didn''t catch on to the con until the end. I guess I was rather dense tonight because tiling a shower while listening to it. ', '2013-03-27 15:16:28', 1, '4a6aefc76169928779075cb4f98d492f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5227, '0841', 'episode', 'Rayvine', '', 'This was, for me, CBS-RMT Lite. A simple, fun tale with a fair amount of predictability. It took me four times starting the show to finally get through it. I kept falling asleep. Not that it was boring, but let''s just say it didn''t keep me on any seat edges.\r\n\r\nI enjoy a refreshing tale like this. The ostrich itself is actually a good bit of humor, being one of those odd creatures in Nature''s fabulous collection. But unlike a rhino or a zebra, there is just something comical about the ostrich. I guess the same could be said for the flounder and the platypus, as well. And just for saying it, the kumquat wins the award in the fruits &amp; veggies collection!\r\n\r\nOverall, I found the acting to be surperb. The Indian gentleman could have gone horribly overboard, but was kept realistic and humble. Dan Scardino''s (the reporter) voice was as smooth as lavender velvet. A pleasure to hear. He was just as good in "THE HORROR WITHIN."\r\n\r\nI gave the episode a 3.7, and though the script was somewhat predictable and it sort of put me to sleep a couple of times, when I finally caught the whole show, I was certainly kept entertained!', '2013-03-27 15:02:24', 1, 'c241344699f6d37a1ded71afd140322a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5228, '0649', 'episode', 'Gabe', '', 'I liked this story very much. Uncle Willy''s situation, as well as Dinah''s, made for a sweet and moving little play. And the supernatural element of Fammy, the cat familiar, added a nice touch of magic to the mix, which I really liked. When it comes to writing imaginative tales regarding loneliness and longing of the human heart (and simply human nature in general) I think Ian Marten and Elspeth Eric are the best.\r\n\r\nAlso, although I''m not familiar with a lot of RMT trivia, I''m guessing that the Sarah Parker who played Dinah is now the grown-up actress we know as Sarah Jessica Parker. I base this guess on the fact that, in the late 70''s, Sarah Jessica Parker was a child actress in the musical "Annie" on Broadway. She started out playing one of the orphans and then moved up to play Annie herself when Andrea McArdle left the show. Anyway, as it was often the practice for chldren to be played by grown women on the radio (usually Evie Juster on RMT), it was nice to hear a real child playing Dinah in "A Child''s Cat''s Paw"---and I thought she was quite good. This time, Evie got to play the cat! (But at least the cat got to talk.)', '2013-03-14 23:03:39', 1, 'a4b45d06ecbc8b30157205149ad6c3ed', '112.200.20.61'),
(5229, '0649', 'episode', 'Vandolph', '', 'I\\''ve never seen \\"Sex and the city\\" and have no burning desire to, but...fascinating how careers evolve. Sarah Parker is now one of if maybe not the most recognizable of all former RMT stars. Funny how these things go, isn\\''t it? It was so nice to hear a real child\\''s voice, though. (Did she say she was a \\"Second\\" or \\"Seventh\\" grader at the end of the show?)\r\n\r\nI also like Guy Sorrell...he was good in \\"Ordeal by fire\\" and did an interesting turn in \\"The hand\\" as Sir John Rowell (and the policeman/dairy farmer Michel Des Charles). He usually sounded distinguished although he could play \\"commoner\\" roles as well.\r\n\r\n(Do any of you remember the \\"Firesign Theatre\\" comedy group? Sorrell played a security guard of sorts in an RMT play based on an Edgar Allen Poe story about a doctor who could \\"mesmerize\\" people and was able to \\"mesmerize\\" a woman\\''s soul into not leaving her dead body. Sorrell\\''s character was killed in the latter play, and during that he made sounds that unintentionally were like an amusing joke in a Firesign skit I once heard. He was an excellent choice in the \\"Cat\\''s paw\\" play.)\r\n\r\nOne last thing this brought back a memory of...I think the original Star Trek series had an episode entitled \\"Catspaw\\" involving people who could change into different creatures like giant cats...kind of a giant intergalactic hallowe\\''en party. I remember Spock telling Captain Kirk about \\"Familiars\\"...the first time I\\''d ever heard such a term.\r\n\r\nSteve, I agree with you about Martin and Eric. The former seemed to like to delve into supernatural situations for his plays (i.e. \\"Time and again\\"). Eric, on the other hand, was more the romantic. Her plays often became slow moving, almost at a second rate \\"Lifetime movie\\" pace. When she was on she was great. She wrote \\"Star Sapphire\\"...one of the episodes which has most haunted me.', '2013-03-14 23:03:42', 1, 'bce92651f0e15d0f7004e3ac7b8b603c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5230, '0649', 'episode', 'C. Briggs', '', 'I suspect you were trying to show us the talent of Sarah Jessica Parker and I must say I was very impressed. She did a great job, though she couldn''t have been much older than 11 or 12 years of age. Her inflection and her maturity as a voice actress were well beyond her years.\r\n\r\nThe story was solid. At first I thought it was going to be "halloween-ish" given the cat/witch/familiar theme. This would have been an intriguing angle but I was equally interested in the more humanistic plot. We listened to two lonely characters and more importantly, we saw the results of the decisions they made. Uncle Willie, perhaps under a spell, made a poor choice when selecting a mate but in the end, he ended up with the best woman. Dinah matures during the course of the play to enter her teen years with a bit more reservation.\r\n\r\nI enjoyed this program and have a new found respect for Sarah Jessica Parker as a voice actress.', '2013-06-19 23:09:31', 1, 'cd59b111fe126fee26a9d05825297c2d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5231, '0649', 'episode', 'Lance', '', 'I have to admit I\\''ve never been able to tell the actors from one play to another - Fred Gwynne being the one exception. I don\\''t know why this is but I sure admire those of you who can truly critique the work of the actors as they move from role to role. Maybe I just don\\''t pay enough attention or I don\\''t have the ear but for me, it\\''s like I\\''m a small kid and the illusion of unique personalities behind every radio mystery theater program works for me.', '2013-03-14 23:03:52', 1, '6bd73561ac9af4c9a79f6a5b73c5bccb', '112.200.20.61'),
(5232, '0649', 'episode', 'Denver Delovino', '', 'Yes, I would be the first to agree that some of Eric''s plays can be a little slow, or start out with a funny, fascinating or truly brilliant premise and then just sort of peter out. But when she''s on, man, she is absolutely spot-on. Really masterful. Thought-provoking, with emotional power and truth---not to mention entertaining. She''s one of my favorite writers for the show.\r\n\r\nI''ve never heard "Star Sapphire", but plan to listen to it now. The one that has haunted me since childhood is her adaptation of "The Transformation", a short story by Mary Shelly. It''s pitch-perfect, and probably my favorite mystery theater of all time. It''s stayed in my mind with perfect clarity for over 25 years. Of course I certainly haven''t heard every episode, but many of the favorites I have heard are hers, and Martin''s too. It says a lot for the skill of ALL the show''s writers that each of their styles is so distinctly recognizable.\r\n\r\nBut I digress---this website is about a play written by Ian Martin. So I say, "Here, here! Kudos to Mr. Martin for a job very well done!"<br>', '2015-01-06 16:19:39', 1, '62626d973f457abec7b6a99d0d7e07e9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5233, '0649', 'episode', 'Malcolm Granger', '', 'Greetings all,\r\n\r\nI have the feeling that I listened to a different story after reading some of the comments.\r\n\r\nI did not care for the story that much. I found the child and cat voices to be especially irritating. I also thought that the outcome was too predictable.\r\n\r\nHaving said that, let me add that I truly enjoyed the chance to listen and comment. This is my first post. Thanks to all for such a great website. I will be back for more!', '2013-06-19 23:01:53', 1, '327b99c2ebc026af0c473d5c5105bde5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5235, '0649', 'episode', 'Elli Isaac', '', 'I absolutely agree, the ending was a bit predictable. But then again, from my point of view, perhaps a surprising ending is not so important in such a play. After all, it''s set up so that we can hardly doubt the outcome of Uncle Willy''s May/December romance. But there''s a lot of truth in the actions of his character. A older person who has spent a great deal of time alone in life can be blind to things that are obvious to the rest of us. It''s just human nature. That''s one of the main points of the story.\r\n\r\nThis is a story concerned more with how you get there, not where you''re going---more of a character piece, not a mystery. I found the theme of this shared loneliness between a young character and an older character to be very compelling. I think it''s a theme that hits home for a lot of people. The beauty of it is Dinah''s sweet, child-like concern for Uncle Willy--and despite her initial ill-fated attempt to help him out, the chain of events she sets in motion eventually resolve to a happy ending. And the advice of the capricious cat, which could be read as synonymous with either Willy''s folly or Dinah''s state of frustrated, cooped-up boredome, does eventually lead the characters where they need to go. Put another way, Fammy stirs everyone up out of their "snow-bound" complacencies.\r\n\r\nAs to the cat voice, yep, you''re right. Irritating. But I loved it. I thought it was hysterical! Guess I''m kinda perverse in that way. Besides, for many years I owned a cat who met me at the door everyday when I got home from work and wanted to tell me all about her day. She thought she could speak English! And I gotta say, she sounded alot like that silly Fammy in the play.', '2013-03-14 23:03:59', 1, '3e21785cc0bb3d008d3ce51fd7321290', '112.200.20.61'),
(5236, '0649', 'episode', 'Dan T.', '', 'I thought it was ok. Nothing about it bowled me over. It was the first one my son ever listened to (he''s 13) and he really liked it and said I should listen to it.\r\n\r\nSarah Jessica Parker would have been 12 when this was done. If you knew where she came from, you''d know what an accomplishment it was for her to escape. She was born in Nelsonville, Ohio -- a rustic little burg in OHio''s coal country. It ain''t pretty and there ain''t much there. It was the scene of the 1985 teen movie "Breathless".\r\n\r\nThe cat really annoyed me. I hate when people try to voice cats. It''s never good. The story was engaging, but did not stand out as one of the better tales in this series.\r\n\r\nMy views on Elspeth Eric''s work are pretty well documented in my listening log. I really don''t like her work. It''s dripping with bad dialogue disguised as emotion and boring plots disguised as character studies. Occasionally she was good. usually, she was bad.\r\n\r\nMartin was ok. But he was not nearly as good as Sam Dann or Bob Juhren who I think was the best. Juhren only wrote 30 scripts, but they were great!', '2013-03-14 23:04:07', 1, '219902b85f3b935f7e68be0230359751', '112.200.20.61'),
(5237, '0649', 'episode', 'Wall', '', 'Come on. I think you''re overstating it. After all, for all his good scripts, Sam Dann wrote his fair share of bloody awful stinkers through the years too, and no mistake. He''d probably admit it himself. No artist is perfect. It''s the nature of the creative process---especially when you''re stuggling to crank out as many scripts as you can to make a living in the Big Apple and put food on the table.\r\n\r\nEach writer for the show specialized in a certain type of story. I imagine Himan Brown planned it that way for variety''s sake--to appeal to the tastes of as many different listeners as possible. It''s probably why the show lasted as long as it did. But they''re all good writers. They were well-chosen, and very skilled in each of their particular areas, if not always perfect.', '2013-03-14 23:04:10', 1, '85046ce2690743bb3504159abbe88bfd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5238, '0649', 'episode', 'Mr. Hall', '', 'Even when Dann was "off" he could be great. I enjoyed an episode I''ve discussed called "Girl Talk" that Dann wrote which I think had an unintentionally hilarious performance by the talented Robert Dryden.', '2013-06-19 23:09:39', 1, 'ed20edf358c6ed651586c50151bd36ec', '112.200.20.61'),
(5239, '0649', 'episode', 'Rannie', '', 'Yes, Dann was definitely the most consistent writer for the show, I agree--the guy you could rely on. And he was an excellent writer in the traditional OTR style.\r\n\r\nI also agree that the other writers were less consistent. But occasionally, in my opinion, they produced truly brilliant scripts---much better than Dann''s, in fact. This is just my opinion. I don''t want to raise a firestorm of controversy. I actually have a great fondness for Dann. It just seems that, in the final analysis, most of my personal favorites---the stories that get under my skin and rise far above the average radio mystery--- turn out not to have been written by him. Go figure.\r\n\r\nIn regard to that "Star Sapphire" thread, all I can say is, "hmmmmm..." It sounds terribly disturbing. Guess I''ll have to give the episode a listen and make up my own mind.', '2013-03-14 23:04:17', 1, '4fee092edb069e9f14238fd31c430d4a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5240, '0649', 'episode', 'John Richard V.', '', 'I agree that Dann wrote a few clunkers. But with his volume, he was consistently good.\r\n\r\nJuhren is just fantastic. If he wrote a bad episode, I''ve not hear it. Check out "Hickory, Dickory, Dooom" for an example of his work. It was a show of the week many weeks ago.\r\n\r\nMartin was ok. I think it is a matter of taste in genre that keeps me from rating his work higher. While he occasionally ventured into the supernatural, he usually wrote crime and spy stories. Not my cup of tea.\r\n\r\nEric occasionally hit the mark, but usually she was just bad. The worst episode ever, hands down, was "Appointment in Uganda". While "Girl Talk" might have been unintentionally funny, "Appointment" was not. Eric was responsible for this nauseatingly bad piece of garbage.\r\n\r\nI know that one bad script doesn''t make a bad writer, but on the whole, Eric wrote a lot more bad scripts than good.', '2013-03-14 23:04:22', 1, 'dd1d759ae4b307dfb7706de82bddc063', '112.200.20.61'),
(5242, '0649', 'episode', 'Lindie', '', 'I thouht this story was just ok. I agree that the cat voice was obnoxious. It was a relief to hear Sarah Parker as the young girl instead of an older person trying to sound like a child. I''m glad that there are others that can''t tell what voice belongs to which person. Except for Fred Gwynne and a few others, I can''t tell who is who.', '2013-03-14 23:04:26', 1, 'bc17d6b78aa56eb69967bf02a8d73a32', '112.200.20.61'),
(5243, '0649', 'episode', 'Jimmy N.', '', 'Just a wild guess here...but, ummm... could it be you don\\''t like Elspeth Eric?\r\n\r\nWell, it just goes to show that all different people have all different tastes, right? That\\''s what makes the world go round. For example, I\\''ve always thought that \\"Hickory Dickory Doom\\" was one of the silliest and worst plays in the series. It\\''s just another in that genre of paranoic, gateway-to-hell / possessed-by-the-devil / clueless-travelers-trapped-in-a-town-full-of-satan-worshipper stories that were so popular on TV in the mid to late 70\\''s---the stories where the good guys never make it out alive. :twisted: (Heh! Heh! Heh! Prepare the sacrifice!) Since I grew up in the 70\\''s, I\\''ve had my fill of such stories and try to avoid them. \\"The Summer People\\" and \\"A Ring of Roses\\" are two other similar types of Mystery Theater play. I have no idea who they were written by, but I just don\\''t care for them. Too frustrating and way too predictable.\r\n\r\nBut I digress. What I really wanted to write  is that I went and listened to Elspeth Eric\\''s \\"Star Sapphire\\". Yuck. Left a bad taste in my mouth. Really disturbing and distasteful. The fact that Fred Gwynne was so darn good, so believable in his role, just made it all the more disturbingly real. Anyway, enough of all that<br>', '2013-06-19 23:09:45', 1, 'ffdbe491f9947ec2c514b2e91e9acbb9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5251, '0848', 'episode', 'Gerry', '', 'To our adult minds, the end might be a little predictable.\r\n\r\nBut when I was 12 years old, I was completely blind-sided by the ending. I remember thinking about the story the entire next day and how powerful it was.\r\n\r\nI''m sure this was not the first episode I ever heard, but it was the most powerful I''d heard up until that time and it was THE episode that made me want to hear more.\r\n\r\nI hope you all like it.', '2013-03-15 00:36:31', 1, '5672585fede6af52ef13ce8f560e7d04', '112.200.20.61'),
(5244, '0649', 'episode', 'Nathan', '', 'I thought it was a good story, not among my very favorites but I enjoyed it. I don''t know how people can keep all of those voices straight and put names on them. LOL. I tend to be in the mode where I listen for fun and enjoyment rather than trying to figure too much out. Maybe I had one too many courses in Jr. High and High School where we had to analyze characters in stories to figure out which level of the Maslow''s Hierarchy of Needs they were on. I always chalked up my not quite getting what they were all talking about in those classes to the fact that I was a year younger than everyone in my class and "how on earth did I get in the gifted class--don''t you teachers *know* I don''t get this stuff???" ROFLOL! I literally asked 1 teacher *why* I was in her class and found out the previous year''s teacher suggested it so I went back to him and asked him *why* he thought I belonged in that class.\r\n\r\nI have found that I have to go into the fun/enjoyment mode with reading or watching movies or I feel like it''s homework.', '2013-03-14 23:15:09', 1, 'c463e080cdeb41130f6135e3262c0bd0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5245, '0649', 'episode', 'Jones', '', 'I always try to let people know my biases up front. That makes it easier for people to use my evaluation system.\r\n\r\nI love that seventies "gateway to hell" stuff. I also love a good haunted house story. If you don''t like them, you''re not going to like Hickory, Dickory, Doom.\r\n\r\nI''m less into the spy stories and mysteries. While I try to dismiss my own prejudices when I evaluate, they are mine and I own them. They no doubt creep into my evaluations. Many of you probably like Ian Martin a lot more than I do.\r\n\r\nYou''re right, I don''t like Elspeth Eric.\r\n\r\nHowever, I love a good debate. I''ve thoroughly enjoyed this one.', '2013-03-14 23:15:12', 1, '5b52917c6a0c62bad9526b12578322de', '112.200.20.61'),
(5247, '0649', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'i couldn\\''t quite get into this one. the actors were all fairly good. the little girl was good for a little girl. i kept finding myself rating her acting more than i was listening to what she was saying. maybe i was too rough on her.\r\nthe story had some promise but it never came through. i never felt the tension. i never could bring myself to care about the characters.\r\nthe cat\\''s voice was standard but his meowing sounded too fake. although when i couldn\\''t tell if the cat was a real witch or not i was interested.\r\nthe parents sounded like hippies and i didn\\''t care about them.\r\n\r\nthe uncle was the best of the bunch. but even he was a little shallow.<br>', '2013-03-14 23:15:46', 1, 'ebc2143e4927597614ea2758e736cd6c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5255, '0848', 'episode', 'Dwight C.', '', 'Hi again! Don\\''t you just love it when &nbsp;it\\''s one you\\''ve heard before? I do... it gives me a reason to listen again and re-analyze the tale in a new perspective.\r\n\r\nI really liked this one. It was simply and even a little predictable, but there was an alluring innocence about it that I enjoyed.\r\n\r\nThe thing I would really like to point out though, is the production of this one. In most episodes, the&nbsp;ambiance&nbsp;is lit dimly beneath dialogue and mood. Often you\\''ll hear doors close, birds chirping, or the range of car sound effects that are common on the RMT shows.\r\n\r\nBut this one was especially gratifying. The production team paid special attention to the environment our character was put in. The sounds of the harmonica, the water splashing on the boat, dogs barking, the rushing and clopping of hooves, the rolling of the artillery cannons, the celebration with the band and all, and so on...\r\n\r\nAlong with the rich narrative descriptions of the environment, this was one of the most&nbsp;immersible&nbsp;episodes I\\''d heard in a long time.\r\n\r\nAlthough the main character was someone I could somehow relate to, he was played a tad \\"over the top.\\" But perhaps in the situation he was in (in the story), it was necessary to convey his inner struggle. Such a sad tale.\r\n\r\nAlong with shows like, IN THE FOG, I can\\''t help but feel such deep sorrow for those men and women who served their country only to be left with such horrible personal reminders of the wars and battles they fought. And though this may have been a fictional tale, the&nbsp;possibility&nbsp;that this actually could have&nbsp;occurred&nbsp;is what I found so becoming of the episode.&nbsp;<br>', '2013-03-24 23:43:45', 1, '7afbd1ee273fa0c8a2970cf19aabc948', '112.200.20.61'),
(5256, '0848', 'episode', 'Bryron', '', 'Interesting thing...Bierce was missing and presumed dead after going to Mexico to fight alongside Pancho Villa (in another Bierce/RMT episode "The D-mned thing", E.G. says he disappeared mysteriously), so Mr. Bierce apparently believed there were some causes worth fighting and going to war for. There are at least two other RMT episodes based on his Civil War works, "Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge", and "One of the missing".\r\n\r\nI''m guessing that Bierce knew there were indeed some very good reasons for fighting the horrific "Civil War" (here in northwest Arkansas there were some particularly tragic battles, and (which not everyone''s aware of) accompanying guerrilla campaigns that left their mark on the people of the Ozarks plateau).\r\n\r\nOn listening to this again, it does convey the sadness of war''s aftermath, but I''m not sure it''s an antiwar story. Without being able to convey my thoughts in more accurate terms, the moral of this story to me was: "Young man...war, like life, will usually never unfold as you fantasize it will. Know what you''re getting into, and be prepared."', '2013-03-15 01:37:44', 1, '2f0c96564a68835d63fb35364cbf5b8c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5257, '0848', 'episode', 'Dan Jacobs', '', 'I''m not sure it''s an antiwar story.\r\n\r\nI didn''t see it as anti-war, or even a cautionary tale. I saw it as a story about the sad consequences of war --- any war and every war.', '2013-03-15 01:37:47', 1, '3652a485418b92e208be7f99f655569a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5260, '0848', 'episode', 'Therese', '', 'The device the author used in turning it into some strange, over the top mystery is inferior to having our protagonist spend a conscious lifetime dealing with the same horrors we both recognize to be so destrucitve. I think the far out aspect dilutes the real horrors you described so well...\r\n\r\nI think you may be missing the point: The mysterious aspect that you see as sensationalism, I see, simply, as our protagonist''s point of view---his mind is confused and forever lost. His life is unconscious. That''s the whole point. It''s not a concsious lifetime dealing with horrors. It''s a life of confusion, of knowing you desperately need to be somewhere and never being able to get there.\r\n\r\nThe author has used the best method possible for allowing us to understand this by making us see the world from the injured soldier''s point of view---which, to us, is mysterious and confusing---no less so than it is to the soldier himself. Therein lies the horror, the drama, and the poignancy of the story.\r\n\r\nYes, the narrative is designed to be eerie and mysterious, but I don''t think it''s all that over-the-top or far out. It is, in fact, a very creative and compelling way to tell a story. If it had been simply told straightforward as "the facts of war''s horrors and how they destroyed a young man''s life", I think the story would have been nothing more than a maudlin melodrama, a cliche. A USA Network TV movie.\r\n\r\nGuess we''re just gonna have to agree to disagree on this one.', '2013-03-15 01:37:59', 1, 'dad169e503ab31aba933ce48c69bdaf5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5261, '0848', 'episode', 'Zeus Kim C.', '', 'In the post Viet Nam-era I\\''ve gotten so used to stories that seem to be anti-military, etc. I get defensive, and did so when there was no need to here.\r\n\r\nI can understand how you feel. I feel the same way. I\\''m not anti-war and it is a touchy subject I\\''d just as soon avoid.\r\n\r\nThere is so much romanticized about the Civil War, but as with any war, many people left that conflict with broken bodies and minds.', '2013-03-15 01:38:05', 1, 'a46fc6758e642fd1642f6ecd80630952', '112.200.20.61'),
(5263, '0848', 'episode', 'Johnny M.', '', 'I found this tale to be a powerful and poignant sub-drama of the Civil War. The play explored the trauma suffered by a young soldier unable to cope with the stress of war.\r\n\r\nThis may sound like a stretch but it reminded me of a section in a book by Dr. Oliver Sacks entitled, \\"The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat\\". In this book, Dr. Sacks relays the story of one of his patients who has lost his short term memory (alcohol related). He lived completely in the past and though he was introduced to new topics or new people, he was completely unable to remember them for more than a few minutes. As I said, this may be a bit of a stretch and I can\\''t remember the fine details of the case study any more (ironic, huh?), but I recall how Dr. Sacks explained the look in the poor man\\''s eyes as he peered into the mirror only to see the frightening sight of an old man staring back at him. I pictured the soldier in our radio drama experiencing a similarly frightening revelation as he was introduced to the reality the rest of the world sees.', '2013-03-15 01:38:17', 1, 'e27f294ad8d230c8bf8d4e48eb4c453b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5269, '0405', 'episode', 'Jeff L. Oliver', '', 'The first gut reaction I had after hearing several lines of this episode was: "This sounds like another ''The Summer People'' (another RMT episode with a bunch of old people scheming up fiendish, supernatural plots against younger people whom they select)."\r\n\r\nThe last such reaction I had (about the time when the boss comes in to check on what''s happened to his friend and the friend''s wife) was the thought: "Man, I''d love to have the CIA agents come in and bust these old women and burn that cottage to the ground like I heard they did to the bad guys at the end of the movie ''Clear and present danger'' "... :!: (I know I shouldn''t harbor the desire for vengeance...it''s a little of that "Star Sapphire effect". Some genuine justice for these old female curmudgeons was long overdue, though.)\r\n\r\nThere''ve been some other voodoun episodes on the RMT that I can recall...some bad (I think the zombie-based "The walking corpse" could fit in here), some fair to middlin'' or even better ("The Doll", "Bound East for Haiti"). I''d say this one was at the "even better" category or above, because I didn''t expect the supernatural twists that emerged.\r\n\r\nTo borrow from another RMT title: "That Hamlet was a good boy"...great choice for a show, guy.', '2013-03-24 23:43:46', 1, '4c87f3bdd28ebc822aacef8aca577db2', '112.200.20.61'),
(5268, '0405', 'episode', 'Lawrence', '', 'A man and his wife rent a nice cottage owned by an elderly woman for a ridiculously low monthly fee. They notice a distinct smell and mouse-like noises coming from within the walls. Their sudden weight loss cannot be explained by a physician but Bob Juhren clears things up quite nicely.\r\n\r\nI liked this program because we need a few where the sympathetic characters meet their demise. It keeps us on our toes. I also liked how the suspense built from act to act and I was very appreciative of the cat sound effects. I''ve heard a few other CBSRMT programs where a cat was involved and the sound effect was atrocious. This was pretty realistic. Finally, I got a kick out of the fact that Mrs. Sagamore was being kind in letting Margaretta perform chores.', '2013-03-24 23:43:47', 1, '4988c848ad29fbbf1f84fbbc5f3aa1ec', '112.200.20.61'),
(5267, '0848', 'episode', 'Lance', '', 'I agree with your comments on romanticizing the Civil War (or any war, for that matter).\r\n\r\nThe columnist George F. Will was the first person a couple of years back that I heard quote from \\"Cold Mountain\\" (?) the line (paraphrased) \\"In war, I learned how frail the human body is against things sharp and hard\\".\r\n\r\nThat takes any romantic notions right out of the picture for me.\r\n\r\nHow many other Bierce stories were RMT adapted besides \\"The d-mned thing\\", \\"One of the missing\\" and \\"Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge\\"? I do believe there were others...I believe he wrote a very interesting Civil War tale adapted into the RMT called \\"Loser take all\\". What was interesting also was that his stories were adapted around real battles:\r\n\r\n\\"Loser take all\\" - The battle of Shiloh\r\n\\"One of the missing\\" - The battle of Kennesaw Mountain', '2013-03-15 01:38:34', 1, '74bea018a3392ca8b4c52c21fb52e72d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5270, '0405', 'episode', 'Long', '', 'I chose this episode not because it is a necessarily one of the greatest dramatically but I found the whole idea intriguing and fun. This is one of the shows I clearly remember hearing as a kid, listening to my radio in my bedroom after lights out on a school night. The night I heard it, I fell asleep and never got to find out what happened to the couple. I remembered it for years and finally found someone on the net who knew the name of the episode. (As an aside, it''s nice to ocassionally come across a CBSRMT show where the couple actually get along -- neither is cheating on, fighting, or trying to kill the other!', '2013-03-24 23:43:47', 1, '7a1c923c6884c137aef20f81b507e4df', '112.200.20.61'),
(5271, '0405', 'episode', 'Charlie', '', 'This was one of the first episodes I downloaded and listened to. I love this type of episode.\r\n\r\nThe suspense built wonderfully around the squeaky sounds and the mysterious landlord. It packed a lot of plot into forty minutes. Again, one of the best shows ever and an excellent choice for show!', '2013-03-24 23:43:48', 1, '71119f9ca26817ed4dec8a9702d114b4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5272, '0405', 'episode', 'Willmon Ryan', '', 'fantastic pick!!! i LOVED it!!\r\n\r\nThis is the type of episode that I really enjoy. The hints at the problems, the occasional clue, the building sense of impending danger, and then, BANG: the resolution and a quick end. At the end, I couldn\\\\\\''t help but think of the classic horror film, \\\\\\"The Fly\\\\\\". The tiny spider with the human head squeeking out, \\\\\\"helllllp meeeeee!\\\\\\"\r\n\r\nhehehe\r\nLOVED IT', '2013-06-19 23:09:51', 1, '56318838fa3910fc2d73e6bb616e60a5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5273, '0405', 'episode', 'Luna', '', 'You know I keep hearing things in the wall of my apartment (probably the neighbors), and my cat did find a straw man recently... nahhh couldn\\''t be. Anyway really good show gave it a 4. I remember listening to this one as a kid. I could not sleep too well that night, I kept hearing things in the walls. But then again I lived in a Victorian I was bound to hear something, Could have been my dog snoring laying next to me too. Thanks for the scare memories.', '2013-03-24 23:43:49', 1, '1cd9d00b1c72b0db6dc6401abe1e1782', '112.200.20.61'),
(5274, '0405', 'episode', 'Glenn', '', 'So why is it that the people in the story who have been shrunk don''t run out into the middle of the room to get someone''s attention? Why be satisfied with just making mouse-like sounds that no one can hear? At the end of the story, why doesn''t the protagonist try to get his freind''s attention visually? Are they afraid of the cat? Just wondering?\r\n\r\nI love the actress who plays Ms. Sagamore. She has just the right sort of grandmotherly voice that makes her evil actions all the more frightening. Bad guys are rarely interesting if they are obviously evil. It''s much more interesting to have an antagonist who seems oblivious to the fact that what they are doing is wrong.', '2013-03-24 23:43:50', 1, '3edc19fe69fd6637b921477c60ffc3b0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5275, '0405', 'episode', 'Geoff T.', '', 'your right why the heck did he not come out (before they got the cat). I know my cat if it is smaller than him and moves on the ground it is bound to be pounced upon and attacked. So my question is why did the cat not kill the little man and carry his corpse in his mouth to his masters like other cats do with mice and birds? My cats in all day so he only does that with the stuffed toys, of course the day my cat brings over a shrunk man corpse is the day I am outta these apartments.', '2013-03-24 23:43:51', 1, '42bb09437210721c705ab711d0ff77e9', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5276, '0405', 'episode', 'David', '', 'Nothing like a good old-fashioned gothic horror tale! This one had all the elements. The sound effects were very good - I''m paying more attention to these after reading comments about some of the other Shows of the Week - and especially creepy music. EG Marshall''s final comment before wrapping up - about feeding the cat - put this one over the top for me.\r\nAnd now ... something pretty cool. Back in the ''70''s, I listened to the series for several months before deciding to write down all the episodes I could remember (and thereafter). I wrote down titles, then a list of shows for which I had no title - had dozed off for part of the show, etc. I had looked back at this list several times in the decades since. One of the untitled ones, I had written "don''t go in the ballroom". When I saw the title of this show, I had a strange feeling ... any title of fiction involving a cottage, mansion etc. often suggests a tale of the supernatural. Along with "The Laughing Maiden" several weeks back, this week''s show has really taken me back. Yet another good show.', '2013-03-24 23:43:51', 1, 'bfcfd8b24657f24f2d0b286d57492e3a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5277, '0405', 'episode', 'Beck', '', 'Finally got to hearing this one and boy, it was one of those that really hit the whole "mystery theater" thing on the head.\r\n\r\nI really enjoyed it, and just when I thought it was becoming predictable, the twist came along and made excellent sense. Very good choice!\r\n\r\nI gave this one a 4.9 out of 5 for making me smile through the whole show.', '2013-03-24 23:43:52', 1, '67ba1fd02f36e6a2718cdcf1838b60c8', '112.200.20.61'),
(5278, '0328', 'episode', 'Vernel N.', '', 'I must say this story, while not the most entertaining I’ve heard, though plenty entertaining, is without a doubt the most profound. It truly is. I consider drama to be valuable when it reflects relevancy to life. Now life has many aspects and so a drama can convey many aspects of life. This may be done directly or somewhat “concealedâ€ with a science fiction or horror show. Our story of 2 weeks ago, “Life Bloodâ€ is a good example of abuse and ruination—though on the surface it is a robot story. It’s not so much in what package the relevancy is presented, but more importantly- what is delivered. I mentioned in the intro here that this story, “Help Somebodyâ€ is profound. When we boil down the essence of this story we see that it is about something rather important, the meaning of life. Or at least what is important and truly necessary to live. This is presented initially with a man who believes he knows what he wants- fame, fortune and women. He does not consider what he needs. When this man receives his 3 desires he is left unsatisfied. Interesting. He describes it as “ashes in the mouthâ€. With beauty of dialog, symbolism and music the CBSRMT does a hell of a job answering the question of why he is dissatisfied when apparently having what he wants. Remarkably, this is accomplished in the last 15 min of the show! He has been exclusively remote from his needs for human connection. He has been unaware that he is alone and afraid. “Everybody needs Somethingâ€. Something here is a dog on the surface, but like our robot Amelia, he is so much more. He is life and spirit. He is hope and ultimately he is contact. If alone, a feral dog dies in about 2 yr. Likewise we can imagine that our protagonist, Anthony Price, is feral as well and really prone to “deathâ€, or at least remaining in a hell called depression. The beautiful cure here is reaching out to life (others) and realizing that life will reach back. This was accomplished when Price finally was open to his core needs. Sounds like basic Maslow psychology does it not? This is love and maintaining the love despite disappointment with life. His foundation was not built. E.G Marshall points out the lesson to be learned here, “You will have noticed perhaps, that at first Anthony ran frantically after the dog Something, then when their eyes had met, he stood stark still and Something began to run joyously to him. There’s a moral to be drawn here. Or a lesson to be learnedâ€.\r\n\r\nIt is best described as a beautiful story. It is so due to the deep perceptive element that is the cement of the story, though this is only revealed in the end. It, like life, needs to be reached for. Drama 5.', '2013-03-24 23:43:52', 1, 'b036a66982fb1c63e07cc70a00cd8f11', '112.200.20.61'),
(5279, '0328', 'episode', 'J. Kramer', '', 'I have to say that, at first, I didn\\''t want to like this story. Our protagonist comes across at the beginning as pretty much of a whiney brat. But as the story progresses, he changes very subtly. By the third act I was hooked. Building on the first two acts, that third act was amazing. It was unusual, beautiful, and moving. The description of how all the dog owners interacted with each other in the park was especially interesting, and a very telling observation about how people interact (or perhaps don\\''t interact) with each other.\r\n\r\nI guess, at the beginning of the story we only see Tony from the outside and as it goes along we work our way inside to the real person he is. By the end, I found this to be a deeply compelling tale. It\\''s really a gem. It addresses the feeling of isolation experienced by a writer, or any kind of artist-----indeed, any kind of person at all who is thoughtful and searching. And feels, somehow, alone.\r\n\r\nI can see where this story might be incomprehensible to people who feel no need to question, those who are confident they have all the answers and have got life all mapped out. It\\''s certainly not a story really aimed at entertaining a mass audience---more an offbeat introspective drama. In the end, though, I think it\\''s one of the best RMT\\''s I\\''ve heard, and speaks to something we\\''ve all felt at one time or another. It\\''s a rare achievement to be able to successfully touch on such a deep and essential aspect of the human condition, especially in a mere 40-odd minute radio drama. I applaud Elspeth Eric for this beautiful and unusual script, AND Himan Brown for having actually produced it.', '2013-03-24 23:43:53', 1, 'aac32745dac9cb2550b633ac7789bc83', '112.200.20.61'),
(5280, '0328', 'episode', 'Ritz', '', 'The incidental music in act 3 was really beautiful. It sounded very much like it was composed by Bernard Hermann. Reminiscent of some of the subtle, moody violin scoring for Psycho.', '2013-03-24 23:43:54', 1, '55c93d16a00ebca5226274fdf770b02a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5281, '0328', 'episode', 'Barry', '', 'In my opinion, the program was an excellent example of the CBSRMT providing a life lesson without preaching. I hadn\\''t heard this program previously but there was something special about it. I have some questions so I\\''m hoping the discussion will offer some insights that, as usual, I don\\''t have.\r\n\r\nI noted that the program\\''s acts were distinct and defined. In the first act, the author tells us exactly what Anthony Price wants in his life ... fame, fortune and the favor of Claudia. We are introduced to the tension between Anthony and his father. In the second act, Anthony\\''s father dies but everything else in his life comes up roses - yet he remains unfulfilled. In the final act, Anthony has an awakening of sorts. He begins to understand his depression and the tumultuous relationship with his father is exposed. Did he really feel nothing when his father died and has he continued to be dead to emotion or is he completely overwhelmed and has he experienced an emotional shutdown as a means to protect himself. As listeners, we\\''re exposed to some symbolism that I\\''d like to better understand. First, we\\''re introduced to three people he meets on a park bench. He meets a young woman who introduces him to a dog, a man who explains that feral dogs generally don\\''t live long, and a wise elderly gentleman who exposes Anthony\\''s depression. Second, the dog plays a significant symbolic role in this play. I\\''d like to read your comments about the three characters and about the dog before I comment and this is the first time I\\''m going to withhold my vote until I read your comments.\r\n\r\nAs a sidelight, my copy of the program had a segment where Himan Brown tells us that an 11 year old boy, Michael Hanick, from Fort Madison, Iowa won the CBSRMT Disney World trip. I wonder what ever happened to Michael and if he\\''ll ever visit the website to tell us how the trip turned out.', '2013-06-19 23:02:02', 1, '135f06f9cff16d2f7054f68cfc0649bf', '112.200.20.61'),
(5282, '0328', 'episode', 'Rudy', '', 'I gave this one a 4. This story has the same formula that Elspeth Eric tries so hard to make work and seldom does.\r\n\r\nHowever, this time it does work. She creates a deep anti-hero and provides a meaningful transformation for him. That is the barest essence of fiction. The character must be changed from beginning to end.\r\n\r\nEric strays from her tired formula of a woman talking to her analyst and provides a little more plot than normal. Some people like character studies, but I don\\''t think they work in radio drama. That has always been my chief criticism of Eric: Long on character and short on plot.\r\n\r\nNice selection.', '2013-03-24 23:43:55', 1, '1e18aba9d069e02560c885bd620eae5c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5283, '0328', 'episode', 'Jasmine', '', 'Very nice analysis. I think you pose a lot of interesting and insightful questions, and I too will be interested to see what other people have to say.\r\n\r\nBy the way, Until Next Time, great choice! The perfect story to bundle up and listen to on a frigid afternoon.', '2013-03-24 23:43:56', 1, '1c6c0f36c0f991f56fe788486020687a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5284, '0328', 'episode', 'Pammy Pam', '', 'I generally feel like I''m the outsider in that my comments are generally superficial. The comments you guys provide are immeasurably beneficial to me as I always learn from them.\r\n\r\nI agree that this was certainly a compelling episode and a terrific pick. I''ll bet this one garners many comments and I''m anxious to learn from all of you.', '2013-03-24 23:43:56', 1, 'ef764b42f9da8d365659e1b50dddb9fd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5285, '0328', 'episode', 'F. Wrecker', '', 'Hmmm. I can appreciate many stories if what is being conveyed is relevant. How about film analogies? Sometimes a story''s relevancy is minor, but character is good the story is enjoyable: such as Godzilla 2000 (Japanese). Sometimes a story is relevant and powerful but needs some dissecting and a good deal of time to unearth, the surface may be tarnished: such as many Dr. Who episodes. Sometimes a story is just eye candy and is ultimately not entertaining or meaningful: Jurassic Park 3. Now sometimes a story is relevant and especially meaningful. These are the gems, such as Das Boot. Add beauty to a story with the other attributes and we have a masterpiece. Is "Help Somebody" a masterpiece? In it''s realm, yes.. It contains enough of the elements -character-relevancy-beauty(in story and music) combined with tremendous meaningfulness to make this a very unique episode. It is a mutation really. These shows were produced each day on a fine time schedule. The story itself has some 45 minutes to be told-on radio! Yet this was accomplished. Certainly loneliness, depression and the meaning of life are weighty subjects. To present these in a story in such a manner that is poignant is the goal. I think this was accomplished here.\r\n\r\nSomeone wondered what the 3 people and dog might represent. Maybe the best way to answer this is to look at their effect on the story and protagonist. The young thin girl, "rather plain really". I think Anthony describes her is female human companionship that is nonsexual. He began to look forward to sitting with her and simply make human contact. Now, our "Feral dogs only live about 2 yr" gentlman serves as a contrast for Anthony''s developing awareness of this new dog world. His callousness stirs hate in Anthony. Would Anthony have reacted so in the earlier acts? He would not. So we see that Anthony has feelings indeed! Now our older gentleman is "Understanding" where the dog is "Something". Anthony relates his experience to the old man, and the old man interprets. This is a valuable tool for Anthony. Then we have the glorious moment when Anthony realizes what Something is and pursues it as if his life counted on it. Indeed his life did count on it. Here Anthony is feeling quite a bit. He is feeling alive!\r\n\r\nI would imagine those who have experienced depression can relate to this story particularily well. However, what happens here is a crucial lesson in "living" for all people. This is certainly something to think about if one hasn''t done so already. I am happy to see that the show has stimulated the member''s fine brains and hearts.', '2013-03-27 15:28:18', 1, '45e319aa3509d9c693e78547ee94a6d0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5286, '0328', 'episode', 'Jerome Juggs', '', 'not a mystery to me anymore. the things in this life especially in our american way of life will not make you happy. the american dream or the american nightmare as i like to call it will not bring happiness. just ask the rich and famous in this world.\r\ni thought the story moved a bit slowly. the part about the dog owners was insightful . i always knew dog lovers were a bit goofy. my friend treats his dog like his baby. it didn''t surprise me that they didn''t know each other''s names and only talked about their dogs. i have to disagree with the part about stray dogs living only two years. i helped take care of a stray for at least five years as a child. i get the point about human contact though. though i must say our society is leaning twords loneliness. we have automated tellers phone answering systems and telemarketers. some of us only talk to people on the computer.\r\none thing that bothered me about show. in the scene where the guy gets the girl and realizes he doesn''t want her he says something about possessing her or something. that is the hollowness of meaningless sex. by the way this one i won''t let my children listen to. that''s another american dream. no strings attatched.\r\nthere''s always a trap. i just need a little more. how much is enough? a little more. we can''t find happiness in the things of this world.\r\nthis guy is also not willing to put aside his pride and reunite with his father before he dies. that''s the really sad part of this story. life is waaaaay to short to hold grudges. i felt no simpathy for this guy.', '2013-03-24 23:43:58', 1, 'a1bb7df363be6e62b89c81a4260f784f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5287, '0328', 'episode', 'Grant G.', '', '"My father wanted me to be a banker..."\r\n\r\n- Elton John (whose father was a British military officer) in a public service announcement from the 90s\r\n\r\n"Your father didn''t like you. I don''t think he ever liked you."\r\n\r\n- Elton John''s mother to her son during a 1992 interview with Rolling Stone magazine discussing the singer''s drug addiction issues\r\n\r\n\r\nA couple of things before I start on this:\r\n\r\n- This episode was recorded off of WFAA in Dallas (the radio station apparently has now changed its call letters, but WFAA''s been a big presence in the D/FW area for awhile. I absolutely love the woman''s voice singing the station ID (what do you call those in the business, Charlie) "(oooh...ooooh....wahhhhhh) W..FA-Aaaaaaaaaaa." Almost sounded "Karen Carpenteresque" (talk about a radio contemporary.)\r\n\r\n- Prior to it, I also enjoyed the Brazilian(?) sounding music underneath the bank commercial where the bank president''s name was said after the bank''s name. Talk about "old-time" radio...\r\n\r\n- I''ve gotten to where it''s bittersweet to hear the late William "Pronto...si ''Anthony Price''" Redfield in the RMT. He was from what I could gather the first regular RMT actor to leave us, dying young of leukemia somewhere around the late 70s.\r\n\r\nAs for the program...\r\n\r\nI listened to this a second time yesterday to make sure I wasn''t hearing things. Given Ms. Eric''s penchant for incorporating psychological studies into her plays, I still believe that the detachment Anthony Price felt for his father, and the deep longings it created within him, are central to this play.\r\n\r\nRecalling the initial conversation between Mr. Price and his father''s attorney, we learn that apparently he''d not seen his father for 10 years. I got the impression that they hadn''t even spoken during that time. One also got the impression that the father may not have thought highly of his son''s career choice. Now, I don''t think we learned how the elder Price got his own money, but I''ve been aware of situations where a father who got his money in "traditional" careers are at odds with sons who want more non-traditional ones, such as what Anthony chose. The result isn''t always pleasant.\r\n\r\nAnthony also says that when the money for his plane ticket was cabled he thought about just pocketing it. That alone pretty much tells us everything we need to know about their relationship. It was solidified for me when he was given news of his father''s death. Shock, but no tears. In fact, the news of his inheritance seemed to be of greater magnitude to him.\r\n\r\nFast forward to when he''s in the park, after he''s learned that even his wildest fantasies, when all fulfilled, couldn''t bring him happiness. Cort Benson (also without a dog) strikes up a conversation with him about feral dogs (which Benson''s character describes as "dogs without a home"). Their conversation turns to their father''s failings, and also to Benson''s own self-confessed failings as a father. While I don''t fully agree with Benson''s character''s thoughts on religion, he''s correct that, to a child, a father is quite often their initial perception of God...good or bad. And he was even more correct in saying, or at least hinting, that when a father''s human, imperfect traits become evident, that so much happens when we fail to forgive him for those imperfections.\r\n\r\nI wonder what Stephen King would think of that logic?\r\n\r\nFriends, this was a sobering episode for me. I''m reminded of Elton John, whose had his own battles with sexuality (he was briefly married, then came out as a homosexual, but admitted a couple of years ago apparently without embarrassment that he strongly notices women with gorgeous figures), drug addiction, and especially financial woes. For those of you who grew up with the RMT, you remember that Elton was a money-spinning one-man Three Dog Night. He, apparently like "Anthony Price", came to have everything in his worldly dreams. Yet so often I''ve read of him as a man who has struggled in many, many ways. We may never know how, or even if, he''s dealt with the issues of his father. It goes without saying that if Elton grew up with his father, "god" with a little "g", not "liking" him, it deeply and profoundly affected him.\r\n\r\nI read a story of a man who "came out" of gayness, a self-confessed "ex-gay". He recalled how when his father died he didn''t cry at all. He also said how he''d come to realize that issues he''d had of rejecting his father''s love, at the same time so desperately craving his father''s love [i:112ff9395e]and approval[/i:112ff9395e], had come to shape him, or maybe a better term is, stunt his maturity. He believed (like many do) that it was a central though not the only factor in his sexuality.\r\n\r\nAnthony Price (apparently) wasn''t gay. Neither am I. Unfortunately, I''ve shared a bit of both Elton''s and Anthony''s story, and that''s why this hit home.\r\n\r\nAs a young boy, I wanted a brother or sister in the worst way. I never got one. Instead of appreciating the love my parents gave me as an only child, I secretly harbored a great deal of anger toward my Dad and blamed him solely for that situation. At around age 10 I started emotionally pushing him away. He died a horrible, protracted death from esophagal cancer in 1975 when I was 15. I honestly can''t remember telling him at any period in his 9 month sickness that I loved him. When my Grandma told me he''d died (I was outside playing) tears came into my eyes, but I didn''t cry. I couldn''t cry.\r\n\r\nWithout going into nearly twenty-five years worth of experience, let me just say, that decision I made caused me almost incalculable hurt, and problems both in my own life and of those around me, particulary my wonderful wife. Why? Because (as I responded to chicagomilam) as a Christian everything I see tells me God has designed fathers to, ideally, serve as a model for love, nurturing and affirmation to their children, especially for boys. And when somehow that bond is broken (and it''s all to often going to happen in this fallen world) there can be dire consequences. Unfortunately, I lived them.\r\n\r\nBut, as E.G. says, this was a "success story, or a story about success." Friends, when I finally put 2+2 together (with God''s help) and understood all this, and of the problems I''d caused myself by choosing to push my Dad away, and essentially choosing not to fully grow up...I can''t tell you what a turnaround it made in my life. Is everything perfect? No. But I can understand now, and more importantly (as Cort Benson''s character suggested) I could then forgive. You don''t know what freedom that brought.\r\n\r\nSorry to be so long-winded, but for me, this story was perfectly clear. And Ms. Eric ended it perfectly. If "Anthony Price" indeed made the discoveries I think he was making, we would have needed at least one more full program for him to tell us about them.\r\n\r\nThose of you who can, hug your loving fathers today or at least call and tell them you love them. If you need to forgive them of something, do so, or at least please try to seek God''s help in allowing you to do so. The results are nothing short of wondrous, and wonderful.', '2013-03-24 23:43:58', 1, '2a7bfb502ffeef4d3359552957147bb6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5288, '0328', 'episode', 'Eddy', '', 'As for the show, well... it still wasn''t one of my favorites, but at least I got to see it all from a different perspective. The theme of it being a "success" story which Texas mentioned, was something that eluded me the first time hearing it. Knowing that, it is easy to see where the success is coming from.\r\n\r\nAnd perhaps because I do not share this kind of personal tragedy/grief which grayed the spirit of the Anthony Price character, it''s more difficult for me to relate to the experiences he had.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, I felt that my first post may have been a bit shortsighted, thus giving the show a second going.\r\n\r\nIncredible feedback from everyone.', '2013-03-24 23:43:59', 1, '897b7b00a92cc874b42a5d1fea34e9ed', '112.200.20.61'),
(5289, '0328', 'episode', 'Elliot', '', 'Your response to this program is marvelous.', '2013-03-24 23:44:00', 1, '39005461fdc1c58480038000e41c085d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5290, '1166', 'episode', 'Lanie', '', 'I thought this was an excellent, compelling little mystery. It''s one I''d never heard before and I really enjoyed it. The actors and production values were terrific. It kept me guessing all the way through, and the twist at the end was really good. Great choice.', '2013-03-24 23:44:00', 1, '2470aded61a6bb6b2d15475294111a05', '112.200.20.61'),
(5291, '1166', 'episode', 'Elen', '', 'This is an episode that I''d seen in my collection many times, but never listened to. I don''t know why, but it was always passed over. I was happy to see it as the show of the week.\r\n\r\nThe file itself was a bit on the sluggish side for me; not bad, but the voices were slowed a tad which made the entire episode ssoorrtt ooff lliikkee tthhiiss. Definitely listenable. Also, I did catch a "news hiccup" in there at one point. Just to note.\r\n\r\nThe episode itself, in my opinion, was pure RMT. It represents everything I enjoy about these shows. Not way too deep, but certainly far from shallow. Mystery and intrigue; vengeance and old debts; betrayal and suspicion. A great, all-around choice.\r\n\r\nIn particular, those pesky writers did it again. What I love more than anything is when an episode is so seamlessly put together in production, that you forget you are listening to actors and a show, but instead become immersed in the story, the characters, and the environment. The Raft captured me and did not let go.\r\n\r\nMy favorite part of the whole episode was when Miss Harper was trying to calm Mr. Ordway. Instead of saying something common like, "Please sit down and let me fix you something to eat," the writers had her say, "Mr. Ordway, let me bring you a soft boiled egg and some toast - and what do you say to another cup o'' coffee?"\r\n\r\nBrilliant. I love when a writer, in any format, "shows me" the details instead of "telling me." I could actually see the reminder cards that Mr. Ordway received, with the handwritten ONE MILLION DOLLARS on them.\r\n\r\nThis again is why I treasure episodes like this one. While television creates the mental landscape for us, leaving us with nothing to brew on our own, shows like The Raft hurl us from the ravaging sea into the sterile vertical world of a wealthy man''s office. You could smell the rich texture of Miss Harper''s words when she said, "You were holding the smoking gun!"\r\n\r\nThe show was somewhat predictable, so I wasn''t aghast by the end. But it was neatly woven together in a non-linear timeline to deliver information piece-by-piece, creating a wonderful tension throughout the show. I rated it about a 4.5. Very nice selection!\r\n\r\nThanks for choosing it.', '2013-03-24 23:44:01', 1, 'c9e6ec8a74533236abaa9bae78dd1cea', '112.200.20.61'),
(5292, '1166', 'episode', 'Brad Dolph', '', 'The first time I heard it the plot twist completely blindsided me.\r\n\r\nA few thoughts:\r\n\r\n- This play was based upon "The tragedy of the life raft" by Jacques Futrelle. Futrelle''s play was another one which featured his character "the thinking machine" (I believe that guy was in the RMT''s "The great brain" and maybe "The secret of the fifth bell"), but I thought it was wise of the scriptwriter not to put him in this one, and instead focus on Miss Harper as the detective.\r\n\r\n- If anything, Norman Rose was almost too nice in this role. The tidbits of the story I linked to above made Peter Ordway seem more fiendish than he was in the play.\r\n\r\n- What''s that RMT play from 1982 you reviewed which was an absolutely sordid story with Rose playing an older Louisiana plantation owner who tries to forcibly win the heart of his stepdaughter or something like that? Rose''s performance in that play was similar to this one, though his accent might have passed for northern Louisiana. In "The raft", I called his and Marian Seldes'' accents "Brookly-sippian". (I love it when Rose says: "Uh, Walpole, leave me will ya?") Still, that''s forgivable.\r\n\r\n- The music...this play and an RMT play called "The captain of the Polestar"  have an interlude that could be called "trouble on the water". You hear it every time Rose''s character has a flashback, and at the very end of Act 3. I heard it once used on the RMT play "The gratitude of the serpent". I like it a lot...piano with muted trumpets and muted trombones.\r\n\r\n- As I''ve said before, I wonder if CBS would produce a play today that had no less than four pieces of scripture referred to as done in this one: Mark 8:34-38 ("What doth it profit a man to gain the world and lose his soul"), Proverbs 11:4 ("Riches shall not profit in the day of revenge"), Timothy 6:10 ("Love of money is the root of all evil"), and Matthew 10:52 ("Those who live by the sword die by the sword").\r\n\r\n- Mandel Kramer is always fun to listen to as a detective. (I think he played one in "The edge of night", a TV show that many RMT cast members were culled from. He was fun to listen to as the Jack Webb-esque detective in the RMT''s "Cool Killer Carl".)', '2013-06-19 23:09:59', 1, 'c792917e07ef9656a9ac1a50ce223a0b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5293, '1166', 'episode', 'Fritz', '', 'it was lucky guesswork. When information is presented piecemeal, sometimes the visual details lend themselves to solving the riddle. For example,\r\n\r\nWhen the first evidence of the old man having one leg was presented, I thought, "ah, I''ll bet it was bitten off by a shark!"\r\n\r\nWhen it was made clear that Walpole was on the raft, I thought, "He is somehow in on this."\r\n\r\nWhen he was awarded one million from the will, it all made sense.\r\n\r\nThe plot twist was terrific, and it was far from obvious at the beginning. But again, once the pieces trickle in, the paths to solution begin to lessen.\r\n\r\nBy the way, fabulous observation about the Biblical references. I didn''t notice them readily until you made mention of them. Something I will start listen for in future shows!', '2013-03-27 15:02:41', 1, 'ca0959c9db1f77cbbaccd336211a371a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5294, '1166', 'episode', 'D. Dave', '', 'Scriptural references seem to be peppered throughout the RMT, particularly before the 1982 episodes. Funny how even in his darkest moments Peter Ordway (Rose) also makes references to God, such as in one of his flashbacks when he says people were "sayin'' they wanted coffee when they should have been sayin'' their prayers". (Obviously, his god (the appropriate term would actually be "false idol") is $$$$, for all the good it gets him.)\r\n\r\nSpeaking of the flashbacks, I forgot that the aforementioned piano/muted trumpet/muted trombone music bed was also used quite a bit in the RMT''s "The great white shark".\r\n\r\nI love it...listening to the dark, rolling piano melody one can visualize water on the ocean glimmering in the sun or moonlight, with added tension provided by the brass instruments.', '2013-03-27 15:30:46', 1, 'a616bf01bdd2168d0a2ba6ad42a7940d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5295, '1166', 'episode', 'Jill Brenda D.', '', 'I gave this one a 4. In my own rating system, I gave it an 8.5 and highly recommended it. It twisted and turned quite a bit and was well paced.\r\n\r\nWhat I''m noticing in many of the 1982 shows is that they are heavy on dialogue and short on action. They are paced WAY to slow. Acting is about the same, but there are too many historical recreations. It''s been awhile since i''ve heard a good horror story, or suspense story such as the Raft.\r\n\r\nJacques Futrell died on the Titanic for those who don''t know about the brief, but highly creative life that was ended too soon.', '2013-03-24 23:44:03', 1, '5cbea1aff8fa80feecc88f2e3cd9bb74', '112.200.20.61'),
(5296, '1166', 'episode', 'Lex', '', 'I thought the show to be enertaining enough. I have a bias about mysteries such as these being performed on the radio, as I prefer to read them. ''Escape'' did this show with the action on the raft...it was very good.', '2013-03-24 23:44:04', 1, '3e4690ed6da3839589da6e3bbe686eb6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5297, '1166', 'episode', 'Duran', '', 'I love the cbsrmt. Loved it as a teen and love it now. This is my first post in this website and like the idea. Good Job.\r\n\r\nAnyways. I really liked this story and would have given it a 5 out of 5 if there could have been one thing different.\r\n\r\nThe piliot should have been promised a million bucks if he would give up a leg for them to eat. Better than a shark? I dunno.\r\n\r\nBut the episods are what they are, great!', '2013-06-19 23:02:10', 1, '374a46a8e7ec194991a5ff379646d3d1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5298, '0071', 'episode', 'Elliot', '', 'If the last selection, “Help Somebodyâ€, denoted hope and redemption, “The Murder Museum “ is certainly its antagonist. It is a story of ruination. Certainly both tales are poignant. Salvation vs. Doom! Because the existence of either has a real potential, and a tremendous consequence in a given lifetime, their relevancies are shared. The polarity only differs in direction, not magnitude. So in either scenario, we the listeners are drawn to both from a very personal influence. It becomes a question of cause and effect. How much can a man overcome environment, due to his own nature, to rise out of ruination? The “Murder Museumâ€ portrays a man affected by horror in his youth. He watches an unloving and unfaithful mother, though once involved, get hacked to death by an enraged father. This is the story’s introduction. The stage is set. What are the consequences? Is there hope?\r\n\r\nIn evaluating such weighty considerations, we can do so from many approaches. One may start by asking, how did producers both overtly and covertly present Vincent, our protagonist?\r\nCertainly we know he witnessed the horror as a youth. We learn he becomes a painter of dark blacks and grays with flashes of red. His attitude is fatalistic. This much is clear, understandable and perhaps expected. Interestingly, it was my observation that his character also nicely portrayed the scars of this damage very effectively. It is here that we see the covert aspects. He is at times far from likeable, specifically when feeling sorry for himself and telling Lisa “that all he wants is for her to leave him aloneâ€. It is not far along in the story when we hear the two of them back together again. Superficially this is annoying and illogical. It is also true to life. A sick relationship exists.\r\n\r\nInstead of having Vincent express his torment for us with his thoughts, we, as Lisa, learn of his torment as the story moves along. He has small moments of joy, never to be believed by the steadfast listener, and certainly not by Vincent himself. These are intertwined by heavy melancholy. In fact, as we learn when Vincent witnesses a man abusing his wife, the melancholy is yet another shroud and only layers deeper terrors. These terrors are the heart of the story. Their depth, permanence and influence on Vincent are absolutely pervasive here! When reflecting on the conclusion of this story, could it have ended any other way?\r\n\r\nThe story, from start, development and conclusion is about his ruination. It is fantastic artistic license to have Vincent go the way his father did. Such irony! He is conscious, and trapped, by the knowledge of his past experience. He rebels against it. He lives with it. He accepts it and expresses it in his art, a true social representation of himself. It is so damn pervasive that he ends up murdering, as his father did. Perhaps less obvious is the fact that he murdered for much the same reason, namely betrayal. His mother betrayed his father and Galinari betrayed Vincent.\r\n\r\nSo what’s the point? If the story were simply trying to show that he commits murder in the end it would not have drama. The drama is created with the development of Vincent. It’s inevitable conclusion confirming all that is understood and felt while listening to the tale. Still the question is to be asked- is it inevitable because of who we discover Vincent to be or because it is a consequence that none could avoid? In other words, would all who grew up as Vincent fall subject to the same damages? It’s a good question, and I believe the answer is that most would suffer terrible damage and the remaining some various degree of damage. What is crucial to recognize involves the existence of this damage, at some level, would be universal. The inherent personality might involve some degree of protection. Nevertheless, this person here is truly a victim of outside influences and most unfortunate. They spend a lifetime with dark blacks, grays and flashes of red.\r\n\r\nThis gives an appreciation for the circumstances one may find themselves in, should they be fortunate. Any of us could have been born in Africa instead of the U.S. How would we be different? Life is not so black and white though. Could we have joy, security and happiness if we did not understand, and experience their counterparts- sorrow, uncertainty and misery?\r\n\r\nO God of earth and altar,\r\nBow down and hear our cry,\r\nOur earthly rulers falter,\r\nOur people drift and die;\r\nThe walls of gold entomb us,\r\nThe swords of scorn divide,\r\nTake not thy thunder from us,\r\nBut take away our pride.', '2013-03-24 23:44:05', 1, 'e171f989af4f220fa17c084c1bfd54e4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5299, '0071', 'episode', 'Erik Lensherr', '', 'Yea, what he said! \r\n\r\nCripes, how the heck does one follow that? Perhaps you should have tiltled your post "Deconstructing Vincent". Very good analysis, imo.\r\n\r\nThe problem that I had with the main character, Vincent, was how he was dealing (or lack thereof) with his own emotional instability. The tell-tale signs were all there in place (emotional trauma suffered from witnessing his mother''s death, the subsequent bad dreams he endured as a result of that murder, emotional outbursts, etc.) yet it seemed to me that he was in denial that he had a problem and chose to ignore the need to seek out any help for it. More importantly, why didn''t his friends try to get him any help? The fact that he nearly beat a man to death for abusing his wife on a public street in front of Lisa should have cued her in that Vincent needed some kind of professional help. Or how he would suddenly blurt out to her (twice) to "leave me alone" for no apparent reason was another key indicator of his instability. He was enveloped in this deep dark depression and was constantly exuding all of this negativity, yet he''s allowed to go through life like this untreated? To be honest, Lisa realized that Vincent did have some emotional problems and she did try to offer him solace by getting him to talk to her but it was taken no further than that. Vincent eventually confided (somewhat) with Lisa when he told her about his "one dream" and why he painted in such dreary colors as a means to rid himself of it.\r\n\r\nBut for any of this to have credibility, one would have to believe that attempts were made to get his life straightened out professionally...and that just wasn''t the case at all. His mentioning to Lisa that his childhood in the orphanage consisted of screams in the night due to his bad dreams and alienating himself from all the others seems to support this. Everyone just seemed to stand idly by and allow his situation to go from bad to worse.\r\n\r\nIf it wasn''t for that I would have rated it higher than the 3 that I gave it, otherwise, it was a very good story. Of course I did listen to it last night at 2 am, so it''s possible that I might have missed something with how this was being addressed.\r\n\r\nI also found it odd with how Vincent acquiesced with Galinari to make a sculpture of his parents, but then he suddenly freaks out when he discovers that Galinari used a different "medium" by casting their likeness in wax, depicting the scene of the murder. What was Vincent expecting when he agreed to allow him to sculpt BOTH of his parents? Why didn''t he inquire further when Galinari mentioned wanting to sculpt his father as well? That would have cued me in that there was something more to this than meets the eye.\r\n\r\nLike I said, it was a good story UNT...and kudos to you for an excellent analysis.', '2013-03-27 15:02:51', 1, '08cf8002d3f5c86df5dd2f1312577c8e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5300, '0071', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'Wow! This, for me was a terrific pick. Just when I assumed I knew what was coming, it all changed. This was a very, very sad yet moving tale. Especially, the ending when he confronts the wax figures. I haven''t had an RMT keep me on edge like this in quite a while.\r\n\r\nMy applause goes out to the writer, Henry Schlesser (sp?) for adapting such incredible dialogue and giving this episode such incredible visualization. He was able to create a thorough stage for the players to work on, that in the mind''s eye, it was easy to put myself in each scene and witness the events.\r\n\r\nThe characters were ordinary and had occupations that were easily identifiable, further enhancing the visual illusion. For example, Vincent became a waiter. Anyone can imagine the role of a waiter, with food, drink, and a clean white shirt, so just the mention of the word "waiter" fills the character with rich color.\r\n\r\nProfessor Galinari, with his slightly nefarious intonation and concern, was as convincing as the creepy fellow from Hickory Dickory Doom and the devilish character from A Crack in the Wall.\r\n\r\nThe Museum Tour Guide was my favorite. Toward the end of the episode, he is giving the tour to a group about to see the new Raymond Murder exhibit. His dialogue was thoroughly convincing, well-spoken, and the crisp rasp of his voice lent the same flavor as a carnival barker.\r\n\r\nHere is an excerpt from some of the dialogue of the Museum Tour guide. Please note how fluidly and intelligently the words flow:\r\n\r\n"...and here ladies and gentlemen you see the notorious mass murder of Huntersville, Nebraska. He not only dispatched his victims with poison, but then mutilated their bodies in the dreadful fashion you see before you.\r\n\r\n(gasps and awe from the crowd)\r\n\r\nAnd now if you will step to the next exhibit, you''ll see the latest addition to Professor Galinari''s World Famous Murder Museum. For the first time in any house of wax, the horrifying axe murder of one of the most glamorous women ever to appear on the American stage. They called her the beautiful Arda, and yes Arda was beautiful; as beautiful as she was faithless, and one day her wealthy, manufacturer husband, John Lloyd Raymond, returned home from a business trip... excuse me sir, but I''m not through with this... I, I, I..."\r\n\r\n(Vincent Raymond interrupts and demands to see Prof. Galinari)\r\n\r\nI won''t go into the whole thing about when he was a child, or psychology, but let me say that this episode could certainly be analyzed to a great degree, I''m sure!\r\n\r\nThank you for one of the best picks I''ve heard in quite a while. I gave a full 5 rating and will surely have to listen to it again to pick up more of the subtle details I may have missed!', '2013-03-24 23:44:07', 1, '1a7411abf351d52a13a8a3c098095428', '112.200.20.61'),
(5301, '0071', 'episode', 'Anne', '', 'I think you are right that "technically speaking" Vincent seemed to do little to help himself. Lisa is also apparently oblivious to psychological help that would be available from health proffesionals. Still, with artistic license we could stretch our imaginations a bit and tell ourselves that these things are going on in the background and we only see his problems without much apparent attempt to correct them. When considering the bottom line, that he is damaged goods, and how this is manifested in the radio program is where my appreciation for the story comes alive. I am glad you enjoyed it.....Until Next Time.\r\np.s.- I believe we are supposed to submit our reviews before reading any others as a way to present the views without influence.', '2013-03-24 23:44:07', 1, 'b5286e5ca5b2075bc228982e16768873', '112.200.20.61'),
(5302, '0071', 'episode', 'Joshua', '', 'I just finished reading your thoughts. I have to say, I\\''m really impressed at the consideration you put into your post. So much of these shows skips by, leaving me with only the flavour of the peak moments, but it\\''s great when someone captures the entity as a whole and speaks so well in regard to it.\r\n\r\nI also wanted to point out that at the end of the tale, he did in fact murder Professor Galinari. But note the fact that he not only went the same route as his father, he actually performed the same brutal act as his father, by hacking his mother up with an axe! Even more ironic, depsite it being a wax representation of his mother.\r\n\r\nLastly, I was curious to the quoting of Gilbert Chesterton. Any reason for choosing that bit of ministerial poetry?\r\n\r\nAgain, thanks for a terrific pick!', '2013-03-24 23:44:08', 1, '584120f663c82050da7a980f509312b9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5303, '0071', 'episode', 'Jercs Soltes', '', 'That is so true, and at the time of the review I''d forgoten that hacked up the wax figure while screaming "It was your fault...your fault." His acting was excellent, to boot! This ending really adds to the chilling aspect of the story. I really enjoy these shows because they are often so drama filled that all one needs to do is listen and become moved. Thank you for your compliment on my review, and I am really happy to learn you enjoyed it.\r\n\r\nThe Chesterton poetry was placed there because I was listening to music that begins with this opening of the poem. It really doesn''t fit particularily with the story, I only believe it to be a great bit of poetry. In fact, most poetry is lost on me, but this one somehow hits home. I''m impressed you knew it was Chesterton. I had read his mysteries long before I learned he was also a poet. ....I have another show in mind that I am certain you will like in the future.', '2013-03-24 23:44:08', 1, 'e0ddc9bba9805a87a458b00523b8b7db', '112.200.20.61'),
(5690, '0597', 'episode', 'Dale haskell', 'dhdalehaskell1@gmail.com', 'ALSO...Larry Haines did play some more stable characters in his early days in radio. He even played Mike Hammer in THAT HAMMER GUY (if you can consider Mike Hammer stable).', '2013-03-30 02:07:58', 1, 'fb7b0a2376fb5997c28db26e01011b91', '67.240.122.10'),
(5691, '0004', 'episode', 'Kristin', 'harlowgoldblonde@hotmail.com', 'George Matthews who plays the brutish, lout of a husband was usually cast as a big, dumb henchman, worker,side-kick, etc. in his roles.  He was in a classic "The Honeymooners" episode where his much smaller and meek looking friend is holding a pool table while he was somewhere else and Ralph and ED Norton come in and take the pool table and the meek guy starts saying that his friend."Harvey", I think was the name of the character George Matthews was playing got the table before they did and he was going to start trouble with Ralph if he didn''t let them have the pool table.  Well, Ralph thought the friend was a small wimpy guy like him and starting mocking him and "Harvey". Of course , when Harvey shows up and Ralph is shocked to see the big tough Harvey he starts "ahummanah, a-humminaing" and Ed Norton makes things worse by challenging Ralph to beat up Harvey in a fight at the local gym.  I guess with a face and voice like George Matthews had he was pretty much typecast in those types of roles.  I also agree with the comments about the wimpy piano student.  It wasn''t very believable that he could fight his way out of a paper bag, much less the husband.', '2013-03-30 02:08:05', 1, 'd712724bc7a30e03b90b0fa6fa752f58', '63.27.76.113'),
(5683, '0694', 'episode', 'Eric', 'Ericf17980@aol.com', 'This one had a nice little twist at the end!', '2013-03-27 15:41:59', 1, '6b3b58091e11c29de7c14b65a523e011', '68.33.184.97'),
(5308, '0071', 'episode', 'Lyndon B.', '', 'I found The Murder Museum to be a dramatic and involving story. I wasn''t sure how it would end, and the ending wasn''t what I expected. I guess I expected Vincent to have been the one who killed his mother, and the emotion was guilt and not trauma. The acting was skillful, especially Robert Dryden, as usual. Very good writing. Based on those things, I gave the show a 4. But it''s a low 4, for one reason that may sound strange -- the title. For me the title, before listening to the show the first time (about 2 mos. ago), conjured up some image of people locked in a spooky wax museum at night, and they can''t get out, and the exhibits start to come to life. Or they discover some scavenger hunt, relating to the exhibits, where they have to figure out clues, etc. So while I thought this was a very good RMT, I thought the title was wasted in a sense. The museum aspect didn''t really figure fundamentally in the story -- the wax sculptor could have recreated the murder without the setting of a museum, in a painting in a cottage somewhere or something, and it would have had the same effect, maybe more because it would have focused completely on Vincent. Maybe the wax museum could be seen as suggestive of Vincent''s violent past, etc., but I didn''t get it that way. Upon listening to the show again tonight, I got the same impression. But this is just my "take" on certain aspects of the show, bottom line is, I enjoyed listening to this show both times and like the story itself.', '2013-03-24 23:44:09', 1, 'fb4c799bdef3e8e11e0224fd2aee245d', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5309, '0071', 'episode', 'Benjie F.', '', 'Michael Wager, a.k.a. "Vincent". (I know there may be no connection, but the first person I thought of was Vincent Van Gogh...also a haunted man.) I like Wager''s work...his "The teddy bear" and "The ninth volume" (the latter was too short of a story) are RMTs I enjoy listening to.\r\n\r\nTremendous episode. What''s the old saying: "Those who don''t learn from the mistakes of history are doomed to repeat them?"\r\n\r\nThat saying can be modified to include family history as well. (The reason this hits home is thinking about both myself and family members who''ve made certain mistakes (because they''ve developed habits and patterns of doing so) and who have kids who make the same mistakes, who have kids who make the same mistakes...)\r\n\r\nE.G. made a comparison of our minds and haunted houses, saying that our minds (without therapy to release them) are like haunted houses inhabited by ghosts of the pasts. So many of these RMTs were fascinating psychological studies.\r\n\r\nThe best fantasies seem to be written by those who have a firm grasp of reality...the RMT had several such writers.\r\n\r\nOh...and Marian Seldes voice.... I hope she recorded an audiotape for children...her voice is the stuff of lullabies. (I know she apparently did write a children''s book for her daughter.)', '2013-03-27 15:17:05', 1, '4e26ac12100dea1b5baaa442211b1bfa', '112.200.20.61'),
(5310, '0071', 'episode', 'Ritchelle Carmen', '', 'I hadn\\''t remembered E.G. Marshall\\''s remark about haunted houses. The \\''museum\\'' angle has, in addition, the aspect of history. Also, the more shows I listen to, the more I\\''m reminded how radio actors bring one thing to their craft -- their voices and the ability to use them creatively. And unlike video media, I don\\''t associate one actor with one role, because I am not limited by a visual image. The imagination fits the voice to the role.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:44:10', 1, 'a7130b913a707c59ab5d0beeb03257da', '112.200.20.61'),
(5311, '0071', 'episode', 'Jerome Juggs', '', 'I think his voice an acting made the show. Both were congruent to a miserable character.', '2013-03-24 23:44:11', 1, '335e070b8fa6fed4f7d816845b5be81a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5312, '0071', 'episode', 'Yvonne', '', 'You know, there is still a way for you to \\"quote\\" someone using code. Let me explain and I hope it helps!', '2013-03-24 23:44:12', 1, 'd4d91fad8e377275ad9f97c9271ad850', '112.200.20.61'),
(5313, '0071', 'episode', 'Marlon B.', '', 'About Wager''s voice, yep, he did make the character. "The Teddy Bear" was, actually, the scariest RMT to me in my early days because it was based on truth. (CBS ran a special around 1992 called "Mind control secrets of the Soviet Union"...based apparently on what "Teddy Bear" was written about, but I never saw the show, only promos.)\r\n\r\nWager and Seldes made an interesting pair...after reviewing this show I heard on Monday (for the first time) "The Sire de Malatroit''s door". Both performers were featured on that show as well.', '2013-03-24 23:44:12', 1, '40e324fe039e64514e73fd0d1e650ac7', '112.200.20.61'),
(5314, '0071', 'episode', 'J. Valentine', '', 'THE MURDER MUSEUM. Dark and dismal from the start. The destroyed son’s fate can only be further destruction. Horror-9.', '2013-03-24 23:44:13', 1, 'e1b8d51fa614af5d31f95c1994106fe1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5315, '0743', 'episode', 'Jimmy N.', '', 'It’s a nice story. No bloodshed, doom or ruination. Taken with a grain of salt it isn’t half bad.', '2013-03-24 23:44:14', 1, 'd959ca6c2c73da7668cbacec97d475fd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5316, '0743', 'episode', 'Wacky', '', ' While this episode did not appeal to my taste for the macabre, it certainly reached my fondness for Celtic folklore. Sam Dann created an excellent piece that remains true to the classics and offered it up in a more contemporary scenario (tho set in the late 1800''s).\r\n\r\nFor those not aware of it, there is a book of very old bard-like tales called, The Mabinogion.\r\n\r\nThis book is filled with some of the most bizarre and alluring Celtic and Welsh tales of folklore that I''ve ever read. Being that it originates from the Gaelic period, some of the tales often leave you scratching your head, but most of them contain the same themes found in folklore from around the world. If interested, I recommend checking out the story of Pwyll, (pronounced Poo-ill).\r\n\r\nI enjoyed this tale because of the fact that salt is the primary element in the tale. Salt is white, symbolizing purity; salt has healing properties; salt is a flavor enhancer; salt is a cleaning agent; etc, etc. "Salt of the Earth" represents the working class, which obviously our character''s family was. And of course, our own physiology depends upon sodium chloride for us to live and breath..\r\n\r\nIt was powerful in that the father figure tried to convince the Old Man in the Rock that he was not out for personal gain, though we all know he had his mind set to be rich. But when the honest twist of fate came upon him, he seemed to roll with it, understanding there was good fortune to be found despite not attaining any material wealth.\r\n\r\nWhat a very beautiful and uplifting ending to the tale. And the fact that the daughter was so concerned that the salt-shaker was "very valuable" made it even more poignant.\r\n\r\nThis is a tale that can be taken both lightly and jovially and then forgotten, or which could be read into deeply to find honesty in humanity. The passion of the wife/mother over her concern that the old man be able to use the salt speaks very loudly about her personal character.\r\n\r\nThe performances were right on, especially in that actors had to be effective and believable in the character dialect. The production was very good, as is typical of Himan Brown. But the real kudos, in my opinion go to Sam Dann for writing such a humble yet stirring episode that I shall be happy to listen to again.\r\n\r\nI gave it a 4.4 and thank you for a fine selection!\r\n\r\nbest wishes,', '2013-03-27 15:38:15', 1, '4e33639a349ed7baed41357dc852bf96', '112.200.20.61'),
(5684, '0307', 'episode', 'Joseph Nicolosi', 'Jnicolosi97@gmail.com', 'Decent science fiction.  I''d give it 6 out of 10.  Wish they had thought of a more clever way to put an end to the problem but I guess confusing men is a good a way as any.  As we look at the way our country today seems to be coordinated to move in a certain direction against the will of the people this story, altho implausible, has merit.  Always fun to see how the past looked at the future.  No one predicted cell phones let alone smart phones etc. but a robot to look completely human was no problem!', '2013-03-27 15:58:33', 1, '047ecf54124ddad51c4169d294a75d66', '75.135.70.101'),
(5317, '0743', 'episode', 'Jhace', '', 'Very nicely put.', '2013-03-24 23:44:15', 1, '37f4d1098c3ed941f9a5799b09f079ae', '112.200.20.61'),
(5318, '0743', 'episode', 'Lheena', '', 'I gave it a 4.\r\n\r\nNicely told tale that is well paced with well developed characters.\r\n\r\nBoth Raeburn and Keane were outstanding with their Irish accents.\r\n\r\nI, too, tend to favor tales of the macabre. However, this was a nice diversion. It''s lighthearted, whimsical nature reminds me of "The Frammis" which also stars Fred Gwynne.', '2013-03-24 23:44:16', 1, '226f7ff54ba4bb882cd16e9326ab0d41', '112.200.20.61'),
(5319, '0743', 'episode', 'Henry C.', '', 'I''ve listened to this episode before and enjoyed it again the second time. My impressions this time were the same:\r\nThe beginning of Act 1 is the longest single take I''ve heard in a RMT show (it lasts almost ten minutes); what great repartee between Katie and the Sergeant (I mean, tell me they aren''t going to hook up); I am more and more impressed with radio actors, when they can sustain accents like these for prolonged periods (especially Terri Keane, I didn''t even realize it was her at first); Fred Gwynne is excellent as usual, but top billing could have gone to Lloyd Batista; a story is a good one when it is predictable and you still enjoy it; I like the touch of Sousa at the end; and finally, a great ending line, "would you like to go home with me and ... meet me mother?". If you like this show, check out one of my all-time favorites, A Very Dear Ghost Indeed (760920). I like hearing new shows on this episode but I''m also finding that when the show is one I''ve heard before, I often gain things I missed the first time.', '2013-03-27 15:17:19', 1, '30eded0bd96e5079bfc12ccbeb13dc5c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5320, '0743', 'episode', 'Jackie', '', 'If I can "piggyback" on what you said:\r\n\r\n- I ALWAYS love learning things, sayings, nuances, pronunciations, on the RMT. They were indeed some talented scriptwriters and actors. I had never heard the phrase "drawing a long bow" before this episode.\r\n\r\n- I''ve said before I get kick out of when Lloyd Battista does his "hoarse Irish cop" routine. (I''ve heard it a couple of times, but the one I remember is from "I thought I saw a shadow"...a show I always enjoy playing.) Here he''s just doing his "Irish cop" accent, but it''s still enjoyable.', '2013-03-27 15:03:01', 1, '4080395b9073b83bc4f44025724363cd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5321, '0743', 'episode', 'Eddie', '', 'How funny! Actually, yes, it was a coincidence! Huh! How cool is that? I''m glad you pointed it out.', '2013-03-24 23:44:18', 1, '873988a2d26c7f9d382f6d603334c886', '112.200.20.61'),
(5322, '0380', 'episode', 'Christine', '', 'One thing about I cherish about the RMT episodes is that there are so many styles and genres that the writers often tackled. Most of the shows I seem to gravitate toward are one\\''s that ask me, \\"What would I do in the same position?\\"\r\n\r\nI recall that some of the old Kojak and Columbo tv shows often allowed the viewer to see from the antagonist point of view. I enjoyed those 70\\''s programs! This crime-style drama plays out in a way that I found quite interesting.&nbsp;<br>', '2013-03-15 14:29:00', 1, '034cbbc2b2c88d823fe53cd2734f499b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5323, '0380', 'episode', 'Lando C.', '', 'I have to say, I listened to this one a few weeks ago and liked it alot. It really drew me in and kept me interested because I wasn''t sure how it would all end. And the main character''s moral dilemma made for good drama. It''s extremely rare that a writer can take a criminal character and persuade me to sympathize with him, but this story did just that. A very well-written (and well-acted) radio play.', '2013-03-15 14:29:35', 1, '5ebddd33b35d8803ab1a076d5d9026d5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5324, '0380', 'episode', 'F. Clyde', '', '"Sympathize" is right, Steve. Excellent, excellent program.\r\n\r\nThis one worked, IMO, in a way for radio that maybe it couldn''t have for TV.\r\n\r\nOstensibly, we were to believe that those targeted for murder weren''t innocent. Still, there''s a sense of empathy one feels for the characters when you hear their voices as they immediately confront certain death. The woman who daSilva''s character was assigned to kill really haunted me for some reason (because it haunted him, and that''s all from the execution (no pun intended) by the actors and scriptwriter.)\r\n\r\nda Silva rocked. He had the way of saying lines like "Thou shalt not kill...thou shalt not kill" that gave one pause.\r\n\r\nOne other thing. I found out Larry Morse acted in the RMT''s "The trouble with murder". One of the stars of "The moonlighter" was RMT regular Bob Kaliban (who apparently was quite the singer) who starred with Morse in "How to succeed in business without really trying". My Mom and Dad used to have that album (I still remember Morse singing the title song)...BOY how I''d love to find that thing but I think we sold it.', '2013-03-15 14:29:05', 1, '3888c26d8d26552c7e45e0f4251d616a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5325, '0380', 'episode', 'Belle', '', 'FYI, it was Robert Morse who was featured in both \\"The Trouble with Murder\\" and \\"How to Succeed.\\" A brilliant performer to say the least! Thanks for reminding me of that soundtrack. I\\''d nearly forgotten it. Now, to get to my nearest record store to find it!<br>', '2013-03-15 14:25:43', 1, '593a927233e7cf16ddbefb0b150f86f1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5326, '0380', 'episode', 'Pip S.', '', 'I gave this show a 4 based on the acting and the dialogue, which were solid. Howard Dasilva brings a gravity to this type of role. There were some sound effects (the footsteps out the back stair after the first shooting) which recalled the crime shows of OTR. I don\\''t believe a person can slip into murder that easily. I think most people would freeze when they looked at the person they were going to shoot. On the other hand, people will do alot for money (especially if they\\''re afraid of losing someone for lack of it). And today there are probably people who would do such things just for the thrill of it, without needing the money at all. The sound quality of this show was very good, and I always get a kick out of the ads. I hadn\\''t remembered Mel Blanc\\''s \\''normal\\'' voice being so, well, normal. Looking back on listening to RMT 25 years ago, there was the occasional transcendental experience when a particularly good ghost story would coincide with a great thunderstorm (with the radio signal fading in and out for atmosphere), but most of the shows I remember were like this one, solid dramas that kept me tuned in for the whole show.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:29:21', 1, 'e303d11c01fec641c2a658fc8badb8ea', '112.200.20.61'),
(5327, '0380', 'episode', 'Erik Lensherr', '', 'I think the story was entertaining and very thought provoking. It seems that if it weren’t for that thing called a conscious, we could all be Moonlighting. I could use the money. The motives for becoming a hit man were rather flimsy- he married a rich woman and she couldn’t help herself in her spending ways…though this is a minor point and it is restructured and supported when we learn that Stanley is tired of working all his life with nothing to show for it. This is a sentiment I think many can appreciate. Still, the strength of the story lies in its provoking the consideration of killing someone for gain. It is mentioned in the story that killing others in war is justified. It is then reintroduced as being justified when protecting the family. From here our Protagonist’s friend, Frank, asserts that he is simply taking care of his family. The real arbitrator here is the Conscious. I believe it was the end of act 2 when Stanley is dumbfounded at how he has no remorse after his first kill. He states out loud that it seems he has no conscious. The act ends beautifully when Frank states in a matter of fact manner that he has no conscious. It really struck home. The fact that Stanley is concerned about not feeling remorse suggest he has something resembling a conscious left. It is a dead-end road for these fellows, and their conscious minds were simply dormant, “asleep for a whileâ€. Redemption is achieved by acting out against the character that truly doesn’t have a conscious…a born antisocial? Another question stimulated. We don’t know for sure as we have not had the opportunity to get to know Mr. Akroyd ( 3 cheers Bob Dryden…a Bang out job, he always Shoots for the stars)…but antisocial personalities exist and he is a good candidate for that classification. Our “heroesâ€ do the right thing, eliminate Mr. Akroyd and get their sense of identity back. Too bad they ruined their lives in the meantime. Hardly seems worth it after all is said and done. The answer to the characters ongoing question is answered and the show ends with a bang….or two…or three.', '2013-03-15 14:29:30', 1, '2bf103e8a92a82efc34e1fd7c26f5c7f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5328, '0380', 'episode', 'Kerrigan', '', 'I still think Budweiser is not even remotely the King of Beers, except with advertising. I refer to the opening add of the show with the \\"humpa music\\".', '2013-03-15 14:29:39', 1, 'b61c23c97c059cac98a8b72a8286d9cc', '112.200.20.61'),
(5329, '0380', 'episode', 'Lex', '', 'When I think of the jobs I have had throughout my life, I sometimes shake my head, laugh, and think, \\"What was I thinking?\\" Of course, nothing even comes close to the folks in this story.\r\n\r\nWhile the story moves quickly and quite smoothly, there are still lingering elements that make me think, \\"would anybody really stoop to that level, even in desparation? I don\\''t know. With the state of the world as it is today, I tend to think most of us have common problems. Despite being overwhelming sometimes, we take comfort in knowing that the rest of the world endures them as well. It gives us that allowance for thinking that our problems are not necessarily the biggest ones out there.\r\n\r\nBut my only \\"peeve\\" with this tale was just that. The lead character seemed too easily sold on the idea of such a macabre occupation. It would make more sense if he had previously had a criminal past, not an honorable, military background. He pondered and warted over the decision, but I don\\''t know... I guess I just wasn\\''t sold on the idea that he would be that far gone.\r\n\r\nI suppose for the amount of time to unfold a tale like this, they had to get to the point quickly. And it was gotten to quickly with only Himan Brown precision. This man was nothing shy of a genius when it came to locking an entire episode into 50 minutes. Amazing!\r\n\r\nI really enjoyed the way the story fell back on itself in the end, giving us a recovered murderer, for lack of a better term. I didn\\''t see it coming. For me, a great episode allows me to \\"put myself in their shoes.\\" This one gave me satisfaction on that count, even though I think – er, I hope – I\\''d choose a different route.&nbsp;<br>', '2013-03-15 14:28:46', 1, '520fdc09cd4c03516fa5bafe7cd1c844', '112.200.20.61'),
(5330, '0379', 'episode', 'Rio', '', 'I must say- I hated this episode. A dull ghost falls in love with a Bimbo who is married to an idiot who befreinds a mindless crook. I could care less what happens in the episode because each character is useless. I set my criteria of the value of a show based on relevency..this one was irrelevant.', '2013-03-15 14:29:52', 1, 'f056c96bac51c8562d41250cf8ffad25', '112.200.20.61'),
(5331, '0379', 'episode', 'Justin Ralph', '', 'I found this show interesting for the combination of horror, crime drama, romance and a little comedy at first. The juxtaposition didn\\''t quite gel, but I enjoyed it because of the attempt. So while Roy and Steve weren\\''t entirely believable as crooks, the notion of setting up a crooks\\'' den in a haunted house has been used many times in different media, ranging from Charlie Chan to the Hardy Boys, and I never get tired of it. And while Ralph Bell\\''s Noah didn\\''t menace or evoke sympathy, his voice is perfectly suited to a ghostly role and I\\''m glad he got one! In fact, the ghostly narrator angle was interesting because it is a ghostly narrator within another, EG Marshall and the squeaking door. And at the end, when Noah warns Steve of eternal damnation, to me it sounded exactly like The Shadow warning a hoodlum that his \\"trail of murder and mayhem will end in the death-house\\" -- I got a real hoot out of that. So although this show didn\\''t entirely work (I can\\''t believe Roy would be so casual about the idea of his wife being \\"wasted\\", for one), I got a kick out of it just because of all the traditional elements being pulled together into one story, and I enjoyed this show quite a bit.', '2013-03-15 14:25:20', 1, '4657aa46b7349abee3df254850179f57', '112.200.20.61'),
(5332, '0379', 'episode', 'Leah Andrea S.', '', 'The most appealing episodes for me are the ones that combine either horror and psychology, mystery and murder, or even some kind of spiritual depth that gets me thinking about my own existence.\r\n\r\nThis particular episode, I think, is more of a light-hearted tale which might appeal to a more general audience. My taste aside, it was interesting how the characters reacted as typically they do in so often a many ghost tale: they stay in the house.\r\n\r\nIIf I were in a house that had even the nicest ghost, I\\''d be out of there before you could say \\"Ghostbusters!\\"\r\n\r\nWhy do these people stay? Please... someone tell me! Anyhow, coming back to my personal taste, I found this to be a predictably weak episode. The characters were flat and uninspiring, especially the ghost, despite being fairly well performed.\r\n\r\nI blame the writer on this one. No character development, no depth of emotion from anyone, and a plot that had about as many twists as a new yard stick. It surprised me how light this was for RMT. I was also a bit shocked at the husband actually slapping his wife. Even for RMT, that was a bit harsh. What was worse was her lame reaction! Again, the writer is to blame.\r\n\r\nIt seems like the episode wanted to be crime, drama, comedy, love story, horror and mystery all in the same breath. But, as I\\''ve come to find, too many ingredients in the soup make only for unsavory broth.\r\n\r\nOne thing that I did get from this show, was in one of the commercials. It was a commercial for Chock Full O\\'' Nuts Coffee. It began with that hysterical song, \\"Chock Full O\\'' Nuts is that Flaaaaaavorful Coffee, that Flaaaaaavorful Coffee...\\" and then went into a narrative. The man says something like, \\"Chock Full O\\'' Nuts is full of the most expensive beans money can buy, and by spending a lot of money on good beans, YOU get the best flavor.\\" How\\''s that for marketing! Yikes!<br>', '2013-03-15 14:30:57', 1, '960ed67a579d1e1e35be178006e65037', '112.200.20.61'),
(5333, '0379', 'episode', 'A. Lambert', '', 'I couldn\\''t get the voice of Julie out of my head-rather, I couldn\\''t recall what was so familiar about it. She reminded me of actress Dorothy Comingore\\''s portrayal of Susan Alexander Kane in Orson Welle\\''s \\"Citizen Kane.\\"\r\n\r\nI didn\\''t care much for either character. Julie is a hapless boob like so many others in horror who always \\"go down in the basement\\" or \\"open that door\\" after the audience has begged them not to.\r\n\r\nWhy doesn\\''t Noah let them \\"waste\\" her? Seems like maybe he would have been happier that way, but of course there\\''s the possibilty that he would have felt guilty about stealing another man\\''s woman the way his was...\r\n\r\nHey, can\\''t win \\''em all, I guess. The actors did a good job, but I have to wonder if the characters came to life the way the writer intended. &nbsp;The Money Makers left me with the same feeling I get after a bowl of plain oatmeal.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:30:08', 1, '99e0ddce2f9a399d391f7f9e184ecbc3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5334, '0043', 'episode', 'Rey Christian', '', 'I liked the all-star cast in this one...there were at least four and maybe five very recognizeable RMT voices in there and that''s usually a treat with a decent script.\r\n\r\nA little strange (IMO) how they linked the "walls of Jericho" tale from the Bible into this near program''s end, but remembering how my friends here have advised us to listen to this it didn''t diminish the enjoyability of this episode. I liked the background music each time the announced entities woud appear in the club. The banter between the members (i.e. Ralph Bell and Guy Sorrell) was enjoyable too.\r\n\r\nAt my former job in the Atlanta area, we had a consultant who was Harvard educated and lived in the NYC area. He was so proud of his membership in some Harvard-related book or reading club in the area...I kept thinking of him while hearing this. (And he was an intelligent man who was fascinating to listen to...not meaning to put him down at all.)', '2013-03-15 14:26:47', 1, '9fcadc40f4fe041dbe04a77fe98b9727', '112.200.20.61'),
(5335, '0043', 'episode', 'Joanne N.', '', 'I enjoyed this show quite a bit. It was fun waiting to see if the things he wrote about on the note would happen and then waiting to see what he''d come up with the next time.\r\n\r\nThe whole time I wondered why they picked the Walls of Jericho title because it didn''t seem to fit in until they explained it at the end. I was nearly convinced I was listening to the wrong episode after not hearing any reference to the title. Shortly after that thought, EG came on and mentioned the title (if I remember correctly).\r\n\r\nI loved the ending and the explanation of how they were seeing the things mentioned in the bulletin board notes. Very good episode IMO.', '2013-03-15 14:26:53', 1, 'a5496367bb8237529ccae3667477f4d1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5336, '0043', 'episode', 'Elaine Habana', '', 'This was an interesting tale. I also thought I was listening to the wrong episode because the title didn''t seem to fit until it was explaned at the end. I liked how when more details were given in the note that the people seeing them saw the same things, for example, in the first note few details were given so each person saw different colors for the devel''s cloak. At the first EG talked about magic. I think that is how many magicians work is by mass suggestion as well as misdirection.', '2013-03-15 14:27:39', 1, '37510fb0382bc3d78fe7d4e3acc79537', '112.200.20.61'),
(5337, '0043', 'episode', 'Rico', '', 'I''ve listened to this program a few times and though I enjoyed it, I didn''t think there was anything spectacular about it. The story was solid and the acting was good but I''m not a huge fan of Elspeth Eric''s writing. I say this and yet I thoroughly enjoyed her Glass Bubble program (as recommended by Tina). The main character''s demise was a bit tragic given that he was beaten down by the other characters and never saw the justice he sought. One note I made: There were bits of the music that seemed oddly upbeat/comical during portions of the program that I thought a dramatic effect would have been more appropriate.', '2013-03-15 14:27:47', 1, 'a82fa3286580b98be4f8f6bd44c8642d', '112.200.20.61'),
(5338, '0043', 'episode', 'Erik Lensherr', '', 'i thought the acting was up to the usual excellent rmt standards. i recognized several i had heard before. the sound effects were good. good character developement and i liked the music. the one drawback was the leap to mass hypnosis. i couldn''t do it. it''s like a good sci-fi drama if you can just make that leap of faith the rest falls into place. i don''t think i explained that right. for example. in one cbsrmt show i remember the plot had something to do with the bermuta triangle. it was a good show but you have to believe that something strange happens there. when i first heard it i did think something funny was going on but i don''t anymore. maybe i''m just getting old and cinical. i hope i spelled that right.\r\ni still enjoyed the show. i started feeling sorry for the servant guy but i think he went too far. in the end i guess he went way too far.', '2013-03-15 14:27:50', 1, '3df5199b3210b4a62cf52f9d778e58d6', '112.200.20.61'),
(5339, '0043', 'episode', 'Lance', '', 'Well, I\\''m nearly a month late for this show of the week but I just had to comment on it because it\\''s one of my favorite episodes. It\\''s a very offbeat, witty little tale and not at all predictable--a breath of fresh air. I found it to be very entertaining, and all the actors were absolutely terrific. And it was a perfect story for a radio play, as we never really saw for sure whether these apparitions appeared or not, despite the various characters\\'' reactions to them.\r\n\r\nI did think that the death of the old club retainer at the end of the story seemed sad, bitter though he was, and I wondered if it was necessary. I also, like most everyone else, wondered about the title when I first heard the episode, and even after I\\''d heard the explanation at the end I still thought the connection with the story was a bit tenuous. However, after having pondered these things a bit, I think that both the death and the walls of jericho explanation make sense thematically.\r\n\r\nI finally realized that the overriding them of this story concerns the idea that if enough people believe something to be true, it makes it so. The majority rules, the minority loses out--hence the death of the old man. It was a sad thing, and not really fair, especially since he was more witty and imaginative than any of the club members, but sad or no, that\\''s just sort of the way the world works. Thematically, his death rings true---if a little shocking, in such a light humorous tale.\r\n\r\nThis story could pertain to a particular society, political regime, or to the religion of your choosing, just as easily as to the stuffy men\\''s club Elspeth Eric gives us. The minority--- the little guy or gal, the oddball, the independent thinker, the creative genius, the visionary, the artist-----these individuals can have it tough, standing in the face of the overwhelming opposition, solidarity, and often the ignorance (or even outright stupidity) of the majority. They sometimes get mown down, like our old retainer in the story.\r\n\r\nOn a deeper level, this play comments on the nature of society, and on human nature. I think Elspeth Eric was wise to cushion this underlying theme in an offbeat, humorous little setting. Like they say, \\"a spoonful of sugar...\\" The men\\''s club was, if I may be so bold, a metaphor for society. (Sherwood Schwartz has always said that \\"Gilligan\\''s Island\\", as he originally conceived it, was meant to be a microcosm of society and all its stratas. We\\''ll overlook the fact that there were no ethnic minorities on the island--old Sherwood did the best he could. Besides, perhaps their absence in itself is a comment on their status in society at the time; non-existent.)\r\n\r\nAnyway, I liked this play. The episode was entertaining, kept me wondering and guessing, and ended up working on another level the deeper I dug.&nbsp;<br>', '2013-03-15 14:27:34', 1, '53a96ded07ac041a341f1e3c2cdcc3f4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5340, '0043', 'episode', 'Jadelson', '', 'Alot of fun.', '2013-03-15 14:30:20', 1, '3ea2dc8a384d07d55847e90aa02cec9f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5341, '0043', 'episode', 'Dwarde Malcolm', '', 'Another episode I finally managed to catch up on!\r\n\r\nAnd I must say, I was delighted with this one. In part, because I\\''m from Boston and I can say I can certainly appreciate the caricatures of the gentlemen in the club. The air of aristocracy in this city is something of mythic proportion, but alas, it is real.\r\n\r\nI also enjoyed it, because I didn\\''t know where it was going. By the end, it was a wonderfully tied knot that needed no further explaination or investigation. I was happy on all accounts, except of course the death of Drindle. He was served with his desserts, but perhaps to an extreme.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:30:24', 1, '345d4075ca492526f75479e4f5f9b0d1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5342, '0034', 'episode', 'Ken Harris', '', 'Typical Elspeth Eric, this one. That\\''s not necessarily a good thing. However, I have to say that I actually think this episode is one of my favorites. It\\''s creepy and weirdly compelling. You can\\''t help but keep listening to find out what\\''s going to happen next. And I think that the format of eavesdropping on the intimate, hour-long confessional of a psychiatrist\\''s session works really well in an hour-long audio drama. The two people trapped in the dark in the cave--just voices--works very well, for the same reason. I think all the actors are excellent, too, in such a difficult piece.\r\n\r\nIf there\\''s a moral to the story, I\\''d have to say that it\\''s, \\"Retain your humanity, no matter what tragedy befalls you.\\" The young man in the cave abandons his humanity in the end and winds up the same as the madman who trapped him in the cave to begin with, whereas the young woman, physically injured but humanity intact, is released from the hospital healthy and well (as far as we know.)\r\n\r\nAlthough this story is quite a downer, and probably not to everyone\\''s taste, I still have always found it to be interesting and compulsively listenable.<br>', '2013-03-25 00:25:56', 1, '4a97670ea3fea57443b792853ecc7d12', '112.200.20.61'),
(5343, '0034', 'episode', 'Glyselle', '', 'It''s so creepy. This character is so depraved he''s compelling. His downfall is created from being betrayed by his wife''s (love). How deep is love? Better still, how deep and firm is Martin''s character before being boosted by this love? Not too concrete it seems. His wife cheats on him. He utterly falls apart. Sure, it''s the stuff songs are made of, but Martin reacts beyond lamenting and crooning. The young couple in the cave begin by professing love. What happens when this love is severly tested? Cannabalism is the rule of the day after torment settles in. Seems our young man, George, is vulnerable as well. It is a hard call as we are not entrapped and starving. Cannabalism is a documented human option with starvation. Is George depraved in the "evil" way Martin seems to be. Is Martin evil, or just terribly disturbed and ruined? It''s another tale of destroyed humanity via suffering...I do tend to choose these lovelies....Still, I think this episode offers even more. It is strange and this strange quality comes across very well with the radio medium. This is evident with the "voices" in the cave. These are only voices, surely, but we the listeners certainly feel for them. We are not the only people listening, for Martin is listening too. Unlike us, he listens, is fascinated as we are but leaves them in there. The Psychiatrist, like us, is startled and compelled. Are we compelled because we identify to some degree? It boils down to possibilities. This is a fantastic tale, and unlikely, though likely enough to convey a good deal of palpable horror.', '2013-03-15 14:30:36', 1, 'a807ce46653a96a985b2935db316668f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5344, '0034', 'episode', 'Fritzie', '', 'First, let me talk about Norman Rose. It is my opinion that had Himan Brown chose to leave out the rest of the cast, Mr. Rose could likely have pulled this show off in a narrative form without missing a beat. Of course, having the full cast only means we were delivered a piping hot dish of what RMT is all about.\r\n\r\nSecond, EG Marshall. While I normally find him the comforting sideline puppetmaster, his words were somewhat annoying for me in this tale. Whether his lines were just too \\"heady\\" or just too many, I can\\''t say, but I found myself tuning him out and waiting anxiously for the tale to revive. But I must admit, I was surprised when he said word \\"malady.\\" Not a word you hear too often!\r\n\r\nThird, I typically enjoy the commercials. But in this tale, I skipped past them without hesitation. The full experience was not needed for this tale.\r\n\r\nFinally, The Deadly Hour episode. I think there is a side to most human beings that takes some measure of pleasure in the misfortune of other people. Someone trips over a bump in the sidewalk and we chuckle, or an arguement breaks out on a street corner and we listen. It\\''s human nature. It also explains why television programs like \\"When Bad Things Happen...\\" or \\"Survivor\\" or \\"Fear Factor\\" are so incredibly popular.\r\n\r\nBut somewhere in our conscience, people generally are willing to intervene or come to aid when misfortune strikes another person. 9/11 is an obvious and extreme example.\r\n\r\nWith the lead character, it is truly unsettling at how he reacted to the whole cave trapping. Like a child unknowingly torturing a pet just for fun. I was extremely uncomfortable throughout this episode, though I had to see it through. I had to know \\"how\\" he finally rescued them. IF he would finally rescue them. And of course, how he would rescue himself.\r\n\r\nI had no idea where the show was going to end up. It was twisted.\r\n\r\nThe one thing I kept wondering though, was what he did when he found his wife and the \\"man\\" in the bedroom. What did he do? What did he say? How did he react? I don\\''t know about you all, but I can\\''t even predict how I might react in that situation, be it verbal, physical, or mental.\r\n\r\nBut for a character to have that much cruelty in his heart to torture the young couple was simply deplorable.\r\n\r\nI have to say though, there was a certain \\"very dark\\" humor through this whole program. The subtle chuckles, the excitable energy, and even the doctor\\''s reaction to the tale. It\\''s humorous in a very sick way. The toiling over one\\''s conscience is one thing, but to not even have one... well.\r\n\r\nI don\\''t want to write a book here, but this show was a really great selection and I thank you for choosing it! Well done.\r\n\r\nOnce I\\''m finished here, I am looking forward to reading all of your insightful thoughts as well. &nbsp;<br>', '2013-03-15 14:33:16', 1, 'a4205eecdeabf3968a8d88eed73cfd5b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5345, '0034', 'episode', 'Johann', '', 'All right I\\''m going to confess here, I read the other comments first. This show completely threw me for a loop and I couldn\\''t decide what had actually transpired. My first instinct was that Martin was remembering something that had happened to himself, he had been in the cave and lost it at the end and created the illusion of his wife cheating on him to distance himself. Then I wondered, is it his wife and her lover in the cave? This was an outstanding show (I had decided to give it a 5 before I got on my computer to comment) but I\\''m still not sure exactly what the writer intended. Which is one reason its so good, it poses more questions than it answers. I agree about Norman Rose, his voice is almost as deep and creepy as that of Arnold Moss, who does an outstanding single-actor narration in The Graveyard. This show offered many twists, each one caught me off guard, like when Martin leaves them in the cave and goes back to his life (you can feel the Doctor\\''s consternation as he struggles to grasp this). Outstanding show.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:33:20', 1, '04937eb244bb46bea2740b2e9a52b931', '112.200.20.61'),
(5433, '1140', 'episode', 'Harry', '', 'I, too had some questions about the script:\r\n\r\nJust who did they talk to on the phone?\r\n\r\nWhy did the highway lead to a diorama under her parents\\'' Christmas tree?\r\n\r\nIf they ran off the road and both hit their heads, why did they have the same dream?\r\n\r\nSome comments as a resident of Toledo, Ohio: There is no town of Runyanville. Ohio has a State Highway Patrol, not a state police. There would be no town of Blue Mountain because OHio has no mountains. Cell phones and pagers would not work because everybody in Ohio knows that those things only seem to work near big cities.\r\n\r\nI enjoyed the story as I enjoy any well-written story of the \\"strange little town.\\" I didn\\''t see the ending coming. My copy was cut off, so I never got to hear EG\\''s final thought.\r\n\r\nIf you enjoy the \\"strange little town,\\" story, I recommend you read \\"Rock and Roll Heaven\\" by Stephen King. This is the best of them.', '2013-03-16 13:37:21', 1, '658e75db46db786b546720a627eafe74', '112.200.20.61'),
(5347, '0034', 'episode', 'Robert F.', '', 'I think 2 of my last 3 are Elspith stories that you liked, despite your misgivings for her. "Help Somebody" and ''Deadly Hour". I agree many of her psych stories are annoying, but she does manage to hit some out of the park now and then. If you really want to listen to an annoying Elspith, try the one where a pyschiatrist convinces her, the patient, to get a head transplant.', '2013-03-27 15:03:07', 1, '5d4ed4b37245834a089da576e6e63050', '112.200.20.61'),
(5350, '0034', 'episode', 'J. Kydd', '', 'This may be a strange question, ya''ll, but...\r\n\r\nI remember after first hearing this episode thinking: "Just what was the relationship between Rose''s character and the other guy at story''s end?"\r\n\r\nAlso,\r\n\r\n- I love the violin, glockenspiel and piccato viola(?) music at around the 42:20 mark, when Rose''s character rescues the couple. In "Time and again" that music underscored John Beal''s character talking about his mysterious clock as it beat and chimed in the background. VERY ominous music that''s also quite effective.\r\n\r\n- This is, if I heard right, the second play where Marian Seldes plays a character named "Marian". (The first being "The house on Chimney Pot lane".) Interesting...if the actors all knew each other that would certainly allow for some realistic greetings.', '2013-03-15 14:33:44', 1, '87bf74eb77ce8e5e696c2be45c964387', '112.200.20.61'),
(5351, '0034', 'episode', 'Pia N.', '', 'I too have wondered about that. It is said in a manner that suggests they have a homosexual relationship, "he''s in my bed now", whereas before "she" was. I wonder what Elspith is saying here? Is she saying this event changed both men? Hmmmmm?Is the young man now exclusively a carnivore, on an all meat diet, favoring hot dogs?', '2013-03-15 14:33:47', 1, 'b51aaf91437f2a506a1fbdfef1d55084', '112.200.20.61'),
(5352, '0034', 'episode', 'C. Chemalli', '', 'You guys are killing me...:lol:\r\n\r\nAll hot dog diet?\r\n\r\nI guess we were still in the days when subjects about homosexuality were just too heavy to make it over the air.\r\n\r\nThis one reminded me of an audio rendition of Alexander Poe\\''s \\"The Pit and the Pendulum,\\" probably the RMT version with Marian Seldes and Norman Rose (#233).\r\n\r\nIt was the utter hopelessness in the couple\\''s voices which have stayed with me all these years. I guess my own insecurities about, oh say, being trapped in a dark cave or being held captive by a sadistic creep play strongly to my memory.\r\n\r\nI wish I could just enjoy everthing about every show, but...if there was a crack in the rock large enough for a book of matches to fall through, wasn\\''t there really more light inside that cave than what we were led to believe?\r\n\r\nGood show, though, fine story of a love-lorn misanthropic wacko who finds redemption in the nick of time.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:32:06', 1, 'a885a74cb9f46ff6b91c5103f9cc95d7', '112.200.20.61'),
(5353, '0034', 'episode', 'Mica', '', 'Ever listened to the RMT\\''s adaptation of \\"The picture of Dorian Gray\\"? (Dealing directly with homosexuality.)\r\n\r\nThe way they did the episode (with the judgments both storywriter Oscar Wilde and E.G. Marshall pronounced), it would be too heavy to make it over the air TODAY as it did circa 1974. I think the RMT\\''s episode of \\"The secret sharers\\" (adapted from a Joseph(?) \\"Heart of darkness\\" Conrad story) arrives in second place on the subject.\r\n\r\nThere\\''s an episode where lesbianism is hinted at heavily. For second place on THAT subject, I thought the RMT\\''s \\"The sinister shadow\\" could be considered though maybe not accepted.<br><br>', '2013-03-25 21:46:39', 1, 'e655bf1887568b53ce648b8570707b85', '112.200.20.61'),
(5355, '0034', 'episode', 'J. Agnes', '', 'Yes, you\\''re absolutely right, she definitely had her good days. As a matter of fact, my favorite RMT of all time, The Transformation, was adapted by Elspeth Eric from a Mary Shelley story. However, it\\''s not old Elspeth\\''s usual psychological mish-mash. I think she stuck pretty closely to Shelley\\''s text, so that most of the brilliance comes from Mary Shelley\\''s beautiful gothic prose, plus the particularly excellent acting and production values. Still, you have to give Eric credit for knowing when not to stray from the text. (Some of RMT\\''s \\"modern adaptations\\" of classic stories are good, but many are just abysmal mistakes.)\r\n\r\nUnfortunately, for every gem she wrote there were at least a dozen stink-bombs. (She certainly was prolific---I\\''ll give her that!) The head transplant one you mentioned is a perfect example. Actually, if you can manage to sit through them, they\\''re kind of fun to listen to because they\\''re so hilariously bad. :lol: (Then again, some are just plain offensive--like Star Sapphire. Ick!) For pure silliness, try also Mind Over Matthew. You can actually hear the actors trying to keep a straight face during some of the dialog. Pretty funny.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:33:56', 1, '9a51cbe04cfcb2460bd4ff50af3e2e5e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5356, '0034', 'episode', 'David Gallardo', '', 'I have not read Shelly (yet). I especially like the writing of the 19th century, really enjoyed Stoker, Stevenson, Wells, .... terrific. I have a dislike of most modern fiction. In fact, I read mysteries primarily only from the 30''s and 40''s.....can not read any of what is out now. Would you describe the style of writing in Dracula to be Gothic and something else, or is it pure Gothic? I wish I could read and enjoy Dickens and Melville. I have tried, but the writing is beyond me. I read a paragraph and wonder what was said. You are knowledgable, and a writer youself, yes? In any event, as you describe Shelly as beautiful, I would like to know if you could: 1) Recommend other 19th Century writers-Gothic or not, 2) Tell me if Shelly wrote other books than Frankenstein? And which are desired? Thank You.', '2013-03-15 14:34:05', 1, 'd471b03992f6ad015851257d8cebeda2', '112.200.20.61'),
(5357, '0034', 'episode', 'Rhody', '', 'Hi David,\r\n\r\nIf you don\\''t enjoy Dickens then you might find Shelley a bit ponderous, but here is a link to a website listing her work (I think they\\''re all short stories after Frankenstein.) However, when I referred to Shelley\\''s beautiful gothic prose, I guess I was referrring to more than just the prose style alone. I meant more her overall ability to spin an interesting yarn that has a powerful theme, subtext, and a moral to the story. You mentioned Bram Stoker. I have to say I\\''ve never cared for Dracula. On the other hand, I love Dickens---so go figure, huh? Really, I think it\\''s just a matter of personal or acquired taste. I never cared for Jane Austen in the past, but once I grew accustomed to her writing style and the themes she was dealing with, I really came to love her books.\r\n\r\nAnyway, at least give a listen to the RMT version of The Transformation. I think you\\''ll like it.<br>', '2013-03-15 14:34:08', 1, '288077374e4c8f23da326d81a37edaa1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5358, '0034', 'episode', 'Tony Mend', '', 'I\\''m not sure if he\\''s your cup of tea, but during my college years when I was bored by the assigned literary works, I found great relief in the works of Kafka, though his works were in the early 1900\\''s and none were published while he was alive. Folks take his work too seriously and critics often use him as either a punching bag or a remote lucifer when comparing.\r\n\r\nHowever, if you enjoy simply a flare for modern gothic-esque (obviously not so modern any longer), you might want to check his work out. I approach him like Oscar Wilde, in that you can\\''t take his work too seriously. Kafka is in a league of his own but well worth the read. Best to start with The Metamorphisis.&nbsp;<br>', '2013-03-15 14:34:13', 1, 'b21f941d0594c555198e226e217224e8', '112.200.20.61'),
(5359, '0034', 'episode', 'D. Lisbon', '', 'Yeah, Kafka''s awesome!', '2013-03-24 23:44:18', 1, 'b4bbc752dc531d6c14979bf727dab7bc', '112.200.20.61'),
(5360, '0034', 'episode', 'Chuck', '', 'Thanks for the tip, I will be sure to give him a try.......Dave. PS. I listened to your selection for show of the week, but am in finals week and am having difficulty throwing much thought into other subjects. Be back with a \\"bang\\"...Ho Ho, on Wends..', '2013-03-15 14:34:17', 1, '1718d4c76d28d78091f9e869249721a1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5361, '0034', 'episode', 'John Mina', '', 'David, for what it''s worth, I have read all of Joseph Conrad''s fiction (14 novels, 28 stories). For me it is the perfect combination of modern language and deep, often dark victorian fiction. In a world that was still very large, Conrad wrote about 4 continents. And 1900 was not too early for alarmingly modern themes, like Latin American revolution (''Nostromo'') and terrorism (''The Secret Agent''). Anyway, he''s my fave.', '2013-03-24 23:44:19', 1, '63aabdd57bf3d118b2e697b865ee80e0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5362, '0034', 'episode', 'Wally Myers', '', '....I have read two of his stories, Heart of Darkness, which I liked and Lord Jim, which again I had trouble with the writting in that I did not always know what I had just read. I suspect that I disect these stories and become concerned with "obstacals" such as older words and writting style ( which I truly adore). It then becomes work, and I wish it weren''t so as i would prefer to read more of the classics. I''ll try Conrad again after graduation.....Thank You for the recommendations.', '2013-03-15 14:34:19', 1, '44ebd5963a9b861c0204069155e11f0e', '112.200.20.61');
INSERT INTO `comments` (`id`, `subject_id`, `subject_type`, `name`, `email`, `comment`, `date_created`, `is_approved`, `actkey`, `ip_address`) VALUES
(5363, '0034', 'episode', 'Jimmy N.', '', 'If homosexuality was implied in this episode, it was extremely subtle. Remember that Martin Jerome makes it clear that he gives his guest his bed while he himself sleeps on the floor. I\\''d be more inclined to think that it was just a living arrangement of kindred spirits -- one with a more natural tendency to end up the way he did while the other was forced to it by extraordinary circumstances. If there are sexual overtones here, they\\''d be played out in some other way than sex itself -- both these guys are pretty sick.\r\n\r\nThis episode really got to me. I found myself saying, \\"You creep, you had just better rescue them or else ...\\"\r\n\r\nHow ironic and paradoxical that the man\\''s downfall and loss of humanity in the cave is precisely what saves him and his lover.\r\n\r\nOn a different note, I\\''d like to thank the staff of this site for allowing us to hear RMT episodes over the Net. This radio show was a part of my childhood and I\\''m grateful for the chance to hear it again.', '2013-03-15 14:34:22', 1, '2e4b65880a8d36998ba8acfa71c67ce7', '112.200.20.61'),
(5365, '0895', 'episode', 'Leah Andrea S.', '', 'Beheaded. Ho Ho. A story that’s heading is unclear until we learn it is a dream. A dream from a little girl like woman with an Oedipus complex...â€he was so much like daddyâ€ as are her husbands. Can I sit on your lap? Her near do well real estate husband is too much of a child himself, I suppose, so she seeks another father figure. She wants to sit on someone else’s lap. The good doctor is like daddy, isn’t he! “Oh Yes, Yesâ€. “When do you want to do it?â€ ‘Your friction’s will be eliminatedâ€ “Can I sit on your lap?â€ “Well, why yes, If you want to.â€ :twisted: Her throat tightens with bronco spasms...her life choking away much like her mother who managed but we learn really had not much of a life. “Can I sit on your lap?â€ I wonder. Then there is the reluctance to discuss the first marriage. Another mediocre type..who of course reminds her ultimately with her father a near do well who left her holding the bag. So she over fantasizes the father figure? I’m not really sure. The tale is a bit foggy...sort of semiconscious like our heroine. I know the bimbo nurse in the story can’t help us! She sounds like another “little girlâ€ under he doctor’s care. The great doctor...the once great father. At least in a little girls eyes. Maybe she needs her head removed to rid her of the ghosts from the past. Do things repeat themselves, especially under our own unconscious will to manifest our beliefs based on passed events. I suppose so, to some extent. It certainly happens in a general sense, but not absolutely. Fortunately we also have intellect and choice. It was a nice touch to have our patient wake up from the dream and speak in a more womanly voice. It was obvious the session was a psychiatric one. I’m not sure if that was supposed to be a surprise in the end. The ending is flat nevertheless. E.G’s final question is interesting, “Would you like to live your life over again?â€. Well, yes, probably. It’s a paradox, because if the premise of the story is believed, then we live our life over again all the time by recreating the past through some compulsive need. Overall I thought the story a bit less than entertaining with an ending that drops like a head visiting the guillotine. Psychobabble-drama<br>', '2013-03-15 14:35:21', 1, '4235395dc457b536f745793c1900cf98', '112.200.20.61'),
(5366, '0895', 'episode', 'Ted', '', 'I just gave this a listen and I still can''t read the other posts because this was a very different kind of episode. I''m going to need a second listen in order to take it all in.', '2013-03-15 14:34:32', 1, 'bab47de14d5583991ec1bdf604a2ebb7', '112.200.20.61'),
(5367, '0895', 'episode', 'Evedan', '', 'While I didn''t listen to the whole thing a second time, I did listen to parts of it twice.\r\n\r\nthis is a character study rather than a plot driven show. Lot''s of people like character studies (people who read Hemmingway). Elspeth Eric wrote a lot of charcter studies --- especially about women.\r\n\r\nIf you like character studies, this was a good episode. It was well written and well acted. Other than the "can I sit on your lap," bit, the metaphor was subtle. I just don''t much care for character studies.\r\n\r\nNonetheless, it was a good selection because it was different than what most of us are used to listening to.', '2013-03-15 14:34:35', 1, '66d1771be707bd5aefb51a00b0237001', '112.200.20.61'),
(5368, '0895', 'episode', 'Brian Pontillas', '', 'A woman by the name of Joyce is speaking to another woman about her experiences. She provides the listener with family portraits (mother and father in unflattering lights) and explains details about her past. Without trepidation, she explains that she has agreed to be decapitated by her doctor. The woman who listens to Joyce acts much like a counselor or psychologist but we''re told that the two a not very close friends and yet she asks a lot of personal questions. I note this relationship as strange but intriguing.\r\n\r\nI was very confused that the doctor had planned to do a transplant of the head for what appeared to be a simple case of asthma...a pretty drastic course of action for a relatively benign affliction. Oddly, Joyce accepts the prescribed course with excitement and only musters a minimal set of questions. She''s accepting of the procedure even before she realizes she will receive a replacement head via a transplant. I wonder if this excited reaction isn''t somehow related to the fact that her life is otherwise boring. We know that her life is less than exciting because her husband, a relatively unsuccesful real estate agent, is a bore. Her family life was less than satisfying and her fist husband is described much like her second husband.\r\n\r\nI distinctly noticed that this play is presented with minimal music, unlike most CBSRMT presentations. Instead, this play uses a single tone from a marimba, or similar instrument, to indicate the beginning and ending of a flashback. Otherwise, the play is without dramatic music except during the bridges that E.G. Marshall presents. The technique is oddly effective but I kind of miss the dramatic effect provided by music in other plays.', '2013-03-15 14:34:38', 1, '368dfae1af6667ca49866c5ecaab1585', '112.200.20.61'),
(5369, '0895', 'episode', 'Roland Abot', '', 'I didn\\''t notice the music. good pickup.\r\n\r\nAsthma is an affliction of the lungs. A head transplant wouldn\\''t do much good.\r\n\r\nI just don\\''t have an appreciationof Elsepth Eric\\''s work. It\\''s not bad. It\\''s just not what I consider to be real \\"mystery theater.\\"', '2013-03-15 14:34:41', 1, '3e9ea60ee84f3a88160478b661619bc0', '112.200.20.61'),
(5370, '0895', 'episode', 'C. Briggs', '', 'Hmm. Just for accuracy sake: Asthma is an afflicion of the traceobronchial tree to various stimuli..often an allergic reaction so it ultimately an autoimmune disease. Cutting her head off would do good in one sense..it would be a brain change!', '2013-03-24 23:44:19', 1, '45859dabc64286eb04b67d771cd97644', '112.200.20.61'),
(5373, '0895', 'episode', 'Chas', '', 'Yeah, but this has been one busy week and I need to listen again. That fact that I need to listen to this more than once is the reason that I chose this program. I haven''t read anyone else''s comments in relation to the program yet but I am anxious to do so after I write mine.\r\n\r\nMy only free time to listen comes in the afternoons. (I get off work at noon and am home alone in the afternoon.)\r\n\r\nI will listen again soon and post comments. One weird program ''eh?', '2013-03-15 14:34:55', 1, 'f94e4ed59a9b7f3d20750bcb7c5eb4dd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5374, '0895', 'episode', 'Justin Ralph', '', 'DEFINITELY the strangest and most un-CBSRMT-like program I\\\\\\''ve heard. I\\\\\\''m glad you chose it, though it\\\\\\''s not my favorite, because it was a completely different type of show.', '2013-03-15 14:34:59', 1, '575f0891f4d6afb64353af9b708a9c0f', '112.200.20.61'),
(5375, '0895', 'episode', 'Meljohn Forbes', '', 'I can\\''t say that I like the program. It really is confusing and I am not sure if something is at work here that I do not understand.\r\n\r\nWho is the woman that she is talking to? How could someone think that a head transplant would work? Your brain would go with your head wouldn\\''t it? The woman sure seems trusting of the doctor. What\\''s this \\"sit on your lap\\" stuff? That\\''s pretty strange.\r\n\r\nI still need to listen to the ending of the program again because I am not sure what happened or what was happening here. This must be about something that I can not grasp.\r\n\r\nI will read the comments now and see if anyone else has an answer.<br>', '2013-03-24 23:44:20', 1, 'cb504a616973566ab8d9a601e314e9f8', '112.200.20.61'),
(5376, '0895', 'episode', 'Celeste', '', 'It was tough to tell where the story was heading!', '2013-03-24 23:44:21', 1, '8a8cbd22b71d056aaef253c8543556fd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5377, '0895', 'episode', 'Jack Cassidy', '', 'Though many CBSRMT episodes have a moral to the story, this is the most philosophical one I’ve heard so far – it’s almost like the moral *is* the story. So here are my philosophical (meaning “rather boringâ€) comments about it.\r\n\r\nTo me, the main point is made in E.G. Marshall’s comments preceeding Act III about the Trouble Tree . We all prefer our own troubles - even if we are given the chance to change them, nobody actually wants to or tries to. It hammers on this point pretty heavily: from Alice in Wonderland, “We run all day just to stay in the same placeâ€; the heroine’s line at the end, “To have gone through all that, and then to have to face it all over againâ€, and the therapist’s assessment, “What we’ve done, we must do again and againâ€ until we find the root cause of the compulsion to repeat.\r\n\r\nI thought the fun was in guessing the real-life analogies to the dream elements, and I’m flattered as a listener that there was no “Moishe the Explainerâ€ scene (as Peter Falk once called it) at the end where the therapist tells us all what everything in the dream means.\r\n\r\nHere’s my take: as some have already pointed out, the surgeon pretty obviously represents her father. But he also represents her longing for someone to authoritatively show her what to do in life, to answer her questions and help her out – a role she herself plays for her husband (both present and former). But the pressure of this constant demand by her husband to “tell me what to doâ€, while he doggedly avoids making any positive contribution to any decision, triggers her asthma attacks (and we hear an example of this happening). This all leads me to conjecture that the head represents her husband – she needs a husband transplant. Actually, the first answer was to “remove your headâ€, not transplant it. “It was so simple, so obvious. It seemed good, right, the absolutely correct thing to do.â€ But then of course, he wouldn’t just leave her with nothing, so we’ll give you a replacement. The tragedy is that when she actually did it (the first divorce) what she got as a replacement was another copy of the same thing. Just as with the new head.\r\n\r\nSo she was repeating her life (and her mother’s life), destined to do so until we uncover the root cause of the compulsion, which we are led to believe lies in her parents and their relationship to each other and to her. There’s more to dig for there, but this is already a pretty long and dry post, so I’ll stop here as a public service. Great episode, though.', '2013-03-24 23:44:21', 1, 'd23c7861bcffbe51246ad8468911287e', '112.200.20.61'),
(5378, '0895', 'episode', 'Julius B.', '', 'What a trip. Nice comments, bwonka. Sorry it took me so long to review this.\r\n\r\nI think you''re right that this was a marimba on that single tone. Very interesting use of that minimalist music (if there is such a phrase) on this particular episode which was a psychological drama with little action. This sort of reminded me of some of the old "Twilight Zone" episodes wherein someone would die and be condemned to live out their mistakes over and over again.\r\n\r\nI reviewed an RMT play "The bloody legend" (more of a mystery in the traditional RMT sense, but I don''t think quite as well written as this one) that had a man in psychotherapy who apparently had a similar dysfunctional family. I was left with a more hopeful sense for "Joyce" in this play than the guy in the other...maybe just because I perceived that the psychotherapist did seem caring and perhaps even cautiously optimistic for her patient at the end.\r\n\r\nTeri Keane (she with the Jane Curtinesque voice) did a great job and was excellent for this. Cort Benson as the doctor (and her second husband, I believe) also did a fine job, as did Bryanna Raeburn in her limited role.', '2013-03-24 23:44:22', 1, 'f143478500e5d5af1c131daae7a9ecb1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5379, '0895', 'episode', 'Elliot', '', 'Woo hoo.\r\n\r\nI don\\''t like to plug another show all the time on the posts on this website, but I just heard a DY-NO-MITE performance by Teri Keane that trumps her role in this one...it\\''s an RMT play called \\"Who has seen the wind?\\".\r\n\r\nI\\''ll review it over on the other board, but if you\\''re a Keaneophile this episode is worth listening to after \\"The beheading\\".', '2013-06-19 23:02:16', 1, '605d02716270179c8fe5105d2efb6597', '112.200.20.61'),
(5380, '0895', 'episode', 'Lenzuel', '', 'The other day I was in the waiting room while my girlfriend had an eye examination and I read in a Reader\\''s Digest about a doctor that expiremented with head transplants on monkey\\''s starting in the 1960\\''s. I think they did about 14 of them and one lived for 2 weeks following.', '2013-03-15 14:37:35', 1, 'b953f71879ec86468d3d8f10b32d01c4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5381, '0212', 'episode', 'Antonel Ross', '', 'I haven''t listened to this episode yet, or if I have I don''t recall. I was scrolling through the list of starring voices in each episode and found Jerry Orbach''s name. He is now, of course, Detective Lenny Briscoe on "Law and Order". Being a Law and Order fan, I thought it would be fun to hear him in an earlier incarnation.\r\n\r\nI will be posting on my web site in the next day or two some pictures of him from about the same era. I bought a condo several years ago and in the basement storage area was a box of Playboy magazines from the 70s and early 80s. Hilarious articles and advertisements (really... I just read the articles!) One of the articles was on actor Jerry Orbach clowning around with one of the bunnies.\r\n\r\n\r\nI hope it''s a good one, and look forward to the discussion about it in the week to come.', '2013-03-27 15:37:25', 1, '60d05350c9bdf0ffe2d6f97c51aa68a2', '112.200.20.61'),
(5427, '0895', 'episode', 'Hayley', 'hayleycarlton@aol.com', 'I don''t think she actually got a head transplant. It''s something she simply dreamed.  The woman she''s talking to is her shrink.  The dream was telling her that we are doomed to repeat ourselves and she realizes that with proper therapy she can beat her problems. ', '2013-03-15 16:53:41', 1, '4249098588e14a2b40c743ed4768acbf', '216.180.167.121'),
(5428, '0743', 'episode', 'Russ', '', 'Perfect episode for St. Patrick''s Day weekend. The cast did terrific acting with Irish accents. Only drawback was The Old Man of the Rock''s rule that Terence O''Neil (played by Fred Gwynne) and his wife Bridget O''Neil (played by Bryna Raeburn) have to have the same wish. Not your average Mystery tale, but it''s worth listening to, especially if you''re a fan of Fred Gwynne. ', '2013-03-15 17:23:50', 1, 'dddffc488b5b7a9cbe889da69309191d', '64.136.212.123'),
(5383, '0212', 'episode', 'Q. Benedikt', '', 'I guess my desire to quantify is symptomatic of my scientific (nerdy) nature. :ufo:\r\n\r\nThe discussions that take place during these weekly show review posts are excellent for content, detail and quality. But for a quick measure of how individual shows rate to one another a numeric poll just seemed a logical approach.\r\n\r\nWhile this weeks show does not yet have a polling mechanism attached, I believe now that I have finished listening to it I would rate it at a 3 on a 5 point scale. Entertaining, well acted... The sound quality of my particular copy was great.\r\n\r\nI look forward to further response on the numeric polling issue.\r\n\r\nBest regards.', '2013-03-15 14:37:26', 1, 'c95033248f6c092bc24e45a814015dba', '112.200.20.61'),
(5384, '0212', 'episode', 'Richard Allan', '', 'Story of a self-absorbed s.o.b who is tortured by his own deeply burried moral sense; by the time he comes to terms with it, he perishes from the cumulative effects of a life not well lived.\r\n\r\nThere seemed to be more subplots in this episode than others I have listened to recently:\r\n- the main character''s marital problems\r\n- the main character''s haunting by ''the follower''\r\n- the wife and doctor''s relationship\r\n- the main character''s past relationship\r\n\r\nI thought the ending a bit weak. Anytime a character dies of fright, I am left unsatisfied. I''m also constantly amused with the attitude toward psychiatrists and psychology. As a psychology major many years ago, I know how hard the field has had to, and continues to fight for acceptance as a legitimate scientific field.', '2013-03-15 14:37:22', 1, 'dbd6cb2bd3d8fc43a5a294dae171756b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5385, '0212', 'episode', 'Dang T.', '', 'The Follower 1/26/75\r\n\r\nJim Beacher, a ruthless showbiz agent, is being followed by an phantom that he cannot see. The phantom stops when Jim stops and places it\\''s feet directly in his footsteps so no trace of a follower is evident. A number of people could be interested in seeing his demise but his wife believes his problem is mental and recommends counseling. His paranoia reaches the point where it cannot be ignored but he eventually realizes that the footsteps are simply his past following him.\r\n\r\nThis story was interesting but probably not in my top 10% of all shows. I enjoyed the plot and the acting was good but nothing really stood out as great. Perhaps \\"The Follower\\" needed to be a bit more sinister or the conclusion needed more punch but I just thought this was a concept that didn\\''t quite meet it\\''s potential. I might wait a week or two and give this another listen to see if my opinion changes.', '2013-03-15 14:36:09', 1, '04bb6af164748cca1f16cee6c16cff3c', '112.200.20.61'),
(5387, '0212', 'episode', 'Lanie', '', 'I am having trouble writing about this show. I found it hard to follow at times .\r\n\r\nA man who says he is being followed at night tells his wife about it and although sympathetic, she tells him to see a psychiatrist. They argue over money. He works too hard and spends little time with his wife. She says he is doing well and doesn’t need the money because she has plenty, too. She reminds him that this is why he married her.\r\n( Her whiney voice is enough to make you want to turn the show off. ) This argument repeats itself a time or two. His wife seems to be concerned about him and finally he agrees to see a doctor.\r\n\r\nI don’t think the doctor is much help to him . He is finally confronted by the follower and it is like his conscience. He is really a despicable person and he did something terrible in his past. The confrontation with the Follower evidently scares him to death,\r\n\r\nI thought this show was kind of weak overall. The woman who played his wife was irritating, One minute she is so sympathetic, calling him “Baby’ trying to help him and before you know it she wants no more to do with him and is interested in the Psychiatrist. The main character( I didn’t catch their names) is a selfish man who steps on people to have what he wants.\r\n\r\nIf I listened to it again, I might get more out of it, but I doubt it.', '2013-03-15 14:36:14', 1, '972b2a8645eb33fcb468bfe131dc52fa', '112.200.20.61'),
(5388, '0212', 'episode', 'Joey Dona', '', 'I finally got to listen to this one today.\r\n\r\nWell, not one of the best in my opinion. A good lesson is presented - one that we should have all learned by now.\r\n\r\nI''m surprised to hear something controversial like abotion discussed in the program. It would have been better without introducing that.\r\n\r\nLouise was not acted well and her presence annoyed me. I don''t think she was realistic. All mad one minute then sympathetic the next.\r\n\r\nThe concept of someone following you, then turning and no one is there ... footsteps ... I like that idea. When I first heard that I thought this would be a good program.\r\n\r\nIt wasn''t.', '2013-03-15 14:36:05', 1, '3a0ec6d79591f16061662674efdc83b5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5389, '0212', 'episode', 'Justin Ralph', '', 'I can''t say I thought too much of this episode. I am a big fan of Jerry Orbach from Law and Order but radio drama doesn''t appear to be his forte. His delivery in this episode seems very stilted. Was he in any other CBSRMT episodes?', '2013-03-15 14:35:57', 1, 'eb0fd9d6f6ba01b76faa28c1d4b4bc0b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5432, '1140', 'episode', 'Glenda', '', 'A young couple return for Christmas, after a 12 year absence, to the woman\\\\\\''s hometown of Runyanville, OH (I looked it up on Mapquest and no such town exists). Her parents are excited to see them but the young couple are involved in a car crash which leads them on an adventure.\r\n\r\nCaution, story spoiler ahead: This play adds a holiday flair to a classic tale of despair - trapped in a ghost town diorama. The acting and writing are excellent, if a bit predictable, and offer perfect examples of why we loved the RMT plays. I especially liked the fact the Mrs. McGinnis threw me off as a character that made me question the diorama concept and I also liked the tie to the green logs. I\\\\\\''ll definitely play this story for my kids next Christmas as their grandmother has a snow village comprised of about 150 different ceramic pieces that take an entire room to display. The kids will love it! Now, two quick questions: Why did the author allow a phone to be used with strange results and why did Mrs. McGinnis disappear from the scenes?\r\n\r\nFinally, I have to wonder, and I\\\\\\''ll pose this question to the reviewers .  How would this story be wrtitten if the characters had the use of modern technology such as handheld GPS devices, two-way pagers and/or cell phones?', '2013-06-19 23:11:49', 1, 'abdf2a6fb8e876e2e7264a6851d64184', '112.200.20.61'),
(6030, '0121', 'episode', 'Phillip M.', 'phillip.merritt@gmail.com', 'An average episode. As usual, Marian Seldes infuses her character with loads of campy melodrama. She reminds me a bit of Mindy Gracin, Kristin Wiig''s flamboyant actress character from the Secret Word skits.', '2013-06-20 20:00:58', 1, '4d51a9dafb96e8024aecd99620ea8625', '71.241.58.138'),
(5392, '0212', 'episode', 'Charles Bagget', '', '"Conscience...or was it retribution?"\r\n\r\nE.G. Marshall''s words at the end of this episode\r\n\r\n"Something''s up ahead,\r\nhey, should I keep this same direction or go back instead?\r\nI keep hearin'' footsteps baby, in the dark...why?..."\r\n\r\nfrom the song "Footsteps in the dark" by the Isley Brothers\r\n\r\nI''d reviewed this in my listening log earlier as one of the "Texas episodes"...interesting concept about the "big, powerful, heartless Hollywood agent" type who hears someone constantly walking behind him, in his footsteps, and becomes quite afraid to turn around and see who is following him.\r\n\r\nIs it someone pursuing him, and if so, who?\r\n\r\nThe resulution was somewhat abrupt, IMO, but this was a good one to listen to. I liked Carol Teitel''s portrayal of the long-suffering wife on the brink of divorce with but still sympathetic to her husband. Jerry Orbach was on the verge of caricature as the agent, but pulled off a decent enough performance.', '2013-03-15 13:51:55', 1, '38b63821b943f60bc8c171bb6df16207', '112.200.20.61'),
(5393, '0212', 'episode', 'Ritchelle Carmen', '', 'I thought the end was a little anti-climatic.\r\n\r\nJerry Orbach was ok in his role as the agent. Carol Titel was strong.\r\n\r\nI''m not much of a fan of alot of the psychodrama. Amatuer psychoanalysis was a real fad in teh 1970s, and like Watergate, Patricia Hearst, and mood rings, it should be left there.\r\n\r\nIan Martin is notorious for his psychobabble. He wrote some real strong material, but when he turned into the amateur psychologist, I just groan.', '2013-03-15 13:52:01', 1, 'c67b4b0901d8419949ad83d06eef47ec', '112.200.20.61'),
(5395, '0764', 'episode', 'Lenneth', '', '\\"If you can dream - and not make dreams your master...\\"\r\n\r\nFrom \\"If\\", written by Rudyard Kipling to his son\r\n\r\nHIMAN BROWN: \\"Hi, Norm, remember that show we recorded a week back about that \\"down-on-his-luck\\" guy who gets caught up with an old friend who thinks he\\''s going to get rich because of something from the past?\\"\r\n\r\nNORMAN ROSE: \\"sure, Hi...and the guy\\''s lied to by his \\''friend\\'' as to what\\''s really going on, and the friend like a fool is willing to risk everything including his own life to get the treasure?\\"\r\n\r\nHIMAN BROWN: \\"Yes, that\\''s it. Percy Grainger did such a good script that Fred Lewis and I thought we\\''d do it again, right down to you introducing yourself at the beginning over that \\"oboe-and-bassoon\\" melody we used in \\"Hickory Dickory Doom\\".\r\n\r\nNORMAN ROSE: \\"Oh, wow...who will I say I am THIS week?\\"\r\n\r\nImaginary conversation in January 1978 between Himan Brown and Norman Rose<br>', '2013-03-15 13:53:40', 1, '63efac14fe2719dd15a27a8391095308', '112.200.20.61'),
(5396, '0764', 'episode', 'Greta', '', 'Three things on this episode:\r\n\r\n1. I\\''ll give 5 points to the first person who can correctly identify the song playing in the bar on the island of \\"Monte Christi\\" when \\"Jason Hainsworth\\" meets \\"Ernie Chowders\\". (Our 7th grade choir teacher used to have us sing that song.) I\\''ll give 10 points to anyone who can identify the song playing in the bar when Jason meets \\"Old Tom\\".\r\n\r\n2. If you\\''ve not read my previous blah blah, without scrolling to the end did you recognize who was playing \\"Old Tom\\"?\r\n\r\n3. There\\''s an amusing, obvious error made in the otherwise top notch performance by William Griffiths as \\"Ernie\\". (He and the actor who plays \\"Old Tom\\" are twin RMT dynamos in this, IMO. Rose is almost the weak link...he and Paul Hecht (who could be a working class stiff if he had to) are almost too aristocratic sounding for their own good at times.\r\n\r\nListen closely in the second segment...can you pick out the error?', '2013-03-15 13:52:20', 1, 'ba56a8e98848cf96679ddc7a5f0d00de', '112.200.20.61'),
(5397, '0764', 'episode', 'Harold', '', 'It is one of my favorites from the original broadcast. I first heard it as a teenager on a family vacation, driving on a dark and stormy night (actually). This show moves beyond mystery (although there is a mystery) to adventure. The series did that with a number of genres - comedy, romantic adventure etc. One of the interesting things about listening to these shows again is the reminders of the 70\\''s - in this show there is the \\"syndicate\\", a pretty lame mob compared to who is lurking in the Caribbean these days. I wonder if Jason had begun to suspect what was going on when he went to take a look at the mobster\\''s yacht. Well keep up the good work on the Shows.<br><br>', '2013-03-25 00:21:16', 1, '3257d77da1d00d6a0f25edef60ae8677', '112.200.20.61'),
(5398, '0764', 'episode', 'Roland Abot', '', 'I love listening to this, and the biggest reason is that the actors (including Rose) do an absolutely DYNAMITE job, IMO. \\"Yesterday\\''s Giant\\" I heard at my home in my original RMT days, but this one I downloaded last year before I was about to move from Georgia, and immediately thoroughly enjoyed the program.', '2013-03-15 13:54:50', 1, 'd0f1bfdd81cd6e1ae40f980f58224a60', '112.200.20.61'),
(5399, '0764', 'episode', 'Honky', '', 'This is a fun program to listen too. Treasure, intrigue, suspense, mystery, secrecy, syndicates, pirates, legend ... it\\''s all in there and that makes a good story.\r\n\r\nGood acting... surprise ending... enjoying listening.\r\n\r\nNot a lot more to say in my initial analysis. I shall see what you folks have to say about it.', '2013-03-15 13:53:02', 1, '7b02f988cc4d7339e7b8f0f3cc7117fd', '112.200.20.61'),
(5401, '0764', 'episode', 'Tony Mend', '', 'This was an excellent treasure hunt story. It stuck to the old formula, but the strong script with complex characters made it a pleasure to listen to. The all male cast gave a superb performance. Bravo!<br>', '2013-03-15 13:53:27', 1, '26834730c488a9d06c181bea4f5971b1', '112.200.20.61'),
(5402, '0764', 'episode', 'Guy', '', '(BTW, I figured someone would have guessed the song by now, but that must mean I really am advancing in age. )\r\n\r\nBTW, Jeremy, since you\\''re a \\"radio man\\" I think you\\''ll take a special interest in the flub I was talking about. Unfortunately, I\\''m not at the computer that has this program available for listening, but I can tell you it\\''s several minutes into the second act where \\"Old Tom\\" is serving coffee to Jason and Ernie.\r\n\r\nListen closely as he asks each guy if they want a cup. This was not edited out (they may not have used digital recording back in \\''78 but I know they had razor blades and splicing tape available then) so that tells me the act went on as scripted after the error, and that in turn means Norman Rose did a manly actor\\''s job of keeping his cool due to the word he had to say right after the flub took place. I think \\"Yesterday\\''s Giant\\" was indeed one of Rose\\''s best performances (he still did well enough here) yet this episode belonged to William Griffiths with a great assist from Arnold Moss.<br><br>', '2013-03-25 00:26:39', 1, '6f2517c4e3a7517a7dc7ab48d034314a', '112.200.20.61'),
(5403, '0764', 'episode', 'Nomar P.', '', 'I thought the story was well told with an ending that I did not see coming.\r\nI found the dialogue between Jason and Ernie to be much more natural in this tale. I also thought the role of Old Tom was very well acted. He did a very fine job of making Ernie’s insanity over not being able to get at the gold all the more believable Overall I thought this was a fine tale and again was pleased that the end came as a surprise.\r\n\r\nEvery time I heard “The Syndicateâ€ I could not help thinking of Dennis Connors and Stars and Stripes. Too much America’s Cup I guess.', '2013-03-15 13:54:59', 1, '20dece5271cacf1c4557d9411ea44e83', '112.200.20.61'),
(5404, '0764', 'episode', 'Jim Enobay', '', 'I enjoyed the acting in this program and can certainly see similarities in the twinbill (great pitches, Kurt). For one, the three men in each program were all former acquaintences. They had gone their own ways and time had defined their moral/value differences. We learn once again the greed never carries the day and the stories are both told from the protagonist\\''s perspective. The sound effects in this program were very good and professional (ringing bell and \\"aoooga\\" sounding horn in the distance) whereas the sound effects in the \\"Giant\\" story were campy and fun in a very different way.', '2013-03-15 13:54:57', 1, '703cf8f75adcca93d02f05ca52290fd9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5406, '0764', 'episode', 'Vicky', '', 'I wish I knew the second one (guess either no one else does or it might have been some kind of music bed) but the first music that was playing when Jason ran into Ernie during the first act was \\"Yellow Bird\\".\r\n\r\nWell, on from the Caribbean to the Blizzard (of Terror).<br>', '2013-03-24 23:44:23', 1, '9e34d99cd43d2953ee96f0f2af537806', '112.200.20.61'),
(5407, '1134', 'episode', 'K. Mullins', '', 'This is a show that (if I recall correctly) could be the answer to a trivia question: "Which RMT broadcast featured an Oscar-nominated actor/actress that wasn''t Mercedes McCambridge?" (A: This one, with John Lithgow.)\r\n\r\nHowever, I once had a physics professor in college, during the last four years of the RMT, who elaborated what was believed then about the concept of "black holes" and their relationship with time. He stood in the middle of the class walking in a circle, as an imaginary object would be as it spun round and round into the center of the hole. He said that time would start changing for that object and essentially slow up for it. He said, speaking like so, that "as I get closer and...closer to...the black...hole...everything...starts...getting...slo wer."\r\n\r\nI remember this episode from my original RMT days, and that it started out as a great straightforward RMT mystery, but like the object caught in the black hole''s maw it just...started...getting...slower. I listened (or tried to) to it again a few months back but ended up tuning out. I''m going to listen again.\r\n\r\nMy advice to my RMT listening friends...you need to be prepared to listen to two different RMT styles in the same program with this one. Many of you (like me) have reviewed a fine program "The raft", which IMO is the closest to this in terms of "paradigm shift for listeners" (if there is such a category). That particular RMT show started out loosely as a first person retelling of the events (a man started getting notes in his mail demanding 1 million dollars, and these were neither extortion, ransom or blackmail requests...he had mysterious memories that apparently were tied to these, but we never understood the whole story as he was trying to FORGET those memories) but when that man met an unfortunate end the story shifted mid-program to a straightforward "whodunit".\r\n\r\nThat program was, IMO, somewhat easier to listen to than "The dagger of Almohades", if you were unprepared for either. Just be ready for not only plot twists but style twists in this one...I''m going to listen to it again, and it may end up being one of my favorites.', '2013-03-24 23:44:23', 1, 'eed719a8d11fa73944683dceae1230be', '112.200.20.61'),
(5408, '1134', 'episode', 'Al', '', 'As the rules state, I have not read any comments posted in this thread before composing mine. But, I did read Vince\\''s review in his Listening Log and I see that he had a better grasp than I did on this one.\r\n\r\nIt started out good and I was interested but then the girl came in and I was wondering about the dagger and what happened to that. There was a period of time that I lost the plot and tried to figure out what was happening. I listened while packing some boxes and had to back it up a bit as it didn\\''t grab my attention the way some programs do.\r\n\r\nSo, at the end, I guess her lip was amputated? Sick, but that makes for a good program! I should listen to this one again and pick up more than I did the first time through. I\\''m a little confused about the dagger other than people that cross paths with it end up dead. Is that how it was?', '2013-03-24 23:44:24', 1, '20f5a275ad3abd671a7ad9c569ce5dc5', '112.200.20.61'),
(5409, '1134', 'episode', 'Jess', '', 'I remember this episode from my original RMT days, and that it started out as a great straightforward RMT mystery, but like the object caught in the black hole''s maw it just...started...getting...slower. I listened (or tried to) to it again a few months back but ended up tuning out. I''m going to listen again.\r\n\r\nMy advice to my RMT listening friends...you need to be prepared to listen to two different RMT styles in the same program with this one.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nYou said it well Kurt. This one did not go where I thought it was going and in fact did pitch a change-up mid-stream. It starts out with this dagger, which I assumed would be tied to some secret mystery or something and lead to problems for those who came in contact with it and it turned into a love/hate/revenge. It doesn''t make it a bad program - just not what I thought it was going to be from the way it started.', '2013-03-24 23:44:25', 1, 'c0bce96b04e13fcd55b670da47a3edb3', '112.200.20.61'),
(5410, '1134', 'episode', 'Sandy', '', 'Tony Andrius, played by John Lithgow, is just one man in a string of men who are interested in Jennifer Wilson. Tony asks for Jennifer\\''s hand in marriage and soon we learn she is being courted by another man, Liam Bagley. Liam attempts to take Ms. Wilson, forcefully, but is killed in the process. Though Jennifer is the first to admit that she may not be marriage material, Tony takes her hand just the same. After they are wed, Jennifer meets a brilliant surgeon, Dr. Stone, and they have a brazen relationship, known to the entire community and to Tony. The story takes a terrific twist which I won\\''t reveal so as not to spoil the ending.\r\n\r\nThis was an interesting story that was told in a very unusual manner. I truly thought the story was going to be about the Turkish assassination sect and/or a revenge killing associated with the initial murder of a shopkeeper. I was very interested by this Turkish assassination plot when out of nowhere came Jennifer, Tony and Liam. I found myself wondering who was going to exact revenge and I guessed completely wrong. John Lithgow did an excepctional job as Tony and my favorite line in the program centered on Tony Andrius\\'' thinly veiled threat to his wife in which he gave her a final warning. The other actors were also quite good. My complaint about the story was that it seemed a bit confusing until the final focusing scene. I didn\\''t see that the dagger theme was crucial to the storyline at all.', '2013-03-24 23:44:25', 1, '905fc36ed7818446c518ed00e82eb179', '112.200.20.61'),
(5411, '1134', 'episode', 'Neil Tull', '', 'All I can say is HOLY SMOKES, you could have written my review! I didn\\''t read your post before sending my own but I was also confused with the dagger theme and wondered what happened. While you were packing boxes, I was trying to watch the NBA basketball game (muted) during my listen. I had to listen a second time because I couldn\\''t understand how we made the leap from the Turkish sect to Jennifer, Liam and Tony. Consequently, I stuggled with what to say about the dagger in my listening log and decided to leave it out. In general, I complete my show of the week review at the same time as my listening log but I was so confused about the dagger and it\\''s relevance that I couldn\\''t figure out what to say. Now, I\\''ll await Lag\\''s review so I can feel like one of his eighth graders....everyday\\''s like school in my feeble-minded world.\r\nBTW, I think the dagger theme with the Turkish assassination sect had great potential!', '2013-03-24 23:44:26', 1, '92c02346568f544239669b514cb40a38', '112.200.20.61'),
(5412, '1134', 'episode', 'Paul Boggs', '', 'well...\r\n\r\nPerhaps listening to this while cleaning the classroom after Parent/Teacher Interviews was not the best time. Like most of you, I could hear the voices, but there wasn''t much settling into my brain in any kind of coherent manner.\r\n\r\nSomething about a set of Turkish daggers used by some secret society for ritual killings. (piqued my interest)\r\nThen a marriage, and affair. (isn''t there one in every single episode?)\r\nThen something. (this is where I entered an intellectual black hole of my own.) :roll:\r\n\r\nWill listen again and try concentrating.', '2013-03-24 23:44:26', 1, 'c8cef5c4fd757bf0852655a5095526c9', '112.200.20.61'),
(5413, '1134', 'episode', 'M. Chiseck', '', 'I\\''ve gotta\\'' ask: Why did you think of this program for the show of the week? I\\''m beginning to think the stranger and more controversial shows are more fun to review and I\\''m wondering if you had heard this one before pitching.', '2013-03-24 23:44:27', 1, 'f629bf1200eaed11eb1e4154e0d4fdfa', '112.200.20.61'),
(5414, '1134', 'episode', 'Jerby', '', 'I really enjoyed this one. I''m glad you picked it.\r\n\r\nYes, there was what seemed to be a shift in genres from mystical relic horror to a suspense thriller with a provacative vixen. Finally, we are treated to a major twist that would seem so campy in B-grade horror flicks, but work so well on the radio.\r\n\r\nThis was grade A material that was well acted. I gave it 8 out of 10.', '2013-03-24 23:44:28', 1, '4bd696b004f840734e1d954160d9bc84', '112.200.20.61'),
(5415, '1134', 'episode', 'Carrie', '', 'Ok so I’m stretched out on the floor listening to the SOW (Show of the Week) and I realize that I must have dozed off. So I reverse the program to see what I missed. Turns out I wasn’t sleeping just very confused. Talk about changing a story in midstream. I ended up listening to it again last night. The only reason I can find for the whole Turkish assassins, shopkeeper, murder etc is to explain how Tony came to have the dagger.\r\n\r\nWhat a delicious ending. The unfaithful wife finely stops running around. I did find it a bit of a stretch that Stone would react as strongly as he had. Obviously he would be repulsed by the fact that he had disfigured someone he knew; however he made it clear to the narrator that he had no interest in a long term relationship with Jennifer, so I think the complete breakdown on his part was a bit much.\r\n\r\nI’m sure this one when it first aired had a lot of people scratching their heads. I like a story that takes you in a different direction than you are expecting, but it this was a little quirky even for me. I give it 4 stars.', '2013-03-24 23:44:28', 1, '107aa9d41f742b9207132e793cb26460', '112.200.20.61'),
(5416, '1134', 'episode', 'Morgan', '', ' The reason I picked this show and the last show (thanks for the terminology, Michael) was because of the main actors. I had not heard the episodes before. John Lithgow (and Jerry Orbach) are such well known television personalities now, that I thought it would be fun to hear them in earlier incarnations. I found it particularly interesting to recognize their voices, and to picture their faces in my mind''s eye.\r\n\r\nWhile Jerry Orbach''s character in "The Follower" (ep#212) was played similarly to his role today in Law and Order, I found I had to really listen to recognize the voice of Lithgow in "The Dagger of Almohades"\r\n\r\nI know Lithgow did some Broadway acting, and has done some Shakespeare on stage. I suppose one of the strengths of an actor is to disappear into his/her character and Lithgow did so in this episode.\r\n\r\nAlong the same theme, I''d like to listen to:\r\nMorgan Fairchild (at age 26-27, 6 episodes)\r\nJerry Stiller (1 episode)', '2013-03-24 23:44:29', 1, 'f139b649b8dd5c458a31a68617d2f102', '112.200.20.61'),
(5417, '1134', 'episode', 'Miles', '', 'Ahhh...makes perfect sense. I wondered if you had listened previously, found it confusing and wanted to get some opinions.\r\n\r\nBTW, I listened to the Stiller show recently and enjoyed it. I haven\\''t found a Morgan Fairchild program yet but I\\''ll get there in due time. Hope I\\''m not going to have to imagine her as some sort of hag because having seen her, I\\''m not sure I can make this leap.', '2013-03-24 23:44:30', 1, '4a55500096323eca62c061514c141177', '112.200.20.61'),
(5418, '1134', 'episode', 'Rudy', '', 'A good one to start out with is \\"The Haliday Prediction\\" with Tony Roberts...who usually was the RMT\\''s \\"man\\''s man\\" type of roles. Morgan Fairchild plays his love interest there in a predictable but enjoyable enough plot.', '2013-03-24 23:44:30', 1, '7023471a4c6c17c78663b943a10ec1a4', '112.200.20.61'),
(5419, '1134', 'episode', 'Dana', '', 'I remember hearing this show when it was originally broadcast, but didn''t remember anything about it so it was like hearing it anew. I liked this show, at times it was pretty obvious but the ending is still pretty drastic. It is good to get shows from different times in the series, there are subtle differences in the look and feel that are interesting to note. So I will listen to a few more from around this time and see how I like them.', '2013-03-24 23:44:31', 1, '6ef67edb0872485e45f5c9a5c3adf888', '112.200.20.61'),
(5420, '1134', 'episode', 'Miles', '', 'OK -\r\n\r\nSecond listen... here''s my opinion.\r\n\r\nSeemed that each act had very different focus, and that there were many elements to the entire story that were only loosely strung together. What I did notice was that the dialogue was extremely tight - a lot of information packed into each sentence. For that reason, this episode required more ''brain power'' than most episodes. Lithgow''s delivery is amazingly sharp and finished even then as it is today.\r\n\r\nThe whole dagger business seemed irrelevant - would have been better if it were an ancient lip balm, or cosmetic.\r\n\r\nI was cringing at the horrifying attempt at a Pakistani accent!!\r\n\r\nAnyway, thanks for the indulgence on this week''s POW', '2013-03-24 23:44:32', 1, 'b1ba03d87cd21162047147dedd8b055b', '112.200.20.61'),
(5421, '1061', 'episode', 'Kurt', '', 'As I said, this is similar to "Time and again" in that:\r\n\r\n- It''s written by Ian Martin.\r\n- He plays a kindly, befuddled, "house call" type of doctor in each.\r\n- There are bloodsuckers at work.\r\n- These vampires are also WORKING (intentionally or not) for someone.\r\n- The man we come to view as a protagonist has bad things happen within his family.\r\n- In each play, he decides to take a similar course of action.\r\n\r\nThree things:\r\n\r\n- This reunites the "Girl talk" team of Teri Keane and Robert Dryden. I think this was one of Dryden''s best performances for the RMT.\r\n- The best line in the play occurs on their "honeymoon" night after he (in the voice he used as a college "revolutionary" says he''ll treat his new bride''s plant with "kid gloves"): "The only gloves I wanted to use on "heebie-jeebie" or whatever were 8 oz. ones." Classic.\r\n- At that same moment, there''s a music bed that I can''t determine the origin of. It sounds like some kind of percussive string instrument, accompanied by flutes and run through an echo chamber. I listened to this last year, at my wife''s store, with my back to a darkened storeroom. I defy anyone to listen intently to that music bed and not get some type of shivers the first time you hear it. (On any other episode it would have been overused, but this one it works perfectly.)\r\n\r\nEnjoy, ya''ll.', '2013-03-24 23:44:32', 1, '99456533b28a3d86d8b00e9f8693e044', '112.200.20.61'),
(5422, '1061', 'episode', 'Brian Pontillas', '', 'This was a great show, also.\r\n\r\nI used to soak up this b-movie type horror stuff watching late movies and, of course, on the radio. I loved schlock, and this was schlock!\r\n\r\nAs an adult, my tastes have become at least a tiny bit more discerning (I think). Therefore, I didn\\''t enjoy it as much today as I would have as a kid.\r\n\r\nStill, a good episode. I\\''m giving it a four although I didn\\''t like it as much as \\"Time and Again\\".\r\n\r\nThanks for two great selections!', '2013-03-15 13:55:19', 1, '0f7d86a251b90573d5d2311d5d767a51', '112.200.20.61'),
(5423, '1061', 'episode', 'Jesswani', '', 'More Vampyre stories, I am scared... someone definitely is attempting to scare all of us with all these nifty stories of blood sucking plants and clocks. I would give this a 4 but I had issues with the ending, not sure just was not satisfying enough at the end. This one gets a three as well but another strong 3. The wife kind of reminds me of the wife from I Warn You Three Times.. I guess because when she tires of someone she eliminates them. I heard this one as a kid and it scared the you know what out of me, primarily because my dad had a lot of plants and one was a Venus Fly Trap. I have this uncontrollable urge to watch Day Of The Triffids now.', '2013-03-24 23:44:33', 1, '42feb3cade14cb34fd49821096aa0c37', '112.200.20.61'),
(5424, '1061', 'episode', 'Marv', '', 'This show had a compelling concept, both in the plant itself and the way the woman used it to gain wealth and power. So she was preying on her victim in the same way the plant was. I would have liked to have her character explained - how she had come to get these plants and become so evil that she became their ilk. The main character (first-person) is also interesting (and desirous of something), in that he is presented as a \\\\\\''momma\\\\\\''s boy\\\\\\'' but is thoroughly seduced by his lady-friend. Sound quality slipped toward the end but that is a small price to pay for having these shows available once again. I continue to enjoy the show.', '2013-03-24 23:44:33', 1, 'aad6b1c7f8179bbc5e816d3c9de1a195', '112.200.20.61'),
(5425, '1061', 'episode', 'Gayle G.', '', 'What a great story. It reminded me of the classic tale, \\\\\\"The Body Snatchers\\\\\\", but this story had it\\\\\\''s own interesting distinctions. I enjoyed the overbearing mother and the momma\\\\\\''s boy storyline and I also enjoyed notion of the heartless and conniving wife. Justice was served when the wife met her end. The actors were excellent but unfortunately, the third act of the program I have was very hard to hear and this program is an excellent candidate for replacement.', '2013-03-24 23:44:34', 1, '60b7ba893815dc12523330cfe701c099', '112.200.20.61'),
(5426, '1061', 'episode', 'Freddie S.', '', 'I can certainly appreciate your comment about building of the wife character. I,too, would have appreciated some background information but I''m not sure what I would have cut to make the 42 minute timeframe.', '2013-03-24 23:44:35', 1, 'd617ffac6f3b46025757cfb16b697db7', '112.200.20.61');
