Latest / If You Please, Himan Brown’s Radio Mystery Theater / S2E2: Speak of the Devil

Transcript

S2E2: Speak of the Devil · If You Please, Himan Brown’s Radio Mystery Theater

0:00
>> Welcome to the second season of
0:02
"If You Please... Himan Brown's Radio Mystery Theater."
0:05
On this series,
0:06
we are offering rebroadcasts of a select group
0:08
of programs created by this legendary producer for CBS
0:12
between 1974 and 1982.
0:15
Brown reimagined radio drama for contemporary times.
0:19
Our new series offers some of these exciting works again.
0:22
In season one,
0:24
we delivered riveting tales of foul play, betrayal,
0:26
greed, and misguided love.
0:28
We foiled a murder, considered reincarnation,
0:31
pondered the nature of guilt, and traveled through time.
0:34
We heard Himan Brown's troupe of seasoned audio actors
0:37
embody a wide range of characters
0:39
and deliver thrills time and again.
0:42
And for season two,
0:43
they are all set to keep our headsets on
0:46
and our fingers tapping play.
0:48
Before each program,
0:50
commentator John Slavney shares details about the cast,
0:52
the writer, and the plot.
0:54
Your job? Listen.
0:56
"If You Please" is produced
0:57
in loving memory of Robert Isaacson.
1:00
♪♪
1:06
>> "Speak of the devil, and his horns appear."
1:09
This old proverb gives our present tale its title --
1:12
"Speak of the Devil" --
1:14
and it's the 15th episode of "If You Please."
1:15
Hi again, I'm John Slavny here
1:17
with a bit of background
1:18
meant to enrich your listening experience.
1:20
Ellen McKay is a young bride
1:22
whose honeymoon goes spectacularly wrong.
1:24
She's come to visit her Aunt Jeannie,
1:26
who's something of a spiritualist
1:28
at her home on the rugged inlet of the Solway Firth
1:30
on the border between England and Scotland.
1:32
Ellen spent much of her childhood here,
1:34
but this time she's brought her new husband, Michael.
1:37
He's an American writer and a proud materialist,
1:39
skeptical of anything supernatural,
1:41
a trait he may eventually come to regret.
1:44
Jada Rowland plays Ellen.
1:46
This was her first performance for Himan Brown
1:47
on "Radio Mystery Theater."
1:49
She would go on to appear in more than 50 episodes
1:51
across all nine years of the series' run,
1:53
and would become one of Brown's favorite actors
1:55
in ingenue roles.
1:57
A native New Yorker, Rowland began her career on stage
2:00
as a child actress.
2:02
She was six years old when Katharine Cornell spotted her
2:03
in a school play
2:05
and offered her a role as the young princess
2:07
in the Broadway production of "That Lady," a production for
2:10
which "RMT's" elegant mainstay Marian Seldes played
2:13
the same princess all grown up.
2:15
Rowland went on to dub English dialogue
2:17
for foreign films including "La Strada" and "Heidi,"
2:20
and she starred for years in the daytime dramas
2:22
"The Secret Storm" and "As the World Turns."
2:24
She is also a writer and a visual artist.
2:26
As Ellen's new husband, Michael,
2:28
we have the charismatic Nick Pryor back
2:30
for his second "RMT" appearance.
2:32
Pryor was still a student at Yale
2:33
when he began acting on Broadway stages,
2:36
and he went on to a busy career in television and film
2:38
that ran from the 1950s into the 2020s.
2:41
In the 1980s,
2:43
he played the father of Tom Cruise's character
2:44
in "Risky Business"
2:46
and that of Robert Downey Jr's in "Less Than Zero."
2:48
Pryor is also a member of "The Adams Chronicles" club,
2:51
yet another "RMT" actor
2:53
who turned up in that 1976 PBS miniseries playing
2:56
John Quincy Adams II.
2:58
The series was filmed largely at Manhattan's
3:00
Fox Movietone Studios,
3:02
which goes some way toward explaining
3:04
how so many New York-based actors ended up in its cast.
3:07
I've mentioned this singular production a number of times
3:10
now that we're in the midst of celebrating the country's 250th.
3:14
Bryna Raeburn is back, already in her fifth role in "RMT,"
3:17
this time as Ellen's Aunt Jeannie.
3:19
Raeburn's delightful portrayal comes complete
3:21
with a thorny Scottish burr,
3:23
and she's the perfect hostess, one who can fix up a hot toddy
3:26
and summon up a rapacious demonic entity
3:28
all in the same night.
3:30
The script is by Ian Martin,
3:32
who also plays three roles in this tale,
3:34
including that of the unwelcome guest.
3:36
Now, since you're bound to get caught up
3:38
in the conjuring anyway,
3:39
you may as well make a wee toddy for yourself,
3:41
settle in somewhere safe and familiar,
3:44
and enjoy our tale of terror and suspense.
3:47
This episode was recorded on Monday, December 17th, 1973,
3:51
and was first broadcast from CBS Studios on East 52nd Street
3:54
on Friday, January 25th, 1974.
3:58
Enjoy.
3:59
♪♪
4:05
>> The CBS Radio Mystery Theater presents...
4:09
[ Door creaks open ]
4:11
♪♪
4:18
♪♪
4:25
Come in.
4:29
Welcome.
4:30
I'm E.G. Marshall.
4:32
Welcome to the sounds of suspense,
4:36
to the fear you can hear.
4:39
Make yourself comfortable,
4:41
for there are ill winds blowing outside.
4:45
This is a tale of a titanic struggle
4:47
between two colossal forces --
4:50
one natural, the other supernatural.
4:54
The prize -- a girl's soul.
4:57
And in the clash, as fire and water mix,
5:01
there is the very devil to pay.
5:04
Come with me now to the Solway Firth in Scotland
5:07
to meet the first of the forces.
5:10
[ Tide rushing ]
5:12
>> It's the tide!
5:14
It comes in faster than an express train.
5:17
>> Is it always like this?
5:18
>> Twice a day. >> Doesn't it ever break?
5:22
>> It will when it gets just about abreast of us.
5:24
Isn't it exciting? >> That's one word for it.
5:28
>> That's why you don't dare go out on the flats on foot.
5:30
If the tide was due, you'd never make it ashore.
5:33
♪♪
5:40
>> Our mystery drama,
5:41
"Speak of the Devil,"
5:43
was written especially for the "Mystery Theater" by Ian Martin
5:46
and stars Jada Rowland and Nick Pryor.
5:50
I'll be back shortly with act one.
5:52
♪♪
6:01
♪♪
6:09
They say he who dreams on the Solway
6:12
will wake in another world.
6:15
Not only is the tide a terror, but so are the quicksands.
6:20
And far worse than either --
6:22
the bogeys, warlocks, and unnamed things
6:25
that haunt Scottish history.
6:28
The Scots word for tonight's story is "eldritch."
6:32
It means uncanny, eerie, frightful, otherworldly.
6:39
Listen.
6:41
>> If you'll put out the light, Mrs. Petri.
6:44
[ Switch clicks ] >> [ Gasps ]
6:47
>> Hold my hand, Mike.
6:49
>> You'd better hold both mine.
6:51
>> Why?
6:52
>> You can't trust me in the dark.
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>> Oh! [ Tutting ]
6:55
>> I'm sorry, Colonel Bruce.
6:57
>> Now, Mike, Mary Ellen,
7:00
I know you two young ones think a séance is a mite daft,
7:05
but it's not the way the Colonel,
7:06
Mrs. Petri, and I feel.
7:09
>> Well, then, maybe we'd better not stay.
7:11
>> Oh, no! We need five for the circle.
7:13
It's a blessing you're here.
7:15
But please be serious.
7:20
All of us have made contact with your dearest ones
7:23
who have passed on through my control.
7:27
>> Control?
7:29
>> That's a messenger who brings us messages.
7:32
Hunnatu. He once was a slave in Babylon.
7:37
>> Babylon? >> [ Tutting ]
7:39
>> This is scary. >> Hang in, darling.
7:42
>> Now, may we all join hands, please?
7:48
I'm asking you not to break the chain of contact now.
7:54
Clear your minds. Make them a blank.
8:00
A quiet place.
8:04
I'm reaching now.
8:07
Reaching away and above and out and over
8:14
from here to the bonnie, bonnie
8:19
other place that lies beyond our ken.
8:25
We're biding here, Hunnatu,
8:29
asking you back into our circle.
8:35
Will you not come back to us again?
8:40
>> Most precious lady from across centuries,
8:45
the time is not right!
8:48
Not right now!
8:50
I beg you!
8:51
Kishar is breathing fire tonight!
8:55
Go! There is evil!
8:59
>> [ Growling speech ]
9:11
>> [ Whimpering ]
9:13
>> Stop it, stop it! In heaven's name!
9:14
Someone get the light.
9:16
>> Yes, yes! >> It burned. It burned.
9:18
>> Ellen! Where's that damn light?
9:22
Mary Ellen, are you all right?
9:25
>> Yes.
9:27
What's all that smoke?
9:28
>> Oh, that's just the incense we burn.
9:30
>> I'm the one to blame
9:31
for meddling in the business of the Lord.
9:35
We'll not ever have a séance in this house again.
9:40
I'm afraid that I loosed some devil out of hell this night.
9:46
♪♪
9:52
>> Ouch! >> Oh, don't wriggle so much.
9:55
>> You stuck the pin in me, Aunt Jeannie.
9:56
>> Oh, I'm sorry, Ellen. [ Chuckles ]
9:59
Oh, but it'll take more than a pin prick
10:01
to burst your happiness.
10:02
>> Thank you, Aunt Jeannie,
10:04
for letting me come home to be married
10:06
and for such a heavenly day.
10:08
>> Oh, well, I'll accept the thanks for bidding you back to
10:11
where you grew up.
10:12
>> When Dad died so suddenly, I-I was lost.
10:16
I didn't know what to do.
10:18
>> Well, you did just the right thing.
10:21
You came home.
10:23
You're two modern young people who are a lot smarter
10:25
than we old people are.
10:28
And it's proud I am to be part of the gamble
10:31
you're making in your lives.
10:32
>> I am all goosebumps.
10:34
I'll get back into my jeans and sweater.
10:37
I've got a skin, just like I had last Wednesday night.
10:41
>> Don't mention it.
10:43
I should never have had you children in that circle.
10:47
>> It was so scary. What happened?
10:50
>> I don't know.
10:53
>> It was some kind of trick, wasn't it?
10:54
>> I don't play tricks.
10:56
Well, it was Maggie, your mother,
10:58
who had the second sight, you know?
11:01
That wee wisp, so delicate and so, so vibrant.
11:08
When she died, it tore the heart out of me.
11:12
But Will went off to America and left me to bring you up.
11:18
Well, it -- it put my heart back.
11:22
And then when you were 15 and almost grown up,
11:24
and he wanted you to join him, I-I was left alone again.
11:29
How could I stop you going?
11:31
>> I didn't want to go.
11:33
>> I know, but you were his flesh and blood.
11:36
I found a way out of my loneliness.
11:40
Nights when the roar of the tide
11:42
used to come boiling up the firth outside the windows there.
11:44
I thought I could hear Maggie calling to me.
11:49
But when the wind was skirling out of the northeast,
11:53
I'd hear her voice on the wings of the blow.
11:56
And I began to think maybe I had the call, too.
12:00
That's when I started the séances.
12:04
>> Until the other night.
12:06
>> Yes. I'll never hold a séance again.
12:09
So the subject is closed.
12:11
I realize I'm just a foolish old woman.
12:15
>> I've never been so scared.
12:16
>> Promise me to put it out of your mind.
12:18
What's past is past. Your future is all that matters.
12:24
>> It seems so right to be back.
12:27
As if... As if something were calling me.
12:31
[ Gasps ] >> Oh, you're cold!
12:33
I'll stir up the fire.
12:35
>> No. No, don't bother.
12:38
I just miss my American central heating.
12:41
I think I'll go outside in the sun for a minute or two.
12:43
>> Oh, go take a good brisk turn down the road
12:46
while I finish this hem.
12:48
>> That's a good idea.
12:49
>> But don't go down the firth road.
12:51
Take the high road.
12:52
>> Why?
12:54
>> Well, I saw your Michael off this morning for the Solway.
12:58
You don't want to run into the bridegroom on the wedding day.
13:01
It's bad luck.
13:03
♪♪
13:10
[ Seagulls crying ]
13:12
>> Kiss me, Ellen.
13:14
>> Aunt Jeannie thinks it's bad luck for the bride and groom
13:16
to see each other on the wedding day.
13:18
>> You can't fault that.
13:20
Back in Nebraska, my mother used to feel the same way.
13:23
But that's just old-fashioned.
13:24
>> Ain't Aunt Jeannie something else?
13:27
>> Darling, your Aunt Jeannie sure is something else.
13:30
>> Good or bad?
13:32
>> [ Chuckles ] About 90% good.
13:34
I just don't dig the spirit kick.
13:36
>> We won't have any more of that.
13:39
It was awful, though, wasn't it?
13:41
>> It's all kind of self-hypnosis.
13:44
>> But that terrible raspy voice, whatever it was saying.
13:49
>> Ellen, there wasn't any voice.
13:51
>> You didn't hear it?
13:53
>> I heard something
13:55
that sounded like your aunt choking herself to death.
13:57
>> But the first voice! >> Oh, that.
13:59
That's just the old girl practicing
14:00
a little ventriloquism.
14:02
>> No, no. That awful burning smell.
14:07
>> Well, I will admit, I like the Hare Krishna incense better.
14:11
Come on, Ellen, let's forget all that mumbo jumbo.
14:14
Hey, dig that crazy character out there,
14:17
fishing in those little pools on the flats.
14:20
>> What's crazy about that? >> On horseback?
14:23
>> But everyone does because of the tide.
14:25
>> The tide? >> I forgot.
14:29
If we hadn't been up in Glasgow wedding shopping,
14:31
I'd have shown it to you.
14:32
Look out there to the west.
14:34
If that gillie is up on his horse, it must be --
14:36
oh, yes, here it comes.
14:38
>> [ Chuckling ] And there he goes.
14:40
You'd think the devil was on his tail.
14:42
What's his hurry?
14:43
>> Look! The tidal bore. It's coming.
14:46
>> You mean that big wave down at the mouth of the estuary?
14:49
>> Yes, it's the tide.
14:51
It comes in faster than an express train.
14:53
Listen. [ Tide rushing ]
14:55
>> Holy maloney! Is it always like this?
14:58
>> Twice a day.
15:00
Worse in the autumn than in the spring.
15:02
>> Doesn't it ever break?
15:04
>> It will when it gets just about abreast of us.
15:05
Isn't it exciting?
15:07
>> That's one word for it.
15:09
>> That's why you don't dare go out on the flats on foot.
15:11
If the tide was due, you'd never make it ashore.
15:14
Oh, Michael, it's so thrilling and so good to be alive!
15:17
I love you! [ Rushing continues ]
15:19
>> What'd you say? >> I love you!
15:23
♪♪
15:31
>> Mike? >> What'd you say?
15:34
>> Husband. >> Read that loud and clear.
15:37
On my way. >> What's taking you so long?
15:40
>> Just brushing my teeth.
15:42
>> Please come to bed.
15:44
>> Why didn't you say that in the first place?
15:46
>> Will you come under the covers?
15:48
I'm freezing.
15:49
>> I'll put some more coal on the fire.
15:51
>> I don't want coal. I want my brand-new husband.
15:55
>> You got him.
15:56
[ Switch click ] >> Oh!
15:58
>> What is it, darling?
16:00
>> Nothing. It's just... just that funny smell.
16:04
>> It's the coal smoke.
16:07
Remember, you don't want coal to keep you warm.
16:11
Just me.
16:13
>> Oh, my darling. Yes, yes, yes.
16:18
♪♪
16:23
My husband, my darling. My husband.
16:28
You.
16:29
No. No.
16:32
Please.
16:34
No. No!
16:38
Don't -- Don't touch me! >> [ Growling speech ]
16:40
>> Go away! [ Whimpers ] No!
16:45
Oh, no! Michael!
16:49
Your breath! >> [ Growling speech continues ]
16:51
>> Oh, my hair! Oh, no, no!
16:55
No! No, I cast you out!
16:59
♪♪
17:02
[ Door opens ]
17:04
>> Michael, is there anything wrong?
17:07
>> No, Aunt Jeannie. Why?
17:09
>> Well, I was dozing, and I thought I heard...
17:12
[ Sniffing ] What's that I smell?
17:16
>> Is it your candle?
17:17
Oh, I guess I let the fire go out.
17:20
>> Aye. It's a damp chimney, but just the same,
17:25
is -- is Mary Ellen all right?
17:28
>> She's sound asleep. See for yourself.
17:31
>> Oh, I'm sorry to bother you, but...
17:34
>> What is it? What's troubling you?
17:36
>> I don't know. I don't know.
17:39
Maybe I was the one that dreamed it. Oh!
17:43
Be gentle with her, Michael.
17:45
She's so sensitive and delicate.
17:50
Like her mother that died all those years ago.
17:52
>> We'll keep her from any harm.
17:55
Good night, Aunt Jeannie.
17:56
>> Good night, Michael, dear.
17:59
[ Door closes ]
18:00
If we can.
18:04
If it's in human hands to be able to.
18:06
[ Air whooshing ] [ Gasps ]
18:08
Snuff my candle out if you will, Auld Reekie.
18:12
But hear me this -- You'll not have Mary Ellen.
18:17
You'll not have her like my sister Maggie.
18:21
♪♪
18:25
>> "Auld Reekie" could be translated "old smoky."
18:30
It's a Scots name for the devil.
18:32
Jeannie should know better than to mention him,
18:35
for the old proverb says,
18:36
"Speak of the devil, and his horns appear."
18:40
Let's see when I return shortly with act two.
18:44
♪♪
18:46
>> Like what you're hearing so far?
18:48
Are you curious about the history behind radio programs
18:50
just like this one
18:52
and the dramatic genius who created them?
18:54
In the nine-part award-winning documentary "Audio Maverick,"
18:58
we explore the golden age of radio
19:00
through the life of Himan Brown.
19:03
You'll hear the history of radio come to life as we travel
19:06
from the birth of audio drama to the programs
19:08
that brought millions of families
19:10
into their living rooms every night.
19:12
"Audio Maverick" is available anywhere you get your podcasts.
19:16
♪♪
19:23
♪♪
19:31
>> Dreams are made to die. With the opening of day,
19:34
and superstition fades and falters in the sunlight.
19:38
So by the following morning,
19:40
we might hope our bride and bridegroom
19:42
wake and rise on the right side of the bed.
19:46
Let's find out as Michael comes downstairs.
19:49
>> Oh, good morning, Michael.
19:51
I'm in the kitchen. Come on out.
19:52
>> Morning, Aunt Jeannie.
19:53
>> Well, and how is the bridegroom today?
19:57
>> Well, the bridegroom is first rate.
19:59
It's the bride who's not.
20:01
>> Oh, what's wrong with the wee lass?
20:03
>> Oh, I don't know.
20:05
I-I think now you were right last night.
20:08
>> Huh? Right about what?
20:12
>> Well, she had some kind of a -- a bad dream.
20:17
But if she did, she won't tell me about it.
20:20
What do you think it might have been?
20:22
>> Oh, I don't know.
20:24
She's a sensitive wee thing,
20:26
and she's back in the part of the house where her mother died.
20:29
That was Maggie's room you're in.
20:32
Maybe I should never have put you there.
20:35
Anyway, I'll get her tea and go on up and have a wee chat.
20:38
♪♪
20:48
>> And I couldn't tell Mike, I couldn't, not after what we...
20:53
My wedding night.
20:55
How could I dream anything so --
20:58
so vile and hideous,
21:01
that great, gross presence bearing down on me.
21:07
Breath so sick,
21:10
the lips slavering.
21:13
And that awful fur. Fur all over.
21:16
Oh!
21:19
And the fire burning me.
21:21
That scorching smell.
21:26
Oh, Aunt Jeannie, what a nightmare.
21:29
>> Whisht now. And that's all it was.
21:33
>> But it seemed so real.
21:34
>> Well, it wasn't.
21:35
Because when I came by, you were sleeping sound.
21:38
Oh, drink your tea now.
21:41
It's a good thing you're married.
21:43
That nice American boy with his head screwed good and tight.
21:46
>> Mike.
21:48
>> [ Chuckles ] He'll blow all the cobwebs out of your head,
21:51
and he's going to have a good chance to.
21:54
>> What do you mean?
21:56
>> I mean, you two are going to have a nice honeymoon all alone
22:00
for a big, long month.
22:02
>> Where are you going?
22:04
>> Oh, I've got an old girl school chum
22:06
who lives just outside Blackpool at Saint Anne on Sea.
22:09
For years she's wanted me to visit.
22:12
>> I'm not going to drive you out of your house.
22:14
>> Oh, you're going to do more than that, Mary Ellen.
22:16
You and your handsome bonny husband
22:19
are going to move downstairs to my room,
22:21
away from this drafty old flue.
22:23
And while I'm gone, I'm going to get it fixed
22:26
so the fire will burn clean.
22:28
And I'll not take no for an answer.
22:31
♪♪
22:40
>> I thought Scottish weather was supposed to be terrible.
22:43
Rainy, damp, no sunshine.
22:46
>> This has been a very particular May.
22:49
>> Our honeymoon.
22:51
>> Yes. Sorry it's over? >> Desolate.
22:55
>> Still, with Aunt Jeannie back,
22:58
maybe you'll get a little more work done on the book.
23:01
>> Darling, I have been busy in research.
23:04
It is a love story. Speaking of that, do you think --
23:08
>> Look down the road.
23:09
>> I can't. Your front's in the way.
23:12
>> That's Dr. Ferguson bringing Aunt Jeannie back.
23:15
Our month is up.
23:16
>> Speaking of your front,
23:18
do you know how you blossomed in the last four weeks?
23:21
>> All right, playboy,
23:23
let's concentrate on other physical problems.
23:25
How do we get out of a hammock without breaking a limb?
23:27
>> [ Laughs ] [ Vehicle door opens ]
23:30
Welcome home, Aunt Jeannie. >> Ohh, Ellen. Precious.
23:33
Aye, you've turned into a real Scots lassie.
23:38
You've got the bloom on your cheeks.
23:40
>> It's happiness.
23:41
And those warm spring winds from the west.
23:43
Hello, Doctor Ferguson. >> Hey, Mrs. Tilson.
23:46
As a physician,
23:48
I can only concur with your aunt's diagnosis.
23:49
You're a picture of health.
23:52
And how are you, Mr. Tilson? >> Never better, sir.
23:54
>> Oh, I can believe that.
23:56
Well, I really have to be back on rounds.
23:58
>> Thank you for meeting Aunt Jeannie at the station.
24:00
>> It should have been me.
24:02
>> Without a car?
24:04
Oh, you'd have had hard shrift getting me aboard old Bess
24:06
since the carriage broke its wheel.
24:08
>> You know, Jeannie,
24:10
you should put that old horse out to pasture
24:12
now she's nothing left to pull.
24:14
>> Oh, I couldnae do that. We're too used to each other.
24:16
Poor old soul. All right, Doctor Ferguson.
24:19
Away you go. >> Right you are. See you soon.
24:23
>> I'll take your bags up to the house, Aunt Jeannie.
24:25
>> Oh, give me a hug first.
24:28
That's right. Now off you go.
24:30
And me and Mary Ellen will have a week's chat
24:33
on the way up to the house.
24:35
Goodbye, Percy.
24:37
[ Vehicle departing ]
24:38
Oh, I should never have said that.
24:41
He hates the name.
24:43
>> I'm not sure I blame him.
24:45
>> Oh, well, that's not what's on my mind.
24:49
How are you, dearie?
24:50
>> You can see for yourself.
24:52
Oh, don't say anything to Mike yet,
24:55
but I just have to tell someone.
24:57
Aunt Jeannie, I think -- I know I'm pregnant.
25:03
♪♪
25:07
>> [ Chuckling ] Well, Mrs. Tilson.
25:10
>> Tell me, am I pregnant?
25:12
>> Oh, the test will prove it, but I'll bet on it.
25:15
And let me say that you're the loveliest
25:17
expectant mother I've ever had under my care.
25:20
♪♪
25:25
>> Oh, well, a little
25:27
morning sickness is to be expected in these early months.
25:29
Still...
25:31
>> There's nothing wrong, Doctor?
25:33
>> A young, healthy woman. What could be wrong?
25:35
Still, we must take precautions.
25:37
I'm writing out some medication for you
25:38
that I want you to take each day.
25:40
♪♪
25:45
>> But what does Doctor Ferguson say is causing it?
25:49
>> It's nothing, dear. Just some little hitch.
25:52
>> Honey, we both had thorough physical checkups
25:55
before we came to Scotland.
25:57
The RH factor is ruled out. Why should you --
26:01
>> Lots of women have morning sickness.
26:02
>> It isn't only in the morning, Ellen.
26:05
>> I'll talk to Doctor Ferguson.
26:08
Maybe we should change the medication.
26:11
♪♪
26:16
>> Mary Ellen dear, I've talked to Doctor Ferguson
26:19
and he's completely puzzled.
26:22
I'm not sure that I am, though.
26:25
Is there anything you want to tell me?
26:29
>> What can I tell you, Aunt Jeannie,
26:31
that I haven't told him?
26:33
>> Are you -- Are you in pain?
26:38
>> I've talked to the doctor about that.
26:41
It -- It isn't pain. It -- I don't know.
26:47
>> Ellen, are you -- are you dreaming again?
26:52
>> Of what? >> Of -- Of the presence.
26:57
>> I don't want to talk anymore.
27:00
I just want to sleep. Only I don't want to.
27:06
I don't want to sleep at all.
27:09
It's just that I'm so tired.
27:13
So tired.
27:15
♪♪
27:20
>> You have to help me, Aunt Jeannie.
27:21
>> How, Michael?
27:23
>> Doctor Ferguson says
27:25
that, physically, melon should be all right.
27:26
The baby seems to be thriving.
27:29
It's her mental state that...
27:31
Do you know she won't go to sleep at night?
27:33
She forces herself to stay awake.
27:37
What is it she's afraid of dreaming about, Aunt Jeannie?
27:40
It is that, isn't it?
27:42
>> I can't tell you just what she's dreaming.
27:44
I'm too far out of touch since I went away.
27:47
But I do know one thing.
27:51
The only way to stop it is to get her away from here.
27:56
>> As easy as that?
27:57
>> Oh, not so easy maybe.
27:59
She's bound and determined on having you finish
28:01
your book first.
28:02
>> Ah! The devil take the book.
28:04
Melon comes first.
28:06
♪♪
28:10
>> You sure you don't mind, Michael?
28:12
>> I'm very sure.
28:14
We're going home to have your baby 3,000 miles away.
28:20
>> Oh, darling, I don't know what to say.
28:24
It -- It can't be too soon for me.
28:28
>> Well, it's sooner than you think.
28:30
We're booked out of Glasgow tomorrow afternoon.
28:33
Home for America. >> I don't know.
28:36
I should be feeling all sorts of things,
28:38
I know, but the only one I can really feel is relief.
28:44
Oh, such blessed relief.
28:47
[ Yawns ] Oh, for the first time
28:51
as long as I can remember.
28:53
Days, weeks.
28:56
I just want to go to sleep.
28:59
>> Good night, darling. Rest. Sweet dreams.
29:04
>> You'll keep me safe.
29:07
You won't let me come to any harm.
29:10
>> For better or worse.
29:13
In sickness and in health.
29:16
Until death do us...
29:20
Sleep, poor baby.
29:23
Rest.
29:25
♪♪
29:26
>> I love you, Michael.
29:28
I love you.
29:31
Keep our baby safe.
29:34
Don't let... ohh...
29:37
-[ Growling speech ]
29:39
>> No! Oh!
29:42
Oh! [ Screaming ] Oh, no!
29:47
>> Ellen! Ellen! What is it?
29:49
>> Oh, I don't -- I don't know. It's pain!
29:52
Like a knife!
29:55
I think maybe -- maybe I'm going to lose the baby.
29:59
>> You're gonna be all right, Ellen.
30:00
Don't worry. >> Get Doctor Ferguson.
30:03
>> I'm gonna call him now. You'll be all right.
30:06
>> [ Whimpering ] I'm fine. Just get him.
30:08
>> I'll send Jeannie up to you while I phone.
30:10
Aunt Jeannie. Aunt Jeannie!
30:12
>> What is it? What is it, Michael?
30:14
>> Ellen. Maybe a miscarriage. What's Doctor Ferguson's number?
30:17
>> Oh, you'll no get him by the phone.
30:19
It's out of order again.
30:20
[ Cradle clicking ] >> Hello? Hello?
30:22
>> Laddie, laddie, it's no use.
30:24
It won't be fixed before morning.
30:25
>> I'll go to the neighbors.
30:26
>> It's a party line.
30:28
If one's out, they're all out.
30:29
>> Oh, God! How far to the doctor's?
30:31
>> A good three miles. >> Who's got a car?
30:33
>> Only Colonel Petri,
30:35
and he's away up to Edinburgh for his regimental reunion.
30:37
>> All right, then, I'll go on foot.
30:39
Aunt Jeannie, go up and help her.
30:40
I'll make it as fast as I can.
30:42
>> By the way, Michael, can you ride a horse?
30:44
>> Yes. >> Good. Then take old Bessie.
30:47
There's a bridle and saddle by her in the barn.
30:48
She'll get you there faster.
30:50
>> Take care of her, Aunt Jeannie.
30:51
Don't let anything happen to her.
30:53
>> Right along the Firth Road till you come to town.
30:56
He's the third house in on the right.
30:58
And take care of yourself! [ Door closes ]
31:01
♪♪
31:08
>> What's taking Michael so long?
31:10
>> Oh, just lie still. Don't bring back the pain.
31:14
>> It's funny.
31:16
I thought it was going to tear me in two.
31:19
And then within ten minutes after Michael left the house,
31:21
it just stopped suddenly.
31:23
As if... [ Vehicle approaching ]
31:24
What's that?
31:26
>> Oh! It's a car.
31:27
That'll be the doctor. I'll let him in.
31:30
[ Door opens and closes ] Bide quiet now.
31:32
[ Footsteps ] Oh! Oh, dear. Oh!
31:36
[ Door opens ]
31:37
Oh! Come on in, Doctor. What took you so long?
31:40
>> Oh, I tried to phone you the moment I found out,
31:41
and I got here as soon as...
31:43
>> Yes. >> Oh, then you know.
31:45
>> Of course I know.
31:47
Who do you think's been taking care of Mary Ellen?
31:48
Now you get on up to her. Where's Michael?
31:52
>> Oh, Jeannie, Michael is dead.
31:55
>> Dead? How?
31:58
>> Well, here, let me close the door.
31:59
[ Door closes ]
32:01
Was -- Was Michael riding to try to fetch me?
32:04
>> Of course.
32:06
She thought she was losing the baby.
32:08
What -- What happened to him? >> Bess must have thrown him.
32:12
>> Oh, she never threw a body in her life.
32:14
She was as gentle as -- >> Something must have
32:16
frightened her, driven her frantic.
32:18
Jeannie, this is a terrible thing to tell you, but --
32:21
but I examined the boy,
32:22
and his body was covered with hoof marks.
32:26
He was literally trampled to death.
32:29
♪♪
32:35
>> So Ellen has kept her baby and lost her husband.
32:40
Some evil force shadows this innocent and tragic girl
32:44
and still may threaten her.
32:47
Those hoof marks, were they from the horse
32:51
or in some dark, unfathomable way
32:55
were they supernatural, a demon's footprints?
32:59
Perhaps we'll know when I return with act three.
33:04
>> Like what you're hearing so far?
33:06
Are you curious about the history behind radio programs
33:09
just like this one
33:11
and the dramatic genius who created them?
33:13
In the nine-part award-winning documentary "Audio Maverick,"
33:17
we explore the golden age of radio
33:19
through the life of Himan Brown.
33:21
You'll hear the history of radio come to life as we travel
33:25
from the birth of audio drama to the programs
33:27
that brought millions of families
33:29
into their living rooms every night.
33:31
"Audio Maverick" is available anywhere you get your podcasts.
33:34
♪♪
33:41
♪♪
33:48
>> For two weeks,
33:49
Ellen, after her first wild emotion
33:51
when she heard of Mike's death, has retreated into herself,
33:56
her face white and drawn, her eyes black and empty
34:00
like two holes burned in a blanket.
34:03
Now, as the doctor comes down after examining her...
34:07
>> How is she today, Doctor?
34:08
>> No change. Listless, unreachable.
34:11
Hopeless. >> And her health? The baby?
34:15
>> The baby?
34:17
Yeah, there is no doubts of its vitality.
34:20
>> I have a terrible time getting her to eat anything.
34:23
>> Well, you must be more successful
34:24
than you think, Jeannie.
34:25
There's nothing the matter with Mary Ellen physically.
34:28
No. It's her mental health that concerns me.
34:31
>> The poor bairn has been through a terrible shock, Percy.
34:33
>> Yeah, I know you.
34:36
>> You don't think there is any chance of her losing her mind?
34:40
>> Jeannie, Mary Ellen is beyond me and my knowledge.
34:44
Somehow we've got to call in a psychiatrist.
34:46
>> Oh, Percy, what is it you're afraid of for Mary Ellen?
34:50
>> Well, you don't like my medical term.
34:52
>> I want to know.
34:53
>> Very well, then. Schizophrenia.
34:57
More specifically, dementia praecox.
34:59
Paranoid type, I guess.
35:01
>> Oh, well, what does all that mean?
35:02
>> Withdrawal from life,
35:04
delusions of all kinds, persecution, unseen enemies,
35:07
that sort of thing.
35:09
>> Oh, the second sight.
35:12
Just -- Just like all of us.
35:15
>> Now, that's enough of that nonsense.
35:17
You're all sensitive, delicately balanced women,
35:19
but all things being equal, perfectly normal.
35:23
Well, I have other calls to make.
35:25
>> Oh, well, I -- I'll walk you to the door.
35:28
Any instructions for Mary Ellen?
35:32
>> Oh, just that she keep on with the sedation I've provided.
35:35
And, Jeannie,
35:37
try to persuade her to let me call in another doctor.
35:39
>> I'll -- I'll see what's best to do.
35:43
>> Be very careful.
35:45
>> I'll do what's right.
35:48
[ Door opens ]
35:50
>> Hey, I think maybe tonight I'll take a run up to Glasgow
35:52
and have a consultation with a friend of mine there,
35:53
Doctor Engle.
35:54
Good man.
35:56
Maybe I could persuade him to run back down here with me
35:59
just to observe her.
36:00
>> Oh, by the way,
36:02
till -- till I see what I can do first, eh?
36:04
>> All right. Another day or so can't do any harm...I hope.
36:10
♪♪
36:15
[ Knock on door ]
36:17
>> Who is it?
36:19
>> It's Aunt Jeannie, Mary Ellen.
36:20
May I come in?
36:22
>> If you want.
36:23
[ Door opens, footsteps ]
36:26
>> I thought you might like a wee cup of tea.
36:29
>> No, thanks. >> What are you staring at?
36:32
Out the window?
36:34
>> The Solway.
36:37
The tide just came in, roaring and boiling so fast.
36:44
And now the water's all smooth.
36:48
And with the sun on it, everything's wiped clean.
36:53
I wonder if it heals as it washes over.
36:57
>> What are you thinking about, child?
37:01
>> I'm thinking about the first time
37:02
I showed the tide to -- to Michael.
37:07
The day we were married.
37:10
The day you said it was bad luck
37:12
for us to see each other before the wedding.
37:14
>> Oh, I was just joking about superstitions.
37:17
Nobody believes those old wives' tales.
37:20
>> Nobody believes so many things
37:22
that are outside the ordinary.
37:25
So many things they say don't exist, but might be.
37:29
Did you see Michael's body after?
37:33
>> What?
37:34
>> Did you see the marks of the hooves?
37:36
>> Don't talk about that, lass.
37:38
>> I know they said the horse trampled him.
37:40
I asked Doctor Ferguson about the hooves
37:42
and he wouldn't tell me.
37:45
You'd tell me, wouldn't you, Jeannie?
37:46
>> Oh. Tell you what?
37:49
>> Were they like horseshoes?
37:54
Or were they cleft in two?
37:57
Were they cloven hooves?
37:59
>> In the name of God, what are you saying?
38:01
>> I'm not speaking of God.
38:03
I'm speaking of the devil
38:05
or some demon that haunts my dreams.
38:08
>> No, this is no time for foolish fancies.
38:11
You mustn't let dreams spill over into your real life.
38:14
>> Or is it the other way around?
38:15
>> Oh, Mary Ellen,
38:17
I don't know what it is you have on your mind, but...
38:19
>> You can get me to Michael.
38:21
Let me talk to Michael. He'll know.
38:23
He can tell me what to do.
38:25
Take me to Michael, Aunt Jeannie.
38:28
Take me to him!
38:29
>> Oh! How can I, Mary Ellen?
38:32
You know --
38:34
>> [ Crying ] I know he's dead. I know he's passed beyond.
38:37
But you can reach him. You can hold a séance.
38:41
>> Oh, no.
38:43
I swore I never would again after --
38:45
>> After what happened that night when something got loose?
38:47
Some evil presence, some thing from...
38:51
Auntie, you let him loose.
38:55
The least you can do is help me undo the harm.
38:59
>> I can't. I won't. I'll get the doctor.
39:01
>> You dare to bring him here and I'll kill myself!
39:04
I swear it.
39:05
>> Child, you're out of your...
39:08
>> No, not yet.
39:11
But if you don't have that séance
39:14
and let me find out from Michael what to do,
39:17
I will be.
39:18
I'll lose my mind!
39:21
You've got to promise.
39:22
Promise.
39:23
>> Calm down, child. Calm down.
39:26
>> Tonight. Now! >> That isn't possible.
39:30
There have to be more than two to form a circle.
39:32
>> Then call in the colonel and that other woman.
39:33
Anyone. Just promise me. Promise.
39:36
I need him. I need Michael.
39:39
Promise, Aunt Jeannie, promise.
39:43
>> May God forgive me. I-I-I promise.
39:48
♪♪
39:55
>> May we all join hands, please?
40:01
Clear your minds. Make them a blank.
40:06
A quiet place open and hushed.
40:12
I'm reaching now,
40:15
reaching away and above and out and over
40:20
from here to the bonny, bonny other place
40:24
that lies beyond our ken.
40:31
Can you hear me, Hunnatu?
40:35
Can you come to me, into our circle?
40:43
Hunnatu, we are reaching for you.
40:49
Oh, I can't make contact.
40:51
>> Ask for Michael.
40:52
>> I have no way to him.
40:54
>> Then let me. >> Try it.
40:58
Everyone concentrate. Be still.
41:03
Be still.
41:06
>> Michael! Michael, I need you.
41:11
Come to me.
41:16
>> [ Ghostly ] I'm here, darling.
41:20
>> Oh, Michael, I love you.
41:23
>> I love you.
41:27
We'll be together again.
41:30
>> Michael...
41:32
>> It's not our child you're carrying.
41:38
Get rid of it.
41:40
-[ Growling speech ] -Aah!
41:41
>> Michael!
41:45
>> It's no use, child.
41:47
There is no contact tonight.
41:48
We can break the ring.
41:50
Will someone turn on the light, please?
41:54
Oh, I'm that sorry, Mary Ellen.
41:58
>> It's all right, Aunt Jeannie.
42:00
You gave me what I wanted.
42:02
I found out what I needed to know.
42:05
♪♪
42:14
>> Oh, I'm afraid that's quite impossible, my dear.
42:18
>> You're not as backward as that, Doctor Ferguson.
42:20
Abortion is perfectly legal, isn't it?
42:23
>> Oh, I'm not concerned with the legality, Mary Ellen.
42:26
As it happens, it is, but, uh --
42:28
>> Then help me.
42:30
>> I can't, dear. It's too late. >> What do you mean, too late?
42:35
>> When you came to me a few weeks ago
42:37
and we determined your pregnancy,
42:39
you must have known that I would know
42:41
it was already well advanced.
42:44
>> But it wasn't.
42:45
Michael and I were only married a month before that.
42:48
You should know that.
42:50
>> Well, of course I know that, my dear.
42:52
But facts are facts.
42:55
You're carrying a child that's past midterm.
42:58
An abortion now is just too dangerous.
43:02
>> Past midterm. Four and a half months.
43:06
>> My guess is at least five.
43:09
>> That fast? Oh, God, no. It mightn't wait.
43:14
It could be born any minute.
43:16
There's no one to help me but myself.
43:19
>> Well, I'll drive you home, child,
43:21
and I'll give you something to get a little rest.
43:24
♪♪
43:32
She's sound asleep now, Jeannie.
43:35
Let's go downstairs and talk.
43:37
>> Poor wee angel. So thin and pale and haunted.
43:42
>> Aye, come away. Let her rest.
43:44
[ Door opens ]
43:46
>> [ Growling speech ]
43:51
>> No. No.
43:54
What you gave, you'll never take away.
43:58
>> [ Growling speech ]
44:00
>> Never.
44:02
It's never going to be.
44:04
Help me!
44:06
God help me!
44:08
[ Tide rushing ]
44:09
The tide. The tide.
44:12
Yes, that's the way. Full moon. The time was right.
44:17
>> And for our own protection, I see no other way, Jeannie.
44:20
>> But to lock her away?
44:22
>> Well, we're not locking her up.
44:24
It's a sanitarium. It's a really lovely place.
44:26
>> I don't think I could do it to her.
44:28
I'll care for her.
44:30
>> Jeannie, dear,
44:31
if Ellen had pre-eclampsia or a threatened miscarriage
44:34
or any one of a number of other diseases of pregnancy,
44:37
she would have to be hospitalized.
44:39
Now, think of it that way.
44:41
>> All right, Percy, if you think it's best.
44:43
>> It's the only way.
44:45
>> Oh, no, Doctor. Mine is the only way.
44:49
[ Door closes ]
44:51
>> Oh! That sounded like the front door.
44:52
>> Ellen. Oh, I'll -- I'll check upstairs.
44:55
You look outside.
44:56
>> Oh, but I thought you said she...
45:00
Oh, dear Lord.
45:02
I got the premonition. Mary Ellen?
45:05
[ Wind blowing ] Mary Ellen, are you out there?
45:08
>> Jeannie! Jeannie! She's gone!
45:11
I gave her enough sedation to knock her out, but she's gone.
45:13
>> Oh, but where?
45:15
>> She's out on the firth. Come on, Jeannie.
45:17
We've got to catch her before the tide.
45:19
♪♪
45:22
>> [ Growling ] >> [ Whimpering ]
45:26
>> [ Growling ] You can't escape the tide!
45:31
> You'll never have him! He'll never be born!
45:34
>> Mine!
45:36
You can't have him!
45:38
You can't stand against me.
45:40
>> One way, you filth from hell!
45:43
One thing you cannot stand against -- the ancient enemy.
45:48
Look! Listen!
45:50
>> [ Whimpering and screaming ]
45:52
>> Michael, I'm coming home!
45:56
♪♪
46:02
♪♪
46:08
>> There wasn't a chance. We couldn't have saved her.
46:14
>> My poor wee motherless lamb.
46:19
It did not take her long to follow her poor husband,
46:23
But -- But the child.
46:26
>> It hadn't been born, and she didn't want it.
46:30
It wasn't Michael's, you know?
46:32
>> Are you sure of that? >> Oh, yes.
46:35
It was five months old, at least, from the size.
46:40
>> A monster?
46:42
>> No, I didn't say that. Still, I was thinking of X-rays.
46:47
There was something strange about that embryo.
46:50
I can't quite explain.
46:52
>> It was nothing you could have understood, Doctor.
46:57
So, at the last, it was all the Lord's will.
47:04
And maybe for the best.
47:08
At least Michael and my Mary Ellen
47:16
are in God's pocket at last.
47:19
♪♪
47:28
>> Who dreams on the Solway will wake in another world.
47:33
Our story has come full circle.
47:36
For us, it is the end.
47:39
Let's hope that Jeannie is right
47:41
and for Ellen and Michael it is only a beginning.
47:45
♪♪
47:53
♪♪
48:02
One final thought.
48:04
If you believe some dreadful incubus possessed poor Ellen
48:08
driving her and her husband to their deaths,
48:11
there is another explanation.
48:13
Insanity did run in her family.
48:16
So either way, even if there was the devil to pay,
48:20
it still was all in the mind.
48:23
Our cast included Jada Rowland, Nick Pryor,
48:26
Bryna Raeburn, and Ian Martin.
48:29
The entire production was under the direction of Himan Brown.
48:33
This is E.G. Marshall inviting you
48:35
to return to our "Mystery Theater"
48:37
for another adventure in the macabre.
48:40
Until next time, pleasant dreams.
48:44
[ Door creaking ]
48:52
[ Door closes ]
48:54
♪♪
49:04
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>> "If You Please...
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Himan Brown's Radio Mystery Theater"
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is produced and directed by Sarah Montague.
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Our executive producers are Melina Brown and Sarah Montague.
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CUNY TV's executive director is Chiqui Cartagena.
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The director of production is Susan Iger.
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The associate producer is Corinne Wallace,
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and our audio production intern is Sofia Cedeno.
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Margot Avery is the voice of the series,
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introduction, and credits.
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The program commentaries are by John Slavney.
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Our technical team at CUNY TV
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includes senior audio engineer Richard Kim
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and broadcast audio engineers Jackie Mitchell and Kevin Wolfe.
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Our staff photographer is Laura Fuchs.
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Our archivists are David Rice and Catriona Schlosser.
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Our closed caption coordinator is Amy Monte.
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The "If You Please" program mix engineer
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is Lisa Gosselin-Vincent.
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Tink Media handles our publicity and marketing.
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Our director of social media is Karen A. Brown
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in collaboration with StardustBlue PR,
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"If You Please...
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Himan Brown's Radio Mystery Theater"
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is a production of CUNY TV and Radio Drama Network.
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If you enjoyed the show
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and are curious about the history of these radio programs,
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listen to "Audio Maverick."
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In this award-winning nine-part documentary,
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we explore the golden age of radio
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through the life of dramatic genius Himan Brown
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and then explore the work of contemporary audio dramatists
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who are part of his legacy.
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"Audio Maverick" is available anywhere you get your podcasts.