Lights Out | Thriller | Old Time Radio Downloads

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"This is the witching hour! It is an hour when dogs howl, and evil things are let loose on a sleeping world. Want to hear about it? Then turn out your lights!"

Lights Out debuted in 1934 and was radio's premier horror series. Director and writer, Wyllis Cooper's writing was characterized by grisly stories always matched with the appropriate acting and sound effects, he conceived in 1933 the idea of writing a dramatic midnight mystery serial catchy enough to the listeners' attention at a time when the competition was mostly airing music. It was however dropped in favor of an anthology emphasizing crime thrillers and the supernatural. He stayed with this program until June 1936 when another Chicago writer, Arch Oboler, took over. By the time Cooper left, the series had inspired about 600 fan clubs.

Arch Oboler was eccentric and ambitious when he took over and picked up where Cooper left off, following the latter's general example but investing the scripts with his own concerns using streams of conscious narration and sometimes social and political themes that reflected his commitment to anti-fascist liberalism. Although Lights Out would be closely associated with Oboler later on, he would always credit Wyllis Cooper as the series' creator and spoke highly of him as "the unsung pioneer of radio dramatic techniques" and the first person he knew who understood that radio drama is an art form.

"Burial Service", Oboler's first script in 1936, was initially flooded with outraged response but was followed with the more accepted and frequently repeated "Catwife" and Caligula-inspired "The Dictator". This set the pattern for Oboler's run of two horror episodes followed by a drama on more serious subjects dealing with moral, social and political issues Click here to read more about Lights Out

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Please enjoy these 91 old time radio episodes:

Air Date	Title	Synopsis
N/A	creature off the film	+ When the moving picture show, The Monster, that Gibson and his assistant had put on for the town, ...
08.05.1936	money money money	A sailor murders his buddy who strikes it big at the lottery but managed to escape the authorities w...
09.09.1936	author and the thing	"The Author and The Thing". Sponsored by: Ironized Yeast, Energene Cleaning Fluid. Arch Oboler host...
09.16.1936	the sea	A story told by an old dying lady about her two sons, one good and the other a villain. The good son...
10.14.1936	the fast one	Also known as "Speed", this old time radio broadcast tells a story about two men who have the supern...
12.09.1936	nobody died	A dying patient begs the doctor to prolong her life just until her youngest son arrives. As the doct...
12.16.1936	poltergeist	Program #6. CBS net origination, syndicated rebroadcast. "Poltergeist". How'd you like to have you...
03.03.1937	sakhalin	A megalomaniac murderer roams Russia..
03.10.1937	a day at the dentist	+ Sam has toothache and has to go the dentist to have a tooth pulled. + Arch Oboler introduces littl...
03.17.1937	state executioner	+
04.14.1937	the little people	+ Weird and heavily accented guy is eventually left by his gallivanting wife to finally join her bo...
05.12.1937	organ	A couple excitedly spends summer with their son in a vacant home which is unoccupied for 20 years. A...
05.26.1937	until dead	A man nearing his execution date escapes from prison and swears revenge on the man who framed him fo...
06.16.1937	the meteor man	A meteorite is found by a stargazing couple. Opening it, they find it is made of flesh and transform...
06.23.1937	happy ending	The story is a diversion from the typical when the doctor informs his wife that she is pregnant. The...
07.14.1937	lord marleys ghost	A rich man is hooked on his mistress and leaves his wife. Their affair ends tragically in a boating ...
11.17.1937	little old lady	+
12.22.1937	christmas story	Three soldiers of different nationalities party on a train on a Christmas Day after their tour of du...
12.29.1937	the dark	A prankster calls an ambulance which promptly responds by arriving on the scene to find a dark house...
01.26.1938	oxychloride x	Out of frustration from being rejected membership in a fraternity; a gifted laboratory student formu...
02.16.1938	murder castle	Girls who answer advertisements for older guys keep disappearing. This prompts another girl to searc...
03.16.1938	super feature	+
03.23.1938	the dream	A murderer who never had experiences a dream suddenly falls into one during his sentencing trial.. T...
03.30.1938	valse triste	Two girls on a camping trip, and while rowing docks their boat on an island to pick some flowers whe...
03.30.1938	cat wife	+ Voted as "the best" by listeners of the "Lights Out" series. A husband's feline-like wife goes to...

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"Lights out" is (I think) my favorite OTR show. The first OTR I heard (after War Of The Worlds) of course was "The Dark" by Lights out. I was at my cabin, everybody we're asleep and I was listening to it with my headphones in my bed. 7 minutes that I always remember!!

Daniel

My favorite Lights Out of all! And my favorite show too!!

Daniel

REALLY scary show!! Death Robbery is one of my top ten creepiest OTR shows of all time!

Bob

Always good to hear Mr. Karloff.

Daniel

That is a great one!

Susan

This horror drama was broadcast by WENR- Chicago (1934-1935), then CBS, NBC and ABC from 1936 to 1947.

LIGHTS OUT

I've been listening to Lights Out and heard for the umpteenth time, the ad for Ironized Yeast. It seems as if this was just simply vitamins. But the ad specifically promised that it would help women PUT ON weight.

Dan

Today we celebrate the 1934 premiere of Lights Out! Devoted to tales of terror and the supernatural, Lights Out was one of the first horror programs to come to radio (even before classic programs like Suspense and Inner Sanctum made their debut). Writer Arch Oboler became famous for his work on the series.

Mike