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I Love a Mystery Companion
by Martin Grams, Jr. (Paperback) Foreward by Jim Harmon
Longing only for action, adventure and excitement wherever it would lead them, three men fought through vampire-infested jungles, ghost towns of wind-swept Nevada, and solved mysteries involving werewolves, defeated mad scientists hell-bent on world domination, fought gruesome reptiles and modern-day pirates seeking treasure in every shape and form. Jack, Packard, Doc Long and Reggie York were those three musketeers and for more than a decade I LOVE A MYSTERY ruled the radio airwaves. Finally after all these decades, the complete production history and episode guide is available under one cover, officially authorized through the estate of Carlton E. Morse. The book's contents include: A complete history of the radio program, including copies of Morse's correspondence, memories from cast and crew, biographical material about Carlton E. Morse, and trivia about the various serials dramatized. A complete episode guide for each and every I LOVE A MYSTERY broadcast starting from January of 1939 with an episode-by-episode plot description and cast list! Documentary about Morse's early mystery and police serials including THE CROSS-EYED PARROT, DEAD MEN PROWL, DRAGON IN THE SUN, PROWL BY NIGHT, KILLED IN ACTION, KILLER AT THE WHEEL, THE RETURN OF CAPTAIN POST, THE GAME CALLED MURDER, CAPTAIN POST: CRIME SPECIALIST, THE WITCH OF ENDOR, BARBARY COAST NIGHTS, CHINATOWN SQUAD, TO THE BEST OF THEIR ABILITY, THE CITY OF THE DEAD, and even a complete episode guide for each serial including episode numbers, titles, air dates, cast lists, plot descriptions and various bits of trivia. The same treatment is given for I LOVE ADVENTURE and ADVENTURES BY MORSE. A complete reprint of the January 1939 contract between Carlton E. Morse and NBC and Standard Brands (the sponsor), and later revision and amendments. Even a sneak peak at the contract negotiations! Learn why the program changed formats in both time slots and length of broadcasts, why sponsors dropped sponsorship, why Michael Raffetto and Barton Yarborough left the series in 1944, and how it came to be reprised in 1949 for Mutual. Learn where and how Morse came up with the ideas for his serials, and the fact that someone else wrote at least ten of the I LOVE A MYSTERY serials and was quietly paid by Morse for their contribution. Read the correspondence between Buddy Twiss (the director), Carlton E. Morse and Peter Lorre's agent when Lorre felt his name and character was being infringed upon on the program! Learn about harry Leopold, the 29-year-old Denver gunman who asked the warden for a short postponement to Colorado's lethal gas chamber so he could listen to the concluding chapter of his favorite radio program, I LOVE A MYSTERY. Complete documentation of the ILAM novels, comic strips (reprinted in the book courtesy of the artist), and a complete documentation and production of the I LOVE A MYSTERY movies with a reprint of a summary proposed but never made into a full-length motion picture. Features a reprint of "Treasure Hunt," an unused proposed outline for a ten-chapter serial that Morse never got around to writing for the series. Reprints of USO material Morse wrote for Barton Yarborough based on the character of Doc Long. Complete documentation and episode guides for many of Morse's early serials including HOUSE OF MYTHS, RCA SPLIT-SECOND TALES, PIGSKIN ROMANCES, CHINATOWN TALES, THE UPPER ROOM and much, much more. Exactly 400 pages thick. Martin Grams, Jr. is the author and co-author of numerous books about Old-Time Radio and Old-Time Television, including The Have Gun – Will Travel Companion (2007), The History of the Cavalcade of America (1999), The Alfred Hitchcock Presents Companion (2007), Radio Drama: American Programs (2007), Invitation to Learning (2007), Suspense: Twenty Years of Thrills and Chills (1998), The Sound of Detection: Ellery Queen’s Adventures in Radio (2007), Inner Sanctum Mysteries: Behind the Creaking Door (2003), The CBS Radio Mystery Theater: An Episode Guide and Handbook (1999), and more magazine articles than could possibly be counted. To the average fan of Old-Time Radio, Mr. Grams is no stranger and his many of his books come to mind at the sound of his name. His publications have even been acknowledged by Leonard Maltin (Entertainment Tonight) and Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth (by letter via Royal Mail). Mr. Grams has already gained access to the private collections of Dan Golenpaul, the creator of the Information Please series, including other definitive sources that will provide superb historical documentation. List Price: ITEM#:BK-ILMCOMP Our Price: $29.95 |
