Mercury Theatre/Campbell Playhouse Old Time Radio

The finest radio drama of the 1930?s was The Mercury Theatre on the Air, a show featuring the acclaimed New York drama company founded by Orson Welles and John Houseman. In its brief run, it featured an impressive array of talents, including Agnes Moorehead, Bernard Herrmann, and George Coulouris. The show is famous for its notorious War of the Worlds broadcast, but the other shows in the series are relatively unknown. The show first broadcast on CBS and CBC in July 1938. It ran without a sponsor until December of that year, when it was picked up by Campbell?s Soup and renamed The Campbell Playhouse.

The cast and crew of the Mercury Theater of the Air were geniuse crafting the most amazing radio of any time. When they hit the big time with their Haloween scare, the War of the Worlds, the world took note and things changed for them.

The first was a Sponsor, Campbell soup. The second was a breaking apart of the ensamble atmosphere with Orson Welles rising to top dog status , John Houseman being pushed down a few pegs and the ensamble taking a second billing to the Hollywood stars the sponsor moved in to star in the productions.

Still the writting was top notch and everyone put forth amazing efforts regardless of the backstage politicing.Houseman got a chance to take back his place when Welles left for Hollywood, the show lasted one more season.

The writting work of both Howard Kooch and Wyllis Cooper were right on the mark forshadowing the works they would do in the years to come.All in all a great series, one of the better of the age.

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The Mercury Theater on the Air
Dramatic Anthology

Broadcast History : July 11th, 1938 - December 4th, 1938
CBS. 60 Minutes. Mondays at 9:00pm until September 11th.
Sundays at 8:00pm thereafter.

Became The Campbell Playhouse as of December 9th, 1938

June 7th - September 13th, 1946
CBS. 30 minutes. Fridays at 10:00pm.

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Cast :

Orson Welles, Martin Gabel, Ray Collins, Kenny Delmar, George Coulouris, Edgar Barrier, Paul Stewart, Everett Sloane, Joseph Cotten, Hiram Sherman, Erskin Sanford, Frank Readick, Agnes Moorehead, Alice Frost, Karl Swenson, William Alland, etc.

Announcer : Dan Deymour
Orchestra : Bernard Herrmann
Producer : John Houseman
Director : Orson Welles
Writers : John Houseman, Howard Koch
Engineer : John Dietz
Sound Effects : James Rogan, Ray Kremer, Ora Nichols

Mercury Theatre
http://rapidshare.com/files/40607648...tre.part01.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40610951...tre.part02.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40614253...tre.part03.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40617563...tre.part04.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40620852...tre.part05.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40623960...tre.part06.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40627180...tre.part07.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40631060...tre.part08.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40604294...tre.part09.rar
Campbell Playhouse
http://rapidshare.com/files/40642507...use.part01.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40649086...use.part02.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40655896...use.part03.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40662426...use.part04.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40668639...use.part05.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40674586...use.part06.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40679949...use.part07.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40684799...use.part08.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40689497...use.part09.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40692890...use.part10.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/40636019...use.part11.rar