BW - EP157—002: Thanksgiving 1944—Suspense with Charles Laughton

Breaking Walls: The Podcast on the History of American Network Radio Broadcasting

Support Breaking Walls at https://www.patreon.com/thewallbreakers Much ink has been spilled on Breaking Walls this year talking about Suspense. For more information on the series in 1944, please tune into Breaking Walls episode 154. The Thanksgiving 1944 episode was called “The Fountain Plays” starring Charles Laughton. It’s a story filled with murder, blackmail, and cover-up. The original tale was penned by Dorothy L. Sayers adapted by Robert L. Richards. Richards is famous for having written “The House in Cypress Canyon,” a noted Suspense classic. This is the first of twenty-nine weeks of Roma commercials featuring society figure and entertaining expert Elsa Maxwell. She offers her hard-earned wisdom about wine and other beverage selections. Maxwell was a gossip columnist and writer with occasional movie appearances, but known for her elaborate parties. She is credited with adding games to parties, such as scavenger hunts, to make them more interesting beyond the idle chatter of who was seen with whom or who was invited and who wasn’t. Maxwell rose from a lower middle class life in San Francisco to being the host of parties that included big stars and royalty. Elsa Maxwell does not play herself, instead she’s played by noted radio actress Lucille Meredith.