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Welcome Anonymous
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Site Credits
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The Cobalt Club would like to extend special thanks, and a lifetime membership, to:
Mighty Joe Koomen, who did the incredible graphics of the Cobalt Club's signs and the splendid "Doc Savage and The Shadow On The Air" graphic.
And, most particularly, our friends at Ask Nick! for maintenance and invaluable assistance.
How many guests have graced the Cobalt Club with their presence?
As a private club, we do not have to divulge information regarding our members or their guests. Nor will we. Please take your prurient interests elsewhere.
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Welcome to the Cobalt Club!
Welcome to the new and improved Cobalt Club. As you can see the club has undergone some serious renovations to improve your stay with us. Please register at the front desk and enjoy all that we have to offer. We are now running on our new server which was purchased by members of this club.
The Cobalt Club is a refined and genteel haven for ladies and gentlemen of breeding who crave a relaxing evening with classic radio serials. For people that crave adventure, mystery and even a few laughs. It is the perfect place to sit in your high-backed chair, sip your brandy and listen to the stories of an earlier age. Here you can hear the tales of mystery and imagination, the puzzles of Sherlock Homes and Nero Wolfe, the comedy of Abbot and Costello and Jack Benny. You can fortify yourself against the chills of the Inner Sanctum or lose yourself in wonder from the fine science-fiction from the masters in X Minus 1. You can even trade stories with other members. So sit back and enjoy, with all of the compliments of the management, for your visit to the Cobalt Club.
***Attention new and returning members. You have to register to enjoy all the features of the club. Register and wait a few moments. For added security yours truly has to activate your account after you register. You have to login to see everything. You will need a valid email account to register. Be patient a lot of people are here already. Keep trying, don't wait for a email from me saying your account is activated just try logging in after a few minutes......and Welcome back......
Posted on Saturday, August 06
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 When you first start listening to old time radio you find like TV and movies you form preferences for certain actors and actresses. One of my early favorites was Tom Collins. I happened upon some Chandu episodes and I was hooked. Looking for Chandu prompted me to join some online sites and one site had most of the episodes I paid to download them and soon I was listening to Chandu episodes every week. I don't listen to them continously I ration them to one a week so I can enjoy the show the way the fans in the late 40's did. I liked Collins so much I searched out more shows, soon I had every episode of Frank Race and episodes of One Man's Family. Then came the search for obscure roles in X-minus 1 and other OTR shows. So in celebration of the opening of the new and improved Cobalt Club I give you the life story of Tom Collins.
Becoming the Actor!
Tom Collins was born Beryl Williams Collins on June 7, 1913 in Chicago, Illinois. After graduating from Austin High School in 1930, he enrolled at the University of Illinois. He stayed for only one year, leaving to join the Goodman Theater in Chicago where he learned his craft along with other young Chicagoans such as Karl Malden. The acting bug had bitten and Tom was on his way to becoming a performer. He was signed to a contract with MGM around 1938 and made the following films: |
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The New Adventures Of Nero Wolfe Show Summary |
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 Written By StrobeSML
'The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe', 'In American mystery, there is probably no better known house than the little brownstone on W. 35th street that is the home and office of Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. The only mystery residence that surpasses it in fame is the Baker Street flat of Sherlock Holmes (which unlike Wolfe's home, can actually be found on the map). It is no coincidence that mention the most famous British detective when talking about Wolfe, because the Nero Wolfe stories, written by Rex Stout, are a compelling blend of the British-style "drawing room" mysteries and the American "hard boiled" mysteries.
Rex Stout, the author of the Nero Wolfe mysteries, wrote more than 40 books starring the gargantuan detective starting with 1934's Fer-de-Lance and ending in 1975 with Family Affair. He had written several other books (that never had the same success) including a book featuring Inspector Cramer Red Threads and a couple with a female detective, Dol Bonner. However, his most enduring stories are the ones involving Wolfe and Archie.
Nero Wolfe, a man born in Montenegro (later part of Yugoslavia) is a large figure, often stated by Archie as being "a seventh of a ton" in bulk. Aside from being a genius in detection, the large man was also a gourmand with expensive tastes in food, a gardener of orchids, and a voracious reader. He rarely leaves his home, and never on business, preferring to solve the crimes in his office, in a style similar to the British drawing room mysteries. His daily schedule is inviolate, including two 2-hour periods up in the plant rooms and time set aside for lunch and dinner. (Business is never spoken during meals.) While he is superb at his detection, he is indolent to the point of needing a prodding from Archie to work for money. |
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Written by StrobeSML
The Adventures of Superman', 'The most famous superhero of them all is a household name throughout the world, but when this show appeared, the legend was still being formed and this radio show helped form it. In 1933 or 1934 (the dates are difficult to pinpoint and are quoted differently by different sources) Jerry Siegel went to his friend, cartoonist Joe Shuster, with the idea of a super-strongman character by the name of Superman. While it is easy to see now, with so many superhero characters filling the newstands and comic shops that this was a salable idea, it was very difficult to sell in the 30s, so the idea sat in a desk drawer, with Siegel and Shuster creating characters like Slam Bradley and Dr. Occult before their most well-known character became accepted by a fledgling comic company, DC Comics. In the first issue of Action Comics (published in June, 1938), the character was finally shown and was an instant hit, selling out a half-million copies per issue by its seventh issue. Superman was given his own magazine and sold well over a million issues per month.
Of course, this Superman was far different than the modern version we are used to. He was extremely strong, could leap for 1/8th of a mile (or over a tall building in a single bound), and "nothing less than a bursting shell could pierce his skin. He was able to see through objects and had highly acute hearing, but that was the limits of his powers at that time.
This suddenly popular character that was focused in two comic books and a syndicated newspaper strip was now ripe for radio. After getting George Ludlam on board to write most of the series, DC Comics did auditions and worked on getting sponsers. While many characters played thoughout the series, the most notable pick was Clayton "Bud" Collyer, a former attorney who turned toward acting on the radio, most notably in Terry and the Pirates. His ability to create and switch between two separate voices (the tenor of Clark Kent and the bass of Superman), meant that he was the best man for the job. Collyer was uneasy about taking the role, fearing that it would hurt his reputation as an actor, but he needn't have worried. He eventually came to cherish this role which is, perhaps, the one he is best known for. |
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Green Hornet Show Summary |
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Written By StrobeSML
Perhaps the most striking rememberance most people have of the radio show is the buzzing sound leading to "Flight of the Bumblebee," the theme music for the Green Hornet. But behind the scenes of this pulp hero, there is so much more. Created by George Trendle, this show had over 1000 episodes that ran from 1936 - 1952, an impressive run. Until 1944, the scripts were writing by Fran Striker, the same writer who did the scripts for the Lone Ranger. Sadly, less than 100 of those episodes are known to exist.
The Green Hornet was viewed by criminals and the general populace alike to be a gang leader that controlled the crime of the city. Nothing could be further from the truth. Britt Reid, publisher of the "Daily Sentinal", was a hunter of fiends and criminals that had been branded a criminal himself. With a green mask, gas gun, a super-powered car known as the "Black Beauty" and a Filipino aide by the name of Kato, Reid set out to round up racketeers, murders, and spies in each half-hour episode while trying to avoid the police.
Britt Reid's ancestry is interesting in itself. He was born in Texas and raised by Dan Reid, the nephew of John Reid (better known to radio audiences as the Lone Ranger). Of course, the Lone Ranger was another character that was created by George Trendle which gave a much greater continuity to this corner of radio's world. In fact, he is considered to have funded his purchase of the Daily Sentinal with money gained from the silver mine used by the Ranger. |
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Blackstone The Magic Detective Show Summary |
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| 'Blackstone The Magic Detective','Cast your minds back to the late forties. A completely different world of entertainment. Radio was king and TV was only slowly beginning to percolate into the public awareness. If you were like most people at the time if you wanted to see a good show you went out to one of the numerous night clubs. At this time the world of magic still held that indescribable air of mystery. The Orient and the far east still seemed so foreign and far away. The mere mention of a Magician who had travelled and studied in the Orient was the guarantee of a breath taking show. Stage Magic is visual it is the art of misdirection that makes the experience seem real. How could you possibly take a stage Magician and put him on the radio? you can't see the tricks whats the hook? |
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Chandu The Magician Show Summary |
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CHANNNNNDOOOOOOO … the Magician!
Chandu was broadcast in two runs separated by 12 years. Frank Chandler, fought the world's evil forces with occult powers he aquired from a yogi in India and a far-reaching crystal ball. Evil was personified in Roxor, a villain who dominated both runs. It was a traveling series, whisking those first-generation radio listeners to Monrovia, Algiers, and other exotic locales in the Middle East.(source: John Dunning On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio )
Chandu was played on radio by Gayne Whitman and in later years Tom Collins in one of the longest running serials on radio. Since it was a series aimed at kids two of the main characters had to be young. Betty and Bobby along with their mother Dorothy had to get themselves into all kinds of danger so Chandu could of course save the day. I really like this show its silly and fun. Though this show was obviously aimed at children given the 15 minute format in the 1932 run and the 48 run the writing was tight and dramatic and made the show a favourite of adults as well. In 1949 the show moved to a 30 minute format and only ran 13 episodes. The scripts from the 1932-36 run were used again in the 48-49 run. For the short 1950 run Chandu became a sort of mystical private eye taking cases and solving them in each show. The writing for this run of 13 episodes was not as good as the previous runs. |
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Albums: 33