''Action'' (aka ''Action Theater'') was a planned 1945 NBC

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

anthology series of action-adventure tales. However, the series went no further than the first audition drama, although an announcement on the show reveals an adaptation of

Joseph Conrad Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and short story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in t ...

's "Victory" (with

Nancy Kelly Nancy Kelly (March 25, 1921 – January 2, 1995) was an American actress in film, theater and television. A child actress and model, she was a repertory cast member of CBS Radio's ''The March of Time'' and appeared in several films in the late 1 ...

and Roger Pryor) was scheduled, along with stories by

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fic ...

and

Jack London John Griffith Chaney (January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to ...

. Performing before a live studio audience,

Jane Wyatt Jane Waddington Wyatt ( ; August 12, 1910 – October 20, 2006) was an American actress. She starred in a number of Hollywood films, such as Frank Capra's ''Lost Horizon'', but is likely best known for her role as the housewife and mother Marg ...

and Robert Lowery starred in the pilot program, "High Explosive", with a supporting cast of Ralph Sanford and Tom Holland. It was adapted by writer-director

Maxwell Shane Maxwell Shane (August 26, 1905 – October 25, 1983) was an American movie and television director, screenwriter, and producer. Biography Before embarking in a career in show business, Shane studied law at USC and UCLA law schools. He later b ...

(1905-1983) from Paramount's ''High Explosive'' (1943), a film scripted by Shane and Howard J. Green from a story by Joseph Hoffman. Produced by Irvin Atkins for Radio Creators, "High Explosive" aired January 15, 1945, with music by Gregory Stone. It was introduced by host

William Gargan William Dennis Gargan (July 17, 1905February 17, 1979) was an American film, television and radio actor. He was the 5th recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1967, and in 1941, was nominated for the Academy Award for B ...

and announcer Art Baker with a commentary by Shane in the middle of the show. Best known in the 1940s for his ''

Big Town ''Big Town'' is a popular long-running radio drama featuring a corruption-fighting newspaper editor initially played from 1937 to 1942 by Edward G. Robinson in his first radio role, with echoes of the conscience-stricken tabloid editor he had ...

'' screenplays and radio scripts, Shane later scripted ''City Across the River'', the 1949 film of

Irving Shulman Irving Shulman (May 21, 1913 – March 23, 1995) was an American author and screenwriter whose works were adapted into movies. His books included ''The Amboy Dukes,'' ''Cry Tough,'' ''The Square Trap,'' and ''Platinum High School'', all of which ...

's ''The Amboy Dukes'', and he was a writer-producer for TV's '' Thriller'' (1960-62).

Listen to

Same Time, Same Station: ''Action'': "High Explosive" (January 15, 1945), heard after two other 30-minute shows

References

{{reflist American radio dramas 1940s American radio programs NBC radio programs