Arch Oboler (December 7, 1909 – March 19, 1987) was an American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, producer, and director who was active in radio, films, theater, and television. He generated much attention with his radio scripts, particularly the horror series ''
Lights Out'', and his work in radio remains the outstanding period of his career. Praised as one of broadcasting's top talents, he is regarded today as a key innovator of radio drama. Oboler's personality and ego were larger than life. Radio historian
John Dunning wrote, "Few people were ambivalent when it came to Arch Oboler. He was one of those intense personalities who are liked and disliked with equal fire."
Early life
Oboler was born in
Chicago,
Illinois, to Leon and Clara Oboler, Jewish immigrants from
Riga,
Latvia.
[Profile](_blank)
familytreemaker.genealogy.com; accessed October 31, 2014. The family was poor, though cultured. He grew up a voracious reader and discerning music appreciator, listening to the likes of violinist
Fritz Kreisler
Friedrich "Fritz" Kreisler (February 2, 1875 – January 29, 1962) was an Austrian-born American violinist and composer. One of the most noted violin masters of his day, and regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time, he was know ...
and the great soprano
Amelita Galli-Curci
Amelita Galli-Curci (18 November 1882 – 26 November 1963) was an Italian coloratura soprano. She was one of the most popular operatic singers of the 20th century, with her recordings selling in large numbers.
Early life
She was born as Am ...
.
Early radio career
Oboler entered radio because he believed it had great unrealized potential for telling stories with ideas. He thought that the medium was being wasted on
soap operas. In 1933, he wrote a spec script called ''Futuristics'', which satirized the world of the present in light of the future. NBC bought Oboler's script and broadcast it as part of a dedicatory program to NBC's new futuristic headquarters in New York City,
Radio City. The broadcast was a success, but it set the stage for Oboler's future run-ins with broadcasters. In the play, one of Oboler's characters lampoons the slogan of
American Tobacco
The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter and Goodwin & Company. The company was one of the original 12 members of ...
. At that time in broadcasting history, making fun of commercials was still taboo.
From 1933 to 1936, Oboler wrote potboilers for programs such as ''
Grand Hotel'' and ''Welch's Presents
Irene Rich
Irene Rich (born Irene Frances Luther; October 13, 1891 – April 22, 1988) was an American actress who worked in both silent films and talkies, as well as radio.
Early life
Rich was born in Buffalo, New York.
At age 17, she wed Elvo Elc ...
''. Things changed in 1936, when radio's leading impresario
Rudy Vallée
Hubert Prior Vallée (July 28, 1901 – July 3, 1986), known professionally as Rudy Vallée, was an American singer, musician, actor, and radio host. He was one of the first modern pop stars of the teen idol type.
Early life
Hubert Prior Val ...
used a short radio playlet of Oboler's titled ''Rich Kid''. The success of ''Rich Kid'' landed Oboler a lucrative 52-week stint writing plays for
Don Ameche
Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, stock
In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the Share ...
for ''
The Chase and Sanborn Hour
''The Chase and Sanborn Hour'' is the umbrella title for a series of American comedy and variety radio shows sponsored by Standard Brands' Chase and Sanborn Coffee, usually airing Sundays on NBC from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. during the years 1929 to ...
''. During this time, Oboler wrote a number of idea plays and some were aired, in shortened form, on ''
The Rudy Vallée Show'' and ''
The Magic Key of RCA
''The Magic Key of RCA'' was an American variety radio show that featured an unusually large and broad range of entertainment stars and other noted personalities. It was on the NBC Blue Network from September 29, 1935, until September 18, 1939.
It ...
''.
''Lights Out'', Part I
Wyllis Cooper
Wyllis Oswald Cooper (January 26, 1899 – June 22, 1955) was an American writer and producer.
He is best remembered for creating and writing the old time radio programs '' Lights Out'' (1934–1947) and ''Quiet, Please'' (1947–1949 ...
created ''Lights Out'' in 1934. The program aired at midnight and was notorious for its extreme (for the time) violence. In 1936, Cooper left the program for
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywoo ...
. NBC gave Oboler the opportunity to take over the series and make it his own. He was unenthusiastic at first, "a weekly horror play that went on at Tuesday midnight to the somber introduction of 12 doleful chimes, was not exactly my idea of a writing Shangri-La...".
[Oboler Omnibus: ''Radio Plays and Personalities'', Oboler, Leisure Books, Inc.] But Oboler soon realized that the midnight time slot and the lack of a sponsor gave him the freedom to experiment with both story content and style. Although NBC maintained strict neutrality regarding Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, Oboler smuggled anti-fascist messages onto the program. Additionally, he used stream-of-consciousness techniques that were often deemed too esoteric for commercial audiences.
Oboler caused controversy with his very first play for the series, ''Burial Services''. The ending of the play, in which a young girl is buried alive with no hope of rescue, was too much for audiences. Letters of protest poured into NBC. After this incident, Oboler toned down the realistic terror in his horror plays in favor of the fantastic. Perhaps the best remembered story from this series of ''Lights Out'' is ''Chicken Heart''. In that story, the tiny heart of a chicken, kept alive in a Petri dish in a lab, grows exponentially until it covers the entire earth. Oboler was very innovative with sound effects, and the insistent beating heart creates much of the terror in the broadcast. The story made such an impression on a young
Bill Cosby
William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...
that he created a memorable comic routine (featured on the ''
Wonderfulness
''Wonderfulness'' (1966) is the fourth album of stand-up comedy performances by Bill Cosby. The title comes from a catchphrase used in Cosby's television series, ''I Spy''.
This was the first of several Cosby albums to be recorded live at Harr ...
'' album) around his childhood memories of ''Chicken Heart'';
Stephen King also singles out ''Chicken Heart'' as a memorable episode in his discussion of horror radio in the book ''Danse Macabre''. Another well remembered story is ''The Dark'', about a malevolent fog that turns people inside out. This story also features memorable sound effects. Like ''Chicken Heart'', ''The Dark'' was also parodied, this time by ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...
'' on a "Treehouse of Horror" Halloween special. Oboler tired of ''Lights Out'' because he wanted to write realistic plays about Fascism. "I found myself wanting the dimensions of that half hour on the air expanded to take in the actual horror of a world facing, with half-shut eyes, the fascistic
Frankenstein's monster moving over Europe.".
''Your Hollywood Parade'' and the Mae West incident
Around the time that Oboler was writing for ''Lights Out'', he was invited to Hollywood to write sketches for the
Lucky Strike-sponsored ''Your Hollywood Parade''. The show featured such guest stars as
Dick Powell
Richard Ewing Powell (November 14, 1904 – January 2, 1963) was an American actor, musician, producer, director, and studio head. Though he came to stardom as a musical comedy performer, he showed versatility, and successfully transformed into ...
,
Bob Hope
Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in Bob Hope filmography, more than 70 short and ...
,
Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...
,
Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...
, and many others. After a frustrating encounter with
Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...
, Oboler decided that he would need to direct his plays in addition to writing them.
Arch Oboler caused more controversy with his script contribution to the 12 December 1937 edition of ''
The Chase and Sanborn Hour
''The Chase and Sanborn Hour'' is the umbrella title for a series of American comedy and variety radio shows sponsored by Standard Brands' Chase and Sanborn Coffee, usually airing Sundays on NBC from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. during the years 1929 to ...
''. In Oboler's sketch, host
Don Ameche
Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, stock
In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the Share ...
and guest
Mae West
Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...
portrayed a slightly bawdy Adam and Eve, satirizing the Biblical tale of the Garden of Eden. On the surface, the sketch did not feature much more than West's customary suggestive double-entendres, and today it seems quite tame. But in 1937, that sketch and a subsequent routine featuring West trading suggestive quips with
Edgar Bergen's dummy
Charlie McCarthy
Charlie McCarthy is Edgar Bergen's famed ventriloquist dummy partner. Charlie was part of Bergen's act as early as high school, and by 1930, was attired in his famous top hat, tuxedo, and monocle. The character was so well-known that his popularit ...
caused a furor that resulted in West being banned from broadcasting and from being mentioned at all on NBC programming for 15 years. The timing may have been a contributing factor, according to radio historian
Gerald S. Nachman in ''Raised on Radio'': "The sketch resulted in letters from outraged listeners and decency groups... What upset churchgoing listeners wasn't the Biblical parody so much as the fact that it had the bad luck to air on a Sunday show."
''Arch Oboler's Plays'', Part I
In 1939, with his own money, Oboler recorded an audition record of his play ''The Ugliest Man In the World'', from which he hoped to launch a new radio series of idea plays. He brought the recording to his network, NBC. At the time, NBC was looking to launch an experimental radio series to rival
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
's ''
Columbia Workshop
''Columbia Workshop'' was a radio series that aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from 1936 to 1943, returning in 1946–47.
Irving Reis
The series began as the idea of Irving Reis. Reis had begun his radio career as an engineer and devel ...
''. NBC was also looking for a radio writer and director to rival CBS's
Norman Corwin. NBC gave Oboler his own series, without a sponsor and with complete creative control. It was NBC that named the series ''
Arch Oboler's Plays
''Arch Oboler's Plays'' is a radio anthology series written, produced and directed by Arch Oboler. Minus a sponsor, it ran for one year, airing Saturday evenings on NBC from March 25, 1939, to March 23, 1940, and revived five years later on Mutua ...
''. It was an almost unheard-of honor. The time slot was less auspicious; the series occupied the Sunday 7–7:30 period opposite
Jack Benny. An impressive roster of actors worked for scale to appear in Oboler's plays, including
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...
,
Ronald Colman,
Edmond O'Brien,
Elsa Lanchester
Elsa Sullivan Lanchester (28 October 1902 – 26 December 1986) was a British-American actress with a long career in theatre, film and television.Obituary ''Variety'', 31 December 1986.
Lanchester studied dance as a child and after the Fir ...
and
James Cagney. Perhaps the most memorable broadcast was Oboler's adaptation of
Dalton Trumbo's ''
Johnny Got His Gun'', starring James Cagney. The harrowing story of Joe Bonham, a World War I casualty with no limbs, eyes, ears, or mouth, was particularly suited to radio. Oboler created striking sound effects for the play, including the eerie vibration of bed springs, which Joe Bonham learns to recognize as the movement of people entering and exiting his hospital room.
Oboler's series was so successful that it attracted the sponsorship of
Procter & Gamble. The new series was titled ''
Everyman's Theatre''. ''Everyman's Theatre'' was essentially ''Arch Oboler's Plays'' with commercial sponsorship. The series ran from 1940 to early 1941. Oboler lost patience with the series because of the middle commercial interruption that came during his plays. After the series ended, it took almost a year before Oboler's services were called on again.
''Plays for Americans''
After
Pearl Harbor, Oboler's anti-Fascist plays – once shunned by corporate radio sponsors – were in demand. Oboler's new series was titled ''Plays For Americans''; its purpose was to "stimulate the American people to the importance of the war effort by indirection rather than by direct appeal." Oboler's ''Plays For Americans'' was World War II propaganda in half-hour radio drama form, each story teaching a lesson about wartime responsibility. Oboler's shows for this series were as star-studded as his last series.
James Stewart starred in ''Letter At Midnight'', the story of a wealthy young man's conversion from isolationist to soldier.
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...
starred in ''Adolf and Mrs. Runyon'', a fantasy-comedy where
Hitler finds himself magically transported into the back seat of a car belonging to an irate war bride. The program's life was cut short because of comments that Oboler made at the Radio Institute at Ohio State. Oboler was adamant that World War II propaganda should instill hatred of the enemy in the listener. To some at the institute, it sounded like Oboler was advocating the same kind of racial hatred that the Axis was advocating.
Father Edward J. Flanagan rebuked Oboler and remarked that America did not need its own
Goebbels. Oboler enlisted the help of
Eddie Cantor to get another propaganda series on the air, but Cantor's efforts were of no avail.
''Lights Out'', Part II
Oboler generously wrote ''Plays for Americans'' for no fee. He decided that in order "to go on writing plays which contained some level of maturity and usefulness,
ehad to find a way to make money quickly...a sponsor was quickly procured to pay me well for a revival of ''Lights Out''". Oboler's new series carried the introduction for which it is best remembered, the sound of chimes behind announcer Frank Martin intoning:
This series of ''Lights Out'' differed from its predecessors in that it contained overt anti-Nazi messages. For instance, in ''Execution'' a Nazi commandant's efforts to kill the leader of a French resistance movement are frustrated by the continual regeneration of the leader. Most of these ''Lights Out'' broadcasts are remakes of Oboler's first ''Lights Out'' series. Almost all of these broadcasts are saved, whereas only three broadcasts remain of the earlier ''Lights Out''.
''To the President''
At the same time that Oboler wrote ''Lights Out'', he started a new series of propaganda plays titled ''To the President''. "The plays used the device of a citizen speaking to the President; each drama concerned itself with the particular problem of that week in the war." Like ''Plays For Americans'', ''To the President'' had a star-studded cast including actors such as
Fred MacMurray,
Claude Rains
William Claude Rains (10 November 188930 May 1967) was a British actor whose career spanned almost seven decades. After his American film debut as Dr. Jack Griffin in ''The Invisible Man'' (1933), he appeared in such highly regarded films as '' ...
, and
Harry Carey.
''Free World Theatre''
Oboler's next series was the ambitious ''Free World Theater''. Oboler produced and directed all 19 of the propaganda radio plays of this series, and wrote two of the plays. These plays were published with an introduction by
Thomas Mann
Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novella ...
.
''Everything for the Boys''
Oboler next worked with
Ronald Colman on a propaganda series that featured Colman as the lead in adaptations of popular novels and plays. Colman and Oboler did not get along. Oboler chafed at the commercial interruptions of his plays. The series was an expensive disaster.
''Arch Oboler's Plays'', Part II
Oboler's second series of ''Arch Oboler's Plays'' was broadcast over the Mutual Broadcasting Company. It aired without commercial interruption, and featured a mixture of idea and propaganda plays.
Films
In making a leap from radio to film, Oboler was sometimes compared to
Orson Welles, as in this commentary by Marty Baumann:
His screen credits include ''Escape'' (1940) and ''
On Our Merry Way'' (1948). By 1945, he moved into directing with ''Bewitched'' and ''
Strange Holiday'', followed by the post-apocalyptic ''
Five
5 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
5, five or number 5 may also refer to:
* AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era
* 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era
Literature
* ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram
* ''5'' (comics), an awa ...
'' (1951), filmed at his own
Frank Lloyd Wright-designed house. He made film history with the
3-D film
3D films are motion pictures made to give an illusion of three-dimensional solidity, usually with the help of special glasses worn by viewers. They have existed in some form since 1915, but had been largely relegated to a niche in the motion pict ...
effects in ''
Bwana Devil
''Bwana Devil'' is a 1952 American adventure B movie written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and starring Robert Stack, Barbara Britton, and Nigel Bruce. ''Bwana Devil'' is based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters and filmed with ...
'' (1952). ''
The Twonky
''The Twonky'' is a 1953 independently made American black-and-white science fiction/comedy film, produced by A.D. Nast, Jr., Arch Oboler, and Sidney Pink, written and directed by Arch Oboler, and starring Hans Conried, Gloria Blondell, Billy L ...
'' (1953) was adapted from the
Lewis Padgett
Lewis Padgett was the joint pseudonym of the science fiction authors and spouses Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore,Nicholls 1979, p. 445. taken from their mothers' maiden names. They also used the pseudonyms Lawrence O'Donnell and C. H. Liddell, as wel ...
(pseudonym for writers
C.L. Moore
Catherine Lucille Moore (January 24, 1911 – April 4, 1987) was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, who first came to prominence in the 1930s writing as C. L. Moore. She was among the first women to write in the science fiction and ...
and
Henry Kuttner) short story in the September, 1942, issue of ''
Astounding Science Fiction
''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William C ...
''. Oboler returned to films with another 3-D feature, ''
The Bubble'', in 1966. According to a retrospective article a
mondo-video.com many writers and dramatic artists, including
Rod Serling,
François Truffaut
François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. After a career of more tha ...
and
Don Coscarelli have claimed Oboler's films and radio work as significant influences.
Oboler's films include:
* ''
Escape
Escape or Escaping may refer to:
Computing
* Escape character, in computing and telecommunication, a character which signifies that what follows takes an alternative interpretation
** Escape sequence, a series of characters used to trigger some s ...
'' (1940) writer
* ''
Gangway for Tomorrow
Broadly speaking, a gangway is a passageway through which to enter or leave. Gangway may refer specifically refer to:
Passageways
* Gangway (nautical), a passage between the quarterdeck and the forecastle of a ship, and by extension, a passage t ...
'' (1943) screenwriter
* ''
Strange Holiday'' (1945) writer, director, producer
* ''
Bewitched
''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...
'' (1945) writer, director
* ''
The Arnelo Affair
''The Arnelo Affair'' is a 1947 American film noir starring John Hodiak, George Murphy, Frances Gifford, and Dean Stockwell, and co-written and directed by Arch Oboler.
Plot
A lawyer's wife, Anne Parkson (Frances Gifford) is bored and neglected. ...
'' (1947) writer, director
* ''
Five
5 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
5, five or number 5 may also refer to:
* AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era
* 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era
Literature
* ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram
* ''5'' (comics), an awa ...
'' (1951) writer, director, producer
* ''
Bwana Devil
''Bwana Devil'' is a 1952 American adventure B movie written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and starring Robert Stack, Barbara Britton, and Nigel Bruce. ''Bwana Devil'' is based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters and filmed with ...
'' (1952) writer, director, producer
* ''
The Twonky
''The Twonky'' is a 1953 independently made American black-and-white science fiction/comedy film, produced by A.D. Nast, Jr., Arch Oboler, and Sidney Pink, written and directed by Arch Oboler, and starring Hans Conried, Gloria Blondell, Billy L ...
'' (1953) writer, director, producer
* ''
One Plus One'' (1961) writer, director
* ''
The Bubble'' (1966) writer, director, producer
* ''
Domo Arigato'' (1972)
Broadway
Sidney Lumet directed Oboler's
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
play, ''
Night of the Auk'', a
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel univers ...
drama about astronauts returning to
Earth after the first moon landing. The play was based on Oboler's radio play ''Rocket from Manhattan'', which aired as part of ''Arch Oboler's Plays'' in September 1945. Produced by
Kermit Bloomgarden
Kermit Bloomgarden (December 15, 1904 – September 20, 1976) was an American theatrical producer. He was an accountant before he began producing plays on Broadway including ''Death of a Salesman'' (1949), ''The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1955), ' ...
, the play ran for only eight performances in December 1956 despite a cast that included
Martin Brooks,
Wendell Corey
Wendell Reid Corey (March 20, 1914 – November 8, 1968) was an American actor and politician. He was President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was a board member of the Screen Actors Guild.
Biography Early years
Corey was ...
,
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...
,
Claude Rains
William Claude Rains (10 November 188930 May 1967) was a British actor whose career spanned almost seven decades. After his American film debut as Dr. Jack Griffin in ''The Invisible Man'' (1933), he appeared in such highly regarded films as '' ...
and
Dick York
Richard Allen York (September 4, 1928 – February 20, 1992) was an American radio, stage, film, and television actor. He was the first actor to play Darrin Stephens on the ABC fantasy sitcom ''Bewitched''. He played teacher Bertram Cates in t ...
. In the December 17, 1956, issue, ''
Time'' reviewed:
A version of ''Night of the Auk'' aired as an episode of the anthology television series ''
Play of the Week'' in 1960. In August 2012, Outside Inside Productions presented the first New York revival of ''Night of the Auk'' at the 16th Annual
New York International Fringe Festival
The New York International Fringe Festival, or FringeNYC, was a fringe theater festival and one of the largest multi-arts events in North America. It took place over the course of a few weeks in October, spread on more than 20 stages across seve ...
. Authorized by the Oboler family, this new production, directed by Adam Levi with co-direction by Kaitlyn Samuel, was a 75-minute one-act version of the original play, adapted by playwright Michael Ross Albert.
Television
In 1949, Oboler helmed an anthology television series, ''Oboler's Comedy Theatre'' (aka ''Arch Oboler's Comedy Theater'') which ran for six episodes from September to November. In the premiere show, "Ostrich in Bed," a couple awaiting the arrival of a dinner guest find an ostrich in their bedroom. In "Mr. Dydee" a dim-witted horse player inherits a diaper service.
Recordings
Audio horror gained an added dimension with Oboler's
LP recording, ''Drop Dead! An Exercise in Horror'' (
Capitol Records
Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...
, 1962). It features the following horror-themed dramatic vignettes, interspersed with commentary from Oboler: "Introduction to Horror", "I'm Hungry", "Taking Papa Home", "The Dark", "A Day at the Dentist's", "The Posse", "Chicken Heart", and "The Laughing Man". "Arch Oboler's African Adventure" (Decca 10" LP)field recordings during the filming of Bwana Devil.
Books
Novels
''House on Fire'' (Bartholomew House, 1969), was adapted by Oboler for radio's ''
Mutual Radio Theater'' in 1980. in 2015,
Valancourt Books
Valancourt Books is an independent American publishing house founded by James Jenkins and Ryan Cagle in 2005. The company specializes in "the rediscovery of rare, neglected, and out-of-print fiction," in particular gay titles and Gothic and hor ...
reissued ''House on Fire'' with a new introduction by Christopher Conlon.
Collected works
*''Free World Theatre: Nineteen New Radio Plays'' (Random House, 1944)
*''Oboler Omnibus: Radio Plays and Personalities'' (Duell, Sloan & Pearce, 1945)
*''Night of the Auk: A Free Prose Play'' was published by Horizon Press in 1958
Short stories
His short story "And Adam Begot" was included in Julius Fast's ''Out of This World'' anthology (
Penguin
Penguins ( order Sphenisciformes , family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain t ...
, 1944)
"Come to the Bank" was published in ''
Weird Tales'' (Fall 1984). "Happy Year," a short story based on an Oboler script "from the ''Good News'' program," was published (beginning on page 8) in the December 1940 issue o
Radio and Television Mirror
Non-fiction
"My Jackasses and the Fire" in the June 1960 issue of ''
Coronet
A coronet is a small crown consisting of ornaments fixed on a metal ring. A coronet differs from other kinds of crowns in that a coronet never has arches, and from a tiara in that a coronet completely encircles the head, while a tiara does ...
''.
Personal life
Oboler married the former Eleanor Helfand; they had four sons: Guy, David, Steven and Peter Oboler.
On April 7, 1958, Oboler's six-year-old son, Peter, drowned in rainwater collected in excavations at Oboler's
Malibu home. The house was designed by architect
Frank Lloyd Wright; the Wright-designed Oboler residential complex was named ''Eaglefeather'' (which was destroyed
in 2018 by the
Woolsey Fire
The Woolsey Fire was a wildfire that burned in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties of the U.S. state of California. The fire ignited on November 8, 2018, and burned of land. The fire destroyed 1,643 structures, killed three people, and prompted t ...
).
The house is featured in Oboler's film ''Five''. Arch Oboler died in
Westlake Village, California
Westlake Village is a city in Los Angeles County on its western border with Ventura County. The City of Westlake Village incorporated in 1981 becoming the 82nd municipality of Los Angeles County.Baker, Pam (2002). ''Thousand Oaks Westlake Vil ...
, in 1987, aged 77.
References
External links
*''Arch Oboler and His Bathyspheres'' Library of Congress Now See Hear blog post by Matt Barton, curator of the Recorded Sound Section
* – IMDb
All Movie: Arch ObolerMutual Radio TheaterZoot Radio, Free Arch Oblers radio show downloads*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oboler, Arch
American radio writers
Screenwriters from California
1909 births
1987 deaths
American fantasy writers
American male novelists
American male screenwriters
American dramatists and playwrights
American radio producers
Peabody Award winners
Writers from Chicago
Writers from Los Angeles
American people of Latvian-Jewish descent
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American male writers
Novelists from Illinois
Screenwriters from Illinois
20th-century American screenwriters