''The Witch's Tale'' is a horror-fantasy radio series which aired from May 21, 1931, to June 13, 1938, on WOR, the Mutual Radio Network, and in syndication. The program was created, written, and directed by Alonzo Deen Cole (February 22, 1897, St. Paul, Minnesota - April 7, 1971).

Production and casting

The first horror drama on radio, Cole's spooky show was hosted by Old Nancy, the Witch of Salem, who introduced a different terror tale each week. The role of Old Nancy was created by stage actress Adelaide Fitz-Allen, who died in 1935 at the age of 79. Cole replaced her with 13-year-old Miriam Wolfe, and

Martha Wentworth Verna Martha Wentworth (June 2, 1889 – March 8, 1974) was an American actress. Her vocal variety led to her being called the "Actress of 100 Voices". Biography Wentworth was born on June 2, 1889 in New York City. After graduating from ...

was also heard as Old Nancy on occasion. Cole himself provided the sounds of Old Nancy's cat, Satan. Cole's wife, Marie O'Flynn, portrayed the lead female characters on the program, and the supporting cast included Mark Smith and Alan Devitte. The majority of the scripts were original stories, but there were literary adaptations as well, including: * 1931: "The Bronze Venus," adapted from La Vénus d'Ille by

Prosper Mérimée Prosper Mérimée (; 28 September 1803 – 23 September 1870) was a French writer in the movement of Romanticism, and one of the pioneers of the novella, a short novel or long short story. He was also a noted archaeologist and historian, and a ...

. * 1932: "In the Devil's Name," adapted from the confessions of supposed real-life witch

Isobel Gowdie Isobel Gowdie was a Scottish woman who confessed to witchcraft at Auldearn near Nairn during 1662. Scant information is available about her age or life and, although she was probably executed in line with the usual practice, it is uncertain whe ...

. (Only the first half of this episode has survived.) * 1934: "The Wonderful Bottle," adapted from The Bottle Imp by

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

. * 1934: "The Flying Dutchman," based on the legend of the ghost ship

The Flying Dutchman The ''Flying Dutchman'' ( nl, De Vliegende Hollander) is a legendary ghost ship, allegedly never able to make port, but doomed to sail the seven seas forever. The myth is likely to have originated from the 17th-century Golden Age of the Dut ...

. * 1935: an adaptation of

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific ...

Mary Shelley Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (; ; 30 August 1797 – 1 February 1851) was an English novelist who wrote the Gothic novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' (1818), which is considered an early example of science fiction. She also ...

. There were likely other adaptations that have not survived. For syndication, the shows were recorded live during broadcast and distributed to other stations. These recordings were destroyed by Cole in 1961, so few episodes survive. Cole was also the writer, producer, and director of the radio mystery-crime drama, ''

Casey, Crime Photographer ''Casey, Crime Photographer'' (also known as ''Crime photographer''; ''Flashgun Casey''; ''Casey, Press Photographer''; ''Stephen Bristol, Crime Photographer'') was an American media franchise that lasted from the 1930s until the 1960s. Created b ...

''. In November 1936, Alonzo Deen Cole edited '' The Witch's Tales'' magazine with the lead story by Cole. It ran for only two issues.

Television

An effort was made to bring the series to television. In 1958,

Television Programs of America Television Programs of America, Inc (TPA) was a New York-based US television production company in the 1950s. TPA had a Canadian subsidiary, Normandie Productions. This television production and distribution company was best known for '' Fury, ...

made plans to film a pilot with Cole as consultant and story supervisor. The associate story editor was Raymond Levy. However, the show never made it to TV.

Influence

EC Comics Entertaining Comics, more commonly known as EC Comics, was an American publisher of comic books, which specialized in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950 ...

' publisher

Bill Gaines William Maxwell Gaines (; March 1, 1922 – June 3, 1992), was an American publisher and co-editor of EC Comics. Following a shift in EC's direction in 1950, Gaines presided over what became an artistically influential and historically import ...

was inspired by Cole's Old Nancy host to create the character the Old Witch, illustrated by

Graham Ingels Graham J. Ingels (; June 7, 1915April 4, 1991) was a comic book and magazine illustrator best known for his work in EC Comics during the 1950s, notably on ''The Haunt of Fear'' and ''Tales from the Crypt'', horror titles written and edited by Al ...

as the host of EC's ''

The Haunt of Fear ''The Haunt of Fear'' was an American bi-monthly horror comic anthology series published by EC Comics, starting in 1950. Along with '' Tales from the Crypt'' and '' The Vault of Horror'', it formed a trifecta of popular EC horror anthologies. ''T ...

''.

References

External links

Radio Lovers: ''The Witch's Tale'' (four 1934-37 episodes)
* ttp://www.RadioHorrorHosts.com/witchtale.html Radio Horror Hosts: ''The Witch's Tale''br>Internet Archive: The Witch's Tale
- plot summaries and reviews. {{DEFAULTSORT:Witch's Tale, The American radio dramas Anthology radio series Fantasy radio programs Horror fiction radio programmes 1930s American radio programs Mutual Broadcasting System programs 1931 radio programme debuts 1938 radio programme endings Syndicated radio programs

Production and casting

Television

Influence

See also

References

Further reading

External links