The run
This upload contains 53 episodes of plays written by the prolific Arch Oboler. Also known as a writer for the series, Lights Out, Arch Oboler's plays were also aired as a separate series on three separate occasions, 1939-1940, 1945, and 1964. The dates, episode numbers and titles are believed to be correct based on available information, but any corrections are welcome. Disclaimer: By uploading these files, I make no claim to ownership or copyright. These recordings have been acquired from publicly available sources on the Internet, and my goal has been to put together a collection of every available episode where possible. I will add to these collections if I discover new episodes or if any new episodes become available. Digitised by the Old Time Radio Researchers and streamed from the Internet Archive item “arch-obolers-plays-1945-04-26-3-the-house-i-live-in”; these recordings are in the public domain.
Source collection
Internet Archive audio collections
Rights
Public domain — no renewed US copyright
Cataloguing
Air dates and notes from the Archive item record
The shape of the run
9 dated broadcasts across 7 years on the air, with 4 years where nothing is known to survive. Brightness is transfer quality; empty cells are months lost to time.
Episodes
Start here
Restored broadcasts from 1939, in original transmission order.
1 Apr 1939 · 29 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 1 April 1939. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
20 May 1939 · 27 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 20 May 1939. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
29 Jul 1939 · 28 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 29 July 1939. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
27 Jan 1940 · 29 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 27 January 1940. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
3 May 1945 · 29 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 3 May 1945. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
7 Jun 1945 · 29 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 7 June 1945. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
5 Jul 1945 · 28 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 5 July 1945. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
9 Aug 1945 · 29 min
Originally broadcast on Syndicated, 9 August 1945. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Same night on the air
Everything else the archive still holds from the night of 9 Aug 1945.
9 Aug 1945 · 29 min
Originally broadcast on AFRS, 9 August 1945. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Originally broadcast in syndication, 9 August 1945. Restored from the Old Time Radio archives.
Broadcast 9 August 1945. Public-domain transfer from the Old Time Radio Researchers certified set at the Internet Archive.
Public-domain transfer from the Internet Archive item “YourArmyAirForces”.
Same seasons
Series in the same genre whose runs overlapped this one.
What it became
Full-cast drama with a live orchestra and a studio full of sound effects. Lux Radio Theater and the CBS Radio Workshop are the direct ancestors of scripted podcast fiction.
Lineage is written by our editors, not inferred from listening data.
Descendants
Modern series carrying this form forward.
If you liked this
Chosen by the same editors.
