The run
- Network
- Syndicated
- Years active
- 1940–1950
- Surviving broadcasts
- 30
- Genre
- horror
OBSESSION After the real-life terrors of World War II, it must have been hard for most Americans to settle down to a more peaceful life and a relatively gentle radio world. Radio waves were populated, to a certain extent, with characters like Dr. Christian, Lum and Abner, and Ozzie and Harriet. When the war was over, and the GIs returned, audiences craved more dramatic programming. To fill this void, radio producers began to promote macabre and terrifying thrillers including shows like Inner Sanctum Mysteries , Lights Out , and Obsession . Obsession was produced independently by C. P. 'Chick' MacGregor, and its first episode aired on October 9, 1950. It began on WBBM, Chicago as a filler until January 15, 1951, when Obsession earned its own time slot. The program lasted only seventeen months. Its final broadcast aired May 12, 1952. Digitised by the Old Time Radio Researchers and streamed from the Internet Archive item “OTRR_Obsession_Singles”; these recordings are in the public domain.
Source collection
Old Time Radio Researchers Group
Rights
Public domain — no renewed US copyright
Cataloguing
Air dates and notes from the Archive item record
The shape of the run
What survives, year by year
0 dated broadcasts across 11 years on the air, with 11 years where nothing is known to survive. Brightness is transfer quality; empty cells are months lost to time.
Episodes
Start here
Listen to the run in order
Restored broadcasts from NaN, in original transmission order.
- 1. Obsession 10 The Hangman · Date unknown
- 2. Obsession 13 Dynamite · Date unknown
- 3. Obsession 15 Amnesia (aka The Stranger) (AFRS) · Date unknown
Obsession 10 The Hangman
Date unknown · 29 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 13 Dynamite
Date unknown · 29 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 15 Amnesia (aka The Stranger) (AFRS)
Date unknown · 24 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 27 Clinging Hate (AFRS)
Date unknown · 22 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 5 Hunting Party (aka Holiday House) (AFRS)
Date unknown · 23 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 53 Blood Bath (Marie Antoinette) CLIPPED ENDING & BAD SOUND
Date unknown · 22 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 77 Cry Vengeance
Date unknown · 29 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Obsession 9 The Silver Cord (AFRS)
Date unknown · 23 min
Broadcast on Syndicated. Transferred from the Internet Archive's Old Time Radio Researchers collection (public domain).
Also on Syndicated
Syndicated in 1940–1950
Other series the network carried while Obsession was on the air.
Same seasons
horror on the air then
Series in the same genre whose runs overlapped this one.
What it became
The anthology of dread
A voice, a creaking door, and a self-contained story designed to frighten you in half an hour. Suspense and Lights Out built the grammar every horror anthology still uses.
Lineage is written by our editors, not inferred from listening data.
Descendants
Working in the tradition of Obsession
Modern series carrying this form forward.
If you liked this
More to explore
Chosen by the same editors.
