|
''The Zero Hour'' (aka ''Hollywood Radio Theater'') was a 1973–74 radio drama anthology series hosted by Rod Serling.〔(The Zero Hour Radio Log )〕 With tales of mystery, adventure and suspense, the program aired in stereo for two seasons. Some of the scripts were written by Serling.〔(Judge, Dick. Hollywood Radio Theater: Zero Hour )〕 Originally placed into syndication on September 3, 1973, the series was picked up by the Mutual Broadcasting System in December of that year. The original format featured five-part dramas broadcast Monday through Friday with the story coming to a conclusion on Friday. Including commercials, each part was approximately 30 minutes long. Mutual affiliates could broadcast the series in any time slot that they wished. In 1974, still airing five days a week, the program changed to a full story in a single 30-minute installment with the same actor starring throughout the week in all five programs. That format was employed from late April 1974 to the end of the series on July 26, 1974. Producer J. M. Kholos was a Los Angeles advertising man who acquired the rights to suspense novels, including Tony Hillerman's ''The Blessing Way'', for radio adaptations. In some cases, the titles were changed. For example, the five-part "Desperate Witness" was an adaptation of ''The Big Clock'' by Kenneth Fearing. To create a strong package, Kholos followed through by lining up top actors, including John Astin, Edgar Bergen, Joseph Campanella, Richard Crenna, John Dehner, Howard Duff, Keenan Wynn, Richard Deacon, Patty Duke, Nina Foch, George Maharis, Susan Oliver, Brock Peters and Lurene Tuttle. The opening theme music was by Ferrante & Teicher. Don Hills produced the series for StudioHouse, which also produced the Salvation Army's ''Heartbeat Theatre''. Counting each five-part show as five episodes, there were a total of 130 episodes. It failed to find a large audience due to the initial weekly serial format and the lack of promotion. According to director Elliott Lewis, "They wanted as much name value as possible to help with sales. They forgot they had to sell it. Everybody sat in the office and waited for someone to call them up and buy the show."〔Dunning, John. ''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-19-507678-8.〕 Highbridge Audio released some of the five-part stories on audiocassettes. == Episodes - Series One== 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Zero Hour (radio series)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|