The Adventurer's Club

"An adventurer follows the off-trail path, where excitement and danger beckon ever onward."

One evening in 1911, Major Robert Foran, former AP correspondent attached to President Theodore Roosevelt's big game hunting expedition to Africa, found himself at St. Hubert's Old English Grill in Chicago. He had made friends with the proprietor, who introduced him to a group of adventurous gentlemen who met informally at the establishment to share drinks and stories. Among the gentlemen assembled were former military men, big game hunters and explorers, and Maj Foran was a welcome addition to their company. At some point during the evening's story telling Foran proposed that the group establish themselves formally as a club to encourage and support adventurers. The club's motto is "To provide a hearth and home for those who have left the beaten path and made for adventure".

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In 1947, Chicago CBS affiliate WBBM, under the sponsorship of Schaeffer Pens, brought stories of The Adventurers Club to the airwaves. The surviving episodes in our collection includes the three part story of Count Byron de Prorok. The Count and his companions begin their search in a small aircraft over the Sahara Desert and eventually locate the tomb of Queen Tin Hinan. Once he locates what may be the tomb, he mounts an expedition in trucks, outfitted for the rigors of the desert. But the desert is always full of surprises, including getting lost while on foot, the dreaded Tuareg fighters, sandstorms and even quicksand.

The Adventurer's Club broadcasts are filled with narrow escapes and dramatic organ music. The Schaeffer Company used the shows to promote their Skrip brand ink. One promotion included a "Five-in-One Mystery Compass" that listeners could receive in exchange for a Skrip box top or a sales receipt from a Skrip dealer.

It is easy to imagine that Count de Prorok would have wanted one of these while he crossed the Desert! For more Ken Nordine work, see also: Faces in the Window and Incredible But True.

(Please note that many of the rare recordings in this collection may be of inferior sound quality.  These recordings are part of the larger Rare Adventure Show Collection)