Voyage of the Scarlet Queen

This fine high-adventure old time radio show first heard on Mutual featured the veteran radio talent Elliott Lewis, who, as Leonard Maltin writes in "The Great American Broadcast, " wore every hat imaginable-actor, producer, and director-also penned a good number of scripts for series he supervised, including Suspense." And Maltin says of this show, "On the terrific late-1940s high-adventure series The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen he held down both jobs simultaneously as director and star." Previously, Lewis was featured on The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show as the wise guy guitar player, Frankie Remley. He also did major roles on the Lux Radio Theatre, The Whistler, The Jack Benny Show and many others.

Lewis is a perfect sea captain, as the ketch Scarlet Queen sails the seas in search of exotic ports where often the unknown meets the sinister. Ed Max is Mr. Gallagher on the show, and supporting roles come from the cream of Hollywood's radio actors, including William Conrad (Escape, Gunsmoke), Ben Wright, and John Dehner (Have Gun, Will Travel). When listening to Voyage, the old time radio show Escape come to mind in comparison, and that's high praise, indeed.

Lewis went on in the 1950s to produce and direct three shows that aired in succession of Sunday nights: Broadway's My Beat, On Stage (which also starred his wife and fine radio actress, Kathy Lewis) and Crime Classics.

Maltin says it all when he writes, "Lewis had the ability to make you believe whatever he said. Cast as the skipper on the high-adventure series The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen, he was completely convincing as seagoing ship's master Philip Carney-never corny or overblown." So let a master captain of drama chart a course to exotic ports of call and thrilling adventures. All you have to do is step aboard The Scarlet Queen.

High adventure plays a major role on old time radio. Most of the radio serials for kids could be considered as high adventure, especially Hop Harrigan, Speed Gibson of the International Police, Terry and the Pirates and Sergeant Preston of the Yukon. Of course, the recognized greatest of the high-adventure radio shows is Escape, which told classic tales of mystery and adventure in near-perfect manner. Also on the mystery and adventure list would be Adventures by Morse, Suspense, Bold Venture, Cloak and Dagger, The Adventures of Frank Race, the classic serials: I Love a Mystery, Jungle Jim, Moon Over Africa, and You Are There.