1001 Ghost, Chiller & Lovecraft Stories

This episode is a quintessential Halloween classic, leaning heavily into the "ghostly" reputation of the Shadow to stop a psychological crime.
Episode Overview
Title: "The Three Ghosts"
First Aired: October 31, 1937 (Halloween Night)
Network: Mutual Broadcasting System
Sponsor: Blue Coal
Cast & Voice Actors
The Shadow / Lamont Cranston: Orson Welles
Margot Lane: Agnes Moorehead
Announcer: Arthur Whiteside (stepping in for the usual Ken Roberts in some listings)
Organist: Elsie Thompson
Commercial Spokesman: Thomas Coffin Cooke
Episode Summary
In this atmospheric holiday broadcast, a wicked criminal attempts to drive a wealthy woman to her death by convincing her that she is being haunted by three vengeful spirits. The goal is to literally frighten her into a fatal heart attack to claim her fortune.
The Shadow becomes a literal conscience in the dark. Utilizing his own ghostly presence and hypnotic voice, he turns the tables on the conspirators. By the episode's end, the Shadow ensures that the only ones truly terrified are the criminals themselves, as he uses the very haunting they invented to force a confession. It is a brilliant example of how the Shadow doesn't just fight crime with fists, but with psychological warfare.
Trivia & Fun Facts
The Ultimate Halloween Episode: Aired on October 31, 1937, this was the show's first-ever Halloween broadcast. The producers leaned into the holiday spirit by making the plot centered on ghosts and hauntings.
Organ Bridges: This episode is frequently cited by sound historians for its "beautiful organ bridges" performed by Elsie Thompson. The music was used to create a seamless, unsettling transition between the world of the living and the "supernatural."
The Conscience Motif: Unlike earlier episodes where the Shadow is a more physical threat, this story highlights him as a psychological force—acting as the "conscience" that the criminals lack.
Surviving Broadcast: While many early episodes of The Shadow are "lost," this Halloween classic was preserved in excellent audio quality, allowing modern listeners to hear the original 1937 performance.
Credits
Host and Producer Gizelle Erickson
Executive Producer Jon Hagadorn
Music: Thanks to Sound Gallery By Dmitry Taras "Scary Horror Music"
The Shadow sourced by AcousticMonster on Internet Archive

This episode is widely considered one of the most exotic and atmospheric of the Orson Welles era, leaning heavily into the "Eastern mysticism" that provided the foundation for The Shadow's powers.
Episode Overview
Title: "The Temple Bells of Neban"
First Aired: October 24, 1937
Network: Mutual Broadcasting System
Sponsor: Blue Coal
Credits
Host and Producer Gizelle Erickson
Executive Producer Jon Hagadorn
Music: Thanks to Sound Gallery By Dmitry Taras "Scary Horror Music"
The Shadow sourced by AcousticMonster on Internet Archive
Cast & Voice Actors
The Shadow / Lamont Cranston: Orson Welles
Margot Lane: Agnes Moorehead
Announcer: Ken Roberts
Supporting Cast: Likely included OTR staples like Ray Collins or Dwight Weist, who often voiced the more "exotic" or villainous roles in the Welles period.
Episode Summary
The plot takes Lamont Cranston and Margot Lane far from the streets of New York to the mysterious Orient. The story revolves around the "Temple Bells of Neban," ancient artifacts rumored to have a deadly, supernatural curse. 
When an American explorer attempts to steal the bells to bring them back to the West, he triggers a series of mysterious deaths. The Shadow must intervene to prevent a bloodbath and return the sacred relics to their rightful place. This episode serves as a rare bridge between Cranston's life as a wealthy socialite and his secret past in the Far East, where he originally learned the "hypnotic power to cloud men's minds."
Trivia & Fun Facts
Exploring the Origin: While the radio show rarely spent time on "origin stories," this episode is a rare nod to the character's training in the Himalayas/Orient. It reinforces the idea that The Shadow's powers aren't just a trick, but a spiritual discipline.

Sound Design Masterclass: This episode is famous among radio historians for its use of foley (sound effects). The resonance of the "temple bells" had to be carefully engineered to sound both beautiful and ominous, creating a sense of dread every time they rang over the airwaves.

The "Orientalism" Trope: Typical of 1930s media, the episode utilizes the "Mysterious East" trope popular in pulps like Flash Gordon or The Spider. It highlights the era's fascination with hidden temples and ancient curses.

The Welles/Moorehead Dynamic: This episode features heavy dialogue between Lamont and Margot, showcasing the incredible chemistry between Orson Welles and Agnes Moorehead. Moorehead was a member of Welles's Mercury Theatre troupe, and their professional shorthand is evident in the pacing of this script.

Tonight we peel back the moss-grown layers of Nathaniel Hawthorne's gothic masterpiece, The House of the Seven Gables, to examine a most peculiar resident in Chapter 12, "The Daguerreotypist."  While the shattered Clifford seeks rest, dreaming of a childhood long lost, Phœbe finds herself drawn into the company of the enigmatic Holgrave—a man whose past is a kaleidoscope of identities, ranging from a traveling peddler of cologne-water to a public lecturer on Mesmerism. Though he speaks of a bright future, Holgrave is obsessed with the odious and abominable Past, which he likens to a giant's dead body weighing upon the living and freezing the heart with its white, immitigable face. He gazes upon the Pyncheon legacy with the cold eye of a surgeon, suggesting that the very walls of the house, crystallized with the discontent and anguish of generations, should be purified with fire until only ashes remain. As the late sunbeams gild the seven gables, the artist prepares to reveal a family legend he has penned, leaving us to wonder: is this young man a friend to the household, or a visionary seeking to finally bury the dead?.
Credits
Narration and Production by Gizelle Erickson
Executive Producer Jon Hagadorn
Music: Thanks to Sound Gallery By Dmitry Taras "Scary Horror Music"
LibriVox recording read by: Mark F. Smith

This episode is a haunting early entry in the series that plays with the boundary between the natural and the supernatural. It is one of the "lost" episodes of the original run, meaning no original recording survives, though scripts and modern recreations exist.
The story centers on a series of impossible murders where the victims appear to have been killed by individuals who are already dead. A wealthy recluse dies under mysterious circumstances, and the evidence at the scene points directly to a "dead man's hand."
Title: "Murder by the Dead"
First Aired: October 17, 1937
Network: Mutual Broadcasting System
Sponsor: Blue Coal
Credits
Narration and Production by Gizelle Erickson
Executive Producer Jon Hagadorn
Music: Thanks to Sound Gallery By Dmitry Taras "Scary Horror Music"
The Shadow sourced by AcousticMonster on Internet Archive
Cast & Voice Actors The Shadow / Lamont Cranston: Orson Welles
Margot Lane: Agnes Moorehead
Announcer: Ken Roberts
The Blue Coal Commercial Spokesman: Thomas Coffin Cooke (often as "John Barclay")
Organist: Elsie Thompson

Episode Summary
The story follows Paul Gordon, an innocent man who is hours away from execution for a murder he didn't commit. Gordon's only "crime" was being desperate for work and unknowingly accepting a job as a getaway driver for a pair of bank robbers, Red Sloan and Lefty. During the robbery, a policeman was killed, and Gordon was framed as the triggerman.
 
As the clock ticks toward 11:00 PM—the time of the execution—Lamont Cranston visits the "Death House" in disguise as a prison guard. Using his hypnotic power to "cloud men's minds," The Shadow infiltrates the prison to interview Gordon. Convinced of the man's innocence, The Shadow races against time to track down the real killers and extract a confession. The climax involves a tense confrontation where the Shadow uses his "invisible" presence to terrify the guilty parties into admitting the truth just as the switch is about to be thrown.
Trivia & Fun Facts
A Series Premiere: This was the very first episode of the "new" Shadow series where the character became the protagonist rather than just the host of a detective anthology.

The Birth of Invisibility: In the original pulp novels, The Shadow was a master of disguise and stealth but not literally invisible. The "power to cloud men's minds" was invented for the radio show because it was easier (and cheaper) to explain why the characters couldn't see the Shadow than it was to describe elaborate hiding places every week.

Orson Welles' Debut: A 22-year-old Orson Welles made his debut as Lamont Cranston in this episode. His success here helped pave the way for his "Mercury Theatre on the Air" and his infamous War of the Worlds broadcast just a year later.

Introduction of Margot Lane: This episode marks the first appearance of Margot Lane. Interestingly, she was created specifically for the radio show to give Lamont Cranston someone to talk to (avoiding long, awkward monologues), though she was eventually added to the pulp novels later.

Credits
Narration and Production by Gizelle Erickson
Executive Producer Jon Hagadorn
Music: Thanks to Sound Gallery By Dmitry Taras "Scary Horror Music"
The Shadow sourced by AcousticMonster on Internet Archive
Cast & Voice Actors The Shadow / Lamont Cranston: Orson Welles
Margot Lane: Agnes Moorehead
Announcer: Ken Roberts
Opening/Closing Voice: Frank Readick Jr. (The iconic "Who knows what evil lurks..." voice)
The Warden / Bank Robber: Various supporting cast members often including Bill Johnstone (who would later take over the title role)