Show #16, Season #1 - "The Six Shooter" and "Dark Fantasy"

Two shows different in almost every respect fill the airwaves of the OTR Express this week, as we listen to The Six Shooter (a slickly-produced Western with a big-name Hollywood star and radio veterans in supporting roles) and Dark Fantasy (a fantasy/horror program out of Oklahoma City starring a group of unknowns). 

And yet, despite these differences, both are great examples of quality old time radio.

The Six Shooter starred James Stewart, who had the Midas touch not only in the movies, but on radio as well, as he picked up the tricks of radio acting better than most film actors.  Most people remember him nowadays as George Bailey, but if you want to see more of Stewart in the Western genre, rent "The Man from Laramie".  If you like the mix of Jimmy Stewart and Frank Capra that you got in "It's a Wonderful Life", you'll love "You Can't Take it With You".

Jimmy Stewart, as Britt Ponset, deals with "The Coward" on this episode of The Six Shooter.

"The Demon Tree" on Dark Fantasy is a great example of why radio was called "the theater of the mind".  What a lot of filmmakers miss nowadays is that it's not so much violence as the threat of violence or the intimation of off-screen violence that is most scary.  The imagination can conjure more horrifying images than can be shown on screen.

As always, click on the title of the blog entry to link out to this week's show.   And, as always, let me know what you thought!