T H E Z E R O H O U R
----- ------- -------
1973 - 1974
First Show: Sep 3, 1973 Last Show: Jul 26, 1974
Number Shows: 130 Audition Show: none known
Series Description:
Rod Serling started the groundwork for a new radio series called THE
ZERO HOUR, which was to have featured Ray Bradbury's story as the
opener. Norman Corwin took over the project and it evolved into a
suspense radio drama series hosted by Rod Serling. It was produced
by StudioHouse, who also produced The Salvation Army program,
"Heartbeat Theatre". Don Hill produced the series.
THE ZERO HOUR was produced in 1973 and featured 5-part stories that
ran Monday through Friday, until December of 1973. Each part was
approximately 30 minutes long (including commercials). The series
was sold to Mutual for syndication. The format was changed to single
part shows in 1974, running again 5 days a week, from the end of
April through July of 1974. One hundred and thirty episodes were
produced, counting each 5-part show as 5 episodes.
The shows in circulation are introduced as "THE ZERO HOUR presented
by the HOLLYWOOD RADIO THEATER".
Log Comments:
The 5-part series was syndicated by Mutual and the programs were
allowed to be aired when convenient. Therefore, broadcast dates
vary around the country. This section of the log is listed in
Mutual's suggested ordering. Broadcast dates start on the premier
date and continue until completion without break. The single-part
show broadcast dates were more tightly defined by Mutual. (The above
information is from Dick Judge).
Highbridge Audio (see References section) has released a number of the
5-parters and are available in bookstores. Audio quality of their
tapes is excellent, however, they use only the first opening and the
last closing from the 5 shows.
Chronological Log:
1973 Five-Part Show List
Dates Num Title
------------------ ----- ----------------------------------
Sep 03 thru Sep 07 1-5 "Wife Of The Red-Haired Man"
Sep 10 thru Sep 14 6-10 "Someone's Death"
Sep 17 thru Sep 21 11-15 "The Fourth Of Forever"
Sep 24 thru Sep 28 16-20 "Face Of The Foe"
Oct 02 thru Oct 06 21-25 "The Blessing Way"
Oct 08 thru Oct 12 26-30 "Princess Stakes Murder Case"
Oct 15 thru Oct 19 31-35 "Queen In Danger"
Oct 22 thru Oct 26 36-40 "Desperate Witness"
Oct 29 thru Nov 02 41-45 "If Two Of Them Are Dead"
Nov 05 thru Nov 09 46-50 "But I Wouldn't Want To Die There"
Nov 12 thru Nov 16 51-55 "The Heir Hunters"
Nov 19 thru Nov 23 56-60 "A Die In The Country"
Nov 26 thru Nov 30 61-65 "The Dead Man's Tale"
1974 Single-Part Show List
Date Num Title
------ --- -----------------------------------------------
Apr 29 66 "Bye-Bye Narco"
Apr 30 67 "Terror In The Night"
May 01 68 "Scream Of The Hawk"
May 02 69 "The Extortionist"
May 03 70 "Price Of Admission"
May 06 71 "Shortage Story"
May 07 72 "Escape To Nowhere"
May 08 73 "Fair's Fair You Know"
May 09 74 "Housecall"
May 10 75 "Violation"
May 13 76 "Arm's Length"
May 14 77 "Some People Die Only Once"
May 15 78 "Reward"
May 16 79 "Villainous Verdict"
May 17 80 "Strange Odyssey Of Sandy Mitchell"
May 20 81 "White Flame Burning Bright"
May 21 82 "Mind Of The Beholder"
May 22 83 "Why Is Ted Marcosi Driving Aunt Sally Insane?"
May 23 84 "There Is A Man In 211"
May 24 85 "Death Is A Puppeteer"
May 27 86 "Doctor Rivington, Presumably"
May 28 87 "Wanted: A Willing Companion"
May 29 88 "Pigs Could Put You In The Pen"
May 30 89 "SkyLab, Are You There?"
May 31 90 "Favor You Can't Refuse"
Jun 03 91 "Death At Half A Length"
Jun 04 92 "Floating Down The River"
Jun 05 93 "Once A Thief"
Jun 06 94 "Other Sins Only Speak, Murder Shrieks Out"
Jun 07 95 "Rehabilitation Of Citizen Fimple"
Jun 10 96 "Bonnie And Clyde Are Alive And Well And
Living As Mary And Bill"
Jun 11 97 "Sisters Of Satan"
Jun 12 98 "Mannequin"
Jun 13 99 "Double Date To Destiny"
Jun 14 100 "Clay Pigeons"
Jun 17 101 "Past Is Always Present"
Jun 18 102 "Woman In Black"
Jun 19 103 "Come Light My Fire"
Jun 20 104 "Riders Wanted: Share Expenses"
Jun 21 105 "Death On Canvas"
Jun 24 106 "House That Clemont Built"
Jun 25 107 "Joint Account"
Jun 26 108 "Tiger Cages"
Jun 27 109 "Violence Takes A Curtain Call"
Jun 28 110 "Children Are Dying"
Jul 01 111 "Bend, Spindle and Mutilate"
Jul 02 112 "Murder Is A Work Of Art"
Jul 03 113 "Edwards Tug And Salvage"
Jul 04 114 "Larceny On The Lake"
Jul 05 115 "Olam"
Jul 08 116 "Corpse Takes A Sleigh Ride"
Jul 09 117 "Marionettes"
Jul 10 118 "Ghose Of The Black Plague"
Jul 11 119 "Trunkful Of Trouble"
Jul 12 120 "Grand Prize"
Jul 15 121 "Welcome Home Denny Shackelford"
Jul 16 122 "Death Of A Genius"
Jul 17 123 "Remember Me"
Jul 18 124 "Lost In Time"
Jul 19 125 "Once Upon A Truck"
Jul 22 126 "Corpse Takes The Stand"
Jul 23 127 "Carnival Of Menace"
Jul 24 128 "Chicago John And The Glitter People"
Jul 25 129 "Smoke Screen"
Jul 26 130 "Holdout"
Alphabetical Listing:
This list is intended to be used with the chronological list above.
Therefore, not all information from the log above is included in this
list. Note that the date format is year-month-day.
Title Num Dates
--------------------------------------------- --- --------
Arm's Length 76 74-05-13
Bend, Spindle and Mutilate 111 74-07-01
Blessing Way, The (part 1) 21 73-10-02
Blessing Way, The (part 2) 22 73-10-02
Blessing Way, The (part 3) 23 73-10-02
Blessing Way, The (part 4) 24 73-10-02
Blessing Way, The (part 5) 25 73-10-02
Bonnie And Clyde Are Alive And Well And 96 74-06-10
Living As Mary And Bill
But I Wouldn't Want To Die There (part 1) 46 73-11-05
But I Wouldn't Want To Die There (part 2) 47 73-11-05
But I Wouldn't Want To Die There (part 3) 48 73-11-05
But I Wouldn't Want To Die There (part 4) 49 73-11-05
But I Wouldn't Want To Die There (part 5) 50 73-11-05
Bye-Bye Narco 66 74-04-29
Carnival Of Menace 127 74-07-23
Chicago John And The Glitter People 128 74-07-24
Children Are Dying 110 74-06-28
Clay Pigeons 100 74-06-14
Come Light My Fire 103 74-06-19
Corpse Takes A Sleigh Ride 116 74-07-08
Corpse Takes The Stand 126 74-07-22
Dead Man's Tale, The (part 1) 61 73-11-26
Dead Man's Tale, The (part 2) 62 73-11-26
Dead Man's Tale, The (part 3) 63 73-11-26
Dead Man's Tale, The (part 4) 64 73-11-26
Dead Man's Tale, The (part 5) 65 73-11-26
Death At Half A Length 91 74-06-03
Death Is A Puppeteer 85 74-05-24
Death Of A Genius 122 74-07-16
Death On Canvas 105 74-06-21
Desperate Witness (part 1) 36 73-10-22
Desperate Witness (part 2) 37 73-10-22
Desperate Witness (part 3) 38 73-10-22
Desperate Witness (part 4) 39 73-10-22
Desperate Witness (part 5) 40 73-10-22
Die In The Country, A (part 1) 56 73-11-19
Die In The Country, A (part 2) 57 73-11-19
Die In The Country, A (part 3) 58 73-11-19
Die In The Country, A (part 4) 59 73-11-19
Die In The Country, A (part 5) 60 73-11-19
Doctor Rivington, Presumably 86 74-05-27
Double Date To Destiny 99 74-06-13
Edwards Tug And Salvage 113 74-07-03
Escape To Nowhere 72 74-05-07
Extortionist, The 69 74-05-02
Face Of The Foe (part 1) 16 73-09-24
Face Of The Foe (part 2) 17 73-09-24
Face Of The Foe (part 3) 18 73-09-24
Face Of The Foe (part 4) 19 73-09-24
Face Of The Foe (part 5) 20 73-09-24
Fair's Fair You Know 73 74-05-08
Favor You Can't Refuse 90 74-05-31
Floating Down The River 92 74-06-04
Fourth Of Forever, The (part 1) 11 73-09-17
Fourth Of Forever, The (part 2) 12 73-09-17
Fourth Of Forever, The (part 3) 13 73-09-17
Fourth Of Forever, The (part 4) 14 73-09-17
Fourth Of Forever, The (part 5) 15 73-09-17
Ghose Of The Black Plague 118 74-07-10
Grand Prize 120 74-07-12
Heir Hunters, The (part 1) 51 73-11-12
Heir Hunters, The (part 2) 52 73-11-12
Heir Hunters, The (part 3) 53 73-11-12
Heir Hunters, The (part 4) 54 73-11-12
Heir Hunters, The (part 5) 55 73-11-12
Holdout 130 74-07-26
House That Clemont Built 106 74-06-24
Housecall 74 74-05-09
If Two Of Them Are Dead (part 1) 41 73-10-29
If Two Of Them Are Dead (part 2) 42 73-10-29
If Two Of Them Are Dead (part 3) 43 73-10-29
If Two Of Them Are Dead (part 4) 44 73-10-29
If Two Of Them Are Dead (part 5) 45 73-10-29
Joint Account 107 74-06-25
Larceny On The Lake 114 74-07-04
Lost In Time 124 74-07-18
Mannequin 98 74-06-12
Marionettes 117 74-07-09
Mind Of The Beholder 82 74-05-21
Murder Is A Work Of Art 112 74-07-02
Olam 115 74-07-05
Once A Thief 93 74-06-05
Once Upon A Truck 125 74-07-19
Other Sins Only Speak, Murder Shrieks Out 94 74-06-06
Past Is Always Present 101 74-06-17
Pigs Could Put You In The Pen 88 74-05-29
Price Of Admission 70 74-05-03
Princess Stakes Murder Case (part 1) 26 73-10-08
Princess Stakes Murder Case (part 2) 27 73-10-08
Princess Stakes Murder Case (part 3) 28 73-10-08
Princess Stakes Murder Case (part 4) 29 73-10-08
Princess Stakes Murder Case (part 5) 30 73-10-08
Queen In Danger (part 1) 31 73-10-15
Queen In Danger (part 2) 32 73-10-15
Queen In Danger (part 3) 33 73-10-15
Queen In Danger (part 4) 34 73-10-15
Queen In Danger (part 5) 35 73-10-15
Rehabilitation Of Citizen Fimple 95 74-06-07
Remember Me 123 74-07-17
Reward 78 74-05-15
Riders Wanted: Share Expenses 104 74-06-20
Scream Of The Hawk 68 74-05-01
Shortage Story 71 74-05-06
Sisters Of Satan 97 74-06-11
SkyLab, Are You There? 89 74-05-30
Smoke Screen 129 74-07-25
Some People Die Only Once 77 74-05-14
Someone's Death (part 1) 6 73-09-10
Someone's Death (part 2) 7 73-09-10
Someone's Death (part 3) 8 73-09-10
Someone's Death (part 4) 9 73-09-10
Someone's Death (part 5) 10 73-09-10
Strange Odyssey Of Sandy Mitchell 80 74-05-17
Terror In The Night 67 74-04-30
There Is A Man In 211 84 74-05-23
Tiger Cages 108 74-06-26
Trunkful Of Trouble 119 74-07-11
Villainous Verdict 79 74-05-16
Violation 75 74-05-10
Violence Takes A Curtain Call 109 74-06-27
Wanted: A Willing Companion 87 74-05-28
Welcome Home Denny Shackelford 121 74-07-15
White Flame Burning Bright 81 74-05-20
Why Is Ted Marcosi Driving Aunt Sally Insane? 83 74-05-22
Wife Of The Red-Haired Man (part 1) 1 73-09-03
Wife Of The Red-Haired Man (part 2) 2 73-09-03
Wife Of The Red-Haired Man (part 3) 3 73-09-03
Wife Of The Red-Haired Man (part 4) 4 73-09-03
Wife Of The Red-Haired Man (part 5) 5 73-09-03
Woman In Black 102 74-06-18
References:
* "The Ultimate History of Network Radio Programming and Guide To All
Circulating Shows", by Jay Hickerson, Box 4321, Hamden, CT 06514
Other Logs or Books:
* THE ZERO HOUR log, Jerry Haendiges Productions, 13808 Sunset Dr.,
Whittier, CA 90602 (http://www.otrsite.com)
* HOLLYWOOD RADIO THEATRE ("The Zero Hour") Log, Dick Judge, PO Box
67800, Rochester NY 14617
Reader Feedback:
* Jim Widner provided the list of single-part shows.
* Max Schmid supplied corrections.
* Herb Duniven mentioned that the show is also known HOLLYWOOD RADIO
THEATER and supplied a corrected date for "Welcome Home, Denny S".
* Dick Judge supplied information about show ordering and syndicated
broadcasts.
Last Update: May 20, 2004
This log is informational only and does not imply that I have these
shows for trade or sale. The shows are still protected under
copyright law and should be obtained only from authorized dealers.
The log may be freely reproduced and published on a no-profit basis.
Please send error corrections or additional information to Frank M.
Passage, 109 Elmwood Road, Verona, NJ 07044 (email: wb2ntp@arrl.net).