The Society of the Living Dead, Jan. 23, 1938.

Blue Coal is again the sponsor of this episode. The episode opens with the normal commercial. Protect your family's health by burning Blue Coal! It has a harmless blue coloring with better heat at less cost.

The story opens with a newspaper report about a couple being held as spies. It's a phony passport racket, apparently (although the guy speaks awfully fast.) It's the Smith case. Another report is made on the radio and Lamont and Margo hear the report. The racket interests Lamont and seems to tie in to a case that interests him.

Apparently someone named Adams had recently committed suicide and had been buried, and the guy's partner is courting Adam's daughter and is friendly with a rather questionable character, Burgo, who Lamont thinks might be mixed up in the passport racket.

Margo is to pose as a reporter and question the daughter. Lamont plans to visit Burger as the Shadow.

Margo talks to the daughter. (And the daughter has one of the worst fake accents I've ever heard.) The daughter had not seen her father's body, and she doesn't believe her father committed suicide. Ray Kelvin (?) is her fiancee and might be involved in a stock swindle, and might be trying to put the blame on the daughter's father.

Margo warns the daughter that Ray Kelvin may be a murderer.

Apparently Kelvin has a confession for Adams to sign that would cause charges against him to be dismissed. He's tied in to a guy that works in the morgue. Apparently Adams is still alive. Suddenly the voice of the Shadow is heard. (Burger is also in the room.) Kelvin is not afraid of the Shadow.

Kelvin believes he knows how the Shadow hypnotizes people. The Shadow warns Kelvin and Burger to give up what they are planning to do in murdering Adams. Kelvin threatens to kill the Shadow if he follows them.

Margot talks to the Lamont on the phone. Lamont tells her that Adams is still alive. Margot is to stand by with the short-wave radio.

Lamont tells her that Kelvin has dared the Shadow to follow him. Margot doesn't want him to go after the crooks.

Time for another commercial. Avoid on-and-off heating by ordering Blue Coal. Keep your family from getting colds during winter. It's a special Pennsylvania anthracite, and that stoves, etc, in this part of the country were constructed to burn anthracite.

Egg, stove, chestnut and pea are the four available sizes.

Burger and Kelvin are talking. Kelvin is not afraid of the Shadow, but Burger is terrified of him. Kelvin says the Shadow uses magician's tricks. He says there's no chance the Shadow has followed them.

They are going to an underground vault where Adams is being kept. They wake up the sleeping Adams. Burger wants him to sign a paper that will exonerate Kelvin. Adams has had no food or water. Burger gives him some brandy.

Burger says Adams can get out alive if he signs the confession. Adams recognizes Kelvin and realizes he's really a crook and the man behind his suffering. Kelvin had stolen the securities and framed Adams.

Kelvin hits Adams who refuses to sign the confession. Kelvin hits him again and knocks Adams out. Suddenly the voice of the Shadow sounds in the tomb. Burger freaks out, but Kelvin tells him to turn off the flashlight.

Kelvin is sure the Shadow cannot see him. Kelvin moves around and plans to close the door on the vault, even with Burger still in the vault. Kelvin shoots Burger.

Kelvin's plan is to trap the Shadow in the vault forever. Kelvin locks the door. Burger talks to the Shadow. The Shadow calls Margo on the radio (which he happens to have with him??) He tells her to notify the police commissioner.

Kelvin overheard the Shadow call for the police. Kelvin says the Shadow and Burger will drown when he fills the vault with water from a fire hose he found.

The Shadow tells Burger that he deserves no help, letting Adams in the vault to die. The water in the vault is getting deeper. The Shadow plans to put Adams on top of a coffin since it's the highest point in the room. Burger, meanwhile, can't stand and could drown. The Shadow leans him against a wall.

Burger thinks he's dreaming, but the Shadow tells him that what is going on is real. The water is up to their waist now.

The Shadow says he's going to try to break down the door. It's too strong, though. The Shadow says that he will die if the vault fills with water. Burger dies before he can drown.

(Now wait a minute. The door to the vault is closed and can't be opened. Yet water is coming into the vault from the hose. Now, where is the hose coming from? It can't be stuck throw a grating or something because, then, the water would drain out when it got that high. It can't be under the door because there wouldn't be room. There's no other way to get a hose in the vault without having an opening large enough for water to drain out.)

The Shadow tells Adams that water is up to the top of the coffin and that he has to get up to try to avoid being drowned. Kelvin is outside the door listening to hear the men die.

Police sirens can be heard (from an underground vault?) The police shoot Kelvin and kill him. They then open the door to the vault and the water is shut off. The police find Adams on top of the vault and he's alive. The Shadow's voice is then heard and he tells the police that the man is Henry Adams.

The Shadow tells him that foreign spies and secret agents pay lots of money issued in the name of people who end up being killed by the crooks running the passport ring.

The episode ends with another commercial for Blue Coal with John Barkley, Blue Coal's heating expert.

The John Barkley Heating Service will have someone check their heating plant to make sure it's in working order.

There's also a free booklet on How to Reduce the Cost of Heating Your Home that he talks about.

The weed of crime bears bitter fruit. Crime does not pay.

Return to main index page

Return to Shadow index page