Shadow Comics - A Plea From The Shadow!

In a previous post, I shared from several Shadow Comics how they detailed The Shadow's power to cloud men's minds.  I referenced in particular Shadow Comics #19 (published August 28, 1942) and an article in that comic that gave full detail of how The Shadow gained this power.  

I have finally found a copy of that article and was able to read it in its entirety.  Below are screen captures of the article!

According to the article, it is a plea from The Shadow to stop asking him to share his knowledge on how to cloud men's minds.  That power was won by The Shadow on his own merits and he cannot share that knowledge with anyone.  That power and ability is The Shadow's and his alone!

Shadow Beware

Front Cover

Shadow Beware was the third Shadow paperback published by Belmont Books.  It was published on January 1, 1965.  Dennis Lynds authored the book and used the Maxwell Grant pen-name on the cover.

Back Cover

Compared with The Shadow Strikes, this was a much better story.  It's story-line was full of great twists, and it was written in a similar style to the pulp stories.  When I got to the last 60 pages or so, I couldn't put it down until I finished it.

Let me give a spoiler alert before I get into a brief review of the story.  I'm going to reveal information about the characters and the ending, so if you don't want to know them until after you read the book yourself, you may want to skip the next section!

The story begins in London - a bad part of London - and the murder of an American Peace Corps worker. George Paulson was a field supervisor with the Peace Corps stationed in New Guinea, so why was he murdered in an alley in the east end of London? And why would NY Police Commissioner Weston, Lamont Cranston and The Shadow be involved?  The murdered Peace Corps worker is George Paulson.  We soon learn that he was one of Commissioner Weston's homicide detectives, so Scotland Yard asks Weston to come and assist in the investigation.  Weston invites his friend and amateur criminologist, Lamont Cranston, to assist as well.

When Paulson was murdered, he was carrying a briefcase that had been stolen from his body.  He was found in an alley, smelling of booze, armed with a pistol in a waist holster, and had been shot once at point-blank range.  Paulson's Peace Corps supervisors knew nothing of his trip to London, and the US Embassy gets involved in the investigation as well when Embassy worker Jeff Byrd meets with Weston, Cranston and the investigators from Scotland Yard.

The Shadow's investigation leads him to travel to New Guinea, Australia, and Paris (disguised as Kent Allard).  And as Lamont Cranston/The Shadow he travels to Scotland where the mystery is solved and untangled.

We discover that George Paulson was actually working for the CIA undercover as a Peace Corps worker.  He uncovered a hi-jacking ring that substituted real drugs for watered down or fake drugs.  These were huge pallets of medicinal supplies used by the Peace Corps to help the people in New Guinea and various countries.  The fake/watered down drugs had caused the death of many people.  Paulson had found a clew on one of the last pallets and that is what lead him to London.  He was murdered by US Embassy worker Jeff Byrd, who was also a CIA agent working undercover in the Embassy.  Byrd murdered Paulson because he was in on the hi-jacking ring.  The mastermind behind the hi-jacking ring was Jasper Lorring, a Scottish businessman who once had a business deal with Lamont Cranston when he met him in the Cobalt Club in the past.

The Shadow deals death to the gang - using his bare hands and borrowed weapons.  In the end, The Shadow triumphs.  The Shadow says, "Evil begets evil and dies of its own horror."

In this book we learn that Lamont Cranston has an apartment and business office in London located on the top floor of a private hotel named The Lancaster.  It is in Kensington (west London).  In this office, in a secret room, is The Shadow's London sanctum.  It is described as "a room where a deep bluish light glowed from an unseen source..." (page 51).  In this sanctum he communicates with Burbank via a communication device activated by his girasol ring.  We also learn that when disguised as Kent Allard, he has an apartment in Paris on St. Germaine-Des-Pres.  It's also revealed that Lamont Cranston always takes a daily swim and he also smokes cigarettes (which was quite fashionable for James Bond type spies in the 60s!).

Locations:
Cobalt Club - mentioned as the place Lamont Cranston previously met the villain Jasper Lorring.
The Burgoyne Club - Lamont Cranston visits this club to take a steam bath and his daily swim.
The Lancaster - Cranston's apartment and business office in London.

Vehicles:
Lamont Cranston is chauffeured by Stanley in a Rolls Royce with a special engine.

1965 Rolls Royce

Lamont Cranston drives an Austin-Healy.

1965 Austin-Healy

Agents:

Margo Lane.  We learn that Margo has blue eyes.  She does some investigative work and is kidnapped by Jasper Lorring and rescued by The Shadow.

Burbank.  Burbank does his usual role of facilitating communication between The Shadow and his agents.  He also spearheads investigative work in New York while The Shadow is in London.

Stanley.  Stanley chauffers Lamont Cranston around London in his Rolls Royce.  We learn he carries a .45 automatic.  Interestingly, Stanley disguises himself as Lamont Cranston so The Shadow can continue his investigation outside of London!

Bombardier Bill Mace.  Bombardier is Shadow agent #109 and this is the first time he's mentioned.  He's a British army veteran and former English middle-weight boxing champion.  As The Shadow's agent, he portrays himself as a shady, punch-drunk former boxer.

Marcel Guyot.  Marcel is one of The Shadow's agents in Paris, this is his first appearance.  He is a taxi driver and his cab is equipped with a secret radio for communicating with The Shadow.

This story reveals that The Shadow has a network of agents worldwide.  Another interesting aspect of the story is his agents wear an opal ring that lights up and acts as a homing device to meet face to face with The Shadow.

The Shadow:
We learn a few new things about The Shadow.  We learn that he has the ability to see in darkness and through fog.  Even while sleeping he can detect the slightest disturbance in the air or hint of danger.  He can avoid detection from dogs.  He has extensive martial arts training and can kill with his bare hands.  He can use the power of his mind to open electronic locks, and to deaden the feelings of pain.  He uses his famous line, "The weed of crime bears bitter fruit" (page 154).  His voice and laugh are described as eerie, chilling and hard.  One of the best descriptions of The Shadow is on page 88, "Two burning eyes turned toward him and the girasol ring glowed red in the dark with enough light to show a sharp, hawk nose beneath the slouch hat of The Shadow."

In this story The Shadow uses the disguises of Lamont Cranston, Kent Allard and Phineas Twambly.  In his London sanctum, Cranston accesses a file on Kent Allard that tracks Allard's whereabouts!

Shadow Beware was an exciting adventure that I enjoyed reading.  It introduces us to some new Shadow agents and reveals a few new things about The Shadow and his alter-ego, Lamont Cranston.  I hope you've enjoyed this brief review of the book!

The Silent Avenger

"The Silent Avenger" was first aired on March 13, 1938 and it was the 25th episode from season 1 of The Shadow radio show.  This story is thrilling, compelling and unique.

The story begins in a courtroom where Joe Brecker has just been found guilty of first degree murder and receives the death sentence.  Joe Brecker then gives his own judgment by passing sentence on Judge Wilson, the prosecuting attorney, and the jury saying that they will all die.  And, if his sentence isn't commuted to life in prison by the Governor, the Governor will die!  Joe also passes sentence on the man who caught him - The Shadow!

Lamont Cranston and Margo Lane are witnesses to Brecker's outburst in court.  As people leave the room, comments are made about what just happened and how worried people would be if The Shadow was on their trail.  Lamont opines, "Unfortunately the mystery surrounding The Shadow inspires fear and terror in the innocent as well as the guilty."

Joe Brecker is in prison, waiting to be moved to the death house, and is visited by his brother, Danny.  (Throughout the story we will learn Danny Brecker is a decorated veteran of World War I.)  Joe has given Danny a mission - Danny is to kill the people responsible for sending Joe to jail and to the death sentence.  Joe tells Danny that the same people that sentenced him to death are the ones responsible for Danny being drafted into the Army and being sent to fight in France during World War I.  They are responsible for Danny getting "shell shocked" so that he can't remember things.  Then Joe warns Danny about The Shadow.  He tells Danny that The Shadow will come after him and he will only hear his voice but will not see him.  Danny asks if The Shadow is dead, like his buddies that still talk to him.  Joe tells him that The Shadow is very much alive and when Danny hears The Shadow's voice he is to throw a hand grenade at the sound of The Shadow's voice and that will kill The Shadow!  Danny indicates that he will fully carry out this mission assigned to him from his brother.  After Danny leaves, Joe says about Danny, "That poor dope!"  In other words, Joe has taken advantage of his own brother to exact his vengeance.

After Danny left, Joe received a new visitor, a visitor he didn't expect and didn't want.  Joe is visited by The Shadow!  The Shadow knows Brecker is willing to carry out his murderous threat, and now he's trying to find out how Brecker will do it.  Using his telepathic powers, The Shadow reads Joe Brecker's mind and learns Brecker's plan.  But now The Shadow must find Danny Brecker in time to prevent the murders of innocent people.

The Shadow is searching desperately for Danny Brecker and members of the jury that put Joe Brecker in jail are beginning to be killed - killed by a highly trained sniper.  Lamont Cranston and Margo Lane discuss these tragic events as Cranston has exhausted himself searching for Danny.  Cranston tells Margo that he looked up Danny Brecker's war record and found him to be a decorated sniper in WW I, and he also learned Danny is suffering from "shell-shock."  Cranston tells Margo, "Society trained him (Danny) to kill men.  They told him they were enemies and he should kill them off.  And now, with a shell-shocked mind, he's remembering what society taught him...to kill.  To the people who have been through this experience, life is cheap.  He is a product of our own folly:  teaching men to kill in time of war and yet expecting them to respect life in time of peace."

The Shadow determines they need to set a trap for Danny so he and Margo put that plan in motion.  Margo goes to the home of Danny and Joe Brecker's mother, posing as a reporter, on the day Joe is scheduled to die in the electric chair.  The Shadow is there as well, but he is unseen.  Just a few minutes before 5pm, when Joe is scheduled to die, Danny appears and talks with his mom.  Mrs. Brecker knows in her heart that Danny is the one that's been killing people.  5pm comes and there was no action by the Governor to save Joe Brecker and so the death penalty is carried out.  Danny mentions that he will be going to a tower in the city to take care of the Governor.  The Shadow confronts Danny, but Danny is prepared and throws a hand grenade at where he hears The Shadow's voice.  The Shadow is able to throw the grenade out a window before anyone can get hurt, but Danny escapes in the turmoil.

Cranston and Margo are pouring over a map of the city trying to find what tower Danny was speaking of.  They determine it can only be the Wardman Tower which is still under construction but would be a perfect sniper's nest for Danny to shoot the Governor who will be in a parade.

The Shadow finds Danny on the 30th floor of the Wardman Tower.  The Shadow speaks to Danny and is able to get him to put down the rifle.  But then Danny pulls the pin on the hand grenade he has and threatens to throw it into the crowd below.  The Shadow is able to use the powers of his mind to have Danny hold on to the grenade, but then Danny drops it and it explodes, killing Danny.

Police Commissioner Weston has finished talking about the case with another officer when The Shadow speaks to him.  Weston says The Shadow was too late to take care of Danny Brecker and asks if The Shadow now wants to take credit for solving the case?  The Shadow responds, "There is no credit, no glory in the death of Danny Brecker, Commissioner Weston.  He was a victim, a human weapon of destruction, fashioned by mankind that teaches men to kill their enemies in time of war yet expects them to forget their murderous art in time of peace.  Danny Brecker was an enemy of society - a killer - but only because you, and I, and countless thousands made him one.  No Commissioner, there is no glory in this for you, or The Shadow, or for any man."

I listened to this episode many times to prepare for this article.  Each time I listened, I found a different nuance to it that might be missed with just one listening.  For example, Lamont Cranston spends many secluded hours away from Margo Lane in his attempt to find Danny Brecker.  This case demanded a lot physically from The Shadow.  I also noticed how Joe Brecker took advantage of his war-traumatized brother to exact his vengeance.  To me, that is shameful and indicates the type of criminal Joe Brecker really was.

In this story, The Shadow used his mesmeric powers to read Joe Brecker's mind, similar to what he did in the episode, "Death House Rescue."  The Shadow also used his ability to cloud people's minds so as to be invisible to them.

As part of preparing for this article I also did some research into World War I as Danny Brecker is a veteran of the war.  There were 4.7 million Americans that fought in WW I.  204,000 were wounded in action and 116,516 were killed in action.  There are still around 3,000 soldiers that are missing in action/unaccounted for.  The war began in 1914 but the US didn't enter the war until 1917, and the war ended in November of 1918.  At the height of US involvement, around 10,000 US troops a day were being sent to France.

World War I introduced us to the first use of chemical warfare and the first use of snipers.  It also introduced us to a condition called "shell-shock" which we would later know as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  Here's some information I found on the US Department of Veterans Affairs website:  "In 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11th as the first observance of Armistice Day, the day World War I ended. At that time, some symptoms of present-day PTSD were known as "shell shock" because they were seen as a reaction to the explosion of artillery shells. Symptoms included panic and sleep problems, among others. Shell shock was first thought to be the result of hidden damage to the brain caused by the impact of the big guns. Thinking changed when more soldiers who had not been near explosions had similar symptoms. "War neuroses" was also a name given to the condition during this time."  WWI veterans with "shell shock" were characterized as having a lack of courage, character flaws, etc. and were not treated as the heroes they were.

Six years prior to this radio episode airing, another event happened involving WW I veterans.  In 1932 approximately 17,000 veterans and their families marched on Washington, DC asking the government to pay out immediately the bonus money promised to veterans.  The demand was rejected and the veterans were forced out of Washington by the Army and the police.  You can read more about these veterans here.

Knowing some of these facts helped me put this radio program into an historical context.  It has become one of my favorite Shadow radio episodes and I hope you've enjoyed this brief look at the show and some of the history behind it.  I also want to thank Pete Blatchford for bringing this radio show to my attention!

The Shadow Strikes! (Part Two)

I had previously written about The Shadow Strikes! story as published by Belmont Books.  You can read that article here.  In this article I will dive into the character of The Shadow as presented in The Shadow Strikes!

Let me say at the very beginning that I consider the Belmont Books Shadow series to be a different iteration of The Shadow and not as a continuation of the stories from the pulp magazines.  I don't say that to diminish these stories because they are interesting and entertaining.  However, The Shadow in these stories is quite different than the ones from the pulps and the radio.  While there are many similarities, there are also major differences.

The Shadow in the Belmont Books is a man of mystery.  He wears the black cloak, the black slouch hat, and the girasol ring.  His footwear is described as "...Oriental slippers, designed for the needs of judo and karate..." (page 67).  These Oriental slippers allow The Shadow to make no sound as he walks.  The Shadow also carries a .45 automatic and keeps a ring of skeleton keys hidden in the folds of his cloak.  The Shadow's cloak, hat and ring are "folded into amazingly small size and hidden in their secret places within the clothes" of Lamont Cranston (page 12).

A major difference about this Shadow is that he has to wear the cloak, hat, and ring to become The Shadow.  For it is only when he wears these items that he has the full powers and abilities of The Shadow!  

From page 13 of The Shadow Strikes!

The Shadow is described as having great muscular control, physical strength, agility, balance and hearing.  He has knowledge of many languages (pages 30, 59).  He had studied in the Orient with several masters.  From the great Chen T'a Tze he learned the ability to cloud men's minds so as not to see him and to hypnotize them (but can only do so when wearing the cloak, hat and ring).  Master Chen T'a Tze had also taught him the art of shallow breathing, allowing him to slow down his breathing.  The Shadow has "remarkable recuperative powers" and knowledge of Oriental medicine that allows him to quickly recover from physical injury.  

Additionally, in the Orient, The Shadow learned "the secret of bearing pain to the point of actually not feeling any but the most intense and sudden pain.  It had been the most difficult of the mysteries of Chen T'a Tze for The Shadow to master" (page 82).  The Shadow is also able to put himself into a trance-like state of suspended animation that makes him appear as if he had died.   Not much information is provided about Chen T'a Tze other than he was a great Master who had trained Lamont Cranston in many ancient mysteries.

Some of the descriptions of The Shadow hearken back to the pulp magazine.  His face is not seen but his glowing, burning eyes can be.  The Shadow gives his sometimes mocking and sometimes triumphant laugh which chills the blood of the bad guys.  The Shadow is also a master of disguise, and in this story he disguises himself as explorer Kent Allard and Phineas Twambley (a disguised used in several of his pulp magazine adventures).  The Shadow uses a couple of his well known catch phrases:  "The weed of crime bears bitter fruit" (page 112) and "The Shadow knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men" (page 127).

The Shadow's primary alter-ego is Lamont Cranston.  As Cranston, he is wealthy socialite business man, amateur criminologist, and close friend of NY Police Commissioner Weston.  In the book Cranston is described as having hawklike features, long fingers, and greying blond hair.  He has a private office in a Park Avenue building which also doubles as his secret base of operations.  Cranston also owns a town house with a private garage.  He is a wine connoisseur and has financed Kent Allard's expeditions.  This Lamont Cranston seems to be an amalgamation of the Cranston from the pulps and radio show!

Kent Allard is the other alter-ego used by The Shadow.  There is a real Kent Allard who is an explorer and adventurer, so The Shadow assumes his identity.  To become Kent Allard, The Shadow uses a sophisticated disguise (pages 102-103)!  He uses a special dye to darken his hair and combs his hair straight back with no part.  If he has time, he will grow a mustache or use a fake mustache if in a hurry.  He injects a small wax-like fluid into the skin of his nose to change it from the hawklike nose of Cranston and into the thicker nose of Allard.  He uses his great muscle control to change his facial expression to that of Allard's and to walk slightly hunched over as Allard does due to the years of carrying heavy packs on his expeditions.  Finally, when disguised as Allard, The Shadow walks with a limp as the real Allard does as a result of a tiger attack while exploring the High Himalayas.  This is a clever reversal from the pulp magazines!  In the pulps, The Shadow is really Kent Allard but uses Lamont Cranston's identity.

The Shadow of the Belmont Books series is an interesting character that retains some of the qualities found in the pulps and the radio show.  However, you can see there's a lot of differences as well.  In my opinion, this Shadow was in direct competition with the likes of James Bond and other spies that were popular in the movies and on TV when this series was published.    While I enjoyed reading this book I found myself missing the classic Shadow character from Walter B. Gibson's works.  I plan on reading the entire Belmont Shadow series and writing about them here on the blog.  I hope you found this article informative and entertaining!



  

The Temple Bells of Neban

On October 24, 1937 The Shadow radio program aired the story, "The Temple Bells of Neban."  It was the fifth episode in the first season of the radio show.  It is one of my favorite Shadow radio episodes!

The story begins with Lamont Cranston and Margo Lane on their way to the Club Khalif to enjoy an evening out.  On their way, they discuss the opium problem that has been impacting the city and that The Shadow needs to get involved. 

At the Club, they are entertained by an Indian dancer named Saadi Bel Adda (I've not been able to find the correct spelling for this character any where.)  She entertains the crowd with the Dance of the Cobra where she seems to mesmerize a live cobra on stage.  Saadi Bel Adda approaches Lamont and Margo's table, offering Margo a bracelet.  Lamont and Saadi talk briefly yet cryptically - have they met before?

After the show, The Shadow pays a visit to Saadi Bel Adda.  Saadi warns The Shadow that she can command The Temple Bells of Neban, a powerful spell that will reveal The Shadow and disable him from clouding the minds of men!

Lamont speaks with Margo about his encounter with Saadia Bel Adda, and Margo is worried.  Lamont recounts where he first learned the power to cloud men's minds.  He tells Margo, "Years ago in India, a yogi priest, keeper of the Temple of the Cobras at Delhi taught me the ancient mysteries.  He taught me the mesmeric trick that the underworld calls invisibility.  There was a small girl, his niece, that use to sit and listen...she was very clever..."  Yes - Saadi Bel Adda was the niece of the yogi priest that taught Lamont Cranston!

The radio show reaches it's climax when The Shadow confronts Saadi Bel Adda.  Saadi releases her cobra and begins to command The Temple Bells of Neban to destroy The Shadow's invisibilty.  But unbeknownst to Saaid, The Shadow had switched her de-fanged cobra for one with fangs.  The cobra bites Saadi Bel Adda before she can command the Temple Bells of Neban.

This is only a brief summary of the show and I encourage you to give it a listen!  I really enjoy this episode as it not only puts The Shadow up against a foe with equal powers, it also gives us insight into how Lamont Cranston learned the mesmeric trick to cloud men's minds!

The Shadow: Biography According to the 1994 Movie

In the pulp magazines, Kent Allard is The Shadow and Lamont Cranston is The Shadow of the radio program.   In this article I will take a look at The Shadow's biography according to the 1994 Shadow movie which starred Alec Baldwin.

Much of what we know of The Shadow we learn in the first few minutes of the movie and in conversations with other characters throughout the film.  We find that a man named Lamont Cranston is living in Tibet and is known as the notorious drug lord Ying Ko and "The Butcher of Llasa."  He is a heartless man with no qualms about killing anyone.  We learn that Lamont Cranston had fought in World War I and after the war had gone missing for 7 years.    Those missing seven years were spent traveling the world and eventually settling in Tibet as an opium dealer.  

Lamont Cranston is kidnapped by a Tibetan holy man, a Tulku, who not only knows Cranston's real name, but knows the depth of the blackness in his heart.  The Tulku offers Lamont redemption for his evil ways, and ultimately Lamont accepts it.  The Tulku tells Cranston, "I also know that for as long as you can remember, you struggled against your own black heart and always lost. You watched your spirit, your very face change as the beast claws its way out from within you. You are in great pain, aren't you?  You know what evil lurks in the hearts of men, for you have seen that evil in your own...I will teach you to use your black shadow to fight evil."

In the move, we are told on the screen, "The price of redemption for Cranston was to take up man's struggle against evil.  The Tulku taught him to cloud men's minds, to fog their vision through the force of concentration, leaving visible the only thing he can never hide..his Shadow.  Thus armed, Cranston returned to his homeland..."  Cranston returns to New York City where we further learn that he is a man of great wealth and social status.

The Shadow's abilities in the movie are similar to what he has in both the pulp magazines and the radio show.  He is a master of hand-to-hand combat, a marksman with weapons, and has great psychic abilities.  His psychic abilities allow him to cloud men's minds so as to be invisible, he can read minds, hypnotize people, and has the power of telekinesis.

Alec Baldwin as The Shadow

I noted a couple of things I saw in the movie that fans may have overlooked.  First, when Lamont Cranston sees the Tulku's monastary, it is in the shape of a cobra.  I think this ties in with the radio episode of "The Temple Bells of Neban" where it's disclosed that The Shadow learned his mystic powers from a yogi who was the keeper of the Temple of the Cobras.  Second, it seems like Cranston transforms into The Shadow and this is similar to how it is described in the Belmont books series of The Shadow.  There are a few other 'Easter eggs' in the movie for Shadow fans and I'll try to write about them at a later date.

According to the 1994 movie, The Shadow is Lamont Cranston, a wealthy young man who is a WWI veteran and redeemed drug lord that uses his great powers and abilities to fight the forces of evil!

Alec Baldwin as Lamont Cranston

The Shadow: Biography According to the Radio Program

I've written previously about the real identity of The Shadow based on the pulp magazines which you can read here.  In this article I want to look at The Shadow's biography based on the radio program.  The Shadow radio program aired from September of 1937 until December of 1954.  There were some key differences between The Shadow on radio and The Shadow in print.  On the radio, it was only The Shadow and Margo Lane who solved the mysteries and crimes.  In print, The Shadow was aided by his agents who were The Shadow's eyes and ears, providing him with key information and clues.  On radio, only Margo Lane knew the true identity of The Shadow.

Who is The Shadow on the radio program?  Let me answer that in the words from a few episodes of the radio program.  In the very first radio show we are simply told this, "...The Shadow, a man of mystery who strikes terror in the very souls of sharpsters, lawbreakers, and criminals." (Death House Rescue)  That tells us what The Shadow does, but doesn't tell us who he is!  But in the introduction to the radio episode 'The Curse of Siva' we get the answer to who The Shadow really is.  We are told, "The Shadow, a mysterious character who aids the forces of law and order, is in reality Lamont Cranston, wealthy young man-about-town.  As The Shadow, Cranston is gifted with hypnotic power to cloud men's minds so they cannot see him.  Cranston's friend and companion, the lovely Margo Lane, is the only person to whom the voice of the invisible Shadow belongs." 

So now we know that the radio program version of The Shadow is Lamont Cranston.  We also now know that he has hypnotic powers that aid him in his fight against crime.  But where did Lamont Cranston get such powers?  Lamont Cranston tells us himself in several episodes!  Here is what he discloses to Margo Lane.  "Would they approve my methods?  Would they believe in my science?  Why do you think I've devoted countless hours to investigating electric and chemical phenomenon?  Why do you think I went to India, to Egypt, to China? Why do you think I studied in London, Paris,  and Vienna except to learn the old mysteries that modern science has not yet rediscovered, the natural magic modern psychology is beginning to understand? Well, magic that wouldn't seem so natural.  I studied and learned for a purpose."  Lamont Cranston devoted much travel, time and effort into learning ways he can aid the forces of law and order!

Furthermore, in the radio show "The Temple Bells of Neban" we learn exactly where The Shadow learned his hypnotic powers.  Lamont Cranston tells us, "Years ago in India, a yogi priest, keeper of the Temple of the Cobras at Delhi taught me the ancient mysteries.  He taught me the mesmeric trick that the underworld calls invisibility."  It was in Delhi, India that Cranston learned and mastered the hypnotic power to cloud men's minds!  This fact was also alluded to in the episode "The Shadow Challenged!"

According to The Shadow radio program, The Shadow is Lamont Cranston, a wealthy young man who has invested his life in learning the old mysteries and new sciences so that he can right wrongs, bring justice to criminals, and aid law enforcement.  As The Shadow, he strikes fear into the very souls of criminals and has become the underworld's number one target to eliminate!

The Shadow Radio Program: "Death House Rescue!"

"Death House Rescue!" was the very first radio program episode for The Shadow.  It originally aired on September 26, 1937.  This is one of my favorite radio episodes of The Shadow and I've listened to it many times.

In the radio dramas, Lamont Cranston is The Shadow.  Cranston is a millionaire who fights crime as The Shadow.  Only his companion, Margo Lane, knows this.  Margo Lane is a new character and had never appeared in any of The Shadow pulp magazines.  (In The Shadow pulp magazines, The Shadow is Kent Allard who sometimes disguises himself as millionaire Lamont Cranston.)

In this story we hear about a down-on-his-luck husband, Paul Gordon.  Paul and his wife, Grace, have a sick child named Sally.  Paul is trying to find work as Sally needs medical help.  Paul ends up being duped by two hoodlums who offer to pay him for driving them around.  What Paul doesn't know is that they are going to frame him for a crime they are about to commit!

The two hoodlums, Red and Lefty, hold up a bank and kill a police officer in the process.  They jump into Paul Gordon's car and order him to drive away.  With the police in high pursuit, Red and Lefty are able to escape and leave incriminating evidence in Gordon's car.  Paul Gordon ends up being convicted and is now in the death house with his execution only hours away!

The Shadow knows Paul Gordon is innocent and is quickly on the case.  He sends Margo Lane to visit Grace Gordon to let her know The Shadow is on the case, and that he will not fail!  Margo also gives Grace $1,000 to help with her living expenses since Paul is now in jail.

Disguised as a prison guard, The Shadow visits Paul in prison and uses his powers of mental telepathy to find the clue that will prove Gordon's innocence.  He sees into Paul's mind as Paul replies the events of the crime in his head.  The Shadow sees the events as if he were watching a television broadcast of those events!  Using this power The Shadow finds the clue that will set Gordon free!  The Shadow promises Paul that he will not die in the electric chair now that he has this clue.

Now The Shadow must spring a trap for the two rats that framed Paul Gordon!  Using mental telepathy, he sends a message to Margo Lane and has her get in touch with Police Commissioner Weston.  He then calls Lefty on the phone at the local bar and reveals that there was indeed an incriminating clue left in Paul Gordon's car - Lefty has left his fingerprint on the car's review mirror!  Lefty and Red go to rub out the incriminating evidence and are met by the police.  One of the crooks is mortally wounded but confesses the truth about the crime before they die.

While all that was playing out, Paul Gordon has been moved to the room where is the electric chair.  The hour for his execution has come.  Paul is distraught as The Shadow had promised he would not die in the chair.  The Shadow did not fail as the call comes from the Governor to release Paul Gordon as he is an innocent man who was framed!

In this radio drama, The Shadow disguised himself as a prison guard.  He used his mental powers to cloud minds so as to make himself invisible.  He also used his powers of mental telepathy to read minds and send messages.