Monday, December 11, 2017

Another 25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas - Day 9: The Night Before Christmas from Sherlock Holmes (1945)

One of the most common plot lines around the holidays involves dressing up as Santa Claus.  And maybe it is still on my mind because my ears still throb from the way the false beard wraps around your head on a particular costume that may have worn over the weekend for a dance recital.  So it makes sense that as I catch up on my series of Christmas episodes from Old Time Radio, I am going to spend the next few days looking at others who had to put on the suit!  Between now and Christmas, I will be showcasing different programs that brought the holidays across the airwaves during the Golden Age of Radio. I expect to have some repeats, but also some new shows featured as well.  If you have Sirius XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#148).  Or you can see my previous OTR Christmas entries (or drop to the bottom of this message).

Holland-Fawcett Family Christmas Party (2012)
Santa at the Family Christmas Party - 2012
If you had to list off some of the most famous fictional characters in all of literature, you might think of a number of different names.  But it is very likely that one of the first names that rolls off the tongue would be Arthur Conan Doyle's famous detective, Sherlock Holmes and his able assistant, Dr. Watson.  Doyle's first story involving this amazing duo appeared in 1887 when he published the story, A Study in Scarlet.  Throughout all these stories, Holmes and Watson solve all the problems that stump Scotland Yard, among others.

Sherlock Holmes had a very long history on the air through a variety of programs on NBC, Mutual and ABC.  The show that we are going to feature appeared on the Mutual Network under the name the New Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes. Holmes was played by radio greats including Basil Rathbone (1939–1946), Tom Conway (1947) & John Stanley (1947–1949).  Watson was played also by greats including Nigel Bruce (1939–1947) & Alfred Shirley (1947–1948) among others.

On December 24, 1945, they featured the episode called "The Night Before Christmas"  The cast includes Basil Rathbone as Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Watson.  We open with Watson explaining why he is wearing a Santa suit - well is for for a good cause!  But there are others who are not wearing the suit for a good cause - including "Lou the Lisper" who was a henchman of Professor Moriarty (Holmes' sworn enemy).  Sherlock Holmes even gets his suit ready as they look to thwart a crime at Christmas time.

I hope you enjoy this great Christmas episode from one of the great characters of all time!

The Night Before Christmas (December 24, 1945)



 Here are some links to programs relating to Sherlock Holmes:
Another 25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas (from 2017) & Other Links

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas (from 2016) 

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas (from 2015) & Other Links

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas (from 2014)
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