Movie masters of menace such as Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre and Basil Rathbone also had
successful radio careers (and their own series), and all of them used the broadcast medium as a
means of garnishing their fame and broadening their appeal. Bela Lugosi, on the other hand,
never was able to marshall his early appearances on the air into anything like steady work. Was it
the language barrier or his stated antipathy for the medium, or just sheer bad luck?
The Lugosi radio dossier is filled with might-have-beens, announcements and auditions of series
that never made it to the air. To wit:
UP correspondent Alexander Kahn reported in his “Hollywood Roundup” column of March 14,
1939 that “Lugosi is making 37 transcriptions for a radio mystery serial in which he is starred.”
Hollywood reporter Jimmy Fidler announced in his column of October 3, 1940 that “Bela
Lugosi’s been offered the spotlight for a new series of radio chillers.”
[Bridgeport Post, November 19, 1947] “Bela Lugosi and comedienne Ann Thomas are readying
a comedy mystery series.”
in April 1947. A trio of women find themselves in the detective business, with Lugosi playing an
Irishman named Francis O’Rourke… closed within a month of its opening. Hopes of getting to
Broadway died.” Check Variety review.
Europe, and Japan as part of a celebration for the Olympic Games; he spoke in Hungarian on the
widely-publicized program.”
1944 was a busy and unsettled year for Bela Lugosi.
Springs, where he also guest-starred on one television program, two radio shows, and was then
driven to Schenectady for yet another radio show.”
Microphone; listeners heard her banter with Lugosi, but it took the press to describe what radio
couldn’t show; the LA Times claimed she ‘clutched her throat protectively’ when it was revealed
who Lugosi was.’ [Walter Ames, “Movie Writer Likes Video, Film War to Weather; Bela Lugosi
Fails ‘Candid’ Stunt,” Los Angeles Times, August 7, 1950, p. 22]
Terror. He sent Lugosi one script with the promise twelve more would follow. ‘Since it is radio,
the scripts will be read, so you will not have to worry about memorizing them—just be familiar
with them.’”
March 30, 1928 “Dracula”
SEEING SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (KHJ, LOS ANGELES)
March 27, 1931
Bella[sic]Lugosi, creator of the role of Count Dracula… Lugosi will
tell about human vampires…”]
LOS ANGELES BREAKFAST CLUB (KFWB, HOLLYWOOD)
September 30, 1931
Breakfast Club frolic… Raymond Hatton, Edmund Breese,Bela Lugosi,
J. Farrell MacDonald, Ian MacClaren—topping it off with Harold
Grayson and his Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra in latest song hits…”]
GEORGE TAYLOR’S BRIDGE HOUR (KJBS, SAN FRANCISCO)
April 21, 1932
INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC SPECIAL (KHJ, LOS ANGELES)
May 22, 1932
Tom Mix, Elissa Landi, Maureen O’Sullivan, Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy,
Jean Hersholt,Bela Lugosiand other movie stars... Radio history will
be made at 12:30 o’clock this afternoon when a special Olympic
broadcast from Los Angeles will go over the entire Columbia coast to
coast network and on short waves for Europe and South America. A host
of movie stars will extend invitations to their respective countries to
attend the Olympic games in Los Angeles this summer…”]
October 12, 1933
Bela Lugosiand Minnie
Dupree…”]
November 17, 1933“Murder at the Vanities”
its cast including James Rennie, Minnie Dupree, Naomi Ray, Olga
Baclanova andBela Lugosi…”]
April 30, 1934
Bela Lugosi, Hungarian actor, is scheduled to be the guest star in a
dramatic sketch…”]
July 5, 1935
Bela Lugosi, Guest…”]
WOMEN’S MAGAZINE OF THE AIR (KFI, LOS ANGELES)
March 30, 1937
Bella[sic](Bad Mans)Lugosi…”]
SEEIN’ STARS IN HOLLYWOOD (KECA, LOS ANGELES)
March 13, 1938
andBela Lugosi, who in turn scare the wits out of Harriet Hilliard…”]
GEORGE JESSEL AND HIS CELEBRITIES (KHJ, LOS ANGELES)
October 13, 1939
Bela Lugosi, the movie horror man, makes an appropriate guest on
George Jessel’s ‘Celebrity Program’…”]
October 17, 1939
Bela Lugosi, completing his extended run on the Little Theater
screen [?] in ‘The Old Dark House,’ joins strong man Charles Atlas and
Mary Martin on Walter O’Keefe’ Tuesday Night Party… A horror sketch
to end all horror sketches is promised when Lugosi, the super-
Frankenstein of the movies, and Atlas, will be prominent in the O’Keefe
version of a blood-curdler…”]
November 15, 1939“Dracula of Sunnybrook Farm”
KAY KYSER’S COLLEGE OF MUSICAL KNOWLEDGE (KHJ, LOS ANGELES)
September 25, 1940
Bela Lugosiand Peter Lorre, three of the most famous
of the screen’s bogey men, will be guests of Kay Kyser on his college of
musical knowledge program…for which they will serve as judges…”]
May 2, 1941
Roberts and Marvin Mueller, character actors; June Baker, home
economist; Announcer Guy Savage, and the W-G-N Dance orchestra,
directed by Harold Stokes…Bela Lugosi, professional boogie man of
stage and screen, who is appearing at the Oriental theater, will take part
in the program…”]
March 6, 1942
Bela Lugosiand Peter Lorre…”]
[
??? ??, 1943Fred Allen show
February 2, 1943“The Doctor Prescribed Death”
Apr. 23, 1944
May 5, 1944
with a special broadcast… Ted Collins has signedBela Lugosias
program guest, and Kate sings 4 songs which she did on her first
broadcast in 1931. Lugosi, famed ‘Dracula’ of the movies, is heard in an
original dramatic sketch…”]
May 20, 1944
Lombardo that the ‘musical autograph,’ or favorite tune, ofBelaLugosi,
specialist in macabre film roles, is ‘I’ll Walk Alone.’ Guy and His Royal
Canadians will play it for Bela during the WJZ broadcast…”]
MYSTERY HOUSE (NBC TRANSCRIPTION SERVICE, HOLLYWOOD)
Circa July 1944 “The Thirsty Death”
July 31, 1945
Bela Lugosion Radio Fair…”]
October 22, 1946“The Pre-fabricated Woman”
November 10, 1946“Superman”
With Bob Hope, Paulette Goddard, Bela Lugosi
[
“Bela Lugosi appears as the mad scientist
Bikini with Sterling Holloway as his assistant Atoll…”]
March 19, 1947 “The Specialist in Cops”
Bela Lugosiis guest detective…”]
May 18, 1947
Bela Lugosi, famous vampire and bogey-man of the ‘arts’ cooks up a
whodunit for the contestants on ‘Quick as a Flash,’ emceed by Ken
Roberts…”]
THE ABBOTT AND COSTELLO SHOW (KECA, LOS ANGELES)
May 5, 1948
[
“Lou becomes mayor of Encino and has to
investigate the spooky house owned by guestBela Lugosi(who has
some trouble reading his lines)…”]
THE MARTHA DEANE PROGRAM (WOR, NEW YORK)
August 9, 1948
Bela Lugosi…”]
November 22, 1948
Bela Lugosi…”]
September 10, 1949“The Man in the Shadows”
CRIME DOES NOT PAY (MGM DISC SERIES ON WMGM, NEW YORK]
December 12, 1949“Gasoline Cocktail”
June 27, 1950
Bela Lugosi, Guest…”]
Circa July 1950 “The Cask of Amontillado”
January 3, 1951
Bela Lugosi, Guest…”]
THE BETTY CROCKER MAGAZINE OF THE AIR (KECA, LOS ANGELES)
January 29, 1951
Bela Lugosidiscarded a Dracula outfit for a kitchen apron… Mr.
Lugosi told his air audience of several Hungarian delicacies—also of how
he and Mrs. Lugosi, now celebrating their 18th anniversary, first met…”]
Radio programs about Lugosi:
November 9, 2001“There Are Such Things”
McNicoll and Mark McDonnell…based on the fluctuating career of the
Hungarian-born actor Bela Lugosi… Focusing on Lugosi and his well-
documented struggle to escape from the role that had typecast him, the
play went on to receive the Hamilton Deane award for best dramatic
presentation from the Dracula Society in 2002…”]