Jack Benny - I Stand Condemned

(4.7 stars; 3 reviews)

Never Trust A Mysterious Stranger The Lucky Strike Program - I Stand Condemned January 19th, 1947 Apparently, Jack Benny had never heard the Inner Sanctum Mysteries episode Death Bound, or he would have known better than to trust a mysterious stranger who asks for a light.  Complicating matters is the fact that this mysterious stranger, who looks just like Boris Karloff, is Boris Karloff. Boris Karloff was the star of many Inner Sanctum episodes in the '40s and '50s, and on The Jack Benny Show he gets an opportunity to do a light-hearted take-off on his radio and film persona.  All the earmarks of Inner Sanctum Mysteries are there, taken of course to their illogical extremes, such as the famous organ stings which, in I Stand Condemned, seem to punctuate every sentence. The most important ingredient of successful parody is love and respect for the original, and it's easy to see that the writers of this episode had love and respect for both Inner Sanctum Mysteries and Mr. Karloff.  All of the classic touches of Inner Sanctum are there; besides the spooky music, there is also the protagonist's actions being motivated by greed and the delicate irony of his comeuppance at the end of the story, in the form of Jack Benny's lust for money leaving him penniless, and occasionally naked.  The only things missing are the infamous creaking door and the macabre host. Karloff often said of his acting that because of his towering physical presence, it was important that on screen he actually do very little physically.  The same held true in his many radio appearances; his voice was so full of character that he chose to speak very gently, drawing the listener into his performance, rather than scaring them away with fierce words and blustery tones.  Of course, when needed, Boris Karloff could turn up his persona to deliver an intense climax to any story. Boris Karloff was well-equipped to deliver subtle and insightful performances from larger-than-life characters.  He himself cut an imposing figure, but was in reality a very gentle, soft-spoken man who was more at home with children than adults.  In fact, he has been described by one of his early co-stars, Zita Johann of 'The Mummy', as being "filled with a great sadness".  One gets the feeling that his Frankenstein monster, the towering, ghastly, but sad and lonely creature for which he is remembered today, may have come more from within than from without. Boris Karloff's subtle, gentle acting is certainly in evidence in this episode of The Jack Benny Show.  This, combined with Jack's turning it up a notch for this story, makes for a perfect match of styles and characters, producing a charming, comedic tale of rampant greed and ruthless fate, told in reverent parody. The Extra File: Included for comparison is 'Death For Sale', a Boris Karloff episode of Inner Sanctum from July 1952, one that prominently features the above-mentioned organ stings, as well as indiscriminate greed and ruinous chance as the twin motifs of the episode. This episode contains no advertising or reference to a sponsor, as it was a rebroadcast by the non-commercial AFRTS (Armed Forces Radio & Television Service, known colloquially as 'A-Farts'), hence its shorter-than-average running time. Glossary: Petrillo (James):   "If you've got any beefs, talk to Petrillo."   Powerful head of The American Federation of Musicians, 1940-58. Open The Door, Richard:   Jack: "Phil, I said you can go; what are you waiting for?"   Phil: "Well open the door, Richard!"   Popular catchphrase, comedy routine, and song of the era.  A popular tune, five different versions of the song entered the Billboard Best Seller chart within two months of this broadcast. Bites Under Water:   "He's the one who invented that new lower plate; it bites under water."   A reference to the advertising for Reynolds Pen Company's newly-developed gravity-feed ballpoint pen, and its memorable, if immaterial, tagline "It writes under water". Governor of Georgia:   Mary: "Who was that?"   Jack: "They want me to be governor of Georgia."   A reference to the 'three governors controversy', when the governor-elect died in December 1946, before he could be sworn in.  Three different people laid claim to the governorship upon his death: the runner-up in the election, the lieutenant-governor-elect, and the outgoing governor.  The matter was finally settled by the Supreme Court of Georgia in March 1947. Smudge Pot:   "I married a smudge pot."   An oil-burning heater used to prevent frost in orchards, popular for protecting citrus crops in regions such as California.  Placed between the rows of trees, they not only produce heat, but also a layer of smoke that prevents radiative heat loss, trapping the heat at ground level.  Since the 1970s, environmental concerns and rising oil prices have limited their use. OPA:   "I begged the OPA to raise the ceiling."   Office of Price Administration, the wartime price & rent control agency responsible for establishing price 'ceilings', until its dissolution in May 1947. Ciro's:   "Do you think I'd give you five hundred dollars for a dinner, when I can get the same thing at Ciro's..."   Sunset Strip, Los Angeles nightclub, the in place to be seen in Hollywood in the '40s. Links: To visit a Jack Benny page on The Archive with 143 episodes available, click here . To visit the OTRR's massive Jack Benny collection (in downloadable zip files), click here . To visit Introduction To Old-Time Radio's Jack Benny page, click here . To view the entire ITOTR collection, click here . Photo of Boris Karloff courtesy of Doctor Macro . Text © 2017 W.H.Wilson

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.