Series Description

The Suspense TV show was a 30 minute anthology drama series on CBS about people in situations where their lives or the lives of a loved one were in danger.

Suspense Trivia

There was a Suspense Radio Show on the air for 20 years! It won a "Peabody Award" and a special citation from the "Mystery Writers of America". In fact, the radio show began seven years before the TV show and lasted eight more years after the series left the air! Those who experienced both often stated that the excitement of the Suspense episodes was better on the radio as one's mind can imagine the fear and anguish from the radio much better than television can show it.

The TV show, like the radio program was broadcast live. In 1964, the Suspense TV show reappeared with Sebastian Cabot as host for a very short season and those episodes were filmed, not live. During that time, the only new episodes were broadcast from March to June of 1964. Suspense continued until September of 1964 but the episodes starting in July were actually re-runs from the "Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (1951)".

As on the radio version of Suspense, there were usually top name guest-stars from both Broadway and Hollywood. Some of them included Lloyd Bridges (Sea Hunt), Jackie Cooper (Hennesey), John Carradine, John Forsythe (Charlie's Angels), Arlene Francis, Eva Gabor (Green Acres), Boris Karloff (Thriller), Grace Kelly, Cloris Leachman (Phyllis), Peter Lorre, E.G. Marshall (The Defenders), Basil Rathbone and even future new broadcaster Mike Wallace (60 Minutes)!

The Suspense TV show was nominated for an Emmy in 1954 for "Best Mystery, Action or Adventure Program".

Bernard Herrmann composed the theme song for "Suspense". He was also the show's conductor from 1940 to 1943. He also scored Orson Welles' first work on the radio, "War of the Worlds". He wrote the scores for many hit movies including "Citizen Kane", "Psycho" and "Taxi Driver". He died just 2 hours after finishing the score for "Taxi Driver".

Many of the Suspense episodes were adapted from stories written by classic authors such as Charles Dickens, Edgar Allen Poe and Robert Louis Stevenson.

Suspense Opening Narrative

"Well calculated tales to keep you in suspense."

Episodes List With Original Air Dates

Season 1

1. Revenge (3/1/1949)
2. Suspicion (3/15/1949)
3. Cabin 3-B (3/29/1949)
4. The Man Upstairs (4/5/1949)
5. After Dinner Story (4/12/1949)
6. The Creeper (4/19/1949)
7. A Night at the Inn (4/26/1949)
8. Dead Ernest (5/3/1949)
9. Post Mortem (5/10/1949)
10. The Monkey's Paw (5/17/1949)
11. Murder Through the Looking Glass (5/24/1949)
12. The Door's on the 13th Floor (5/31/1949)
13. The Yellow Scarf (6/7/1949)
14. Help Wanted (6/14/1949)
15. Stolen Empire (6/21/1949)
16. The Hands of Mr. Ottermole (6/28/1949)

Season 2

17. Lunch Box (9/6/1949)
18. Collector's Item (9/13/1949)
19. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (9/20/1949)
20. The Comic Strip Murder (9/29/1949)
21. Doctor Violet (10/4/1949)
22. The Cask of Amontillado (10/11/1949)
23. The Serpent Ring (10/18/1949)
24. The Murderer (10/25/1949)
25. Black Passage (11/1/1949)
26. Suspicion (11/8/1949)
27. The Thin Edge of Violence (11/15/1949)
28. The Third One (11/22/1949)
29. The Man in the House (11/29/1949)
30. The Scar (12/6/1949)
31. The Gray Helmet (12/13/1949)
32. The Seeker and the Sought (12/20/1949)
33. The Case of Lady Sannox (12/27/1949)
34. Morning Boat to Africa (1/3/1950)
35. The Bomber Command (1/10/1950)
36. Summer Storm (1/17/1950)
37. The Horizontal Man (1/24/1950)
38. The Distant Island (1/31/1950)
39. Escape This Night (2/7/1950)
40. The Suicide Club (2/14/1950)
41. Roman Holiday (2/21/1950)
42. The Man Who Talked in His Sleep (2/28/1950)
43. The Ledge (3/7/1950)
44. The Parcel (3/14/1950)
45. The Old Man's Badge (3/21/1950)
46. The Second Class Passenger (3/28/1950)
47. One Thousand Dollars to One for Your Money (4/4/1950)
48. Steely, Steely Eyes (4/11/1950)
49. Murder at the Mardi Gras (4/25/1950)
50. The Gentleman From America (4/25/1950)
51. Death of a Dummy (5/2/1950)
52. Red Wine (5/9/1950)
53. One and One's a Lonesome (5/16/1950)
54. Photo Finish (5/23/1950)
55. Listen, Listen (5/30/1950)
56. Black Bronze (6/6/1950)
57. I'm No Hero (6/20/1950)
58. Wisteria (6/27/1950)

Season 3

59. Poison (8/29/1950)
60. A Pocketful of Murder (9/5/1950)
61. Edge of Panic (9/12/1950)
62. Dark Shadows (9/19/1950)
63. Six to One (9/26/1950)
64. The Monkey's Paw (10/3/1950)
65. Criminals Mark (10/10/1950)
66. The Man Who Would Be King (10/17/1950)
67. Breakdown (10/24/1950)
68. Halloween Hold Up (10/31/1950)
69. Nightmare (11/7/1950)
70. The Brush Off (11/14/1950)
71. The Death Cards (11/21/1950)
72. Hands of Mr. Ottermole (11/28/1950)
73. The Guy From Nowhere (2/5/1950)
74. The Mallet (12/12/1950)
75. Dancing Dan's Christmas (12/19/1950)
76. The Tip (12/26/1950)
77. Death in a River (1/2/1951)
78. Tough Cop (1/9/1951)
79. The Fool's Heart (1/16/1951)
80. Dead Fall (1/23/1951)
81. The Rose Garden (1/30/1951)
82. Night Break (2/6/1951)
83. Double Entry (2/13/1951)
84. The Victims (2/20/1951)
85. Margin For Safety (2/27/1951)
86. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (3/6/1951)
87. On a Country Road (3/13/1951)
88. Telephone Call (3/20/1951)
89. The Three of Silence (3/27/1951)
90. Go Home Dead Man (4/3/1951)
91. The Foggy Night Visitor (4/10/1951)
92. The Juice Man (4/17/1951)
93. The Meeting (4/24/1951)
94. No Friend Like an Old Friend (5/1/1951)
95. Murder in the Ring (5/8/1951)
96. Too Hot to Live (5/15/1951)
97. Escape This Night (5/22/1951)
98. Vamp Till Dead (5/29/1951)
99. The Call (6/5/1951)
100. De Mortuis (6/12/1951)
101. A Killing in Abilene (6/19/1951)
102. The Greatest Crime (6/26/1951)
103. Blood on the Trumpet (7/3/1951)
104. Tent on the Beach (7/10/1951)
105. Wisteria Cottage (7/17/1951)
106. The Incident at Story Point (7/24/1951)
107. A Vision of Death (7/31/1951)
108. Killers of the City (8/7/1951)
109. Death Sabre (8/14/1951)
110. This is Your Confession - Part 1 (8/21/1951)
111. This is Your Confession - Part 2 (8/28/1951)

Season 4

112. This Way Out (9/4/1951)
113. Strange For a Killer (9/11/1951)
114. Merryman's Murder (9/18/1951)
115. Doctor Anonymous (9/25/1951)
116. Santa Fe Flight (10/2/1951)
117. High Street (10/9/1951)
118. The Fifth Dummy (10/16/1951)
119. The Train from Czechoslovakia (10/23/1951)
120. Court Day (10/30/1951)
121. Moonfleet - Part 1 (11/6/1951)
122. Moonfleet - Part 2 (11/13/1951)
123. Frisco Payoff (11/20/1951)
124. Mikki (11/27/1951)
125. The Man Without a Face (12/4/1951)
126. Mediation in Mexico (12/11/1951)
127. Pier 17 (12/18/1951)
128. The Lonely Place (12/25/1951)
129. Routine Patrol (1/1/1952)
130. Flare Week (1/8/1952)
131. The Spider (1/15/1952)
132. The Red Signal (1/22/1952)
133. Death Drum (1/29/1952)
134. Betrayal in Vienna (2/5/1952)
135. North of Shanghai (2/12/1952)
136. Summer Night (2/19/1952)
137. Night Drive (2/26/1952)
138. Day of Infamy (3/4/1952)
139. Four Days to Kill (3/11/1952)
140. The Mystery of Edwin Drood - Part 1 (3/18/1952)
141. The Mystery of Edwin Drood - Part 2 (3/25/1952)
142. Black Panther (4/8/1952)
143. Night of Evil (4/15/1952)
144. Alibi Me (4/22/1952)
145. The Letter (4/29/1952)
146. The Mandarin Murders (5/6/1952)
147. Fingers of Fear (5/13/1952)
148. Hunted Down (5/20/1952)
149. The Debt (5/27/1952)
150. Murder of Necessity (6/3/1952)
151. House of Masks (6/10/1952)
152. Phantom of the Riviera (6/17/1952)
153. Night of Reckoning (6/24/1952)
154. Fifty Beautiful Girls (7/1/1952)
155. For the Love of Randi (7/15/1952)
156. The Crooked Frame (7/29/1952)
157. Death Cargo (8/5/1952)
158. Remember Me (8/12/1952)
159. Her Last Adventure (8/19/1952)
160. Woman in Love (8/26/1952)

Season 5

161. The Old Lady of Bayeux (9/2/1952)
162. Call From a Killer (9/9/1952)
163. The Return of Dr. Bourdette (9/16/1952)
164. Set-Up For Death (9/23/1952)
165. The Beach of Falesa (9/30/1952)
166. The Man in the Mirror (10/7/1952)
167. Blue Panther (10/14/1952)
168. The Man Who Had Seven Hours (10/21/1952)
169. All Hallow's Eve (10/28/1952)
170. The Moving Target (11/11/1952)
171. Monsieur Vidocq (11/18/1952)
172. The Whispering Killer (11/25/1952)
173. A Time of Innocence (12/2/1952)
174. The Girl Who Saw Tomorrow (12/9/1952)
175. The Tortured Hand (12/16/1952)
176. The Deadly Lamb (12/23/1952)
177. The Invisible Killer (12/31/1952)
178. Little Camorra (1/6/1953)
179. Mr. Matches (1/13/1953)
180. Vacancy for Death (1/20/1953)
181. Career (1/27/1953)
182. Mutiny Below (2/3/1953)
183. A Study in Stone (2/10/1953)
184. The Quarry (2/17/1953)
185. They Haven't Killed Me Yet (2/24/1953)
186. The Kiss Off (3/3/1953)
187. The Legend of Lizzie (3/10/1953)
188. The Black Prophet (3/17/1953)
189. Portrait of Constance (3/24/1953)
190. Death in the Cave (3/31/1953)
191. Kiss Me Again, Stranger (4/14/1953)
192. The Duel (4/21/1953)
193. F.O.B. Vienna (4/28/1953)
194. The Suitor (5/5/1953)
195. Death of an Editor (5/12/1953)
196. Come into My Parlor (5/19/1953)
197. The Adventure of the Black Baronet (5/26/1953)
198. The Queen's Ring (6/2/1953)
199. The Man Who Cried Wolf (6/9/1953)
200. See No Evil (6/16/1953)
201. The Signal Man (6/23/1953)
202. The Fury of Senorita Gomez (6/30/1953)
203. The Mascot (7/7/1953)
204. The Dutch Schultz Story (7/14/1953)
205. Pigeon in the Cage (7/21/1953)
206. The Dance (7/28/1953)
207. Vial of Death (8/4/1953)
208. Point Blank (8/11/1953)
209. Nightmare at Ground Zero (8/18/1953)
210. Death in Passing (8/25/1953)

Season 6

211. Paradise Junction (9/1/1953)
212. Reign of Terror (9/8/1953)
213. The Darkest Night (9/15/1953)
214. The Riddle of Mayerling (9/22/1953)
215. The Sister (9/29/1953)
216. Death at Skirerud Pond (10/6/1953)
217. The Accounting (10/13/1953)
218. The Valley of the Kings (10/20/1953)
219. The Others (10/27/1953)
220. The Interruption (11/3/1953)
221. Needle in a Haystack (11/10/1953)
222. The Newcomer (11/17/1953)
223. My Short Walk to Freedom (11/24/1953)
224. Laugh It Off (12/1/1953)
225. The Dance (2/8/1953)
226. Cagliostro and the Chess Player (12/15/1953)
227. The Gift of Fear (12/22/1953)
228. Mr. Nobody (12/29/1953)
229. Diamonds in the Sky (1/5/1954)
230. The Scrap Iron Curtain (1/12/1954)
231. The Haunted (1/19/1954)
232. An Affair With a Ghost (1/26/1954)
233. The Man Who Wouldn't Talk (2/2/1954)
234. The Moonstone (2/9/1954)
235. The Execution (2/16/1954)
236. Death on the Screen (2/23/1954)
237. I Do Solemnly Swear (3/2/1954)
238. Before the Act (3/9/1954)
239. The Fourth Degree (3/16/1954)
240. The Tenth Reunion (3/23/1954)
241. Torment (3/30/1954)
242. Operation: Barracuda (4/13/1954)
243. The Return Journey (4/20/1954)
244. The Terror Begins (4/27/1954)
245. Smoke (5/4/1954)
246. Operation: Nightmare (5/11/1954)
247. Breakout (5/18/1954)
248. Fingerprints (5/25/1954)
249. Race Against Murder (6/1/1954)
250. North Side (6/8/1954)
251. The Pistol Shot (6/15/1954)
252. String (6/22/1954)
253. The Hunted 6/29/1954)
254. The Girl in Car Thirty-Two (7/6/1954)
255. Conversation at an Inn (7/13/1954)
256. Once a Killer (7/20/1954)
257. Main Feature: Death (7/27/1954)
258. The Last Stand (8/3/1954)
259. The Iron Cop (8/10/1954)
260. Barn Burning (8/17/1954)