The New Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure Of The Carpathian Horror

Friends, for this Retro Radio Memories offering we are going to be paying a visit to 221 B. Baker Street with The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes old time radio program. An episode that might be better suited for October entitled The Adventure of the Carpathian Horror… boy… that is a mouthful to say the very least. This episode of the highly popular radio series originally was aired on April 14th of 1947 and features Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson with Tom Conway as Sherlock Holmes. Now much like with the serials my Father grew up with in his own youth – I inherited my love of Sherlock Holmes thanks to watching the series of films that began in 1939 and lasted until 1946 – with Basil Rathbone as Holmes and Bruce as Watson. There have been more than a handful of fantastic actors to play the legendary duo over the years but thanks to my memories of watching the films with my Father on Sunday mornings – I enjoy watching the Rathbone and Bruce versions the most.

Now Basil Rathbone actually played Sherlock Holmes in the radio series – he and Nigel Bruce recorded 220 episodes together – beginning in 1939 and lasting until 1946. The same number of years of the films of course – Rathbone was concerned he might be typecast and left the popular radio program – even though apparently the show’s sponsor Petri Wine attempted to keep him as Holmes with a high increase in pay. After Rathbone left the show… as did Petri Wine… Tom Conway stepped into the role of the World’s Greatest Detective. Conway by the way was no stranger to famous detectives – having taken over the role of The Falcon from his brother, George Sanders, and even portrayed Simon Templar in The Saint radio series… while his brother played the part in films.

Our episode today finds Holmes and Watson receiving a letter from a law firm asking them to investigate strange goings on in Carpathia – one in which a Count Romani believes himself to be a Vampire!