Suspense

radio program

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July 20, 2026

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Suspense was a long-running radio program that aired from June 1942 to September 1962. It was more focused on creating tension and anticipation than outright horror, with stories often grounded in everyday reality.1

A particularly memorable episode was "Sorry, Wrong Number," featuring Agnes Moorehead as a bedridden woman who overhears a murder plot on the telephone, only to discover she is the intended victim. Despite facing budget cuts in its later years, Suspense maintained a high standard of programming until the end of network dramatic radio on September 30, 1962. The show was part of the Golden Age of American radio, a creative peak that lasted roughly from 1930 to 1955.123

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Horror and suspense
Suspense (June 1942–September 1962) was certainly the longest-running horror-oriented show, as well as the most star-studded. As hinted by its title, the program was more suspenseful than horrific, and it was almost always rooted in contemporary everyday reality. The series’s best-remembered story, frequently reprised, was…
Read More
Suspense (June 1942–September 1962) was certainly the longest-running horror-oriented show, as well as the most star-studded. As hinted by its title, the program was more suspenseful than horrific, and it was almost always rooted in contemporary everyday reality. The series’s best-remembered story, frequently reprised, was…
Read More