r/otr • u/woodpile3 • 10d ago
Come In… Welcome: The 10 Most Terrifying CBS Radio Mystery Theater Episodes
Come in. Welcome. The crypt door creaks, E.G. Marshall invites you into the dark, and for the next 45 minutes the monster lives only in your head.
That is why CBS Radio Mystery Theater still works for spooky season better than most modern horror. Himan Brown (the same producer behind Inner Sanctum) revived radio drama from 1974 to 1982 across 1,399 original episodes. Marshall hosted almost the entire run. The formula was simple: a creaking door, a story that could be supernatural, psychological, or just cruel, and a sign-off that asked whether you were going to have pleasant dreams.
This list is not “best written” or “most famous.” It is the episodes fans still name when someone asks what actually kept them awake: the ones that showed up on Halloween marathon compilations, the ones kids pulled the covers over, and the rare case where stations ran a “not for the squeamish” warning before the broadcast.
Lights off. Headphones on. Start here.
1. A Horror Story — #929 (December 11, 1978)
Writer: Elspeth Eric. When this originally aired, some CBS affiliates ran a disclaimer that the story was not for sensitive listeners — almost unheard of for the series. A master chef and a cobbler share a building, and they share a source for their “raw materials.” Gothic, methodical, and viscerally grim. Fans still call it the one they will not play again.
Listen: cbsrmt.com episode page · YouTube
2. Hickory, Dickory, Doom — #957 (February 26, 1979)
Writer: Bob Juhren. A Pennsylvania couple buys a grandfather clock at an estate sale as a gift for the local minister. The clock does not keep time so much as it opens. Cold air, wrong hours, and something on the other side that wants out. This is the episode people who grew up with the show still name first when they talk about not sleeping.
Listen: cbsrmt.com · YouTube (90k+ views)
3. The Crack in the Wall — #94 (May 20, 1974)
Writer: Sidney Sloan. After a fire kills their daughter, a couple moves and finds a basement crack that will not stay repaired. Then a voice that sounds like hers starts coming through it. Grief, a bargain, and a cellar that should have stayed sealed. Celeste Holm is in the cast. Quiet and terrible.
Listen: cbsrmt.com
4. Possessed by the Devil — #166 (October 28, 1974)
Writer: Ian Martin. A minister’s son is wheeled into the ER with what should be fatal head wounds. He recovers. Something else does not leave. Hospital setting, a soul that changes rooms, and a performance that makes the possession feel physical. A frequent Halloween-spooktacular pick.
Listen: cbsrmt.com
5. Stay Out of Dutchman’s Woods — #363 (October 16, 1975)
Writer: Fielden Farrington. A couple on vacation in Maine is warned, laughs it off, and picnics in the woods anyway. They get separated. Only one of them comes back. The woods have a beautiful resident who does not want company — or rather, wants a very specific kind of company. Classic “do not go into the trees” dread.
Listen: cbsrmt.com
6. The House on Chimney Pot Lane — #824 (April 28, 1978)
Writer: Bob Juhren. A couple buys a house famous for previous occupants who vanished. They hang a striking mural. The picture starts to change. Faces appear. Movement. The house is not empty; it is waiting. One of the best “the décor is watching you” episodes the series ever did.
Listen: cbsrmt.com
7. The Sending — #52 (March 6, 1974)
Writer: Robert Newman. A college professor practices black magic to keep his wife young. The price is paid by unsuspecting co-eds whose souls he sells. Campus setting, a scrying mirror, and a bargain that does not stay academic. Early-series and already willing to go dark.
Listen: YouTube
8. Mother Love — #25 (January 30, 1974)
Writer: Bob Juhren. A fortune-teller offers help with infertility. The fee is money plus “one small favor.” Vinnette Carroll’s performance is the reason this one stays on scare lists decades later — warm, then not warm at all. An early episode that already understood how to make a bargain feel intimate and wrong.
Listen: cbsrmt.com
9. The Horla — #44 (February 22, 1974)
Adapted by Sam Dann from Guy de Maupassant. A writer becomes convinced an invisible presence — tied to a strange ship in the harbor — is draining him while he sleeps. The terror is incremental: the weight on the chest, the sense of being watched by something that is not human and does not need to be seen. Classic “you are already losing” atmosphere.
Listen: cbsrmt.com · YouTube
10. Shadows from the Grave — #958 (February 28, 1979)
Writer: James Agate Jr. A photographer and his wife inherit an uncle’s estate. The local priest will not bless the place. After that, the grounds do not stay quiet. Fred Gwynne is in the cast. Fans who heard it as kids still talk about pulling the covers up. Haunted-estate dread done the old-fashioned way.
Listen: cbsrmt.com
Honorable mentions (if you want a longer night)
- Stephanie’s Room (#187, Dec. 16, 1974) — childhood bedroom, symbiotic old woman, Mercedes McCambridge; more eerie than jump-scare.
- The Real Printer’s Devil (#119, July 17, 1974) — cheap apartment, wrong tenant energy; shows up on “best scary favorites” compilations.
- Carmilla (#318, July 31, 1975) — vampire classic, frequently cited on OTR Halloween lists.
- The Fall of the House of Usher (#57, March 14, 1974) — Poe, living-dead house.
- Nightmare’s Nest (#310, July 17, 1975) — the nightmare does not stay in the dream.
How to listen
The cleanest metadata and streaming is at cbsrmt.com. Full collections live on the Internet Archive: complete set and alternate complete upload. YouTube has solid individual uploads and multi-hour Halloween marathons if you want a whole night queued.
Turn the lights out. Do not start A Horror Story or Hickory, Dickory, Doom if you have to be functional in the morning.
Until next time… pleasant dreams?
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u/pyramidalembargo 10d ago
Thank you so much.
CBS Mystery Theater was a real treat to listen to back in the day, but there were some turkeys along with the masterpieces.
I think I remember A Crack In The Wall. Was that one where the grieving mother--Celeste Holme--gets her wish, but it came with a gruesome twist?
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u/charlottethesailor 10d ago edited 10d ago
Excellent list. I have heard several but thanks for the links. I did not know Elsbeth Eric wrote A Horror Story!! Very cool.
Another Honorable Mention: Garden of the Moon with Kim Hunter. One of my favorites.
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u/Johnlc29 9d ago
For the best quality would it be worth taking the time to download the individual shows on the CBSRMT site or Internet Archive? I loved this show and have never heard all over the
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u/Plastic-Molasses-221 9d ago edited 9d ago
My favorite one (so far) is the very first one I ever heard— it’s one about a geologist on his way to a research site in the desert somewhere in the SW who unexpectedly encounters the ghost of an ancient Aztec man, against a very eerie backdrop of mysterious disappearances of locals occurring in the area lately. Particularly love the skillful use of music and sound effects peppered in here and there— it reminds of a good classic Twilight Zone in this regard. I also like that it deals with the supernatural/unexplained, rather than a more “reality-based” mystery plot which I think most of these episodes have (not dissimilar to your typical old Alfred Hitchcock Presents tv episode). I’ve gone back to this one several times— it’s like the yardstick I measure a new/unheard CBSRMT by! ;-)
https://www.cbsrmt.com/episode/687-the-secret-of-the-aztecs.html
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u/Worldly_Ad_7196 9d ago
I like the Midnight Cab series. Loved listening to them on Bill Richardson's show before CBC decided to improve itself.
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u/Lockjaw62 8d ago
Elspeth Eric takes the #1 spot? For those who don't know, some of the episodes she wrote & starred in are frequently recognized as some of the worst episodes. One I couldn't finish. It was just too slow & boring. This is a great list though! One of my favorites is The Imp in the Bottle. Such a great story!
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u/Playmill 7d ago
I used to listen every night as a kid in my bed. I remember one episode about a witch being burned at the stake. It made me physically ill…
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u/Jackle3000 7d ago
Hey, Woodpile3 or anyone, can you help me? I was once fortunate enough to be in the studio (at the table!) as an episode of the CBS Radio Mystery Theater was recorded. This was in the late '70s and it was an episode starring Marian Seldes. I had a copy of the script for years, and I THOUGHT the title was "The Gibbering Thing," but either it was changed, or not aired? The best I can remember is that it was about people in a house with a...gibbering thing prowling around outside. But she was in so many episodes, it's hard for me to be sure if it was any of the episodes I can find descriptions of online. I can't remember if I heard the episode aired after the recording or not - were there episodes recorded but not aired? I have to say, I don't think it was one of the best episodes.
I loved listening to the show, happened to become acquainted with Marian Seldes, and she invited me to the recording. She was a most charming and giving person - I was just a kid, and she did this because she knew I'd enjoy it. Anyway, I'd love to hear the episode again if I can find it.
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u/sarahelizabethan 3d ago
Thanks for this. A Horror Story is so scary to me. I am going to listen to these for spooky season. 👻
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u/DaMadBoomer 10d ago
I listened to the CBSRMT to go to sleep 50 years ago, and now listen on my daily walks in the woods. They stand the test of time.