1945-4-01 The Sword of Dengri-la

Broadcast April 1st 1945 on Mutual at 5:30 p.m. EST sponsored by D.L. & W. Coal Company "Blue Coal" and syndicated for the summer by Goodrich Tires

This is a lost episode and no recreation of it has yet been made. If you have a copy of the script please let me know.

This episode was adapted and recorded for broadcast in Australia by Grace Gibson Productions and is included in The Shadow Volume 2

Written by: Bob Shaw

Announcer: Don Hancock

Cast: John Archer (Lamont Cranston/The Shadow) Judith Allen (Margot Lane)

Music: Elsie Thompson

Synopsis:

A female assistant in a traveling sideshow’s magic act is stabbed by a sword that was intended to collapse once it penetrated the basket. While Commissioner Weston holds Barbero the Great for questioning, Lamont and Margot investigate. The Shadow learns from Jean, one of the magician’s assistants, that Irene was secretly married to Barbero and jealous of the dead woman. Jean kept this quiet from the police hoping it would secure her position with the magic act. Instead, The Shadow instructs her to leave town for a couple days. After Barbero is released from police headquarters, Lamont asks Margot to stick by Irene and make sure she doesn’t learn of Jean’s disappearance. Inviting Weston to the next magic performance, Lamont gleefully enjoys the proceedings as Jean’s absence forces the magician to ask Irene to step inside the basket. Unwilling at first, Jean cries out seconds before the sword is plunged into the basket — she knew full well that the spring was damaged to prevent the sword from collapsing. The police arrest Irene, who intended to silence the only person who knew the truth. Lamont laughs as he recalls what Margot said to him the previous night, moments before the magic act began — she said they were all fakes!

Listen to the Australian broadcast

Note:

The script for this episode was published in Sanctum Reprint #46 The House That Vanished & Wizard of Crime

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