Suspense: The Flight of the Bumblebee (

Suspense: 05/19/52, episode 473
Brought to you by the Old Time Radio Researchers, courtesy of The Suspense Project
Fred MacMurray returns to the series in a story about a B29 bombing raid in Korea. The story was written by sound effects artist Ross Murray, who was a training officer for bombardier students for the US Army at the end of WW2. He was trained to fly B29s. His detailed knowledge of plane operations enhances the realism of the story but does not bogged down in minutia. The fighter is attacked and damaged, and injuries occur. They grapple with the choice of continuing the flight or being forced to bail out. The decision is complicated by another attack, and are having problems maintaining their altitude. They need to care for an injured crewmember while stripping equipment from the aircraft to minimize its weight to stay aloft.
MacMurray flubs a line at about 21:45 where he says “You and Murph tear down the Army” but he quickly corrects himself to say “armor.”
The bandage used in the story at the 18:00 mark was a “Carlisle bandage.” It was a first aid kit, first developed in the early 1900s, that included sterile wound dressing that soldiers carried with them.
The script uses the name “Bumblebee” without a hyphen. CBS publicity used the spelling “Bumble-Bee.”
Ross Murray was “fired” as a publicity stunt for the day for the broadcast of his first script, Case History of a Gambler. There was “fear” he would be “too nervous” and miss his effects cues. This script had very complex effects and he worked this broadcast along with Gus Bayz. Murray was likely thrilled to be working on this one as he continued his passion for flying well after the war into his nineties.
This broadcast was delayed from the prior week. It is not known if the production was not ready yet or if MacMurray’s schedule was a factor.
The cast: FRED MACMURRAY (Hutch), Glenn Vernon (Curley), Edgar Barrier (Willy), Byron Kane (Marty), Billy Halop (Max), Charles Calvert (Murph), Jack Kruschen (Al / Voice), Lee Millar (Sarg), Joe Kearns (Frank), Larry Thor (Narrator)
COMMERCIAL: Gil Stratton, Jr. (Stan), Harlow Wilcox (Announcer), Sylvia Simms (Operator)
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