The Creaking Door
1958 - 1959 (Australia)
1964 - 1965 (South Africa)
1966 - 1968 (South Africa)
Many of the Creaking Door episodes are confused by collectors with its American cousin, Inner Sanctum Mysteries.
In 1952, scripts from the original Inner Sanctum began to be recorded in Australia. The host was named Raymond, but was really Moray Powell. The actors tried to sound "mid Atlantic" and for the most part, come across as Americans, not Australians. (Ogden, 2005) Some of these shows have survived and are mistaken as the original Inner Sanctum Mysteries, but the "Mysteries" part of the title is not included in the Australian version, nor is the host Raymond Edward Johnson or Paul MaGrath. (It's Powell.) About 50 shows were aired with the confusing Inner Sanctum title until a dispute over fees erupted and the show was discontinued.
The series returned in 1958, and to avoid the legal dispute, it was renamed The Creaking Door. "Raymond" was renamed "Your Host" (but it was still Powell). New scripts were written by Australian writers, who wrote variations on the American stories. The series is said to have been 95% destroyed, but one source claims the entire run has been preserved and will eventually find its way into the eager hands of collectors (Grams, 100)
In 1964, South Africa began The Creaking Door, using original scripts which included stories with a heavier emphasis on the supernatural. The topics ranged from haunted houses to a woman who turns into a giant cat, and of course, the typical paranoid murderer so often presented on the original Inner Sanctum. (Grams, 104) The host for this series was Peter Bloomfield. Mr. Bloomfield doesn't sound like Raymond, and tries a bit too hard to sound spooky in general. Whereas the real Raymond was corny but clever, Bloomfield seems corny and campy. It's still enjoyable, but much more dated than the original series... even though it is not as old.
Killers were haunted by guilt and often betrayed by fate in The Creaking Door.
Artist depiction courtesy of Tune In For Terror © 1992
The Standard Opening
Hear An Actual Episode!
(Courtesy of The Monster Club)
The Dummy - A man is possessed by a ventriloquist dummy
Cat's Whiskers - The strange tale of a woman becoming a cat.
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