On This Day, August 26: Inner Sanctum (Mummies & Revenge) and Dr. Christian
Also featured: The Green Hornet.
August 26 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, serial multi-part narrative arcs, and story synopses for historical broadcasts transmitting on August 26 across American network, two bone-chilling tales from the Inner Sanctum (Arnold Moss unsealing an Egyptian mummy curse for Carter's and Everett Sloane plotting decade-long prison vengeance for Lipton Tea), Jean Hersholt as beloved country physician Dr. Christian for Vaseline, Al Hodge hunting harbor extortionists on The Green Hornet, and Joan Copeland in Himan Brown's Faces of Love (1937–1975):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Counterfeit Heart (Joan Copeland & Joan Lorring — Himan Brown)" | CBS Radio 1975-08-26 3:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining Daytime Drama Anthology |
Joan Copeland, Joan Lorring, Guy Repp | Himan Brown (Dir.), Jackson Beck | ["Drama", "Romance", "Psychological", "Marriage", "Contemporary"] |
"Faces of Love, produced and directed by Himan Brown, exploring the many faces of the human heart!" In 'The Counterfeit Heart', a wealthy Manhattan art gallery owner played by Joan Copeland confronts the devastating realization that her charming younger fiancé is colluding with her estranged business partner to embezzle her private collection. |
| "The Tomb of Ramhotep (Arnold Moss & Mercedes McCambridge — Carter's)" | CBS (WABC) 1944-08-26 8:30 PM EWT |
Carter Products Carter's Pills & Arrid |
Paul McGrath (Host), Arnold Moss, Mercedes McCambridge | Himan Brown, Robert Newman, Dwight Weist | ["Horror", "Mystery", "Supernatural", "Macabre", "Occult"] |
"Welcome to the Inner Sanctum... enter if you dare! Heheheh!" An ambitious British archaeologist defies ancient hieroglyphic curses to unseal the sarcophagus in the Tomb of Ramhotep, only to bring a desiccated mummy back to London to exact mummified revenge on his expedition partners for Carter's Little Liver Pills. |
| "The Long Wait Is Over (Everett Sloane & Wendy Barrie — Lipton Tea)" | CBS (WABC) 1946-08-26 8:00 PM EDT |
Thomas J. Lipton Lipton Tea & Noodle Soup |
Paul McGrath (Host), Everett Sloane, Wendy Barrie | Himan Brown, John Roeburt, Ed Herlihy | ["Horror", "Mystery", "Psychological", "Macabre", "Suspense"] |
"Hear that creaking door? It's the Inner Sanctum, brought to you by Lipton Tea!" A wrongfully imprisoned convict played by Everett Sloane bides his time for ten agonizing years in solitary confinement, plotting an intricate, bloodcurdling revenge on the corrupt judge and unfaithful wife who framed him, only to find the trap already waiting for Lipton Tea. |
| "Today I Am a Doctor (Jean Hersholt as Dr. Christian — Vaseline)" | CBS (WABC) 1942-08-26 8:30 PM EWT |
Chesebrough Co. Vaseline Petroleum Jelly |
Jean Hersholt (Dr. Christian), Rosemary DeCamp | Neil Reagan, Ruth Adams Knight, Art Gilmore | ["Medical", "Drama", "Small Town", "Human Interest", "Americana"] |
"Dr. Christian of River's End, starring Jean Hersholt, brought to you by Vaseline Petroleum Jelly and Vaseline Hair Tonic!" A fresh medical school graduate arrives in River's End boasting superior modern techniques, but when a sudden epidemic threatens a farm family, he learns from kindly Dr. Paul Christian that compassion and bedside courage are what truly make a doctor for Vaseline. |
| "Baby's Choice (Jean Hersholt as Dr. Paul Christian — Vaseline)" | CBS (WCBS) 1953-08-26 8:30 PM EDT |
Chesebrough Co. Vaseline Brand Products |
Jean Hersholt (Dr. Christian), Kathleen Fitz | Neil Reagan, Gene Wang, Art Gilmore | ["Medical", "Drama", "Small Town", "Human Interest", "Americana"] |
"Chesebrough presents Dr. Christian, starring Jean Hersholt!" Dr. Christian and Nurse Judy Price mediate an emotional adoption custody battle between a wealthy foster couple and an estranged biological mother, guiding them toward a heartwarming resolution centered entirely on the infant's welfare for Vaseline. |
| "The Waterfront Protection Racket (Al Hodge as The Green Hornet — Mutual)" | Mutual (WXYZ) 1937-08-26 8:00 PM EDST |
Sustaining Vigilante Superhero Drama |
Al Hodge (Green Hornet), Raymond Hayashi (Kato) | George W. Trendle, Fran Striker, Fielden Farrington | ["Superheroes", "Crime", "Action", "Adventure", "Vigilante"] |
"The Green Hornet! He hunts the biggest of all game! Public enemies that even the FBI cannot reach!" Crusading newspaper publisher Britt Reid and his faithful valet Kato deploy the gas gun and the Black Beauty supercar to smash a brutal extortion mob terrorizing independent harbor dock workers. |