Category Archives: Europe

“Front Page Farrell” wasn’t front page news on D-Day

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Bob Stepno

On D-Day, one of America’s most famous reporters, Front Page Farrell, was not involved in the war coverage at all… But, of course, Dave Farrell was fictional. Still, his June 7, 1944, episode above has hints of America’s mood on … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, Europe, radio, reporters, soap opera, Uncategorized, World War II | Leave a comment

Zola on the air

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Bob Stepno

https://archive.org/download/OTRR_Lux_Radio_Theater_Singles/Lux_Radio_Theatre_39-05-08_218_The_Life_of_Emile_Zola.mp3 Today was the birthday of Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (1840-1902), and the birthday of a former editor of mine, a coincidence that reminded me that I have never gotten around to posting about the 1898 Dreyfus case and … Continue reading →

Posted in 1930s, Europe, historical figures, journalism, movies | Leave a comment

Two Reporters Conspire in Moscow

Posted on February 27, 2018 by Bob Stepno

Radio’s dramatic adventure series like “Suspense” and “Escape” sometimes relied on journalist characters as narrators, doing what reporters do — telling a story mostly from the outside. In “Two If By Sea,” the derring-do is their own. Even in peacetime, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, adventure, Europe, foreign correspondents, international, reporters, romance, Russia | Leave a comment

More on radio-film adaptations – and a bit of Libel

Posted on March 11, 2014 by Bob Stepno

Just when I thought I had a nice round figure — 50 radio adaptations of Hollywood films about journalists — I discovered that two movies I had already written about weren’t on the master list, which includes quite a few I … Continue reading →

Posted in 1940s, adaptations, Europe, television | Leave a comment

Lime with a twist: Violets, Violence and Recycled Radio

Posted on June 10, 2013 by Bob Stepno

Here’s a special case of radio recycling, another Orson Welles’ script from “The Lives of Harry Lime,” turned into a “Europe Confidential” journalist-hero script a few years later, part of a pattern I began writing about some months ago. This … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, adaptations, Drama, ethics, Europe, foreign correspondents, Orson Welles | Leave a comment

Reporter’s manhunt in London & Tangier

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Bob Stepno

Old-fashioned shoeleather reporting gets a good demonstration in the Europe Confidential episode called The Raymond Shortly Affair, which takes reporter Mike Connoy from his Paris office to London and from there to a Tangier nightclub and some intrigue involving a … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, Europe, foreign correspondents, journalism, reporting | Leave a comment

An as-told-to tale of blackmail

Posted on January 19, 2013 by Bob Stepno

The best rewrite of a “Lives of Harry Lime” episode that I’ve heard so far, transformed into a “Europe Confidential” episode with the addition of a journalist narrator, is this tale of political blackmail in which a racketeer anti-hero comes … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, adaptations, Drama, Europe, foreign correspondents, Orson Welles | Leave a comment

Journalist frames art-theft story

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Bob Stepno

Listening to 1951’s Orson Welles “The Lives of Harry Lime” in parallel with the 1957 radio series “Europe Confidential” can be a surreal experience — and never more than in this episode about a stolen painting that changes from Rubens … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, adaptations, Europe, foreign correspondents, Orson Welles, reporters | Leave a comment

Reporter reveals Europe Confidential mysteries

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Bob Stepno

The radio series “Europe Confidential” told mystery tales in the guise of newspaper columns, and is now available as MP3 files with titles like “The Blackmailed Spy Affair.”The “World’s Greatest Mysteries” program is a bit of a mystery itself — … Continue reading →

Posted in 1950s, adventure, Drama, Europe, foreign correspondents, Syndication | Leave a comment