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Title

The Rat

Plot

Enraged by the faithlessness of his wife, a genius scientist creates a highly-evolved rodent and sends it to attack his wife's lover.

Episode

0104

Air Dates

  • First Run - June 12, 1974
  • Repeat - August 30, 1974

Actors

Writer

Listen

Rating

132
102     30


18 Responses to Episode 0104

This one is intense! The creepy sound effects are somehow balanced well with the dialog - well produced.

Mike

Another predictable one. Of course, rats aren't nearly as aggressive or as vicious in real life as they are in fiction. Mild science fiction (hyperintelligent rats).

Andy

A scientist develops a super-intelligent rat and sics it on the man who is having an affair with his wife. Rip off of the movie "Willard".

Denise Remo

The classic tale of a cursed family living in a cursed home and how that curse is passed from generation to generation. Impossible to do this classic tale justice in just 43 minutes.

Terri Couch

Another "scientist in a weird experiment awaiting a divorce" story again. However, this one involves a researcher on rattus norvegicus and their intelligence, who's having an affair with the wife of another researcher who's cunning and sadistic (played by Ralph Bell). The two scientists are in competition for the directorship of a laboratory...the good guy wins. Later, the man who made the decision is attacked and killed by a large rat named "Attila". (Remember the movie "Willard"?) Bell's character is upset, not only because he lost out to the other researcher for the directorship, but because he's about to lose his wife to the good guy. (Though it's a bit disturbing because even given the circumstances I'd not heard another RMT that painted divorce in a positive light.) Someone let the rat out who killed the director. Or did the rat let itself out...? ( Where's that CBS RMT cat when you really need him...?)

JJ Guevarra

Rival scientists compete over the directorship of their lab and the affections of ones' wife. In their lab are 150 highly intelligent rats that are being experimented upon, and, one believes, manipulated to do evil! moral of the story: don't mess around with the wife of a scientist who breeds highly intelligent, and hungry rats. Protracted scenes of suspense, perhaps a little too protracted, but a good episode.

Jesty

5 star episode with its own distinction. The excitement built by story's end was one of the best I've heard. Also, it painted divorce in a positive light; this seemed rather contemporary for 1974 when marriage was far more treasured than it is today. The sound effects of the rats was way too loud and took away from the dialogue. But still, a great episode which made me feel kreepy. I am not a fan of rats.

DAVY JOE

Although the conclusion was easily identifiable early on, it was still an entertaining tale. I don't know why the wife just didn't ask for protection from her husband as she was brave enough to show her attraction to the other professor and continued to do so even after being found out. Even back then she could've gotten some sort of protection. That said, I don't like rats at all, especially the larger ones (ROUSs from The Princess Bride anyone?).

Alec

The voice of the mad doctor is so sonorous and resonating, almost like a trombone. I like film of course but there is value in a radio play...you can completely concentrate on the voice textures with no image to distract you. The actor can take his time stretching out a word like "no" when he says he has decided not to divorce his wife. That voice juxtaposed with the rat squeaks helped make this a great episode.

Dan

Great acting and voices esp Joan Loring. Good sound effects with the rats. Came out a couple of years after a book and movie and song about killer rats. I think Michael Jackson sang the song "Ben" This RMT episode portrayed unfaithfulness in a positive light. Orher than that,an excellent episode.

Barry

I am petrified of rats, but I will give this one a listen.

Robert

Ralph Bell plays jerks especially well, although I have the feeling he was a very nice man in real life. His performance in this particular episode should get the Academy Award for radio drama. His acting is really fantastic and terrifying! He is a perfect psycho villain in this episode and even though the other actors were extra good as well, it's mostly his performance that makes this episode so chilling. His character is realistically cold and evil, as sadistic as any concentration camp guard during the Holocaust. What is even more amazing is that at the end when he finally meets his demise, he actually made me feel sorry for him because his suffering is so convincing. Ralph Bell is always my favorite actor on the show!

Amy

Great episode, but radio dramas prominently featuring chattering, squealing rats always get at least one extra star from me (Three Skeleton Key being the classic of the form.) Ralph Bell, as mentioned elsewhere, has one of the great voices, and plays a psychotically angry SOB to perfection here. There's unintentional comedy in the scenes where the love interests exchange vows of love and desire which are barely audible over the squeals of 150 rodents--couldn't they go somewhere a little more conducive to romance for the moment--but that just adds an extra layer of entertainment. Again, great episode IMHO.

charles barnes

best killer rats story since" THREE SKELETON KEY"!!!!!!!!!!!

terence m. jones

Frustrated by his wife’s love for a fellow researcher and disappointed by a decision of his supervisor, scientist Wayne Chaney seems to be going out of his mind. He helped develop the world’s most intelligent rat, which should have given him the boost needed for another project. When his superior Dr. Morton is found dead because of a bite by a Rattus Norvegicus, no one can figure out how the rat named Attila managed to escape from its cage. Was it due to Attila’s superior intelligence, or did the rat have a little help from Chaney?

Adam

A very creepy tale, along the lines of Willard and Ben, always running here and there. Great acting and the sound effects would be great at Halloween. Shame she cheats on her husband and continues to do so. He may have been a jerk but she was married to him. Where is the promise she made to him at their wedding? Just don't understand the ease of being faithless. But the story was a good one and evil begets evil.

Nancy

Awesome. Brings back so many memories. Used to listen to it on WBBM Chicago on the school nights. I would tape the rest of the shows after 11 PM to listen the following day. Can't wait to check out more.

Wally

One of the first I seriously didn't like. No likeable characters. I don't root for people having affairs.

David


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