Authors' Playhouse - The Kracken

Truth or Consequences.

The program to which you customarily listened at this time is leaving the air for the summer, but will greet you again at the same time on September ninth, Remember Truth or Consequences. September ninth, at the usual hour, Author's Playhouse presenting Frederick Engelheart's fantastic drama of a submarine That's brave,

The past three years. The theme of tonight's presentation is Courage, the story of a.

Submarine commander and his crew carrying on in the face of unknown peril, an unbelievable horror which rose from the past and held them in its grip. Author's Playhouse presents Frederick engelhartz the Kraken.

Eighty destroyers, Sir, three points off the starven bar pressed dive, mister palmerin prepare for crash dive, crish dive.

It is same.

Blood the power tanks, mister Pomeran, Blood the coward tanks, blood the four tanks. And you say, bob plains hard dive, mister.

Pomelan, bow planes hard dive, bow planes are diving.

Is say all a hendful of, mister Pomelin, All ahead.

Pull all a headful.

It is same. Hen pizza on the torpedo room builders, pump the torpedo room buildings, hump the torpedo room bulges.

It is same.

Twenty pizza stern planes, deaden stern plains, steady stern plane.

It is, sir, what ify there goes the night?

He as can, mister palmerloyan fifty fez. Sure that one was closer by the sound, Sir, sixty feet. Sure they've lost us, mister seventy fizza still farther away, eighty pizza eighty feet.

They're miles away now.

Sir, one hundred feet. That's deep enough, mister Palmeroyd all not is a hit normal, All loads ahead, normal, All molders are head normally.

It is same.

Flood the stern tanks, Flood the stern tanks, Flood the stern tanks.

It is saved, zero bubble, zero bubble, zero bubble.

It is same.

Release more oil, mister palme Royd. Release more oil, Release more oil.

It is same.

Can you hear them on the phones, mister Pomeroy, yes, sir, very slightly. They're going away, sir.

We fool them again. What a miserable bunch of sailors.

They are, little oil on the surfaces, and off they go with another cop can bull story.

You'd think they find out sometime that it's nothing but a trigger, not the ideas.

The steaming factors rat right now at forced Draft to boast how they destroyed another of His Modesty's sub mercers.

I can barely hear their screws now, says Captain Camel.

Sir, the thiefs are completely undamaged, no leech and no plate strained.

Good, not that I expected anything of the spot.

Gentlemen made trouble, always aborted us by as why the birth as the Italian depth bombs give us sinful waste spending all that money for ashken's just to kill a few fish.

Lord what I don't know.

Something kicking us like a Harry collect We'll say hell man medal patients. Mister Parian station your mental feet, it is too. The girl and mind the mite tanks. Girl say by the blow tags, and young stain by the b tanks.

It is too. We're not going up, Captain.

Something's holding us down.

But what is it?

I don't know, mister Powaray puller head boot blooded.

Fuller head cloth, fooders full of head, boot flouted, it is.

Said up ship.

Mister Pomeroy, up said after if it did soon, ain't you fizz.

We're loose from it now, sir, whatever it is, eighty.

S seventy feet.

Sixty three.

Fifty three ortyv thirty three twenty feet ten feet.

All clear on the surface service battle stations, mister Pomroy service padel stations, surface paneled stations in his Now we'll see what was playing with his Cavanough Marto machine gun on the chariot bridge. I'll go first, mister palm Roy. I couldn't see a thing through the scope. There's no way of telling what we'll find when we open the heads right sir.

Nothing, not a thing in sight anywhere.

But what could have tossed us around like that? Sir? Could it have been a volcanic eruption?

No, nothing like that. We'd have felt the heat, mister Palmroy.

Did you notice that after the motors were termed full, we hung for a moment and then jumped toward the surface.

Yes, sir, I did a faseous sleeper, frightened rabbit.

Something.

I can't imagine what, but something had hold of us, and I'm going to find out.

What it is.

Give the order to switch to diesels, mister Pomeroy.

Yes, sir, diesel mottos.

It is, sir.

They were going almost due not when we came up.

We'll backtrack a little. That will raise something.

We've gone more than a mile, sir, Yes, and I'm slowing down, mister Pomeroy. Order false speed ahead, yes, sir, Full speed ahead, old speed ahead.

It is so.

Cruise are turning full speecher, but we're losing weight.

This is it, mister Pomroy. Whatever it is, we'll give it a battle. That's something we can fight.

Give the orders to stop chip, yes, sir, stop ship Steven.

You meant at the gun look alive, be ready for anything.

Captain. Look crawling across the deck.

It's the tentacle of an octopus.

An octopus. That things is bigger arms and oak read chemical screes.

Is the dragon? That what it is is the dragon.

Dragon? All right, swing that gun around, plain it on those arms with the clearer ship rap it fire.

If you value your lives, turn off the machine gun. Tabanaugh.

Aim in the surface of the water.

Let's have one of those arms.

Yes, sir, look, I've ben seer.

Watch the mob.

It's pulling us under my main strings. We're going down by the head.

Could have some time, mister hamerd yes, sir, prepaired the time. Hello, dext Man, my eyes, sir below next, mister bum Nothing else we can do, mister p We stay in the surface. We'll sink the gun cruiser. They're gone beyond the knee hope. We can't fight that monster, not now. Anyway, while it's clinging to the.

Vessel, perhaps it will ship forward, sir in front of the tube.

Are you crazy, mister don't Peter exploding on robbery bow would be worse than the depth bombs of the artist.

Blood the forward.

Thanks, yes, sir, Blood the forward tanks the foretas it is, sir, if we can shape.

That depon off shades of the good Bishop Pontipedia.

He wasn't far ang when he described a crackn as being a quarter of a mile across.

You believe those.

Medieval superstitions, Captain Campbell. I believe my own eyes, mister, to recognize that monster.

There was a cuddle.

This seven o'part, the grandfather of them all must be hundreds of years old, maybe a thousand.

Poor Hans was right. It is the crack, but the cracking hasn't been reported in two hundred years.

Be reasonable, sir, This is bad enough as it is reported. No, but how do you know the monster hasn't been sighted? How many of these Mediterranean fishing smacks could meet this beast and return home.

To tell about it?

We've been saved so far are the fact that we're covered with steel plates.

Isn't there something we can do, Captain Campbell?

Nothing, mister Pomeroy, it's too as I had to go on deck while the crack and still has hold of the thesis. The only thing we can do is wait until it finally gets tired of wrapping itself around us.

And swims away.

What do you think happened to the gun crew?

And I prefer not to think.

It's been thirty minutes since we cut the motors and let that devil tour us.

What's our courser?

Nor nor east speed?

Three knots?

This keeps up until midnight, we'll reach the coast of Sicily.

The kraken probably has its home in a cave somewhere along the shore.

Bigger Barton, Captain Cattle, what's up, Kavanaugh?

There's stripping on the bottom and stepped both teal shows on.

Our screws are gone and the water's coming in through the pipe. Watch, thank of Kavanaugh. What does the phenamater show? Mister Pomeroy, not quite eight paom sir? No all, thanks, mister Captain Cameron. We're in a tunnel of some kinda kay. I've presumed as much, mister Palmery, but you'll have to risk.

Hitting the room for having our heels straight off. Give me all theer mister, yes, sir, oh thanks all tanks.

You did say.

What's our course now, sir?

No course at all. We were twisting and turning and he was jumping all over the compass. Do you know where we are, sir, somewhere in the south coast of Sicily, and we can go for.

Help by radio only if we can't work out to dismiss ourselves. I don't fancy losing my ship to the itees. I believe we've stopped, Sir, we have give me that audioform receiver.

Winkle aye, sair here it is it? Eh? I don't hear the kracken's tail swishing. Perhaps it's left.

Sure, possibly see if you can't spot anything through the scope, mister Pomroy, Yes, sir, darks pitcher, let's see a thing. It's a subterranean cave, all right. I want a diver to go out. Who'll volunteer? I we are, sir, Thank you, Kavanaugh, But to Pomery, break out a suit and ring cabanov Yes, sir, and see that they are locked. Precail here, sir, equip with them, settle and torch in the lamp hees, sir, listen closely, Kavanaugh. I don't want you to take any

There's a potable radio in the suit. Keep in communication with us and Kavanaugh.

Good luck, thumbs up, thumbs up with dear, sir, can you hear of mister Pomroy, Yes, sir, he's outside now.

I'm going out now, Sir, to look over the damage to the screws.

He says he's going after Tell him to be honest toes every second. Mister the crackman is only playing doggo. He won't have a chance, yes, Sir Kavanaugh. Captain Campbell says, be on the alert every moment.

I'm under the stern.

Now her he's under the stern.

Both the screws are gone and the rudder's on howsir.

He says, both screws are gone and the rudders unhoused.

I'm going up to the surface now he's going up to the surface.

Cautionally the game, mister Pomeroy. This is the path that's liable to be dangerous. Yes, Sir Kavanaugh. The Captain orders you to be extremely careful when you hit the surface.

I will, sir.

Ask him to tell us what he can see as soon as he comes out on top. Tell him to use his light. Yes, Sir Cavanaugh, when you get on top, use your light. Describe to us everything you can see.

Eyes. I'm on the surface now. It's a cave, all right, So.

He says he can see it's a cave.

There's plenty of room on all sides, and.

Over plenty of space on all sides, and overhead.

My life won't reach.

The Hey, Cava, what's wrong, good lord.

Captain, it's got me, he told me high.

He's got him, and it's lifting him right down at the watch. Tell him to use his torch on it, Cavanah, use your torch on it, Burnet. I dropped it, Sir, I dropped the torch, dropped it, Sir. It's swallowing me. Hold, Lieutenant, is it.

It's eating him?

What?

Oh? Wait and die?

Doctor became.

He may still be alive, yes, sir, Cavanan cavalon, and.

So he answered, I'm still alive. I'm in the things.

Tom He's down in a crack and stomach. Sir.

Ask him what it's like, mister, Yes, sir, what's it like? Kavanaugh?

So I can hear him.

Yes, it's like a cave, a big cave, and the worlds are yellowish white, and they keep moving back and forth.

They're covered with long white things like fleck snakes. And then that's what I'm hanging on with.

Telling to use his knife and try to cut his way out. Yes, sir, Cavanaugh, use your knife and try to cut your way out.

And I have tried serve, but the worlds are so thicke it's no use, sir.

What's the matter, Cavanaugh?

Every one of these white things is filled with some kind of juice and it burns. Some of it just fell in the hand, and there's a big pool of it at the bottom. I can't hang on much longer.

That liquid will be mainly hydrochloric acid.

Creature that size, without teeth would necessarily secrete.

Powerful to jesty juice. Kavanaugh's doomed, but he's lucky. He still has his knife. Orter him to use it, mister Pomeroy.

Yes, sir Kavanaugh, can you still hear me any answer? There's nothing we can, no way that we are, anybody else can help you. But you can die like a human being. You've got your knife.

I can't do it, sir. It's a gainer religion.

He won't do it, sir. He says it's against his religion.

Tell him it's an order, mister Pomeroy, Yes, sir, Kavana.

Captain Campbell's order is that you kill yourself now with your knife.

He's praying, sir, Yes, it's all over.

Let the men have some air from the tanks, mister Pomeroy, not too much, Yes, and try to raise our base at mott.

We still aren't giving up.

No, lock it up.

Let a night. He wasship hereby, and she's channing our signals.

Shall I try to raise the iteas maybe they can get this out of here.

No.

I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of knowing we were caught like rats in a trap by a bloody fish. Put a man on the audiophone here, sir, the kraken will leave this then sometime when it does, we'll surface and look for a way out.

M h.

I believe it's leaving, probably hungry, sir, and after two days it should be give me the pood here the answer. It's going out, all right. I can barely hear it.

Blow all, thanks, mister pomme roy easy, yes, sir, blow all, thanks all. Thanks? It is, sir, easy, does it? We haven't fought a goose here. Our death sir, we're not o good. Follow me, mister Pomeroy, and we'll take a quick look. See.

Yes, Sir, may take that monster as much as the full date feeds. Will probably have plenty of time to get ready for it when it comes back. This search like, mister palm Roy. Nothing, there sallid rock on top. They're opening on that Saturday. That's what I was afraid of, mister Palmroy. The tunnel mouth is underwater, so we'll probably have the devil's own time finding it.

What do you think this cave is, sir, an ancient volcano?

Not exactly.

Notice the poles in that rock over there.

Yes, sir, Stratum was forced up at some time, and the sim's been cut out by the sea. You can see the mark ocean. Then the lamb dropped and carried the tunnel below sea level. Organize a gunproof and the men who have left, mister Palmroy.

You you think we'll get out, sir, we'll get out. Never doubt that for a moment, mister. The first thing we've got to do is to kill that monster when it comes back. We can't do anything while they're still danger. It may turn up at any minute.

Russell says he can hear it from the audiophone.

Captain, twenty two hours since it left. That's about what I thought it would be. It's coming back.

Then, while those eight shells into as fast as you can lose. As soon as it gets in sight, I'll turn the search slide off and I'll fire a player so it can't spot us too easily.

We're ready share.

Let it come.

I can hear it, sir, can't be very far away.

Now there it is, that's the.

Light, mister POMERI, yes, sure, then I'm letting the player go.

Make every shot.

Phone in blast its head. It's the point, as taught the man, rapidfire our shame, no and then no off under what aim for the body.

Who Captain is calling the whole travel a king's dropping all the stun seas firing then see fie The smash of stone wiped them.

Out, smashed the pieces like an egg shell.

We'll go below, mister Pomeroy, see if we can salvage a couple of divers suits you and know all that little left of our compliment.

But we can still get out of here.

Hello, Captain Campbell, can you hear me?

Thank me?

Mister, let me give my receiver a little monjuice tight again, can you hear me?

Now?

Sir?

Okay, now, how's your reception?

Lucky we had these diving rings. We wouldn't do much good with nothing more than a long These.

May turn out to be no better. So these you've got a chance. Here's what will do, mister Palmroy. The Krackan isn't dead, although it's lost all its tentacles.

It's my idea. It twill head for the open sea.

And we follow it through the tunnel, sir, Not follow, mister.

You forget that tunnel is at least a quarter of a mile long, and only Father Neptune himself knows what kind of a bottom it has. The crack and told us in here, and I intend that it shall tow us out. But how sir, with this harpoon, it always the big enough target that I shouldn't miss. When I harpoon it, it will probably dive into the tunnel. You grab the line and go overside, and I'll be right behind you. Inflate your suit so that you float clear

I understand, sir.

When we're clear of the tunnel, cast off and load of the surface tied is flowing down, it was to shore.

Here it comes, mister get ready, I hit him, grab the line and hang on. Thumbs up, mister Parmaro.

Lift.

Senate Alastair Montgomery, Commander of His Majesty's Sir, Cadmus, we'll take the stand at your service, sir. It was your ship which picked up Captain Donald Campbell, late commander of His Majesty's submarine thesis.

They're very anxious to add anything.

We can to Captain Campbell's report that his ship was destroyed by Italian depth bombs.

It was quite mysterious, sir.

We were on patrol in the general area fifteen degrees west and thirty six degrees north when we spotted an object floating in the sea. We approached it with proper caution and discovered it to be Captain Campbell. He was in his inflated diving room and he was unconscious.

Yet you were able to identify him immediately.

Yes, sir, He and I were together on the wharf's bite before he added the sub service. We made him as comfortable as possible in my quarters. But it was twenty four hours before he recovered consciousness, and then.

He was raving Poper his ravings about.

He kept insisting, Sir, that his vessel had been attacked by the Kraken, a huge monster.

Sir, Yes, I I am well acquainted with the mythological aspects of the Krakean go on, Lieutenant Well.

After a few hours, Sir Campbell seemed to come to his senses.

He then dictated to me the report which this board already has in his possession.

You're sure you wrote this report word for word, as Captain Campbell dictated it, Yes, sir.

It was simply that the Thesis had been attacked and sunk by Italian destroyers. That Captain Campbell and his second in command, Lieutenant Iron Pomeroy, were the only survivors, that for two days they attempted to communicate with the Letter or another of His Majesty's ships, and that finally, in diving suits, they attempted to leave the Thesis and reached the surface.

You found no trace of Lieutenant Pomeroy, Nosa, continued Lieutenant.

Yes, Sir.

Captain Campbell asked to be alone for a few minutes, so I left him. Less than half an hour later, I heard a shot. He was seated at my desk and had taken my pistol out of the drawer. He was shot through the temple. And this note that you mentioned in my report, it was very strange, sir. It made me realize that poor Campbell never had actually recovered his sanity.

Please repeat what was in the note, Lieutenant, Yes, sir.

The note read, ammander loses his ship to a fish and then survives the loss of his vessel and its entire crew. Not a nice story to return to the world with. Those were the exact words, sirs. There's no doubt Captain Campbell was stark manned. We buried him at sea, to the sea which took his mind.

We gave his body.

You have just heard The Kraken, a short story by Frederick Engelhardt, which appeared originally in Unknown Magazine, Especially adapted for Author's Playhouse by Jack Mitchell and directed by mister homer Heck. Captain Campbell was played by mister William Everett, Lieutenant Pomeroy by.

Mister Charles Irving.

Others in the cast were mister Sid Breese, mister Charles Eggleston, mister Leo Curley, mister Wallace Owen and mister McKay Morris. The original musical score was written and conducted by doctor Roy Shield. This has been the first in a new nine week summer series of Author's Playhouse productions, radio adaptations of the best in the field of short stories, selections from the works of contemporary writers as well as the

Up Famous m H. This is the National Broadcasting Company

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