Episode 63 aired September 11, 1945 on CBS Radio. Based on the film Conflict is a love triangle with murder at its heart, rainy nights, looming shadows, fatal romance and a trench-coated killer that walks out of the mist. Humphrey Bogart portrays Richard Mason, married to nagging Katherine but in love with her sunny sister. Shortly after a fifth-year wedding celebration at the home of a friend, Richard decides to remove the obstacle to his happiness. He kills Katherine, carefully leaving no evidence of his guilt. Or at least he thinks he killed her - until mysterious events cause Richard to fear Katherine is very much alive. Theater of Romance ran on the CBS network as a filler show between 1943 and 1957. It substituted from time to time for such shows as Gunsmoke, Life with Luigi, Lux Radio Theater, and many others. Producers, directors, and actors changed constantly through the years. Even the locale changed from New York to Los Angeles in 1945. Romance featured such stars as Henry Fonda, Humphrey Bogart, Gregory Peck, Shirley Temple, and many other Hollywood stars, often binding the story lines with the films in which the stars were currently being featured. The themed stories often revolved around historical fiction as well, and broadcast before a live audience. As the series progressed, the writing and stories improved. So even though it was only a filler show, it gained a faithful listening audience, making it almost as popular as the Lux Radio Theatre. And, as good romances should have, it nearly always had a happy ending.
