RonRon

Peter Lorre

Sound Effects are crucial, since the success of a radio thriller hinges on the ability to create vivid mental images of the action. “You need to look for settings that have sound effects that work,” said Oney. “A restaurant, for example, has recognizable sounds.

Oney and the crew generated all their own sound effects. The low moan of a fog horn was simulated by blowing across the top of a tequila bottle. The sharp crackle of flames was created by crinkling plastic. And Steve mimicked the buzzing of mosquitos for one night time scene.

Steve Oney will go to any lengths to find interesting sounds. “We did recordings in a Jacuzzi tub, from inside a car wash and in a World War turret in the backyard of an Osterville house for this show,” he explains.

Armed with a tape recorder while on a trip to Florida, Oney got the idea of taking it into the hot tub with him. “I put the mic in a plastic bag so it could go under water,” Oney remebers. He then experimented, placing it sometimes close to and other times away from the powerful jets. “It made a variety of sounds. I’ll use the sound where they’re trapped on the bottom in the sub and they have to set off some explosives to try to free themselves,” he says, obviously quite pleased with the results.

To create the sound of the bathysphere being lowered into the ocean, Oney and his wife Debbie, late one night, secured microphones to the back wheels of their Volvo wagon and put one down the gas tank. They then rocked the car back and forth to find just the right sloshing sound.

Steve oney is always thinking sound. When a reporter rewinds film in an automatic camera, Oney likes the sound and stores away the idea away for a future production. For one show, Oney needed sounds of cars crossing a bridge. he went around his house pounding everything with his fist to see what it sounded like. Finally he found hitting a piece of rubber with a toilet bowl plunger gave him the effect he wanted.

For every 20 things that Oney tries, he uses one. He sometimes prethinks effects that he needs. It’s been said that Oney doesn’t watch a sunset, he “listens” to it, perceiving even the enviroment through his ears.

Some sound is recorded on video tape on a digital recorder which produces a quieter, more suitable sound for compact dicc and can be more easily manipulated when edited. The sounds are then laid on six-track tape along with the dialogue, other sound effects and original music. “Quality and time are related,” Oney says of the laborious process. “There is a sculpting process to it.”

Listen to this CCRMT radio ad, heard on radio stations which air the program! (It stars Steven Thomas Oney and Mark Birmingham; you’ll have to figure out who’s who!)

CCRMT Radio Ad (:59)

We’ve put together some coming attractions for our productions. Give them a listen!

Don’t Touch That Dial!
The Case of the Indian Flashlights
The Queen Is In The Counting House
Some People Are Missing On Canal Street
The Caller on Line One
The Legacy of Euriah Pillar

Check out these samples of our productions!

The Caller on Line One (1:50)
The Legacy of Euriah Pillar (:48)
The Case of the Indian Flashlights (1:50)
The Queen is in the Counting House (1:16)
The Whirlpool (3:04)
Danger at Seven Mile Bend (1:50)
The Buoy (2:05)
The Curse of the Whale’s Tooth (3:23)
The Hypnotist (2:23)
Murder from the Bridge (1:38)
The Golden Idol, the Magwitch, and the Donkey’s Tail (1:43)
Some People Are Missing on Canal Street (2:24)
Mr. Hugo’s Night to Remember (2:01)
A Test for Murder (1:45)
Five Fathom Rip (1:52)
Playback (2:07)

For those of you who, over the years, have enjoyed the music of Cape Cod Radio Mystery Theater, which has been an integral part of the quality of the series since its inception, (for example, the inspired CCRMT theme music and the tour-de-force underscoring to shows like Danger at Seven Mile Bend, Don’t Touch That Dial and The Case of the Shooting Star), we invite you to partake of composer Mark Birmingham’s piano based, instrumental CD, Garden Life, featuring the same impeccable musicianship in 9 original compositions that are thrilling, not because they underscore some dramatic scene, but because they are thrilling in themselves.