Stroke of Fate
Stroke of Fate was an American radio drama, originally aired in 1953.
This NBC Radio alternate history series aired 13 episodes from October 4 to December 27, 1953, featuring actors such as Ed Begley, Alexander Scourby, , and Santos Ortega. The episodes were written by Mort Lewis and George Faulkner, directed by , and announced by . Each 30-minute episode aired Sunday nights at 8 pm ET. Each episode had an alternate history point of divergence and dramatized the results of that change.
Air date | Title | Point of divergence |
---|---|---|
October 4 | "Robert E. Lee" | At Winfield Scott's request, Lee becomes General of the United States Army at the beginning of the Civil War, instead of later leading the Confederacy's. |
October 11 | "The Earl of Essex" | Robert Devereux succeeds in overthrowing Elizabeth I of England. |
October 18 | "The Burr-Hamilton Duel" | During the Hamilton-Burr duel, Alexander Hamilton shot and killed Aaron Burr. |
October 25 | "Escape of Marie Antoinette" | Marie Antoinette flees Paris during the French Revolution, and is not guillotined. |
November 1 | "Lincoln's Consular Service" | Abraham Lincoln obtains the consular job he wanted in 1841, which does not result in him becoming President. |
November 8 | "Benedict Arnold" | Benedict Arnold manages to hand West Point over to the British in the American Revolution. |
November 15 | "Caesar and Cleopatra" | Julius Caesar weds Cleopatra VII of Egypt in 50 BCE. |
November 22 | "Germany Invades-Rhineland" | France uses military force to oppose Hitler's occupation of the Rhineland in 1936. |
November 29 | "Battle of Quebec" | The French win the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in 1759, and retain Quebec. |
December 6 | "Our Neighbor in Alaska" | Russia does not sell Alaska to the United States in 1867. |
December 13 | "Alexander the Great" | Alexander the Great survives his illness in 323 BCE and continues his conquest of Asia. |
December 20 | "America's First Secret Weapon" | David Bushnell's submarine, the Turtle, is used successfully to sink and destroy British ships in the American Revolution. |
December 27 | "Norman Conquest of England" | The Normans fail to conquer England in 1066. |
All of the episodes have survived.
References[]
- Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-507678-8.
Categories:
- American radio dramas
- 1950s American radio programs
- Alternate history plays
- NBC radio programs
- 1953 radio programme debuts
- 1953 radio programme endings
- American Civil War alternate histories
- Anthology radio series
- American science fiction radio programs