Portrait Of A Killer

On a fog-laden evening in 1940s Manhattan, a wealthy art collector discovers that the newly acquired portrait hanging in his study bears an unsettling resemblance to a murder victim found in the city morgue—a woman who died decades before the painting was created. As the collector becomes increasingly obsessed with uncovering the portrait's origins, each lead draws him deeper into a labyrinth of deception, blackmail, and supernatural dread. In "Portrait of a Killer," the CBS Radio Mystery Theater delivers a masterclass in psychological suspense, where the line between artistic inspiration and genuine premonition grows perilously thin. With every creaking floorboard and ominous orchestral swell, listeners are pulled into a world where beauty conceals the darkest of secrets, and the past refuses to remain buried.

The CBS Radio Mystery Theater, which aired from 1974 to 1982, represented the final golden age of radio drama in America. Though episodes like "Portrait of a Killer" were produced in the 1970s, their storytelling sensibilities harked back to the great mystery serials of radio's heyday—drawing inspiration from the 1940s aesthetic and narrative techniques while delivering contemporary psychological complexity. Host E.G. Marshall's commanding presence and the show's commitment to theatrical production values made each episode feel like attending an intimate stage performance through your speakers, a testament to radio's enduring power to conjure entire worlds through sound alone.

Don't miss this haunting exploration of obsession and artistic madness. Settle into your favorite chair, dim the lights, and prepare yourself for "Portrait of a Killer"—a masterpiece of old-time radio that proves some images, once glimpsed, can never be unseen.