Title: The House of Horror
Air date: November 17, 1940
Plot summary: Two mooks kidnap a gorilla from a zoo. Lamont Cranston and Margo Lane speculate about the bizarre gorilla-napping for a bit as he's taking her out to lunch. To Lamont's irritation, Margo has selected a cheesy "Gypsy Tea Room" as the spot they'll have lunch. The tea room gets more interesting, however, when Lamont hears a "gypsy" (the people who are properly called Romani) telling a fortune in the next room. The fortune teller, one Madame Sonto, is giving a reading to a customer named Doris. Doris has lost a necklace, and Madame Sonto says that her lost necklace may be found in the mouth of a gorilla at a certain taxidermy shop.
Doris, being a gullible dimwit, goes to the taxidermy shop and attempts to open the mouth of the gorilla. She is kidnapped and becomes the prisoner of Professor Fielding, a mad scientist with a plot to transplant bits of gorilla brain into Doris to make her both super-strong and his obedient slave. The Professor however does not know about Lamont Cranston, who reads about the disappearance of a society woman, Doris Molnar. Lamont sends Margo to Madame Sonto, who sure enough directs her to a particular taxidermy shop—but this time with The Shadow following.
Notes: A Season 1 episode was also titled "The House of Horror", but the two episodes feature completely different stories. Many sources feature a recording that is identified as the first season episode aired February 13, 1938, but is actually this one.
Tropes:
- Cat Scare: Margo is freaked out by something "wet and slimy" brushing against her leg as they approach the taxidermy shop. It's a black cat.
- Extra! Extra! Read All About It!: "Extry, extry, society girl missing" is how Lamont finds out about the disappearance of Doris Molnar.
- Foreshadowing: The gorilla starts howling in its cage and Madame Sonto recoils, expressing her fear of the beast. Sure enough, at the end it kills both her and the professor.
- Gilligan Cut: Lamont recoils with horror at the sight of Ye Olde and Quainte Gypsy Tea Room, saying "I absolutely and definitively am not going into that—". The next line is Margo saying "More tea, Lamont?", the story having advanced into the tea room where they are having lunch.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: After becoming convinced that Madame Sonto betrayed him—The Shadow chooses to actually say this—Prof. Fielding gets the bright idea to release his angry, violent gorilla. The gorilla kills both Madame Sonto and the professor before The Shadow shoots it.
- Karma Houdini: Lamont does not know and never learns about the two mooks who stole the gorilla, meaning that said mooks got away with killing the night watchman.
- Killer Gorilla: It might be only because he's been kidnapped and locked in a cage by a Mad Scientist, but after Professor Fielding releases the gorilla, it kills both him and Madame Sonto. Lamont has to shoot it.
- Madame Fortune: Madame Sonto, the Romani fortune teller who is in cahoots with Professor Fielding and leads Doris into the professor's trap.
- Mad Scientist: Professor Fielding is straight from central casting. He's going to plant pieces of gorilla brain into young women, rendering them super-strong, and his obedient slaves. This will allow him to pull off all sorts of crimes and maybe, just maybe, "RULE THE WORLD!"
- Not in Front of the Parrot!: The Shadow learns the name of Madame Sonto's partner in crime when her pet parrot blurts out "Professor Fielding! Professsor Fielding!"
- Phony Psychic: Madame Sonto, a con artist who is partnering with Professor Fielding in his scheme.
- Roguish Romani: Madame Sonto is a con artist and criminal who helps Professor Fielding to kidnap a young woman.
- Rhymes on a Dime: Just in case being a demented Mad Scientist wasn't enough, Prof. Fielding also rhymes most of his dialogue, saying stuff like "Nothing to worry, no need to fear. The time awaited is almost here," or, "Two women I need if I should succeed." At one point he says "Enough of my silly jingles!", before explaining in prose his monkey brain scheme to Madame Sonto.
- Taxidermy Is Creepy: It is, which is why Doris says "What an eerie place" as she enters the deserted shop. This does not stop her from blundering right into the trap.
- Villain Opening Scene: The first scene has two mooks chloroforming and stealing a gorilla, and in the process murdering the night watchman who spots them.
- Ye Olde Butcherede Englishe: Lamont strongly objects to going to some twee eatery called "Ye Olde and Quainte Gypsy Tea Room". It's definitely spelled that way because the actor pronounces the words as "old-y" and "quaint-y".
