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::rocks back in his rocking chair, spits out a wad of chaw, and cradles his shotgun in his lap::
You dang kids get off my lawn with your hot rods and rock and roll!
In the 1970s, Power Records and Peter Pan Records did some dramatized audio productions (on vinyl - that was before... oh never mind) in which a narrator recounted the action, a cast provided the dialog, and sound FX provided the context. Their licenses included both Marvel and DC heroes, as well as Conan the Barbarian, G.I.Joe (alas, not the Real American Hero), the Six-Million Dollar Man, Star Trek, Planet of the Apes and many more. The programs were intended to appeal to pre-teens and elementary school kids, but were scripted by luminaries like Dennis O'Neill, Bill Wells, JM DeMatteis, Stan Lee, and many more. The result was a series of mature stories that were neither too complex for kids nor too simplistic for adults. Admittedly, some were better than others, but several of the shows were surprisingly dark and complex. I have come to appreciate them for their stories, and not just the nostalgia.
A great many of these may be found for free download at the Power Records Plaza archive.
http://powerrecordsplaza.blogspot.com/
The Dirk Maggs audio dramas were mostly done in the 90s and admittedly spectacular. I was privileged to be in the UK for the broadcast of Superman: Doomsday and Beyond, and bought both that and Knightfall on cassette before I left. Dirk has done a great many excellent audios. You can add Judge Dredd to that list of yours, as well as The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and several Agatha Christie stories. His production company is making his productions available again on CD, check for them on Amazon!
I would classify the Dirk Maggs productions as "pure audio drama", much like what Paeter has done with "Similitude of a Dream". As for inventing the format, I'd have to argue that honor goes to the pioneers of radio in the 1920s. Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air are largely credited for bringing the first high-quality studio productions to audio drama, consisting of an army of musicians and foley artists all performing and recording LIVE. Maggs did great things to revitalize interest in the format, but he stood on the shoulders of giants to get there.
You dang kids get off my lawn with your hot rods and rock and roll!
In the 1970s, Power Records and Peter Pan Records did some dramatized audio productions (on vinyl - that was before... oh never mind) in which a narrator recounted the action, a cast provided the dialog, and sound FX provided the context. Their licenses included both Marvel and DC heroes, as well as Conan the Barbarian, G.I.Joe (alas, not the Real American Hero), the Six-Million Dollar Man, Star Trek, Planet of the Apes and many more. The programs were intended to appeal to pre-teens and elementary school kids, but were scripted by luminaries like Dennis O'Neill, Bill Wells, JM DeMatteis, Stan Lee, and many more. The result was a series of mature stories that were neither too complex for kids nor too simplistic for adults. Admittedly, some were better than others, but several of the shows were surprisingly dark and complex. I have come to appreciate them for their stories, and not just the nostalgia.
A great many of these may be found for free download at the Power Records Plaza archive.
http://powerrecordsplaza.blogspot.com/
The Dirk Maggs audio dramas were mostly done in the 90s and admittedly spectacular. I was privileged to be in the UK for the broadcast of Superman: Doomsday and Beyond, and bought both that and Knightfall on cassette before I left. Dirk has done a great many excellent audios. You can add Judge Dredd to that list of yours, as well as The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and several Agatha Christie stories. His production company is making his productions available again on CD, check for them on Amazon!
I would classify the Dirk Maggs productions as "pure audio drama", much like what Paeter has done with "Similitude of a Dream". As for inventing the format, I'd have to argue that honor goes to the pioneers of radio in the 1920s. Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre on the Air are largely credited for bringing the first high-quality studio productions to audio drama, consisting of an army of musicians and foley artists all performing and recording LIVE. Maggs did great things to revitalize interest in the format, but he stood on the shoulders of giants to get there.
