The Shadow Eps 12 1937 12 12 The Death Triangle

"The Death Triangle," the twelfth episode of The Shadow radio drama, aired on December 12, 1937, on the Mutual Broadcasting System, starring Orson Welles as Lamont Cranston/The Shadow and Agnes Moorehead as Margot Lane. Set in 1937, the story begins with a flashback to 1913, where a prisoner, Jacques Corvet, a convicted murderer, is brutally flogged on Devil’s Island after a betrayed escape attempt, vowing revenge on his three fellow escapees: Dr. James Evans, Raymond Dubrille, and Pierre Martin. In the present, a false radio bulletin claims The Shadow, wounded, forced Dr. Evans to treat him, prompting The Shadow to contact Evans. Evans, a former political prisoner who escaped with the others, reveals he fabricated the story to enlist The Shadow’s help, as he and the other escapees are being hunted. During their escape years ago, their water ran out, and Corvet, driven mad by thirst, accused the others of theft and swore to kill them. Now, someone—presumably Corvet—is targeting them. As The Shadow investigates, Margot Lane follows Evans’ car, unaware the bulletin was false. The Shadow uses his hypnotic ability to "cloud men's minds" to unravel the mystery, leading to a deadly confrontation where Dubrille shoots Corvet, only for Corvet (revealed as Evans in disguise) to kill Dubrille with a thrown knife before dying. The episode, rich with suspense, atmospheric storytelling, and a Hellhole Prison backdrop, explores betrayal and vengeance, culminating in a tragic mutual kill, with The Shadow’s intervention restoring justice.