The Fateful Bell
Description
A prominent mandarin of 15th century China is ordered by the emperor to cast a bell big enough to be heard for 100 li (33 miles)—or be beheaded. Kuoan-Fu is petrified when the order to build the bell arrives. He sees it as an almost impossible task. Even with the aid of Chinas top artisans, two casting attempts fail. His only hope seems to be young Ming-Yee, a commoner who is seeking the hand of his daughter, Ko Nagai. Only Ko knows of the sacrifice that must be agreed to—with a witch—if the casting of the giant bell is to be successful.
A lowly artisan falls in love with the daughter of the emperor while casting a gigantic bell made of precious metal in this tragic romance set in ancient China.
A poor craftsman falls for the emperor's daughter as he creates a massive bell from valuable metal in this sad love story from old China.
CBS Radio Mystery Theater is a radio drama series created by Himan Brown that was broadcast on CBS Radio Network affiliates from 1974 to 1982, and later in the early 2000s was repeated by the NPR satellite feed. In New York City it was not aired by the then all-news WCBS but by its originating station, WOR, which produced and announced it as simply Radio Mystery Theater.
Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Updated Jul 16, 2026.
