Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

Latest Episodes:

BONUS - Five Favorites: Rocky Fortune Nov 15, 2023

Show notes

In this bonus show, I'm sharing my five favorite episodes of Frank Sinatra trading crooning for crimesolving in Rocky Fortune. Ol' Blue Eyes starred in this short-lived series as a "footloose and fancy-free young gentleman" bouncing from job to job and finding mystery and murder wherever he landed. We'll hear Mr. Fortune as a cruise ship steward in "The Shipboard Jewel Robbery" (originally aired on NBC on October 20, 1953) and as the minder for a drunk theatre critic in "Murder on the Aisle" (originally aired on NBC on November 24, 1953). He tries not to get lassoed for a crime he didn't commit in "The Rodeo Murder" (originally aired on NBC on January 12, 1954) and he finds a fresh body in a sarcophagus in "The Museum Murder" (originally aired on NBC on January 19, 1954). Finally, Rocky is behind the wheel of a truck hauling nitro in "Hollywood or Boom" (originally aired on NBC on January 26, 1954).

Episode 559 - We Didn't Start the Fire (Boston Blackie, Counterspy, & Johnny Dollar) Nov 12, 2023

Show notes

The heat is on with three old time radio cases of arson. First, Boston Blackie investigates a convoluted case of a love triangle, a torched building, and murder. Then, it's "The Case of the Arrogant Arsonist," an adventure from Counterspy(originally aired on ABC on September 16, 1949) that finds government agent David Harding hunting an ex-Nazi working as a firebug in the US of A. Finally, John Lund stars as "the man with the action-packed expense account" in "The Lester Matson Matter" from Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar (AFRS rebroadcast; originally aired on September 8, 1953).

Episode 558 - Seeing Double (Mollé Mystery Theatre, The Whistler, Let George Do It, & Johnny Dollar) Nov 05, 2023

Show notes

Danger comes in pairs in this week's quartet old time radio mysteries involving identical twins and dopplegangers. First, a gangster uses a lookalike drifter to create an "Alibi for Murder" on The Mollé Mystery Theatre (originally aired on NBC on March 22, 1946). Next, a pair of twin foals leads to a plot to fix races in "The Big Gamble" from The Whistler (originally aired on CBS on October 3, 1948). Finally, we'll hear Bob Bailey in two shows. First, he's George Valentine in Hawaii investigating a case of twin sister trouble in "Journey Into Hate" from Let George Do It (originally aired on Mutual on February 21, 1949), and then he's Johnny Dollar looking for a missing heir in "The Twisted Twin Matter" (originally aired on CBS on August 21, 1960).

Episode 557 - Mummy Dearest (Green Hornet, Crime Club, & Barrie Craig) Oct 29, 2023

Show notes

With Halloween only a few days away, the sleuthing turns spooky with old time radio mysteries involving mummies. First, The Green Hornet discovers a murder in a museum, a missing ruby, and a sarcophagus crime scene in "Revenge for Melakim" (originally aired on ABC on June 15, 1944). Next, a fresh body is found in the place of a mummy in "Murder Makes a Mummy" from Crime Club (originally aired on ABC on May 29, 1947), and then William Gargan gets a mummy delivered to his office - along with a visit from an Egyptian princess - in "Never Murder a Mummy" from Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator (originally aired on NBC on March 30, 1955).

BONUS - Son of Halloween Hoopla! Oct 27, 2023

Show notes

The moon is full, there's a chill in the air, and everything smells like pumpkin spice. It's time for the annual Down These Mean Streets spooktacular special! We're trick-or-treating through the golden age of radio with eight shows that will get you in the Halloween spirit. First, Orson Welles goes for a drive in "The Hitch-hiker" from Suspense (originally aired on CBS on September 2, 1942), and Jack Benny and Harold Peary as The Great Gildersleeve each attend Halloween parties (originally aired on NBC on October 29, 1939 and October 31, 1943). We'll learn about real-life psychic phenomena in "Report on E.S.P" from The CBS Radio Workshop (originally aired on CBS on March 9, 1956) and we'll witness a small town's dark tradition in Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" from NBC Presents Short Story (originally aired on NBC on March 14, 1951). Abbott and Costello pay a visit to Peter Lorre's sanitarium (originally aired on NBC on January 13, 1944) and a recently departed soul learns the ropes in "Good Ghost," a darkly comedic tale from Quiet Please (originally aired on ABC on October 28, 1948). Finally, the world's greatest detective hunts for a supernatural suspect in "The Sussex Vampire" from The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (originally aired on Mutual on December 14, 1947).

Episode 556 - The Bunco Bunch (Bunco Squad, Dragnet, & The Line-Up) Oct 15, 2023

Show notes

Hold on to your wallets when you're around the smooth-talking con artists and swindlers in this week's show. Fortunately, some dogged radio detectives are also on hand to stop these scammers in their tracks. We'll hear "The Case of the Bookworm" from Bunco Squad (originally aired on CBS on April 20, 1952). Then, Sgt. Joe Friday tracks down a phony investment guru in "The Big Bunco" from Dragnet (originally aired on NBC on April 17, 1952), and on The Line-Up, Lt. Ben Guthrie pursues a crook preying on families of deceased soldiers in "The Buggered Bunco Boys" (originally aired on CBS on November 12, 1952).

Episode 555 - Killer Queen (Ellery Queen) Oct 08, 2023

Show notes

It's time to match your powers of deduction against those of Ellery Queen and see if you can solve three baffling radio mysteries before he reveals the solutions. We'll hear the brilliant sleuth in "The Adventure of the Circus Train" (originally aired on NBC on March 28, 1943); "The Adventure of the Mischief Maker" (originally aired on NBC on January 15, 1944); and "The Three Frogs" (originally aired on ABC on April 29, 1948). Plus, some sixty-second Ellery Queen radio mysteries with quick puzzles for your sleuthing pleasure!

Episode 554 - Know When to Fold 'Em (Boston Blackie, Big Story, & Dragnet) Oct 01, 2023

Show notes

Ante up for three radio mysteries involving gamblers and the sometimes deadly bets they make. First, a pet shop owner is killed when he refuses to offer his store as a front for a gambling ring in Boston Blackie. Then, a real-life Chicago reporter cracks the case of a poker game that ends in murder on The Big Story (originally aired on NBC on April 4, 1951). And finally, Sgt. Joe Friday hunts for floating games in the City of Angels in "The Big Gamble" from Dragnet (originally aired on NBC on May 8, 1952).

Episode 553 - Music and Mayhem (The Saint & Johnny Dollar) Sep 24, 2023

Show notes

It's a concert of crime in this week's episode, as two radio detectives tackle cases in the music world. First, Simon Templar investigates when a pianist is shot and killed at the keys. Vincent Price stars in "A Sonata for Slayers" from The Saint (originally aired on NBC on June 18, 1950). Then, Bob Bailey stars as Johnny Dollar in "The Ricardo Amerigo Matter," where "America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator" hunts for a missing violinist and his violin (originally aired on CBS between January 16 and January 20, 1956).

Episode 552 - Belgian, No Waffling (Hercule Poirot) Sep 17, 2023

Show notes

Hercule Poirot - Agatha Christie's brilliant Belgian sleuth - is back on the big screen in A Haunting in Venice. To celebrate his return, we'll hear three old time radio adventures of Poirot starring Harold Huber as the detective. We'll hear "Death in the Golden Gate" (originally aired on Mutual on May 17, 1945), "The Adventure of the Money Mad Ghoul" (originally aired on Mutual on September 13, 1945) and the series' audition episode "The Case of the Roving Corpse."

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