Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

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Episode 527 - Shiver Me Timbers (Man Called X, Frank Race, & Pursuit) Mar 26, 2023

Show notes

Hoist the sail for a triple feature of detectives vs. 20th century pirates! First, as secret agent Ken Thurston, Herbert Marshall hunts a gang that's looting relief ships in the Red Sea in The Man Called X (originally aired on CBS on June 19, 1947). Then, Tom Collins stars in the syndicated show "The Case of the Vanishing President" - a story of piracy and a revolution from The Adventures of Frank Race. And finally, Inspector Peter Black is on the river in search of a ship full of modern day pirates in London. Ben Wright stars in "Pursuit of the Thames Pirates" from Pursuit (originally aired on CBS on February 12, 1952).

Episode 526 - Master Class (Mollé Mystery Theatre & Campbell Playhouse) Mar 19, 2023

Show notes

This week, we've got stories from three of the all-time great mystery writers - literary giants who gave us some of the most famous detectives in fiction. We'll hear adaptations of Raymond Chandler's "Murder in the City Hall" and Agatha Christie's "Witness for the Prosecution" from The Mollé Mystery Theatre (originally aired on NBC on April 5 and May 31, 1946). And in between those shows, we'll hear Orson Welles in Dashiell Hammett's "The Glass Key" presented on The Campbell Playhouse (originally aired on CBS on March 10, 1939).

Episode 525 - Gold Statue Gumshoes (Rex Saunders, Johnny Dollar, Defense Attorney, & Rocky Fortune) Mar 12, 2023

Show notes

In honor of the 95th Academy Awards, we'll hear four old time radio detective stars who took home Oscars of their own. First, Rex Harrison stars as a debonair sleuth in "Murder Deep in the Killer's Mind" from The Private Files of Rex Saunders (originally aired on NBC on June 20, 1951). Next, Edmond O'Brien is "the man with the action-packed expense account" in "The Malcolm D. Wish, M.D. Matter" from Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar (originally aired on CBS on June 20, 1951). Then, as Defense Attorney, Mercedes McCambridge fights to clear the name of "Client George Baughman" (originally aired on ABC on August 28, 1952). And finally, Frank Sinatra - Ol' Blue Eyes himself - tries to help a woman who fears she's going crazy in "Psychological Murder" from Rocky Fortune (originally aired on NBC on March 16, 1954).

Episode 524 - Everybody Loves a Clown (Casebook of Gregory Hood, Sherlock Holmes, & Lives of Harry Lime) Mar 05, 2023

Show notes

Okay, maybe not everybody loves clowns, but I bet you'll enjoy these three old time radio mysteries featuring the circus' most colorful performers. First, Gregory Hood solves the murder of "The Sad Clown" (originally aired on Mutual on October 7, 1946). Then, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson investigate deadly doings under the big top in "The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger" (originally aired on Mutual on June 20, 1948). And finally, Orson Welles catches up with his old friend - a smuggler, a ladies' man, and a clown - in "The Painted Smile," a syndicated episode from The Lives of Harry Lime.

Episode 523 - As Seen on TV (Dragnet) Feb 26, 2023

Show notes

From 1952 until 1957, fans of Dragnet could catch one episode on radio and a different story on television. The adventures of Sgt. Joe Friday aired concurrently on radio and the small screen for hundreds of shows, and this week we'll hear three radio episodes that were later adapted for TV. We'll hear the show that was adapted as the first episode of the TV series (originally aired on NBC on July 21, 1949), "The Big Lease" (originally aired on NBC on November 1, 1951), and "The Big Show" (originally aired on NBC on April 10, 1952).

Click here to watch "The Human Bomb."

Click here to watch "The Big Lease."

Click here to watch "The Big Show."

BONUS - Five Favorites: The Fat Man Feb 24, 2023

Show notes

Created by Dashiell Hammett, The Fat Man was one of radio's most popular mystery shows. It was on the verge of spinning off into a series of movies with radio star J. Scott Smart reprising his role of private eye Brad Runyon. But then Hammett ran afoul of the House Un-American Activities Committee and the crimesolving career of the Fat Man came to an end. In this month's bonus episode, I'm sharing my five favorite adventures of Runyon - "the fast-moving criminologist who tips the scales at 237 pounds." We'll start with the show's first episode - "The Nineteenth Pearl" (originally aired on ABC on January 21, 1946). Then, he tries to help a woman who's being pressured back into a life of crime in "The Black Angel" (originally aired on ABC on July 8, 1946). The Fat Man tries to help a friend who witnesses a murder in a neighboring apartment in "A Window for Murder" (originally aired on ABC on October 3, 1947), and Runyon heads to Mexico to solve a case south of the border in "Murder Wins the Draw" (originally aired on ABC on April 1, 1949). Finally, in "The NIghtmare Murder" (originally aired on ABC on January 17, 1951), a man hires Runyon to prove he's guilty of murder.

Episode 522 - Fistful of Dollars (Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar) Feb 19, 2023

Show notes

"America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator" is on the case - three of them - in this week's episode. We're celebrating the anniversary of the radio debut of Johnny Dollar with a trio of old time radio mysteries starring "the man with the action-packed expense account." First, Charles Russell is Johnny in "The Case of Barton Drake" (originally aired on CBS on April 22, 1949). Next, we'll hear "The William Post Matter" (originally aired on CBS on September 22, 1953) with John Lund as Dollar. And finally, Mandel Kramer stars in "The Bee or Not to Bee Matter" (originally aired on CBS on October 29, 1961).

Episode 521 - Till Death Do Them Part (Mollé Mystery Theatre, Murder By Experts, & The Abbotts) Feb 12, 2023

Show notes

With Valetine's Day right around the corner, we're celebrating with three crimesolving couples from the golden age of radio. First, in "A Crime to Fit the Punishment" from The Mollé Mystery Theatre, an amateur sleuth and his girlfriend investigate a strange case of blackmail (AFRS rebroadcast). Next, it's another adventure of the Duke and Duchess from Murder By Experts - the locked room mystery "The Unseeing Witness" (originally aired on Mutual on September 26, 1949). Finally, we'll hear Les Damon and Claudia Morgan as Pat and Jean Abbott - an insurance investigator and his sharp-eyed wife - in "The Fabulous Emerald Necklace" from The Adventures of the Abbotts (AFRS rebroadcast).

Episode 520 - Marlowe Matinee (Adventures of Philip Marlowe) Feb 05, 2023

Show notes

This month, Philip Marlowe returns to the big screen with Liam Neeson starring as Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles gumshoe. To celebrate, I've picked three old time radio Marlowe mysteries with the great Gerald Mohr. We'll hear "The Restless Day" (originally aired on CBS on January 8, 1949), "The Headless Peacock" (originally aired on CBS on July 16, 1949), and "The Man on the Roof" (originally aired on CBS on April 4, 1950).

Episode 519 - Fit to Print (Casey, Crime Photographer, Big Story, & Night Beat) Jan 29, 2023

Show notes

Not all radio detectives were cops or private eyes. There were several reporters who cracked cases while they filed stories and met deadlines, and today we'll hear some of their adventures. First, Casey, Crime Photographer comes to the aid of a man framed for murder in "The Laughing Killer" (originally aired on CBS on May 8, 1947). And on Night Beat, Randy Stone investigates when a Prohibition-era gangster is gunned down after being released from prison in an episode known as "Big John McMasters" (originally aired on NBC on March 4, 1951). But in between those fictional stories, we'll hear the real-life tale of a Nevada reporter who broke a murder case in The Big Story (originally aired on NBC on January 11, 1950).

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