Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

Latest Episodes:

Episode 329 - Bird is the Word (The Falcon) May 19, 2019

Show notes

The ringing of that phone means Mike Waring has to break another date and The Falcon has a new case. The suave private eye solved crimes in print, on the big screen, and for over a decade on radio. Les Damon starred as Waring for several years, including a run when the Falcon got a new client – Uncle Sam and Army intelligence. We'll hear the Falcon solve "The Case of the Sweet Swindle" (originally aired on NBC on June 13, 1951) and "The Case of the Babbling Brooks" (originally aired on NBC on July 3, 1952).

Episode 328 - Hey Bulldog (Bulldog Drummond) May 12, 2019

Show notes

Captain Hugh Drummond comes out of the fog, into the night, and earns his nickname "Bulldog" as he fights evildoers everywhere. The gentleman adventurer of H.C. McNelie's novels came to the big screen with Ronald Colman and Ray Milland logging time as the man of mystery. In 1941, Bulldog Drummond came to radio and continued his battle for justice. We'll hear George Coulouris as Drummond in a September 1941 audition program. Then Ned Wever steps in as the detective in "Death Loops the Loop" (originally aired on Mutual on March 10, 1948).

Episode 327 – Orson's Swell (Lives of Harry Lime & Black Museum) May 05, 2019

Show notes

Orson Welles' radio work is defined by a skirmish between a couple of planets, but there was far more to his career than an invasion from outer space. We'll celebrate the actor, writer, and director's birthday with some of his performances on the air. First, he recreates his Third Man movie role in "Horse Play" from The Lives of Harry Lime. Then, he narrates the bloody history of "The Khaki Handkerchief" from The Black Museum.

Episode 326 - Their Girl Friday: Frances Robinson (Let George Do It, Richard Diamond, & The Whistler) Apr 28, 2019

Show notes

What do Philo Vance, George Valentine, Richard Diamond, and John J. Malone have in common? They all romanced – and were frequently assisted by – Frances Robinson. The busy and talented actress was a mainstay on radio crime dramas, and her performances gave us some of the genre's all-time great partners in crime. We'll hear her in "The Elusive Hundred Grand" from Let George Do It (originally aired on Mutual on April 18, 1949); "The Pop Skoals Case aka The Blind Man and the Cop Killer" from Richard Diamond, Private Detective (originally aired on NBC on February 26, 1950), and in "Murder in Mind" from The Whistler (originally aired on CBS on April 16, 1950).

Episode 325 - Master Class (Nick Carter, Master Detective) Apr 21, 2019

Show notes

Nick Carter was a super sleuth in the pulps and on the big screen before he came to radio in 1943, and he found success on the air as well. Lon Clark starred as Carter – "the most famous of all manhunters" – for twelve years in hundreds of radio mysteries. Hear Nick, along with his friends Patsy Bowen and Sgt. Mathison in "The Double Disguise" (originally aired on Mutual on January 8, 1944) and "The Case of the Candidate's Corpse" (September 26, 1948).

Episode 324 - G-Men Get Their Man (This is Your FBI) Apr 14, 2019

Show notes

Criminals and spies can run, but they can't hide from the FBI. Stacy Harris stars as Special Agent Jim Taylor in This is Your FBI, the only dramatic radio program endorsed by the Bureau and J. Edgar Hoover. We'll hear a pair of FBI adventures: "The Case of the Curious Coin Collector" (originally aired on ABC on October 4, 1946) and "The Agent Apprentice" (originally aired on ABC on August 11, 1950).

Episode 323 - Hit the Road, Jack (Jeff Regan, Pat Novak, & Pete Kelly's Blues) Apr 07, 2019

Show notes

We're celebrating Jack Webb's birthday, but instead of cake we have three old time radio mysteries starring Webb as three hard-boiled sleuths. First, he's Jeff Regan, Investigator in "The Gambler and the Lady" (originally aired on CBS on December 11, 1948). Then Webb stars as Pat Novak for Hire in "Rory Malone" (originally aired on ABC on March 20, 1949). Finally, we'll hear "June Gould" from Pete Kelly's Blues (an AFRS rebroadcast of an episode from NBC on September 19, 1951).

Episode 322 - Same Bat-Time (Adventures of Superman) Apr 03, 2019

Show notes

Holy 80th Anniversary, Batman! The Caped Crusader made his first comic book appearance on March 30, 1939, and we're marking the occasion with a complete serialized adventure of Superman co-starring Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder. It's "The Mystery of the Dead Voice," a tale with ties to young Robin's origin, and it originally aired on the Mutual Network between September 25 and October 16, 1946.

Episode 321 - The Buck Starts Here (Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar) Mar 31, 2019

Show notes

When Johnny Dollar itemized his first expense account on February 11, 1949, he was played by actor Charles Russell, and Russell would fill the role for just over one year. Though his tenure was short, Russell's take on the character – glib, sarcastic, and a little unscrupulous – makes him stand out in the fraternity of actors who brought Dollar to radio life. We'll hear him in three episodes: "The Perikoff Policy" (originally aired on CBS on 2/11/1949); "Melanie Carter and the Un-Nice Niece" (originally aired on CBS on November 12, 1949); and "The Animal Show Unscheduled Performances" (originally aired on CBS on December 10, 1949).

Episode 320 - Don't Fence Me In (Tales of the Texas Rangers) Mar 24, 2019

Show notes

When criminals strike in the Lone Star State, they know it won't be long before the Texas Rangers are on their trail. Joel McCrea brought his big screen western star power to radio as Jayce Pearson in Tales of the Texas Rangers. The crime drama presented actual cases from the Rangers' files in a blend of police procedural and western. We'll hear two episodes from the series: "Quicksilver" (originally aired on NBC on August 12, 1950) and "The Trap" (originally aired on NBC on February 25, 1951).

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