Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

Latest Episodes:

Episode 118 - That Old Blackie Magic (Boston Blackie) Jun 21, 2015

Show notes

Reformed jewel thief Boston Blackie was a debonair detective in his years on radio. Along with his girlfriend Mary Wesley and sidekick Shorty, Blackie used his underworld know-how to catch more unscrupulous thieves and scoundrels. Racing against Blackie to crack the case first was Inspector Farraday of the police, always unsure of Blackie's conversion to the side of law and order. To celebrate the anniversary of his radio debut, we'll hear him in a pair of radio mysteries: "The Star of the Nile" starring Chester Morris (originally aired on NBC on July 14, 1944), and "Blackie Steals a Necklace for Charity," a syndicated episode starring Richard Kollmar.

Episode 117 - Bailey on the Beat (Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar) Jun 14, 2015

Show notes

When Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar came back to the airwaves in 1955 after a brief hiatus, it was reenergized by a new nightly serialized format and a new star in Bob Bailey. Bailey made the role of "the man with the action-packed expense account" his own in rich, complex scripts that could play out five nights a week in a combined hour of airtime. We'll hear Bailey as Dollar in all five parts of "The Laughing Matter" (first aired on CBS from June 11 to June 15, 1956).

Episode 116 - You're a Detective Sergeant (Dragnet) Jun 07, 2015

Show notes

Jack Webb is back as Sgt. Joe Friday in a two-part episode of Dragnet. Join Friday and his partner Frank Smith (Ben Alexander) as they pursue criminals and try and keep the streets of Los Angeles safe in this king-sized story from official police files. We'll hear "The Big Mask" (Part 1 originally aired on NBC on December 28, 1952; Part 2 originally aired on January 4, 1953).

Episode 115 - Hammett Heroics (Fat Man & Sam Spade) May 31, 2015

Show notes

Dashiell Hammett is widely regarded as the father of the hard-boiled school of crime fiction. After his days as a Pinkerton detective, he turned to writing mysteries, and he gave the genre some of its best loved stories, including The Maltese Falcon, The Thin Man, and The Dain Curse. In honor of his birthday, we'll hear radio adventures of two of his private eyes - Brad Runyon, aka The Fat Man, in "Murder Plays Hide and Seek" (originally aired on ABC on January 2, 1948); and Sam Spade in "The Lawless Caper" (originally aired on CBS on August 29, 1948).

Episode 114 - Welles Done (The Black Museum) May 24, 2015

Show notes

Join Orson Welles as he leads you on a guided tour of The Black Museum, Scotland Yard's mausoleum of murder. In each episode of this syndicated series, Welles tells the story of a seemingly innocuous object that was inexorably tied to a violent crime. Follow the story from the perpetrator's flight from the scene of the crime to the dogged police work of Scotland Yard as they close in on the guilty party. We'll hear Welles narrate the syndicated story "The Telegram."

Episode 113 - Whistle While You Work (The Whistler) May 17, 2015

Show notes

Step into the shoes of the criminal in The Whistler, one of radio's best mystery anthologies. In tales narrated by the titular sinister storyteller, you'll follow the culprit as they plot and carry out the perfect crime only to be undone by a twist of fate before the curtain comes down. As the Whistler, Bill Forman narrates stories starring two radio detective stars in roles on the opposite side of the law: Howard Duff in "The Witness at the Fountain" (first aired on CBS on September, 9, 1946); and Gerald Mohr as "The Clever Mr. Farley" (first aired on CBS on November 27, 1949).

Episode 112 - Lund Me a Dollar (Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar) May 10, 2015

Show notes

In 1952, John Lund became radio's third Johnny Dollar, and he starred as "the man with the action-packed expense account" for almost 100 episodes in a two-year run. The big-screen star brought a confident, leading man quality to the role and gave Dollar a hard-boiled but world-weary persona. We'll hear John Lund as Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar in "The Walter Patterson Matter," originally aired on CBS on December 26, 1952.

Episode 111 - Scotland Yard Sale (Pursuit) May 03, 2015

Show notes

We head back to London for another mystery from Scotland Yard and a dangerous, relentless Pursuit. This series let listeners join in on the game of cat and mouse between cop and criminal – "when man hunts man." Ben Wright stars as the dogged Inspector Peter Black, hot on the heels of England's most dastardly criminals. We'll hear him on the job in "Pursuit of the Asiatic Killer," first aired on CBS on March 11, 1952.

Episode 110 - Diamond is a Girl's Best Friend (Richard Diamond, Private Detective) Apr 26, 2015

Show notes

Dick Powell lends his pipes to the role of Richard Diamond, radio's singing detective. But don't let his post-crime solving crooning fool you - he can throw a punch and wield a .38 with the best of them. Along the way, he'll flirt with his girlfriend and frustrate the police a few times before the case is wrapped up. We'll hear him star in "The Bloody Hat Case" (first aired on NBC on July 2, 1949) and "The Caspary Case" (first aired on ABC on February 2, 1951).

Episode 109 - Killers and Spoilers (Gunsmoke) Apr 19, 2015

Show notes

CBS wanted a "Philip Marlowe of the Old West," and they got that and more in Gunsmoke. One of radio's finest dramas, Gunsmoke helped to usher in the era of the "adult Western" with mature scripts, unflinching realism, and legendary performances from William Conrad and the rest of the cast. For nearly a decade on radio - and twenty years on television - US Marshal Matt Dillon faced down the violence of the West to keep the streets of Dodge City safe. We'll hear Dillon fight for law and order in "Shakespeare," first aired on CBS on August 23, 1952.

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