Nostalgic Mystery Radio

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Ep.379 Boston Blackie: Star Of The Nile Mar 31, 2023

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In the the world of the hard boiled detective, Boston Blackie comes comes real close to fitting in, but he just doesn't quite. Of course Blackie isnt a detective or private eye, he is a reformed safe cracker and constantly good natured irritant to the cops!

A real Hard Boiled Detective solves the mystery that the cops think he is guilty of, and manages to make the cops look foolish while he does it. So does Boston Blackie.
Star Of The Nile: A fabulous gem called "The Star Of The Nile" disappears from a train between Chicago and New York. Originally aired July 14th,1944.

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Ep.378 Barrie Craig Confidential Investigator: Death And The Purple Cow Mar 29, 2023

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Barrie Craig Confidential Investigator
William Gargan, who also played the better known television (and radio) detective Martin Kane, was the voice of New York eye Barrie Craig while Ralph Bell portrayed his associate, Lt. Travis Rogers. Craig's office was on Madison Avenue and his adventures were fairly standard PI fare. He worked alone, solved cases efficiently, and feared no man. As the promos went, he was "your man when you can't go to the cops. Confidentiality a specialty."
Death And The Purple Cow: A man with a gun told Barrie Craig to not accept a new client. Originally aired December 12th,1951.

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Ep.377 Richard Diamond Private Detective: The Bogus Bills Case Mar 28, 2023

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Richard Diamond, Private Detective came to NBC in 1949. Diamond was a slick, sophisticated detective, with a sharp tongue for folks who needed it. Diamond enjoyed the detective life, but not as much as entertaining his girl, Helen Asher. After each show, he would croon a number to his Park Avenue sweetheart.
Mr. Powell, a former song and dance man, was perfect for the role. He added an extra dimension to the 40's hokey private eye drama.
Diamond was a rough gumshoe that would often get knocked on the head with a revolver butt or other items. His counterpart on the police force was Lt. Levinson who often accepted Diamond's help reluctantly. Levinson would claim to get stomach trouble whenever Diamond would call him and would take bicarbonate to settle his aching stomach. Although they always seem at odds with each other, Diamond and Levinson were best friends.
The Bogus Bills Case: When someone passes a counterfeit bill to a newsboy, Diamond sets out to take down the counterfeiting ring. Originally aired October 15th,1949.

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Ep.376 Tales Of The Texas Rangers: Pick Up Mar 27, 2023

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Tales of the Texas Rangers, a western adventure old-time radio drama, premiered on July 8, 1950, on the US NBC radio network and remained on the air through September 14, 1952.
Movie star Joel McCrea starred as Texas Ranger Jayce Pearson, who used the latest scientific techniques to identify the criminals and his faithful horse, Charcoal (or "Charky," as Jayce would sometimes refer to him), to track them down. The shows were reenactments of actual Texas Ranger cases.
Pick Up: Jace investigates the murder of an oil worker who was thrown from a train.
Originally aired December 16th,1951.

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Ep.375 Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot: Elephants Can Remember Mar 24, 2023

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Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot: the world-renowned, moustachioed Belgian private detective, unsurpassed in his intelligence and understanding of the criminal mind, respected and admired by police forces and heads of state across the globe.
Since his inception over 100 years ago, Poirot has stolen the hearts and minds of audiences from Azerbaijan to Vietnam, and his celebrated cases have been recorded across 33 original novels and over 50 short stories.
Elephants Can Remember: Ariadne Oliver becomes an amateur sleuth when her goddaughter tasks her to find out the truth behind her parents' mysterious deaths.
Originally aired August 14th,2014.

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Ep.374 Dragnet: The Big Knife Mar 22, 2023

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Dragnet ran from June 3rd,1949 to February 26th,1957 on NBC at various times and days and starred Jack Webb as Detective Sergeant Joe Friday. Various partners throughout the show's run were Sergeant Ben Romero (Barton Yarborough), Ed Jacobs (Barney Phillips), and Officer Frank Smith (Ben Alexander).
Webb was the creator/Director of the series and wanted everything to be as authentic as possible, down to the last sound effect. The stories were based on actual police files and "the names were changed to protect the innocent".
Dragnet broke a few radio taboos as well, such as dramatizing sex crimes. Children also were killed on occasion as in the episode "Twenty-Two Rifle For Christmas". The series eventually went to television and ran there for many years.
The Big Knife: Twenty-one girls have been knifed while at high school. Who is doing it? Detective Sergeant Friday is assigned to juvenile bureau.
Originally aired May 11th,1950.

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Ep.373 The New Adventures Of Nero Wolfe: The Case Of The Tell-Tale Ribbon Mar 20, 2023

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Nero Wolfe is a fictional character, a brilliant, oversized, eccentric armchair detective created in 1934 by American mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe was born in Montenegro and keeps his past murky.
He lives in a luxurious brownstone on West 35th Street in New York City, and he is loath to leave his home for business or anything that would keep him from reading his books, tending his orchids, or eating the gourmet meals prepared by his chef, Fritz Brenner. Archie Goodwin, Wolfe's sharp-witted, dapper young confidential assistant with an eye for attractive women, narrates the cases and does the legwork for the detective genius.
The Case Of The Tell-Tale Ribbon: A strange note with five hundred dollars leads to a case of poisoning in a very strange household. Originally aired March 30th, 1951.

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Ep.372 Nick Carter Master Detective: Death After Dark Mar 17, 2023

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Nick Carter, Master Detective, which aired on Mutual from 1943 to 1955. Nick Carter first came to radio as The Return of Nick Carter. Then Nick Carter, Master Detective, with Lon Clark in the title role, began April 11, 1943, on Mutual, continuing in many different timeslots for well over a decade. Jock MacGregor was the producer-director of scripts by Alfred Bester, Milton J. Kramer, David Kogan and others. Background music was supplied by organists Hank Sylvern, Lew White and George Wright. Patsy Bowen, Nick's assistant, was portrayed by Helen Choate until mid-1946 and then Charlotte Manson stepped into the role. Nick and Patsy's friend was reporter Scubby Wilson (John Kane). Nick's contact at the police department was Sgt. Mathison (Ed Latimer). The supporting cast included Raymond Edward Johnson, Bill Johnstone and Bryna Raeburn. Michael Fitzmaurice was the program's announcer.
Death After Dark: A series of nighttime attacks by tiny creatures in a park draws in Nick and company. Originally aired February 19th,1944.

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Ep.371 Philo Vance: The Poetic Murder Case Mar 16, 2023

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Philo Vance is the detective creation of S. S. Van Dine first published in the mid 1920s. Jose Ferrer played him in 1945. From 1948-1950, the fine radio actor Jackson Beck makes Vance as good as he gets. George Petrie plays Vance's constantly impressed public servant, District Attorney Markham. Joan Alexander is Ellen Deering, Vance's secretary and right-hand woman. The organist for the show is really working those ivories, and fans of old time radio organ will especially enjoy this series.
The Poetic Murder Case: Three of the city’s dramatic critics have been murdered and all three had bits of poetry pinned to their chests when found.
Originally aired August 24th,1948.

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Ep.370 Pat Novak For Hire: The Geranium Plant Mar 15, 2023

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Pat Novak For Hire: Classic old time radio showing starring Jack Webb (1946, 1949) and Ben Morris (1947-48) as Pat Novak, a street wise guy who rents boats and anything else a good man pays a bad one to do.
Novak is always getting into scrapes when taking on jobs for hire or occasionally as a favor to a friend. When he does, he goes to see "The Only Honest Guy I Know" an ex-Doctor and a boozer named Jocko Madigan (played by Tudor Owens). Novak's nemesis is Lieutenant Hellman of Homicide (played by Raymond Burr and others) who's constantly trying to get Novak sent to the gas chamber.
The Geranium Plant: Pat Novak’s hired to deliver a geranium. He’s hit by a car after the pick-up and that’s just the start of his trouble. Originally aired May 14th, 1949.

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