Nostalgic Mystery Radio

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Ep.279 Agatha Christie's Miss Marple: 4:50 From Paddington Oct 03, 2022

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Miss Jane Marple doesn’t look like your average detective. Quite frankly, she doesn’t look like a detective at all. But looks can be deceiving... For a woman who has spent her life in the small village of St Mary Mead, Miss Marple is surprisingly worldly. But as she often points out she has had every opportunity to observe human nature.
4:50 From Paddington: For an instant the two trains ran together, side by side. In that frozen moment, Elspeth witnessed a murder. Helplessly, she stared out of her carriage window as a man remorselessly tightened his grip around a woman’s throat. The body crumpled. Then the other train drew away. But who, apart from Miss Marple, would take her story seriously? After all, there were no suspects, no other witnesses… and no corpse.

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Ep.278 The Adventures Of Sam Spade: The Dog Bed Caper Sep 30, 2022

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The Adventures of Sam Spadewas a suspense/detective radio show starring Howard Duff in the colorful title role along with Lurene Tuttle as his secretary Effie. It was based on the private detective character created by Dashiell Hammett, well-known from the book and movie The Maltese Falcon. The show ran from 1946 to 1951. Duff was replaced by Steve Dunne in later episodes.
The Dog Bed Caper: A complex story of murder and extortion...having nothing at all to do with dog beds. Originally aired December 1st, 1950.

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Ep.277 The New Adventures Of Nero Wolfe: The Case Of The Hasty Will Sep 28, 2022

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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 Hasty Will: A man hires Archie to witness a new will and then disappears.
Originally aired March 2nd,1951.

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Ep.276 The Adventures Of Philip Marlowe: The Last Laugh Sep 26, 2022

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Get this and get it straight. Crime is a sucker's road and those who travel it wind up in the gutter, the prison or the grave.
Philip Marlowe was Los Angeles's toughest detective in the groundbreaking series by Raymond Chandler that helped establish the "hard-boiled" detective subgenre.
The Last Laugh: It was a grim joke that started when six heirs came to an ugly house on a rain swept island to hear a madman’s will. The joke soon turned to murder and in the end it was hard to tell who had the last laugh…

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Ep.275 Dragnet: The Big Pug Sep 23, 2022

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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 Pug: Friday and Romero look for a duo who robbed a grocery store and assaulted its elderly owner. Originally aired May 18, 1950.

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Ep.274 Sherlock Holmes: The Valley Of Fear Pt2: The Tragedy Of Birlstone Sep 20, 2022

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Sherlock Holmes, fictional character created by the Scottish writer Arthur Conan Doyle. The prototype for the modern mastermind detective, Holmes first appeared in Conan Doyle’s A Study in Scarlet, published in Beeton’s Christmas Annual of 1887. As the world’s first and only “consulting detective,” he pursued criminals throughout Victorian and Edwardian London, the south of England, and continental Europe.
The Valley Of Fear: The Tragedy Of Birlstone: The detective tries to solve the case with the aid of a single dumb-bell and Dr Watson's umbrella.

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Ep.273 Sherlock Holmes: The Valley Of Fear Pt1: The Scowrers Sep 20, 2022

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Sherlock Holmes, fictional character created by the Scottish writer Arthur Conan Doyle. The prototype for the modern mastermind detective, Holmes first appeared in Conan Doyle’s A Study in Scarlet, published in Beeton’s Christmas Annual of 1887. As the world’s first and only “consulting detective,” he pursued criminals throughout Victorian and Edwardian London, the south of England, and continental Europe.
The Valley Of Fear: The Scowrers: Sherlock Holmes probes revenge and treachery linking a country home with 1890s American secret societies.

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Ep.272 Nick Carter Master Detective: An Angle On Murder Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

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.
An Angle On Murder: John Hammel of the bankers associates had noticed that there was a serious shortage on the books and was sure that he knew who it was that was taking the money. He didn’t want to get the police involved as any publicity could damage the banks reputation so he called Nick Carter. But before he could tell Nick of his suspicions he was shot dead.

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Ep.271 The New Adventures Of Nero Wolfe: The Case Of The Phantom Fingers Sep 15, 2022

Show notes

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 Phantom Fingers: While driving to buy some black orchids, Wolfe and Archie find themselves stranded with three complete strangers, one of whom is a murderer.
Originally aired January 26th,1951.

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Ep.270 Tales Of The Texas Rangers: Fugitive's Trail Sep 15, 2022

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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.
Fugitive's Trail: A teen-aged baby sitter disappears after a shotgun murder. Her ex-boyfriend seems eager to help the Rangers track her down.
Originally aired October 21st,1951.

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