Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

We're saluting John Dehner - the Disney animator and award-winning radio news editor who became one of the radio era's best actors and a great big and small screen character actor from the 50s to the 80s. He found his biggest radio fame in a pair of westerns - Frontier Gentleman and  Have Gun - Will Travel - but he was heard all over the dial in everything from  Escape to  Family Theatre . We'll h...

Not all radio crimesolvers relied on their fists and .45s. Some solved crimes with charm and their wits, and we'll hear adventures of three of those gentlemen sleuths. First up is Vincent Price as  The Saint in "The Case of the Unhappy Homicide" (originally aired on Mutual on November 6, 1949). Then, Ned Wever stars in "Murder in the Ring" from  Bulldog Drummond (originally aired on Mutual on Octo...

It's a birthday party for Dick Powell, but instead of cake we've got four old time radio mysteries starring the singing star turned film noir leading man and radio gumshoe. First, he co-stars with his then-wife Joan Blondell in the comedy-mystery  Miss Pinkerton, Inc. (originally aired on CBS on July 12, 1941). Next, Powell is private eye Richard Rogue in Rogue's Gallery . We'll hear "Suspicious W...

Cornell Woolrich's stories of crime inspired dozens of films and radio programs, including  Rear Window and nearly three dozen episodes of  Suspense . We'll hear a pair of his stories recreated for radio, including an offering from "radio's outstanding theater of thrills." Howard da Silva is a cop and a pre- Dragnet Jack Webb is a criminal in "You Take Ballistics" (originally aired on CBS on March...

Even old time radio detectives faced the supernatural (or seemingly supernatural) once in a while. Today, to celebrate Halloween, we'll hear adventures of three sleuths as they face off against ghosts, curses, and other things that go bump in the night. First, Frank Lovejoy is reporter Randy Stone in "The Black Cat" from  Night Beat (originally aired on NBC on November 3, 1950). Then, William Garg...

Turn down the lights and grab your candy - it's time for the Down These Mean Streets Halloween Special! Join me for a king-sized trick-or-treating trip through the golden age of radio for some comedies and chillers designed to get you in the Halloween spirit. Enjoy Bob Hope recreating his role in  The Ghost Breakers as presented on  The Screen Directors' Playhouse (originally aired on NBC on April...

Sherlock Holmes started his career as a radio detective on October 20, 1930, and to mark the occasion we'll hear the brilliant sleuth in four old time radio mysteries. Basil Rathbone stars as Holmes (with Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson) in "The Strange Case of the Murder in Wax" (originally aired on Mutual on January 7, 1946). Then, Tom Conway steps in as Sherlock in Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Devil's F...

Hey,  radio fans! It's Jack with a quick message. I've written a Halloween old time radio spoof show, and it's being livestreamed this Saturday, October 23rd at 7:00 pm eastern. We'll have detectives, a spoof of the  Lux Radio Theatre , spooky tales from a sinister storyteller, and Orson Welles trying to make up for the War of the Worlds. If you like the podcasts, I think you'll really dig the sho...

Lt. Ben Guthrie led a squad of dedicated detectives on  The Line-Up , one of radio's best police procedurals. We'll hear three episodes from the series, beginning with the show's audition program (recorded on May 27, 1950). We'll follow it with "The Check Killer Case" (originally aired on CBS on March 6, 1951) and The Mirthless Moonshiner's Methyl Murders" (originally aired on CBS on March 18, 195...

Radio sleuthing wasn't always a serious business. Some detectives successfully mixed in comedy with their crimesolving, and we'll hear three examples this week. First, Adolphe Menjou and Verree Teasdale as a husband and wife duo in  Deductions Deluxe , an audition recording that aired on  Forecast (originally aired on CBS on July 28, 1941). Then, Allyn Joslyn stars as  The Amazing Mr. Smith in "Th...

When a medical emergency sidelined Herbert Marshall in May 1951, three of his friends and fellow actors stepped in to record three episodes of Marshall's radio espionage drama The Man Called X . Ken Thurston, the titular agent played by Marshall, was "on sick leave," but the forces of evil were fought by three top-notch talents in his absence. We'll hear Van Heflin in "A Man, a Girl, a Plot" (orig...

Three of radio's best gumshoes are on the case. First, Gerald Mohr stars as Philip Marlowe in "The Panama Hat" (originally aired on CBS on October 10, 1948). Then, Howard Duff is Sam Spade in "The Overjord Caper" (originally aired on CBS on June 5, 1949). Finally, we'll hear Dick Powell in "The Misplaced Laundry Case" from  Richard Diamond, Private Detective (originally aired on NBC on September 6...

In a belated celebration of Batman Day, we're heading to Metropolis for an old time radio adventure of Superman featuring Batman and Robin! The Dynamic Duo is on hand to help the Man of Steel when Lois Lane is framed for murder in "Dr. Bly's Confidence Gang" (originally aired on Mutual between September 4 and September 21, 1945).

Oscar-winner Edmond O'Brien headlines three old time radio mysteries, including a pair of audition recordings as investigative reporters. First, he's "the man with the action-packed expense account" in "The David Rocky Matter" (originally aired on CBS on January 20, 1951). Then, he plays reporter Hank Mitchell in the audition for  Night Beat - recorded before Frank Lovejoy won the renamed role of...

Alan Ladd broke out on screen with his performance as a professional killer in  This Gun for Hire . He'd go on to find success on screen in noir dramas and westerns and on radio as mystery writer turned amateur sleuth Dan Holiday in  Box 13 . We'll hear a  Lux Radio Theatre recreation of  This Gun for Hire (originally aired on CBS on January 25, 1943). Plus, Dan Holiday takes a sea voyage with a k...

We're celebrating some of the women detectives of the radio era, including stories inspired by the life and work of a trailblazing woman detective in the New York Police Department. First,  Murder Clinic presents an adventure of Madame Rosika Story, the brave, brilliant, and beautiful psychologist and private eye created by Hulbert Footner. We'll hear "The Scrap of Lace" (originally aired on Mutua...

Frederick Ziv was one of the biggest producers of syndicated radio and TV shows in the 1940s and 50s. His programs boasted big name stars, established properties, and great production values, and his companies raked in millions of dollars each year from sales of shows directly to small sponsors and local markets. We'll hear four of his old time radio mystery shows: "The Harry Walker Killing," star...

Not all old time radio crimefighters carried badges - or even private eye licenses. Some wore masks in their crusade against evil, and this week we'll hear three of those heroes who waged their wars on crime in disguise. First,  The Green Hornet tracks down a gang of swindlers in "Classified Ad" (originally aired on ABC on March 30, 1946). Then, Frank Lovejoy stars as  The Blue Beetle in the comic...

Before he was writing episodes of  Perry Mason ,  Columbo , and  Murder, She Wrote , Emmy-nominee Jackson Gillis got his start in radio. Gillis penned mysteries for several old time radio sleuths, and we'll hear three of them. First, Jack Webb stars in "The Lady With Too Much Hair" from  Jeff Regan, Investigator (originally aired on CBS on November 6, 1948). Then, it's adventure in Egypt with  Roc...

The ninth season of "Down These Mean Streets" kicks off with Bob Bailey as Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar "the man with the action-packed expense account" in a five-part old time radio mystery. Johnny enters the world of spiritualists and seances in "The Matter of the Medium, Well Done" (originally aired on CBS between May 14 and May 18, 1956).

Dragnet was an immensely popular radio, and later TV, series that entertained millions of Americans each week for over a decade. It was also strictly overseen by LAPD Chief William H. Parker, who made sure the show painted his department in the best light and glossed over its abuses of power. In the wake of calls for police reform and the systemic racism in law enforcement, it can be tough to sepa...

William Gargan couldn't cut it as a private detective in real life, but he was terrific at playing a gumshoe on screen and on radio. We'll hear him in three old time radio mysteries. First, he's ex-sailor turned private eye Ross Dolan in  I Deal in Crime in "The William A. Davis Case" (originally aired on ABC on April 5, 1946). Then, he's homicide Inspector Burke in the hybrid murder mystery-quiz...

Make some popcorn for a double feature with two classic film noir dramas recreated for radio. First, Robert Ryan, Robert Mitchum, and Robert Young reprise their roles from  Crossfire - a murder mystery that shines a spotlight on the horror of anti-Semitism recreated for  Suspense (originally aired on CBS on April 10, 1948). Then, John Garfield and Lana Turner recreate their smoldering chemistry in...

We're saluting the old time radio heroes of the fourth estate - reporters, editors, and photographers who solved the crimes they covered. We'll hear Staats Cotsworth as  Casey, Crime Photographer in "Death in Lover's Lane" (originally aired on CBS on August 7, 1947). Then, the staff of the  Illustrated Press hunts for a killer in "Death by Plan" from  Big Town (originally aired on NBC on November...

Six armchair detectives accept the challenge of master of mystery Ellery Queen to solve a baffling mystery before he reveals the solution. Carleton Young and Sydney Smith star as the brilliant amateur sleuth in three old time radio mysteries that present challenges in deduction to the guests in the studio and to you listening at home! We'll hear "The Adventure of the Singing Rat" (originally aired...