Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

In this bonus episode, I'm sharing my five favorite installments of  Crime Classics - the anthology of true crime stories taken from the pages of history. "Connaisseur of crime" Thomas Hyland (played by Lou Merrill) narrated the tales that ranged from BC until recent history. A dismembered corpse stuns Boston society in "The Terrible Deed of John White Webster" (originally aired on CBS on July 13,...

Welcome to the Rock! Alcatraz - America's most notorious prison - is the subject of this weeks' show. First,  Gang Busters  presents a dramatic recreation of the most violent escape attempt in its history in "The Battle of Alcatraz" (originally aired on ABC on May 11, 1946). Then, it's a double feature of  Pat Novak For Hire when the gumshoe is caught in a pair of Alcatraz escapes and the hunt for...

In this bonus episode, I'm sharing my five favorite installments of  The Whistler - the anthology of mystery and murder where we follow the criminal as the commit the "perfect crime," only to be undone at the final curtain. Bill Forman is our sinister storyteller, who "knows the nameless terrors" of these killers' minds. First, a long-suffering wife plans to get rid of her husband and frame him fo...

Cast your line for mystery with these old time radio shows involving fishing.  Casey, Crime Photographer finds murder on a fishing trip in "Treasure Cave" (originally aired on CBS on September 25, 1947), and a stolen fishing boat leads to a pair of corpses in "Rita Malloy" from  Pat Novak For Hire (AFRS rebroadcast from April 23, 1949). Charles Russell stars as Johnny Dollar in "I Caught a Fishing...

Pack your bags and take a trip to Mexico in these radio mysteries. First, Burt Lancaster plots a double cross in "The Big Shot" from  Suspense (originally aired on CBS on September 9, 1948). Philip Marlowe is hired to find out what a woman is up to in "The Mexican Boat Ride" (originally aired on CBS on July 30, 1949), and the cops of  Dragnet chase a pair of fugitives in "The Big Border" (original...

Tee off with four (not  fore! ) old time radio detective stories set on the golf course. Actor Paul Barnes plays every role in the syndicated mini-mystery  Calling All Detectives , and a golf teacher gets too close to a gangster's wife in  Boston Blackie  (a syndicated episode known as "Carl Grady, Golf Instructor"). As  Philo Vance , Jackson Beck spots a clue on the course in "The Red Duck Murder...

Black magic is in the air with four radio mysteries where our heroes are menaced by voodoo. Dan Holiday heads to the bayou to save a man's life in "Death is a Doll" from  Box 13 , and Ken Thurston investigates when government officials fall victim to zombies in Haiti in  The Man Called X (known as "Enough Intrigue to Fill a Book," originally aired on NBC on May 18, 1951). Orson Welles runs a dange...

Mysteries are hard enough to solve without throwing amnesia into the mix, but that's what our radio detectives have to handle this week. A woman doesn't know who she is, and then drops dead in Jack Webb's office in "The Lady with No Name" from  Jeff Regan, Investigator (originally aired on CBS on September 25, 1948).  The Saint comes to the aid of a woman without her memory in "The Case of the Blo...

We're back in court with four radio mysteries involving lawyers, juries, and trials. A lone holdout tries to convince his fellow jurors of a defendant's innocence in "The Eleventh Juror" from The Mollé Mystery Theatre (AFRS rebroadcast from April 3, 1945), and  Mr. District Attorney  chases down a robbery ring in "The Case of Murder A La Carte" (originally aired on NBC on March 9, 1949). A defense...

The doctors are in with these four old time radio mysteries. A doctor hires Dick Powell and then jumps out of the window in  Richard Diamond, Private Detective (originally aired on NBC on August 23, 1950). Joe Friday is on the trail of a phony physician in "The Big Quack" from  Dragnet (originally aired on NBC on October 12, 1950). A crooked doctor sets up fake accidents in "No Insurance" from  Th...

Lordy, Lordy - your host is turning 40. To mark the occasion, I'm looking back at the old time radio detective shows I've enjoyed the most over these many years. Join me as I revisit stories starring Philip Marlowe, Sherlock Holmes, Ellery Queen, The Whistler, The Saint, Richard Diamond, Rocky Fortune, and Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, as well as why I love them. (Bear with me for the long intro...t...

We're off to the Caribbean with four old time radio mysteries full of island intrigue. An American professor finds murder on sabbatical in "A Passage to Benares" from  Suspense (originally aired on CBS on September 23, 1942). Joan Banks pulls Frank Lovejoy into a dangerous salvage operation in "Chain Reaction" from  The Whistler (originally aired on CBS on May 12, 1948).  Humphrey Bogart and Laure...

In this bonus episode, I'm sharing my five favorite installments of  Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator . William Gargan sleuths with a sardonic smile in these radio mysteries, beginning with "The Lost Lady" (originally aired on NBC on June 14, 1953). A client behind bars hires Craig in "For Love of Murder" (originally aired on NBC on August 3, 1954), and Craig helps an old colleague close on...

Place your bets and ride along with four old time radio mysteries set in the stables and around the racetrack.  Boston Blackie doubts a horse is guilty of murder in a syndicated mystery, and international investigator Frank Race tries to find out who's out to make sure a prize racehorse doesn't make it to the winner's circle in "The Adventure of the Vanishing Favorite." A jockey loses a race and h...

We're riding the subway and walking the Great White Way with four radio gumshoes in New York. First, there's a dead body in Richard Diamond's office in "The Fred Sears Murder Case" (originally aired on NBC on June 5, 1949). A man is killed in Times Square by a man with only a month to live in "The Earl Lawson Murder Case" from  Broadway is My Beat (originally aired on CBS on June 9, 1951). John Lu...

It's an Easter basket of radio comedies for you to enjoy! Jack Benny and his gang take a stroll in the Easter Parade (originally aired on CBS on April 17, 1949); Lucille Ball hunts for the perfect Easter dress in  My Favorite Husband (originally aired on CBS on March 24, 1951); and egg dying goes awry at the Harris house on  The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show (originally aired on NBC on April 5, 1953...

Break out your bracket for three basketball mysteries from the golden age of radio. First, newspaper editor Steve Wilson ties an assault to a gambling racket in "The Fatal Fix" from  Big Town (originally aired on NBC on January 25, 1949). Next, Tony Curtis is a college star under pressure to throw a game in "The McKay College Basketball Scandal" from  Suspense (originally aired on CBS on September...

Grab a pint, don your green, and enjoy a trio of St. Patrick's Day old time radio mysteries. First, Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce investigate a murder at one of Ireland's landmarks in "The Adventure of the Blarney Stone" from  The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (originally aired on Mutual on March 18, 1946). Then, George Valentine tries to prevent a spectral eviction in "The Ghost of Ireland B...

Show off those pearly whites and enjoy three old time radio mysteries involving teeth and dentists. First,  Casey, Crime Photographer thinks a dentist is linked to a colleague's disappearance in "Tooth for Tooth" (originally aired on CBS on July 15, 1946). Then, a victim's teeth hold the key to solving a murder on Whitehall 1212 (known as "The Murder of Duncan Frazier," originally aired on NBC on...

In this bonus episode, we're saluting the late Anne Whitfield, who passed away on February 15th. We'll hear the actress in a pair of episodes from  The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show , where she played the couple's youngest daughter Phyllis. First, little Phyllis may become a movie star (originally aired on NBC on November 20, 1949) and then she celebrates her birthday (originally aired on NBC on Jan...

We're blasting off this week for a trio of mysteries involving rockets and space. First,  The Man Called X is in New Mexico to find out who's leaking classified information from a missile test site (originally aired on NBC on April 14, 1951). Next,  Philo Vance investigates a murder in an observatory in the syndicated episode "The Star-Studded Murder Case." And finally, Frank Sinatra is hired to t...

In this bonus episode, we're going back to the beginning with the audition recordings for five old time radio detective shows - some that became regular series, some that didn't, and some that changed stars along the way. We'll hear Victor Jory as a Scotland Yard inspector in the tryout for  The Hunters (recorded in November 1948) and Dick Powell - before he was Richard Diamond - as Johnny Dollar...

Hope you brought your appetite - this week's show features four mysteries set in the world of food. From restaurants to the grocery store, our detectives have a lot to chew on in these cases. First,  Boston Blackie investigates a murder in a Chinese restaurant and Dan Holiday comes to the aid of a beleaguered restauranteur in "Tempest in a Casserole" from  Box 13 . Dick Powell goes undercover in a...

We're making some large withdrawals at the bank this week with three old time radio tales of bank robbers and the cops who try to catch them. First, the G-Men are at work in "Quartet for Crime" from This is Your FBI (originally aired on ABC on November 24, 1950). Then, a man fresh out of prison signs on for a bank heist in "The Little Things" from The Whistler (originally aired on CBS on January 1...

Happy Valentine's Day! No matter how - or if - you're celebrating this February 14th, hopefully you'll enjoy this quartet of Valentine's comedies from the golden age of radio. We'll hear  Fibber McGee and Molly (originally aired on NBC on February 10, 1942),  My Favorite Husband (originally aired on CBS on February 11, 1949),  The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show  (originally aired on NBC on February 1...