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 chan...
Nov 14, 2022•31 min•Ep. 305
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. Name To Remember : Marlowe is hired to find out the identity of a man with a t-shirt who has been stalking his client. The client is found dead and he’s not the only one. Originally aired: April 9th,1949. Support...
Nov 14, 2022•31 min•Ep. 304
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. Bad Blood : An aircraft pla...
Nov 10, 2022•32 min•Ep. 303
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. From 1939 to 1946, Basil Rathbone played Sherlock Holmes with his friend Nigel Bruce on ...
Nov 08, 2022•32 min•Ep. 302
Ian Carmichael stars as Lord Peter Wimsey in these classic BBC radio dramatisations of Dorothy L Sayers' Golden Age crime novels. Gentleman detective Lord Peter Wimsey starred in a number of novels and short stories by Dorothy L Sayers. These full-cast adaptations – first broadcast on BBC radio between 1979 and 2010 – are cherished by crime aficionados worldwide. Whose Body ?: The tale that first introduced Lord Peter to the world, and sees him investigating the case of a corpse in a Battersea b...
Nov 06, 2022•30 min•Ep. 301
Ian Carmichael stars as Lord Peter Wimsey in these classic BBC radio dramatisations of Dorothy L Sayers' Golden Age crime novels. Gentleman detective Lord Peter Wimsey starred in a number of novels and short stories by Dorothy L Sayers. These full-cast adaptations – first broadcast on BBC radio between 1979 and 2010 – are cherished by crime aficionados worldwide. Whose Body ?: The tale that first introduced Lord Peter to the world, and sees him investigating the case of a corpse in a Battersea b...
Nov 02, 2022•30 min•Ep. 300
Ian Carmichael stars as Lord Peter Wimsey in these classic BBC radio dramatisations of Dorothy L Sayers' Golden Age crime novels. Gentleman detective Lord Peter Wimsey starred in a number of novels and short stories by Dorothy L Sayers. These full-cast adaptations – first broadcast on BBC radio between 1979 and 2010 – are cherished by crime aficionados worldwide. Whose Body ?: The tale that first introduced Lord Peter to the world, and sees him investigating the case of a corpse in a Battersea b...
Nov 02, 2022•30 min•Ep. 299
Ian Carmichael stars as Lord Peter Wimsey in these classic BBC radio dramatisations of Dorothy L Sayers' Golden Age crime novels. Gentleman detective Lord Peter Wimsey starred in a number of novels and short stories by Dorothy L Sayers. These full-cast adaptations – first broadcast on BBC radio between 1979 and 2010 – are cherished by crime aficionados worldwide. Whose Body ?: The tale that first introduced Lord Peter to the world, and sees him investigating the case of a corpse in a Battersea b...
Nov 02, 2022•30 min•Ep. 298
Ian Carmichael stars as Lord Peter Wimsey in these classic BBC radio dramatisations of Dorothy L Sayers' Golden Age crime novels. Gentleman detective Lord Peter Wimsey starred in a number of novels and short stories by Dorothy L Sayers. These full-cast adaptations – first broadcast on BBC radio between 1979 and 2010 – are cherished by crime aficionados worldwide. Whose Body ?: The tale that first introduced Lord Peter to the world, and sees him investigating the case of a corpse in a Battersea b...
Nov 02, 2022•30 min•Ep. 297
Inner Sanctum Mysteries : The anthology series featured stories of mystery, terror and suspense, and its tongue-in-cheek introductions were in sharp contrast to shows like Suspense and The Whistler . The early 1940s programs opened with Raymond Edward Johnson introducing himself as, "Your host, Raymond," in a mocking sardonic voice. A spooky melodramatic organ score (played by Lew White) punctuated Raymond's many morbid jokes and playful puns. Raymond's closing was an elongated "Pleasant dreeeea...
Oct 31, 2022•29 min•Ep. 296
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. Halloween Party : When a young girl is fo...
Oct 31, 2022•1 hr 30 min•Ep. 295
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 o...
Oct 27, 2022•31 min•Ep. 294
The Adventures of Sam Spade was 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 Red Star Caper : Sam Spade attends a lecture where the speaker ends up shot dead. Originally aired January 12th,1951. S...
Oct 27, 2022•31 min•Ep. 293
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...
Oct 24, 2022•34 min•Ep. 292
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, d...
Oct 24, 2022•31 min•Ep. 291
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 Bum's Rush : Marlowe is hired to find an old geezer, and finds murder instead. Originally aired September 3rd, 1949. Support the show...
Oct 21, 2022•31 min•Ep. 290
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 chan...
Oct 19, 2022•31 min•Ep. 289
Respected as one of the greats of modern crime writing, Phyllis Dorothy James (1920-2014), known as P. D. James, came to fame for her mystery series starring New Scotland Yard Commander and poet, Adam Dalgliesh. She was also the author of a number of stand-along novels including The Children of Men , which was the basis for the movie Children of Men , and Death Comes to Pemberly , which was adapted into a BBC mini-series. Many of her Adam Dalgliesh books were also adapted for television. In 1991...
Oct 13, 2022•32 min•Ep. 288
Respected as one of the greats of modern crime writing, Phyllis Dorothy James (1920-2014), known as P. D. James, came to fame for her mystery series starring New Scotland Yard Commander and poet, Adam Dalgliesh. She was also the author of a number of stand-along novels including The Children of Men , which was the basis for the movie Children of Men , and Death Comes to Pemberly , which was adapted into a BBC mini-series. Many of her Adam Dalgliesh books were also adapted for television. In 1991...
Oct 13, 2022•32 min•Ep. 287
Respected as one of the greats of modern crime writing, Phyllis Dorothy James (1920-2014), known as P. D. James, came to fame for her mystery series starring New Scotland Yard Commander and poet, Adam Dalgliesh. She was also the author of a number of stand-along novels including The Children of Men , which was the basis for the movie Children of Men , and Death Comes to Pemberly , which was adapted into a BBC mini-series. Many of her Adam Dalgliesh books were also adapted for television. In 1991...
Oct 13, 2022•32 min•Ep. 286
Respected as one of the greats of modern crime writing, Phyllis Dorothy James (1920-2014), known as P. D. James, came to fame for her mystery series starring New Scotland Yard Commander and poet, Adam Dalgliesh. She was also the author of a number of stand-along novels including The Children of Men , which was the basis for the movie Children of Men , and Death Comes to Pemberly , which was adapted into a BBC mini-series. Many of her Adam Dalgliesh books were also adapted for television. In 1991...
Oct 13, 2022•32 min•Ep. 285
Respected as one of the greats of modern crime writing, Phyllis Dorothy James (1920-2014), known as P. D. James, came to fame for her mystery series starring New Scotland Yard Commander and poet, Adam Dalgliesh. She was also the author of a number of stand-along novels including The Children of Men , which was the basis for the movie Children of Men , and Death Comes to Pemberly , which was adapted into a BBC mini-series. Many of her Adam Dalgliesh books were also adapted for television. In 1991...
Oct 13, 2022•32 min•Ep. 284
Respected as one of the greats of modern crime writing, Phyllis Dorothy James (1920-2014), known as P. D. James, came to fame for her mystery series starring New Scotland Yard Commander and poet, Adam Dalgliesh. She was also the author of a number of stand-along novels including The Children of Men , which was the basis for the movie Children of Men , and Death Comes to Pemberly , which was adapted into a BBC mini-series. Many of her Adam Dalgliesh books were also adapted for television. In 1991...
Oct 13, 2022•32 min•Ep. 283
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. From 1939 to 1946, Basil Rathbone played Sherlock Holmes with his friend Nigel Bruce on ...
Oct 11, 2022•31 min•Ep. 282
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. Pa...
Oct 07, 2022•31 min•Ep. 281
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 o...
Oct 05, 2022•31 min•Ep. 280
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...
Oct 03, 2022•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 279
The Adventures of Sam Spade was 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 D...
Sep 30, 2022•32 min•Ep. 278
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, d...
Sep 28, 2022•31 min•Ep. 277
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 ...
Sep 26, 2022•31 min•Ep. 276
