Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

Happy Father’s Day! We’re celebrating dear old Dad with a collection of radio mysteries featuring fathers. First, Ellery Queen and his police inspector father collaborate on a case of smuggling and murder. Larry Dobkin is Ellery in “Number Thirty-One” (originally aired on NBC on September 7, 1947). Next, George Valentine is hired by a convicted killer's son to clear his father’s name. Bob Bailey stars...

“Get this and get it straight!” We’re celebrating Gerald Mohr - the radio actor who brought a two-fisted intensity to Philip Marlowe - in honor of his birthday on June 11. He was one of the best stars of the era, and his performance makes The Adventures of Philip Marlowe one of the best detective dramas of the day. We’ll hear Mohr as Marlowe in “The Easy Mark” (originally aired on CBS on January 29, 1...

Our bonus series spotlighting the serialized adventures of Johnny Dollar continues! In “The Alvin Summers Matter” (originally aired on CBS between October 24 and 28, 1955), the man with the action-packed expense account is in Mexico to track down an embezzler who fled the United States with his loot. But Johnny isn’t there long before he’s pistol whipped and discovers a corpse in his hotel room. Bob B...

Tune in for danger with a collection of radio mysteries that involve the medium of radio itself! Master sleuth Ellery Queen has to solve a murder that takes place in his own studio - right in the middle of his show - in “The Armchair Detective” (originally aired on CBS on March 27, 1946). Then, Dan Holiday is hired by a radio actress who fears for her life in “Actor’s Alibi,” a syndicated episode of B...

They say clothes make the man, but they also make mysteries for this week’s roster of radio detectives. George Valentine hunts a killer where the only clue is his distinctive attire in “Death Wears a Gay Sport Jacket” from Let George Do It (originally aired on Mutual on October 18, 1948) and Philo Vance probes the murder of a dress shop owner in the syndicated episode “The Herringbone Murder Case.” Ri...

Our dogged detectives sniff for clues in five canine-related old time radio mysteries. First, the owner of the best in show pooches is killed at a dog show in a syndicated adventure of Boston Blackie, and a dog “tells” Sherlock Holmes who murdered his owner in “The Case of the Dog Who Changed His Mind” (originally aired on Mutual on September 28, 1947). Philip Marlowe is on the trail of a dog - though...

Happy Mother’s Day! We’re celebrating moms with five old time radio mysteries where they play major roles. In “The Case of the Lucky Shilling,” Sherlock Holmes comes to the aid of a woman whose son is wiped out by a crooked gambler (originally aired on Mutual on January 14, 1948), and George Valentine tries to prove that a woman is not an unfit mother in “Problem Child” from Let George

In this encore presentation, we go back to the summer of 1947 when Philip Marlowe came to the air in his own weekly series with Van Heflin playing Raymond Chandler's private eye. The NBC series featured a mix of original mysteries as well as adaptations of Chandler stories, including the show's premiere episode "Red Wind" (originally aired on NBC on June 17, 1947). A year later, Gerald Mohr would put ...

Lights, camera, action! This week, our old time radio sleuths are tackling cases connected with the movie business and finding mystery on and off screen. First, "the Lyon's Eye" has to protect a movie star from some unscripted violence. Frank Graham stars in "The Hollywood Story, or H is for the Many Things You Gave Me" from Jeff Regan, Investigator (originally aired on CBS on March 22, 1950). Next, D...

We're celebrating the 105th anniversary of the birth of Jack Webb - one of the faces on the Mt. Rushmore of old time radio drama. Best known for Dragnet, Webb logged many an hour solving crimes on the air as cops, private eyes, and amateur sleuths. We'll hear him as Jeff Regan, Investigator in "The Guy from Gower Gulch" (originally aired on CBS on November 13, 1948) and as Pat Novak For Hire in "Wendy...

In honor of April Fool's Day, our radio detectives this week have to contend with some practical jokes and jokers that are anything but funny. Dr. Watson is enlisted to pull a prank on Sherlock Holmes in "The April Fool's Day Adventure," starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (originally aired on Mutual on April 1, 1946). Dan Holiday tries to find a deranged jokester before his antics turn deadly in ...

Sound the alarm! We've got fugitives on the lam in these radio mysteries - each with an escape from jail at the center of the story. A convict Boston Blackie put behind bars is out and making his way to Blackie's door in a syndicated mystery, and Richard Diamond, Private Detective suspects an escaped gangster is back in town and settling scores in "The Ralph Baxter Case" (originally aired on NBC on Ap...

Place your bets with these old time radio mysteries involving gamblers and the (sometimes) crooked games they play. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson find murder among the roulette tables of a French casino in "The Case of the Double Zero," starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (originally aired on Mutual on November 19, 1945). Philip Marlowe tries to find a friend's stolen IOU but stumbles across a co...

It's a wonderful night for Oscar! The Academy Awards will be handed out this evening, so in celebration of Hollywood's biggest night, here are four old time radio mysteries - each starring an actor who took home a golden statuette. Edmond O'Brien (Best Supporting Actor for The Barefoot Contessa) is Johnny Dollar in "The George Farmer Matter" (originally aired on CBS on June 9, 1951). Rex Harrison (Bes...

All the world’s a stage, but as our radio detectives discover this week the theatre offers no respite from mysteries to solve. Each of our stories involves the theatre, with crimes taking place onstage, backstage, and sometimes in the aisles. First, as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce investigate when an actor takes his role as a murderer a bit too seriously in “The Case ...