Old Time Radio Crime & Detectives

Old Time Radio Crime & Detectives

Delivered daily. Old Time Radio crime and detectives - sleuths from the golden age of radio. This podcast features a variety of OTR crime, mystery and detective programs delivered every day. Just a few of the programs featured include Dragnet, Philip Marlowe, Candy Matson, Pat Novak, Falcon, Box 13, Nick Carter, Yours Truly Johnny Dollar, Rocky Fortune, Pat Novak, Richard Diamond, Barrie Craig, Police Headquarters; and many more. Find all our OTR radio stations and podcasts at theaterofthemind-otr.com - Listen, download free - Spreaker | Apple Podcasts | YouTube Music

Episodes

The Winsome Widow Matter - Johnny Dollar | 04/26/1959 (Ep636)

October 17, 2025 • 22 mins
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama which aired between 1949 and 1962. "The man with the action-packed expense account, America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator, Johnny Dollar". Of the eight different actors who played Johnny Dollar, Bob Bailey is likely considered the most popular. Bailey's interpretation presented a tough, streetwise character, but also sensitive and thoughtful. During it's time, Yours Truly, ...
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Transcript

The Carnival - Richard Diamond | 03/30/1951 (Ep089)

October 16, 2025 • 29 mins
Richard Diamond, Private Detective was an American detective drama, created by Blake Edwards, which aired on radio from 1949 to 1953. Dick Powell starred as Richard Diamond in the radio series as a wisecracking former police officer turned private detective. Episodes often had Diamond taking on a case at the behest of his friend and former partner, Lt. Walter Levinson. The plot remained relatively unchanged throughout the series, w...
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Transcript

Marcia Halpern - Pat Novak | 02/27/1949

October 15, 2025 • 27 mins
Pat Novak, for Hire was a detective drama series which aired from 1946 to 1947 on the West Coast and in 1949 as a nationwide program for ABC. The episodes were set on the San Francisco waterfront and depicts the city as a dark, rough place where the main goal is survival. Novak is not a detective by trade, but he owns a boat shop on Pier 19 where he rents out boats and does odd jobs to make money. The series' fast-paced, hard-boile...
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Transcript

Caper - Sam Spade | 12/15/1950 (Ep226)

October 14, 2025 • 28 mins
The Adventures of Sam Spade (1946-1951) radio series was loosely based on the private detective character Sam Spade, created by writer Dashiell Hammett for The Maltese Falcon. Film star Howard Duff played Sam Spade (also played by Steve Dunne at the end). Lurene Tuttle played Effie, Spade's secretary. Spade's character was the prototypical "hard-boiled" detective - an introspective, sharp witted, tough guy.

Hope you enjoy this episo...
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Oyster Shucker - Rocky Fortune | 10/06/1953 (Ep01)

October 13, 2025 • 25 mins
Rocky Fortune was created in 1953 by writer George Lefferts and starring Frank Sinatra in the lead. Rocky Fortune followed the exploits of a marginally employed jack-of-all-trades Rocky Fortune. Though considered a second-rate show even during the 26 weeks it aired, it's a nice boon for Frank Sinatra fans.

Hope you enjoy this episode of Rocky Fortune! Find all our OTR radio stations and podcasts at theaterofthemind-otr.com - Audio C...
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Transcript

The Ladies Night - Philip Marlowe | 02/21/1950 (Ep072)

October 12, 2025 • 29 mins
The Adventures of Philip Marlowe was a radio series featuring Raymond Chandler as Philip Marlowe. He was a gritty, no nonsense American, hard-boiled detective; however, he was more complex than other hard-boiled detectives of the era. "Hard-boiled" refers to a gritter urban element to the detective genre. Marlowe could handle a gun and take a beating, but he was also college educated. He played chess and appreciated classical music...
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Transcript

Poison with a Past - Nick Carter | 03/04/1945 (Ep173)

October 11, 2025 • 29 mins
Nick Carter, Master Detective was a radio crime drama based on tales of the fictional private detective Nick Carter, first seen in 1886, from Street & Smith's dime novels and pulp magazines. Lon Clark played Nick Carter and Charlotte Manson played his assistant, Patsy Bowen. Nick Carter ran from 1943 to 1955. 

Hope you enjoy this episode of Nick Carter! Find more classic radio series at theaterofthemind-otr.com - Audio Credit: T...
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The Fatal Filet Matter - Johnny Dollar | 05/10/1959 (Ep638)

October 10, 2025 • 23 mins
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama which aired between 1949 and 1962. "The man with the action-packed expense account, America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator, Johnny Dollar". Of the eight different actors who played Johnny Dollar, Bob Bailey is likely considered the most popular. Bailey's interpretation presented a tough, streetwise character, but also sensitive and thoughtful. During it's time, Yours Truly, ...
Mark as Played
Transcript

The Big Look - Dragnet (AFRS) | 05/11/1954 (Ep247)

October 9, 2025 • 25 mins
Hope you enjoy this episode of Dragnet! We run free OTR Crime, Detective and 4 other old time radio internet radio stations at theaterofthemind-otr.com - Audio Credit: The Old Time Radio Researchers Group. All Podcasts @ Spreaker | Apple | YouTube | Spotify | iHeart | Amazon

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Transcript

Desert Betrayal - Rocky Jordan | 05/29/1949 (Ep30)

October 7, 2025 • 29 mins
Rocky Jordan was a radio series about an American restaurateur in Cairo who each week became involved in some kind of mystery or adventure. The show was broadcast between 1948 and 1951. The two lead roles were Rocky Jordan and Captain Sam Sabaaya of the Cairo Police. For most of the show's history Jordan was played by veteran radio actor Jack Moyles, but he was later replaced by a movie star, George Raft, for the brief period in 19...
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Transcript

The Twin Trouble Matter - Johnny Dollar | 05/17/1959 (Ep839)

October 6, 2025 • 18 mins
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama which aired between 1949 and 1962. "The man with the action-packed expense account, America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator, Johnny Dollar". Of the eight different actors who played Johnny Dollar, Bob Bailey is likely considered the most popular. Bailey's interpretation presented a tough, streetwise character, but also sensitive and thoughtful. During it's time, Yours Truly, ...
Mark as Played
Transcript

One Of These Four - Box 13 | 05/08/1949 (Ep38)

October 5, 2025 • 26 mins
Box 13 is a syndicated radio drama about the escapades of newspaperman-turned-mystery novelist Dan Holiday, played by film star Alan Ladd. It ran during 1948 and 1949. The episodes involved Holiday running classified ads to get new ideas for his fiction. "Adventure wanted, will go anywhere, do anything – write Box 13, Star-Times". The episodes followed Holiday's adventures when he responded to the letters sent to him.

Hope you enjoy...
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Transcript

The Big Help - Dragnet | 05/18/1954 (Ep248)

October 4, 2025 • 25 mins
Hope you enjoy this episode of Dragnet! We run free OTR Crime, Detective and 4 other old time radio internet radio stations at theaterofthemind-otr.com - Audio Credit: The Old Time Radio Researchers Group. All Podcasts @ Spreaker | Apple | YouTube | Spotify | iHeart | Amazon

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Transcript

The Grim Echo - Philip Marlowe | 02/14/1950 (Ep071)

October 3, 2025 • 29 mins
The Adventures of Philip Marlowe was a radio series featuring Raymond Chandler as Philip Marlowe. He was a gritty, no nonsense American, hard-boiled detective; however, he was more complex than other hard-boiled detectives of the era. "Hard-boiled" refers to a gritter urban element to the detective genre. Marlowe could handle a gun and take a beating, but he was also college educated. He played chess and appreciated classical music...
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Transcript

The Casque of Death Matter - Johnny Dollar | 05/24/1959 (Ep640)

October 2, 2025 • 19 mins
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama which aired between 1949 and 1962. "The man with the action-packed expense account, America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator, Johnny Dollar". Of the eight different actors who played Johnny Dollar, Bob Bailey is likely considered the most popular. Bailey's interpretation presented a tough, streetwise character, but also sensitive and thoughtful. During it's time, Yours Truly, ...
Mark as Played
Transcript

The Big Watch - Dragnet | 05/25/1954 (Ep249)

October 1, 2025 • 26 mins
Hope you enjoy this episode of Dragnet! We offer an OTR Crime, Detective and 4 other old time radio internet radio stations theaterofthemind-otr.com - Audio Credit: The Old Time Radio Researchers Group. All Podcasts @ Spreaker | Apple | YouTube | Spotify | iHeart

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Transcript

The Long Arm - Philip Marlowe | 02/07/1950 (Ep070)

September 30, 2025 • 29 mins
The Adventures of Philip Marlowe was a radio series featuring Raymond Chandler as Philip Marlowe. He was a gritty, no nonsense American, hard-boiled detective; however, he was more complex than other hard-boiled detectives of the era. "Hard-boiled" refers to a gritter urban element to the detective genre. Marlowe could handle a gun and take a beating, but he was also college educated. He played chess and appreciated classical music...
Mark as Played
Transcript

The Make-Up Man | Rocky Jordan | 05/22/1949 (Ep29)

September 29, 2025 • 29 mins
Rocky Jordan was a radio series about an American restaurateur in Cairo who each week became involved in some kind of mystery or adventure. The show was broadcast between 1948 and 1951. The two lead roles were those of Rocky Jordan and Captain Sam Sabaaya of the Cairo Police. For most of the show's history Jordan was played by veteran radio actor Jack Moyles, but he was later replaced by a movie star, George Raft, for the brief per...
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Transcript

Jack Of Clubs - Pat Novak, For Hire | 02/20/1949

September 28, 2025 • 29 mins
Pat Novak, for Hire was a detective drama series which aired from 1946 to 1947 on the West Coast and in 1949 as a nationwide program for ABC. The episodes were set on the San Francisco waterfront and depicts the city as a dark, rough place where the main goal is survival. Novak is not a detective by trade, but he owns a boat shop on Pier 19 where he rents out boats and does odd jobs to make money. The series' fast-paced, hard-boile...
Mark as Played
Transcript

Much Too Lucky - Box 13 | 05/01/1949 (Ep37)

September 27, 2025 • 26 mins
Box 13 is a syndicated radio drama about the escapades of newspaperman-turned-mystery novelist Dan Holiday, played by film star Alan Ladd. It ran during 1948 and 1949. The episodes involved Holiday running classified ads to get new ideas for his fiction. "Adventure wanted, will go anywhere, do anything – write Box 13, Star-Times". The episodes followed Holiday's adventures when he responded to the letters sent to him.

Hope you enjoy...
Mark as Played
Transcript

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