Bear Trap (Aired April 21, 1957)


Gunsmoke - The radio show first aired on April 26, 1952 and ran until June 18, 1961 on the CBS radio network. The series starred William Conrad as Marshal Matt Dillon, Howard McNear as Doc Charles Adams, Georgia Ellis as Kitty Russell, and Parley Baer as Deputy Chester Proudfoot. Doc's first name and Chester's last name were changed for the television program. Gunsmoke was notable for its critically acclaimed cast and writing, and is commonly regarded as one of the finest old time radio shows. Some listeners (such as old time radio expert John Dunning) have argued that the radio version of Gunsmoke was far more realistic than the television program.

THIS EPISODE:

April 21, 1957. CBS network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. "Bear Trap". Andy's in charge of the stable in Dodge, and is prone to brag a bit. When Hod Logan comes to town, it's possibly to shoot Andy. Hod has other ideas, however! The public service announcements have been deleted. William Conrad, Parley Baer, Ralph Moody, Georgia Ellis, Howard McNear, Les Crutchfield (writer), George Walsh (announcer). 23:29.

Lost Angel (Aired December 18, 1946)


The list of films and actors on Academy Award Theater is very impressive. Bette Davis begins the series in Jezebel, with Ginger Rogers following in Kitty Foyle, and then Paul Muni in The Life of Louis Pasteur. The Informer had to have Victor Mclaglen, and the Maltese Falcon, Humphrey Bogart, Sidney Greenstreet (this movie was his first major motion picutre role) plus Mary Astor for the hat trick. Suspicion starred Cary Grant with Ann Todd doing the Joan Fontaine role, Ronald Coleman in Lost Horizon, and Joan Fontaine and John Lund were in Portrait of Jenny. How Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Pinocchio were done is something to hear! Some films are less well known, such as Guest in the House, with Kirk Douglas and Anita Louise, It Happened Tomorrow, with Eddie Bracken and Ann Blythe playing Dick Powell and Linda Darnell's roles, and Cheers for Miss Bishop with Olivia de Havilland. Each adaptation is finely produced and directed by Dee Engelbach, with music composed and conducted by Leith Stevens. Frank Wilson wrote the movie adaptations.

THIS EPISODE:

December 18, 1946. CBS network. "Lost Angel". Sponsored by: Squibb. Last show of the series. The heart-warming story of a little girl raised by scientists who meets a hard-boiled reporter and discovers love. Margaret O'Brien. 1/2 hour.

Joey (Aired July 17, 1952)


The Chase is an exciting Old Time Radio series in which every episode contains, well, a chase. Tales, highly melodramatic and often improbable, of people on the run. The concept of "hunter and hunted" was built into the signatures. with the lone bugle of a fox hunt, the braying of dogs, the sounds of a man running, a gunshot, and the slowing footsteps and eventual fall of the victim. It may be an adventure story, a crime story, or even science fiction, but there will always be a suspense filled chase.

THIS EPISODE:

July 17, 1952. NBC network. "Joey". Sustaining. A boxing manager signs a young Mexican who looks like the next champ. After poisoning the fighter to win for a gambler, the manager is haunted by the fighter and his mother. The title may not be accurate. Amzie Strickland, Bryna Raeburn, Daniel Sutter (director, transcriber), Donald Buka, Fred Collins (announcer), Joe DeSantis, Lawrence Klee (creator, writer), Mandel Kramer. 29:16.

The Fort Ord Story (Aired October 9, 1950)


CANDY MATSON was the private eye star of Candy Matson, YUkon 2-8208, an NBC West Coast show which first aired in March 1949 and was created by Monty Masters. He cast his wife, Natalie Parks, in the title role of this sassy, sexy PI. Her understated love interest, Lt. Ray Mallard, was played by Henry Leff while her assistant and best pal, aptly named Rembrandt Watson, was the voice of Jack Thomas. Every show opened with a ringing telephone and our lady PI answering it with "Candy Matson, YU 2-8209" and then the organ swung into the theme song, "Candy". Each job took Candy from her apartment on Telegraph Hill into some actual location in San Francisco. The writers, overseen by Monty, worked plenty of real Bay Area locations into every plot.

THIS EPISODE:

YUkon 2-8209. October 9, 1950. NBC network, San Francisco origination. Sustaining. Candy is invited to an army dance at Fort Ord and solves a double murder in the process. Natalie Masters, Monte Masters (producer, director). 1/2 hour.

Bomb On The Denver Plane (Aired September 4, 1952)


Broadcast on NBC, Night Beat ran from 1949 to 1952 and starred Frank Lovejoy as Randy Stone, a tough and streetwise reporter who worked the nightbeat for the Chicago Star looking for human interest stories. He met an assortment of people, most of them with a problem, many of them scared, and sometimes he was able to help them, sometimes he wasn’t. It is generally regarded as a ‘quality’ show and it stands up extremely well. Frank Lovejoy (1914-1962) isn’t remembered today, but he was a powerful and believable actor with a strong delivery, and his portrayal of Randy Stone as tough guy with humanity was perfect. The scripts were excellent, given that they had to pack in a lot in a short time, and there was a good supporting cast, orchestra, and sound effects. ‘The Slasher’, broadcast on 10 November 1950, the last show of season one, has a very loosely Ripper-derived plot in which Stone searches for an artist. Supporting actors included Parley Baer, William Conrad, Jeff Corey, Lawrence Dobkin, Paul Frees, Jack Kruschen, Peter Leeds, Howard McNear, Lurene Tuttle and Martha Wentworth.

THIS EPISODE:

September 4, 1952. "Bomb On The Denver Plane" - NBC network. Sustaining. Randy Stone receives a tip that a bomb has been planted on a DC-4 airliner enroute to Denver. His warning saves all the passengers aboard the plane, the the man who planted the bomb must be found. Frank Lovejoy, Warren Lewis (writer, producer, director), Joan Banks, Paul Frees, Stan Waxman, Lou Rusoff (writer), Robert Armbruster (music), John Stevenson, Sandra Gould. 29:17.

The Alsop Family: How It Diminished and Grew Again (Aired August 24, 1953)


Crime Classics was a U. S. radio docudrama which aired over CBS from June 15, 1953 to June 30, 1954. Created, produced, and directed by radio actor/director Elliott Lewis, the program was basically a historical true crime series, examining crimes, and especially murders, from the past. It grew out of Lewis's personal interest in famous murder cases, and took a documentary-like approach to the subject, carefully recreating the facts, personages, and feel of the time period. Comparatively little dramatic license was taken with the facts and events, but the tragedy was leavened with humor, expressed largely through the narration.

THIS EPISODE:

August 24, 1953. CBS network. "The Alsop Family: How It Diminished and Grew Again". Sustaining. In the 1670s, a family of highwaymen is none-too-pleased with the bride of one of its members. Lou Merrill (host), Roy Rowan (announcer), Morton Fine (writer), David Friedkin (writer), Elliott Lewis (producer, director), Ben Wright, Herb Butterfield, Ellen Morgan, Betty Harford, Richard Peel, Terry Kilburn, Raymond Lawrence, Bernard Herrmann (composer, conductor). 29:51.

Dinner Of Death (Aired April 23, 1945)


Bulldog Drummond has come to wreak havoc on unsuspecting killers, counterfeiters, and underworld characters. The opening of the show starts with a the sounds of footsteps, foghorn, then two shots ring out, followed by three blows of a police officer's whistle. Bulldog, who's really name is Hugh (played by George Coulouris), was a methodical crime-solving sleuth who let nothing get in his way of his goal, which was to put a stop to crime! Bulldog believed in uncomplicated and decisive means of getting his way with the lords of the underworld. This usually led to their swift capture, and the easing of the city's burden brought about by these ruthless thugs.

The People In The Forest (Aired June 11, 1950)


"Are you willing to undertake a dangerous mission for the United States, knowing in advance you may never return alive?" Cloak and Dagger first aired over the NBC network on May 7, 1950. It had a short run through the Summer on Sundays, changing to Fridays after its Summer run. The last show aired Oct. 22, 1950. This is the story of the WWII special governmental agency, the OSS, or Office of Strategic Services. Its mission was to develop and maintain spy networks throughout Europe and into Asia, while giving aid to underground partisan groups and developing espionage activities for Allied forces overseas.The show is based on the book of the same name by Lt. Col. Corey Ford and Major Alastair MacBain (who were associated with the OSS from its early days.) The dramas are not Hollywood-style, in that they sometimes end with plans foiled or leading characters dead.

THIS EPISODE:

June 11, 1950. NBC network. "The People In The Forest". Sustaining. 4:00 P. M. Robert Scarpella parachutes into occupied France. The underground is being plagued by a traitor in their midst. The start of the program was delayed 45 seconds for golf scores. Corey Ford (originator), Alistair MacBain (originator), Alfred Hollander (associate producer), Sherman Marks (director, supervisor), Larry Haines, Boris Aplon, Berry Kroeger, Jerry Jarrett, Lily Darvas, Raymond Edward Johnson, Joseph Buloff, Nancy Franklin, Winifred Wolfe (writer), Jon Gart (music director), Louis G. Cowan (producer), Bob Warren (announcer). 27:35.

Guest Fred Astaire (Aired February 17, 1948)


From the age of twelve, Bob Hope worked at a wide variety of odd jobs at a local board walk. When not doing this he would busk, doing dance and comedy patter to make extra money. He entered many dancing and amateur talent contests, and won prizes for his impersonation of Charlie Chaplin. He also boxed briefly and unsuccessfully under the name Packy East, making it once as far as the semi-finals of the Ohio novice championship. Fallen silent film comedian Fatty Arbuckle saw one of his performances and in 1925 got him steady work with Hurley's Jolly Follies. A year later Hope had formed an act called the Dancemedians with George Burns (who would also live to see his own 100th birthday) and the Hilton Sisters, conjoined twins who had a tap dancing routine. Hope and his partner George Byrne had an act as a pair of Siamese twins as well, and both danced and sang while wearing blackface before friends advised Hope that he was funnier as himself.. After five years on the Vaudeville circuit, by his own account Hope was surprised and humbled when he and his partner Grace Louise Troxell failed a 1930 screen test for Pathé at Culver City, California. (Hope had been on the screen in small parts, 1927's The Sidewalks of New York and 1928's Smiles. Hope returned to New York City and subsequently appeared in several Broadway musicals including Roberta, Say When, the 1936 Ziegfeld Follies, and Red, Hot and Blue with Ethel Merman. His performances were generally well-received and critics noted his keen sense of comedic timing. He changed his name from "Leslie" to "Bob", reportedly because people in the US were calling him "Hopelessly", although in the 1920s he sometimes used the name "Lester Hope".

THIS EPISODE:

February 17, 1948. NBC network. Sponsored by: Pepsodent. The program originates from Canoga Park High School, Woodland Hills, California. Fred and Bob do a skit about their start in show business. Barbara Jo Allen, the real mayor of Woodland Hills, makes a fund appeal for the United Nations Crusade For Children. Bob Hope, Fred Astaire, Jerry Colonna, Barbara Jo Allen, Trudy Erwin, Les Brown and His Orchestra, Dorothy Lovett, Wendell Niles (announcer), Jack Kirkwood, Norman Sullivan (writer), Fred Williams (writer), Larry Kline (writer), Paul Laven (writer), Ray Allen (writer), Fred Fox (writer), Roger Price (writer), Chet Castellaw (writer), Glenn Wheaton (writer), Harold Goodman (writer), Hendrix Voellaris, Al Capstaff (producer), Bob Stephenson (director). 29:41.

The Case Of The Unwritten Letter (Aired July 29, 1945)


Nick Carter, Master Detective - Nick Carter is the name of a popular fictional detective who first appeared in in a dime novel entitled "The Old Detective's Pupil" on September 18, 1886. In 1915, Nick Carter Weekly became Street & Smith's Detective Story Magazine. Novels featuring Carter continued to appear through the 1950s, by which time there was also a popular radio show, 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. Patsy Bowen, Nick's assistant, was portrayed by Helen Choate until mid-1946 and then Charlotte Manson stepped into the role. Nick and Patsy's friend was reporter Scubby Wilson (John Kane). Nick's contact at the police department was Sgt. Mathison (Ed Latimer). The supporting cast included Raymond Edward Johnson, Bill Johnstone and Bryna Raeburn. Michael Fitzmaurice was the program's announcer. The series ended on September 25, 1955. Chick Carter, Boy Detective was a serial adventure that aired weekday afternoons on Mutual. Chick Carter, the adopted son of Nick Carter, was played by Bill Lipton (1943-44) and Leon Janney (1944-45). The series aired from July 5, 1943 to July 6, 1945.

THIS EPISODE:

July 29, 1945. Mutual network. "The Unwritten Letter". Sponsored by: Lin-X waxes and cleaning products. A man who died with a blank letter in his hand, and a murder solved after an interview with the corpse. Lon Clark. 1/2 hour.

Russia (1936)


Ports Of Call - An obscure series from 1935 or 1936 in which each episode deals with a voyage to a different country where events of that country's history are dramatized. They each begin with the low moan of a tramp steamer's whistle and the announcement of the series title, followed by a musical interlude.*Show Notes From The Old Time Radio Researcher's Group.

THIS EPISODE:

1936. Transco syndication. "Russia". Music fill for local commercial insert. In 1605, Boris Gudenov learns that his murdered brother is being impersonated. The missing Dmitri conquers Moscow and Boris takes poison. Prince Shuski gets his revenge. The city of St. Petersburg is built at a cost of one hundred thousand lives. Tsar Nicholas II causes the massacre of 1905 and plants the seeds of revolution. The Tsar and his family are shot, Communists rule the country. The identity of the syndicator is subject to correction. . 28:43.

War Orphan (Aired October 7, 1942)


An NBC offering. Aired on Sundays from 7:00PM to 7:30PM, starring Lional Barrymore and Agnes Moorehead. The creator and writer was Jean Holloway, the announcer Harlow Wilcox, music by Gordon Jenkins and sponsored by Rinso detergent. The show was a perfect vehicle for Lionel Barrymore: rich with warmhearted humor, and good-natured grumbling, its "mayor" had a fierce bark but a mushy heart when confronted with the plight of an orphan or a stray dog. The mayor cared little about political advantage: he even found time, once a year, to turn the town of Springdale into a special theater, to give his traditional performance as Ebenezer Scrooge in Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. THE CAST: Lionel Barrymore as the mayor of the town of Springdale. Agnes Moorehead as Marilly, his housekeeper. Conrad Binyon as the mayor's ward, Butch. Gloria McMillan as Sharlee Bronson, Butch's best girl. Priscilla Lyon as Holly-Ann, the mayor's granddaughter. Also: Will Wright, Sharon Douglas, Irvin Lee, Marjorie Davies, and other Hollywood actors. Producer: Murray Bolen; later Knowles Entrikin. Director: Jack Van Nostrand. Writers: Jean Holloway, Leonard St. Clair, Howard Blake, Erna Lazarus, etc.; Howard Breslin and Charles Tazewell wrote alternate weeks, ca. 1945. Orchestra:. Gordon Jenkins (ca. 1943); Bernard Katz (1945); Frank Worth. Sound Effects: David Light, Mary Ann Gideon.

THIS EPISODE:

October 7, 1942. CBS network. Sponsored by: Rinso. The first show of the series on CBS. The mayor is asked to take care of an eleven-year-old war orphan. A heartwarming, tearful script. The system cue has been deleted. Lionel Barrymore, Harlow Wilcox (announcer), Bob Bailey, Jerry Hausner, Billy Roy, Agnes Moorehead, Jean Holloway (writer). 29:28.

Death Worshipper (1946)


The Murder at Midnight series was a thirty-minute broadcast featuring tales of the supernatural. The actors included Mercedes McCambridge and Lawson Zerbe and the show was narrated using the spooky, creepy voice of Raymond Morgan and always opened using the same gripping signature; “the witching hour, when night is darkest, our fears are the strongest, our strength at its lowest ebb… Midnight! … when graves gape open and death strikes!” FIRST BROADCAST: September 16th 1946 - LAST BROADCAST: September 8th 1947 - CAST: Elspeth Eric, Mercedes McCambridge, Berry Kroeger, Betty Caine, Carl Frank, Barry Hopkins, Lawson Zerbe, Charlotte Holland - NARRATORS: Raymond Morgan - MUSIC: Charles Paul - PRODUCERS/DIRECTORS: Lewis G Cowan, Anton M Leader -WRITERS: Robert Newman, Joseph Ruscoll, Max Ehrlich, William Morwood.

Come To The Bank (Aired October 31, 1964)


Arch Oboler's Plays was a radio drama series written, produced and directed by Arch Oboler. Minus a sponsor, it ran for one year, airing Saturday evenings on NBC from March 25, 1939 to March 23, 1940 and revived five years later on Mutual for a sustaining summer run from April 5, 1945 to October 11, 1945. Leading film actors were heard on this series, including Gloria Blondell, Eddie Cantor, James Cagney, Ronald Colman, Joan Crawford, Greer Garson, Edmund Gwenn, Van Heflin, Katharine Hepburn, Elsa Lanchester, Peter Lorre, Frank Lovejoy, Raymond Massey, Burgess Meredith, Paul Muni, Alla Nazimova, Edmond O'Brien, Geraldine Page, Gale Sondergaard, Franchot Tone and George Zucco.

The Quarantine (Aired December 18, 1948)


The Adventures of Frank Merriwell first ran on NBC radio from March 26 to June 22, 1934 as a 15-minute serial airing three times a week at 5:30pm. Sponsored by Dr. West's Toothpaste, this program starred Donald Briggs in the title role. Harlow Wilcox was the announcer. After a 12-year gap, the series returned October 5, 1946 as a 30-minute NBC Saturday morning show, continuing until June 4, 1949. Lawson Zerbe starred as Merriwell, Jean Gillespie and Elaine Rostas as Inza Burrage, Harold Studer as Bart Hodge and Patricia Hosley as Elsie Belwood. The announcer was Harlow Wilcox, and the Paul Taubman Orchestra supplied the background music. There are at least three generations of Merriwells: Frank, his half-brother Dick, and Frank's son, Frank Jr. There is a marked difference between Frank and Dick. Frank usually handled challenges on his own. Dick has mysterious friends and skills that help him, especially an old Indian friend without whom the stories would not have been quite as interesting.

THIS EPISODE:

December 18, 1948. NBC network. "The Quarantine". Sustaining. A false alarm case of measles almost keeps the Frank and Bart from winning a basketball game for Yale. Lawson Zerbe, Hal Studer, Elaine Rost, Harlow Wilcox (announcer), Burt L. Standish (creator). 1/2 hour.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Lightning Jim" - The Outlaw's Son (1940)


J. David Goldin's The Golden Age of Radio published by Radio Yesteryear in 1998 indicates that 41 Lightning Jim broadcasts have been located. The program originated in the 1940s and was called The Adventures of Lightning Jim. At this time it was a West coast program. The program returned to the air in the 1950s. A total of 98 radio programs were produced.

THIS EPISODE:

Program #2. ZIV Syndication. "The Outlaw's Son". Commercials added locally. Jim tries to help a young orphan who is secretly trying to kill him. . 1/2 hour.

A Slight Case Of Perjury (Aired April 6, 1951)


Nero Wolfe is a fictional detective created by American author Rex Stout in the 1930s and featured in dozens of novels and novellas.In the stories, Wolfe is one of the most famous private detectives in the United States. He weighs about 285 pounds and is 5'11" tall. He raises orchids in a rooftop greenhouse in his New York City brownstone on West 35th Street, helped by his live-in gardener Theodore Horstmann. Wolfe drinks beer throughout the day. He employs a live-in chef, Fritz Brenner. He is multilingual and brilliant, though apparently self-educated, and reading is his third passion after food and orchids. He works in an office in his house and almost never leaves home, even to pursue the detective work that finances his expensive lifestyle. Instead, his leg work is done by another live-in employee, Archie Goodwin. While both Wolfe and Goodwin are licensed detectives, Goodwin is more of the classic fictional gumshoe, tough, wise-cracking, and skirt-chasing. He tells the stories in a breezy first-person narrative that is semi-hard-boiled in style.

THIS EPISODE:

April 6, 1951. NBC network. "A Slight Case Of Perjury". Sustaining. An attempt is made on the life of Tom Wilcox, just after Wilcox is acquitted of the murder of Keith Hanson. Part of the final promotional announcement and the system cue have been deleted. Sydney Greenstreet, Rex Stout (creator), Gladys Williams (writer), J. Donald Wilson (producer, director), Harry Bartell, William Johnstone, Don Stanley (announcer), Edwin Fadiman (producer), Mary Lansing, Jeanne Bates, Barney Phillips, Paul Marion, Ken Peters. 29:19.

Men Without Mouths (Aired April 16, 1974)


CBS Radio Mystery Theater - Created by Himan Brown (who had by then become a radio legend due to his work on Inner Sanctum Mysteries and other shows dating back to the 1930s), and aired on affiliate stations across the CBS Radio network, the series began its long run on January 6, 1974. The final episode ran on December 31, 1982. A host of prominent actors from radio and screen performed on the series, including Agnes Moorehead, Joan Hackett, Mercedes McCambridge, Morey Amsterdam, Roy Thinnes, Keir Dullea, Fred Gwynne, Richard Crenna, Kim Hunter, Larry Haines, Morgan Fairchild, John Lithgow, and even a very young Sarah Jessica Parker. Actors were paid union scale at around $73.92 per show. Writers earned a flat rate of $350.00 per show. The production took place with assembly-line precision. Brown would meet with actors at 9:00 AM for the first reading of the script. He would then assign roles and recording would begin. By noon the recording of the actors was complete and Brown handed everyone their checks. Post-production would take place in the afternoon. In 1975, CBSRMT won the prestigious Peabody Award, and in 1990 it was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame. In 1998, the still-active Brown attempted a brief revival of the series, rebroadcasting selected old episodes with his own introductions replacing Marshall's.

THIS EPISODE:

April 16, 1974. Program #75. CBS network. "Men Without Mouths". Sponsored by: Kellogg's, 7-Up, Budweiser. Dan Ocko, E. G. Marshall (host), Henry Slesar (writer), Ira Lewis, Joe Silver, Patricia Elliot. 52 minutes.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Frontier Town" - Lefty Slaughter (1950)


Chad Remington, played by Jeff Chandler for the first 23 shows, was a two fisted lawyer in the town of Dos Rios. Chad's sidekick, Cherokee O'Bannon, played by Wade Crosby, who performed his role in a WC Fields dialect. Mr. Chandler remained in the lead role for the first 23 shows and was replaced by Reed Hadley who played Remington until the end of the series. FRONTIER TOWN was a syndicated Western that ran through the 1952-1953 season.

THIS EPISODE:

Program #5. Broadcasters Program Syndicate/Bruce Eells and Associates syndication. Commercials added locally. Lefty Slaughter is trying to take over the town by killing the storekeeper and calling all debts. The date is approximate. Jeff Chandler, Wade Crosby, Bob Mitchell (organist), Ivan Ditmars (possible organist), Bill Forman (announcer), Paul Franklin (writer, director). 25 minutes.

The Embassy (Aired June 3, 1950)


Dimension X was first heard on NBC April 8, 1950, and ran until September 29, 1951. Strange that so little good science fiction came out of radio; they seem ideally compatible, both relying heavily on imagination. Some fine isolated science fiction stories were developed on the great anthology shows, Suspense and Escape. But until the premiere of Dimension X -- a full two decades after network radio was established -- there were no major science fiction series of broad appeal to adults. This show dramatized the work of such young writers as Ray Bradbury, Robert (Psycho) Bloch, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and Kurt Vonnegut.

THIS EPISODE:

June 3, 1950. NBC network. "The Embassy". Sustaining. A strange man hires a private detective to find the Martian Embassy, which is hidden somewhere in New York. Joe DeSantis (?), Don Abbott (engineer), Albert Buhrman (music), Donald Wollheim (author), George Lefferts (adaptor), Joseph Julian, Berry Kroeger, Van Woodward (producer), Norman Rose (host), Edward King (director), Bob Warren (announcer), Dan Ocko, John McGovern, Elaine Rost, Bryna Raeburn, Joseph Boland. 1/2 hour.

Nothing Behind The Door (Aired June 6, 1947)


Considered by many to be the best horror / science fiction series ever on radio, Quiet Please came from the pen of Lights Out creator Willis Cooper. Every episode was written in first person and starred the incredibly versatile Ernest Chappell. The shows range from deeply personal human interest shows to some of the most original horror / science fiction stories ever written.

THIS EPISODE:

June 8, 1947. Mutual network. "Nothing Behind The Door". Sustaining. The first show of the series. What's in the strange house next to the Mount Wilson observatory? When the man says "nothing," he really means it! Wyllis Cooper (writer, director), Ernest Chappell ("the man who spoke to you"), Martin Lawrence, James Van Dyke, Pat O'Malley, Gene Paratzo (composer, conductor). 29:36.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Six Shooter" - Trail To Sunset (Aired January 31, 1954)


The Six Shooter brought James Stewart to the NBC microphone on September 20, 1953, in a fine series of folksy Western adventures. Stewart was never better on the air than in this drama of Britt Ponset, frontier drifter created by Frank Burt. The epigraph set it up nicely: "The man in the saddle is angular and long-legged: his skin is sun dyed brown. The gun in his holster is gray steel and rainbow mother-of-pearl. People call them both The Six Shooter." Ponset was a wanderer, an easy-going gentleman and -- when he had to be -- a gunfighter. Stewart was right in character as the slow-talking maverick who usually blundered into other people's troubles and sometimes shot his way out. His experiences were broad, but The Six Shooter leaned more to comedy than other shows of its kind. Ponset took time out to play Hamlet with a crude road company. He ran for mayor and sheriff of the same town at the same time. He became involved in a delighful Western version of Cinderella, complete with grouchy stepmother, ugly sisters, and a shoe that didn't fit. And at Christmas he told a young runaway the story of A Christmas Carol, Substituting the original Dickens characters with Western heavies. Britt even had time to fall in love, but it was the age-old story of people from different worlds, and the romance was foredoomed despite their valiant efforts to save it. So we got a cowboy-into-the-sunset ending for this series, truly one of the bright spots of radio. Unfortunately, it came too late, and lasted only one season. It was a transcribed show, sustained by NBC and directed by Jack Johnstone. Basil Adlam provided the music and Frank Burt wrote the scripts. Hal Gibney announced. Information from John Dunning’s "Tune In Yesterday The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio".

THIS EPISODE:

January 31, 1954. NBC network. Sustaining. Britt shoots Ace Tressler when Ace tries to steal Britt's horse. Britt promises him that he'll get medical treatment for Ace and not let him get lynched. Jimmy Stewart, Basil Adlam (music), Jack Johnstone (director), Frank Burt (creator, writer), Howard McNear, Robert Griffin, Forrest Lewis, John Wald (announcer), Harry Bartell, Lamont Johnson. 29:27.

Phyllis Adrian Is Missing (Aired June 29, 1947)


Rogue's Gallery came to the Mutual network on September 27, 1945 with Dick Powell portraying Richard Rogue, a private detective who invariably ended up getting knocked out each week and spending his dream time in acerbic conversation with his subconscious self, Eugor. Rogue's Gallery was, in a sense, Dick Powell's rehearsal for Richard Diamond, Private Detective. Powell played private detective Richard Rogue, who trailed luscious blondes, protected witness, and did whatever else detectives do to make a living. It was a good series, though not destined to make much of a mark. Under the capable direction of Dee Englebach and accompanied by the music of Leith Stevens, Powell floated through his lines with the help of such competents as Lou Merrill, Gerald Mohr, Gloria Blondell, Tony Barrett, and Lurene Tuttle. Peter Leeds played Rogue's friend Eugor, an obscure play on names with Eugor spelling Rogue backwards. The gimmick in Rogue's Gallery was the presence of an alter ego, "Eugor," who arrived in the middle of the show to give Rogue enough information for his final deduction. Eugor was a state of mind, achieved when Rogue was knocked unconcious. During the summer of 1946, the show was billed as Bandwagon Mysteries, with a tip of the hat to the sponsor. In the summer of 1947, it was again revived on NBC Sundays for Fitch, with Barry Sullivan in the title role. In 1950 the character again turned up in a two-year sustainer on the ABC Wednesday-night schedule. Chester Morris played the lead. Chester Morris was the original Boston Blackie. (From the Old Time Radio Researcher's Group)

THIS EPISODE:

June 29, 1947. NBC network, KFI, Los Angeles aircheck. Sponsored by: Fitch's Shampoo, Quinoil Hair Tonic, Fitch's Skin Pep After Shave. "Bullet" ball point pen premium (made from a genuine .30 caliber bullet). Richard Rogue is hired by Howard Adrian to find his missing wife Phyllis. Barry Sullivan, Peter Leeds, Gerald Mohr, Lurene Tuttle, Edwin Max, Charles Vanda (producer, director), Jim Doyle (announcer), Doug Hayes (writer). 29:35.

Too Many Husbands (Aired February 16, 1954)


"Rocky Fortune" about a wanderer that took odd jobs to support himself and never stayed in one place too long. He almost always seemed to meet beautiful women along with trouble. Sinatra was good and was proving to Hollywood that he could do serious work. When casting began for the movie "From Here To Eternity", Frank campaigned tirelessly for a part and because of that and a good word put in for him by Gardner, who he was now separated from, he won a part that would mark his return to Hollywood. Sadly for us, it also meant he didn't have time to do radio and "Rocky Fortune" was rather short lived, although it was popular. It only ran from 1953 - 1954, but" It was a very good year".

THIS EPISODE:

February 16, 1954. NBC network. Sustaining. Fine cops and robbers with Frank in a straight non-singing role. Well written and fine Sinatra. A case of Too Many Husbands after Rocky is hired by a beautiful woman to kill her husband...for $5000! Frank Sinatra, Betty Lou Gerson, Barney Phillips, Norm Sickle (writer), Andrew C. Love (director), John Stevenson, Maurice Hart. 24:44.

Episode-10 "Billy And Jane Are On-board A Ship" and Episode-11 "3D Dantro" 1950


Produced in about 1950 by Palladium Radio Productions, "The Planet Man" is the golly-gee-whillikers saga of Dantro, an intergalactic troubleshooter for an organization known as the League of Planets - "the law enforcement body for peace and justice in the celestial world." (Think of him as an outer-space version of Marshal Matt Dillon - "It's a chancy job, and it makes a [planet] man watchful...") With their center of operations situated on Planeria Rex, "the capital of the planets," the League sends their water-carrier Dantro out into the celestial world to maintain law and order "whenever danger threatens the universe." Dantro is assisted in his quest for law-and-order by the members of Earth's first rocket expedition: Dr. John Darrow, his daughter Pat, and engineer Slats, who are rescued by the Planet Man before their rocket comes perilously close to crashing into the moon. (The explanation for this is that Darrow and crew took on a pair of stowaways before blast-off, namely his nephew Billy and niece Jane - which makes a listener wonder why the heck they weren't in school.) These five individuals join forces with the Planet Man to defeat evildoers like Marston, the ruler of Mars who possesses an insatiable appetite for interplanetary domination. Background on "The Planet Man" is sketchy at best - even with the original disks close at hand.

TODAYS SHOW: Episode-10 "Billy And Jane Are On-board A Ship" and Episode-11 "3D Dantro"

Program #10. Palladium Radio Productions syndication. Commercials added locally. Not auditioned. Pat finds a hidden room filled with ancient Martian machines. A Martian scout ship taking off comes to the attention of Martson. Billy and Jane are on board. The interplanetary war is about to begin. Phil Tonken (announcer), Jon Gart (organ), Joseph Boland (on those programs featuring the robot). 11:21.

Program #11. Palladium Radio Productions syndication. Commercials added locally. Not auditioned. Billy and Jane are still heading away from Mars. An three-dimensional image of Dantro (a hologram) appears inside the ship, ready to help fight the Martians. Phil Tonken (announcer), Jon Gart (organ), Joseph Boland (on those programs featuring the robot). 11:26.

Kidnap (Aired November 11, 1954)


Nightwatch. Real police recordings, no actors are used. Car 54 and police reporter Donn Reed answer the first all, a Code 2 alert that a burglary is taking place. A woman is pushed in the bathroom by an alcoholic young man wearing a tie. He's captured in another house...wearing no clothes! A patrol through Culver City. Later, two witnesses to a homicide are interviewed. The suspect is captured and confesses on the air. Chief W. N. Hildebrand tells how the cases were resolved. Sterling Tracy (supervisor), Donn Reed (police reporter), W. N. Hildebrand. These are examples of this "real-time" action series.

THIS EPISODE:

November 11, 1954. CBS network. Sustaining. "Kidnap" - The first call is about a juvenile "blowing his top" on marijuana. A kidnap case follows. Donn Reed (police recorder), W. N. Hildebrand (Chief of Police), Sterling Tracy (producer, director), Jim Headlock (producer), Ron Perkins (technical advisor). 24:59.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Luke Slaughter Of Tombstone" - Heritage (Aired May 11, 1958)


CBS started the year 1958 off with the introduction on 01/29/58 of Frontier Gentleman. That series lasted 41 broadcasts. Near the end of the year, the network launched Have Gun, Will Travel on 11/23/58, which continued for 106 programs. In between, a very short series was offered and discontinued after only 16 broadcasts, Luke Slaughter Of Tombstone. Sam Buffington starred as Luke Slaughter, a Civil War cavalryman who turned to cattle ranching in post war Arizona territory near Fort Huachuca. William N. Robson,known from his work with such series as ESCAPE, SUSPENSE and THE CBS RADIO WORKSHOP, directed. Sam Buffington enacted the title role on Luke Slaughter of Tombstone, another of CBS's prestigious adult Westerns. The series was produced and directed by William N. Robson, one of radio's greatest dramatic directors and Robert Stanley producer was aired from February 23 through June 15, 1958. Buffington portrayed the hard-boiled cattleman with scripts overseen by Gunsmoke sound effects artist (and sometimes scriptwriter) Tom Hanley. Each program had an authoritative opening statement: "Slaughter's my name, Luke Slaughter. Cattle's my business. It's a tough business, it's a big business. I got a big stake in it. And there's no man west of the Rio Grande big enough to take it away from me." Junius Matthews was heard as Slaughter's sidekick, Wichita.

THIS EPISODE:

May 11, 1958. CBS network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. Bringing renegade Apaches to town to be hanged, Luke and Wichita see a peaceful Mormon gun down a man in cold blood. Sam Buffington, Vic Perrin, Karl Swenson, William N. Robson (director), Wilbur Hatch (composer, conductor). 25 minutes.

It's All Relative (Aired February 23, 1948)


My Friend Irma, created by writer-director-producer Cy Howard, was a top-rated, long-run radio situation comedy, so popular in the late 1940s that its success escalated to films and television, while Howard scored with another radio comedy hit, Life with Luigi. Dependable and level-headed Jane Stacy (Cathy Lewis) narrated the misadventures of her innocent and bewildered roommate, Irma Peterson (Marie Wilson), a dim-bulb stenographer. Wilson portrayed the character on radio, in two films and a TV series. The successful radio series with Marie Wilson ran on CBS Radio from April 11, 1947 to August 23, 1954. The TV version, seen on CBS from January 8, 1952 until June 25, 1954, was the first series telecast from the CBS Television City facility in Hollywood. The movie My Friend Irma (1949) starred Marie Wilson and Diana Lynn but is mainly remembered today for introducing Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis to moviegoers, resulting in even more screen time for Martin and Lewis in the sequel, My Friend Irma Goes West (1950).

Obscene Phone Calls (Aired October 22, 1952)


The Lineup is a realistic police drama that gives radio audiences a look behind the scenes at police headquarters. Bill Johnstone plays Lt. Ben Guthrie, a quiet, calm-as-a-cupcake cucumber. Joseph Kearns (and from 1951 to 1953, Matt Maher) plays Sgt. Matt Grebb, a hot-tempered hot plate who is easily bored. The director and script writer often rode with police on the job and sat in on the police lineups to get ideas for The Lineup. They also read dozens of newspapers daily and intermeshed real stories with those that they used in the show. With Dragnet a smash hit, realism in police dramas was popular at the time this show aired. Don’t be caught without this radio show in your collection!

THIS EPISODE:

October 22, 1952. CBS network. "The Cutie-Calling Culprit Case". Sustaining. model victims...obscene phone call. William Johnstone. Jack Moyles, William J. Radcliff (writer), Dan Cubberly (announcer), Eddie Dunstedter (music), Hy Averback, Howard McNear, Peter Leeds, Tony Barrett, Sidney Miller, John McIntire, Jeanette Nolan, Jaime del Valle (producer, director).

Riley Meets Clem Kadiddlehopper (Aired September 3, 1948)


The Life of Riley, with William Bendix in the title role, was a popular radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film and continued as a long-running television series during the 1950s. The show began as a proposed Groucho Marx radio series, The Flotsam Family, but the sponsor balked at what would have been essentially a straight head-of-household role for the comedian. Then producer Irving Brecher saw Bendix as taxicab company owner Tim McGuerin in the movie The McGuerins from Brooklyn (1942). The Flotsam Family was reworked with Bendix cast as blundering Chester A. Riley, riveter at a California aircraft plant, and his frequent exclamation of indignation---"What a revoltin' development this is!"---became one of the most famous catch phrases of the 1940s. The radio series also benefited from the immense popularity of a supporting character, Digby "Digger" O'Dell (John Brown), "the friendly undertaker."Beginning October 4, 1949, the show was adapted for television for the DuMont Television Network, but Bendix's film contracts prevented him from appearing in the role. Instead, Jackie Gleason starred along with Rosemary DeCamp as wife Peg, Gloria Winters as daughter Barbara (Babs), Lanny Rees as son Chester Jr. (Junior), and Sid Tomack as Gillis, Riley's manipulative best buddy and next-door neighbor. John Brown returned as the morbid counseling undertaker Digby (Digger) O'Dell ("Well, I guess I'll be... shoveling off"; "Business is a little dead tonight"). Television's first Life of Riley won television's first Emmy (for "Best Film Made For and Shown on Television").

THIS EPISODE:

September 3, 1948. NBC network. Commercials deleted. Riley spoils Babs' romance by hiding in the closet, so he sets her up with a new boy...Clem Kadiddlehopper. William Bendix, Irving Brecher (producer), Ken Niles (announcer), Paula Winslowe, Barbara Eiler, Red Skelton, John Brown. 26:26.

Knock On Wood (Aired January 22, 1951)


Bob Bailey played George Valentine as a detective handy man, who got his jobs from responses to a newspaper ad. Part-time detective and writer Dan Holiday in Box 13 also used the premise. It pays to advertise! The shows follow the usual formats of crime caper shows, with toughs, mysterious rendezvous and people who aren't who they say they are. Network was Mutual. Sponsor was Standard Oil. STARS:Bob Bailey,Eddie Firestone jr, Francis Robinson, Joe Kearn: Producer, Owen Vinson WRITER: Polly Hopkins MUSIC: Eddie Dunstedter.

THIS EPISODE:

January 22, 1951. Mutual-Don Lee network. "Knock On Wood". Sponsored by: Standard Oil. Ken Peters substitutes for Bob Bailey (who was out sick) in the lead. A landlord asks George Valentine for help with a problem tenant. Murder soon takes out a lease. A second murder by electrocution takes place soon after! By the time the third murder takes place, even George is ready to knock on wood! Ken Peters, Virginia Gregg, Ken Christy, Howard McNear, John McIntire, Jeanette Nolan, Joseph Du Val, Fred Howard, Bud Hiestand (announcer), Eddie Dunstedter (composer, conductor), Don Clark (director), David Victor (writer), Jackson Gillis (writer). 29:38.

Violence Preferred (Aired September 10, 1952)


I Was a Communist for the FBI was an American espionage thriller radio series with 78 episodes syndicated by Ziv to more than 600 stations in 1952-54. Made without FBI cooperation, the series was adapted from the book by undercover agent Matt Cvetic, who was portrayed by Dana Andrews.The series was crafted to warn people about the threat of Communist subversion of American society. The tone of the show is very jingoistic and ultra-patriotic. Communists are evil incarnate and the FBI can do no wrong. As a relic of the Joe McCarthy era, this show is a time capsule of American society during the Second Red Scare.

THIS EPISODE:

September 10, 1952. Program #21. ZIV Syndication. "Violence Preferred". Commercials added locally. When the Party orders all incriminating papers destroyed, Cvetic tries to get them to the FBI first. A hat-check girl provides unintentional help. The date is subject to correction. Dana Andrews, Truman Bradley (announcer), Olan Soule, Parley Baer. 27:36.

Eddie Gray's Wedding (Aired March 7, 1951)


The Halls of Ivy was an NBC radio sitcom that ran from 1950-1952. It was created by Fibber McGee & Molly co-creator/writer Don Quinn before being adapted into a CBS television comedy (1954-55) produced by ITC Entertainment and Television Programs of America. Quinn developed the show after he had decided to leave Fibber McGee & Molly. The audition program featured radio veteran Gale Gordon (then co-starring in Our Miss Brooks) and Edna Best in the roles that ultimately went to British husband-and-wife actors Ronald Colman and Benita Hume. The Colmans had shown a flair for radio comedy in recurring roles on The Jack Benny Program in the late 1940s, and they landed the title roles in the new show. The Halls of Ivy featured Colman as William Todhunter Hall, the president of small, Midwestern Ivy College, and his wife, Victoria, a former British musical comedy star who sometimes felt the tug of her former profession, and followed their interactions with students, friends and college trustees. Others in the cast included Herbert Butterfield as testy Clarence Wellman, Willard Waterman (then starring as Harold Peary's successor as The Great Gildersleeve) as John Merriweather, and Elizabeth Patterson and Gloria Gordon as the Halls' maid.

Berkeley Square (Aired March 3, 1949)


THE HALLMARK PLAYHOUSE was heard over CBS stations Thursday evenings. This drama anthology of 30-minute shows was sponsored by, of course, Hallmark Greeting Cards. It was preceded by the RADIO READER'S DIGEST, which ran from September 13, 1942 thorugh June 3, 1948. Hallmark sponsored the RADIO READER'S DIGEST from January 13, 1946 to it's end. On Feb. 8, 1953, the series name and format was changed. It was now called THE HALLMARK HALL OF FAME and presented biographal sketches of famous persons, past and present. The new format was used until the end of the 1955 season. The exception to the new format was the broadcast each Christmas season of "A Christmas Carol". Like other dramatic series of this time, this one made use of major screen actors in the productions. James Hilton, author of "Random Harvest", "Lost Horizon" and "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" plus others, served as host and Narrator. Dee Engelbach produced and directed the shows. Jean Holloway was the writer. Sound Effects were by Harry Essman and Gene Twombly. Musical conductor was Lyn Murray. The show's theme was "Dream of Olwne" by Charles Williams.

THIS EPISODE:

March 3, 1949. CBS network. "Berkeley Square". Sponsored by: Hallmark Cards. British time-travel story about a love that transcends the centuries. David Niven, Lurene Tuttle, Frances Robinson, James Hilton (host), Jean Holloway (adaptor), John Balderston (author). 1/2 hour.

Jewelry Store Robbery (December 12, 1939)


Fibber McGee and Molly premiered in 1935. The program struggled in the ratings until 1940, when it became a national sensation. Within three years, it was the top-rated program in America. Few radio shows were more beloved than Fibber McGee and Molly. The program’s lovable characters included Mayor LaTrivia, Doc Gamble, Mrs. Uppington, Wallace Wimple, Alice Darling, Gildersleeve, Beulah, Myrt, and the Old Timer. 79 Wistful Vista was one of America’s most famous addresses and Molly’s warning to Fibber not to open the hall closet door (and his subsequent decision to do it) created one of radio’s best remembered running gags that audiences expected each week. Jim Jordan (Fibber) was born on a farm on November 16, 1896, near Peoria, Illinois. Marian Driscoll (Molly), a coal miner’s daughter, was born in Peoria on November 15, 1898. After years of hardship and touring in obscurity on the small-time show biz circuit, they arrived in Chicago in 1924, where they eventually performed on thousands of shows and developed 145 different voices and characters. Broadcast to the nation from WMAQ/Chicago, the show entertained America until March 1956, and continued on NBC’s Monitor until 1959. Jim Jordan died on April 1, 1988. Marian Jordan died on April 7, 1961. Fibber McGee and Molly was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1989. First Broadcast date April 16, 1935. Last Broadcast date September 6, 1959.

THIS EPISODE:

December 12, 1939. NBC network. Sponsored by: Johnson's Wax. Fibber the detective recovers a missing necklace after a jewelry store robbery. Jim Jordan, Marian Jordan, Harlow Wilcox, Billy Mills and His Orchestra, Bill Thompson, Isabel Randolph, Jimmy Shields. 29:06.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Frontier Fighters" - Program 28 "The Hero Of Fort Kearney" and Program 29 "Oklahoma Land Rush" (1935)



FRONTIER FIGHTERS This is not your typical western drama -- it is a series that will transport you back in time to the days of the wild, unsettled west. Retrace the steps of heroes who, despite the odds, fought and conquered the West. Frontier Fighters was a syndicated series that ran sometime during the 1930s. Each show dealt with some bit of history about the early West and ran for approximately 15 minutes.

TODAY'S SHOW:

Program #28. Broadcasters Program Syndicate/Bruce Eells and Associates syndication. "The Hero Of Fort Kearney". Music fill for local commercial insert. Because of the bravery of John Phillips, a fort on the Bozeman Trail was saved from the Indians. Originally syndicated by Radio Transcription Company Of America (Transco. 14:49

Program #29. Broadcasters Program Syndicate/Bruce Eells and Associates syndication. "Oklahoma Land Rush". Music fill for local commercial insert. The Federal government ignores its promise to the Indians and opens the Indian Territory to settlers. Originally syndicated by Radio Transcription Of America (Transco). 14:43

Will You Make A Bet With Death (Aired November 10,1942)


Suspense was one of the premier programs of the Golden Age of Radio (aka old-time radio), and advertised itself as "radio's outstanding theater of thrills." It was heard in one form or another from 1942 through 1962. There were approximately 945 episodes broadcast during its long run, over 900 of which are extant in mostly high-quality recordings. Suspense went through several major phases, characterized by different hosts, sponsors and director/producers. There were a few rules which were followed for all but a handful of episodes: Protagonists were usually a normal person suddenly dropped into a threatening or bizarre situation. Evildoers must be punished in the end.

THIS EPISODE:

November 10, 1942. CBS network. "Will You Make A Bet With Death?". Sustaining. A great, suspenseful story about a man who matches his life against his evil stepfather for $25,000. Ted de Corsia, Michael Fitzmaurice, Nicholas Joy, Lesley Woods, John Dickson Carr (writer), William Spier (producer), Marx B. Loeb (director), Joseph Kearns (announcer), Bernard Herrmann (composer, conductor). 1/2 hour.

Magic Town (Aired January 6, 1950)


Screen Director's Playhouse - From 01/09/49 to 09/28/51 this series was greatly enjoyed by the radio listening audience. It opened as NBC Theater and was also known as The Screen Director’s Guild and The Screen Director’s Assignment. But most people remember it simply as Screen Director’s Playhouse. Many of the Hollywood elite were heard recreating their screen roles over the radio. John Wayne in his rare radio appearances, Cary Grant, Edward G. Robinson, Lucille Ball, Claire Trevor, Tallulah Bankhead and many others were on the air week after week during these broadcasts. Many of Hollywood’s directors were also heard in the recreation of their movies. The President of the Screen Director’s Guild appeared on 02/13/49, and Violinist Isaac Stern supplied the music for the 04/19/51 broadcast.

THIS EPISODE:
January 6, 1950. NBC network. "Magic Town". Sponsored by: RCA. A pollster finds the perfectly average American city, and moves in to take advantage of it. Edward Marr, George Marshall, Hans Conried, Jerry Hausner, Jimmy Stewart, Jimmy Wallington (announcer), Sam Hayes, Virginia Gregg. 1/2 hour.

Rip Smith's opinion-poll business is a failure...until he discovers that the small town of Grandview is statistically identical to the entire country. He and his assistants go there to run polls cheaply and easily, in total secrecy (it would be fatal to let the townsfolk get self-conscious). And of course, civic crusader Mary Peterman must be kept from changing things too much. But romantic involvement with Mary complicates life for Rip; then suddenly everything changes... Written by Rod Crawford {puffinus@u.washington.edu}

Adventure In Mormon Country (Aired October 23, 1949)


The Adventures of Frank Race, by Bruce Ells Productions, was first heard in May of 1949. The main character, Frank Race, was an attorney before World War II. As a result of his activities in the war, when it was over, he traded his law books for a career with the OSS. There, "Adventure" became his business. Tom Collins played the role of Frank Race initially, immediately following his stint as Chandu, The Magician. The lead role was taken over later by Paul Dubof.

THIS EPISODE:

November 1, 1949. Program #27. Broadcasters Program Syndicate syndication. "The Adventure Of The Mormon Country". Commercials added locally. A wealthy playboy named Sonny Krueger has been kidnapped and held for $50,000 ransom. Paul Dubov, Tony Barrett, Buckley Angel (writer, director), Joel Murcott (writer, director), Bruce Eells (producer), Ivan Ditmars (organist), Michael Roy (announcer), Wilms Herbert, Bert Holland, William Johnstone, Michael Ann Barrett, Inga Yolis. 26:44.

The Cash Register (11-05-46) and Uncle Sam's Attic 11-12-46)



Adventures In Research - Public service production by the Westinghouse Research Labs. The series is very informative and entertaining. Series ran from the early 1940's -mid 1950's. HOST: Paul Shannon.

TODAY'S SHOW:

Program #198. November 5, 1946 - Westinghouse syndication. "The Cash Register". Sustaining. How the device was invented and marketed. 15 minutes.

Program #199. November 12, 1946 - Westinghouse syndication. "Uncle Sam's Attic". Sustaining. The story of the Smithsonian Institution. . 15 minutes.

The Museum (Aired February 23, 1955)


21ST PRECINCT was one of the realistic police drama series of the early- to mid-1950's that were aired in the wake of DRAGNET. In 1953 CBS decided to use New York City as the backdrop for their own half-hour police series and focus on the day-to-day operation of a single police precinct. Actual cases were used as the basis for stories. The Precinct Captain acted as the narrator for the series.The official title of the series according to the series scripts and the CBS series promotional materials was 21ST PRECINCT and not TWENTY-FIRST PRECINCT or TWENTY FIRST PRECINCT which appears in many Old-Time Radio books. In 1953 CBS decided to use New York City as the backdrop for their own half-hour police series and focus on the day-to-day operations of a single police precinct. Actual cases would be used as the basis for stories. It was mentioned in each episode's closing by the announcer that, "Twenty-firstPrecinct is presented with the official cooperation of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association an organization of more than 20,000 members of the Police Department, City of New York."

THIS EPISODE:

21st Precinct. February 23, 1955. CBS network. Sustaining. Joe Cready, a young burglar tries to tip off the cops about an upcoming homicide. Everett Sloane, Stanley Niss (writer, producer, director). 1/2 hour.

Little White Pill (Aired May 31, 1950)


This thirty-minute international spy adventure featured Steve Mitchell (Brian Donlevy), and investigator of crimes in exotic locations. 60 episodes. Herb Butterfield played the Commissioner and Betty Moran was the Commissioner's secretary. Other cast members were GeGe Pearson, Ken Peters, Betty Lou Gerson, Dan O’Herlihy. The director was Bill Cairn and the writer for the series was Robert Ryf. The opening was the same every week “Yeah, danger is my assignment. I get sent to a lot of places I can’t even pronounce. They all spell the same thing though, trouble.” He would be summoned to his boss’s office where he would be given his assignment; he would then fly halfway across the globe to save the day! The worldwide locations are dealt up with a feeling of local, and the characters that inhabit these far-away places with strange sounding names are solid and capably acted by veterans. Music is an almost harsh orchestra. Donlevy carries the plots with a world-weary and wary tone that makes sense, based on his occupation.

Second Hand Pistols (Aired May 22, 1950)


Crime Does Not Pay was an anthology radio crime drama series based on MGM's short film series. The films began in 1935 with Crime Does Not Pay: Buried Loot. For the most part, actors who appeared in B-films were featured, but occasionally, one of MGM's major stars would make an appearance. The radio series aired in New York on WMGM (October 10, 1949-October 10, 1951) and then moved to the Mutual network (January 7-December 22, 1952). Actors included Bela Lugosi, Everett Sloane, Ed Begley, John Loder and Lionel Stander.

THIS EPISODE:

May 22, 1950. Program #33. MGM syndication. "The Second Hand Pistols". Commercials added locally. An impoverished couple pawn their last possession to buy two pistols in order to start a life of crime. A well written story. After the drama, Nancy Coleman says that it's Society's fault that the good parents in the story entered a life of crime. The date above is the date of the first broadcast on WMGM, New York, from which this syndicated version may have been taken. Nancy Coleman, John Gibson, Jon Gart (composer, conductor), Marx B. Loeb (producer, director), Ira Marion (writer), Burton B. Turkas (technical advisor). 26:49.

Guest Rudy Vallee (Aired February 15, 1945)


The Abbott and Costello Show mixed comedy with musical interludes (usually, by singers such as Connie Haines, Marilyn Maxwell, the Delta Rhythm Boys, Skinnay Ennis, and the Les Baxter Singers). Regulars and semi-regulars on the show included Artie Auerbrook, Elvia Allman, Iris Adrian, Mel Blanc, Wally Brown, Sharon Douglas, Verna Felton, Sidney Fields, Frank Nelson, Martha Wentworth, and Benay Venuta. Ken Niles was the show's longtime announcer, doubling as an exasperated foil to Abbott & Costello's mishaps (and often fuming in character as Costello insulted his on-air wife routinely); he was succeeded by Michael Roy, with annoncing chores also handled over the years by Frank Bingman and Jim Doyle. The show went through several orchestras during its radio life, including those of Ennis, Charles Hoff, Matty Matlock, Jack Meaking, Will Osborne, Freddie Rich, Leith Stevens, and Peter van Steeden. The show's writers included Howard Harris, Hal Fimberg, Parke Levy, Don Prindle, Ed Cherokee, Len Stern, Martin Ragaway, Paul Conlan, and Ed Forman, as well as producer Martin Gosch. Sound effects were handled mostly by Floyd Caton. Abbott and Costello moved the show to ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) five years after they premiered on NBC. During their ABC period they also hosted a 30-minute children's radio program(The Abbott and Costello Children's Show), which aired Saturday mornings with vocalist Anna Mae Slaughter and announcer Johnny McGovern.

THIS EPISODE:

February 15, 1945. NBC network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. The cast does, Jack and The Beanstalk, with Rudy Valle monopolizing most of the lines. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Rudy Vallee, Freddie Rich and His Orchestra, Connie Haines (vocal), Artie Auerbach. 1/2 hour.

Salute To Horse Racing (Aired March 30, 1948)


In 1934-36, Berle was heard regularly on The Rudy Vallee Hour, and he got much publicity as a regular on The Gillette Original Community Sing, a Sunday night comedy-variety program broadcast on CBS from September 6, 1936 to August 29, 1937. In 1939, he was the host of Stop Me If You've Heard This One with panelists spontaneously finishing jokes sent in by listeners. Three Ring Time, a comedy-variety show sponsored by Ballantine Ale was followed by a 1943 program sponsored by Campbell's Soups. The audience participation show Let Yourself Go (1944-45) could best be described as slapstick radio with studio audience members acting out long suppressed urges (often directed at host Berle). Kiss and Make Up, on CBS in 1946, featured the problems of contestants decided by a jury from the studio audience with Berle as the Judge. He also made guest appearances on many comedy-variety radio programs during the 1930s and 1940s. Scripted by Hal Block and Martin Ragaway, The Milton Berle Show brought Berle together with Arnold Stang, later a familiar face as Berle's TV sidekick. Others in the cast were Pert Kelton, Mary Schipp, Jack Albertson, Arthur Q. Bryan, Ed Begley, vocalist Dick Forney and announcer Frank Gallop. The Ray Bloch Orchestra provided the music for the series.

THIS EPISODE:

March 30, 1948. NBC network. Sponsored by: Philip Morris. A salute to horse racing. Frank Gallop (announcer), Milton Berle, Ray Bloch and His Orchestra. 1/2 hour.

The Johnny Hill Case (Aired November 10, 1950)


Broadway Is My Beat, a radio crime drama, ran on CBS from February 27, 1949 to August 1, 1954. With music by Robert Stringer, the show originated from New York during its first three months on the air, with Anthony Ross portraying Times Square Detective Danny Clover. John Dietz directed for producer Lester Gottlieb. Beginning with the July 7, 1949 episode, the series was broadcast from Hollywood with producer Elliott Lewis directing a new cast in scripts by Morton Fine and David Friedkin. The opening theme of "I'll Take Manhattan" introduced Detective Danny Clover (now played by Larry Thor), a hardened New York City cop who worked homicide "from Times Square to Columbus Circle -- the gaudiest, the most violent, the lonesomest mile in the world."

THIS EPISODE:

November 10, 1950. CBS network. Sustaining. Johnny Hill, "King of the Chicago Hoodlums," is found murdered in a cheap hotel. Nick Joiner, his bodyguard, is then found dead in the same hotel. Larry Thor, Charles Calvert, Morton Fine (writer), David Friedkin (writer), Howard McNear, Elliott Lewis (producer, director), Alexander Courage (composer, conductor), Jack Kruschen, GeGe Pearson, Dan Cubberly (announcer), Marlowe Dwyer, Adrian Marden, Lou Merrill. 29:41.

Death Strikes From The East (Aired June 5, 1940) 2 Parts - Complete


The Blue Beetle had a relatively short career on the radio, between May and September of 1940. Motion picture and radio actor Frank Lovejoy was the Blue Beetle for the first 13 episodes, while for the rest of the shows, the voice was provided by a different, uncredited actor. The Blue Beetle was a young police officer who saw the need for extra-ordinary crime fighting. He took the task on himself by secretly donning a superhero costume to create fear in the criminals who were to learn to fear the Blue Beetle's wrath. The 13-minute segments were usually only two-parters, so the stories were often more simple than other popular programs, such as the many-parted Superman radio show.

TODAY'S SHOW:

June 5, 1940. Program #13 and Program #14. Fox Features syndication. . Commercials added locally. Tong Wars are being waged in Chinatown. The Blue Beetle looks toward the Orient to battle "The Purple Dragon." Commissioner Warren's daughter has been kidnapped. The "Purple Dragon" hosts a Chinese drama, with a human sacrifice for an encore!. 28:37.

Murder At Dandy's Dream (Aired September 14, 1944)


Adventures of Leonidas Witherall was a radio mystery series broadcast on Mutual in the mid-1940s. Based on the novels of Phoebe Atwood Taylor (writing as Alice Tilton), the 30-minute dramas were produced by Roger Bower and starred Walter Hampden as Leonidas Witherall, a New England boys' school instructor in Dalton, Massachusetts, a fictional Boston suburb. Witherall, who resembled William Shakespeare, is an amateur detective and the accomplished author of the "popular Lieutenant Hazeltine stories." His housekeeper Mrs. Mollett was played by Ethel Remey (1895-1979) and Jack MacBryde appeared as Police Sgt. McCloud. The announcer was Carl Caruso. Milton Kane supplied the music. The series began June 4, 1944 and continued until May 6, 1945.

Murder In The Locked Room (Aired June 9, 1947)


Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who first appeared in publication in 1887. He is the creation of Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A brilliant London-based detective, Holmes is famous for his intellectual prowess, and is renowned for his skillful use of deductive reasoning (somewhat mistakenly so called — see inductive reasoning) and astute observation to solve difficult cases. He is arguably the most famous fictional detective ever created, and is one of the best known and most universally recognisable literary characters in any genre. Conan Doyle wrote four novels and fifty-six short stories that featured Holmes. All but four stories are narrated by Holmes' friend and biographer, Dr. John H. Watson; two are narrated by Holmes himself, and two others are written in the third person. The first two stories, short novels, appeared in Beeton's Christmas Annual for 1887 and Lippincott's Monthly Magazine in 1890. The character grew tremendously in popularity with the beginning of the first series of short stories in The Strand Magazine in 1891; further series of short stories and two serialised novels appeared almost right up to Conan Doyle's death in 1930. The stories cover a period from around 1878 up to 1903, with a final case in 1914.

THIS EPISODE:

June 9, 1947. ABC network. "Murder In The Locked Room". Sponsored by: Kreml Hair Tonic, Kreml Shampoo. A writer of mysteries for "The Strand" magazine gets help from Sherlock Holmes in solving a "locked room" mystery. The writer is then killed in a locked room! The story is based on, "The Dancing Men" by Arthur Conan Doyle. Tom Conway, Nigel Bruce, Joseph Bell (announcer), Tom McKnight (producer), Alex Steinert (composer, conductor), Anthony Boucher (writer), Denis Green (writer), Arthur Conan Doyle (author). 29:27.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Have Gun Will Travel" - Hanging Cross (Aired December 21, 1958)


One of the last radio shows and one of the few to go from TV to radio, HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL started its 106 show run on November 23, 1958. These Sunday afternoon shows were radio adaptations of the previous nights TV script with John Dehner replacing Richard Boone. Paladin, the lead character, played by John Dehner, was a man with a short temper and a fast gun.

THIS EPISODE:

December 21, 1958. CBS network. "The Hanging Cross". Sponsored by: Kent. Paladin tries to prevent a battle between Matt Beecher and the Pawnees, caused by a small boy claimed as the son of both Matt Beecher and the Indian Chief. A good Christmas story. The script was used on the "Have Gun, Will Travel" television show on December 21, 1957. John Dehner, Ben Wright, Norman Macdonnell (producer, director), Gene Roddenberry (writer), Hugh Douglas (announcer), John Dawson (adaptor), Vic Perrin, Jess Kirkpatrick, Roy Woods, Dick Beals, Anne Morrison, Virginia Christine, John James, Bill James (sound effects), Tom Hanley (sound effects), Herb Meadow (creator), Sam Rolfe (creator). 25:40.

Ted Powell & His Orchestra (Aired October 9, 2009)


For a brief period in 1939, Teddy Powell led one of the top big bands in jazz. With an ensemble full of top musicians, Powell had a very successful six-week run at the Famous Door in New York. Powell bragged that he had done in a short time what it taken Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey years to accomplish. But once he took his band on the road, the lack of name recognition resulted in small crowds, money began to be lost and the more notable sidemen left for other lucrative jobs. The fantasy was quickly over! Teddy Powell began playing violin when he was eight, picked up the banjo when he was 14 and led his first band the following year. Powell worked locally with Lou Singer and Ray West (1927) before joining Abe Lyman's Orchestra where he remained until 1934. Powell worked with Lyman on the business side of the music business through 1938, organizing radio bands. In late 1938, Powell put together his own big band and after its initial success and difficulties on the road, the Teddy Powell Orchestra managed to survive as a second-level band for several years.

The Planet Zevius (Aired May 1, 1951)


Written and directed by Robert A. Arthur and David Kogan, the series began on the Mutual Broadcasting System, December 5, 1943, continuing in many different timeslots until September 16, 1952. Unlike many other shows of the era, The Mysterious Traveler was without a sponsor for its entire run. The lonely sound of a distant locomotive heralded the arrival of the malevolent narrator, portrayed by Maurice Tarplin, who introduced himself each week in the following manner. This is the Mysterious Traveler, inviting you to join me on another journey into the strange and terrifying. I hope you will enjoy the trip, that it will thrill you a little and chill you a little. So settle back, get a good grip on your nerves and be comfortable -- if you can! Cast members included Jackson Beck, Lon Clark, Roger DeKoven, Elspeth Eric, Wendell Holmes, Bill Johnstone, Joseph Julian, Jan Miner, Santos Ortega, Bryna Raeburn, Frank Readick, Ann Shepherd, Lawson Zerbe and Bill Zuckert. Sound effects were by Jack Amrhein, Jim Goode, Ron Harper, Walt McDonough and Al Schaffer. "Behind the Locked Door," a popular episode which took place in total darkness, was much requested and was repeated several times during the years. The story involves two archaeologists who discover an old wagon train abandoned over one hundred years ago in an old cave. After a landslide traps them in the darkness, they are attacked by apparently human assailants and conclude that the descendants of the wagon train are still living in the cave.

THIS EPISODE:

May 1, 1951. Mutual network. "The Planet Zevius". Sustaining. The ITX4, an experimental spaceship, lands on the Planet Zevius, paving the way for a flight by scientists. David Kogan (writer, producer, director), Maurice Tarplin, Robert A. Arthur (writer). 1/2 hour.

Saving The School Newspaper (December 4, 1955)


Our Miss Brooks, an American situation comedy, began as a radio hit in 1948 and migrated to television in 1952, becoming one of the earlier hits of the so-called Golden Age of Television, and making a star out of Eve Arden (1908-1990) as comely, wisecracking, but humane high school English teacher Connie Brooks. The show hooked around Connie's daily relationships with Madison High School students, colleagues, and pompous principal Osgood Conklin (Gale Gordon), not to mention favourite student Walter Denton (future television and Rambo co-star Richard Crenna, who fashioned a higher-pitched voice to play the role) and biology teacher Philip Boynton ( Jeff Chandler), the latter Connie's all-but-unrequited love interest, who saw science everywhere and little else anywhere.

THIS EPISODE:

December 4, 1955. CBS network. Sponsored by: Palmolive Soap, Lustre Creme Shampoo, palmolive Shaving Cream. Saving The School Newspaper. The school newspaper is in serious danger of failure. Mrs. Davis comes to the rescue, or does she? Eve Arden, Verne Smith (commercial spokesman), Gloria Gordon, Gerald Mohr, Gloria McMillan, Hal March, Gale Gordon, Jeff Chandler, Richard Crenna, Larry Berns (producer), Al Lewis (writer, director), Wilbur Hatch (music), Bob Lemond (announcer). 29:47.

The Widow Of Wasdale Head (Aired August 25, 1944)


Author’s Playhouse - Famous stories by celebrated authors: among them, Elementals (Stephen Vincent Benet), The Piano (William Saroyan), and The Snow Goose (Paul Gallico).March 5, 1941 till June 4, 1945, NBC;  Blue Network until mid-October 1941, then the Red Network.  Many briefly held 30m timeslots, including Sundays at 11:30, 1941-42;  Wednesdays at 11:30, 1942-44;   Mondays at 11:30, 1944-45.  Sponsor was Philip Morris, 1942-43. Cast:  John Hodiak, Fern Persons, Arthur Kohl, Laurette Fillbrandt, Kathryn Card, Bob Jellison, Nelson Olmsted, Marvin Miller, Olan Soule, Les Tremayne, Clarence Hartzell, Curley Bradley, etc. Orchestra:  Rex Maupin, Roy Shield, J6seph Gallicchio. Creator:  Wynn Wright. Directors:  Norman Felton, Fred Weihe, Homer Heck, etc.

THIS EPISODE:

August 25, 1944. NBC network. "The Widow Of Wasdale Head". Sustaining. A tale of Olde England, a ghost, and a very young and attractive widow. Arthur Wing Pinero (author). 1/2 hour.

Birthday Present (Aired October 12, 1952)


The Aldrich Family, a popular radio teenage situation comedy (1939-1953), is remembered first and foremost for its unforgettable introduction: awkward teen Henry's mother calling, "Hen-reeeeeeeeeeeee! Hen-ree Al-drich!" A top-ten ratings hit within two years of its birth (in 1941, the showm carried a 33.4 Crossley rating, landing it solidly alongside Jack Benny and Bob Hope), the show is considered a prototype for teen-oriented situation comedies to follow on radio and television and is a favourite if dated find for old-time radio collectors today. The Aldrich Family as a separate radio show was born as a summer replacement for Jack Benny in NBC's Sunday night lineup, July 2, 1939, and it stayed there until October 1, 1939, when it moved to Tuesday nights at 8 p.m., sponsored by General Foods's popular gelatin dessert Jell-O---which also sponsored Jack Benny at the time. The Aldriches ran in that slot from October 10, 1939 until May 28, 1940, moving to Thursdays, from July 4, 1940 until July 20, 1944. After a brief hiatus, the show moved to CBS, running on Fridays from September 1, 1944 until August 30, 1946 with sponsors Grape Nuts and Jell-O,.before moving back to NBC from September 05, 1946 to June 28, 1951 on Thursdays and, then, its final run of September 21, 1952 to April 19, 1953 on Sundays.

THIS EPISODE:

October 12, 1952. NBC network. Sustaining. Henry decides to go into business, starting with a flashlight and continuing with a beach umbrella and mayonnaise jars. Is Henry really cut out to be a businessman? The date is approximate. Clifford Goldsmith (writer), House Jameson, Bobby Ellis, Dick Dudley (announcer), Johnny Fiedler, Katharine Raht. 29:21.

Grafter's Fort & Black Pearl Galayla Bay (Aired October 23, 1947)


First heard on Mutual featuring Elliott Lewis, who as Leonard Maltin writes in "The Great American Broadcast, "…wore every hat imaginable-actor, producer, and director-also penned a good number of scripts for series he supervised, including Suspense." And Maltin says of this show, "On the terrific late-1940's high-adventure series The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen he held down both jobs simultaneously as director and star." As Maltin continues, “Lewis had the ability to make you believe whatever he said. Cast as the skipper on the high-adventure series The Voyage of the Scarlet Queen, he was completely convincing as seagoing ship's master Philip Carney-never corny or overblown." So let a master captain of drama chart a course to exotic ports of call and thrilling adventures. All you have to do is step aboard The Scarlet Queen.

THIS EPISODE:

October 23, 1947. Mutual network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. "Grafter's Fort and The Black Pearl Of Galayla Bay". What and where is the pearl? Clue: it's a woman, not a jewel! The system cue has been deleted. Elliott Lewis, Edwin Max, Rolfe Sedan, Jack Kruschen, Virginia Gregg, Gil Doud (writer), Robert Tallman (writer), James Burton (producer), Richard Aurandt (music), Charles Arlington (announcer). 29:23.

The Hatpin Case (Aired August 16, 1953)


Richard Diamond, Private Detective was a radio show starring Dick Powell which aired from 1949 to 1953, first on NBC, then ABC and finally on CBS. The title character was a rather light-hearted detective who often ended the episodes singing to his girlfriend, Helen. The television series was produced by Powell's company, Four Star Television, and that series ran for 3 years from 1957 to 1960. On TV, David Janssen played the hard boiled private eye and his secretary renamed “Sam”, was only ever shown on camera from the waist down, most assurardidly to display her beautiful legs. It was later leared that the legs belonged to Mary Tyler Moore. Original music by Frank DeVol and pete rugolo and later by richard shores. Good scripts, a solid cast and Powell’s exceptional talent made a good time 30 minute program that was quite popular during that Golden Age of Radio.

THIS EPISODE:

September 27, 1950. NBC network. "The Hatpin Case". Sponsored by: Rexall. Rick mounts up and rides out to solve a wild west homicide. Clay Baxter hires Diamond to find his brother's killer. The same script was re-used on this series on August 16, 1953. Dick Powell, Barton Yarborough, Blake Edwards (writer), Frank Worth (composer, conductor), Hal March, Arthur Q. Bryan, Wally Maher, Bill Forman (announcer), Jaime del Valle (transcriber), Virginia Gregg, Wilms Herbert. 29:33.

High Hat Murder Case (Aired March 29, 1949)


Philo Vance was the detective creation of S. S. Van Dine first published in the mid 1920s. Vance, in the original books, is an intellectual so highly refined he seems he might be ghostwritten by P. G. Wodehouse. Take this quote from The Benson Murder Case, 1924, as Vance pontificates in his inimitable way: "That's your fundamental error, don't y' know. Every crime is witnessed by outsiders, just as is every work of art. The fact that no one sees the criminal, or the artist, actu'lly at work, is wholly incons'quential." Thankfully, the radio series uses only the name, and makes Philo a pretty normal, though very intelligent and extremely courteous gumshoe. Jose Ferrer played him in 1945. From 1948-1950, the fine radio actor Jackson Beck makes Vance as good as he gets. George Petrie plays Vance's constantly impressed public servant, District Attorney Markham. Joan Alexander is Ellen Deering, Vance's secretary and right-hand woman. The organist for the show is really working those ivories, and fans of old time radio organ will especially enjoy this series.

THIS EPISODE:

Program #38. ZIV Syndication. "The High Hat Murder Case". Commercials added locally. A plain looking woman predicts that she'll soon be killed and asks Vance not to look for her murderer! Jackson Beck. 26:54.

Miscarriage Of Justice (Aired October 2, 1947)


The adventures of Casey, crack photographer for The Morning Express, were told in this series, which moved to television after a highly successful run on radio in the 1940’s. Casey hung out at the Blue Note Café, where the music was provided by the Tony Mottola Trio, and was friendly with Ethelbert, the bartender, to whom he recounted his various exploits. Richard Carlyle and John Gibson portrayed the roles when the series premiered in April, 1951, but by June they were replaced by Darren McGavin and Cliff Hall. Ann Williams, a reporter on The Morning Express, was Casey’s girlfriend. During the summer of 1951 he acquired a partner in cub reporter Jack Lipman, who wrote copy to go with Casey’s pictures. This live series was set in and broadcast from, New York City.

THIS EPISODE:

October 2, 1947. CBS network. "Miscarriage Of Justice". Sponsored by: Anchor Hocking Glass. A woman has been murdered twice? How can the killer be tried again after being freed the first time? Alonzo Deen Cole (writer), Archie Bleyer (music), Herman Chittison (piano), Jan Miner, Joe DeSantis, John Dietz (director), John Gibson, Santos Ortega, Staats Cotsworth, Tony Marvin (announcer), George Harmon Coxe (creator). 29:55.

Murder My Sweet (Aired June 8, 1946)


Hollywood Star Time CBS FRIGIDAIRE/GENERAL MOTORS Sundays 2:30 - 3:00pm HOST: Herbert Marshall, Larry Keating, Gary Brecker SINGER: Larry Stuart ANNOUNCER: Wendell Niles DIRECTOR: Robert L. Redd PRODUCER: Tom McAvity till 12-21-46 then Jack Johnstone MUSIC: Alfred Newman till 12-21-46 then Johnny Green.

THIS EPISODE:

June 8, 1946. CBS network. "Murder My Sweet". Sponsored by: Frigidaire. Dick Powell's famous first transition from crooner to tough detective. The program may be dated June 9, 1946. The first show of the season. Dick Powell, James Eagles, Lionel Newman (music conductor), Lurene Tuttle, Martha Wentworth, Mary Astor, Mike Mazurki, Milton Geiger (adaptor), Robert L. Redd (writer, producer), Wendell Niles (announcer). 29:50.

The Court-Martial Of Barry McCool (Aired November 7, 1952)


Broadcast 1952; Transcribed in England for the BBC; aired in U.S. on CBS, then again on ABC in 1954 and Mutual in 1957.  Starring Michael Redgrave as Horatio Hornblower. a captain in the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic era. The radio series was based on twelve Horatio Hornblower novels written by C.S. Forester. These novels were, and still are, well liked due to their realistic tone and historical accuracy in telling the tales of Naval life in the late 1700s through the mid 1800s. C.S. Forester was well known for his novels about military and naval life, including such fine titles as The African Queen, The Gun, The Barbary Pirates, and The General.

Those Who Walk In Darkness (Aired August 24, 1951)


Have you ever wondered what it might be like inside the mind of a criminal? The stories of Mystery Playhouse (Dark Venture) try to imagine. In this thrilling drama series, you will be drawn in to the murky calculations behind sinister acts. How much money would make stealing worthwhile? If your business partner caught you stealing $50,000 from your company, would he turn you in to the authorities? Would you let yourself be blackmailed? Or, would you let yourself commit another, more serious crime? On the verge of breaking the law, or taking a life, all risks and dangers must be considered. Peter Lorre as host. Each episode was preceded by Lorre's show description.

The Mastermind Murder Case (Aired August 24, 1951)


Another radio detective from the pen of Frank and Ann Hummert was Inspector Thorne. The series was short-lived and also had two stars portraying the lead. The first was Karl Weber and the second was Staats Cotsworth. By the 1940's, Frank and Ann Hummert controlled four and a half hours of national weekday broadcast schedules. Their features reportedly spawned more that 5 million pieces of correspondence annually from steadfast fans. Simultaneously they brought in more than half of the national radio chain's advertising revenues generated during the daylight hours. The couple broadcast 18 quarter-hour serials five times weekly, a total of 90 original episodes for 52 weeks per year, with none of those ever repeated. Some shows were "Amanda of Honeymoon Hill", "Backstage Wife","Chaplin Jim USA", "David Harum", "Easy Aces", "Front Page Farrell", "John's Other Wife", "Just Plain Bill", "The Life of Mary Sothern","Lora Lawton", "Lorenzo Jones", "Ma Perkins", "Mrs Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch", "Our Gal Sunday", "The Romance of Helen Trent" and "Young Widder Brown".

THIS EPISODE:

August 24, 1951. NBC network. "The Mastermind Murder Case". Sustaining. The local bank has been robbed, the leading suspect is Bridgewater, a notorious British criminal. Frank Hummert (creator), Anne Hummert (creator), Karl Weber, Fred Collins (announcer), Carol Warner Gluck (writer), Edward Slattery (director), Edward Francis (writer). 1/2 hour.

The Secret Grey Man (1949)


Another Detective show that aired on AFRS, apparently under the name of Starlight Mystery Theater in the 1949 time frame. Mat Slade was similar in many ways to other more notable sleuths of this era, "rough & tumble", always in the right place but at the wrong time, a lady's man, educated and "All American". Certainly the show deserved more notoriety and popularity, the acting was supurb and the scripts well written, yet little more information is available and only a half a dozen shows seemed to have servived.

The Scarecrow & The Snowman (Aired January 20, 1944)


The Adventures Of Ellery Queen - Tuska cited Ellery Queen, Master Detective (1940) and Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery (1941) as the best of the Bellamy-Lindsay pairings. "The influence of The Thin Man series was apparent in reverse", Tuska noted about Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery. "Ellery and Nikki are unmarried but obviously in love with each other. Probably the biggest mystery... is how Ellery ever gets a book written. Not only is Nikki attractive and perfectly willing to show off her figure", Tuska wrote, "but she also likes to write her own stories on Queen's time, and gets carried away doing her own investigations." In Ellery Queen, Master Detective, "the amorous relationship between Ellery and Nikki Porter was given a dignity, and therefore integrity", Tuska wrote, "that was lacking in the two previous entries in the series", made at Republic Pictures before Bellamy and Lindsay were signed by Columbia.

THIS EPISODE:

January 20, 1944. NBC network. "The Scarecrow and The Snowman". Sponsored by: Bromo Seltzer. A good mystery about a tough case that takes Ellery months to solve. A corpse is found frozen, on a farm filled with crazies. The script was previously used on "Ellery Queen" on January 7, 1940. Sydney Smith, Marian Shockley, Santos Ortega, Ted de Corsia, Charles Paul (organ), Ernest Chappell (announcer), Jeanne Cagney ("Guest Armchair Detective"), P. Cusack ("Guest Armchair Detective"), Frederic Dannay (writer), Manfred B. Lee (writer). 1/2 hour.

The Case Of The Strange Bondfire (Aired June 8, 1952)


WHITEHALL 1 2, 1 2 Tweaked Jan. 12, 2006 This series was very similar to the Black Museum that was hosted by Orson Welles. Both the Black Museum and Whitehall 1212 drew their material from the files of Scotland Yard. The stories were true in every respect except that the names were changed to protect the innocent, as they say. The Whitehall 1212 series boasted that for the first time Scotland Yard opened its files and the producers promised to bring to the public authentic true stories of some of the most celebrated cases. Permission for these records came from Sir Harold Scott, Commissioner of the yard at that time. There is actually a Black Museum. This area is located on the lower ground floor of Scotland Yard and it does indeed contain articles that are closely associated with the solving of a crime. And "Whitehall 1212" was the actual emergency phone number for the yard at the time. The research for the shows was done by Percy Hoskins, chief crime reporter for the London Daily Express. For the benefit of American audiences, Wyllis Cooper of Quiet Please fame was hired as script writer. Interestingly enough both the Black Museum and Whitehall 1212 had all-British casts; both ran concurrently. Whereby Mutual Broadcasting System aired the Orson Welles version, NBC offered the Wyllis Cooper one. There were 44 episodes in the series and all but one are in circulation. None of the prorgrams were titled and as they appeared on the scene, were given names by those who collected them. For that reason there are variations of titles, some with incorrect spellings; an attempt has been made to correct this. Some of the shows had "case numbers" and when they were announced, are noted below.

THIS EPISODE:

June 8, 1952. NBC network. Sustaining. A broken and heat-fused lock from an automobile is an exhibit in the "Black Museum." A hatless man is seen running from a burning car, strangely close to Guy Fawkes' Day. Part of the final public service announcement and the system cue have been deleted. Percy Hoskins (research), Wyllis Cooper (writer, director), Lester Fletcher, Harvey Hayes, Jared Burke, Gordon Stern, Francois Grimar, Basil Langton, Patricia Courtley, Beulah Garrick, Victor Chapin. 29:05.

Two Episodes - "Barney Flies the Mystery Plane" (03-06-37) and "The Trio Is Ambushed on Guam" (03-13-37)


Speed Gibson Of The International Secret Police - The thrilling adventures of Speed Gibson follows the exploits of another flying “ace”. This popular character held the listeners attention with his tracking down of international crime operatives. Speed and his pals are on the trail of a super-gang and its dreaded leader "The Octopus." The enemy of society had his tentacles in crime everywhere, and without the International Secret Police, the world would be his oyster. The fifteen-minute episode is action-packed! Strangely, the boy who played Speed is not known, says the authoritative "On the Air, The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio," Speed's pal is Barney Dunlap, acted by John Gibson. Barney's OK, but no match for the cunning of the Octopus and his gang. Barney's favorite reaction to a tight spot is "Suffering wangdoodles!" Speed Gibson was written by Virginia Cooke, who was smart enough to include Marcia Winfield, governess to little Jean Kingsley, for the girls to follow. All team up in these exciting adventures in the Far East as Speed and his Pals, with Marcia, set out to get the slippery Octopus!

TODAY'S SHOW: "Barney Flies the Mystery Plane" (03-06-37) and "The Trio Is Ambushed on Guam" (03-13-37)


March 6, 1937 - Program #10. Radio Attractions syndication. Music fill for local commercial insert. Barney is trapped in the Robot Plane of The Octopus, and is heading for certain doom. Hanley Stafford, John Gibson, Gale Gordon, Ed Gardner. 14 minutes.

March 13, 1937 - Program #11. Radio Attractions syndication. Music fill for local commercial insert. A mysterious gunman appears after a flat tire on Guam. Hanley Stafford, John Gibson, Gale Gordon, Ed Gardner. 14 minutes.

Tunnel Under The World (Aired March 14, 1956)


X MINUS ONE was an NBC science fiction series that was an extension, or revival, of NBC's earlier science fiction series, DIMENSION X. which ran from Apr. 8, 1950 through Sept. 29, 1951. Both are remembered for bringing really first rate science fiction to the air. The first X MINUS ONE shows used scripts from DIMENSION X, but soon created new shows from storied from the pages of Galaxy Magazine. A total of 125 programs were broadcast, some repeats or remakes, until the last show of Jan. 9, 1958. There was a one-program revival attempt in 1973, shown at the end of the log.

THIS EPISODE:

March 14, 1956. NBC network. "The Tunnel Under The World". Sustaining. The ultimate experiment in mind control. It's June 15th today...and tomorrow...and tomorrow. The script was used subsequently on September 4, 1956 and on "Future Tense" on May 8, 1974. The program was rebroadcast on "Monitor" during September, 1974. Frederick Pohl (author), Fred Collins (announcer), George Lefferts (adaptor), John Larkin (narrator), Daniel Sutter (director), Les Damon, Ginger Jones, Bob Hastings, Connie Lembcke, Stan Early, Kermit Murdock, William Welch (producer). 29:32.

The Battle Of Hastings (Aired February 13, 1949)


Imagine if CBS radio news existed when the Bastille was stormed in 1789, or if radio reporters were stationed in Ford Theater as Lincoln was assassinated, or again at the Battle of Gettysburg?  Indeed, such was the premise behind the CBS series, You Are There.  Audiences witnessed history through the present-tense accounts of newsmen allegedly witnessing historical events transpiring before their eyes. Don Hollenbeck and John Daley (known for his TV game show panelist appearances) played the lead anchors, while real-life newsman provided the remote commentaries as the dramas unfolded.  As show opened, an anchor would describe the present situation with "As it stands now…" and segue into commentaries, live remote feeds or analysis as the story unfurled.The show was well received, but perhaps was doomed to eventual failure in part due John Daly's emoting.  Bernard DeVoto in Harper Magazine lamented: "We have heard his (Daly) voice vibrate with the real emotion, and our memory of the real simply turns the imagined to ham."

THIS EPISODE:

February 13, 1949. CBS network. "The Battle Of Hastings". Sustaining. The events of October 14, 1066. William, the Duke of Normandy, conquers King Harold and becomes king of England. Guy Sorel, Staats Cotsworth, Don Hollenbeck, Robert Lewis Shayon (writer, producer, director), John Daly, Michael Sklar (writer), Ken Roberts, William Podmore, Oliver Cliff, John Merlin, Peter Hobbs, Alfred de La Fuente. 29:32.

Secret Word Clock (Aired October 27, 1960)


Groucho Marx matches wits with the American public in four episodes of this classic game show. Starting on the radio in 1947, You Bet Your Life made its television debut in 1950 and aired for 11 years with Groucho as host and emcee. Sponsored rather conspicuously by the Dodge DeSoto car manufacturers, the show featured two contestants working as a team to answer questions for cash prizes. Another mainstay of these question and answer segments was the paper mache duck that would descend from the ceiling with one hundred dollars in tow whenever a player uttered the "secret word." The quiz show aspect of "You Bet Your Life" was always secondary, to the clever back-and-forth between host and contestant, which found Groucho at his funniest. It's in these interview segments that "You Bet Your Life" truly makes its mark as one of early television's greatest programs. Directed by: Robert Dwan. It was one of many non-rigged quiz shows of the 1950's which suffered in the ratings due to the scandals surrounding "Twenty One", "The $64,000 Question" and "Dotto".

THIS EPISODE:

October 27, 1960. Syndicated, WNEW-TV, New York audio aircheck. Clock. Participating sponsors. The first contestant is Sheila Flynn. The thirteenth anniversary broadcast of the program. Syndicated rebroadcast date: June 4, 1975. Shelia Flynn, Groucho Marx, George Fenneman (announcer), Jack Meakin (music). 1/2 hour.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Tales Of The Texas Rangers" - Blood Harvest (Aired January 21, 1951)


Joel McCrea stars as Texas Ranger Jace Pearson in this thirty-minute western adventure series. The shows are all re-enactments of incidents from Texas Ranger history. The Texas lawman and his trusty steed, Charcoal, would track a criminal, often a killer, throughout the vast 260,000 square miles of Texas. With Joel McCrea lending star power, Tales of the Texas Rangers debuted over the NBC radio network on July 8, 1950. The thirty-minute show, sponsored by Wheaties, ran on Saturday nights at 9:30 for three months. In October, the show switched to Sunday evenings, eventually settling into the six o’clock time slot.

THIS EPISODE:

January 21, 1951. NBC network. "Blood Harvest". Sustaining. Two rustlers round up stolen alfalfa hay instead of cattle! Caught in the act, they kill the farmer. Joel McCrea, Herb Vigran, Tony Barrett, Lou Krugman, Tom Kelly, Wilms Herbert, Betty Moran, GeGe Pearson, Joel Murcott (writer), Stacy Keach (producer, director), Hal Gibney (announcer), M. T. Lone Wolf Gonzaullas (technical advisor). 29:32.

The Case Of The Natural Seven (Aired February 28, 1952)


This hard boiled detective drama began as an RKO Radio Pictures theatrical serial in the 1940s, went on radio in 1945, and then came to TV ten years later in this Syndicated series produced for distribution by NBC Films; Charles McGraw had been in many motion pictures before and after including "The Killers", "Spartacus" and "Cimarron"; in this series he played the title role of a man whose real name was supposedly Mike Waring, an American agent whose code name was "Falcon"; Later Charles McGraw starred in a short lived TV version of "Casablanca" (1955 - 1956) in the character of Rick; He also had a role on the detective drama "Staccato" (1959) Actor McGraw (whose birth name was Charles Butters) met an unfortunate death in real life when he fell through a shower glass door in 1980 at his home in Studio City, CA.

THIS EPISODE:

February 28, 1952. NBC network. "The Case Of The Natural Seven". Sustaining. "Sometimes, loaded dice can do more damage than a loaded gun." The system cue is added live. Les Damon, Drexel Drake (creator), Bernard L. Schubert (producer, transcriber), Eugene Wang (writer), Richard Lewis (director), Charles Webster, Fred Collins (announcer). 30:29.

Aunt Lilly Needs A Date (Aired August 11, 1942)


A Date with Judy was a comedy radio series aimed at a teenage audience which had a long run from 1941 to 1950. The show began as a summer replacement for Bob Hope's show, sponsored by Pepsodent and airing on NBC from June 24 to September 16, 1941, with 14-year-old Ann Gillis in the title role. Dellie Ellis portrayed Judy when the series returned the next summer (June 23d to September 15, 1942). Louise Erickson took over the role the following summer (June 30th to September 22, 1943) when the series, with Bristol Myers as its new sponsor, replaced The Eddie Cantor Show for the summer. Louise Erickson continued in the role of Judy over the next seven years as the series, sponsored by Tums, aired from January 18, 1944 to January 4, 1949. Ford Motors and Revere Cameras were the sponsors for the final season of the radio series on ABC from October 13, 1949 to May 25, 1950. Teenagers could relate to Judy and her problems with school, boyfriends and parental rules and adults enjoyed remembering their youth as seen through the eyes of a typical teenager. A delighful comedy that ended in 1950, A Date with Judy remains a favorite even today as we realize that teenagers will always face the same problems growing up as Judy and her friends did.A Date with Judy remains a favorite even today as we realize that teenagers will always face the same problems growing up as Judy and her friends did.

Mr Jefferson's Dream (1962)


Around 1962 or 1963 when "Horizons West" was recorded in studio "B" at Capitol Records in Hollywood. I was privileged to have been one of the engineers on that series of 13 episodes." SERIES DESCRIPTION: Thirteen chapter radio docu-drama of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Excellent scripts and acting. Produced for and broadcasted on Armed Forces Radio and Television Service. CREW: Directed by William Lally. Written by Karl A. and William Tunberg. Sound patterns by Gene Twombly. Announcer: Michael Rye (a.k.a. Rye Billsbury.)

THIS EPISODE:

Program #1. AFRTS origination. "Mr. Jefferson's Dream". President Jefferson asks Captain Merriweather Lewis to explore the lands beyond the Mississippi. Lewis enlists his old friend Billy Clark to be the co-leader of the expedition. Harry Bartell, John Anderson, Don Randolph, Bill Irwin, William Lally (director), Cliff Holland, Stanley Farrar, Ben Wright, Les Tremayne, Tyler McVey, Dal McKinnon, Carl A. Tundberg (writer), William Tundberg (writer), Gene Twombley (sound patterns), Rye Billsbury (announcer, billed as Michael Rye). 30:36.

Voice In The Night (Aired May 28, 1957)


Actor and scriptwriter Ernest Dudley was the creator of the hit BBC radio crime series Dr Morelle and also television’s The Armchair Detective. The Dr Morelle - “the man you love to hate!” - series was hugely popular during the forties and fifties and originally starred Dennis Arundell in the title role. In the fifties the role was given to Cecil Parker, who co-starred with Sheila Sim. That eminent criminologist, Dr. Morelle, has just solved another crime and incidentally administered a crushing rebuke to his pretty secretary Miss Frayle. This is his usual reaction to his somewhat scatterbrained amanuensis, but it does not seem to have put the smallest dent in her devotion to the psychiatrist whose infallibility is the despair of criminals and the delight of his friend Inspector Hood of Scotland Yard. Listeners of A Case for Dr. Morelle, a new series of 30 minute mysteries. Dr. Morelle has had some time to form these theories, having started his career as a sleuth in the early years of the war. "He was dreamed up in a coal cellar in Bristol, said his creator Ernest Dudley. It was 1940, and the coal cellar underneath my flat provided a comforting place during the Luftwaffe’s attacks on Bristol, where I was with the BBC Variety Department. I wrote the original series called Meet Dr. Morelle for Harry Pepper and Ronnie Waldman’s famous show, Monday Night at Eight.

The Dark Chamber (Aired December 11, 1945)


Inner Sanctum Mysteries was a popular old-time radio program that aired from January 7, 1941 to October 5, 1952. Created by Himan Brown, the anthology series featured stories of mystery, terror and suspense. The tongue-in-cheek introductions were in sharp contrast to shows like Suspense and The Whistler. A total of 526 episodes are known to have been produced. 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 punctuated Raymond's many morbid jokes and playful puns. Raymond's closing was an elongated "Pleasant dreaaaaammmmssss!" His tongue-in-cheek style and ghoulish relish of his own tales became the standard for many such horror narrators to follow, from fellow radio hosts like Ernest Chappell (on Cooper's later series, Quiet, Please) and Maurice Tarplin (on The Mysterious Traveler) to EC Comics' Crypt-Keeper in various incarnations of Tales from the Crypt. In interviews, EC publisher Bill Gaines stated that he based EC's three horror hosts not on Raymond but on Old Nancy, host of radio's earlier The Witch's Tale (1931-38). When Johnson left the series in 1945, he was replaced by Paul McGrath, who did not keep the "Raymond" name and was known only as "your host" or "Mr. Host." Beginning in 1945, Lipton Tea sponsored the series, pairing first Raymond and then McGrath with its cheery commercial spokeswoman, Mary Bennett, whose pitches for Lipton contrasted sharply with the subject matter of the stories, and who would primly chide the host for his dark humor and creepy manner.

THIS EPISODE:

December 11, 1945. CBS network. "The Dark Chamber". Sponsored by: Lipton Tea, Lipton Soup. A laundryman and a woman have been kidnapped by a mad scientist. He plans to have them take part in an "experiment in fear." Mary Bennett (commercial spokesman), Robert Newman (writer), Ken Lynch, Himan Brown (director), Paul McGrath (host). 29:31.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Cisco Kid" - Bullets And Ballets (Aired February 24, 1953)


Western Drama mainly for the young ones or maybe just the young at heart. I say the young at heart, because The Cisco Kid and his likeable but simple partner Pancho were a couple of lovable rogues and because there was usually a lovely senorita around in every episode who fell madly in love with Sisco, there may well have been an element of lady listeners included in the audience rating figures. Here they were, these two Mexican bandits, travelling from sunset to sunset (because that's where they always road off to at the end of each episode) robbing the rich, but I wouldn't say giving it to the poor. At least they did it in a kind and humorous way. It was more a question of the victim being relieved of the heavy burden of his or her riches, rather than having some of their prized possessions taken away from them. Half the fun in the series was listening to Pancho try to explain in his simple Mexican way that the sheriff's posse was hard on their heels and to quote him, "Ceesco, eef they catch up with us, perhaps they weel keel us." At the beginning The Cisco Kid was played by Jackson Beck then later Jack Mather took over the role. Whilst Pancho was played first by Louis Sorin then by Harry Lang. Originally the Announcer was Michael Rye and the Director Jock McGregor and during the days of Jack Mather and Harry Lang the Producer was J. C. Lewis with the series being written by Larry Hays.

Design For Danger (Aired June 5, 1949)


Box 13 was a syndicated radio series about the escapades of mystery novelist Dan Holiday (Alan Ladd), a former newsman. Created by Mayfair Productions, the series premiered August 22, 1948, on New York's WOR and aired in syndication on the East Coast from August 22, 1948, to August 14. 1949. On the West Coast, Box 13 was heard from March 15, 1948 to March 7, 1949. To seek out new ideas for his fiction, Holiday ran a classified ad in the Star-Times newspaper. "Adventure wanted, will go anywhere, do anything -- Box 13." The stories followed Holiday's adventures when he responded to the letters sent to him by such people as a psycho killer and various victims.

THIS EPISODE:

June 5, 1949. Program #42. Mayfair syndication. "Design For Danger". Commercials added locally. Ex-convict Johnny Tide is returning to Watertown seeking revenge. Alan Ladd, Sylvia Picker, Vern Carstensen (production supervisor), Richard Sanville (director), Rudy Schrager (composer, conductor), Frank Lovejoy, Edmond MacDonald, Gene Levitt (writer), Bob Mitchell (writer). 26:58.

Bubbles Greko (Aired June 29, 1954)


This program was born from a detective book series and inspired by author Henry Kane who became the director and producer for the radio show. The series only ran five months, 30 minutes each episode, from April 6, 1954 to September 7, 1954. Peter Chambers was played by Dane Clark who also appeared on the Suspense radio shows. Chambers acted the role of a playboy detective with an eye for solving crime and a taste for the women. Bill Zuckert, who went on to guest star in many 1970s shows including The Mary Tyler Moore Show and the Partridge Family, plays Lt. Parker.

THIS EPISODE:

June 29, 1954. NBC network. Sustaining. Dane Clark, Henry Kane (creator, writer), Fred Collins (announcer), Roger De Koven, Bryna Raeburn, Fred Weihe (director), Dinah Shore (promtional announcement). 24:26.

There Was A Crooked Man (Aired May 23, 1939)


On January 31, 1936, the Green Hornet radio program aired on WXYZ in Detroit, Michigan. Al Hodge played the part of the Green Hornet from 1936 through January of 1943. The program was created by George W. Trendle, the same man associated with the creation of the Lone Ranger radio show. The premise of the Green Hornet was that of a modern day Lone Ranger. The main character was Britt Reid, a newspaper publisher of the Daily Sentinel by day and the Green Hornet by night. Britt Reid was the great-nephew of the Lone Ranger. Britt Reid's war against crime was an extension of his family history. The Green Hornet fought crime with his high-powered car, the Black Beauty. He also utilized a gun that fired knockout gas instead of bullets. His fists also came in handy on a regular basis. He was assisted by his Filipino valet, Kato. Kato would drive the Black Beauty, keep watch out for the police or the bad guys and sometimes lend a helping fist to the fighting. The Green Hornet pretended to be a villain while really battling the forces of crime in the big city. This would make for some interesting plot twists as the Green Hornet would be actively avoiding detection by the police while at the same time attempting to destroy criminal activity in the city.

THIS EPISODE:

May 23, 1939. Mutual network origination, Michelson syndication, WFAA, Dallas aircheck. "There Was A Crooked Man". Commercials deleted. The daughter of a crusading reformer is kidnapped to silence him. Al Hodge, Fran Striker (writer), George W. Trendle (creator). 1/2 hour.

The Celestial Omnibus (Aired August 18, 1957)


The CBS Radio Workshop aired from January 27, 1956 through September 22, 1957 and was a revival of the prestigious Columbia Workshop from the 1930s and 1940s. Creator William Froug launched the series with this powerhouse two-part adaptation of "Brave New World" and booked author Aldous Huxley to narrate his famous novel. "We’ll never get a sponsor anyway," CBS vice president Howard Barnes explained to Time, "so we might as well try anything." The CBS Workshop regularly featured the works of the world’s greatest writers. including Ray Bradbury, Archibald MacLeish, William Saroyan, Lord Dunsany and Ambrose Bierce.

THIS EPISODE:

August 18, 1957. CBS network. "The Celestial Omnibus". Sustaining. A young boy's ride on the stagecoach to Heaven. Good radio. Peter Lazer, Lee Vines, Luis Van Rooten. 25 minutes.

The Man Who Sold His Soul (1950)


Let us journey “into the land that lies beyond midnight,” into a world of ghost hunters, men going mad, and DEATH DEATH DEATH! . A replacement series for SF 68, this South African horror anthology was far more successful than its predecessor, running from 1968 through 1969. Its success may have been due in part to producer Michael McCabe - who also produced SF 68 - honing his talents to a higher degree. Little else is known about it, including the number of shows produced. As far as I can discover, there were at least 43 episodes, all in half-hour format.

Kingfish Sells Andy A Trailer (Aired March 25, 1947)


Amos 'n' Andy was a situation comedy popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s. The show began as one of the first radio comedy serials, written and voiced by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll and originating from station WMAQ in Chicago, Illinois. After the series was first broadcast in 1928, it grew in popularity and became a huge influence on the radio serials that followed. Amos 'n' Andy creators Gosden and Correll were white actors familiar with minstrel traditions. They met in Durham, North Carolina in 1920, and by the fall of 1925, they were performing nightly song-and-patter routines on the Chicago Tribune's station WGN. Since the Tribune syndicated Sidney Smith's popular comic strip The Gumps, which had successfully introduced the concept of daily continuity, WGN executive Ben McCanna thought the notion of a serialized drama could also work on radio. He suggested to Gosden and Correll that they adapt The Gumps to radio. They instead proposed a series about "a couple of colored characters" and borrowed certain elements of The Gumps. Their new series, Sam 'n' Henry, began January 12, 1926, fascinating radio listeners throughout the Midwest. That series became popular enough that in late 1927 Gosden and Correll requested that it be distributed to other stations on phonograph records in a "chainless chain" concept that would have been the first use of radio syndication as we know it today. When WGN rejected the idea, Gosden and Correll quit the show and the station that December. Contractually, their characters belonged to WGN, so when Gosden and Correll left WGN, they performed in personal appearances but could not use the character names from the radio show.

THIS EPISODE:

March 25, 1947. NBC network. Commercials deleted. The Kingfish sells Andy a broken down trailer in a scheme to move into his room. The program closing has been deleted. Freeman Gosden, Charles Correll, Lud Gluskin and His Orchestra, The Delta Rhythm Boys, James Basquette, Eddie Green, Ernestine Wade, Carlton KaDell (announcer). 24 minutes.

Death Of A Private Eye (Aired January 2, 1952)


Barry Craig, Confidential Investigator is one of the few detective radio series that had separate versions of it broadcast from both coasts. Even the spelling changed over the years. It was first "Barry Crane" and then "Barrie Craig". NBC produced it in New York from 1951 to 1954 and then moved it to Hollywood where it aired from 1954 to 1955. It attracted only occasional sponsors so it was usually a sustainer.William Gargan, who also played the better known television (and radio) detective Martin Kane, was the voice of New York eye BARRY CRAIG while Ralph Bell portrayed his associate, Lt. Travis Rogers. Craig's office was on Madison Avenue and his adventures were fairly standard PI fare. He worked alone, solved cases efficiently, and feared no man. As the promos went, he was "your man when you can't go to the cops. Confidentiality a speciality."Like Sam Spade, Craig narrated his stories, in addition to being the leading character in this 30 minute show. Nearly sixty episodes are in trading circulation today.

THIS EPISODE:

January 2, 1952. NBC network. "Death Of A Private Eye". Sustaining. Not auditioned. "(Barry) is hired to help a man pay a visit, but discovers instead that (the) visitor has a visitor first, death!" William Gargan, Himan Brown (director), Don Pardo (announcer), Louis Vittes (writer), Fran Carlon. 28:27.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Death Valley Days" - Sam Bass (Aired August 27, 1936)


Death Valley Days is an American radio and television anthology about true stories of the old American West, particularly the Death Valley area. It was created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman and ran on radio until 1945. It ran from 1952 to 1975 as a syndicated television series. It was sponsored by the Pacific Coast Borax Company (20 Mule Team Borax, Boraxo). The 558 television stories, which had different actors, were introduced by a host. The longest-running was "The Old Ranger" from 1952-1965, played by Stanley Andrews when the series was produced by McGowan Productions, producer of the Sky King television series. Filmaster Productions Incorporated who produced the first several seasons of Gunsmoke for CBS Television took over production of the series in the mid 1960s. Death Valley Days is, judging from sheer number of episodes broadcast, by far the most successful syndicated television Western, the most successful television Western ever in the half-hour format, and arguably the most successful syndication of any genre in the history of the U.S. television market (Baywatch had a larger international market among U.S.-produced syndicated programs.

Gildy's First Day On The Job (Aired October 25, 1942)


The Great Gildersleeve (1941-1957), initially written by Leonard Lewis Levinson, [1] was one of broadcast history's earliest spin-off programs. Built around a character who had been a staple on the classic radio situation comedy Fibber McGee and Molly, The Great Gildersleeve enjoyed its greatest success in the 1940s. Actor Harold Peary played the character during its transition from the parent show into the spin-off and later in a quartet of feature films released at the height of the show's popularity. On Fibber McGee and Molly, Peary's Gildersleeve was a pompous windbag who became a consistent McGee nemesis. "You're a haa-aa-aa-aard man, McGee!" became a Gildersleeve catch phrase. The character was given several conflicting first names on Fibber McGee and Molly, and on one episode his middle name was revealed as Philharmonic. Gildy admits as much at the end of "Gildersleeve's Diary" on the Fibber McGee and Molly series (10/22/40). He soon became so popular that Kraft Foods — looking primarily to promote its Parkay margarine spread — sponsored a new series with Peary's Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve as the central, slightly softened, and slightly befuddled focus of a lively new family.

THIS EPISIODE:

October 25, 1942. NBC network. Sponsored by: Kraft Parkay, Pabst-Ett. Gildersleeve's first day as water commissioner. Billy Mills (composer, conductor), Earle Ross, Frank Bingman (announcer), Harold Peary, John Whedon (writer), Ken Christy, Lillian Randolph, Lurene Tuttle, Richard LeGrand, Shirley Mitchell (?), Verna Felton, Walter Tetley. 29:30.

Missing Necklace (1956)


Danger With Granger arrived too late in the Golden Age of Radio to have any real impact on the listening public. Mutual aired this show, starting in 1956, on Monday nights at 8:30 pm. It was a half hour show that featured a private eye in New York City, STEVE GRANGER. His two primary companions were Cal Hendrix, a reporter who served as an all-purpose source of criminal info, and Jake Rankin, a police detective with whom he had a grudging rivalry. The writing on the show seemed to incorporate most of the standard cliche's of the P.I. world. Granger, who was both the star and the first-person narrator of the show (not an uncommon practice with radio gumshoes), never saw a woman, instead "he gave the doll the once-over." He didn't kick with his foot, he "lifted a size 10." Instead of paying cash, he "forked over numbered lettuce." The mysteries he solved were fairly reasonable, and while he was a tough guy who roughed up lesser mortals, he seemed to get knocked unconscious at least once in every program.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "The Lone Ranger" - Remember The Alamo (Aired December 22, 1941 )


The Lone Ranger was an American long-running early radio and television show created by George W. Trendle (with considerable input from station staff members), and developed by writer Fran Striker. The titular character is a masked Texas Ranger in the American Old West, who gallops about righting injustices, usually with the aid of a clever and laconic American Indian sidekick called Tonto, and his horse Silver. He would famously say "Hi-yo Silver, away!" to get the horse to gallop. On the radio and TV-series, the usual opening announcement was: “ A fiery horse with the speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty 'Hi-yo Silver!' The Lone Ranger! ”In later episodes the opening narration ended with the catch phrase "Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear.... The Lone Ranger Rides Again!" Episodes usually ended with one of the characters lamenting the fact that they never found out the hero's name ("Who was that masked man?"), only to be told, "Why, that was the Lone Ranger!" as he and Tonto ride away. The theme music was the "cavalry charge" finale of Gioacchino Rossini's William Tell Overture, now inseparably associated with the series, which also featured many other classical selections as incidental music including Wagner, Mendelssohn, Liszt, and Tchaikovsky. The theme was conducted by Daniel Perez Castaneda. Inspiration for the name may have come from The Lone Star Ranger, a novel by Zane Grey. Karl May's tales of Old Shatterhand and Chief Winnetou may have influenced the creation of the concept; they in turn were influenced by The Leatherstocking Tales of James Fenimore Cooper. The legends of Robin Hood and the popular character Zorro were also a likely inspiration.

THIS EPISODE:

December 22, 1941. Program #1391/607. Syndicated. "Tom Conlon"/"Remember The Alamo". Music fill for local commercial insert. Episode #31 of "The Legion Of The Black Arrow" series. Mary Ann Conlon's father owns the Rainbow mine. He's trusting a mining engineer named Rance Crawford against some very good advice. Defending the mine from The Black Arrow Gang, The Ranger urges his men to, "Remember The Alamo." The program was pre-empted December 24, 1941. Brace Beemer, John Todd, Frank Russell, Rube Weiss. 28:18.

The Lawyer And The Lady (Aired December 4, 1948)


Jeff Regan, Investigator was one of the three detective shows Jack Webb did before Dragnet (see also Pat Novak For Hire and Johnny Modero: Pier 23). It debuted on CBS in July 1948. Webb played JEFF REGAN, a tough private eye working in a Los Angeles investigation firm run by Anthony J. Lyon. Regan introduced himself on each show "I get ten a day and expenses...they call me the Lyon's Eye." The show was fairly well-plotted, Webb's voice was great, and the supporting cast were skillful. Regan handled rough assignments from Lion, with whom he was not always on good terms. He was tough, tenacious, and had a dry sense of humor. The voice of his boss, Anthony Lion, was Wilms Herbert. The show ended in December 1948 but was resurrected in October 1949 with a new cast; Frank Graham played Regan (later Paul Dubrov was the lead) and Frank Nelson portrayed Lion. This version ran on CBS, sometimes as a West Coast regional, until August 1950. Both versions were 30 minutes, but the day and time slot changed several times.

THIS EPISODE:

December 4, 1948. CBS Pacific network. "The Lawyer and The Lady". Sustaining. Lawyer Joseph Kramer hires Regan, then gets shot while in his own office. Mrs. Kramer is shot and killed too. Regan gets decked by Spec Jameson, a 280 pound fat man with brass knuckles. Jack Webb, Herb Butterfield, Lawrence Dobkin, Carol Matthews, Lou Krugman, Marvin Miller, Herb Vigran, Mary Lansing, Bob Stevenson (announcer), Milton Charles (organist), Jackson Gillis (writer), E. Jack Neuman (writer), Sterling Tracy (producer). 29:08.

Artists & Models Abroad (Aired June 12, 1938)


The Jack Benny Program is a classic comedy that is truly one of the best-loved programs from the Golden Age of Radio. It started life as The Canada Dry Program in 1932 on the Blue Network and finished off as The Lucky Strike Program on CBS in 1955. In between, it kept the audience in stitches and established Benny as one of America's all-time great comedians. The format of the show, and the personality of its star, so well honed in two decades on radio, made the transition to television almost intact. Jack's stinginess, vanity about his supposed age of 39, basement vault where he kept all his money, ancient Maxwell automobile, and feigned ineptness at playing the violin were all part of the act. Added to Jack's famous pregnant pause and exasperated "Well!" were a rather mincing walk, an affected hand to the cheek, and a painted look of disbelief when confronted by life's little tragedies.

THIS EPISODE:

The Jell-O Program Starring Jack Benny. June 20, 1937. Red network. Sponsored by: Jell-O, Jell-O Ice Cream Powder. Kenny sings, "Never In A Million Years." The show visits the set with Jack as he films, "Artists and Models." Rochester appears as Jack's valet for the first time. Andy Devine, Charles Winninger, Don Wilson, Jack Benny, Kenny Baker, Mary Livingstone, Phil Harris and His Orchestra, Robert Emmett Kean, Eddie Anderson, Harry Baldwin, Ed Beloin (writer, performer: doubles), Bill Morrow (writer, performer), Frank Nelson, Blanche Stewart, Charles Winninger. 29:35.

The Case Of Murder And The Missing Car (Aired May 11, 1950)


When Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons first debuted over the Blue Network on October 12, 1937, the show’s title accurately described Keen’s stock-in-trade; the “kindly old investigator” tracked down individuals who had mysteriously vanished, leaving behind their families, homes, jobs and other day-to-day activities. Keen (he never had a first name, unless it was “Peachy”) was assisted in these duties by an Irishman named Mike Clancy. Mike wasn’t much of a brainiac (the quote that comprises the title of this post was a semi-catchphrase that he seemed to use on the show every week) but he could use the necessary brawn when the situation called for it. Bennett Kilpack played kindly ol' Keen throughout most of the program’s run, as well as Philip Clarke and Arthur Hughes, while Jim Kelly took the role of Clancy. The series originally aired as a thrice-weekly fifteen-minute serial from 1937-43 (the show moved to CBS in 1942), providing more than ample time for Keen to solve even the most baffling of disappearances. Beginning November 11, 1943, the program changed its format to that of a half-hour weekly offering—and though the title and theme song remained, Keen branched out into investigating murders.

THIS EPISODE:

May 11, 1950. CBS network. "The Case Of Murder and The Missing Car". Sponsored by: Anacin, Kolynos, Heet, Kriptin, Bisodol, Hills Cold Tabs. A body is found in a car trunk...and a false clue is found in the glove compartment. Frank Hummert (originator, producer), Anne Hummert (originator, producer), Bennett Kilpack, Richard Leonard (director), Lawrence Klee (dialogue), Larry Elliott (announcer). 29:41.

The Kid With A Gun (Aired October 10, 1949)


CRIME DOES NOT PAY was a series based on short films of the same name produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was similar to Gangbusters, having a moralistic message about the law and lawbreaker. It was first heard over WMGM (NYC), hosted by Donald Buka. The last original show aired on Apr. 11, 1951. The series started on Monday evenings at 7:30 PM (on WMGM) and held that time/day spot until Oct. 30, 1950. The 56'th show marked a change to Wednesday night, again at 7:30. After show number 78 (Apr.11, 1951) the shows were repeated, starting with the first, "Kid With a Gun". The repeats followed the original order up until repeat of number 26, "Ingenious Woman" on Oct. 10, 1951. Repeats were not uncommon. Even before the last original show, older shows were repeated on alternate dates to the main series run. On Jan. 7, 1952, the series moved to Mutual but lasted just one year. Only repeats of the original series were aired and show ordering did not match the first run.

THIS EPISODE:

October 10, 1949. Program #1. MGM syndication. "The Kid With A Gun". Commercials added locally. John Powers, grown up in a slum, turns to a life of crime at an early age. The first show of the series. The date above is the date of the first broadcast of this program on WMGM, New York, from which this syndicated version may have been taken. . 1/2 hour.

All Promises Are Ficticious (Aired April 17, 1940)


Burns and Allen were an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen.Burns wrote most of the material, and played the straight man. Allen played a silly, addleheaded woman. Both attributed their success to the other, to the ends of their lives. Early on, the team had played the opposite roles until they noticed that the audience was laughing at Gracie's straight lines, so they made the change. Burns and Allen developed their popular routine over more than three decades of stage, radio, film, and television. Historians of popular culture have often stated that Allen was a brilliant comedian, whose entire career consisted of engaging in dialogues of "illogical logic" that left her verbal opponents dazed and confused, and her audiences in stitches. During a typical 23-minute episode of the Burns and Allen show, the vast majority of the dialogue and speaking parts were written for Allen, who was credited with having the genius to deliver her lengthy diatribes in a fashion that made it look as though she was making her arguments up on the spot. (One running gag on the TV show was the existence of a closet full of hats belonging to various visitors to the Burns household, where the guests would slip out the door unnoticed, leaving their hats behind, rather than face another round with Gracie.) A continuing joke on the show was that George would say, "Say good night, Gracie," and Gracie would say, "Good night Gracie!" Ralph Pape used the catchphrase for the title of his play, Say Goodnight, Gracie, produced by Steppenwolf in 1983, and the phrase lives on as a title of other books and stage productions.

THIS EPISODE:

April 17, 1940. CBS network. Sponsored by: Hinds Honey and Almond Cream. At the Omaha convention of Gracie's Suprise Party, the men will be expected to grow beards and dress as if it were 1870. Gracie rehearses the speech she will be making in Dallas. She sings, "When The Sweet Potato Piper Plays." George Burns, Gracie Allen, Frank Parker, Ray Noble and His Orchestra, Truman Bradley (announcer), Mary Kelley (as "Bubbles"). 29:35.

Trial By Fear (Aired March 25, 1953)


I Was a Communist for the FBI was an American espionage thriller radio series with 78 episodes syndicated by Ziv to more than 600 stations in 1952-54. Made without FBI cooperation, the series was adapted from the book by undercover agent Matt Cvetic, who was portrayed by Dana Andrews.The series was crafted to warn people about the threat of Communist subversion of American society. The tone of the show is very jingoistic and ultra-patriotic. Communists are evil incarnate and the FBI can do no wrong. As a relic of the Joe McCarthy era, this show is a time capsule of American society during the Second Red Scare.

THIS EPISODE:

March 25, 1953. Program #49. ZIV Syndication. "Trial By Fear". Commercials added locally. Cvetic is present at a Party trial where a comrade is suspected or being an FBI plant. The date is subject to correction. Dana Andrews, Truman Bradley (announcer). 27:14.

Bird Of Death (Aired March 31, 1945)


The shows are classic chills from the old school, with creepy organ, overwrought women and over the top men. Perhaps not the highest of melodrama, but obsessively workmanlike. After all, they might have known they were a skeleton staff toiling relentlessly without a ghost of a chance of fame. Thanks to transcription, these unknowns are still with us. John Dunning, succinctly states in "On the Air, The Encyclopedia of Old Time Radio," "There were no credits, so casts and production crews are unknown."

THIS EPISODE:

Program #22. NBC syndication origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. "Bird Of Death". A murder in the swamp works out as planned, but a crow has a tale to tell. 29:21.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Frontier Gentleman" - Nebraska Jack (Aired August 3, 1958)


Frontier Gentleman was a radio Western series heard on CBS from February 2 to November 16, 1958. Written and directed by Antony Ellis, it followed the adventures of J.B. Kendall (John Dehner), a London Times reporter, as he roamed the Western United States, encountering various outlaws and well-known historical figures, such as Jesse James and Calamity Jane. Written and directed by Antony Ellis, it followed the adventures of journalist Kendall as he roamed the Western United States in search of stories for the Times. Along the way, he encountered various fictional drifters and outlaws in addition to well-known historical figures, such as Jesse James, Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok. Music for the series was by Wilbur Hatch and Jerry Goldsmith, who also supplied the opening trumpet theme. The announcers were Dan Cubberly, Johnny Jacobs, Bud Sewell and John Wald. Supporting cast: Harry Bartell, Lawrence Dobkin, Virginia Gregg, Stacy Harris, Johnny Jacobs, Joseph Kearns, Jack Kruschen, Jack Moyles, Jeanette Nolan, Vic Perrin and Barney Phillips.

THIS EPISODE:

August 3, 1958. CBS network. "Nebraska Jack". Sustaining. Jack has five Indian wives, many children, and an understandable taste for whiskey. The public service announcements have been partially deleted. John Dehner, Joseph Kearns, Jack Moyles, Virginia Gregg, Antony Ellis (writer, producer, director), Bud Sewell (announcer). 24:16.

Ides Of March (Aired January 15, 1950)


NBC University Theater - was truly one well loved program. Beyond just its educational value, the combination of great stories... quality acting... and first class production made these shows wonderful entertainment. They are truly great radio AND a highly accessible way to introduce YOUR kids to great American Literature! Dramatic anthology Offered novels, with programs for college credit. Broadcast History : July 30th, 1948 - February 14th, 1951 NBC. Mostly 60 minutes. Mostly aired on Sundays, with occasional weeknight airings. Announcer : Don Stanley Music : Albert Harris, Henry Russell Director : Andrew C. Love Writers : Claris A. Ross, Ernest Kinoy, George Lefferts, Jack C. Wilson Sound Effects : Bob Holmes, Rod Sutton.

THIS EPISODE:

July 2, 1949. NBC network. "The Ides Of March". Sustaining. Love and intrigue in old Rome, a portrait painted by the intimate letters of Julius Caesar to an old friend. Albert Harris (composer, conductor), Andrew C. Love (director), Beaumont Brustal (intermission commentator), Ben Wright, Brainard Duffield (adaptor), Charles Seel, Don Stanley (announcer), Doris Singleton, Eda Reiss Merin, Emerson Crocker (adaptor), Georgia Backus, Henry Hull, Jan Arvan, Lawrence Dobkin, Lynn Allen, Maya Gregory, Parley Baer, Thornton Wilder (author). 59:39.

Archie The Detective (Aired May 11, 1949)


Duffy's Tavern, an American radio situation comedy (CBS, 1941-1942; NBC-Blue Network, 1942-1944; NBC, 1944-1952), often featured top-name stage and film guest stars but always hooked those around the misadventures, get-rich-quick-scheming, and romantic missteps of the title establishment's malaprop-prone, metaphor-mixing manager, Archie, played by the writer/actor who created the show, Ed Gardner.

THIS EPISODE:

Archie The Detective - May 11, 1949. NBC network. Sponsored by: Vitalis, Mum. "Your bath washes away the past, Mum safeguards the future." Detective Archie is on the trail of "Whistling Sam," a robber of taverns! Ed Gardner, Eddie Green, Alan Reed, Charlie Cantor, Sheldon Leonard, Chester Morris (guest). 29:28.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Fort Laramie" - War Correspondents (Aired May 13, 1956)


Fort Laramie opened with "Specially transcribed tales of the dark and tragic ground of the wild frontier. The saga of fighting men who rode the rim of empire and the dramatic story of Lee Quince, Captain of Cavalry". When Norman Macdonnell created Fort Laramie in late 1955, he made it clear to his writers that historical accuracy was essential to the integrity of the series. Correct geographic names, authentic Indian practices, military terminology, and utilizing actual names of the original buildings of the real fort, was insisted upon. So when the radio characters referred to the sutler's store (which is what the trading post was called prior to 1870), the surgeon's quarters, Old Bedlam (the officers' quarters) or the old bakery, they were naming actual structures in the original fort. While Macdonnell planned to use the same writers, soundmen, and supporting actors in Fort Laramie that he relied upon in Gunsmoke, he naturally picked different leads. Heading up the cast was a 39 year old, Canadian-born actor with a long history in broadcasting and the movies, Raymond Burr. He had begun his career in 1939, alternating between the stage and radio. He turned to Hollywood, and from 1946 until he got the part of Captain Lee Quince in Fort Laramie in 1956, he had appeared in thirty-seven films. A few were excellent (Rear Window, The Blue Gardenia) some were average (Walk a Crooked Mile, A Place in the Sun) but many were plain awful (Bride of Vengeance, Red Light, and Abandoned). With Burr in the lead, Macdonnell selected two supporting players: Vic Perrin as "Sgt. Goerss" and Jack Moyles as "Major Daggett", the commanding officer of the post.

THIS EPISODE:

May 13, 1956. CBS network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. "War Correspondents". A reporter from a New York newspaper comes west to tell the "truth" and also to learn of the "real" west. The program was recorded April 19, 1956. Raymond Burr, Kathleen Hite (writer), Sam Edwards, Parley Baer, Lawrence Dobkin, Lou Krugman, Norman Macdonnell (producer, director), Amerigo Moreno (musical supervisor), Bill James (sound patterns), Ray Kemper (sound patterns), Harry Bartell, Jack Moyles. 29:51.

Revolt On Prison Rock (Part 1 of 2) Aired May 27, 1952


Tom Corbett is the main character in a series of Tom Corbett — Space Cadet stories that were depicted in television, radio, books, comic books, comic strips, coloring books, punch-out books and View-Master reels in the 1950s. The stories followed the adventures of Tom Corbett, Astro, and Roger Manning, cadets at the Space Academy as they train to become members of the elite Solar Guard. The action takes place at the Academy in classrooms and bunkroom, aboard their training ship the rocket cruiser Polaris, and on alien worlds, both within our solar system and in orbit around nearby stars. The Tom Corbett universe partook of pseudo-science, not equal to the standards of accuracy set by John W. Campbell in the pages of Astounding. And yet, by the standards of the day, it was much more accurate than most media science fiction. Mars was a desert, Venus a jungle, and the asteroids a haunt of space pirates, but at least planets circled suns and there was no air in space. Contrast this with Twilight Zone, years later, where people could live on asteroids wearing ordinary clothes, or Lost in Space, years after that, where a spaceship could be passing "Jupiter and Andromeda" at the same time. Before Star Trek, Tom Corbett — Space Cadet was the most scientifically accurate series on television, in part due to official science advisor Willy Ley, and later due to Frankie Thomas. Thomas read up on science and everyone on the set turned to him for advice on matters scientific.

THIS EPISODE: Revolt On Prison Rock Part One of Two

May 27, 1952. ABC network, WJZ, New York aircheck. "Revolt On Prison Rock". Sponsored by: Kellogg's Pep, Kellogg's Raisin Bran. A revolt on the prison asteroid takes place while the Cadets are on guard duty. Al Markim, Drex Hines (director), Edward Bryce, Frank Thomas Jr., Jackson Beck (announcer), Jan Merlin, Jon Gart (organist). 25 minutes.

Locked Out Of The House (Aired November 6, 1948)


Archie Andrews, created in 1941 by Bob Montana, is a fictional character in an American comic book series published by Archie Comics, a long-run radio series, a syndicated comic strip and animation -- The Archie Show, a Saturday morning cartoon television series by Filmation, plus Archie's Weird Mysteries. Archie Andrews began on the Blue Network on May 31, 1943, switched to Mutual in 1944, and then continued on NBC from 1945 until September 5 1953. Archie was first played by Charles Mullen, Jack Grimes and Burt Boyar, with Bob Hastings as the title character during the NBC years.The sponsor was Swift Products. The Cast: Harlan Stone, Alice Yourman, Arthur Kohl, Gloria Mann, Rosemary Rice.

THIS EPISODE:

November 13, 1948. NBC network. Sustaining. The entire Andrews family decides to retire early for the evening. But, ticking alarm clocks, dripping water, and other circumstances beyond their control keep them pretty active. This program appeared in, "The Great Radio Comedians". Bob Hastings, Harlan Stone, Alice Yourman, Ian Martin, Gloria Mann, Rosemary Rice. 1/2 hour.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Cavalcade Of America" - Last Of The Scouts Buffalo Bill (Aired March 9, 1938)


Cavalcade of America is an anthology drama series that was sponsored by the DuPont Company. It was initially broadcast on radio from 1935 to 1953, and later on television from 1952 to 1957. Originally on CBS the series pioneered the use of anthology drama for company audio advertising. Cavalcade of America documented historical events using stories of individual courage, initiative and achievement, often with feel-good dramatizations of the human spirit's triumph against all odds. This was consistent with DuPont's overall conservative philosophy and legacy as an American company dating back to 1802. The company's motto, "Maker of better things for better living through chemistry," was read at the beginning of each program, and the dramas emphasized humanitarian progress, particularly improvements in the lives of women, often through technological innovation.The show started as part of a successful campaign to reinvigorate DuPont. In the early 1930s, the Nye Committee investigations concluded that DuPont had made a fortune profiteering in World War I. The company stood accused of encouraging an arms race between WWI enemies, after being heavily subsidized by the Allies to increase black powder production. The negative effects of the investigation left the company demoralized, directionless and with a tarnished corporate image in the middle of the Great Depression. DuPont's products were primarily not for public consumption, so there was no purpose in promoting them through advertising. As a solution to DuPont's troubles, Roy Durstine, then creative director of Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn, proposed the creation of Cavalcade of America using the company motto. This was to be an important element in the successful re-branding of DuPont as an American legacy engaged in making products for the well-being of Americans and humanity in general.

Death At 7:10 (Aired July 3, 1947)


Crime club was a Mutual Network murder and mystery series, a product of the Doubleday Crime Book Club imprints found weekly in bookstores everywhere. The telephone rings"Hello, I hope I haven't kept you waiting. Yes, this is the Crime Club. I'm the Librarian. Murder Rents A Room? Yes, we have that Crime Club story for you.Come right over. (The organist in the shadowed corner of the Crime Club library shivers the ivories) The doorbell tones sullenly"And you are here. Good. Take the easy chair by the window. Comfortable? The book is on this shelf." (The organist hits the scary chord) "Let's look at it under the reading lamp." The Librarian, played by Raymond E. Johnson, begins reading the tale. Veteran Willis Cooper (Lights Out, Quiet Please) did some of the scripts from the Crime Club books.

THIS EPISODE:

July 3, 1947. Mutual network. "Death At 7:10". Sustaining. Susan Ward Steel, a woman everybody hated is dies of atropine poisoning in the compartment of a mystery writer on a train. Her story is told through flashbacks. H. F. S. Moore (author), Stedman Coles (adaptor), Roger Bower (producer, director), Raymond Edward Johnson, Helen Shields, Cameron Prud'Homme, Ted Osborne, Eleanor Phelps, Pierce Carlton, Reese Taylor. 29:40.

Our Town (Aired May 12, 1939)


The Campbell Playhouse was a sponsored continuation of the Mercury Theater on the Air, a direct result of the instant publicity from the War of the Worlds panic. The switch occurred on December 9, 1938. In spite of using the same creative staff, the show had a different flavor under sponsorship, partially attributed to a guest star policy in place, which relegated the rest of the Mercury Players to supporting cast for Orson Welles and the Hollywood guest of the week. There was a growing schism between Welles, still reaping the rewards of his Halloween night notoriety, and his collaborator John Houseman, still in the producer's chair but feeling more like an employee than a partner. The writer, as during the unsponsored run, was Howard Koch.

THIS EPISODE:

Our Town is a story of character development that details the interactions between citizens of an everyday town in the early 20th century through their everyday lives (particularly the lives of George Gibbs, a doctor's son, and Emily Webb, the daughter of a newspaper editor). Our Town was first performed at the McCarter Theater in Princeton, New Jersey on January 22, 1938. It next opened at the Wilbur Theater in Boston on January 25, 1938. Its New York City debut was on February 4, 1938 at Henry Miller's Theatre, and later moved to the Morosco Theatre. The play was produced and directed by Jed Harris. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1938.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Wild Bill Hickock" - The Trail To Dead Rock (Aired April 22, 1953)


This juvenile western followed the same format as the TV show of the same name that ran throughout the same years. This format certainly was not new as the charismatic hero and comic side-kick was something that had been done before with Hopalong Cassidy and The Cisco Kid, and to some extent with the Lone Ranger. FIRST BROADCAST: May 17, 1951 LAST BROADCAST: February 12, 1956 SPONSORS: Kellog CAST: Guy Madison and Andy Devine. ANNOUNCERS: Charlie Lyon PRODUCERS/DIRECTORS: Paul Pierce.

THIS EPISODE:

April 22, 1953. Program #148. Mutual network. "The Trail To Dead Rock". Sponsored by: Kellogg's Variety Pak (some commercials deleted). A rehearsal recording or unedited tape. No music bridges are heard. Cash Dawson has damned up Dead Rock Creek and wants to charge for the water. The system cue is added live. Guy Madison, Andy Devine, Charles Lyon (announcer), David Hire (producer), Paul Pierce (director), Larry Hayes (writer), Hal Gerard, Lou Krugman, Jack Mather, Dusty Walker, Richard Aurandt (music). 21:15.

Good Neighbor Policy (Aired July 28, 1951)


The first portrayal of Phillip Marlowe on the radio was by Dick Powell, when he played Raymond Chandler's detective on the Lux Radio Theater on June 11, 1945. This was a radio adaptation of the 1944 movie, from RKO, in which Mr. Powell played the lead. Two years later, Van Heflin starred as Marlowe in a summer replacement series for the Bob Hope Show on NBC. This series ran for 13 shows. On September 26, 1948, Gerald Mohr became the third radio Marlowe, this time on CBS. It remained a CBS show through its last show in 1951.

THIS EPISODE:

July 28, 1951. CBS network. "The Good Neighbor Policy". Sustaining. Crossed wires on Marlowe's party line lead him to murder, a robber, and the Los Angeles library! Doris Singleton, Gerald Mohr, Hy Averback (announcer), Jane Morgan, Jeanne Bates, Kathleen Hite (writer), Norman Macdonnell (producer, director), Parley Baer, Pierre Garriguenc (composer), Raymond Chandler (creator), Roy Rowan (announcer), Vivi Janis, Wilbur Hatch (music). 29:50.

Guest Humphrey Bogart (Aired November 6, 1947)


The Kraft Music Hall was a major NBC radio variety program, featuring top show business entertainers, in a 16-year span from 1933 to 1949. Kraft Foods was the first advertiser to sponsor a two-hour radio program, in an era when many radio programs were only 15 minutes long and few were longer than a half hour. The Kraft Program debuted June 26, 1933 to promote a new product in the Kraft family, Miracle Whip. The musical-variety program featured orchestra leader Paul Whiteman and served to supplement the print advertising and in-store displays in promoting Kraft products. Al Jolson was the show's star vocalist. During its first year the show went through a series of name changes, including Kraft Musical Revue, until it finally settled on Kraft Music Hall in 1934. Paul Whiteman remained the host until December 6, 1935. Ford Bond was the announcer. Billing himself as “The King of Jazz”, Paul Whiteman was arguably America’s first popular music superstar. Whiteman’s foresight regarding the coming of the jazz age and his decisions to hire the best jazz musicians was a powerful boost for jazz, swing and blues. Though he was prohibited from hiring black performers, he hired arrangers and composers.

Ep.25 "The Carnival" Ep.26 "Patchwork" (1932)

The Family Doctor was a story about Dr. Grant Adams, a small town doctor who doubled as the community’s moral rectifier. He was more than just respected, he was loved by all. Each week he confronted issues from robbery to suicide, and always with common sense and gentle moral judgment. Though his old-fashioned remedies for sicknesses are outdated compared to modern medical practicing, The Family Doctor's attitude towards life's daily issues transcend time. Of the 39 intended episodes, only 12 were aired.

Boxcars711 supports the efforts of the Old Time Radio Researchers Group (OTRR) whose goals include restoring, preserving and sharing the classic shows from what is commonly known as the "Golden Age of Radio" (1930-1960). Please visit and support this great organization at:
http://www.otrr.org/

TWO EPISODES: Ep.25 "The Carnival" and Ep.26 "Patchwork"

1932. Program #25. Broadcasters Program Syndicate/Bruce Eells and Associates syndication. "The Carnival". Music fill for local commercial insert. Doc and Mrs. Adams visit a traveling carnival to see the three-headed calf and play the old shell game. The date is approximate, possibly Transco origination. 14:40.

1932. Program #26. Broadcasters Program Syndicate/Bruce Eells and Associates syndication. "Patchwork". Music fill for local commercial insert. A visit from the doctor's son and his wife. There's conflict in the family until Doc Adams tells a story. The date is approximate, possibly Transco origination. 14:25.

The Kenny Day Amnesia Case (Aired October 6, 1950)


Broadcast on NBC, Nightbeat ran from 1949 to 1952 and starred Frank Lovejoy as Randy Stone, a tough and streetwise reporter who worked the nightbeat for the Chicago Star looking for human interest stories. He met an assortment of people, most of them with a problem, many of them scared, and sometimes he was able to help them, sometimes he wasn’t. It is generally regarded as a ‘quality’ show and it stands up extremely well. Frank Lovejoy (1914-1962) isn’t remembered today, but he was a powerful and believable actor with a strong delivery, and his portrayal of Randy Stone as tough guy with humanity was perfect. The scripts were excellent, given that they had to pack in a lot in a short time, and there was a good supporting cast, orchestra, and sound effects. ‘The Slasher’, broadcast on 10 November 1950, the last show of season one, has a very loosely Ripper-derived plot in which Stone searches for an artist. Supporting actors included Parley Baer, William Conrad, Jeff Corey, Lawrence Dobkin, Paul Frees, Jack Kruschen, Peter Leeds, Howard McNear, Lurene Tuttle and Martha Wentworth.

THIS EPISODE:

October 6, 1950. NBC network. Sustaining. Randy Stone's car has been stolen...by an ex-cop with amnesia. The thief's name is Kenny Day, and his wife is in danger, or is his wife a victim of murder? The system cue has been deleted. Irwin Ashkenazie (writer), Eddie Fields, Frank Worth (music), Ted de Corsia, Lurene Tuttle, William Tracy, Wilms Herbert, Jack Kruschen, Barbara Dupar, Frank Lovejoy, Warren Lewis (producer, director). 29:13.

The Silver Cord (Aired April 18, 1948)


The Ford Theater, sponsored by the Ford Motor Company, presented hour long dramas first on NBC for one only season. The series moved to CBS for its second and last season. There were 39 NBC and 39 CBS hour- long shows (not verified). The show initially received an unfavorable review from the New York Times for poor script adaptation but was still highly rated for the actors' performance and overall production. The show was supposed to feature only original scripts but had to forgo that plan due to lack of quality material. The first season on NBC used radio actors under the direction of George Zachary. Martin Gabel announced the first show but was soon replaced by Kenneth Banghart. The second season, on CBS, used Hollywood screen actors in the lead roles, supported by radio actors. Fletcher Markle, who previously produced CBS's STUDIO ONE series, was the producer for the second season. Although a short series, it still has some of radio's best dramas.

THIS EPISODE:

April 18, 1948. NBC network. "The Silver Cord". Sponsored by: Ford. A well-written, if somewhat heavy-handed melodrama about a domineering mother who cannot let her two sons live their own lives. Evelyn Varden, Barbara Weeks, Les Tremayne, Elaine Rost, Howard Lindsay (host), Kenneth Banghart (announcer). 1 hour.

Blondie And Society (Aired May 27, 1945)


Blondie was a radio situation comedy adapted from the long-run Blondie comic strip by Chic Young. The radio program had a long run on several networks from 1939 to 1950. After Penny Singleton was cast in the title role of the feature film Blondie (1938), co-starring with Arthur Lake as Dagwood, she and Lake repeated their roles December 20, 1938, on The Bob Hope Show. The appearance with Hope led to their own show, beginning July 3, 1939, on CBS as a summer replacement for The Eddie Cantor Show. However, Cantor did not return in the fall, so the sponsor, Camel Cigarettes chose to keep Blondie on the air Mondays at 7:30pm. Camel remained the sponsor through the early WWII years until June 26, 1944. In 1944, Blondie was on the Blue Network, sponsored by Super Suds, airing Fridays at 7pm from July 21 to September 1. The final three weeks of that run overlapped with Blondie's return to CBS on Sundays at 8pm from August 13, 1944, to September 26, 1948, still sponsored by Super Suds. Beginning in mid-1945, the 30-minute program was heard Mondays at 7:30pm. Super Suds continued as the sponsor when the show moved to NBC on Wednesdays at 8pm from October 6, 1948, to June 29, 1949. Ann Rutherford took over the radio role of Blondie in 1949, and at times, Patricia Van Cleve and Alice White were also heard as Blondie. In its final season, the series was on ABC from October 6, 1949, to July 6, 1950, first airing Thursdays at 8pm and then (from May) 8:30pm. The radio show ended the same year as the Blondie film series (1938-50)

THIS EPISODE:

May 27, 1945. Program #10. CBS network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. Mrs. Trallafran, the fat lady who's very "big" in social circles, is visiting Blondie for tea and possible membership in the "Leisure Club." The AFRS fill and closing have been deleted. The date is approximate. Arthur Lake, Penny Singleton, Hanley Stafford, Ken Niles (announcer). 27:00.

Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Hopalong Cassidy" - The Sundown Kid (Aired July 2, 1950)


William Boyd was Hoppy and his sidekick was played by either Andy Clyde or Joe DuVal. Boyd who began his movie career in the days of silent films was a forgotten man until he was asked to portray Hopalong Cassidy in the movies of the 1940s. By 1946 or so he had been in over 60 Hoppy movies and was crowned the king of the cowboys. He became the hero of kids around the world and this lasted until another resurgence in the form of the Hoppy radio series. Once more he attained the fame and regards of kids and adults. During the radio years, TV versions of his early films began appearing on televison. His early movies were edited for televison of the day and once more Bill Boyd entertained his fans. There's more - with the success of these old movies, still another series of original TV films came. And once again Bill Boyd as Hoppy was an immediate success. The radio series were a hard sell. And the owners could find no takers. When this series began it was offered to the various networks. They wanted nothing to do with it so the owners had to sell it in syndication. But, after a short time it became extremely successful that later on it was heard on the Mutual and CBS networks.

THIS EPISODE:

January 29, 1949. Program #27. Commodore syndication. "The Sundown Kid". Commercials added locally. Eddie Langtry is found in the desert, suffering from amnesia. Is he really the Sundown Kid? William Boyd, Joseph Du Val, Walter White Jr. (producer, transcriber), Harold Swanton (writer). 28:52.

The Earl On Troubled Waters (Aired February 8, 1952)


The Third Man (The Lives of Harry Lime) was a old-time radio adventure series that ran in 1951 and 1952. It was based on the 1949 film of the same name. Orson Welles stars as Harry Lime, a perpetually broke confidence man, smuggler, and general scoundrel. He will participate in virtually any criminal activity to make a fast buck, but uses his wits rather than a gun. He draws the line short of murder, blackmail, or drugs. Even so, Harry is an endearing character and listeners love to hear of his one-step-ahead-of-the-law misadventures as he hops around the globe looking for his next pigeon. The zither music of Anton Karas adds a wonderful Viennese ambience to each episode and really makes this show special.

THIS EPISODE:

February 8, 1952. Program #28. Syndicated, WRVR-FM, New York aircheck. "The Earl On Troubled Waters". Participating sponsors. Harry poses as a nobleman to smuggle $30,000 out of the country, but little Lord Randolph himself takes a hand. WRVR air date: April 22, 1975. The program number and story title are subject to correction. Orson Welles, Anton Karas (zither), Harry Alan Towers (producer), Tig Roe (director). 22:36.

Jealousy Is A Strange Thing (Aired June 6, 1945)


Rogue's Gallery came to the Mutual network on September 27, 1945 with Dick Powell portraying Richard Rogue, a private detective who invariably ended up getting knocked out each week and spending his dream time in acerbic conversation with his subconscious self, Eugor. Rogue's Gallery was, in a sense, Dick Powell's rehearsal for Richard Diamond, Private Detective. Powell played private detective Richard Rogue, who trailed luscious blondes, protected witness, and did whatever else detectives do to make a living. It was a good series, though not destined to make much of a mark. Under the capable direction of Dee Englebach and accompanied by the music of Leith Stevens, Powell floated through his lines with the help of such competents as Lou Merrill, Gerald Mohr, Gloria Blondell, Tony Barrett, and Lurene Tuttle. Peter Leeds played Rogue's friend Eugor, an obscure play on names with Eugor spelling Rogue backwards. The gimmick in Rogue's Gallery was the presence of an alter ego, "Eugor," who arrived in the middle of the show to give Rogue enough information for his final deduction. Eugor was a state of mind, achieved when Rogue was knocked unconcious. Eugor would appear cackling like the host of Hermit's Cave and imparted some vital information the hero had overlooked. Rogue would then awaken with a vague idea of what to do next. Rogue's Gallery also starred different actors as Rogue, in later incarnations of the series, but Richard Powell was the most popular.

THIS EPISODE:

June 6, 1946. Mutual network. "Jealousy Is A Strange Thing". Sponsored by: Fitch's Shampoo, Fitch's Hair Tonic. Beautiful Patricia Flynn is sure someone's trying to kill her, but her half-sister is murdered instead! The program opening is upcut. The system cue has been deleted or is added live. Dick Powell, Jim Doyle (announcer), Gerald Mohr, Leith Stevens (composer, conductor), Ray Buffum (writer), Dee Englebach (director), Peter Leeds. 29:42.

Murder Most Foul (1949)


The Secrets of Scotland Yard was an independent production of the Towers of London syndicate in England for world wide distribution. Each week, an audience of anxious radio-listeners tuned in to hear these true crime stories of the London Metropolitan Police unfold, as the detectives at the Yard investigated some of England’s most famous criminals. Their trials have become legendary. Stories presented in the series include the theft of the British crown jewels by Colonel Thomas Blood; the story of a man who finds an armless and legless body wrapped in ribbons and lace; or the strange story of two close brothers who love one another enough to contemplate the murder of a brother’s affluent, yet unsightly and ignorant, wife. Murders, forgery, and robberies all get a through review on the program. Each time, Scotland Yard detectives are afoot to solve the crime mystery! The Secrets of Scotland Yard was initially hosted by Clive Brook, probably for the first year or so.

Tea Time For Teenagers (Aired July 8, 1951)


The Whisperer was an American old-time radio show broadcast from July 8 to September 30, 1951 on NBC. It ran for only 13 episodes. The premise of the series was as improbable as its storylines. The protagonist was Philip Gault (Carleton G. Young), a lawyer who, due to some unexplained accident, lost his voice and could only speak in an eerie whisper. Gault infiltrates "the syndicate" in his native Central City to bring down organized crime from within; to the underworld, he becomes known as the Whisperer. Later, his voice is restored through surgery, but he continues to lead a double life as the Whisperer, relaying instructions from the syndicate bosses in New York (who don't know he's a mole) to their lackeys in Central City, whom Gault is actually setting up. By today's standards, the stories are dated and their message-mongering usually criticized as ham-fisted, the product of what might be considered the unenlightened attitudes of the time. The first episode ("Tea Time for Teenagers") is typical, an overwrought "it can happen here" melodrama about a syndicate plot to create "200 regular marijuana addicts" among high school students. The episode makes a blatant appeal to the moral indignation of its audience, ending with Gault advising PTA's to "show some of the fine educational films available on marijuana and how it leads to a worse addiction." Carleton G. Young, who played Gault, is sometimes confused with the actor Carleton Young. Betty Moran portrayed his girlfriend Ellen, the only other person who knew Gault's double identity. Moran had to deliver lines like, "But marijuana means broken lives, heartbreak for parents!"

THIS EPISODE:

Tea Time For Teenagers (1951) - 25:32 Lawyer Philip Gault leads a double life as a syndicate operative. In this premiere episode, he stops a plan to introduce pot to Central City's teenagers.

Ep.01 "The Double-Cross" and Ep.02 "Behind The Mask"


Mysterious stories of murdered actresses, affairs, rumbles, traitors, and dead bodies found. Listen each week to this early mystery-drama for the hidden clue and see if you can solve the mystery before they do! The answers are found at the beginning of the following weeks episode.

TODAY'S SHOW - Ep.01 "The Double-Cross" and Ep.02 "Behind The Mask"

The Crooked Carter Brothers (Aired June 18, 1947)


The Boston Blackie radio series, also starring Morris, began June 23, 1944, on NBC as a summer replacement for The Amos 'n' Andy Show. Sponsored by Rinso, the series continued until September 15 of that year. Unlike the concurrent films, Blackie had a steady romantic interest in the radio show: Lesley Woods appeared as Blackie's girlfriend Mary Wesley. Harlow Wilcox was the show's announcer. On April 11, 1945, Richard Kollmar took over the title role in a radio series syndicated by Frederic W. Ziv to Mutual and other network outlets. Over 200 episodes of this series were produced between 1944 and October 25, 1950. Other sponsors included Lifebuoy Soap, Champagne Velvet beer, and R&H beer. While investigating mysteries, Blackie invaribly encountered harebrained Police Inspector Farraday (Maurice Tarplin) and always solved the mystery to Farraday's amazement. Initially, friction surfaced in the relationship between Blackie and Farraday, but as the series continued, Farraday recognized Blackie's talents and requested assistance. Blackie dated Mary Wesley (Jan Miner), and for the first half of the series, his best pal Shorty was always on hand. The humorless Farraday was on the receiving end of Blackie's bad puns and word play. Kent Taylor starred in the half-hour TV series, The Adventures of Boston Blackie. Syndicated in 1951, it ran for 58 episodes, continuing in repeats over the following decade.

THIS EPISODE:

June 18, 1946. Program #62. ABC network origination, Ziv syndication. Sponsored by: Champagne Velvet Beer (of Indiana). A masked society of extortioners has been formed, which Blackie tries to break up. Richard Kollmar. 1/2 hour.

Dead Dame In The Park (1953)


Mickey Spillane wrote violent tales that epitomized the hard-boiled detective genre of tough guys, fist fights and sultry dames. That Hammer Guy was a detective drama well inside the hard-boiled tradition. This was the rough and rugged series that hit hard and fast and it was unlike some other shows, such as, "Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar" or "Richard Diamond" that where more upbeat with humor and sly wit. Mike Hammer believes in justice, rough justice... his justice. The show didn't have a long run, only from January 6, 1953 and until October 5, 1953. Much tamer than the novels (it was radio after all) the show petered out with the advent of TV and the general fading of radio's golden age.

THIS EPISODE:

1953. Mutual network. Sustaining. Mike meets Marsha Bowman in the park. She turns out to be Marsha Jordan, and is very dead! The story is complete, but some public service announcements and the program closing have been deleted. Ted de Corsia, Mickey Spillane (creator). 26:18.

Edward R. Murrow - Episode 20 (Aired April 27, 1951)


Hear It Now, an American radio program on CBS, began in 1950 and was hosted by Edward R. Murrow and produced by Fred Friendly. It ran for one hour on Fridays at 9 p.m. One of the most popular and best selling records of 1948 was I Can Hear It Now 1933-1945. The record was a collaboration between Edward R. Murrow and Fred W. Friendly. The record interwove historical events with speeches and Murrow's narration and marked the beginning of one of the most famous pairings in journalism history. The huge success of the record prompted the pair to parlay it into a weekly radio show for CBS. That show was Hear It Now. The show had a "magazine format." It drove to include a variety of sounds from current events such as an atom smasher at work or artillery fire from Korea. It was the artillery fire that produced one of the show's more poignant moments as it backdropped the words of American soldiers fighting the Korean War. The entire premise of the show was to include the "actual sound of history in the making," according to Murrow. Some of the show's audio was what Time Magazine called "fairly routine" in 1950. Such audio soundbites as Communist China's General Wu and Russia's Vishinsky along with the U.S. Delegate Warren Austin were included among the routine group of audio use. Television, by 1955, usurped radio in terms of audience share and a reluctant Murrow, in 1951, set about doing a TV version of the radio show called See It Now. With the inception of the television version of the show in 1951 Hear It Now ended its on air run.

THIS EPISODE:

April 27, 1951. Program #20. CBS network. Sustaining. The Communist offensive begins in Korea, Radio Free Europe broadcasts to Hungary with instructions on how to cross the border, Senator Nixon of California states that the Administration is trying to damage the reputation of General MacArthur, a medley of "MacArthur" songs, "Thirty Six hours In A B-36", a twenty minute sound portrait of a simulated attack. Edward R. Murrow (narrator). 1 hour.

The Stolen Pearls ( 2 Episodes COMPLETE) Aired July 23, 1947 and July 31, 1947


Sky King was a 1940s and 1950s American radio and television adventure series. The title character was Arizona rancher and aircraft pilot Schuyler (or Skyler) "Sky" King. The series was likely based on a true-life person, Jack Cones, the Flying Constable of Twentynine Palms during the 1930s. Although it had strong cowboy show elements, King always captured criminals and even spies and found lost hikers using his plane. King's personal plane was called the Songbird. Though he changed from one plane to another over the course of the show, the later plane was not given a number (i.e., "Songbird II"), but was simply known as Songbird. He and his niece, Penny (and sometimes Clipper, his nephew) lived on the Flying Crown Ranch, near the (fictitious) town of Grover City, Arizona. Penny and Clipper were also pilots, though still relatively inexperienced and looking to their uncle for guidance and mentoring. Penny was an accomplished air racer and rated multiengine pilot, who Sky trusted to fly the Songbird. The musical score was largely the work of Herschel Burke Gilbert.

TODAY'S SHOW: Two Episodes

The Stolen Pearls - July 23, 1947. ABC network. Sustaining. A $30,000 string of pearls has been stolen from banker Snodgrass. Gene McCall is the prime suspect. Mike Wallace (announcer). 14:27 and July 31, 1947 - Benny Miller tells Sky who really stole the pearls...Mr. Snodgrass! Mike Wallace (announcer). 14:37.

Punishment And Crime (Aired July 16, 1969)


Clearly one of the last big attempts to produce radio programming, with many of Hollywood's best. The series premiered on Monday 02/05/79 and offered a different genre each weekday night. Each genre was hosted by a different celebrity. The program was produced on Paramount's Stage F in Hollywood. These first 130 programs were broadcast over a six month period and then rebroadcast over the following six months. From 02/14/80 to 12/19/81 this series was heard again, this time over Mutual, as The Mutual Radio Theater. This was clearly one of the last big attempts to produce radio programming, with many of radio’s best talents, the way radio was heard in its “golden days.” Despite budget and talent, it just wasn’t to be.

THIS EPISODE:

Program #116. CBS network. "Punishment and Crime". Sponsored by: Sears Roebuck and Company. Fletcher Markle (producer, director, performer), Howard Culver, Jack Carroll, Joe Moross, Len Birman, Lorne Greene (host), Parley Baer, Peggy Webber, Percy Grainger (writer). 45 minutes.

The Corresponding Corpse (Aired December 16, 1948)


Michael Shayne was a fictional sleuth created by Brett Halliday (a pen name for author Davis Dresser) who was first initiated into the fraternity for detectives in the 1939 novel "Dividend of Death". Dresser based the character on a “tall and rangy” brawler who once saved his life during a braw in a Mexican cantina. The Shayne character would go on to appear in 69 novels, plus a long-running mystery magazine—and in 1941, was brought to the silver screen in Paramount’s Michael Shayne, Private Detective, an adaptation of Dividend of Death that starred Lloyd Nolan, and paved the way for six additional B-mysteries to follow. The New Adventures of Michael Shayne—premiered on July 15, 1948 starring Jeff Chandler.

THIS EPISODE:

"The Case Of The Corresponding Corpse". Commercials added locally. A Cuban hires Mike to find his friend Julian, who has recently written to him, but who has been dead for two years! There's a good surprise ending! Jeff Chandler, William P. Rousseau (host, director), Robert Ryf (writer), John Duffy (composer, conductor), Don W. Sharp (producer), Brett Halliday (creator). 26:47.

Secret Of Terror Castle (1960) *The Date Is Approx.


The Three Investigators was an American Detective Book. It was first published as "Alfred Hitchcock And The Three Investigators." It was created by Robert Arthur, Jr., who believed using a famous figure like movie director Hitchcock would attract attention. The Secret of Terror Castle is about three boys investigating a known haunted house, Terror Castle, in hopes that perhaps Alfred Hitchcock would use it in his upcoming movie. During their investigations, they find very scary and seemingly real activities going on in the abandoned house, such as the Fog of Fear and the Blue Phantom. Though originally aimed at a juvenile audience, I listened to the entire 50 minute presentation and I found myself deeply engrossed.

Two For The Money (01-01-45)


"I am the Whistler and I know many things, for I walk by night. I know many strange tales, many secrets hidden in the hearts of men and women who have stepped into the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless terrors of which they dare not speak..." These words followed by a whistling that was distinctive and well-remembered recalls one of the best mystery crime series of the past. Eminating for all its life from the West Coast this broadcast had a run of almost 13 years. Aired over the CBS radio network it was sponsored for much of the time by the Signal Oil Co. The show first broadcast its fantastic thirty-minute crime mystery series in May 1942 and did not finish until September 1948. There were more than 450 shows of murder and intrigue in all. Although it ran for 6 years it was broadcast for only one year on a national network.

THIS EPISODE:

January 1, 1945. CBS Pacific network. "Two For The Money". Sponsored by: Signal Oil. A man plans revenge on his brother by leaving $25,000 in cash in his brother's cab! Bob Anderson (announcer), George W. Allen (producer), Jack Anson Fink (writer), Louis Pelletier (writer), Wilbur Hatch (music). 29:39.