Down These Mean Streets (old Time Radio Detectives)

The Chairman of the Board fights crime as Frank Sinatra stars in Rocky Fortune. The singer played Fortune - a man whose odd jobs always led to trouble - for a single season in a fun, well-produced mystery series. To celebrate the sixty-fifth anniversary of the show's debut, we'll hear a pair of Rocky's adventures - the show's first episode (originally aired on NBC on October 6, 1953) and "The Museum Murder" (originally aired on NBC on January 11, 1954).

William Gargan is on the case as Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator - the sardonic gumshoe with a healthy sense of humor to go along with his powers of deduction. We'll hear "Murder Masquerade" (originally aired on NBC on August 9, 1953) and "Hay is for Homicide" (originally aired on NBC on August 31, 1954).

In celebration of what would have been his 98th birthday, we're tipping our hat to William Conrad. Before he was the narrator of The Fugitive and Rocky and Bullwinkle and before he solved TV crimes as Cannon, Conrad was one of the biggest talents of the golden age of radio. He had thousands of credits to his name but he was best known as Matt Dillon, US Marshal, on Gunsmoke. We'll hear him in a pair of murder mysteries from the old west (originally aired on CBS on May 9 and November 21, 1953).

With his polished radio presence and his mellifluous British accent, Tom Conway was a natural as a radio detective, and he put his voice to great use as both Sherlock Holmes and Simon Templar. We'll hear him as Holmes - with Nigel Bruce as Watson - in "The Adventure of the Original Hamlet" (originally aired on ABC on November 2, 1946). Then as The Saint, he stars in "The Girl with the Lower Berth" (originally aired on NBC on June 3, 1951).

In the film noir classic D.O.A., the detective is also the victim of the crime. Edmond O'Brien, one of radio's Johnny Dollars, recreates his big screen role as Frank Bigelow, a man with only days left to live who is frantically searching for the man who murdered him, in this adaptation from the Screen Directors Playhouse (originally aired on NBC on June 21, 1951).

Alan Ladd didn't just star in mysteries and thrillers on the big screen - audiences could also hear Ladd on their radios in tales of daring detectives and heroes. We'll hear him in "Double Right Cross," an episode of his syndicated series Box 13 where he starred as reporter turned mystery writer and amateur sleuth Dan Holiday. Then he's joined by Veronica Lake in a radio recreation of his wartime action adventure O.S.S. from the Lux Radio Theatre (originally aired on CBS on November 18, 1946).

From the Broadway stage to the world of daytime soap operas, Lesley Woods found success in every medium she tried during her six decade career. She was very busy on radio, appearing on soaps, sci-fi shows, thrillers, and detective programs. We'll hear her opposite Richard Kollmar in Boston Blackie as Blackie's girlfriend Mary Wesley in "The Wentworth Diamonds." And she's reporter Ann Williams alongside Staats Cotsworth's Casey, Crime Photographer in "The Twenty Minute Alibi" (originally aired on CBS on February 20, 1947).

Crooks made the mistake of underestimating private detectives Max Carrados and Captain Duncan Maclain because both men were blind. After you hear their radio adventures, you'll know that a lack of sight doesn't stand in the way of these gentlemen as they solve seemingly impossible murders. Ernest Bramah's gentlemanly Carrados (voiced by Alfred Shirley) stars in "The Holloway Flat Tragedy" from Murder Clinic (originally aired on Mutual on August 18, 1942). Then, Baynard Kendrick's Maclain (played here by Brian Donlevy) is heard in "Out of Control" from Suspense (originally aired on CBS on August 23, 1946).

San Francisco shamus Candy Matson was the greatest girl detective of the radio era. Charming, cool, and cute, Candy made her way in the man’s world of private eye gumshoeing. Before and after her series aired on NBC, two audition shows were recorded to bring the sassy sleuth to audiences. We’ll hear Natalie Masters as Candy in both of those shows – “The Donna Dunham Case” from April 1949 and “The Allison Gray Case” from September 1952.

If you've got to walk down the mean streets of Los Angeles, it helps to have Philip Marlowe by your side. Gerald Mohr brought Raymond Chandler's private eye to life in one of the best detective shows to come out of the radio era. We'll hear a pair of Marlowe's mysteries: "The Bum's Rush" (originally aired on CBS on September 3, 1949) and "The Fox's Tail" (originally aired on CBS on May 23, 1950).

After a hiatus, it’s time once again to head “Down These Mean Streets.” I’m kicking off a new season with the king of the radio cops – Sgt. Joe Friday. Jack Webb is keeping Los Angeles safe in three old time radio mysteries: "The Big Girl" (originally aired on NBC on February 9, 1950); "The Big Evans" (originally aired on NBC on March 16, 1952); and "The Big Impossible" (originally aired on NBC on March 15, 1953).

To celebrate Dashiell Hammett's birthday, we'll hear a pair of radio adventures of his most famous creation - the hard-boiled San Francisco shamus Sam Spade. Howard Duff stars as Spade in "The Queen Bee Caper" (originally aired on CBS on July 10, 1949). Then, Steven Dunne steps into Sam's shoes for "The Biddle Riddle Caper" (originally aired on NBC on January 5, 1951).

We're celebrating the birthday of Arthur Conan Doyle with radio adaptations of three of his greatest Sherlock Holmes mysteries. In these productions from the BBC, John Gielgud stars as Holmes with Ralph Richardson as Dr. Watson. The game's afoot in "A Scandal in Bohemia," "The Red-Headed League," and "The Six Napoleons."

Walk in the shoes of a killer as he plans and carries out his crime. Just watch out for a twist ending when the story is told by The Whistler. Bill Forman stars as the sinister storyteller who introduces his tales with a haunting melody. We'll hear "Brief Pause for Murder" (originally aired on CBS on September 11, 1949) and "A Law of Physics" (originally aired on CBS on June 10, 1951).

We're celebrating Orson Welles' birthday with two of the legendary actor and director's old time radio performances. First, Welles leads us on a tour of The Black Museum, Scotland Yard's archive of murder. He narrates the tale of a faded tartan scarf wielded in the hands of a dangerous man. Then he recreates his big screen role from The Third Man in The Lives of Harry Lime. We'll hear Harry in the syndicated mystery "Mexican Hat Trick."

We're back in the saddle this week with Joel McCrea in Tales of the Texas Rangers. As Ranger Jayce Pearson, McCrea keeps the Lone Star State safe in true crime stories. We'll hear "Fool's Gold" (originally aired on NBC on August 19, 1950) and "The White Suit" (originally aired on NBC on November 5, 1950).

It's the fifth anniversary of Down These Mean Streets and the 69th anniversary of the premiere of Richard Diamond, Private Detective. To celebrate both, here's an extra-large episode starring Dick Powell as Diamond. Radio's singing detective gets his man and carries a tune in "The Ralph Chase Case" (originally aired on NBC on May 15, 1949); "The Harry Baker Case" (originally aired on NBC on September 3, 1949); "The Grey Man" (originally aired on ABC on February 16, 1951); and "The Hollywood Story" (originally aired on CBS on August 23, 1953).

Bob Bailey is back on the job in another five-part adventure of Johnny Dollar - "the man with the action-packed expense account." Join America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator as he crosses swords with a twentieth century pirate to learn what happened to a sunken ship in "The Jolly Roger Fraud" (originally aired on CBS between March 19 and March 23, 1956).

Nero Wolfe, Rex Stout’s gargantuan gourmet, is back! His career as a radio detective began 75 years ago this month, and we’re marking the occasion with two of his on-air adventures. Sydney Greenstreet plays the eccentric sleuth (with Larry Dobkin as loyal legman Archie Goodwin) in “The Case of the Friendly Rabbit” (originally aired on NBC on December 1, 1950). Then, we’ll hear an early Wolfe radio adventure – “The Last Laugh Murder Case,” broadcast on the Armed Forces Radio Service’s Mystery Playhouse.

In honor of his birthday, we'll hear Jack Webb in a pair of old time radio performances - roles that show off a side of the actor/director's persona very different from Sgt. Joe Friday. In "Jack of Clubs" (originally aired on ABC on February 20, 1949), he's waterfront shamus Pat Novak For Hire. Then, he's an unscrupulous private eye who dabbles in crime in "Perfect Alibi" from The Whistler (originally aired on CBS on June 12, 1949).