Down These Mean Streets (Old Time Radio Detectives)

This week, we'll head "Down These Mean Streets" with Alan Ladd. The star of "This Gun for Hire" is mystery writer and amateur sleuth Dan Holiday in Box 13 and he recreates his big screen role in a radio version of the wartime action drama O.S.S.

This week on "Down These Mean Streets," we're saluting actress Lesley Woods. She lent her voice to co-starring roles on "Boston Blackie" and "Casey, Crime Photographer."

This week on "Down These Mean Streets," we'll hear from a pair of brilliant blind detectives - Max Carrados and Captain Duncan Maclain.

Episode 285 - Auditions for Adventure (Candy Matson)

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;" "The Harry Baker Case;" "The Grey Man;"; and "The Hollywood Story."

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 Myste

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).