With the publication of a new book – The Saint on Radio by Ian Dickerson, I take another look at this “Robin Hood of Modern Crime.” Some newer information comes to light with this publication. A creation of writer Leslie Charteris (left), The Saint was possibly the only fictional character to be featured in virtually every entertainment media: from film,… (more…)
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Police Radios were a new technology in the 1920s, and by 1933 were pretty much a technology that had definitely improved the ability of the police to combat crime more effectively. Radio Drama loved the new technology as it opened up new ideas in the depression years to improve the image of police versus the criminals. Mythic criminals such as… (more…)
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For fans of old time radio, Sorry, Wrong Number with Agnes Moorehead (right) is one of the best dramas to listen to. After all, it was repeated on Suspense due to popular demand eight times; but as a radio drama, it is also a finely crafted, well executed piece of radio production ever heard and perhaps a lesson to those who… (more…)
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The character of Rocky Jordan went through a transformation of sorts over the history of its run. For all, but the third run, actor Jack Moyles (left) portrayed Rocky. It began its life as A Man Named Jordan in 1945 as a 5-times-a-week 15 minute serial running at one point during the so-called “Children’s Hour.” This series while very good,… (more…)
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I am a victim of my own success, I guess. When I began this podcast in 2005, I was posting regular episodes weekly. I had no problems with my Internet Service Provider as people downloaded or listened online. Then I started advertising on Twitter alerting listeners to new episodes. And fairly quickly the number of downloads increased exponentially and suddenly… (more…)
During the decade of the 1940s Private Detectives on radio made a decided turn from the lighter, somewhat cozy fictional character such as Ellery Queen, Nero Wolfe and Sherlock Holmes to the more hardboiled versions of Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe and others. Just why this occurred is examined in this podcast along with an episode of Michael Shayne BEFORE the… (more…)
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Within the world of radio detectives, including those based upon fictional detectives, we rarely got to know much about the detective himself. When you think about those you might have heard, you could ask yourself the question – just who is Sam Spade, or Philip Marlowe, or Richard Diamond and others? We hear them think through monologue as they work,… (more…)
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This time we hear again from the script writer voice of Ken Crossen who wrote many scripts for a number of suspense and mystery thriller series including this one from the Molle’ Mystery Theater in 1944. Crossen was also a well-known pulp and mystery fiction writer under the name of M.E. Chaber, whose Milo March series were best sellers. This… (more…)
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Originally conceived as a series with a male Private Eye, creator Monte Masters switched it to a female private cop starring his wife, Natalie Masters, in the role. This San Francisco-based series was possibly the best female radio cop series, though there are some close contenders. I look at this plus women as radio P.I.’s in general. Natalie Masters voice… (more…)
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