Listen to “The Great Detectives Present the Avenger and I.A. Moto” on Spreaker.
Mr. Moto began as a series of novels about the Japanese Secret Agent by John P Marquand, then came a series of films starring Peter Lorre as Mr. Moto in the late 1930s. Lorre’s Moto was an international detective, a deadly martial artists, and a master of disguise. The success of both the books and the movies occurred while the West was increasingly concerned about the growing threat of the Japanese empire.
In 1951, Mr. Moto became a radio show starring. However, this program was different. Mr. Moto rather than being Japanese was an American of Japanese decent. Moto was a secret agent, who also did some detective work. The show’s early issues dealt with big issues. Moto fought the spread of communism and also dealt with some deeper issues than would be typical for a golden age radio program including racism and war.
Cast Notes:
James Monks (1913-94) played Mr. Moto. He was a long time stage, radio, and television actor. In addition to his role as Mr. Moto, he also played The Avenger in a syndicated radio series.
Episode Log:
- A Force Called X07 (Original Air Date: May 20, 1951)
- Smokescreen (Original Air Date: June 3, 1951)
- Blackmail (Original Air Date: June 10, 1951)
- The Baziloff Papers (Original Air Date: June 24, 1951)
- The Victim (Original Air Date: July 1, 1951)
- Project 77 (Original Air Date: July 8, 1951)
- Sabotage (Original Air Date: July 15, 1951)
- Escape (Original Air Date: July 22, 1951)
- The Schraum Method (Original Air Date: September 23, 1951)
- The Crooked Log (Original Air Date: September 30, 1951)
- The Strange Elopement of Dr. Sloan (Original Air Date: October 13, 1951)
- The Case of the Dry Martini (Original Air Date: October 20, 1951)
End of Log
Log courtesy of Digital Deli.