Bob Bailey & Virginia Gregg
The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio is a podcast featuring the best vintage detective radio programs. Each week from Monday through Saturday, we feature six of Old Time Radio's great detective series from the beginning of the show to its very last episode. And as a bonus, twice a month we also post a public domain movie or TV mystery or detective show video.
Along the way, I'll provide you my commentary and offer you opportunities to interact.
Subscribe to the show by clicking your favorite podcatcher in the sidebar.
And don't forget to follow me on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.
- Your host, Adam Graham
Listen to "The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio" on Spreaker.
Amazing World of Radio
The War
OTR Superman Show
Detective Video Theater
Recent Posts
CBS, OTR Detective, Podcast, Yours Truly Johnny Dollar
Yours Truly Johnny Dollar: The Frantic Fisherman Matter
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 0 Comments
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Today’s Mystery:
Johnny Dollar welcomes an excuse to visit an old friend at a Lake Mojave fishing resort, but the vacation quickly becomes an investigation when a recently released convict is spotted using some very unusual fishing equipment. Johnny sets out to discover what the man is really searching for beneath the lake.
Original Radio Broadcast Date: July 12, 1959
Originated from Hollywood
Cast:
- Bob Bailey as Johnny Dollar
- Barney Phillips
- Sam Edwards
- Bartlett Robinson
- Forrest Lewis
- Ralph Moody
Written, produced, and directed by Jack Johnstone
When making your travel plans, remember http://johnnydollarair.com
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Thank you to our Patreon Supporter of the Day: John and Christine, Patreon supporters since March 2018.
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Join us again tomorrow for another detective drama from the Golden Age of Radio.
Dragnet, NBC, OTR Detective, Podcast, Procedural
Dragnet: The Big Gamble
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 0 Comments
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Today’s Mystery:
Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Bill Lockwood investigate a professional gambling ring that keeps its games moving from place to place. A tip finally gives police the opportunity they’ve been waiting for, but what begins as a vice investigation suddenly becomes a far more serious case.
Original Radio Broadcast Date: May 8, 1952
Originating from Hollywood
Cast:
- Jack Webb as Sergeant Joe Friday
- Martin Milner as Officer Bill Lockwood
- Also featuring Eddie Firestone and Whit Connor
Script by Jim Moser
Music by Walter Schumann
Technical advisors: Captain Jack Donahoe, Sergeant Marty Wynn, and Sergeant Vance Brasher
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Patreon Supporter of the Day: Lovingly, Patreon supporter since November 2024.
Support the show on a one-time basis at http://support.greatdetectives.net.
Mail a donation to: Adam Graham, PO Box 15913, Boise, Idaho 83715
Take the listener survey at http://survey.greatdetectives.net
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Follow us on Twitter@radiodetectives
Join us again tomorrow for another detective drama from the Golden Age of Radio.
Amazing World of Radio, Podcast
Lux Radio Theater: The Paradine Case (AWR0307)
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 0 Comments
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London barrister Anthony Keane takes on the defense of the beautiful Maddalena Paradine, who is accused of poisoning her wealthy, blind husband. As Keane prepares for trial, his growing fascination with his client threatens both his judgment in the courtroom and his marriage.
Original Radio Broadcast Date: May 9, 1949
Cast:
- Joseph Cotten as Anthony Keane
- Valli as Maddalena Paradine
- Louis Jourdan as André Latour
- Betty Lou Gerson as Gay Keane
- Alan Reed
- William Conrad
- Directed by S. H. Barnett
- Music directed by Louis Silver
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Broadway's My Beat, CBS, OTR Detective, Podcast
Broadway’s My Beat: The Irene Hall Murder Case (EP5038)
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 0 Comments
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Today’s Mystery:
Detective Danny Clover investigates the strangling of a Broadway entertainer whose body is discovered by a frightened out-of-town businessman. His insistence that he heard the woman scream long after she apparently died presents Clover with a puzzling contradiction—and the case soon takes an even darker turn.
Original Radio Broadcast Date: May 17, 1952
Originating from Hollywood
Cast:
- Larry Thor as Detective Danny Clover
- Charles Calvert as Sgt. Gino Tartaglia
- Jack Kruschen as Detective Muggavan
- Hy Averback as Russ Field
- Herb Butterfield as Myron Lehigh
- Featuring Martha Wentworth, Ed Max, and Junius Matthews
Written by Morton Fine and David Friedkin
Produced and directed by Elliott Lewis
Musical score composed and conducted by Alexander Courage
Support the show monthly at https://patreon.greatdetectives.net
Patreon Supporter of the Day: Todd, Patreon supporter since July 2025.
Support the show on a one-time basis at http://support.greatdetectives.net.
Mail a donation to: Adam Graham, PO Box 15913, Boise, Idaho 83715
Take the listener survey at http://survey.greatdetectives.net
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Follow us on Twitter @radiodetectives
Join us again tomorrow for another detective drama from the Golden Age of Radio.
NBC, OTR Detective, Podcast, The Big Story
The Big Story: The Man Who Wanted What He Couldn’t Have
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 0 Comments
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Today’s Mystery:
Salt Lake City Tribune reporter Cluster M. Nielsen investigates the murder of a young traveler whose final journey ends on a lonely Utah highway. As the evidence begins to conflict, Nielsen races to uncover the truth before an innocent man pays the price.
Original Radio Broadcast: November 14, 1951
Originating from New York
Cast:
- Francis DeSales as Cluster M. Nielsen
- Charita Bauer
- Mickey O’Day
- Bruce Gordon
- Owen Gordon
- Alan Stevenson
Support the show monthly at https://patreon.greatdetectives.net
Support the show on a one-time basis at http://support.greatdetectives.net.
Mail a donation to: Adam Graham, PO Box 15913, Boise, Idaho 83715
Take the listener survey at http://survey.greatdetectives.net
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Join us again tomorrow for another detective drama from the Golden Age of Radio.
NBC, OTR Detective, Podcast, The Saint
The Saint: The Ghost That Giggled (EP5036)
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 0 Comments
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Today’s Mystery:
When an eccentric woman asks Simon Templar to investigate the ghost that has been haunting her wealthy brother, The Saint expects to expose a harmless superstition. Instead, he finds himself unraveling a murder, a missing safe deposit box key, and a web of deception in which nearly everyone seems to be searching for the same elusive prize.
Original Radio Broadcast Date: September 17, 1950
Originating from Hollywood
Cast:
- Barry Sullivan as Simon Templar, The Saint (substituting for Vincent Price)
- Also featuring Ann Doran, Lurene Tuttle, Jack Moyles, Larry Dobkin, and Parley Baer
Based on characters created by Leslie Charteris
Directed by Helen Mack
Music composed and conducted by Van Dexter
Produced by James L. Saphier
Announced by Don Stanley
Support the show monthly at patreon.greatdetectives.net
Patreon Supporter of the Day: Steven, Patreon supporter since July 2024.
Support the show on a one-time basis at http://support.greatdetectives.net
Mail a donation to: Adam Graham, PO Box 15913, Boise, Idaho 83715
Take the listener survey at http://survey.greatdetectives.net
Give us a call at 208-991-4783
Follow us on Instagram at http://instagram.com/greatdetectives
Follow us on Twitter @radiodetectives
Join us again tomorrow for another detective drama from the Golden Age of Radio.
Video Theater
The Benson Murder Case (Video Theater 304)
by Yours Truly Johnny Blogger • 1 Comment
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Wealthy stockbroker Anthony Benson appears to have no shortage of enemies after a disastrous day on Wall Street. When he’s found murdered at his secluded lodge, the baffling case brings amateur detective Philo Vance face-to-face with a killer who seems to have planned every detail.
Original Release Date: April 12, 1930
Starring William Powell as Philo Vance, Eugene Pallette as Sergeant Heath, E.H. Calvert as Markam
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