Listen to “The Great Detectives Present Barrie Craig Confidential Investigator” on Spreaker.
Barrie Craig was a different kind of detective show and Craig as played by Gargan was a different type of detective: a big gentle easy going guy who always believed his clients until evidence proved otherwise.

In some ways, it poked fun at the private detective genre by giving Craig police-type powers and duties such as filling out making arrests and filling out paperwork. This played off the wide variety of functions and investigations that other PIs took on that were really police functions.  Another time, Craig began his voice over narration by saying, “Manhattan’s my beat,” a clear reference to CBS’ Broadway’s My Beat.

Other episodes took a serious turn such as Craig’s poignant caper with a mentally ill young woman.

Gargan’s light and easy going style make each episode of Barrie Craig is like a visit with an old friend talking about his detective adventures. Listeners were more than happy to visit for four years.

William Gargan (1905-79): The Brooklyn-born Gargan was actually a detective and store investigator in real life for about a year, and that carried over to his roles on the big screen, television, and radio, often being called on to play cops and detectives. His acting career began on the stage in the 1920s with a one line role, “Mr. Bob, heap big coconuts.”  In 1932, he made his first major motion picture appearance with Leslie Howard in, “The Animal Kingdom” in which he played the role of Red Regan which he had performed on Broadway.  Gargan was nominated for the best supporting actor in 1941 for his role in They Knew What They Wanted. During World War II, he worked with a group of actors entertaining the troop. After the war, as movie work dried up, Gargan took a radio and later television, starring in the Mystery Gameshow, Murder Will Out, as well as the detective shows, I Deal in Crime, Martin Kane, and Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator.

Gargan eased to retirement after Barrie Craig ended in 1955 and he completed a new Martin Kane series filmed in Europe. In 1960, while playing a dying ex-President in The Best Man, Gargan was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx.  He had to make a quick decision to save his life and had his larynx removed, forever silencing his signature voice.

Gargan’s acting career effectively ended with the exception of one non-speaking appearance  in the syndicated TV show, The King of Diamonds as a mute clown. However, Gargan found new purpose in life by learning how to practice esophageal speech.  He spent the rest of his days as a volunteer spokesman for the American Cancer Society: raising funds, encouraging and challenging cancer patients, and raising awareness about the causes of cancer: including smoking. Gargan also remained active in the work of the Bohemians and the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher. In 1967, he was honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Screen Actor’s Guild.

Episode Log:

• The Judge and the Champ (Original Air Date: October 17, 1951)
• Microfilm in the Fish Tank (Original Air Date: October 24, 1951)
• Corpse on Delivery (Original Air Date: October 31, 1951)
• The Case of the Borrowed Knife (Original Air Date: November 7, 1951)
• Dead on Arrival (Original Air Date: November 14, 1951)
• Murder in Max (Original Air Date: November 21, 1951)
• The Case of the Naughty Necklace (Original Air Date: November 28, 1951)
• The Paper Bullets (Original Air Date: December 5,1951)
• Death and the Purple Cow (Original Air Date: December 12, 1951)
• Ghost of a Chance (Original Air Date: December 19, 1951)
• Song of Death (Original Air Date: December 26, 1951)
• Death of a Private Eye (Original Air Date: January 2, 1952)
• Murder Island (Original Air Date: January 9, 1952)
• Fatal Appointment (Original Air Date: January 16, 1952)
• The Deadly Fight (Original Air Date: January 23, 1952)
• A Very Odd Job (Original Air Date: January 30, 1952)
• The Diary of Death (Original Air Date: February 6, 1952)
• A Time to Kill (Original Air Date: February 13, 1952)
• Motive for Murder (Original Air Date: February 20, 1952)
• The Long Way Home (Original Air Date: July 8, 1952)
• Murder by Threes (Original Air Date: October 8, 1952)
• Dead Loss (Original Air Date: October 15, 1952)
• The Crimson Queen (Original Air Date: January 4, 1953)
• The Girl on the Doorstep (Original Air Date: February 15, 1953)
• Behold a Corpse (Original Air Date: March 1, 1953)
• Beware the Walking Dog (Original Air Date: May 3, 1953)
• The Lost Lady (Original Air Date: June 14, 1953)
• Scream for Murder (Original Air Date: July 19, 1953)
• The Thirteenth Guest (Original Air Date: August 9, 1953)
• Kitchens Come with Knives (Original Air Date: September 22, 1953)
• Fog Over Murder (Original Air Date: October 13, 1953)
• The Lonely Corner (Original Air Date: November 3, 1953)
• Strange Vision (Original Air Date: January 19, 1954)
• Zero Hour (Original Air Date: February 2, 1954)
• The Embezzler (Original Air Date: March 30, 1954)
• The Schemers (Original Air Date: April 6, 1954)
• The Corpse Who Was Wrong (Original Air Date: May 25, 1954)
• The Tough Guy (Original Air Date: July 6, 1954)
• Murder by Error (Original Air Date: July 13, 1954)
• Death By a Bedroom (Original Air Date: July 27, 1954)
• For Love of Murder (Original Air Date: August 3, 1954)
• Death’s Bargain Basement (Original Air Date: August 10, 1954)
• Mid-Summer Lunacy (Original Air Date: August 17, 1954)
• Blood Money (Original Air Date: August 24, 1954)
• Hay is for Homicide (Original Air Date: August 31, 1954)
• Ghost Don’t Die in Bed (Original Air Date: September 7, 1954)
• Life Line (Original Air Date: November 7, 1954)
• The Sneak Assassin (Original Air Date: November 21, 1954)
• Dead Bull in a China Shop (Original Air Date: December 19, 1954)
• Angel of Death (Original Air Date: January 4, 1955)
• Nobody Lives There Anymore (Original Air Date: February 9, 1955)
• The Moving Target (Original Air Date: February 16, 1955)
• Sweet Larceny (Original Air Date: March 2, 1955)
• Corpse on the Town (Original Air Date: March 9, 1955)
• Never Murder a Mummy (Original Air Date: March 30, 1955)
• Confession to Murder (Original Air Date: May 5, 1955)
• Visitor at Midnight (Original Air Date: May 12, 1955)
• Sucker Bait (Original Air Date: June 9, 1955)
• Two Dead Men (Original Air Date: June 23, 1955)

End of Log.

Log information courtesy of the Old Time Radio Researchers.