Showing results by author "Original Radio Broadcasts" in All Categories

The ultra-realistic crime dramas of Dragnet were tight, tense, and always on target. Guided by Jack Webb from its radio premiere in 1949 right through to the series' end, the medium's most memorable police procedural never cut corners in its meticulous recreation of crime, investigation, and punishment. Follow LAPD Sgt. Joe Friday and his partners, Sgts. Ben Romero and Frank Smith, in 20 real-life cases from both the early weeks of the program's run and its later years!

From out of the rain-swept postwar night comes Harry Nile - a man who's seen it all, because he just can't look away. Here are 19 state-of-the-art radio noir dramas, produced by West Coast legend Jim French, and starring Larry Albert as the hard-boiled, straight-shooting Harry! This collection includes four more installments of the "War Comes To Harry Nile" storyline, a Christmas episode, two two-part adventures, and more. You'll hear Pat French, Jay Green, John Patrick Lowrie...and a whole bunch of killer cases.

Crime, mystery, and just a touch of the supernatural - they're all on display in Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills! Join your host, The Man in Black, for 20 gripping installments of Suspense (including the first ever broadcast of "Sorry, Wrong Number"). Legends like Cary Grant, Agnes Moorehead, Peter Lorre, Vincent Price, Orson Welles, and Gene Kelly star in stories by thriller greats like Agatha Christie, Lucille Fletcher, John Dickson Carr, and Cornell Woolrich. Enjoy these tales well calculated to keep you in…Suspense!

When Howard Duff, radio’s regular Sam Spade, was dropped from the show, Steven Dunne donned the trench coat. Finding his own brash and boyish style with the role, Dunne’s Spade was much like creator Dashiell Hammett himself - a grown-up teenager who loved a put-on, but could be depended on to be loyal and true despite his own troubles. In these digitally remastered capers, Hammett’s hard-boiled hero delves in to the domains of daytime serials, journalism, the waterfront, and international intrigue.

Out of a rainy Seattle night comes crime, mystery, adventure...and Harry Nile! Here is Jim French's legendary private eye, investigating the dark corners of the 1940s Northwest. Larry Albert stars in this collection of 20 radio adventures - which include the first four episodes of the ongoing WWII story line "War Comes to Harry Nile"! It's new-time radio drama in the old-time tradition!

Laughs come in twos with America's favorite comedy team! Here comes George Burns and Gracie Allen in 16 illogically logical half hours featuring a parade of guest stars, including Frank Sinatra, Clark Gable, and Cary Grant! Bill Goodwin, Tobe Reed, and Meredith Willson are on hand as George and Gracie find themselves tangling with madcap matters of crime, competition, money, and matrimony. This collection features rare episodes and rare talent!

Here are eleven exciting radio adventures produced by Jim French, starring John Patrick Lowrie as Holmes, Larry Albert as Watson, and Rick May as Lestrade. Listen in and you’ll hear one female criminal suspect, two Christmas-themed episodes, a little international intrigue, and a lot of mystery!

Here are Western stories with an adult sensibility - complex tales of difficult choices and moral dilemmas played out against the backdrop of frontier America. William Conrad is Marshal Matt Dillon in 20 thoughtful, exciting episodes of Gunsmoke!

You better not shout, you better not cry, you better not pout, we're telling you why! Great Radio Christmas is coming to town! Pour yourself an egg nog, break out the ribbon candy, and tune in for a whole stocking-full of radio favorites celebrating the holiday season.

The world-weary private investigator Harry Nile is one step ahead of the mob, but one step behind the bill collectors. That's why he takes pretty much any case he can catch—from robbery to kidnapping to murder. Phil Harper stars as Harry in twenty-one mood-filled mysteries, aided and assisted by Pat French as Murphy, his secretary extraordinaire. This is classic radio noir for a new generation, created and produced by Jim French.

From out of the rain-fogged nights of 1940s Seattle strides the thinking-listener's private investigator on the trail of crime, intrigue and mystery! Tune in to The Adventures of Harry Nile, produced by modern radio legend Jim French. Larry Albert and Mary Anne Dorward star in eighteen radio tales produced in the classic style!

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar takes a turn towards the hardboiled as film-noir favorite Edmond O'Brien takes over the role of America's Fabulous Freelance Insurance Investigator. His gritty, driven performance is well worth rediscovering. O'Brien's harder, more cynical Dollar brought him harder and more cynical clients…and adversaries. In this collection of original radio episodes from 1950-52, Johnny finds more than his quota of murder, mystery, and malfeasance.

Fred Allen specialized in literate wordplay, lacerating satire, and a squinty-eyed critique of the passing scene. His style was entirely his own: the slate-pencil whine of his voice, the ludicrously-named supporting characters, and the small-town-cum-big-city rattle of his dialogue. Join him in a promenade through parody, along with co-stars Portland Hoffa, Alan Reed, Kenny Delmar, Minerva Pious, John Brown, Charlie Cantor, and Parker Fennelly. Even Fred’s guest stars jump into the jest!

Wherever there's someone in need of help, you'll find the man in black they call Paladin. The character first appeared on television, but later made his way to radio in one of the medium's last great adult Westerns. The hero's travels from his home base in San Francisco to serve clients throughout the West ensured a wide range of new characters for listeners. John Dehner rides as the enigmatic gunslinger in 20 unforgettable radio adventures, with Ben Wright as Hey Boy and Virginia Gregg as Miss Wong.

Nero Wolfe is "a gourmet who never walks when he can sit and never sits when he can lie down." Join Rex Stout's reclusive, overweight, orchid-loving super-sleuth as masterfully portrayed by Sydney Greenstreet in this exciting radio series. Ever in search of a perfect meal and a cold bottle of beer, Wolfe often sends Archie Goodwin, his secretary and operative, in his stead. Learn the logic of this armchair detective extraordinaire as he presides over 18 digitally remastered cases of treasure maps and love triangles, carelessness and con artists, bad business and bad medicine.

With a quick mind and a quicker tongue (occasionally planted firmly in cheek), Dashiell Hammett's daring detective takes the case, takes a few punches, takes the dough (when there is any), and takes advantage of Effie's...good nature, in eight digitally restored and remastered capers.

Tight, tense, and packed with excitement! No director in radio could do more with 30 minutes than William Spier...and no half hour in radio could do more to keep you on the edge of your chair than Suspense!

Phil Harris was brash, egotistical, and charming as hell. Alice Faye was regarded by George Gershwin and Cole Porter as the best female singer in Hollywood. Together, they starred in one of the most uninhibited and funny comedy series on radio. Benefiting from the likeability of its stars, a wonderfully cast group of supporting players, and one of the most prolific and clever writing teams of the mid-20th century (Ray Singer and Dick Chevillat), The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show is a complete delight. This collection features 20 digitally remastered programs.

She's like Sherlock Holmes with a sassy 1930s attitude! She's Hilary Caine, staff investigator for a British tabloid who knows her way around London…and around every murder case that comes her way!

Harry Nile is a former Chicago cop, who quit the force after uncovering a vein of corruption. He stalks the rainy streets of pre-war Seattle on behalf of private clients with the help of his assistant, a lady named Murphy. Phil Harper stars as Nile, with Pat French as Murphy, in this exciting series that has been heard on radio stations coast to coast in the US and Canada, on satellite radio, and reached a worldwide audience online. After more than 25 years, it's the longest running private-eye show in American radio history.