Three crimesolving couples take the stage this week, beginning with Pam and Jerry North who find a new mystery as soon as they get home from vacation. Joseph Curtin and Alice Frost star in "Wheel of Chance" fromMr. and Mrs. North (originally aired on CBS on June 9, 1953). Next, the Abbotts discover a new mystery on a voyage to London. Les Damon and Claudia Morgan play Pat and Jean in "The Dead-White Lifeboat," an Armed Forces Radio Service rebroadcast of The Adventures of the Abbotts. And finally, ex-cop turned private eye Johnny Duke and his wife Susan (aka "Duchess") have a case drop into their laps in the back of a taxi in "Two Can Die as Cheaply as One" - a story from the anthology series Murder by Experts (originally aired on Mutual on April 17, 1950).
Why are so many planes crashing at Bridger Field? It's a story for Clark Kent and a new adventure for the Man of Steel in this week's bonus Superman show! Kent and Jimmy Olsen are on the scene to investigate the series of disasters in these episodes that originally aired between April 29 and May 10, 1940.
It's summertime, but the living isn't easy for these radio detectives. All they want is a little vacation, but murder and mayhem pop up as uninvited guests and turn their getaways into cases. First, George Valentine hooks a corpse instead of a fish in "The Empress of Fish Falls" fromLet George Do It (originally aired on Mutual on August 22, 1949). Then, Philip Marlowe is roped into solving a murder at a ranch in "The Dude from Manhattan" (originally aired on CBS on July 2, 1949). Finally, Barrie Craig is on a train to the mountains when he meets a beautiful woman and finds a dead body in "Death Buys a Bedroom" (originally aired on NBC on July 27, 1954).
Before he was getting into trouble on the George Reeves TV show, before he starred in his own comic book series - even before he appeared in the comics - Jimmy Olsen made his debut as a character on theSuperman radio show. His first appearance came in the storyline we'll hear today - an adventure that pits Superman against a protection racket shaking down the candy shop owned by Jimmy's mom. These episodes originally aired between April 15 and April 26, 1940).
Even on vacation, Johnny Dollar isn't far from mystery and murder. We'll hear Bob Bailey as "the man with the action-packed expense account" in "The LaMarr Matter," a five-part adventure that originally aired on CBS between March 26 and March 30, 1956. Plus, we'll hear him as Johnny Dollar in "The Ideal Vacation Matter" (an AFRS rebroadcast of a show from September 22, 1957). Click here to listen to "The Jolly Roger Fraud," the five-part Johnny Dollar story that leads into "The LaMarr Matter."
Superman returns in this week's bonus episode! A brilliant scientist and explorer has disappeared, and Clark Kent joins the man's daughter as she investigates. The pair travel to the scientist's remote mansion, where they discover a priceless relic and come under attack from a secret society who will kill to get it back in these episodes that aired between April 1 and 12, 1940. Plus, we'll hear a bonus half-hour adventure of Superman - "The Case of Double Trouble" (originally aired on ABC on March 9, 1949).
June has historically meant weddings, and we're celebrating happy couples everywhere with three wedding-themed old time radio mysteries. First, Wally Maher is Michael Shayne who attends a wedding and discovers the father of the bride has been poisoned (originally aired on Mutual on May 14, 1945). Then, Dan Holiday poses for a picture with a woman and finds himself engaged to a $15 million fortune. Alan Ladd stars in "Look Pleasant, Please," a syndicated mystery fromBox 13. And finally, Special Agent Jim Taylor (Stacy Harris) leads the hunt for a pair of swindlers running a marriage racket on sailors and soldiers. We'll hear "The Traveling Bride" fromThis is Your FBI (originally aired on November 9, 1951).
The Wolf and the Yellow Mask are back! The villains Superman battled in his first radio adventures return with a plot to hold an entire town for ransom. Fortunately, Lois Lane and Clark Kent are on the scene to cover the story, and the Man of Steel is on hand to tangle with this dangerous duo once again. This six-episode serial aired between March 18 and March 29, 1940.
We're setting sail with three old time radio detectives who find capers on cruise ships. First, Basil Rathbone tries to stop a shipboard poisoner in "Murder by Moonlight" fromThe New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (originally aired on Mutual on October 29, 1945). Then, Bob Bailey is undercover as a cruise athletic director to catch some smugglers in "Serenade to the Southern Star" fromLet George Do It (originally aired on Mutual on June 13, 1949). And finally, Frank Sinatra isRocky Fortune as he tries to clear his own name and solve "The Shipboard Jewel Robbery" (originally aired on NBC on October 20, 1953).
When Superman saves a woman from a burning building, it's only the start of a new adventure for the Man of Steel. His latest adversaries are a pair of swindlers who will kill to cover up their crimes. Frank Lovejoy makes an appearance in thisSuperman serial that originally aired between March 4 and 15, 1940.