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Welcome to Down These Mean Streets, a weekly trip back to the Golden Age of Radio where we rub elbows with the era's greatest private eyes, cops, and crime-fighters. Since 2013, I've been podcasting everything from cozy mysteries to police procedurals, spotlighting characters ranging from hard boiled gumshoes to amateur sleuths. 

Be sure to tune in each Sunday for adventures of a radio detective and the behind-the-scenes stories of their shows. Join me as we spend time with Sam Spade, Johnny Dollar, Sgt. Joe Friday, and more!

Apr 28, 2021

The brilliant comedienne Eve Arden brought wit and charm to the role of Connie Brooks, Madison High School's favorite English teacher. She stood at the center of one of radio's best casts, and her performance makes Our Miss Brooks one of the best sitcoms of the era. In honor of her birthday, we'll hear a pair of...


"Around Dodge City..."

Apr 26, 2021

One of radio’s finest dramas rode into town on April 26, 1952 with the premiere broadcast of Gunsmoke. The series was created at the request of CBS president William Paley who wanted a “Philip Marlowe in the old West.” After the idea kicked around without gaining any traction, producer/director Norman Macdonnell...


Apr 25, 2021

On April 24, 1949, radio fans met Dick Powell as Richard Diamond, Private Detective. The only radio gumshoe who wrapped up his case of the week with a song, Diamond was one of the best sleuths to come out of the radio era thanks to scripts from Blake Edwards and the smooth, polished performance of Powell - an actor who...


"Countdown for blast off..."

Apr 24, 2021

On April 24, 1955, X Minus One premiered on NBC and launched a new wave of adult science fiction stories on the air. A continuation of sorts of NBC's earlier sci-fi anthology Dimension XX Minus One dramatized stories from the giants of the genre along with original radio plays.

The show's first 15 episodes were new...


Diamond in the Rough

Apr 24, 2021

“I was sitting in my office shooting paper clips at a King size horse fly. It was a little sadistic but he was bigger than I was. Well, about the time I had him down on his knees begging for mercy, the door opened…” 

There’s nothing in Dick Powell’s early career to suggest he was destined to play hard-boiled...