Boston Blackie - Single Episodes


(4.7 stars; 67 reviews)

BOSTON BLACKIE

Boston Blackie is a fictional character who has been on both sides of the law. As originally created by author Jack Boyle, he was a safecracker -- a hardened criminal who had served time in a California prison. Prowling the underworld as a detective in adaptations for films, radio, and television, the detective Boston Blackie was "an enemy to those who make him an enemy, friend to those who have no friend". The Boston Blackie radio series, starring Chester Morris, began June 23, 1944, on NBC as a summer replacement for The Amos 'n' Andy Show. Sponsored by Rinso, the series continued until September 15 of that year. Unlike the concurrent films, Blackie had a steady romantic interest in the radio show -- Lesley Woods appeared as Blackie's girlfriend Mary Wesley. Harlow Wilcox was the show's announcer. On April 11, 1945, Richard Kollmar took over the title role in a radio series syndicated by Frederic W. Ziv to Mutual and other network outlets. Over 200 episodes of this series were produced between 1944 and October 25, 1950. Other sponsors included Lifebuoy Soap, Champagne Velvet beer, and R&H beer. While investigating mysteries, Blackie invaribly encountered harebrained Police Inspector Farraday (Maurice Tarplin) and always solved the mystery to Farraday's amazement. Initially, friction surfaced in the relationship between Blackie and Farraday, but as the series continued, Farraday recognized Blackie's talents and requested assistance. Blackie dated Mary Wesley (Jan Miner), and for the first half of the series, his best pal Shorty was always on hand. The humorless Farraday was on the receiving end of Blackie's bad puns and word play.

NOTE: Updated with Version 3.2 Files on 26-May-2012. NOTE: Updated with Version 3 Files on 18-Nov-2009.

From the Old Time Radio Researcher's Group. See "Note" Section below for more information on the OTRR.

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.

License

Chapters

Boston Blackie 44-06-23 (001) The Jonathan Diamond (aka-The Rockwell Diamond) 29:45
Boston Blackie 44-06-30 (002) The Manletter Bank Case (aka-Fifty Hunter Street) 29:29
Boston Blackie 44-07-14 (004) Star of the Nile 28:23
Boston Blackie 44-07-21 (005) Black Market Blackie (aka-Black Market Meat Ring) 28:34
Boston Blackie 44-07-28 (006) The Devon Caretaker Murder (aka-The Caretaker Of … 29:30
Boston Blackie 44-08-04 (007) Spy Ring (aka-Alice Manleder, Dead or Alive) 29:46
Boston Blackie 44-08-11 (008) The Missing String of Pearls (aka-Old Lady Forced… 28:37
Boston Blackie 45-04-25 (016) The Wentworth Diamonds 27:02
Boston Blackie 45-05-02 (017) Murder Of John Walters 24:21
Boston Blackie 45-05-09 (018) Cover up for Mary 26:51
Boston Blackie 45-05-16 (019) Uncle Bill Blaine's Legacy 26:35
Boston Blackie 45-06-06 (022) Mrs Boston Blackie 27:07
Boston Blackie 45-06-11 (023) Oscar Wolfe, Troublemaker 25:52
Boston Blackie 45-06-18 (024) Sam Bellows Is Dead 26:44
Boston Blackie 45-06-25 (025) The Larry Brown Case 25:26
Boston Blackie 45-07-02 (026) Blackie Jilts Mary 26:43
Boston Blackie 45-07-09 (027) The Worthington Pearls 26:51
Boston Blackie 45-07-16 (028) Blackie's Car Kills a Woman 26:27
Boston Blackie 45-07-23 (029) The Case of the Three-Way Split 25:48
Boston Blackie 45-07-30 (030) Mary at Sea 25:37
Boston Blackie 45-08-06 (031) Hypnotic Murder 26:50
Boston Blackie 45-08-13 (032) Evelyn Jones Murder 26:25
Boston Blackie 45-08-20 (033) Blackie Steals Necklace for Charity 27:21
Boston Blackie 45-09-13 (036) Bill Crane, Attorney 26:19
Boston Blackie 45-09-20 (037) Blood on Blackie's Sleeve 27:22
Boston Blackie 45-10-04 (038) Kingston Unlucky At Cards 26:26
Boston Blackie 45-10-11 (039) Copy of The Diamond Bracelet 25:36
Boston Blackie 45-10-18 (040) Boxer's Murder Case 26:47
Boston Blackie 45-10-25 (041) Richard's Diamond Case 25:31
Boston Blackie 45-11-01 (042) Mary Disappears 27:56
Boston Blackie 45-11-08 (043) Amnesia Victim 26:40
Boston Blackie 45-11-15 (044) Murder in the Music Room 25:47
Boston Blackie 45-11-22 (045) Blackie Kidnapped 26:27
Boston Blackie 45-11-29 (046) Simmons Construction Murder 28:42
Boston Blackie 45-12-06 (047) Atkins, Jewel Thief 27:56
Boston Blackie 45-12-13 (048) Murder at the Movies 26:48
Boston Blackie 45-12-20 (049) TV Poisoning 26:17
Boston Blackie 45-12-27 (050) The Masters Diamond 24:04
Boston Blackie 46-01-03 (051) The Murdered Sword Swallower 23:10
Boston Blackie 46-01-22 (054) The Disappearing Body 23:55
Boston Blackie 46-01-29 (055) The Jim Williams Inheritance Case 24:20
Boston Blackie 46-02-05 (056) The Brandon Jewel Robbery 27:07
Boston Blackie 46-02-12 (057) The Condon Ransom 27:01
Boston Blackie 46-02-19 (058) Harry Benson Murders His Wife 27:07
Boston Blackie 46-02-26 (059) A Vase Leads to Murder 26:51
Boston Blackie 46-03-05 (060) Tom Evers Murder with an Alibi 26:59
Boston Blackie 46-03-12 (061) Lee Chow Murdered 26:40
Boston Blackie 46-03-19 (062) The Worthington Ghost 26:28
Boston Blackie 46-03-26 (063) Pierre, the Designer 25:45
Boston Blackie 46-04-02 (064) Murder on the Trapeze 27:27
Boston Blackie 46-04-09 (065) Murder on Cedar Street 26:08
Boston Blackie 46-04-16 (066) The Baseball Player Murder 28:29
Boston Blackie 46-04-23 (067) The Stolen Car Ring 27:23
Boston Blackie 46-04-30 (068) The Frances Fielding Murder 27:24
Boston Blackie 46-05-07 (069) The Winthrop Jewel Robberies 27:15
Boston Blackie 46-05-14 (070) The Merry-Go-Round Murder 26:24
Boston Blackie 46-05-21 (071) The Blaine Brothers Pawn Shop Murder 28:26
Boston Blackie 46-05-28 (072) The Escaped Prisoner 28:32
Boston Blackie 46-06-04 (073) Old Man Graham's Wife 27:24
Boston Blackie 46-06-11 (074) The Disappearing Plane 25:51
Boston Blackie 46-06-18 (075) The Hooded Gang Protection Racket 28:17
Boston Blackie 46-06-25 (076) Gambler Joe Garland Killed 26:17
Boston Blackie 46-07-02 (077) Uncle Frank Murdered by Joe Parker 26:43
Boston Blackie 46-07-09 (078) The Skating Rink Murders 29:46
Boston Blackie 46-07-16 (079) The Murdered Truck Driver 30:00
Boston Blackie 46-07-23 (080) The Murdering Cuckoo Clock 26:17
Boston Blackie 46-07-30 (081) Murder Aboard Ship 24:37
Boston Blackie 46-08-06 (082) Jerry Williams Fixed Court Case 28:35
Boston Blackie 46-08-13 (083) The Diamond Smugglers 29:16
Boston Blackie 46-08-20 (084) Jealous Partners and Arson 27:55
Boston Blackie 46-08-27 (085) The Rockwell Diamond 26:19
Boston Blackie 46-09-03 (086) The Stolen Rare Book 26:48
Boston Blackie 46-09-10 (087) The Backstage Murder 27:46
Boston Blackie 46-09-17 (088) The Apartment Swindler 27:52
Boston Blackie 46-09-24 (089) The Abbott Painting 27:07
Boston Blackie 46-10-01 (090) The Undersea Murder 27:38
Boston Blackie 46-10-08 (091) Murdered Show Dog Owner 27:25
Boston Blackie 46-10-15 (092) Murder at the Rodeo 27:43
Boston Blackie 46-10-22 (093) Farady Shot 26:49
Boston Blackie 46-10-29 (094) Granny's Witchcraft 26:03
Boston Blackie 46-11-05 (095) A New Face for Joe Harvey 25:15
Boston Blackie 46-11-12 (096) Only One Way out for Me 27:54
Boston Blackie 46-11-19 (097) 50,000 Dollar Necklace 27:26
Boston Blackie 46-11-26 (098) The Lenny Powell Murder 27:31
Boston Blackie 46-12-03 (099) Blackie Goes to Jail for Diamond Theft 27:17
Boston Blackie 46-12-10 (100) Mary, Registered Nurse 27:30
Boston Blackie 46-12-17 (101) Voice Impersonator 27:49
Boston Blackie 46-12-24 (102) The Derailed Gold Train 28:05
Boston Blackie 46-12-31 (103) Carl Browning Cleaning Shop 27:52
Boston Blackie 47-01-07 (104) Jack Small Alias Bill Bigelow 26:33
Boston Blackie 47-01-14 (105) Blackie and the Fur Thefts 26:44
Boston Blackie 47-01-21 (106) The Search for Jim Gary 26:14
Boston Blackie 47-01-28 (107) Jacques Pierre and the Diamonds 27:42
Boston Blackie 47-02-04 (108) The Peters Mix-Up 27:12
Boston Blackie 47-02-11 (109) Jailbirds Murdoch and Dawson 27:39
Boston Blackie 47-02-18 (110) 7 Years Bad Luck for Florence Wells 26:55
Boston Blackie 47-02-25 (111) Joe Delivers the Goods 27:27
Boston Blackie 47-03-04 (112) Larry the Kid vs Savinni 27:09
Boston Blackie 47-03-11 (113) 10th Street Gym and Stolen Car Ring 27:19
Boston Blackie 47-03-18 (114) Sam Fisher's Past 27:11
Boston Blackie 47-03-25 (115) Horseroom Thefts 27:50
Boston Blackie 47-04-01 (116) The Bus to Valley Junction 27:55
Boston Blackie 47-04-08 (117) Aggie Rogers Murder 27:58
Boston Blackie 47-04-15 (118) Phonograph Murder 27:39
Boston Blackie 47-04-22 (119) Millicent Bromley Kidnapped 27:37
Boston Blackie 47-04-29 (120) Baseball and Gambling 27:44
Boston Blackie 47-05-07 (121) Mrs Peterson's Insurance Policy 26:30
Boston Blackie 47-05-14 (122) Joe Adams Drowned 26:57
Boston Blackie 47-05-21 (123) Blackie Breaks into Prison 26:42
Boston Blackie 47-05-28 (124) The Ghost of Florence Newton 28:09
Boston Blackie 47-06-04 (125) Eva Cronin Is Stalked 26:17
Boston Blackie 47-06-11 (126) Blackie Shoots a Watchman 27:38
Boston Blackie 47-06-18 (127) Crooked Carver Brother 27:43
Boston Blackie 47-06-25 (128) Joe Nelson's Pet Shop Gambling Scheme 27:06
Boston Blackie 47-07-02 (129) Johnny Burns' Imported Wool 26:22
Boston Blackie 47-07-09 (130) Death Comes to the Harmonica Man 27:48
Boston Blackie 47-07-16 (131) The Randolph Construction Gang Bank Robbery 27:23
Boston Blackie 47-07-23 (132) Blackie's Body in Wax 26:44
Boston Blackie 47-07-30 (133) Poetry in My Soul 27:44
Boston Blackie 47-08-06 (134) The Butcher Boy Gang 27:13
Boston Blackie 47-08-13 (135) Burning His House Behind Him 27:25
Boston Blackie 47-08-20 (136) Murder of John Austin 27:21
Boston Blackie 47-08-27 (137) Buckley Protection Agency 28:02
Boston Blackie 47-09-03 (138) Fifty Dollar Shoeshine 26:10
Boston Blackie 47-09-10 (139) Lighthouse Ghost 27:26
Boston Blackie 47-09-17 (140) Case of the Exploding Car 25:47
Boston Blackie 47-09-24 (141) Old 86 Is Missing 25:47
Boston Blackie 47-10-01 (142) Death Wish 26:33
Boston Blackie 47-10-08 (143) Dead Aunt Sarah 24:11
Boston Blackie 47-10-15 (144) Joe Crain, Hired Killer 26:17
Boston Blackie 47-10-22 (145) Mid-Air Diamond Theft 25:40
Boston Blackie 47-10-29 (146) Framed By A Film 26:11
Boston Blackie 47-11-05 (147) The Old Shoe Clue 26:35
Boston Blackie 47-11-12 (148) Murder Incorporated 25:59
Boston Blackie 47-11-19 (149) The Armored Car Murder Case 26:24
Boston Blackie 47-11-26 (150) The Murdock Gang Strikes 23:18
Boston Blackie 47-12-03 (151) Open Season on Henry Williams 23:28
Boston Blackie 47-12-17 (153) Steal or Be Killed 25:50
Boston Blackie 47-12-24 (154) Where Oh Where Has My Mary Gone 26:04
Boston Blackie 47-12-31 (155) The Valuable Door Buzzer 25:28
Boston Blackie 48-01-07 (156) Riding Stable 26:30
Boston Blackie 48-01-14 (157) Invention Worth Killing For 22:06
Boston Blackie 48-01-21 (158) Kid's Killing 24:21
Boston Blackie 48-01-28 (159) The Record Collector 25:31
Boston Blackie 48-02-04 (160) Blackie Loves Helen 25:31
Boston Blackie 48-02-11 (161) Wind Blows West 25:47
Boston Blackie 48-02-18 (162) Five Bullets in Don Anderson 25:31
Boston Blackie 48-02-25 (163) The Twin Murders 23:40
Boston Blackie 48-03-03 (164) Cobb's Trucking Company 22:35
Boston Blackie 48-03-10 (165) 50,000 Dollars for Blackie 26:47
Boston Blackie 48-03-17 (166) The William Larson Extortion Murder Case 25:15
Boston Blackie 48-03-24 (167) Wrestling Ring Murder 24:49
Boston Blackie 48-03-31 (168) Tom Walton Escapes 26:20
Boston Blackie 48-04-07 (169) Clyde Winston, Photographer 26:37
Boston Blackie 48-04-14 (170) Murder at the Circus 26:56
Boston Blackie 48-04-21 (171) Insurance and Wrecked Cars 26:34
Boston Blackie 48-04-28 (172) The Bombing of Joe Ingalls 26:35
Boston Blackie 48-05-05 (173) Jackie Meer's Prison Break 26:25
Boston Blackie 48-06-23 (180) Harry Walker Murdered 28:48
Boston Blackie 48-06-30 (181) Professor Beasley Is Murdered 29:01
Boston Blackie 48-07-07 (182) Diamonds Stolen from Kingston 27:19
Boston Blackie 48-07-14 (183) Blackie Framed for Killing John Cummings 27:47
Boston Blackie 48-07-21 (184) Counterfeit Sweepstakes Racket 26:35
Boston Blackie 48-07-28 (185) Richard Allistar Disappears in Vacant Lot 28:20
Boston Blackie 48-08-04 (186) Alibi Time 26:21
Boston Blackie 48-08-11 (187) Bobby Rogers to Be Executed 28:57
Boston Blackie 48-08-18 (188) Mrs George Trilling's Maid Is Murdered 29:46
Boston Blackie 48-08-25 (189) Robertson Poisons Wife Beverly over the Telephone 29:46
Boston Blackie 48-09-01 (190) Reynolds and the Stolen Goods 22:51
Boston Blackie 48-09-08 (191) Kingston and the 15-Story Disappearing Office Bui… 24:27
Boston Blackie 48-09-29 (194) Carl Grady, Golf Instructor 27:10
Boston Blackie 48-10-06 (195) Marked Money 26:44
Boston Blackie 48-12-08 (204) Killer Lightning 24:55
Boston Blackie 48-12-22 (206) Stolen Rings At Christmas 27:52
Boston Blackie 49-01-05 (208) Disappearing Fourth Floor 24:43
Boston Blackie 49-01-12 (209) Broken Clock Murder 24:44
Boston Blackie 49-01-19 (210) A Boat In The Street 25:31
Boston Blackie 49-01-26 (211) John Frawley Reads That He Is Dead 25:52
Boston Blackie 49-02-02 (212) Murder in the Piano Room 29:19
Boston Blackie 49-02-09 (213) 50,000 Dollars in Bonds to Be Divided 30:08
Boston Blackie 49-02-16 (214) Fred Palmer's Dock Racket 29:01
Boston Blackie 49-02-23 (215) Archie Grant's Club 77 30:08
Boston Blackie 49-03-02 (216) Fake Accident Racket 30:38
Boston Blackie 49-03-09 (217) Dolly Preston Calls for Help 25:52
Boston Blackie 49-03-16 (218) Kidnapped Murderer 29:30
Boston Blackie 49-03-23 (219) Charity Gambling Ring 25:55
Boston Blackie 49-03-30 (220) Amadon Pearls 29:46
Boston Blackie 49-04-06 (221) Duke Murders Jo Jo 28:29
Boston Blackie 49-04-13 (222) Jewelry Store Owner Is Killed for a Watch 25:07
Boston Blackie 49-04-20 (223) Madame Zina, Fortune Teller 30:02
Boston Blackie 49-04-27 (224) Dynamite Thompson and Jack Morgan, Contractors 27:23
Boston Blackie 49-05-04 (225) Joe Gates Murdered on Sightseeing Tour 28:17
Boston Blackie 49-05-11 (226) Nobody At The Door 29:26
Boston Blackie 49-05-18 (227) Imperial Oil Company Racket 29:46
Boston Blackie 49-05-25 (228) Blackie and Mary Go to Canyon Dude Ranch 29:51
Boston Blackie 49-06-01 (229) Pudgy and the Stolen Tire Racket 28:58
Boston Blackie 49-06-08 (230) Ma Vie Perfume 29:19
Boston Blackie 49-06-15 (231) The Professor and Rufus Rob the Bank Safe 26:05
Boston Blackie xx-xx-xx (xxx) Who Killed John Davis 27:24

Reviews

Great show!


(5 stars)

This is my favorite radio show hands down. The exchanges between Blackie and Faraday are great and timeless. Thank you to Max Reiner for answering a question I had about an actor that is in a few of the episodes! He mentioned an actor named Ralph Bell. Ralph Bell has (in my opinion) the best gangster voice ever. Check out "Jerry Williams Fixed Court Case" to hear him at his finest. Bell voices Jerry Williams, a gardenia-loving gangster... a classic line he brings to radio when he's about to kill Blackie..."Ya know, I always sniff a gardenia before I kill a guy...". "The Abbott Painting" is another classic of Bell's...playing Henry Rice... a sort of art collector. Of course, Blackie's voice (as voiced by Dick Kollmar) is just wonderful also. The back and forth between Blackie and Faraday is one of the show's greatest attributes. Enjoy! Note to Internet Archive: Episode 073 "Old Man Graham's Wife" should be corrected to "Old Man Graham's Will" as his wife never appears nor is mentioned. The episode is about his Will (or 2 Wills).

A memorable show


(5 stars)

This show has one of the best ensemble cast, Dick Kollmar is funny, witty, smart and sharp. He adds a charm to the show I have heard Chester Morris version but Kollmar is better he keeps it light and refreshing. Maurice tarplin is brilliant as inspector Faraday his voice is so different from other radio shows .. His insults to blackie and blackie's reponse are a highlight.... Love them... Jan Miner is also good as Mary I didn't mind the music but have a feeling it's given by same person who gave it in Philo Vance

Great fun


(5 stars)

Boston's lock-picking and his nice gangster-catching ideas and attitudes together with everything else like his getting away from the police always and the endless arguments with Faraday make some of the greatest OTRR fun! Thanks!

great show!


(5 stars)

rich detail, fast paced. great for passive listening (while sleeping)

Some of Boston Blackie Radio Show Voice Actors


(5 stars)

Here's a bit about BB that has always fascinated me about some of the voice actors. Although Chester Morris was the first Boston Blackie, I'm most familiar with Dick Kollmar. He was also a Broadway actor and "Dick" of WOR, New York's "Dorothy and Dick" radio show. Dorothy was newspaper columnist & "What's My Line" TV panelist Dorothy Kilgallen. Faraday was Maurice Tarplin, aka "The Mysterious Traveler." Other voices I recognize were Jackson Beck, who played a movie director in one episode I recall. He was Superman's announcer among many voice roles. He was Bluto in the Popeye cartoons. And I recognized Ralph Bell, who was in many radio shows and in a TV soap opera. I heard Frank Lovejoy in a BB episode today. Whew enough for now. Anyone else for voice actor trivia? :) One of my favorite hobbies.

As always


(5 stars)

Otrr has yet again supplied. I search in and out of all sorts of OTR databases for entertaining shows and episodes, but with this group I find the majority of episodes though o come across an occasional episode missing from their collections. Also it would be nice if they covered the Canadian shows. Vanishing Point, Midnight Cab, and Nightfall aren't in their database. I've just scrounged up the complete Midnight Cab collection and am readying it for upload.

One of the more entertaining detective series


(5 stars)

The well-written back-and-forth bickering between Blackie and Inspector Farriday helps propel this series beyond more mundane "solve the crime" shows. Blackie also has to solve his cases without the help (and often with direct opposition) from the police, which adds a nice twist. And rather than Mary just being a female friend, she's really Blackie's girl, which makes things just a tad more believable. It's a very listenable show, even after repeated listenings.

Why, Farraday, what an unpleasant surprise!


(5 stars)

I started listening to this show after finishing another great show on here, "Box 13", and this one is just as good! I love the banter between Blackie & Inspector Farraday and how Blackie wiggles out of the hairiest predicaments! The writing is intelligent, the sound quality of these files is solid and I am certainly enjoying it! Thanks to all who helped preserve it! Rinso white, Rinso bright!