Get this and get it straight. Crime is a suckers road and those who travel it wind up in the gut of the prison of the grave.

The story you are about to hear is true, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.

The Adventures of Sam Spade Detective.

The Adventures of the Saints starring Vincent Prize

Bob Bailey in the exciting adventures of the man with the action-packed expense account

America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator.

Yours truly, Johnny Deller. the Hello and welcome to our Wednesday bonus episode of Down These Mean Streets,

a show where we leave the world of old-time radio gumshoes, and enjoy some of the

eras comedies.

This week we're saluting the great Hans Con Reed, a man whose name you may not know, but I bet you've heard

his voice.

Born April 15, 1917, Con Reed and his distinct tones gave life to Snidley Whiplash in the Dudley

Do-Write cartoons and to Captain Hook in the animated Disney classic Peter Pan.

He starred on the big screen and the 5,000 fingers of Dr. T

and as a cowardly riverboat gambler, he joined Fess Parker and Buddy Ebson at the Alamo in Disney's Davy Crockett.

But the best showcase for his talents came on radio, where Conrad created a cavalcade of characters

from colorful eccentric to bemused straight men to cold-blooded murderers.

Fellow performer Gail Gordon called Con Reed an actor-Holic

and said Con Reed's idea of heaven would be to do a play that had 30 characters, men and women, with Con Reed playing all the parts.

It's easy to imagine Hans Con Reed pulling it off, particularly on radio. He turned up all over the dial. He was a murderer

on the Whistler, a Shakespearean actor stuck in Dodge City on gun smoke, and a key part of the ensemble in several classic radio sitcoms.

He played Professor Kropotkin, the wacky neighbor of Irma and Jane on my friend Irma.

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