True to his threat, the mad scientist, whose warnings have held the city in a grip of terror,

went on his rampage of destruction on the stroke of midnight.

The deadly impact of his mysterious ray smashed the famous tower bridge,

hurling cars and pedestrians into the river below.

The police have warned everyone to remain in their homes.

This looks like a job for Superman. Hello and welcome to a bonus episode of Down These Mean Streets and the start of a special

Super Summer series. In just a few weeks, Supergirl flies back to the big screen, and she'll be

joined by her cousin Superman in this all-new movie adventure. To celebrate their return, over the next

few weeks I'll share one of the Man of Steel's epic radio adventures, a 33-part storyline that aired in the spring and summer

of 1947, an adventure so big, Superman needed the help of his super friends, Batman and Robin,

to save the day. In this story, Superman has a rematch against a crooked, racist political boss

named Big George Latimer. Superman had battled and beaten Latimer a year earlier

in another storyline on the radio show. But now, Latimer is back for revenge, and he's armed with Kryptonite.

A radioactive piece of Superman's home planet Krypton, that, in Earth's atmosphere, is the one thing that can rob Superman of his strength.

Cryptonite, of course, is a big part of the Superman mythos, but it was created not in the comics,

but on radio, as a device to allow Superman to be incapacitated for a few episodes in a row.

That would conveniently allow series star Clayton Bud Collier time for a vacation.

Today, we'll hear the first five episodes of this story,

plus a prologue excerpt of the episode that wrapped up the previous storyline

and set this plot in motion,

where Latimer is bequeathed the kryptonite by another old enemy of Superman's.

I'll be back next Wednesday with the next five chapters, but for now, sit back and enjoy

...