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 down these mean streets and more crime solvers from the

golden age of radio. Today we're celebrating one of the patron saints of

old-time radio detecting, actor, director, and producer Jack Webb. Born April 2nd, 1920, Webb's name is synonymous with Dragnet,

the long-running radio police procedural that spawned multiple TV shows, movies, and scores of

imitators since it premiered in 1949.

Dragnet, an authentic documentary style portrayal of police work was Webb's brainchild.

But there was more to his radio career than Dragnet's no-nonsense cop Sergeant Joe Friday.

In several shows on the air before and during Dragnet's run,

Webb played other detectives, including a pair of hard-boiled private eyes and a prohibition-era

jazz musician who got caught up in crime in between sets on a speakeasy stage. Today we'll hear Jack Webb in three old time

radio mysteries carrying the shows with his trademark underplayed almost deadpan delivery.

But even though they sound the same, these characters bend enough rules that they'd never

be mistaken for Straight Arrow Sergeant Friday.

Up first is an episode from Pat Novak for hire, the ultra-hard-boiled drama that really put Webb on the map.

It was one of many collaborations between Webb and writer Richard Breen,

whose scripts turned the archetypes of the genre all the way up to 11.

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