Gumshoe

About Gumshoe

Gumshoe is a free old time radio detective channel from Stupid Potato: complete private-eye shows from radio's golden age, played back to back 24 hours a day. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar leads the docket, with Let George Do It, Richard Diamond, The Adventures of Sam Spade, The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, Pat Novak for Hire, Broadway Is My Beat, Boston Blackie, Box 13, Nick Carter, Barrie Craig and Candy Matson. Listen free online with no account, or follow the Gumshoe podcast for new episodes from its series.

Radio's private eyes ran from the 1940s to the very end of network drama. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, "the man with the action-packed expense account," aired on CBS from 1949 to 1962, and its last broadcast, on September 30, 1962, is often cited as the end of radio's golden age. Along the way came Jack Webb's waterfront drifter Pat Novak, Dick Powell's wisecracking Richard Diamond, created by future Pink Panther director Blake Edwards, Alan Ladd in Box 13, and Candy Matson, a San Francisco private eye played by Natalie Masters in a genre that otherwise belonged to men.

The night desk belongs to Sal Vitale, a sergeant at the 9th Precinct who has heard every story twice and believes maybe half of them: gravelly, deadpan, fond of a good alibi and a bad cup of coffee. Gumshoe is for film noir fans, mystery readers, true-crime podcast listeners curious about where the form began, and anyone who wants a whole case on a long drive. Johnny Dollar, Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe and the other headline detectives also have channels of their own here.

What you’ll hear

• Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar (CBS, 1949-1962), including Bob Bailey's five-part serials of 1955 and 1956
• Let George Do It, with Bob Bailey as George Valentine before he became Johnny Dollar
• Richard Diamond, Private Detective, with Dick Powell, created by Blake Edwards
• The Adventures of Sam Spade, with Howard Duff as Spade and Lurene Tuttle as his secretary Effie
• Pat Novak, for Hire, with a young Jack Webb before Dragnet
• The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, Broadway Is My Beat, Boston Blackie, Box 13 with Alan Ladd, Nick Carter, Barrie Craig and Candy Matson

Where to start

• Start with Johnny Dollar. Many fans rank Bob Bailey as the best Johnny, and his run began with the five-part "Macormack Matter" in October 1955.
• The episode guide on this page lists every case, who is in it and what to listen for.
• Plus members can pick any case and play it whenever they like.

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar on the radio

CBS Radio, 1949-1962. With Bob Bailey, Edmond O'Brien, John Lund, Charles Russell, Dick Powell, Mandel Kramer.

Let George Do It on the radio

Mutual-Don Lee, 1946-1954. With Bob Bailey, Virginia Gregg, Frances Robinson, Joseph Kearns, Olan Soule, Ken Christy.

Boston Blackie on the radio

NBC (1944); Ziv syndication on Mutual and ABC (1945-1950), 1944-1950. With Chester Morris, Richard Lane, Jan Miner, Lesley Woods, Harlow Wilcox.

Broadway Is My Beat on the radio

CBS, 1949-1954. With Larry Thor, Anthony Ross, Jack Kruschen.

Nick Carter, Master Detective on the radio

Mutual, 1943-1955. With Lon Clark, Charlotte Manson, Leon Janney.

Richard Diamond, Private Detective on the radio

NBC, ABC, CBS, 1949-1953. With Dick Powell, Virginia Gregg, Ed Begley, Arthur Q. Bryan, Alan Reed, Blake Edwards.

The Adventures of Philip Marlowe on the radio

NBC (1947), CBS (1948-1951), 1947-1951. With Gerald Mohr, Van Heflin, Jeff Corey, William Conrad, Raymond Chandler.

The Adventures of Sam Spade on the radio

ABC, CBS and NBC Radio, 1946-1951. With Howard Duff, Lurene Tuttle, William Spier, Stephen Dunne, Jerry Hausner, Dashiell Hammett.

Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator on the radio

NBC Radio, 1951-1955. With William Gargan, Elspeth Eric, Arnold Moss, Parley Baer, Howard McNear, Betty Lou Gerson.

Box 13 on the radio

Syndicated (Mayfair Transcriptions), 1947-1949. With Alan Ladd, Edmund MacDonald, Betty Lou Gerson, Frank Lovejoy.

Pat Novak, for Hire on the radio

ABC (West Coast regional 1946-47, network 1949), 1946-1949. With Jack Webb, Raymond Burr, Tudor Owen, William Conrad, George Fenneman, Virginia Gregg.

Candy Matson, YUkon 2-8209 on the radio

NBC (West Coast), 1949-1951. With Radio City, Dudley Manlove, Helen Kleeb, Dorothy Warenskjold, Tudor Owen.

Every Gumshoe episode: the full list, with air dates and stories

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