Each guide is written from the episode itself, sets up the story and never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.
Pat Novak, for Hire: 25 episode guides
Pat Novak, For Hire: Agnes Bolton (1949)
Pat Novak, a waterfront private investigator in San Francisco, is hired by a mysterious man named Max Hunter to follow a large, unattractive woman named Agnes Bolton, shadow her to a boat called the Seventh Heaven, and report which ship she delivers a green leather bag to. The job turns deadly when Agnes Bolton dies of poison in a hotel phone booth, a young woman named Joan Hayward pursues Pat with conflicting offers regarding the green bag, and bodies begin piling up across the city.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding areas including a bowling alley, hotel, garage, bars, and the Muza Tone Company offices, during a rainy evening and following morning. · Pat Novak, Max Hunter, Agnes Bolton, Joan Hayward, Detective Helman, Francine Kane, Jackie Rand, Jocko Matigan
Listen for: The discovery that the mysterious Max Hunter is actually a spy named Jackie Rand, recordings from the Muza Tone Company switchboard that reveal the plot, and the connection between the murders and espionage activities centered around intercepting messages through jukebox microphones.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Death in Herald Square (1947)
Private investigator Pat Novak is hired by a mysterious client named Joe Adams to watch an apartment while Adams catches a plane. When police detective Hellman arrives at the apartment searching for evidence related to a year-old unsolved murder of wealthy businessman Thomas Van Dyke, Novak discovers that Adams is actually a woman named Dodo Sandberg. Novak becomes entangled in a dangerous mystery involving a rare book called Death in Herald Square that seems connected to the Van Dyke murder and worth killing for.
San Francisco, primarily on the waterfront and downtown streets; includes Adams' apartment, police stations, library, bookstore, hotel, and Dodo's residence on Vallejo Street. · Pat Novak, Joe Adams (Dodo Sandberg), Hellman, Pete Crowley, Dodo Sandberg, Jocko Matigan, Thomas Van Dyke
Listen for: The cynical, world-weary narration of Pat Novak as he navigates a complex murder mystery; the tense exchanges between Novak and Detective Hellman; the mysterious warnings from multiple parties about a book that appears central to solving a year-old murder.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Dixie Gillian (1946)
Private investigator Pat Novak is hired by Lee Underwood to frighten a man named Dixie Gillian into leaving town by using an empty gun as a prop. When Novak confronts Gillian in his office, a struggle ensues and Gillian is killed, but the bullet doesn't match Novak's supposedly empty gun. Freed when ballistics evidence fails to hold him, Novak must uncover who really pulled the trigger and what Gillian was protecting.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding areas, including a nightclub on Bay Shore Highway and various downtown locations in the 1940s. · Pat Novak, Lee Underwood, Dixie Gillian, Inspector Helman, Jocko
Listen for: A classic hard-boiled detective mystery with clever dialogue and plot twists; the gritty atmosphere of San Francisco's underworld; Novak's cynical observations about his line of work.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Don't Tell Hilda (aka-Marcia Halpern) (1949)
Pat Novak encounters a mysterious woman claiming to have amnesia in a rainy San Francisco night, only to have her collapse and die of sleeping pill poisoning in a coffee joint. When police detective Helman arrives, Novak becomes the prime suspect. Investigating leads him to discover the dead woman may be connected to a wealthy family, and he must uncover the truth before he's pinned for murder.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding areas, including a coffee joint on Powell Street, the Halpern apartment on Pacific Heights, and Sacramento · Pat Novak, Inspector Helman, Jocko Madigan, Mark Taylor, Hilda Travis, Marcia Halpern, Helen Duprey, Emory Halpern
Listen for: The clever setup and payoff of the amnesia case, the discovery of the handkerchief with distinctive perfume at the accident scene, and the unmasking of the murder conspiracy involving Mark Taylor and the imposter Marcia Halpern
Pat Novak, For Hire: Father Leahy - Joe Feldman (1949)
Father Leahy, a tall priest, hires Pat Novak to intercept Joe Feldman, an escaped convict from Alcatraz, and bring him to the ferry building so the priest can convince him to return voluntarily. Novak picks up a man at Pier 19 who claims to be Feldman, but the man insists on stopping at a hotel on Geary Street first. When Novak wakes from being knocked unconscious, he finds the man dead with his throat cut.
San Francisco waterfront, including Pier 19, a hotel on Geary Street, the Gold Rush Club, and various bars and streets · Pat Novak, Father Leahy, Joe Feldman, Mike Greeley, Anne (Giffon's sister), Charlie Giffon, Norma Feldman, Detective Helman
Listen for: The moral ambiguity of Novak's situation as he tries to help a priest save a convict's life, and the revelation that multiple people are seeking money Feldman had hidden
Pat Novak, For Hire: Fleet Lady (1949)
Pat Novak is hired by jockey Jackie Gregg to find Fleet Lady, a racehorse that has disappeared from the waterfront. When Pat investigates, he discovers that Gregg is murdered in a stable and Fleet Lady is found dead. As the case unfolds, Pat uncovers a scheme involving Sybil Thornton, who owns Fleet Lady, and gambler Rudy Hauser, who appears to be manipulating the upcoming Bonanza Handicap race.
San Francisco waterfront and racetrack, 1949 · Pat Novak, Jackie Gregg, Sybil Thornton, Rudy Hauser, Lieutenant Helman, Jocko Madigan, Ronnie Stark, Iris Snow
Listen for: The clever dialogue and dark humor as Pat navigates between a dead jockey, a dead racehorse, and a murder investigation, with clues pointing to a fixed race scheme.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Georgie Lampson (1949)
Pat Novak, a San Francisco waterfront detective, is visited one evening by Georgie Lampson, an old acquaintance with a mysterious request. She asks him to help meet an incoming ship and intercept a package meant for her stepmother, Mrs. Sheila Lampson. After Georgie leaves his apartment, Pat is attacked and wakes to find a dead man and Georgie critically injured. As Pat investigates, he uncovers a web of deception involving a dead professor, stolen emeralds, and multiple murders.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding areas, including Pat's apartment, the Bay, and the Lampson mansion in Sea Cliff · Pat Novak, Georgie Lampson, Detective Hellman, Mrs. Sheila Lampson, Jaco, Warren Haines, Captain Ed Small, Billie
Listen for: The noir atmosphere of the waterfront detective story, with classic hardboiled dialogue and the mounting tension as Pat becomes entangled in a murder case involving family secrets and stolen valuables
Pat Novak, For Hire: Geranium Plant (1949)
Pat Novak accepts a seemingly simple $50 job to pick up a geranium plant from a flower stand at Post and Kearney and deliver it to a rooming house on Clay Street. When he arrives at the address, he finds a dying woman in the room, but after he leaves, a man is discovered dead in that same room, poisoned by a needle hidden in the geranium box. Now Inspector Hellman suspects Novak of the murder, and the case spirals into mystery involving a mysterious woman, a suspicious little man with a cane, and a dangerous car chase that leaves Novak wondering who switched the plants and why.
San Francisco waterfront, Noonan's bar, Post and Kearney flower stand, Clay Street rooming house, various San Francisco streets including Union Square and Maiden Lane · Pat Novak, Inspector Hellman, The Woman (from Noonan's bar), The Dying Woman (on Clay Street), Bo Wievel (florist), The Little Guy with a Cane, Jocko Matigan (ex-doctor), George Langley
Listen for: The clever plant switch that turns the delivery job into a murder trap; Jocko Matigan's drunken wisdom about the case; the revelation about the mysterious flower stand and the poison needle hidden in the geranium box.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Give Envelope to John St John (1949)
When an elderly man is hit by a car on the San Francisco waterfront, he presses Pat Novak to deliver a sealed envelope to someone named John St. John before dying. Novak pockets the $300 he's given and sets out to find this mysterious John St. John, but the search leads him through a tangled web of murder, beautiful women, and a shadowy organization that will stop at nothing to get that letter back.
San Francisco waterfront and various locations around the city, including a rooming house on Hates Street, Bellcrest Sanitarium near San Carlos, and a beach at Seal Rock. · Pat Novak, Jocko Madigan, Lee Norton, Helman, Sidney Bronson, Dr. Emil Schonig
Listen for: Novak's wry narration and sharp banter with the femme fatales and his sidekick Jocko; the smoky dialogue of a classic hard-boiled detective yarn set on the waterfront.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Go Away Dixie Gillian (1949)
Pat Novak accepts $300 from a mysterious woman named Lee Underwood to frighten a man named Dixie Gillian into leaving town. Armed with what he's told is an empty gun, Pat confronts Gillian at his office, but the gun fires during their struggle and Gillian dies. Detective Helman arrives and arrests Pat, but the ballistics don't match—the bullet came from a different gun. As Pat investigates, he discovers a tangle of deceptions involving Lee, microfilm, and multiple murders that leave nothing adding up correctly.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding locations including Folsom Street, a nightclub on the Bay Shore highway, and various apartment buildings · Pat Novak, Lee Underwood, Dixie Gillian, Detective Helman, Jocko Madigan
Listen for: The clever noir dialogue and Pat's colorful narration describing scenes and people; the mystery of the mismatched ballistics and the disappearing body from the morgue; the revelation that Pat may have killed the wrong man
Pat Novak, For Hire: Jack Of Clubs (more complete open) (1949)
Private investigator Pat Novak discovers a thousand dollars mysteriously deposited in his bank account on Friday, then finds a dead man in his kitchen closet. A mysterious woman named Connie Riley enlists him to retrieve a jack of clubs card from an incoming ship, while Inspector Hellman and the FBI close in, convinced Novak is involved in smuggling microfilm.
San Francisco waterfront and various locations including Pat's apartment, a bank, a restaurant, and Oakland morgue · Pat Novak, Connie Riley, Inspector Hellman, Jocko Matigan, Max Coleman, Christopher Downs, Kirk Toomey
Listen for: Pat's wisecracking narration and banter with the colorful characters he encounters, plus the plot twists involving the phony jack of clubs card and hidden microfilm
Pat Novak, For Hire: Joe Candono - Blackmail Pictures (1949)
Pat Novak agrees to help a beautiful woman named Doreen Wild retrieve blackmail pictures of her brother from gambler Joe Condano by paying off a ten-thousand-dollar gambling debt. When Novak discovers Doreen's brother Frank dead in a hotel room and becomes the prime suspect, he must unravel a complex web of betrayal involving the Wild family, Condano, and his associates to clear his name.
San Francisco waterfront and various locations including the Dixie Hotel, Condano's gambling establishment, and the Wild family apartment · Pat Novak, Doreen Wild, Frank Wild, Joe Condano, Inspector Hellman, Jack O'Mattson, Harry Wilde, Eddie Darrow
Listen for: The clever plot twists involving mistaken identity, blackmail pictures, multiple double crosses, and the revelation of who actually committed the murder; pay attention to the timeline of events and who was where at seven o'clock
Pat Novak, For Hire: John St. John (1946)
Pat Novak, a waterfront investigator for hire in San Francisco, witnesses a hit-and-run accident that kills an old man. The dying stranger gives Pat three hundred dollars and a sealed letter to deliver to someone named John St. John, along with a mysterious message Pat can't quite understand. When Pat tries to track down this John St. John, he finds himself caught in a dangerous web of murder, blackmail, and espionage involving a shadowy organization trading in stolen government secrets.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding locations including rooming houses, a sanitarium on the peninsula, and various apartments · Pat Novak, Jocko, Lee Norton, Sidney Bronson, Dr. Emil Shonig, Walter Avery, Helman, The Old Man
Listen for: Hard-boiled detective work with sharp dialogue, mysterious murder victims connected by a strange insignia of spliced crosses, the unmasking of a criminal espionage ring, and classic noir atmosphere
Pat Novak, For Hire: Johnny Brown Gambling Ring (1947)
Pat Novak takes a job driving a man named John Brown down from Lake Tahoe to San Francisco with gambling winnings. A dead woman turns up in the trunk of Brown's car, and Brown disappears. Novak must find Brown and uncover the truth about the murder while Detective Helman suspects Novak himself.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding areas, Lake Tahoe, and a beach shack near the ocean · Pat Novak, John Brown, Detective Helman, Jacko Matigan, Skip Harper, Alice Stone, Vinanti
Listen for: The mysterious connection between the gambling operation at Lake Tahoe, the dead woman Alice Stone, and the missing John Brown; the revelation of who really killed Alice and why
Pat Novak, For Hire: Lydia Reynolds Case (1947)
Pat Novak is hitchhiking after losing money at the races when wealthy young Lydia Reynolds picks him up and hires him as a bodyguard, claiming she fears something but cannot explain what. After being slugged and finding a dead body in her car, Novak investigates her claims while navigating threats from a man named Two-Spot Post and suspicion from police detective Hellman, who has arrested him for two murders.
San Francisco, including Bay Meadows racetrack, St. Francis Wood mansion, guest house, police station, and the Two-Spot bowling alley · Pat Novak, Lydia Reynolds, Detective Hellman, Ira, Two-Spot Post, Charles Reynolds, Jocko Madigan, The Butler
Listen for: The hard-boiled noir detective voice of Pat Novak, snappy period dialogue, and the mysterious circumstances surrounding Lydia Reynolds's unexplained fears and the mounting bodies
Pat Novak, For Hire: Mysterious Set of Books (1947)
Pat Novak is hired by Jack Lanson to retrieve a sealed envelope of private papers from a safe in a house on Knob Hill, promising $1,000 for the job. When Novak arrives at the address, he encounters a beautiful woman named Blanche who seduces him and then strikes him with a bottle, stealing the papers. Now multiple dangerous men—including gangsters Denver Red and Gong Reynolds, and a former member of Murder Incorporated—are all pursuing the same envelope, and Novak finds himself caught in the middle of a deadly game.
San Francisco waterfront and various locations including a boarding house on Webster Street, a house on Knob Hill, and the Knife and Fork club near Golden Gate Park · Pat Novak, Jack Lanson, Blanche, Detective Helman, Denver Red, Gong Reynolds, Jacob Matigan, Murphy
Listen for: The interplay between Novak and the cantankerous Detective Helman; Novak's sardonic narration describing the various dangerous characters and situations; the femme fatale Blanche's manipulation of Novak; the mounting tension as multiple gangsters pursue the mysterious envelope
Pat Novak, For Hire: Novak For Hire- Killing In A Church
Pat Novak is called to Father Laine's church by the priest for a favor, but arrives to find an altar boy named Little Jake shot dead in the vestibule. A gunsel fleeing the scene mistakes Novak for someone else. Novak becomes entangled in a murder investigation involving three Chicago hoods searching for a gun and papers, a dead girl in his apartment, and a web of blackmail and revenge centered around ex-convict Mike Quinlan and a crime boss named Sandell.
San Francisco waterfront, including Father Laine's church, Novak's apartment, various bars and streets, and the Bay View hotel district in thick fog · Pat Novak, Father Laine, Little Jake, Inspector Hellman, Jocko Madigan, Mike Quinlan, Sally Kimbro, Sandell
Listen for: The classic hard-boiled detective narration of Pat Novak as he unravels a murder mystery that begins with a shooting in a church and leads him through corrupt cops, brutal thugs, and hidden evidence in a complex case of betrayal and revenge
Pat Novak, For Hire: Rita Malloy (1949)
Pat Novak, a waterfront investigator in San Francisco, is forced at gunpoint to surrender his boat keys by a mysterious man. When the boat is found wrecked at the pier with a dead man inside, Novak becomes the prime suspect in a murder case—complicated by the discovery of a dead nightclub dancer, Rita Malloy, in a hotel room. With Inspector Helman breathing down his neck and only 24 hours to solve the crime, Novak must uncover the connections between the victims before he takes the fall.
San Francisco waterfront, including Pat's apartment, Pier 19, Royal Arms Hotel, and the El Palateo nightclub on Mason Street · Pat Novak, Inspector Helman, Joe Paz, Jocko Madigan, Manny Ryan, Tony Drake, Bruno Schweis, Rita Malloy
Listen for: The clever detective work uncovering why Rita Malloy was found in a dressing gown, the revelation of Tony Drake's connection to Bruno's wife, and the final confrontation in the nightclub dressing room.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Rory Malone (1949)
Pat Novak is hired by Hans Neumeier, manager of lightweight fighter Rory Malone, to watch over his boxer before a championship fight tonight against George Zarrick. But before the fight, someone smashes Rory's hand, and Hans is mysteriously murdered in the hospital, leaving Pat to untangle a web of gambling, fixed fights, and dangerous connections.
San Francisco waterfront and arena, 1949 · Pat Novak, Hans Neumeier, Rory Malone, Con Regan, Joe Slagle, Inspector Helman, Kitty, Jocko Matigan
Listen for: The clever double-cross of a rigged fight, the surprising knockout despite a smashed hand, and the tangled romantic entanglements that complicate everyone's motives.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Rubin Callaway's Pictures (1949)
Pat Novak pulls a dying man named Ruben Callaway out of the bay. Callaway directs him to find a woman named Alma Biggs at the Empire Club and retrieve a key to a bus station locker containing photographs. When Novak investigates, he discovers the pictures are of an Oakland fire and becomes entangled in a dangerous plot involving murder, deception, and a mysterious figure named Turk.
San Francisco waterfront and city streets, including the bay, Empire Club gambling joint, bus station, hotels, and photography studio · Pat Novak, Ruben Callaway, Alma Biggs, Inspector Helman, Jocko Matigan, George Leggett, Turk Spaniel
Listen for: Jack Webb's distinctive narrative delivery and the complex web of double-crosses involving the Oakland fire photographs; the climactic confrontation in Callaway's studio between Alma Biggs and Turk Spaniel
Pat Novak, For Hire: Sam Tolliver (1949)
Pat Novak, a waterfront private investigator in San Francisco, is approached by an old friend, Sam Tolliver, who asks him to retrieve a mysterious package from a ship in the bay. When Novak returns with the package, he finds a dead body in his office and becomes entangled in a murder investigation involving a phony detective, a beautiful woman, and a political scandal surrounding a candidate running for office.
San Francisco waterfront and surrounding areas including apartments, hotels, and the bay, during an election night in 1949. · Pat Novak, Sam Tolliver, Ellen Morrow, Sergeant Grimes (Vic Rothrey), Hellman, Jaco Matigan, John Reedy, Captain (of China Star)
Listen for: The distinctive noir narration of Pat Novak as he becomes increasingly entangled in murder and deception; the plot twists involving the mysterious package containing drugs and its connection to a political frame-up; the climactic confrontation between Novak, Hellman, and Sam Tolliver.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Shirt Mix-Up at the Laundry (1949)
Pat Novak picks up the wrong laundry bundle and sets out to find Earl Hayes to exchange shirts, but the simple mix-up leads him into a deadly web of violence, smuggling, and murder on Telegraph Hill.
San Francisco waterfront and Telegraph Hill, 1949 · Pat Novak, Earl Hayes, Max Stoffer, Roto Warren, Inspector Hellman, Jacko Madigan, laundry clerk
Listen for: Novak's hard-boiled narration, the mysterious missing shirt with coded collar markings, and the twist involving the laundry clerk's true identity
Pat Novak, For Hire: The Only Way to Make Friends Is to Die (1949)
Pat Novak, a waterfront operative in San Francisco, is forcibly taken to the docks by two armed men searching for someone named Joe Deneen. When Novak's boat is found covered in blood and Deneen turns up dead in Novak's apartment, Inspector Hellman arrives on the scene convinced of Novak's guilt. Novak must unravel the tangled connections between the dead man, a mysterious woman at the Ambrose Hotel, and a convict in Alcatraz to clear himself.
San Francisco waterfront and city streets, 1949 · Pat Novak, Inspector Hellman, Joe Deneen, Jaco Madigan, Freddy Sims, Mike Trevor, Jake Fidello
Listen for: The distinctive hardboiled narration and cynical wit of Pat Novak as he navigates a murder mystery involving betrayal and conflicting loyalties among criminals and their associates.
Pat Novak, For Hire: Wendy Morris (1949)
Pat Novak is hired by lawyer Crockett Odom for $300 to watch wealthy client Wendy Morris, a heavy drinker whose husband Stanley recently returned from military service and hospitalization. Odom suspects the man is an imposter after her money. That night, Pat accompanies Wendy and Stanley to a gambling club, but before meeting Wendy at a hotel as arranged, Pat is knocked unconscious. When he arrives at the hotel room, he finds a dead woman—but it's not Wendy. The victim is Emily Van Kirk, a traveler whose room was confused with Wendy's by the desk clerk.
San Francisco waterfront, Telegraph Hill apartment, the Mother Lode gambling club, Galbraith Hotel, Pat's office · Pat Novak, Crockett Odom, Wendy Morris, Stanley Morris, Frankie Fannen, Craig, Jack O'Malley, Emily Van Kirk
Listen for: The clever murder setup, Pat's investigation despite police pressure, the surprising identity of the killer, and the dark twist of mistaken identity that costs an innocent woman her life.
Pat Novak, for Hire: Jack of Clubs (1949)
Pat Novak discovers a mysterious thousand dollars has been deposited in his bank account by an FBI agent. A glamorous woman named Connie Riley then appears at his apartment, offering him another thousand dollars to retrieve a playing card—the jack of clubs—from a passenger named Kirk Chumi arriving on the Monterey Rose. When Inspector Helman arrives to question Pat about the suspicious deposit, they discover a dead body hidden in Pat's closet.
San Francisco waterfront, Pat Novak's bank and apartment · Pat Novak, Connie Riley, Inspector Helman, Bank teller, Max Coleman, Kirk Chumi
Listen for: The clever banter between Pat and Connie as she manipulates him into taking the job; Helman's arrival that sets off the discovery of the body in the closet.