The Long Arm: The Adventures of Philip Marlowe (February 7, 1950)

“The Long Arm” is an episode of The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, the old-time radio show, first broadcast February 7, 1950. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Private detective Philip Marlowe is drawn into the troubles of Ernie Parch, an ex-con who contacts him after his wife Grace is murdered. Ernie claims he's being framed for the killing and reveals he was recently released from prison after serving time for a gun planted on him during a raid at a local casino. When Marlowe finds Grace's body in Ernie's car, he must uncover the truth before the suspicious Detective Sturman arrives.

Bay City, a seacoast town twenty miles southwest of Los Angeles, known for its gambling houses and corrupt elements within the police force.

Characters: Philip Marlowe, Ernie Parch, Grace Parch, Detective Lieutenant Sturman, Art Manelli, Lou Gumborsky

Listen for: The exploration of Ernie's troubled marriage, his suspicions about who might have framed him, and Marlowe's dangerous encounter with the dapper casino owner Art Manelli in Ernie's car.

Written from the episode itself; it 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.