The Rustin Hickory: The Adventures of Philip Marlowe (September 10, 1949)

“The Rustin Hickory” is an episode of The Adventures of Philip Marlowe, the old-time radio show, first broadcast September 10, 1949. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Private detective Philip Marlowe is drawn into a murder investigation when schoolteacher Joan Madden contacts him in a panic after a man she met is killed. Joan had been posing for glamour photographs with photographer Aubrey Nickle, but when he takes her to an upscale nightclub, he becomes distracted and distant, eventually sending her away with a cryptic note just before shots ring out. Joan discovers Nickle dead and flees, but now someone is pursuing her, and Marlowe must navigate the dangerous world of Hollywood racketeers and murder.

Los Angeles, including Philip Marlowe's apartment, a nightclub called Cyrano's on the Strip, a photography studio, and Dawson Memorial Hospital.

Characters: Philip Marlowe, Joan Madden, Aubrey Nickle, Sy Nester, Erm-God Fury, Ham Lacey, Detective Lieutenant Matthew, Dr. Chambers

Listen for: The tension builds as Marlowe uncovers connections between two murders and realizes there's more at stake than a simple crime of passion. Watch for the appearance of the mysterious 'frogman' who pursues Joan, and the revelation of Ham Lacey's role in Sy Nester's death.

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.