Nighthawk: Tales of the Texas Rangers (March 30, 1952)

“Nighthawk” is an episode of Tales of the Texas Rangers, the old-time radio show, first broadcast March 30, 1952. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

A young couple is robbed at gunpoint at a remote airfield late at night. The robber flees with the girl in his car. Hours later, a boy is found shot dead on a college football field, and the girl—injured but alive—is discovered nearby. Ranger Jason Pearson arrives to investigate what appears to be a desperate crime with deadly consequences.

A small Texas town with a rural airfield and a college football field, during nighttime and early morning hours.

Characters: Ranger Jason Pearson, Sheriff Wilson, Todd Miller, Julie Thomas, Chris Snyder, the robber

Listen for: The ranger's deduction that the robber is likely a local who knew the town well, and the shocking discovery that the crime has escalated to murder.

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.