"Enemy to those who make him an enemy. Friend to those who have no friend."
Home Silent Movies 40's Movies Bio Chester Morris Television Radio Short Stories
Boston Blackie Radio Series
1945
In 1944, Blackie made his radio debut on NBC. This series was an outgrowth of the popular Boston Blackie movies. Chester Morris and Richard Lane brought to the radio the characters of Boston Blackie and Inspector Farraday. The series was originally a summer replacement for The Amos and Andy Show. It was scheduled to run from June 23, 1944 to September 15, 1944 for a total of thirteen episodes. The series turned out to be very popular and on April 11, 1945 it returned to the air in its own time slot on NBC. This time the star was Richard Kollmar who played Blackie, Lesley Woods and Jan Miner played Mary Wesley, Maurice Tarplin, Richard Lane and Frank Orth did duty as Inspector Farraday, Shorty was played by Tony Barrett.
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BOSTON BLACKIE 1945
April 11, 1945 to January 1, 1946 (NBC)
Syndicated by ZIV
Sponsor: Rinso Soap
Starring Richard Kollmar as Boston Blackie
Maurice Tarplin, Richard Lane and Frank Orth as Inspector Farraday
Also starring Jan Minor as Mary Wesley and Tony Barrett as Shorty.
1945 Episodes
For episode descriptions click the listing title.
NBC Fridays 10:00 - 10:30
Unknown
Episode 1 - 04/11/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Unknown”
Contents of this episode are unknown.
Unknown
Episode 2 - 04/18/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Unknown”
Contents of this episode are unknown.
The Wentworth Diamonds
Episode 3 - 04/25/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “If you have all taken seats that satisfy you, gentlemen, we shall proceed at once.”
The Wentworth diamonds are snatched from the Manchester Museum by a thief impersonating Blackie, who kills two guards. Farraday finds the Wentworth diamonds in Blackie's apartment.
John Walters Murder
Episode 4 - 05/02/45
AKA: "Unused Shoes" - "Park Pond" - "Murder of John Walters"
First line: “Hey, boss, look over there, on that bench.”
Blackie and Shorty find John Walters floating in a lake -- wearing unused shoes. There's an insurance angle, but someone didn't read the fine print.
Cover-Up For Mary
Episode 5 - 05/09/45
AKA: "John Richards Murdered"
First line: “Now, sit down, Mary. Make yourself comfortable.”
Mary Wesley wants her old boyfriend, John Richards, to quit bothering her. She borrows Blackie's gun in case she needs it and confronts Richards at his home. Later, Richards is found dead in his burned out place. Blackie covers for Mary by leaving a threatening letter at the scene. Farraday isn't having any of it, so Mary's in a fine fix.
William Blaine Case
Episode 6 - 05/16/45
AKA: "Uncle Blaine's Legacy" - "Bill Blaine's Legacy"
First line: “All right, Uncle Bill. You have all three of us here.”
Wealthy William Blaine has been threatened and tries to hire Blackie to bodyguard him. Blackie turns him down, but then Blaine threatens to have Shorty put in jail, so Blackie takes on the job. Despite Blackie being on the job and Blaine locked in a sealed room, he is shot. Blackie must work magic to solve the murder. Blaine's heirs are all suspects. They hated him.
Unknown
Episode 7 - 05/23/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Unknown”
Contents of this episode are unknown.
Unknown
Episode 8 - 06/30/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Unknown”
Contents of this episode are unknown.
Mrs. Boston Blackie
Episode 9 - 06/06/45
AKA: "Lester Allen"
First line: “Just what kind of a private detective are you, Whelan?”
Lester Allen who is running for office is being blackmailed by a woman posing as Mrs. Boston Blackie. Mary thinks it is over between her and Blackie, and Farraday blames a murder on Blackie. Will a sofa send a killer to the chair?
MUTUAL Mondays 8:30 - 9:00pm
The Oscar Wolfe Case
Episode 10 - 06/13/45
AKA: "Troublemaker" - "Oscar Wolfe Troublemaker"
First line: “Sure is a nice day, isn't it, Miss Wesley?”
Mary stops Janice Larsen from killing herself. She's having trouble with the baddie, Oscar Wolfe.
The Sam Bellows Case
Episode 11 - 06/18/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Twenty, thirty. And a bull's-eye for a hundred.”
Blackie wants in to see Sam Bellows, but can't get admittance, so he tells Farraday he's murdered Bellows hoping that will get him in. Farraday finds Bellows sitting in a red wheelchair with a knife sticking out of him, and goes after Blackie for it. Blackie has to find out whether it was Ben Atkins the deaf caretaker, Larry Addington the nephew, or Frank Lewis the financial advisor who did it.
The Larry Brown Case - $100 for Blackie
Episode 12 - 06/25/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Hi. What'll you have? Two eggs, scrambled, and coffee.”
Larry Brown owes Blackie $100, and is on the run, scared for his life.
Blackie Jilts Mary
Episode 13 - 07/02/45
AKA: "Blackie Too Busy for Mary"
First line: “Well, it's about time you came to see me, Blackie.”
Blackie calls off the relationship with Mary. Meanwhile some crooks want to break into a vault. Blackie ends up in jail, and the crooks get Mary. That was the crooks' biggest mistake.
The Worthington Pearls
Episode 14 - 07/09/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “All right, Inspector Farraday, you wanted me here at headquarters for questioning.”
The Worthington Pearls ends up in Blackie's raincoat, only Farraday doesn't find them. But he does find Duke Butcher in Blackie's pad -- dead. Somehow the pearls end up in Farraday's tobacco jar.
Blackie's Car Kills a Woman
Episode 15 - 07/16/45
AKA: "Jack King Forgery Case"
First line: “Mornin. Hi. You have a first class mechanic in this garage?”
Blackie's car is used in a hit and run. Wealthy heiress Carolyn Forbes is killed. Farraday doesn't believe Blackie did it, and lets him take the lead in solving the case. Did Tom Wellington, Carolyn's greedy boyfriend, do it or was it old man Forbes, or her brother Bill?
The Case of the Three Way Split
Episode 16 - 07/23/45
AKA: "Stolen $50,000" - "Lavender Murder"
First line: “Well, Blackie, it's about time. Oh, I'm sorry, Mary...”
Ann Martin writes a lavender letter to Blackie wanting him to give up the $50,000 her gangster husband, Harry Martin, hid before he died. Three of Harry's pals are released from prison and the chase is on.
Mary At Sea
Episode 17 - 07/30/45
AKA: "Body On A Boat"
First line: “Twenty one, twenty two - here’s my cabin, Blackie.” “Hmmm, not very far from mine.”
Blackie and Mary are taking a voyage to Westfield on business. Blackie has a suitcase full of bonds. But there's already someone in Mary's cabin -- a dead woman named Charlotte Aikens. Farraday accuses Blackie of murder, as usual. There's teargas, too.
Hypnotic Murder
Episode 18 - 08/06/45
AKA: "Joan Thompson's Cigarette Girl" - "Murder & Hypnosis"
First line: “Open up in there. Open up, this is the police.”
Joan Thompson, the cigarette girl at the Boulevard Club, and once Mary's best friend, is accused of murder. Blackie took the girl's gun. Farraday tries to pin it on Blackie. Mary and Blackie head for the Boulevard Club where they watch a hypnotist.
The Evelyn Jones Murder
Episode 19 - 08/13/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Coming. Well, what a beautiful surprise.”
Evelyn Jones forces Blackie to accompany her to 484 Willow lane to protect her, but doesn't say why. She ends up killed and Blackie is baffled by the apparent changes in the house when he returns there with Farraday. There's the little matter of the scratch on the door Blackie made using his jimmy.
Blackie Steals Necklace for Charity
Episode 20 - 08/20/45
AKA: "The Charity Necklace Murder" -"The Necklace for Charity"
First line: “Hello, Blackie. Well, my favorite nonentity, Inspector Farraday.”
Old Mrs. Van der Vere asks Blackie to steal the valuable tiara out of her safe and break it up and set the diamonds and then give all the money to charity. But then the even more valuable pearls disappear, and into the bargain, Mrs. Van der Vere's daughter-in-law if found strangled. Blackie and Mary are stumped, but then a cat's paw fingers the real killer.
Unknown
Episode 21 - 08/27/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Unknown”
Contents of this episode are unknown.
Unknown
Episode 22 - 09/03/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Unknown”
Contents of this episode are unknown.
MUTUAL Thursdays 8:30 - 9:00pm
Bill Crane, Attorney
Episode 23 - 09/13/45
AKA: "Forgery and Murder" - "Forgery Murder Case"
First line: “I don't see an empty table anywhere, Blackie.”
Bill Crane, Jack King's attorney, approaches Blackie. He claims his client has been framed for killing Lane. Somebody is killing all the witnesses, too. And forgery enters into it.
The Fred Arlen Murder -- Blood on Blackie's Sleeve
Episode 24 - 09/20/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Can you get me my car, Jim? Oh, Blackie, back so soon?”
The attendant, Jim, at the car park notices blood on Blackie's sleeve. Fred Arlen is just getting out of jail and wants to kill Blackie. But Fred gets killed first. Farraday wants to pin it on Blackie, naturally.
NBC-BLUE Thursdays 7:30 - 8:00pm
The Westfield Diamond
Episode 25 - 10/04/45
AKA: "Kingston Unlucky at Cards"
First line: “Well, Mr. Kingston, you must be lucky at everything else.”
Kingston lost the Westfield diamond to Elizabeth Gaines in a crooked game. Kingston left the stone with Blackie and wants it back, but Blackie holds out. Then the switchboard operator in Blackie's building is knifed, and Bill Smith gets killed too, and Farraday gets into it. The stone is lost and everybody is running around looking for it.
The Copy of the Diamond Bracelet
Episode 26 - 10/11/45
AKA: "The Diamond Bracelet Copy"
First line: “On stage for rehearsal, everybody. On stage, everybody, please.”
Ava Withers' cousin, Richard Ainsley, is accused of switching a paste copy for a $25,000 diamond bracelet. Sam Watkins made the paste imitation.
Boxer's Murder Case
Episode 27 - 10/18/45
AKA: "Fighter Johnson"
First line: “A little more on the shoulders, Jackie.”
Gambler Edwards wants the champ, Bob Johnson, to throw his fight with Hollister. It's either that, or take the consequences. The rumor of a fix gets out and Blackie accuses Johnson of being crooked. The champ punches Blackie for his trouble. Johnson wins the fight in the fifth, and then takes a real fall -- all the way to his death. And Farraday likes Blackie for it.
Richard's Diamond Case
Episode 28 - 16/25/45
AKA: "Blackie in Diamond Shootout"
First line: “John, who was that man who just left?”
John Richards is killed and his diamond stolen. And Blackie is shot. Mary's little dog Mutsie gives the crucial clue to the killer.
Mary Disappears
Episode 29 - 11/01/45
AKA: "Boulton Farm"
First line: “Well, Inspector Farraday, would you like a cup of tea, or...”
Farraday's got Shorty in Jail for a stickup, but Blackie thinks Donald Boulton did it. Blackie gets Mary to get a job at Boulton's parents farm up in Green County. But Mary disappears and the Boultons claim she was never there. Then Mr. Willis, the real estate broker, gets stabbed. That brings Farraday into it.
Amnesia Victim
Episode 30 - 11/08/45
AKA: "Burke" - "Burke's Amnesia"
First line: “Well, Arthur, there's nothing wrong with you.”
Arthur Burke wakes up from a bout of amnesia and finds the body of George Digby. He calls in Blackie to find out whether he killed Digby or not. And Tom Roach wants Blackie to keep him out of the hot seat, too.
Murder in the Music Room
Episode 31 - 11/15/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Well, Bill, what about it? Got an idea for the lyric yet?”
Our copies say this is #199 (see synopsis). Perhaps originally aired as #31 and then rerun as #199?
Blackie Kidnapped
Episode 32 - 11/22/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “OK, Doc, how many cards do you want?”
The Johnson mob stashed the money from the Egersville Bank job somewhere. Blackie obtains the location of the loot from Carolyn Johnson in jail. Later Pete and Joe kidnap Blackie while he is sleeping. Using truth serum, the boss Bill tries to get the location of the stash from Blackie. Meanwhile Shorty, Farraday and Mary are trying to find Blackie, and they find Carolyn Johnson dead in her cell. Blackie ends up in a well and with a bad case of laryngitis.
Simmons Construction Murder
Episode 33 - 11/29/45
AKA: "Man Shot On The 21st" Floor"
"Foreman Murdered" - "Blackie Sick .. Can't Talk"
First line: “Hey, Schmitz. Yes, sir.”
John Simmons' construction foreman, Bill Woods, is shot on the 21st floor of a high rise project. Blackie, confined to bed with laryngitis, predicts the murder of Jack Barnes, another foreman, in the same way and then solves both murders without ever leaving his bed!
Williams Missing Pearl Necklace
Episode 34 - 12/06/45
AKA: "Atkins Jewel Thief" - "Missing Pearl Necklace"
First line: “Ah, that's a wonderful pile of blocks, baby.”
Handyman Robert Atkins packs to leave his wife, Mabel, and then discloses that he has taken his employers', Dr. & Mrs. Williams', pearl necklace (valued at $50,000) which will make him rich. Farraday & his men are called in but search the house to no avail. Insurance investigator Horace Spaulding is murdered in the hall outside Blackie's apartment. Farraday appears and suspects Blackie, but Blackie locks him in a closet and gets away. Blackie finds the pearls & solves the murder.
Murder At the Movies
Episode 35 - 12/13/45
AKA: "Murder On the Murder Set" - "Movie Trunk Murder"
First line: “Blackie, all I want you to do is open the safe.”
Blackie & Mary are on a movie set where Blackie is acting as consultant. During the filming of a scene, Gladys Ronson, is shot to death while inside a trunk. Later, while they preview the same scene, John Gaines, the prop man, is stabbed to death with Blackie's knife.
TV Poisoning
Episode 36 - 12/20/45
AKA: "Man Killed on TV" - "Baxter"
"Another Man's Poison" - "Death on TV"
First line: “Comfortable, Mary?” “Very. Is it time yet?”
While Mary and Blackie are watching them on TV, Cyrus Baxter is about to accuse someone of something when he falls over dead from poisoning. Farraday is on the forum, too, and all the members of the forum drank from the same water pitcher. Rex Daniels, Baxter's secretary, says that his boss was intending to accuse Ralph Thomas of extortion. The curious thing is that Baxter, Farraday and Richard Waters, a civic board member, had dinner at Thomas' house earlier in the evening, and they all ate the same food. When Blackie starts looking into things, Thomas' butler, Mike, is found dead as well.
The Masters Diamond
Episode 37 - 12/27/45
AKA: "None"
First line: “Oh, Blackie, if this is dinner party where is the dinner?”
Blackie & Mary are guests at a dinner party thrown by the Masters family. Lenny & Pete, two jewel thieves, steal the Masters' diamond, which was to be worn by Mrs. Masters at the dinner. Mrs. Masters is later found dead by a maid. Harvey Masters' fiancee, Georgia Aikins, tells Blackie that Harvey is the sole heir to his mother's fortune, although they hated each other. The thieves give Blackie the diamond to deliver to the police informing them they didn't do the murder. Then Harvey Masters is found hanging from a chandelier.
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Home Silent Movies 40's Movies Bio Chester Morris Television Radio Short Stories
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