Radio Retropolis

Although the four players have been cleared, they are threatened by a new and violent danger.  Commentary on top song  and radio program of that week.

Edgar Allen Poe’s classic short story of a man named Simon,a former musician that went tone deaf, who after treatment has exceptional hearing. He meets Oliver, another patient, who was previously blind but now can see. Whereas Simon is filled with love, Oliver wants to spread hate and misery  which leads Simon to make a drastic decision to save society.  Commentary on Boris Karloff's radio career.  Plus, how the real short story from Poe is much different than this broadcast.

A crime boss, with the help of a Hindu who possesses mind control power plans to kill The Shadow, by kidnapping Margot Lane and "commanding" her to shoot to kill.  Commentary to follow episode.

A wrongly convicted man who served time in prison is bent on revenge for a man he supposedly killed yet is very much alive.  JR comments on star Douglas Fairbanks, Jr and new announcer Paul Frees.

Kent quickly put two and two together with Canfield’s murder and the suspension of the players that could be tied into a hate group not knowing that he himself will be on their next hit list.  JR speaks on the importance of Jimmy Olsen in the serial.

Liz and Iris make an appearance on a television show celebrating Friendship Week. Their friendship is tested, though, when they discover they've bought the same dress for the occasion. Commentary on the 1953 I Love Lucy episode that adapted this script plus how television nearly killed the movie business had it not been for two very big movements in the cinema that occurred in 1953-the same time as this I Love Lucy episode.

Friday and Romero investigate the murder of a woman strangled in a hotel room.  Commentary on the nature of the procedural drama and the brilliant every day obstacles Webb creates for his characters.

Superman looks to get to the truth in the murder of Charles Canfield while Knights of the White Carnation plot their next move.  Commentary on Metropolis' one high school team.

A Mrs. Putnam calls the police and tells them she is about to be murdered. Police Detectives Jeff Hanson and Ed "Porky" Lamb trace the call to the Putnam house and pay them a visit only to find that the Mrs. Putnam died two hours before the phone call was made.

As a young woman is about to inherit her father's estate, her guardian breeds large vampire bats in order to kill the girl and gain her fortune.  Commentary to follow episode.

A distraught woman, Anna, wants her friend Helen to stay with her with the news of a serial killer called The Lipstick Killer terrorizing the town. JR comments on return to the half hour format and the new sponsor-AutoLite.

Although Superman handily defeated the Clan of the Fiery Cross a while back, a new vigilante hate group emerges looking to follow in the Clan’s footsteps.  JR comments on the controversial past serial Clan of the Fiery Cross and how this serial is connected.

Jealous of their husbands' hobbies, Liz and Iris decide to join the boys in their favorite hobby-golf!  Commentary on the LPGA which actually began shortly before this broadcast in 1950 and how the modern classic television series Everybody Loves Raymond borrowed this story line for a classic husband versus wife episode.

One of Friday’s informants, desperate for money, claims to have information on several burglaries that he is eager to share at the risk of his own life. Commentary on the humor of Dragnet.

With the newspaper clipping of the latest robbery as now Superman and Batman’s only clue in finding Robin, Jonesy carries Robin’s unconscious body at the foot of the building as he prepares to silence him once and for all.  JR comments on the end of the season and what's to come.

Boris Karloff returns in our Lights Out episode podcast as a scientist determined to bring his recently deceased wife back to life.  Commentary on Karloff's connection to making the dead rise and the discussion of what many of the mad scientists, in spite of their brilliance, fail to realize when bringing the dead back to life.  Finally, a an extended look at Wyllis Cooper, Arch Oboler and the entire Lights Out legacy.

A railroad signalman is visited by a mysterious figure every time a horrific train accident is about to occur. Commentary on author Charles Dickens' real life experience, including a near fatal train derailment, that led to his writing the original story.  An exceptional episode.

Friday and Romero are on the hunt for a married con artist couple who has been scamming churches and committing insurance fraud for over two years and have always eluded the law at every turn.  Commentary on the sadness of this episode which really changes slows the pacing for this episode.  Also commentary on the polio epidemics of 1949 and 1952.

Superman and Batman feel completely helpless upon finding Spider’s place completely empty with no trace of Robin whatsoever.  Spider, who has no other choice, is planning to kill Robin.  JR speaks on the recent controversy over the Superman franchise.

A worried mother calls the police and reports that her four year old twin girls have been missing for hours. This episode aired on February 15, 1951.  Unfortunately, the audio quality of the episode suffers greatly. Since many early Dragnet television scripts were nothing more than the radio scripts, we have decided to present a special audio podcast of the television version of The Big Crime which aired September 9, 1954 as the third episode of Dragnet’s 4th TV season. Commentary on the horrendous content of this episode from 1951 and 1954 and how our instant media today has desensitized our feelings towards horrific images in what has become the new normal.