With 200 episodes on iTunes, The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio certainly have enough to hold your attention for a long time if you are into this sort of thing. I appreciate Host Adam Graham’s insights into each episode. I like how he gives background to the writers and producers of the episodes and any sort of historical context. Plus, the host has a fun voice. It’s easy to imagine him as a magician at a kid’s birthday party. He mentions on a regular basis that he is in Boise, Idaho. For some reason I get the biggest kick out of how one of the internet’s great curators of old school noir is in Boise, Idaho.
I was overall impressed with the sound quality of these episodes. Going into it I expected lots of “old time radio” noise I would have to get over. However, most of the recordings are crisp and the quality does not detract from listening. I don’t know if the host cleans up these old files, but wouldn’t be surprised if he did. Occasionally an episode is a little rough for sound quality, but just skip that episode because there are plenty more.
Nero Wolfe – subset of (The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio)
Nero Wolfe is a brilliant but grumpy like detective who only wants to eat exquisite meals. Wolfe’s straight man (or “Watson”) is a happy go lucky gumshoe. A little hokey but fun, especially if you like your detectives on a quirky side. Nero Wolfe is one of the featured detectives of “The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio.” Host Adam Graham has done a great job of collecting many of the golden era of radio detective episodes and shows.