Get an Earful . . . of CRIME!

Can’t get enough crime stories from magazines, books, and cable TV? Well, they say video killed the radio star, but that case was never closed. And now rumors of the radio star’s demise seem very premature. Especially now that we have podcasts.

A podcast is a digital audio file made available on the Internet for downloading to your computer or portable media player (like your smart phone). You can download podcasts from websites or via phone apps (stick to free ones such as Overcast, PodOmatic, TuneIn Radio, and Podcast Addict). Many podcasts feature old radio broadcasts or modern radio dramas, and there are podcasts that cover the waterfront of true crime. You can listen to the podcasts during your commute, while having your corned beef on rye, or at home, in the dark, in bed, as you struggle for sleep. (Or, do as I do: While prepping the nightly vittles, I put my iPod in a bowl and, voila, instant stereo system.)

Out of the Past
Sam Spade? The Shadow? Philip Marlowe? If you like radio dramas from the ‘30s-‘50s (many of which are now public domain), you can hear them for free on podcasts such as these:

Boxcars711 Old Time Radio regularly features Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, Mr. Moto, and This Is Your FBI.

CBS Radio Mystery Theater features 1,399 shows from a revival series running 1974-’82.

The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio  has recently featured episodes with Nick Carter and Phillip Marlowe.

Old Time Radio Mystery Theater features great shows such as Suspense, Escape, Ellery Queen, and The Whistler (whose whistle genuinely gives me the creeps, even when I know it’s coming).

Radio Detective Story Hour recently featured Rumpole of the Bailey, Richard Diamond Private Detective (the original singing detective!), Dragnet, Rocky Fortune (starring Frank Sinatra), and Crime Doctor.

Relic Radio features a variety of shows, including The Avenger, Diary of Fate, and Cloak and Dagger.

Neo-Radio Drama
It’s not all retro out there. Radio plays are still being produced. Here are some podcasts featuring newly produced thrills and chills.

BBC Radio features crime stories such as Miss Marple and Colvin and Soames as well as weekly dramas. You’ll find a dramatization of Qiu Xiaolong’s Inspector Chen series there.

Fireside Mystery Theatre is an old-fashioned, live radio show that performs once a month at The Slipper Room in Manhattan. N.B.: If you’re in town, MWA members get free and discount tickets for the monthly performance. In fact, this coming Sunday, January 31, the theater will present “Ghost of New York.” Want to go? Email us for info.

Hidden Harbor Mysteries features modern scripts in the style of early radio dramas.

Welcome to Night Vale tells creepy tales about a spooky small town.

True Crime
If you prefer the nonfiction type of crime, there are several excellent podcasts you can listen to.

Criminal features stories of “people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle.”

Here Be Monsters explores fearful issues involving science, drugs, death, religion, politics, and medicine.

Serial is the remakably popular podcast exploring a nonfiction criminal case over multiple episodes. The first in the series, Murder of Hae Min Lee, was downloaded more than 68 million times.

Sword and Scale delves into minds of a different serial killer or covers a brutal murder mystery.

True Murder. Dan Zupansky interviews true crime authors.

I’m sure there are many I am missing here. If you know of others, please note them in the comments.

—Richie Narvaez