"Murder as a steady occupation has its handicaps… the pay is high, but so are the gallows from which, sooner or later, they hang you."
Running from 1951 through 1955, Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator is about a New York private eye. Produced in New York from 1951 to 1954 and then moved it to Hollywood where it aired from 1954 to 1955. This entertaining old time radio series originally titled "Barry Crane" was later renamed "Barrie Craig."
The series starred William Gargan (also played detective Martin Kane) as Barrie Craig, the lone private detective, who worked and solved cases from his Madison Avenue office. Gargan actually worked in as a private detective, collecting agent; his duties ranged from doing stakeouts to working as a bodyguard. He was shot while on the investigating a deadbeat customer. This life experience surely added to the depth of his characterization of Barrie Craig, Ellery Queen (three films) and Martin Kane.
While most detectives at the time were no nonsense hardboiled types, Barrie Craig is extraordinary due to his laid back personality. He rarely gets worried even in life threatening situations, it takes a lot to ruffle his feathers. Craig narrates the story much like Joe Friday in Dragnet and Sam Spade.
An interesting note: two Inner Sanctum scripts were actually reused in the Barrie Craig series.
Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator was an old time radio detective series that was produced and aired from New York in 1951 - 1954. This crime series followed the life of Barrie Craig, who was portrayed by actor William Gargan. Gargan played the New York City private eye so well that the program continued its airing in Hollywood from 1954 - 1955. Craig ran his operation from his office in Madison Avenue. He solved crimes, relentlessly pursued criminals, and was not above taking odd jobs. Whereas majority of the investigative themed old radio shows featured no-nonsense and hard-boiled detectives, Barrie Craig poked fun at the traditional local private eye with his laid-back and easy-going manner.
Entertain yourself with the mysterious cases of Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator!
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Please enjoy these 67 old time radio episodes:
| Air Date | Title | Synopsis | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01.16.1952 | fatal appointment |
+ NBC net sustaining. A man's love and romantic date winds up a death . A beuatiful girl's found dea... | |
| 10.13.1953 | fog over murder |
+ Dr Banner consults Barrie Craig for his help to discover the identity of his client, temporarily n... | |
| 08.03.1954 | for love of murder |
+ sustained "For Love Of Murder". Barrie bails out of jail a broken hearted man and possibly a murd... | |
| 12.19.1951 | ghost of a chance |
+ NBC net sustaining. Barrie Craig said when a man came back from his dead to haunt his wife who has... | |
| 09.07.1954 | ghosts dont die in bed |
+ sustained "Ghosts Don't Die In Bed". A dead body from the eighty years old murder case was foun... | |
| 08.31.1954 | hay is for homicide |
+ sustained "Hay Is For Murder" ("Homicide" ?). While his vacation on Maine, Barrie found a corpese... | |
| 09.22.1953 | kitchens come with knives |
+ Barry Craig had been told when he took the job that Sam Jenkins partner suspected that he was rele... | |
| 11.07.1954 | life line |
+ sustained "Lifeline". "The boy could not found the comfortness when he moved from his bed to the ... | |
| 10.24.1951 | microfilm in the fishtank |
+ Barrie Craig must defeat a brutal protection racket gang after a tailor's store is burnt to the ... | |
| 08.17.1954 | mid summer lunacy |
+ sustained "Mid-Summer Lunacy". Barrie was hired by a fake client, A beautiful blonde, to check ou... | |
| 02.20.1952 | motive for murder |
+ "Motive For Murder". "Death flies the Atlantic from Lisbon to New York, a corpse breaks the bank... | |
| 07.13.1954 | murder by error |
+ sustained "Murder By Error".A husband of a beautiful woman squeezed of $ 10,000 by a manikin who ... | |
| 10.08.1952 | murder by threes |
+ "Murder By Three". "One sure way to reduce the body beautiful and eliminate excess fat is horizo... | |
| 11.21.1951 | murder in wax |
+ NBC net sustaining. A wax museum apparently able to forecast the future and A bloody parrot gave c... | |
| 01.09.1952 | murder island |
+ sustaining. Barry met a burlesque queen who had a gift to uncovere corpses mistery. Barry also m... | |
| 03.30.1955 | never murder a mummy |
+ sustained "Never Murder A Mummy". "Problems in living life in the world of crime is that you wil... | |
| 02.09.1955 | nobody lives there anymore |
+ sustained "Nobody Lives There Any More". "One of the things better to be a killers is not have ... | |
| 07.19.1953 | scream for murder |
+ Marriages may be made in heaven but they sometimes can end in the city morgue. Barrie Craig knows ... | |
| 12.26.1951 | song of death |
+ sustaining. A girl was rescued by Barry from accident than could be worse than drawning. Barry al... | |
| 01.19.1954 | strange vision |
+ Dexter Dean owns an Operator Chemical Plant in Greensville Ohio and in recent months there had bee... | |
| 06.09.1955 | sucker bait | ||
| 03.02.1955 | sweet larceny |
+ sustained "Sweet Larceny". "Exercising can be beneficial but it can also kill you. An acquaintanc... | |
| 11.28.1951 | the case of the naughty necklace |
+ NBC net sustaining. Craig has got $5000 for buying a pearl necklace from Wendy Harper . + Barry C... | |
| 05.25.1954 | the corpse who was wrong |
+ W Stubbins was an attorney who represented Arthur Philip Peterson. Mr Peterson had instructed his ... | |
| N/A | tennis anyone |
Chris
Chris
Christopher
James
Bernhard
Christ
Christoph
Carl
BARRY CRAIG, CONFIDENTIAL INVESTIGATOR
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