Show Notes
Today's Mystery: Two armed convicts escape from San Quentin and head for Los Angeles, where they launch a desperate crime spree while police race to track them down. As Joe Friday and Ed Jacobs follow a trail of robberies, stolen weapons, and frightened witnesses, the fugitives make a bold dash for freedom across the Mexican border.
Original Radio Broadcast Date: March 20, 1952
Originating from Hollywood
Starred: Jack Webb as Sergeant Joe Friday and Barney Phillips as Sergeant Ed Jacobs.Also featuring Whit Connor and Herb Ellis. Script by Jim Moser. Music by Walter Schumann.
Announcer: Hal Gibney.
Technical advice from the Los Angeles Police Department.
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More from The Great Detectives Present Dragnet (Old Time Radio)
Todays Mystery: Two armed bandits rob a Los Angeles café, leaving the elderly owner brutally beaten and one suspect wounded. Detective Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner, Frank Smith, pursue the fugitive, but a promising lead falls apart when the victims fail to identify their suspect. Then a treasured diamond signet ring offers a new clue—and the robber’s own mistakes may be the key to bringing him to justice.
Todays Mystery: Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Frank Smith investigate the death of a 52-year-old music teacher whose body is discovered in an abandoned freight car, cradled in the arms of a young man who refuses to explain what happened. When the young man finally confesses to killing her, the detectives struggle to understand why he would murder a woman he claims to have loved deeply and who had devoted years to nurturing his musical ambitions.
Todays Mystery: On the eve of the Fourth of July weekend, Joe Friday and Frank Smith are assigned to Accident Investigation and confront the devastating consequences of reckless driving when a 16-year-old takes his father’s car on a high-speed ride through Los Angeles. As the holiday begins, a succession of traffic calls illustrates how quickly carelessness, alcohol, and poor judgment can turn an ordinary drive into tragedy.
Todays Mystery: Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Frank Smith investigate the abduction of an unidentified man from a downtown Los Angeles street. Bloodstains at the scene and an abandoned gray sedan suggest that the victim may have been seriously injured, but there are few clues to his identity or whereabouts. The investigation leads Friday and Smith through a missing car, conflicting stories, and two suspects with criminal records. As the detectives piece together the evidence, they must determine what happened to the missing man and whether he is still alive.
Todays Mystery: Detective Sergeant Joe Friday and his partner Frank Smith are assigned to narcotics detail when a drug addict is arrested carrying a supply of high-grade heroin. The man refuses to reveal where he got the narcotics until the effects of withdrawal force him to talk. His information leads Friday and Smith to a bartender, a beer garden owner, and a larger narcotics operation that may be bringing European heroin into Los Angeles.