Radio
Legends:
Let George Do It
Liner notes written by Elizabeth McLeod
Another latter-day Old Time Radio favorite which was unknown to most of the country at the time of its original run, "Let George Do It" offers a change of pace for fans of the hard-boiled crime show genre, and an opportunity to hear the popular Bob Bailey in his earliest major radio role.
Bailey is heard here as George Valentine, a low-key Los Angeles private eye with a good sense of the ironic and a sharp eye for the scientific method of investigation. Less likely to be clubbed into unconsciousness by blackjack-wielding goons than most of his radio-detective colleagues, Valentine offers himself to clients as a sort of freelance troubleshooter -- bringing his services to the attention of the desperate thru cryptic classified newspaper advertisements. And like Bailey's later characterization of Johnny Dollar, the actor's interpretation of George Valentine is that of an intelligent, thinking man leavened by just a touch of world-weary cynicism.
George Valentine's cases ran the gamut -- one week might find him immersed in the seamy world of small-time show business, another might carry him to a secluded small California town, where corrupt dealings were afoot. Blackmail, political chicanery, abductions, and good old-fashioned murder form much of his caseload, but there's also space in his date book for odd, unusual crimes that helped give the program an enjoyably offbeat flavor.
The series was a west-coast-only feature for its entire 1946-54 run, heard over the stations of the Mutual-Don Lee network, usually under the sponsorship of the Standard Oil Company of California. Bailey nearly went the distance in the title role, replaced only at the end of the run by Chicago expatriate Olan Soule. The supporting cast included an assortment of familiar Hollywood radio voices, including
Frances Robinson, Wally Maher, Joe Kearns and Eddie Firestone Jr, along with future "Johnny Dollar" collaborator Virginia Gregg.
The twenty programs in this 10-CD Radio Legends collection span the series' prime period, from 1946 to 1949. Don't miss this opportunity to "Let George Do It!"
The Pig Farmer
Friday, October 18, 1946 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Man Who Was Afraid Of Horses
Friday, October 25, 1946 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Robber
Friday, November 8, 1946 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Smuggling Face Powder
Monday, April 5, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Body in the Closet
Monday, April 12, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Penthouse
Monday, April 19, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Pack Of Boys
Monday, April 26, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Tunnel
Monday, May 3, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Island in the Lake
Monday, May 31, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Have Some Excitement
Monday, June 7, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Body Guard
Monday, June 14, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Unfit Mother
Monday, June 21, 1948 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
'Til Death Do Us Part
Monday, January 24, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Mayhem By Experts
Monday, January 31, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
One Against The City
Monday, February 7, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Destination Dead End
Monday, February 14, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Journey Into Hate
Monday, February 21, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
Your Money or Your Life
Monday, February 28, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Roundabout Murder
Monday, March 7, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
The Motif is Murder
Monday, March 14, 1949 - 30:00 - Mutual-Don Lee
Sponsored by Standard Oil
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