Casey, Crime Photographer (frequently announced as just "Crime Photographer") was a half-hour CBS radio program that ran from July 11, 1945 until November 16, 1950; it came back for another run from January 13, 1954 'til April 22, 1955. The series was derived from the pulp magazine hero Flashgun Casey, created by George Harmon Coxe; Casey appeared in movies (1936's Women Are Trouble and 1938's Here's Flash Casey), a 1951-1952 television series and a 1949 Marvel comic book. They all featured Jack "Flashgun" Casey, a crime photographer from the Morning Express who frequently solved crimes with reporter Ann Williams.
The series was originally called Flashgun Casey in its first year, then became Casey, Press Photographer in the second year. Matt Crowley and Jim Backus were the first to play Casey until the role went to Staats Cotsworth, who held the part from then on. Ann Williams was played by numerous actresses over the years including Jone Allison, Alice Reinheart, Lesley Woods, Betty Furness and Jan Miner. Jackson Beck played Captain Logan, Casey's contact on the police force; and when they weren't working, Casey and Ann would visit the Blue Note Cafe, run by Ethelbert (John Gibson).
The series was written by Alonzo Deen Cole, best-known for the horror anthology the Witch's Tale. In fact, he adapted at least two of his Witch's Tale scripts for Casey ("Great Grandfather's Rent Receipt" from October 30, 1947 - itself an uncredited adaptation of a Sir Walter Scott story - and "the Serpent Goddess" from December 4, 1947); I wouldn't be surprised if many more episodes of Cole's Casey started out on the Witch's Tale because there's frequently a strong note of violence and supernatural tropes.
The series was sponsored by Anchor Hocking, "a great name in glass" (1946-1948) in most of the surviving episodes, with Tony Marvin reading their advertisements. I guess those ads still work since when I went shopping for wine glasses for the first time and I saw a box of Anchor Hocking in the store, I immediately thought, "a great name in glass!" and bought them. The series was later sponsored by Toni Home Permanents (1948-1949) and Philip Morris tobacco (1949-1950).
Casey, Crime Photographer was a surprise hit in the ratings and ranked among radio's top shows in 1948 and 1949; partly, this was due to following Suspense on the CBS schedule. Still, this was apparently very embarrassing to NBC, who had spent years insisting that it was comedy and big name stars who brought in big audiences; Suspense may have had big stars, but Casey didn't so their triumph over NBC gave the network something to think about.
Given Casey's occupation, it kind of makes sense that he'd turn up at various kinds of crime scenes around Manhattan. What's surprising is that his occupation was just an artifice to get him involved in the week's case; his particular speciality - photography - was usually ignored by the show's creators! He might as well have been Casey, Crime Sketch Artist for all the importance photography was in solving crimes.
Strangely, I find a lot to recommend in Casey, Crime Photographer; it's full of lurid, pulpy tales that are unlike what any of the more polished radio detective of the time were doing. Here's some notable episodes:
- "The Reunion" (June 3, 1946): A sculptor's wife disappears and he has a new statue.
- "The Demon Miner" (March 20, 1947): Someone is murdering miners underground (this episode was originally written for the Shadow!)
- "Busman's Holiday" (August 21, 1947): Casey is completely absent so his supporting players Ann and Captain Logan solve the crime!
- "The Santa Claus of Bum's Boulevard" (December 25, 1947): A charming Christmas tale about a man who gives away money to the needy.
- "Thunderbolt" (November 10, 1949): A madman with a hammer thinks he's Thor, the god of thunder!
- "Road Angel" (January 13, 1954): A beautiful hitchhiker robs the people who pick her up.
The Old Time Radio Researchers have a YouTube playlist containing 76 episodes of Casey, Crime Photographer!
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