20 Great Years of Radio, Part 12: 1949

1. Quiet, Please (ABC): This was the final year of this series but it continued strong to the end with the weird sci-fi tale Northern Lights and a rare Easter-themed program called Shadow of the Wings. Other great episodes included The Man Who Knew Everything, Dark Gray Magic and Tanglefoot. This was a one-of-a-kind program.
2. Escape (CBS): Another terrific year of Escape, with some of my favourites including The Lost Special and Red Wine, but it's most famous episode is Three Skeleton Key. Other great episodes are Finger of Doom, The Adaptive Ultimate and Plunder of the Sun.
3. Suspense (CBS): This was a great year for Suspense with plenty of big guest stars and very strong scripts. Bob Hope played against type in Death Has a Shadow; Lucille Ball delivered a weirdly-enjoyable story in The Red Headed Woman. Other great episodes include Chicken Feed, Mission Completed and Three O'Clock.
4. The Jack Benny Program (CBS): At this point Jack's show was suffering a little because his writers were recycling scripts and gags frequently, but Jack remained a great comedian to the end, so this is another good year.
5. The Whistler (CBS): This year produced my personal favourite episode of the series, Letter from Cynthia. The twist ending in this one is immensely satisfying!
6. Inner Sanctum Mysteries (CBS): Another great year for this series which included some geniunely creepy stories like Devil's Workshop. I'm also very fond of Mark My Grave, A Corpse for Halloween and Deadly Fare.
7. The Mysterious Traveler (Mutual): Another good year for this series with episodes like Death Has a Cold Breath and The Last Survivor.
8. The Phil Harris/Alice Faye Show (NBC): Another strong year for this sitcom.
9. Richard Diamond, Private Detective (NBC): This was a fun detective series with Dick Powell as the lead character. It was usually a whimsical series but sometimes could be a intense crime program. Mostly, it's carried by Powell's likeable performance.
10. Candy Matson (NBC): Another detective series which is carried mostly by its dialogue, this show stands out because it's a rare detective show with a female lead. All in all, a witty show.