''The Adventures of Ellery Queen'' is a

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads th ...

program in the United States. Several iterations of the program appeared on different networks, with the first one broadcast on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

June 18, 1939, and the last on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

May 27, 1948. ''The Adventures of Ellery Queen'' grew out of the combined efforts of producer-director George Zachary and writers Frederic Dannay and Manfred Lee. Dannay and Lee, who were cousins, originated the

Ellery Queen Ellery Queen is a pseudonym created in 1929 by American crime fiction writers Frederic Dannay and Manfred Bennington Lee and the name of their main fictional character, a mystery writer in New York City who helps his police inspector father solve ...

character. Initially they wrote the program's scripts, and Zachary handled production. Beginning in 1945,

Anthony Boucher William Anthony Parker White (August 21, 1911 – April 29, 1968), better known by his pen name Anthony Boucher (), was an American author, critic, and editor who wrote several classic mystery novels, short stories, science fiction, and radio d ...

replaced Dannay and worked with Lee writing scripts. During the program's first season, ''Radio Guide'' magazine called it "a CBS drama that will keep you on the edge of your chair." It added "You will find Ellery Queen both brave and brilliant and you will find yourself participating joyously in the ageless thrill of the manhunt."

Format

''The Adventures of Ellery Queen'' invited a panel of armchair

detectives A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads the ...

to try to solve each case during its broadcast. Adapting a technique that had been used earlier in the ''Author! Author!'' radio program, when an episode's script reached a point at which all of the clues had been revealed, the scripted portion stopped, and the panel was challenged to identify the culprit. Even with changes in networks, sponsors and stars, the basic format of the program remained constant throughout its time on the air. As listed on The Digital Deli Too website, the elements of each episode were as follows:

*The announcer would introduce the program and/or sponsor messages *The guest 'armchair detectives' would be introduced and the title of the night's mystery would be given. *The dramatized mystery would be presented to its conclusion. *The armchair detective(s) would make their case for the mystery's solution. *Ellery Queen would announce the actual resolution. *The announcer and Ellery Queen would provide the closing sponsor message, tease and announce the title of the next week's mystery, and close with the credits.

Listeners were encouraged to follow the clues, drawing their own conclusions, and match wits with the panel and the detective himself.

Jim Harmon James Judson Harmon (21 April 1933 – 16 February 2010), better known as Jim Harmon, was an American short story author and popular culture historian who wrote extensively about the Golden Age of Radio. He sometimes used the pseudonym Judson Grey ...

described the situation in his book, "The Great Radio Heroes": "Ellery Queen's show was the detective program that gave you, the listener, a chance to join in on the fun and games. You were given all the clues, and you could solve the mystery – if you happened to be a deductive genius on the level of Ellery Queen."Harmon, Jim. (2001). ''The Great Radio Heroes''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 118. The guest panelists were usually wrong in their solutions; in the program's first four months, only one panelist was correct. Yet such appearances were quite popular with celebrities. Trade magazine ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' reported in a 1942 article, "In some cases an agent's entire list of performers eventually ask to get on 'prestige' shows like ''

Information Please ''Information Please'' is an American radio quiz show, created by Dan Golenpaul, which aired on NBC from May 17, 1938, to April 22, 1951. The title was the contemporary phrase used to request from telephone operators what was then called "info ...

'' as guest experts, on ''Ellery Queen'' as guest armchair detectives". The number of panelists over the show's life has been estimated at more than 750.

Characters and cast

Although the main characters in ''The Adventures of Ellery Queen'' remained consistent throughout its various incarnations on radio, the actors changed over the program's life. The primary characters and those who played each role were as follows: *Ellery Queen – The title character "was a private detective without official police affiliation who was often called into cases by his father, a police inspector."Reinehr, Robert C. and Swartz, Jon D. (2008). ''The A to Z of Old Time Radio''. Scarecrow Press, Inc. . P. 14. Dunning commented, "Queen was portrayed throughout as a modern-day Sherlock with a fine eye for clues."Dunning, John. (1998). ''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio''. Oxford University Press. . P. 182. He was played by

Hugh Marlowe Hugh Marlowe (born Hugh Herbert Hipple; January 30, 1911May 2, 1982) was an American film, television, stage and radio actor. Early life Marlowe was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born Hugh Herbert Hipple. He was of primarily Engli ...

(1939–1940),

Carleton Young Captain Carleton Scott Young (October 21, 1905 – November 7, 1994) was an American character actor who was known for his deep voice. Early years Born in Fulton, Oswego, New York, Young was the second and only surviving child of St ...

(1942–43), Sydney Smith (1943–44, 1945–47),

Lawrence Dobkin Lawrence Dobkin (September 16, 1919 – October 28, 2002) was an American television director, character actor and screenwriter whose career spanned seven decades. Dobkin was a prolific performer during the Golden Age of Radio. He narrat ...

(1947–48) and

Howard Culver Howard Culver (June 4, 1918 – August 4, 1984) was an American radio and television actor, best known as hotel clerk Howie Uzzell during the entire run of TV's ''Gunsmoke''. On radio he starred in the title role of the Western adventure series '' ...

(1948). The program's producers made a conscious effort to create a certain mystique about the character of Ellery Queen by not identifying the actors who portrayed him. An article on The Digital Deli Too website reported: "Hugh Marlowe ... remained cleverly unidentified as the voice of Ellery Queen. That gambit continued for the remainder of the various runs of the canon irrespective of the network or sponsor." *Richard Queen – Ellery's father was a police inspector, played by Santos Ortega (1939–1947), Bill Smith (1947) and

Herb Butterfield Herbert Butterfield (October 28, 1895 – May 2, 1957) was an actor best known for his work in American radio. Career Perhaps his major roles on radio were those of crime-lab expert Lee Jones (as well as many supporting characters) in ''Dragn ...

(1947–1948). *Nikki Porter – A character who had not appeared in the ''Ellery Queen'' written material, Porter was added to the program " order to provide the mandatory 'love interest' that was supposed to attract the female audience." Described as "his comely, copper-haired secretary," she was played by Marion Shockley (1939–1944), Barbara Terrell (1945),

Gertrude Warner Gertrude Warner (April 2, 1917 – January 26, 1986) was an American voice talent who played multiple characters on radio productions during the Golden Age of Radio. Early life Warner was born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1917. Her father was ...

(1945–46), Charlotte Keane (1946–47),

Virginia Gregg Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

(1947) and Kaye Brinker (1948). Two of the actresses wed key men in the production of the program. Shockley and producer-director George Zachary were married in 1939, and Brinker married Queen's co-creator Manfred Lee in 1942. *Sergeant Velie – Inspector Queen's assistant, described by one researcher as "doughty", apparently did not have a first name in the radio program. He was played by Howard Smith (1939), Ted de Corsia (1939–47), Ed Latimer (1947) and

Alan Reed Alan Reed (born Herbert Theodore Bergman; August 20, 1907 – June 14, 1977) was an American actor, best known as the original voice of Fred Flintstone on ''The Flintstones'' and various spinoff series. He also appeared in many films, includin ...

(1947). Announcers were Ken Roberts (1939–40),

Bert Parks Bert Parks (born Bertram Jacobson; December 30, 1914 – February 2, 1992) was an American actor, singer, and radio and television announcer, best known for hosting the annual Miss America telecast from 1955 to 1979. Early life Parks was bor ...

(1940),

Ernest Chappell Ernest E. Chappell (June 10, 1903 - July 4, 1983)DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 53. was an American radio announcer and actor, ...

(1942–44), Don Hancock (1947), Paul Masterson (1947), and Roger KruppTerrace, Vincent (1981), ''Radio's Golden Years: The Encyclopedia of Radio Programs 1930-1960''. A.S. Barnes & Company, Inc. . Pp. 5-6. The musical directors were

Lyn Murray Lyn Murray (born Lionel Breeze, August 13, 1909 – May 20, 1989) was a composer, conductor, and arranger of music for radio, film and television. Early years Born in London, Murray was the son of a violinist. Before entering a career in music, ...

and Charles Paul.

Broadcast history

Recognition

In 1946, ''The Adventures of Ellery Queen'' and ''Mr. and Mrs. North'' received the first Best Radio Drama

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

awards from the

Mystery Writers of America Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is an organization of mystery and crime writers, based in New York City. The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday. It presents the Edgar Award ...