Just the facts, ma'am
July 12, 2011 10:47 PM   Subscribe

Audio Noir offers a continuous stream of classic radio crime dramas, including Johnny Dollar, Broadway Is My Beat, and Dragnet.
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn (14 comments total) 40 users marked this as a favorite
 
Ah, the adventures of the man with the action-packed expense account — America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator.
posted by Chrysostom at 11:13 PM on July 12, 2011 [4 favorites]


I love old radio shows, grew up with them. Thanks fir posting this!
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 11:36 PM on July 12, 2011 [1 favorite]


My usual nervous tic as I present yet another horrifying set of unexpected invoices to my boss is to say "I'm the man with the action-packed expense account," but I don't think she gets the reference.
posted by sonascope at 2:58 AM on July 13, 2011 [2 favorites]


My dad has this weird obsession with noir; ever since I got my GameFly account he's been super excited about the prospect of LA Noire being played in his living room* and gets all bummed out every time a different game comes in the mail.** It's a sort of self-aware, parodying obsession; as a result "Christmas Dragnet" is regular listening 'round the holidays. So I will send this to him for him to listen to while he is riding his strange indoor bicycle machine.

*I play video games with my parents around because it is more amusing than playing alone; they offer fantastic commentary
**He keeps asking me with increasing impatience if I've saved the galaxy yet whenever I boot up Mass Effect 2

posted by NoraReed at 3:04 AM on July 13, 2011 [3 favorites]


He keeps asking me with increasing impatience if I've saved the galaxy yet whenever I boot up Mass Effect 2

You could always respond jokingly, "Of course! Every time I turn off the console the galaxy gets saved to a file."
posted by samsara at 5:37 AM on July 13, 2011 [2 favorites]


I was once a seasonal IRS worker, opening up and sorting people's tax returns. During that time, I would sometimes borrow audio cassettes of Lux Radio Theater to listen to.

This is awesome. Thanks!
posted by zix at 6:08 AM on July 13, 2011


This stream puts me to sleep every single night. Some of the shows are painfully clichéd but some are imaginative and well-written. The ads are fascinating and worthy of study. From today's perspective they're like naive experiments in the science of persuasion.
Creepy Male Voice: "It's wise to smoke Fatimas," followed by Creepy Female Voice: "It's wise to smoke Fatimas."
And the "refreshing, delicious" Wrigley's ads, where they seem to be trying to explain the purpose of gum and how to use it.
posted by Jode at 6:48 AM on July 13, 2011 [2 favorites]


If you need a break from drama, you can always listen to a little British radio silliness.
posted by benito.strauss at 7:25 AM on July 13, 2011 [1 favorite]


Related
posted by wheelieman at 9:44 AM on July 13, 2011 [1 favorite]


I love OTR as well. There are tons of good streaming stations; my personal favourite is AM 1710 Antioch. I am often amazed at how lurid and violent the crime dramas are. I'm sure a lot of them couldn't be put on TV at the time they were produced. Lights Out is always good nightmare fuel! More people should listen to OTR - it's a wonderful time capsule from the 1920s to 1960s. It has so much to teach the present - from war time ads, news snippets, cultural insensitivity, gender roles and how to tell a damn good story in less than 30 minutes with no frills!
posted by Calzephyr at 11:21 AM on July 13, 2011 [2 favorites]


The Old Time Radio Network, has over 5000 shows on a free (RA) feed.
posted by timsteil at 3:44 PM on July 13, 2011


This is delicious! Thank you!
posted by Mael Oui at 9:23 PM on July 13, 2011


If you don't mind digging around and downloading a lot, you can get all of the original shows of "old time radio" - like Dragnet, Phillip Marlowe, etc.: Audio Archive: Old Time Radio (also linked in the related thread wheelieman linked) Check the most downloaded column on the right for the most popular shows.

I used to subscribe to tons of podcasts until I found this archive and now I can just snag a chunk at a time for listening - particularly great for roadtrips or insomnia. And I have yet to sift through all the other interesting stuff on that site.
posted by batgrlHG at 11:16 PM on July 13, 2011


...And now that Jode reminded me I have that "wise to smoke Fatimas!" creepy voice in my head. Argh!
posted by batgrlHG at 11:22 PM on July 13, 2011


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