u/Spitebott

Not a fan of Android Go, but some people won't mind, I'm sure.

If John is in Europe, and he might be, he's blowing the money he got from mortgaging his Mom's house (again). He has no intention of repaying the loan because he knows he won't be able to, and he will lose the house for one reason or another. It must have sunk in that he's not gonna win the lawsuit, and if/when Cumia files on him he'll be even more royally screwed. This is his last chance to do it all before he loses what's left, so that's why this is happening right now.

With his appearance as guest host of John's show on Saturday, Vegas BS Jerry is a legitimate Dabbleverse personality and is now subject to the same scrutiny that has been afforded to every other Dabbler. Well done, Jerry...and welcome aboard.

My 12 Mini gives me a battery service warning. Every now and then the screen gets unusually dim, and I can’t make it brighter. After it sits a while it goes back to normal, but I know someday it won’t. I posted before about maybe getting a new battery, which would be about $100, but right now I can get a “like new” 13 Mini for around $200. I don’t like change, but I know it’s inevitable.

I hate big phones, and so did Steve Jobs. I have an iPhone SE 3 and an iPhone 12 Mini. I’m going to use them as long as possible, and when they die I’ll get a 13 Mini. If I want a tablet I’ll buy one. Phone consumers are dumb. They have no idea what they want.

Chad seems to be making a play for John’s vacated Duke spot, and he deserves it. Like John, he’s a compulsive liar and a delusional drunk, but unlike John he has *nothing* to back up his bullshit. He doesn’t own anything and all he has is horrible comedy act. He leeches off his more successful comedy connections and depends on them for work, and beyond that he has no friends or family. He’s a garbage person with no future. He’s a younger, slightly healthier Stuttering John. He’s completely untrustworthy and utterly hateable. He thinks he wants this, and maybe he will get his wish.

What’s the timeframe here? For the Judge to rule on SJ’s suit? For John to respond to the TSN lawsuit? I suspect we’re closing in…

I was listening to Hank's Gumshoe Radio on my phone at work last night when they played a May 22, 1949 episode of Rocky Jordan. I don't particularly like that show, but this one ("The Make-Up Man") turned out to be a rewrite of the Jeff Regan, Investigator episode "The Lady With the Golden Hair" from July 31, 1948. It was interesting to see how they awkwardly shoehorned a story taking place in Los Angeles into a Cairo, Egypt setting. It absolutely did not work, but it was fun to hear. E. Jack Neuman at least got credit for writing it, with "edits" done by two others.

I've noticed this happening a few times, I guess there was no such thing as reruns in the golden age of radio. Very little was saved by the networks, and a lot of what we have comes from Armed Forces Radio rebroadcasts. When they wanted to do a show a second time, they just used the same script again and did it with the actors they had available -- who would know? A few of Frank Graham's Jeff Regan episodes were freshened-up (and sanitized) versions of the Jack Webb days, I've noticed. I'm sure this was convenient and economical for the radio networks.

It's hard to nail down, I may have heard it on one of the many 12-hour all-night compilations on YouTube. Could be Night Beat, Broadway is My Beat, or some other show. I know it's not Pat Novak or Jeff Regan, I've listened to all of those many times. The main character goes to the apartment of "The Professor", a man who goes on and on (in Jocko Madigan fashion) and never really gets to the point. I believe Tudor Owen himself is doing the voice, though I can't be sure of that or what the plot of the story is. I did hear it, though, I know this for a fact. A search for Tudor Owen's appearances turned up several things, but not the answer to this. Any ideas?

I have listened to OTR for many years, sampling everything, and have always leaned toward the mystery/detective shows. Police procedurals like Dragnet and The Lineup don't really do that much for me, and Night Beat and Broadway is My Beat have always felt too heavy-handed and preachy. I've narrowed it down to a group of shows that I've heard many times and still get a lot of enjoyment from despite repeated listenings. Here are my Top 5, in order.

1. Pat Novak: For Hire. Yeah, it's basically just a punchline delivery device, and the plots are ridiculous, but I consider this to be one of the best radio shows ever broadcast. You can even throw in the two surviving episodes of Johnny Modero in with this, because they're basically the same show. Novak's plots suffered after Jack Webb left, but Jocko Madigan remained an amusing presence.

2. Jeff Regan, Investigator. A little darker and more serious than Pat Novak, with good interplay between Regan and his boss Anthony Lyon, for me it's a very close second to Pat Novak. Unlike Novak, though, the post-Jack Webb episodes are still very strong and well-written.

3. The Adventures of Sam Spade. Sam Spade seemed to be the only radio detective who knew he was a character on a radio detective show. Fast-paced and witty with a lot of inside jokes. Howard Duff was perfect as Sam and Lurene Tuttle was hilarious as Effie. There was real chemistry there and everyone seemed to be having a good time.

4. Barry Craig, Confidential Investigator. A solid show. William Gargan essentially played the same character on three different shows: Ross Dolan (on I Deal in Crime), Barry Craig, and Martin Kane. This one has the most surviving episodes and seems to have lasted the longest. Gargan was convincing and likeable as a wisecracking detective.

5. Rogue's Gallery. I prefer this to Dick Powell's later series Richard Diamond, Private Eye. Frankly, it may come down to the singing at the end of each Diamond episode, which I've always felt drags that show down. The fantasy element, a P.I. getting knocked out and communicating with his alter ego, speaks to me, I can't explain it.