BW - EP132—003: Mutual Mystery Shows Of The 1940s—Mystery Is My Hobby

Breaking Walls: The Podcast on the History of American Network Radio Broadcasting

Mystery is My Hobby originally came to Don Lee’s west coast airwaves in April of 1945, before going full network over Mutual that October as Murder Is My Hobby. It starred Glenn Langan as Barton Drake, a police inspector and the author of the book Mystery Is My Hobby. Drake combined his professions by collecting material for stories while he solved crimes. The program went off the air in July of 1946, but returned the next summer under the Mystery title. Barton Drake was now a writer who worked with the police. Each episode was presented as cases from his book. The October 29th, 1947 episode was called “Death Speaks with Ten Fingers,” and guest-starred Barney Phillips, Gloria Blondell, Ken Christy, and Jean Vander Pyl, who was later famous as the voice of Wilma Flintsone.