A phone call from an exotic woman gets Archie Goodwin's attention, but when a gunshot sounds, it turns into the next case for Nero Wolfe. Going to the scene, Archie…
Nero ponders whether he should take the case that may prevent a murder. And he will... After the pressing matter of a game of solitaire is resolved, Nero gives the…
Details of a murder come to the office of Nero Wolfe. Revenge seems the clear motive for the murder, but the man who is blamed claims that it's all lies. Time is of the essence, so Archie Goodwin is sent out to do the foot work in gathering clues, talking to the hot dames, and checking on timelines of where everyone involved in the crime was located.
Though Nero is far from interested in taking on a new case, or leaving the comforts of home, Archie responds to a phone call. Jenkins is a little, dried up, old man who delivers a letter, but it hasn't come from the person it was addressed by. Archie seems to have been set on a wild goose chase. Has it all been a ruse to get Archie on the scene to witness a crime?
An ordinary raincoat finds its way to the Black Museum, and we learn about the crime that put it there. Robbers in white cloth masks took no jewelry, and the only victim was the young man shopping for a wedding ring. How will the anonymous, shabby raincoat link the robbers to the scene? The pistol used in the crime is in the pocket, but it was a stolen one. A glimmer of hope comes when the coat was traced to certain possible shops, and the tedious police work begins.
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Arthur Murrow is an author who needs the chair bound detective, Nero Wolfe, to leave his orchids and beer, and come to his office. Nero gripes about the inconvenience of it all, Archie checks out the cute elevator operator, but when they arrive in the office, they find that Arthur Murrow has a knife in his back.
Starting with a vieew of various exhibits from the Black Museum, news of a possible new entry arrives. A fire is just smoldering out when the Scotland Yard inspectors arrive. Could it have been suicide? Maybe, but not with a bullet hole in the victim's back.
Doing a professional courtesy for a doctor friend, Archie Goodwin and Nero Wolfe take their midnight ride to help him out. Have they just witnessed a murder over the phone? Who is Gloria? Comparing notes with the doctor, they find they've had the same phone call, from Gloria Farnsworth, a classmate of the doctor. Nero has long lost interest in the matter by the time the cops come calling.
Pilot episode, written and directed by Willis Cooper, creator of Lights Out, Quiet Please, and others. Presents a series of cases based on real crimes, but fictionalized for radio. In the vane of other shows like Dragnet, or the Black Museum, the names have been changed, and the crimes are presented in a matter of fact style, and sometimes brutal reality.