Mollé Mystery Theater (1943-51) aired “Red Wine” on March 8, 1946 as the 113th of its estimated 237 episodes from its 1943-48 original run before it switched to CBS for its final 3 years, of which only 73 of the 237 are known to still remain in circulation. It would exist under several name changes for another six years or so, and as noted would switch from its original network, NBC, to CBS (1948-51), and then ABC. Its glory years as a first class mystery show are acknowledged as those comprising its original incarnation at NBC (i.e. 1943-48).

“Red Wine” is but the 5th episode of this fine show we have offered here. The first of the previous four came in September of 2018 and the latter three appeared in 2019 with the last coming in September of 2019, over two and one-half years ago.

(CD top left includes “Red Wine,” remastered for superior audio quality. Top right: bottle of 1931 vintage red wine.)

“Red Wine” is the story of a member of the San Francisco police department on the trail of a murderer. It has led him to Brazil, the Amazon jungle, and four men working on a rubber plantation there. The hard-won clues have led him to four men sitting around a table in a room playing cards, gambling. He is sure one of them is his killer, but one of the methods he was sure would expose the killer has failed and he finds himself back at square one. Or does it? Listen to this intellectual game between cop and killer, hunter and hunted, in a classic chess game of the sort I think of as a Columbo-type mystery, where the answer is revealed in one overlooked detail that trips the killer up. The late, great Richard Widmark is featured in this clever drama, making it an even more interesting episode.

Play Time: 29:36

{“Red Wine” aired on a Saturday evening in early March of 1946, making it a sure bet the neighborhood gang would hit the nearby newsstand after church the next day, looking for more detective or mystery fare. As always, Black Mask (1920-51) was a sure buy, having proved its unparalleled quality many times over. Though a bi-monthly, for some reason it published 7 issues in 1946. Dime Mystery (1932-50) began as more or less a standard mystery magazine, but before long found its audience with stories of “weird menace,” which it would run throughout the remainder of its almost two-decade history. It was a bi-monthly in 1946. New Detective (1941-55), as mentioned in previous OTR episodes in this feature, began running standard detective fare but soon switched to stories with an emphasis on police detectives which proved to be its bread and butter. Like Black Mask, it too, for some reason, ended up publishing 7 issues in 1946 though it was a bi-monthly by any other metric.}

[Left: Black Mask, March 1946 – Center: Dime Mystery, Feb. 1946 – Right: New Detective, March 1946]

To view the entire list of weekly Old Time Radio episodes at Tangent Online, click here.