The Man Called X (1944-45, 1946, 1947-48, 1950-52) aired “Journey to Xenophon” on November 16, 1947 as the 33rd episode of the 78 broadcast during the 1947-48 run. This is the 8th episode we have showcased since February of 2019 and only the second in 3 years, the last coming in January of 2025. Estimates are that there were 227 episodes from all years and that only 103 still exist, with 98 coming from the 1947-48 and 1950-52 runs. Well known and highly regarded British actor Herbert Marshall (1890-1966) played Ken Thurston, known as the eponymous Man Called X. He was an intelligence agent for the British, much as Brian Donlevy played undercover intelligence operative Steve Mitchell for the Americans in Dangerous Assignment. Marshall would star in all but three or four episodes of what came to be known as his series, and that includes every episode from 1944 through 1952, during which time he could be seen in any number of Hollywood films, appearing in varying roles with stars such as Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Bette Davis, Katherine Hepburn, Joan Crawford, Fredric March, Tony Curtis, Rex Harrison, and others too numerous to mention. Of genre interest he appeared as Inspector Charas in 1958’s classic SF film The Fly, which starred Vincent Price. Marshall lost his right leg in World War I, and wishing to do his part but unable to fight in WWII, at his own expense he traveled to numerous military hospitals in the United States and encouraged other amputees to remain positive and not think of themselves as handicapped. He would also appear often on the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS) as host of the popular war-time program The Globe Theater. From his other war-time projects as well as several films in which he starred, the proceeds went to several war charities. Marshall had not only worked in film since 1927 as both character actor and leading man, but along with his role in The Man Called X would have roles in at least a half dozen other radio programs, and would work in television in his later years, including two episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and a recurring role in 77 Sunset Strip (1958-64). For his achievements in all of these media Marshall received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.

“Journey to Xenophon” takes us to the titular Greek island, but begins with a distraught and grieving mother appearing in a government office pleading for help. Two men had approached her months before, telling her that they could send her sick son, living on a Greek island, some life-saving medicine if she would only give them $100 for the medicine (streptomycin) and their expenses. But now, months later, she has not heard from them and her son might be dying for lack of the medicine he so desperately required. This piques the interest of Ken Thurston’s boss, and after some quick research pointing to a smuggling enterprise dealing in black market drugs, Thurston is off to the Mediterranean on what proves to be a most dangerous missions as he attempts to save many lives by recovering the “lost at sea” medicine from the bottom of the Mediterranean, making his “Journey to Xenophon” one of his most successful and rewarding cases.

Play Time: 21:49

{“Journey to Xenophon” aired on a Sunday evening in mid-November of 1947. After school the following afternoon the neighborhood gang headed for the nearby newsstand for more adventure, though now via the detective story, it also providing the kind of excitement where the good guys battled the bad guys as they had the night before in The Man Called X episode. Street & Smith’s Detective Story (1915-1953) was the first pulp devoted to detective fiction. Its title was simply Detective Stories until the February 1931 issue when it added its publisher’s name Street & Smith’s to Detective Story, a name that stuck for the remainder of its 34 year run. It was a monthly in 1947. Dime Detective (1931-1953) was Popular Publication’s most profitable of its line of detective pulps, ending its run with a total of 274 issues, many being monthly. It too was a monthly in 1947. Ten Detective Aces (1928-1949) went through two title changes before settling on its current title. It began with stories focusing on gangsters and organized crime, but as the interest in them faded it switched to a more straightforward detective pulp, helping it flourish for an amazing total of 16 years following the final name change. It was a bi-monthly in 1947 but managed only 5 of its 6 planned issues.}

[Left: Detective Story, 11/47 – Center: Dime Detective, 11/47 – Right: Ten Detective Aces, 11/47]

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