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Drama & Anthology · Syndicated (Mayfair)

The Damon Runyon Theatre

January 2, 1949 – December 25, 1949 · 52 broadcasts

The Damon Runyon Theatre brought the Broadway short stories of newspaperman Damon Runyon to the air in 1949, dramatized by Alan Ladd's Mayfair Transcription Company for national syndication. Across 52 half-hour episodes, John Brown narrates as "Broadway," a wry insider who ushers listeners through the guys-and-dolls demimonde of gamblers, bookies, con men, chorus girls, and soft-hearted tough guys that Runyon made famous -- the same milieu that later inspired "Guys and Dolls" itself, with two episodes drawing directly from stories the musical was built on. Written by Russell Hughes and directed by Richard Sanville, the series renders Runyon's distinctive present-tense slang faithfully, moving between racetracks, nightclubs, and back-alley schemes with equal affection for the con and the con man. Broadway's voice holds it together: equal parts affectionate gossip and moral witness to a world of long odds, longer memories, and the occasional soft touch beneath the bluster.

Collection status: 52 of 52 held (100% complete)
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Episode Spine

1949

January 2, 1949 Tobias the Terrible Listen (MP3)
A meek little man's hunger to rub elbows with Broadway's underworld characters accidentally turns him into one of the toughest customers around.
January 9, 1949 Little Miss Marker Listen (MP3)
A bookie who never parts with a nickel finds himself minding a small girl left behind as security for a two-dollar bet.
January 16, 1949 Romance in the Roaring Forties Listen (MP3)
A Broadway doll draws the eye of both a devoted racketeer and a smitten newspaper columnist, and someone is bound to lose out.
January 23, 1949 The Lemon Drop Kid Listen (MP3)
A racetrack tipster gives up the hustle for love and an honest paycheck, only to discover honest living has its own hard luck.
January 30, 1949 A Nice Price Listen (MP3)
Three Broadway characters angle for long odds on the Harvard-Yale boat race after getting talked into unloading a stack of tickets.
February 6, 1949 The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown Listen (MP3)
A slick gambler falls hard for a straight-laced mission worker and sets out to win her good opinion, whatever it takes.
February 13, 1949 For a Pal Listen (MP3)
A blind man and his loyal young friend find their long bond tested when a woman comes between them.
February 20, 1949 Princess OHara Listen (MP3)
When a hack driver's daughter loses the use of her only horse, her Broadway friends borrow a champion racehorse to keep her business running.
February 27, 1949 Butch Minds the Baby Listen (MP3)
A retired safecracker's quiet night in with his baby son gets complicated when two edgy old acquaintances show up needing his particular skills.
March 6, 1949 Breach of Promise Listen (MP3)
A pair of small-time schemers set their sights on a lonely widow's stash of old love letters.
March 13, 1949 Dancing Dans Christmas Listen (MP3)
On Christmas Eve, a vengeful gunman comes looking for the ladies' man who danced with the wrong girl, and Broadway steps in to help.
March 20, 1949 Pick a Winner Listen (MP3)
A trip to the Florida racetracks turns strange when Broadway agrees to escort a coffin south in exchange for the train fare.
March 27, 1949 Hold Em Yale Listen (MP3)
Stuck with unsold football tickets, Broadway and his pals crash their first Ivy League game and get schooled on the sport by a young heiress.
April 3, 1949 The Brain Goes Home Listen (MP3)
A fixer who grew up without a home keeps three glamorous women on call as his make-believe family, until real trouble reveals who actually cared.
April 10, 1949 Blood Pressure Listen (MP3)
A quiet night spent worrying about his health sends Broadway spiraling into a wartime submarine memory he can't quite shake.
April 17, 1949 Old Ems Kentucky Home Listen (MP3)
A washed-up racehorse too slow even for a plodding pony gets one last trip home, courtesy of Broadway and her devoted owner.
April 24, 1949 Blonde Mink Listen (MP3)
A gambler's girlfriend demands an extravagant fur coat, and when he dies suddenly, an old friend learns exactly what kind of woman she really is.
May 1, 1949 Leopards Spots Listen (MP3)
A boxing manager's trip to a Philadelphia prizefight gets derailed by a burst appendix and a mysterious character called the Leopard Kid.
May 8, 1949 All Horse Players Die Broke Listen (MP3)
Broadway spins a cautionary tale about Lady Luck and the racetrack faithful who keep chasing her.
May 15, 1949 The Hottest Guy in the World Listen (MP3)
A hunted ex-convict, a dogged detective, a Broadway doll, and an honest-to-goodness gorilla collide in a story stranger than fiction.
May 22, 1949 A Piece of Pie Listen (MP3)
Broadway and a pal bet their winnings on a friend's pie-eating prowess, only to find love and a strict diet standing in the way.
May 29, 1949 Barbecue Listen (MP3)
A Florida storm strands Broadway and a pal at a roadside barbecue stand with an ex-wife, two dangerous men, and a small fortune in cash.
June 5, 1949 Lonely Heart Listen (MP3)
Fresh out of the hospital, a lovelorn friend decides it's finally time to find himself a wife, whether or not he's fully recovered.
June 12, 1949 Broadway Complex Listen (MP3)
A supposedly simple fellow proves to be a surprisingly well-read and watchful character.
June 19, 1949 Madame La Gimp Listen (MP3)
An aging, down-and-out woman scrambles to transform herself before her daughter arrives for a long-awaited visit.
June 26, 1949 Baseball Hattie Listen (MP3)
A ballplayer's fall from grace and a woman's rise trace opposite arcs in this sporting romance.
July 3, 1949 Big Umbrella Listen (MP3)
A heavyweight facing real trouble proves he's tougher than anyone expected once the pressure comes down.
July 10, 1949 Earthquake Listen (MP3)
A determined lawman chases a dangerously strong fugitive all the way to South America, with unexpected results.
July 17, 1949 The Bloodhounds of Broadway Listen (MP3)
Broadway learns that loyalty doesn't always come on four legs in this tale of unlikely devotion.
July 24, 1949 The Lily of St Pierre Listen (MP3)
A rough Broadway character's path crosses with an innocent Canadian girl's in a story of love gone sideways.
July 31, 1949 It Comes up Mud Listen (MP3)
A story of the Sport of Kings unfolds on the racetrack, echoing scenes later borrowed for Guys and Dolls.
August 7, 1949 Broadway Financier Listen (MP3)
A hard-edged young woman claws her way from nothing to a multimillion-dollar fortune off the back of one unlucky man.
August 14, 1949 Bred for Battle Listen (MP3)
The son of a famous prizefighter is expected to follow his father into the ring, whether he wants to or not.
August 21, 1949 So You Won't Talk Listen (MP3)
A murder investigation turns on the testimony of the most unlikely eyewitness imaginable.
August 28, 1949 Social Error Listen (MP3)
A partygoer's poor choice of etiquette among high society ends in gunplay.
September 4, 1949 Cemetery Bait Listen (MP3)
A condemned man's story gets a second telling, with a safecracker trying to make things right before it's too late.
September 11, 1949 Melancholy Dane Listen (MP3)
A theater outing to see a much-mocked actor play Hamlet turns into the strangest performance Broadway has ever witnessed.
September 18, 1949 Brakemans Daughter Listen (MP3)
A harmless-seeming practical joke spirals out of control, hitting more people than anyone intended.
September 25, 1949 The Lacework Kid Listen (MP3)
A gin rummy obsessive keeps his card habit alive even as a prisoner in a Nazi camp.
October 2, 1949 Maybe a Queen Listen (MP3)
A young woman's heart belongs to a poor man, but she ends up marrying royalty instead.
October 9, 1949 Joe Terrace Listen (MP3)
A famously careful typesetter finally slips up, and the mistake carries real consequences.
October 16, 1949 Lillian Listen (MP3)
Broadway draws an odd comparison between a cat and a struggling vaudeville act.
October 23, 1949 Palm Beach Santa Claus Listen (MP3)
A hefty grifter takes a society gig playing Santa Claus and ends up playing matchmaker instead.
October 30, 1949 Tight Shoes Listen (MP3)
A gangster's petty grudge costs a shoe clerk his job, setting off a chain reaction that turns a playboy into a reformer.
November 6, 1949 That Ever Lovin Wife of Hymies Listen (MP3)
Down to his last ten dollars, Broadway runs into an old friend convinced his newly bought horse is a sure thing.
November 13, 1949 A Light in France Listen (MP3)
Over dinner at Mindy's, Broadway hears a wartime story of courage out of Nazi-occupied France.
November 20, 1949 A Story Goes with It Listen (MP3)
A woman in a wheelchair needs an operation, and everything hinges on a long-shot bet called Never Despair.
November 27, 1949 Dark Dolores Listen (MP3)
A peacemaking trip to Atlantic City between rival gangs gets complicated by a mysterious woman with her own plans.
December 4, 1949 What No Butler Listen (MP3)
A murder sends Broadway and a critic friend digging for answers, with a burlesque show's casting trouble tangled up in it.
December 11, 1949 Neat Strip Listen (MP3)
A burlesque star and an upper-crust admirer make an unlikely match while the show scrambles to replace its outgoing headliner.
December 18, 1949 Sense of Humor Listen (MP3)
A practical joke between two rival racketeers escalates into a deadly game of one-upmanship.
December 25, 1949 Dream Street Rose Listen (MP3)
A once-glamorous, now-forgotten woman tells the story of a naive small-town waitress who falls for a worldly stranger, chasing one last measure of justice.
The Story

The Damon Runyon Theatre brought the Broadway short stories of newspaperman Damon Runyon to the air in 1949, dramatized by Alan Ladd's Mayfair Transcription Company for national syndication. Across 52 half-hour episodes, John Brown narrates as "Broadway," a wry insider who ushers listeners through the guys-and-dolls demimonde of gamblers, bookies, con men, chorus girls, and soft-hearted tough guys that Runyon made famous -- the same milieu that later inspired "Guys and Dolls" itself, with two episodes drawing directly from stories the musical was built on. Written by Russell Hughes and directed by Richard Sanville, the series renders Runyon's distinctive present-tense slang faithfully, moving between racetracks, nightclubs, and back-alley schemes with equal affection for the con and the con man. Broadway's voice holds it together: equal parts affectionate gossip and moral witness to a world of long odds, longer memories, and the occasional soft touch beneath the bluster.

Full story — coming soon while it's being curated.
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