Case Closed! (RelicRadio.com) - Episode Summary

Air Date: September 10, 2025
Featured Stories:

1. Broadway Is My Beat – “The Charles Crandall Murder” (May 12, 1951)
2. The Adventures Of Ellery Queen – “The Adventure of Nick the Knife” (Aug 1, 1945)

Episode Overview

This episode of Case Closed! immerses listeners in two thrilling investigations from the golden age of radio drama. The first story, Broadway Is My Beat, follows Detective Danny Clover as he delves into a tangled web of murder, robbery, and betrayal on the vibrant streets of 1950s New York. The second feature, The Adventures of Ellery Queen, challenges listeners with the infamous “Nick the Knife” serial attacks—a mysterious case that confounds police and ultimately tests Ellery Queen’s deductive brilliance.

1. Broadway Is My Beat – “The Charles Crandall Murder”

Starts at 00:35

Main Theme

Detective Danny Clover investigates the killing of a man found in a Broadway alley, uncovering a connection to a stolen ring, a mysterious femme fatale, and a desperate longshoreman.

Key Discussion Points & Plot Developments

• Scene Setting & Discovery of the Body

  • The episode opens with atmospheric, poetic narration of Broadway’s energy and darkness.
  • [01:07] Det. Danny Clover: “The web of blood in the alley was already dust heavy… his hand still clutched to the bullet wound as if he tried to claw out the pain. Never made it.”

• Initial Investigation

  • Clover and his partner Muggerman locate only a parking ticket (for Charles Crandall) and an expensive watch, but no ID on the deceased.
  • [02:40] Muggerman (re: the ticket): “It's a ticket for parking made out to Charles Crandall... He can snap his fingers at it now, huh?”

• Interviewing Suspects/Persons of Interest

  • At Crandall’s boarding house, his landlady, Mrs. Scully, describes him as upstanding, recently engaged to Rosemary, and a longshoreman.
    • [04:54] Mrs. Scully: “Rosemary…Nielsen is something. Rosemary. Such a nice name for a girl gonna be married.”
  • Clover finds Crandall alive at the docks and brings him to the morgue. Crandall’s account reveals:
    • He met a woman named Helen at Solly’s Bar. She offered to get him a ring “half price”, took his parking ticket, and later turned up murdered herself.
      • [09:17] Charles Crandall: “She told me there was a jewelry store down the street… to pick out any ring in the window I wanted.”

• Bar and Tenement Leads

  • Detective Clover chases Helen’s trail through Solly’s Bar and her rented room, only to find her strangled—tying her death to the jewelry scam and murder.
    • [12:00] Muggerman (on Helen): “I told her to stay out of here. What’d you want me to do, hit her over the head with the bat?”

• Jewelry Store Investigation

  • At Scully’s Jewelry Shop: Neither Mr. nor Mrs. Scully recognize photos of the dead, but oddities—like missing and misplaced items—emerge.
    • [16:08] Mrs. Scully: “My, my. Look at him.” (reacting to dead girl’s photo)
    • [17:04] Mr. Scully: “If I had a robbery, I’d know I’d been robbed, wouldn’t I?”

• Linking the Loot

  • A layaway customer, Miss Christie, reports a stolen watch that matches one found on the murder victim, further implicating Scully’s store in the ring of thefts.
    • [23:21] Detective Clover: “That watch have a gold face, gold wristband...”
    • [23:35] Muggerman: “That sounds like the watch we found on that guy in the alley.”

• Confrontation & Confessions

  • Detective Clover confronts Mr. Scully, with Mrs. Scully involuntarily revealing inconsistencies about a missing coat and keys—unraveling Scully’s string of lies.
    • [25:42] Mrs. Scully: “George, I’m not gonna lie for you… You might as well know that after all, you’ve done something wrong.”
  • It’s revealed that Scully’s carelessness and his secrets with Helen led to robberies and ultimately two murders. Under pressure, Scully admits involvement.
    • [27:10] Detective Clover: “Tell her you killed Johnny Malloy. Only he didn’t have the loot. He’d already given it to Helen. So you had to strangle her to get it."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Broadway’s Atmosphere
  • [01:07] Det. Danny Clover: "Broadway shimmers and languor walks the street. ...you stand and watch or follow the crowd and lend your heart to the whispered cry that this day, this time, will not get away from you. But it does. It always does."
• On Regret and Consequences
  • [26:14] Mrs. Scully: “You lied to me, George Scully… not this, George.”
  • [27:25] Mrs. Scully: "But you promised you wouldn't. And now look at you, George Scully. You're a murderer."

Resolution

• Justice is served as Scully is taken away and Mrs. Scully refuses to cover for him anymore. The episode closes with Clover’s signature melancholy reflection on the city:
  • [28:15] Det. Danny Clover: “In May, the night sighs down on Broadway like a rosy promise. …Broadway. My beat.”

2. The Adventures Of Ellery Queen – “The Adventure of Nick the Knife”

Starts at 30:11

Main Theme

A city is terrorized by a serial slasher known as “Nick the Knife”. With victims chosen seemingly at random, Ellery Queen and his father, Inspector Queen, must find the elusive criminal before he strikes again.

Key Discussion Points & Plot Developments

• Opening & Serial Attacks

  • The city is gripped by fear as young women are slashed by an unseen assailant.
    • [34:14] News: “…31st weekly victim since he launched his mysterious one man terror wave last Christmas Eve…”

• Police Frustration and Queen’s Involvement

  • Inspector Queen, overwhelmed, turns to Ellery for help. Ellery observes that only the regularity of the attacks and their profiling (attractive women) stand out.
    • [35:07] Inspector Queen: “I wish I could, Mickey. …the best you can hope for is a lucky break.”
  • Victim, Jane Stepley, is found—unusual for being "homely".

• Multiple Suspects and Red Herrings

  • Three men found at the crime scene maze—each suspect has plausible reasons to be suspected (ex-psychiatric patient, drug addict, butcher).
    • [40:30] Ellery Queen: “That’s your knife, Snow, isn’t it?”
    • [41:27] Nicky: “Recall this man’s wife left him for another man… tried to kill her with a knife.”

• Victim Interviews & Dead Ends

  • Jane, the victim, can’t positively identify her attacker; all three suspects are eliminated by logistical or psychological means.
  • Ellery Queen proposes a trap at the country hospital with the three main suspects as bait, but during the trap, another attack occurs in the city.
    • [50:37] Nikki: “Ellery, don’t tell me.”
    • [50:38] Ellery: “Yes, Nicky. Now I know who Nick the Knife is.”

• Brilliant Deduction & Twist Ending

  • Ellery realizes there were five people in the maze, not four—the fifth being Jane Stepley herself. She staged an attack on herself to throw off suspicion, having been the actual perpetrator all along.
    • [52:40] Ellery Queen: “There were five—five? Who was the fifth? Jane Stepley herself.”
    • [54:02] Ellery Queen: “She very nearly got away with it, poor thing.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Madness of the City & Investigation:
  • [39:38] Nikki: “The inspector was cruising… right in the parkway.”
  • [42:06] Hodges: “Isn’t that tree green?”
• On Deduction Logic:
  • [52:01] Nicky: “With three of the four possibilities eliminated, the fourth must be guilty. And that’s you. How’s my logic, Mr. Queen?”
  • [52:48] Ellery Queen: “Jane Stepley herself… This homely woman, brooding over unattractiveness, became psychotic and began hunting and attacking girls who were pretty.”

Resolution

• The true killer is revealed as the seemingly unremarkable Jane Stepley, whose jealousy and psychological distress drove her to attack others and eventually herself in an effort to elude capture. The conclusion is somber and thought-provoking—a classic Queen twist.

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Time | Segment | Notes | |---------|-------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------| | 00:35 | Start of “Broadway Is My Beat” | Atmospheric intro by Clover | | 02:40 | Parking ticket clue revealed | “It’s a ticket… Charles Crandall” - Muggerman | | 06:04 | Interview with Crandall | Crandall alive, taken to morgue | | 09:17 | Crandall’s story of Helen & ring | “She told me there was a jewelry store…” | | 13:30 | Helen found murdered | Dead end comes to life | | 15:16 | Scully’s Jewelry Store investigation | Mr. & Mrs. Scully questioned | | 23:21 | Stolen watch connection | Layaway plan customer | | 25:42 | Mrs. Scully confronts George | “I’m not gonna lie for you…” | | 27:10 | Murder confession | “Tell her you killed Johnny Malloy.” | | 28:15 | Clover’s poetic closing | | | 30:11 | Start of “Ellery Queen: Nick the Knife” | Narrator’s cold open | | 34:14 | News bulletin—serial slasher escalation | 31st weekly victim | | 35:07 | Inspector Queen asks Ellery for help | | | 40:30 | Suspects questioned | Knife discovered | | 47:14 | Queen’s trap set at hospital | | | 50:37 | New city attack–twist | No suspects could be guilty | | 52:48 | Queen’s deduction: Jane Stepley is killer | |

Episode Tone and Language

Both stories blend hardboiled noir with wry observation, deep emotion, and classic radio drama stylings. The dialogue is punchy, laced with period slang, and the characters’ introspection and wit bring depth to the suspense.

• Det. Clover’s melancholic, lyrical narration sets a darkly poetic, urban mood.
• Ellery Queen’s segment weaves efficient deduction with moments of dry humor and humanity.

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This installment of Case Closed! weaves two intricate tales of mystery—one an atmospheric New York murder investigation that explores ordinary lives derailed by greed and desperation; the other a serial slasher case with a devastating psychological twist. Both keep the listener guessing until the final moments, delivering classic golden-age radio suspense and drama.

For full shows and more golden-age radio mysteries, visit relicradio.com.