Podcast Summary: “This Is Your FBI: Crime in the Roaring 20's”

Podcast: Choice Classic Radio Detectives | Old Time Radio
Episode Title: This Is Your FBI: Crime in the Roaring 20's (01/04/1946)
Air Date: November 23, 2025 (original broadcast 1946)
Host: Choice Classic Radio

Episode Overview

This episode dives into the rise of organized crime following World War I by recreating a case from the FBI files, centered on Red Martin—a “delinquent youngster of 1917” who rises through the ranks of the underworld in the "Roaring Twenties." Via dramatization and commentary—modeled on the style of 1940s radio—the episode illustrates how post-war social upheaval can lead to increased criminal activity, paralleled ominously with the aftermath of World War II.

The episode weaves together dramatized scenes of gangsters, their criminal enterprise, and the FBI’s determined pursuit, with narration warning against complacency regarding crime in postwar America.

Key Discussion Points & Dramatic Highlights

1. Social Warning from the FBI (03:13–04:47)

• The narration opens with an urgent message from an impersonated J. Edgar Hoover, predicting increased crime after wars.

  • Quote:
    “After every great war, there has been a recession of moral fortitude. This one will be no exception... I fear, however, that this is wishful thinking.” — J. Edgar Hoover (03:56)

• Hoover draws parallels between the juvenile delinquents of WWI becoming the crime kingpins of the 1920s, suggesting history may repeat with WWII’s aftermath.

2. Enter Red Martin: Young Gangster’s Rise (04:47–08:56)

• Red Martin and his crew are depicted as ambitious, ruthless young crooks angling to move from “nickel and dime rackets” into major bootlegging operations.
• Red’s swagger and ambition set the tone for the type of criminal the episode seeks to warn against.
  • Quote:
    “Up to now, we’ve just been playing nickel and dime rackets. It’s time we graduated.” — Red Martin (06:49)
• A tense meeting with established bootlegger Legs Miller shows Red trying to muscle his way higher.
  • Rebuffed, Red promises, “Next time you and me get together, it’ll be you that gets the bounce.” (08:45)

3. Crime Escalates: Car Theft & Hijacking (09:24–12:23)

• Red and his gang escalate by stealing a car, hijacking a bootleg truck, and violently attacking rivals.
• The FBI agents begin to piece together the pattern of these interconnected crimes:
  • Quote:
    “The start of a new gang, eh? ...Let’s get busy and find out who they are and see how soon we can stop them.” — FBI Agents (12:25)

4. Loves and Double-Crosses: Soap Opera of Crime (14:18–19:02)

• Interludes show Red seducing Legs Miller’s girlfriend “Honey,” confirming his intention to take over not just the business, but every part of Miller’s life.

  • Quote:
    “I done research on you, honey. Now you see what I mean? I’m your kind of guy.” — Red Martin (15:49)

• Red’s ruthlessness culminates in shooting Legs Miller to seize control, after a deceptive confrontation where he turns on his own crew as well.

  • Memorable moment: Red threatens his own men, showing paranoia and brutality (18:44).

5. The FBI Closes In (19:41–26:17)

• The investigation continues with the FBI tracking the gang via clues: car purchases, Honey’s photo, and tailing her visits home.
• Agents employ patience, surveillance, and strategic thinking to locate Martin’s hideout.
  • Quote:
    “We’ll keep a 24 hour surveillance on the house and wait for Honey to show up.” — FBI Agents (25:47)

6. The Sting and the Fall (26:38–28:21)

• Red prepares for a showdown with a powerful rival but is outsmarted when the person entering isn’t Cicero, but FBI Special Agent Brown.
• The FBI arrests the whole gang in a coup de grâce:
  • Quote:
    “We just wanted to show you how easily you boys can be taken over. That’s all. Now drop your guns and file quietly downstairs.” — Special Agent Brown (28:02)

7. Aftermath and Moral Warning (28:21–29:20)

• The narrative closes, noting Red Martin is executed in the electric chair and his gang imprisoned. The episode’s narrator starkly warns the public about the ever-present risk of postwar crime waves.
  • Quote:
    “It happened before, it can happen here again. The FBI and your local law enforcement officers will fight it day and night. But it must be fought by all the people if it is to be licked. What are you doing about it in your community?” — Narrator (29:08)

Notable Quotes & Moments

| Timestamp | Character/Speaker | Quote | |-----------|-------------------|-------| | 03:56 | Narrator / Hoover | “After every great war, there has been a recession of moral fortitude... I fear...this is wishful thinking.” | | 06:49 | Red Martin | “Up to now, we’ve just been playing nickel and dime rackets. It’s time we graduated.” | | 08:45 | Red Martin | “Next time you and me get together, it’ll be you that gets the bounce.” | | 12:25 | FBI Agent | “The start of a new gang, eh? ...Let’s get busy and find out who they are and see how soon we can stop them.” | | 15:49 | Red Martin | “I done research on you, honey. Now you see what I mean? I’m your kind of guy.” | | 18:44 | Red Martin | “Any of you don’t want to play ball with me, line up against the wall and I’ll check you off right now.” | | 28:02 | Special Agent Brown| “We just wanted to show you how easily you boys can be taken over. That’s all.” | | 29:08 | Narrator | “It happened before, it can happen here again...What are you doing about it in your community?” |

Key Segments & Timestamps

• FBI’s introductory warning: 03:13–04:47
• Red Martin’s initial rise/bootleg proposal: 05:41–08:56
• First major heist (auto theft, hijack): 09:24–12:23
• Red woos Honey (Miller’s girlfriend): 14:18–15:49
• Red takes over by force: 17:11–19:02
• FBI investigation montage: 19:41–26:17
• The final sting and gang’s downfall: 26:38–28:21
• Closing moral/cautionary message: 28:21–29:20

Tone & Style

The episode employs sharp, fast-paced, old-time radio dialogue—brisk, punchy, and hard-boiled—in both the criminal dramatization and the official narration. The FBI is presented as methodical but deeply concerned about postwar youth crime, while the criminals are brash, ambitious, and ultimately doomed by their own violence and hubris.

Summary Takeaway

“This Is Your FBI: Crime in the Roaring 20’s” is both an action-packed radio thriller and a societal warning. Through Red Martin’s brief, violent career—from small-time hoodlum to gang kingpin, destroyed by his own ambition—the show offers a cautionary parallel between postwar crime surges of the 1920s and those feared in the 1940s. The ultimate message: battling the roots of crime requires vigilance not just from law enforcement, but from every American citizen.