- Gang Busters
: "For the 1942 serial, see Gang Busters. For the role-playing game, see Gangbusters.----"Gang Busters" was an American dramatic
radio program heralded as "the only national program that brings you authentic police case histories." It premiered as "G-Men", sponsored byChevrolet , onJuly 20 ,1935 .After the title was changed to "Gang Busters"
January 15 ,1936 , the show had a 21-year run throughNovember 20 ,1957 . Beginning with a barrage of loudsound effects — a shrill police whistle, convicts marching in formation, police siren wailing, machine guns firing, and tires squealing — this intrusive introduction led to the popularcatchphrase "came on like "Gang Busters"."The series dramatized FBI cases, which producer-director Phillips H. Lord arranged in close association with Bureau director
J. Edgar Hoover . Hoover insisted that only closed cases would be used.The initial series was on
NBC Radio fromJuly 20 toOctober 12 , 1935. It then aired on CBS fromJanuary 15 , 1936 toJune 15 ,1940 , sponsored byColgate-Palmolive and "Cue" magazine. FromOctober 11 , 1940 toDecember 25 ,1948 , it was heard on theBlue Network , with various sponsors that included Sloan's Liniment,Waterman pens and Tide. Returning to CBS onJanuary 8 ,1949 , it ran untilJune 25 ,1955 , sponsored byGrape-Nuts andWrigley's chewing gum . The final series was on theMutual Broadcasting System fromOctober 5 , 1955 toNovember 27 ,1957 . It was once narrated byNorman Schwarzkopf, Sr. , former head of theNew Jersey State Police .The radio series was adapted for
DC Comics andBig Little Books .Universal Pictures made a very popular "Gang Busters"movie serial in 1942, starringKent Taylor andRalph Morgan . The 1952 "Gang Busters" TV series was reedited into two feature films, "Gang Busters" (1955, withMyron Healey as Public Enemy No. 4) and "Guns Don't Argue" (1957, with Healey asJohn Dillinger ).External links
* [http://www.freeotrshows.com/otr/g/Gangbusters.html Gang Busters - OTR - Old Time Radio (24 episodes)]
* [http://www.radiolovers.com/pages/gangbusters.htm Radio Lovers: "Gang Busters" (20 episodes)]
* [http://www.biglittlebooks.com/gangbusters.html "Gang Busters" Step In]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.