We're celebrating Orson Welles' birthday with two of the legendary actor and director's old time radio performances. First, Welles leads us on a tour of The Black Museum, Scotland Yard's archive of murder. He narrates the tale of a faded tartan scarf wielded in the hands of a dangerous man. Then he recreates his big screen role from The Third Man in The Lives of Harry Lime. We'll hear Harry in the syndicated mystery "Mexican Hat Trick."

We're back in the saddle this week with Joel McCrea in Tales of the Texas Rangers. As Ranger Jayce Pearson, McCrea keeps the Lone Star State safe in true crime stories. We'll hear "Fool's Gold" (originally aired on NBC on August 19, 1950) and "The White Suit" (originally aired on NBC on November 5, 1950).

It's the fifth anniversary of Down These Mean Streets and the 69th anniversary of the premiere of Richard Diamond, Private Detective. To celebrate both, here's an extra-large episode starring Dick Powell as Diamond. Radio's singing detective gets his man and carries a tune in "The Ralph Chase Case" (originally aired on NBC on May 15, 1949); "The Harry Baker Case" (originally aired on NBC on September 3, 1949); "The Grey Man" (originally aired on ABC on February 16, 1951); and "The Hollywood Story" (originally aired on CBS on August 23, 1953).

Bob Bailey is back on the job in another five-part adventure of Johnny Dollar - "the man with the action-packed expense account." Join America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator as he crosses swords with a twentieth century pirate to learn what happened to a sunken ship in "The Jolly Roger Fraud" (originally aired on CBS between March 19 and March 23, 1956).

Nero Wolfe, Rex Stout's gargantuan gourmet, is back! His career as a radio detective began 75 years ago this month, and we're marking the occasion with two of his on-air adventures. Sydney Greenstreet plays the eccentric sleuth (with Larry Dobkin as loyal legman Archie Goodwin) in "The Case of the Friendly Rabbit" (originally aired on NBC on December 1, 1950). Then, we'll hear an early Wolfe radio adventure – "The Last Laugh Murder Case," broadcast on the Armed Forces Radio Service's Mystery Playhouse.

In honor of his birthday, we'll hear Jack Webb in a pair of old time radio performances - roles that show off a side of the actor/director's persona very different from Sgt. Joe Friday. In "Jack of Clubs" (originally aired on ABC on February 20, 1949), he's waterfront shamus Pat Novak For Hire. Then, he's an unscrupulous private eye who dabbles in crime in "Perfect Alibi" from The Whistler (originally aired on CBS on June 12, 1949).

During his nearly three decade run on radio, Les Damon starred as several detectives - Dashiell Hammett's Nick Charles, the debonair private eye known as the Falcon, and half of the husband and wife duo the Abbotts. We'll hear Damon as Nick in "The Strange Case of Professor Waigner" from The Adventures of the Thin Man; as Mike Waring - The Falcon - in "The Case of the Big Talker" (originally aired on NBC on April 29, 1951); and as Pat Abbott in "The Case of the Blood-Red Diamond" from Adventures of the Abbotts.

One of the busier actors on radio, Frank Lovejoy starred in everything from soap operas to superhero adventures, from tales of Suspense to the urban newspaper drama Night Beat. We'll hear him in three old time radio shows: as The Amazing Mr. Malone in "Cleanliness is Next to Godliness" (originally aired on ABC on August 28, 1948); in "Danger at Matecumbe" from Escape (originally aired on CBS on March 24, 1950); and finally as Randy Stone in Night Beat in "Old Blind Pop" (originally aired on August 7, 1950).

It's Broadway - "the gaudiest, the most violent, the lonesomest mile in the world." Join Detective Danny Clover as he walks the Great White Way in Broadway is My Beat. Larry Thor stars as the sensitive sleuth in "The Max Wendell Murder Case" (an AFRS rebroadcast of a show from April 28, 1950) and in "The Howard Crawford Murder Case" (originally aired on CBS on August 5, 1951).

In a special bonus episode, we'll hear a trio of radio detectives who were nominated for Academy Awards. Though they didn't bring home an Oscar, they still won a place in our hearts for their on-air crime solving prowess. Sydney Greenstreet stars as Nero Wolfe in "Stamped for Murder" (originally aired on October 20, 1950). Then, Jeff Chandler is Michael Shayne in "The Case of the Mail-Order Murders." Finally, William Gargan is Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator in "The Schemers" (originally aired on NBC on April 6, 1954).