Gregory Hood (The Casebook of Gregory Hood)

Created by Anthony Boucher
(1911-1968)
and  Denis Green
(1905-1954)

Wealthy gentleman sleuth-about-town GREGORY HOOD was an antiquities importer whose search for various treasures took him all over the world, and whose acquisitions inevitably had interesting histories that were somehow always associated with a current-day mystery — a mystery that Hood, of course, would end up solving. He was aided at times by his attorney, and friend, Sanderson “Sandy” Taylor, but even flying solo, Hood was one dogged detective, tough when he had to be.

The job must have paid well. Hood, who had served in military intelligence, lived in a swank penthouse apartment on San Francisco’s Nob Hill, with an extensive rare wine collection, and a faithful (aren’t they all?) Chinese valet, Fong. A man of many interests and talents, Hood was an accomplished pianist, a self-taught forensics expert, a multi-multi-liguist, an acknowledged expert in ancient and modern armaments, wine and oriental tapestries.

Hood straddles that nebulous line between amateur and professional sleuth, but I think Gregory Hood actually does fit and should be included on this site. The so-called “amateur detective” or “unlicensed private investigator” was a recurring (and popular) theme for radio series at the time,  a common way of putting a different and fresh twist. The main character had a stated, non-investigative occupation, but he or she always got involved with solving mysteries and crimes. They pass the Chandler test: trouble was definitely their “real” business. They definitely aren’t of the Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys type of amateur sleuth.

The solving of the mystery and crime took up the bulk of the show. That makes them an investigator. Since they normally didn’t get involved with the police until they had the crime solved, they worked privately. The only difference between the this particular breed of “amateur detective” or “unlicensed private investigator” and standard P.I. was they didn’t have a license. They were generally disliked by the authorities even more than the licensed P.I.

Similar examples of this type are Casey, Crime Photographer and Rocky Fortune. The main character of Nightbeat, RANDY STONE, is of the same ilk perhaps, and is perhaps, one of the best.

The Casebook of Gregory Hood was initially a summer replacement for The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes in 1946 and had much in common with that series, including the same sponsor (Petri Wines), the same announcer, the same narrator, and the same music. But more than that, it shared the same writers (Boucher and Green) and the curious feature of the advertiser/announcer discussing the case with one or more of the lead actors. Unfortunately, only a very few of those episodes survive.

In fact, the whole series is hard to find, with few episodes surfacing, and particularly very little known about the series’ run on the ABC network, that sputtered to an end after one season in 1950 with a two-week run in 1951, with George Petrie (no relation to the show’s original sponsor, Petri Wines) taking over the role of Hood.

TRIVIA

Apparently, Hood was actually based on real-life importer Richard Gump, who lived in San Francisco, and served as a consultant for the program.

RADIO

• THE CASEBOOK OF GREGORY HOOD
  (1946-49 Mutual, 1950-51 ABC)
  Approximately 169 episodes
  First Broadcast: June 3, 1946
  Last Broadcast: October 10, 1951
  Writers: Anthony Boucher, Dennis Green, Ray Buffum
  Directors: Ned Tollinger, Frank Cooper, Lee Bolen, Martin Andrews and others
  Consultant: Richard Gump
  Producer: Frank Cooper
  Starring Gale Gordon as GREGORY HOOD
  (later played by Elliot Lewis, Jackson Beck, Paul McGrath, Martin Gable, and George Petrie)
  With Bill Johnstone (and later Howard McNear) as Sandy
  With John McGovern, Art Carney, Kathleen Cordell
  Announcer: Harry Bartell and others
  • SEASON ONE (Mutual)
  • “Three Silver Pesos” (June 3, 1946)
  • “Black Museum” June 10, 1946)
  • “The Murder of Gregory Hood” (June 17, 1946)
  • “Murder in Celluloid” (July 2, 1946)
  • “”South of the Border” (July 15, 1946)
  • “Red Capsule” (July 22, 1946)
  • “The Forgetful Murder” (July 29, 1946)
  • “Double Diamond” (August 5, 1946)
  • “The Daphne Bloggs Case” (September 1930, 1946)
  • “Tommy, The Saddest Clown in the World” (October 7, 1946)
  • “Eloquent Corpse” (October14, 1946)
  • “Gregory Hood, Suspect” (1948)
  • “The Sad Clown” (1948)
  • “The Three Silver Pesos” (June 3, 1946)
  • The Black Museum Adventure” (June 10, 1946)
  • “The Murder of Gregory Hood  (June 17, 1946)
  • “The Adventure of the Beeswax Candle” (June 24, 1946)
  • “Murder in Celluloid” (July 1, 1946)
  • “The Derringer Society” (July 8, 1946)
  • “South of the Border” (July 15, 1946)
  • “Death From The Red Capsule” (July 22, 1946)
  • “The Forgetful Murderer” (July 29, 1946)
  • “The Double Diamond” (August 5, 1946)
  • “The Secret Society” (August 12, 1946)
  • “The Mad Dancer” (August 19, 1946)
  • “The Ghost Town Mortuary” (August 26, 1946)
  • “Murder On the Archery Range” (September 2, 1946)
  • “Title Unknown” (September 9, 1946)
  • “The Missing Memoirs” (September 16, 1946)
  • “The Frightened Librarian” (September 23, 1946)
  • “Gregory Hood, Suspect” (September 30, 1946)
  • “The Sad Clown” (October 7, 1946)
  • “The Eloquent Corpse” (October 14, 1946)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 21, 1946)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 28, 1946)
  • “Confucius Didn’t Say” (November 4, 1946)
  • “The Tin Cup Mystery” (November 11, 1946)
  • “Title Unknown” (November 18, 1946)
  • “The White Masters” (November 25, 1946)
  • “Not Wise, But Too Well” (December 2, 1946)
  • “The Jade Tree” (December 9, 1946)
  • Pearls Are Unlucky” (December 16, 1946)
  • “The Spirit of Christmas” (December 23, 1946)
  • “The Payoff” (December 30, 1946)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 6, 1947)
  • “Nob Hill” (January 13, 1947)
  • “Fogbound” (January 20, 1947)
  • “The Missing Masterpiece” (January 27, 1947)
  • “Vengeance in Vegas” (February 3, 1947)
  • “Death Comes to The Wedding” (February 10, 1947)
  • “The Last Request” (February 17, 1947)
  • “The Innocent Lady” (February 24, 1947)
  • ‘The Blackmail Gang” (March 3, 1947)
  • “Incident In Istanbul” (March 10, 1947)
  • “The Brazen Killer” (March 17, 1947)
  • “What Killed Vaudeville?” (March 24, 1947)
  • “Where There’s A Will” (March 31, 1947)
  • “The Case of Lovers Lane” (April 7, 1947)
  • “Murder in Mexico” (April 14, 1947)
  • “Eye Witness” (April 21, 1947)
  • “The Mile-High Murder” (April 28, 1947)
  • “Fifth Avenue” (May 5, 1947)
  • “A Payoff to Murder” (May 12, 1947)
  • “The Face Card” (May 19, 1947)
  • “The Crown of Drasalines” (May 26, 1947)
  • SEASON TWO (Mutual)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 9, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 16, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 23, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 30, 1948)
  • “Adventure In Bagdad” (April 6, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (April 13, 1948)
    A cross-over episode, featuring Howard Duff as Sam Spade.
  • “Fixed Prize Fight ” (April 20, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (April 27, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 4, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 11, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 18, 1948)
  • “Aunt Bessie” (May 25, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (June 1, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (June 8, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (June 15, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (June 22, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (June 28, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (July 5, 1948)
  • Title Unknown” (July 12, 1948)
  • “Poor Little Rich Girl ” (July 19, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (July 26, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (August 2, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (August 9, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (August 16, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (August 23, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (August 30, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (September 6, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (September 13, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (September 20, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (September 27, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 4, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 11, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 18, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 25, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (November 1, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (November 8, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (November 15, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (November 22, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (November 29, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (December 6, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (December 13, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (December 20, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (December 27, 1948)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 3, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 10, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 17, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 24, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 31, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 8, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 15, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 22, 1949)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 29, 1949)
  • SEASON THREE (ABC)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 4, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 11, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 18, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (January 25, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (February 1, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (February 8, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (February 15, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (February 22, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 1, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 8, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 15, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 22, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (March 29, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (April 5, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (April 12, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (April 19, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (April 26, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 3, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 10, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 17, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 24, 1950)
  • “Title Unknown” (May 31, 1950)
  • SEASON FOUR (ABC)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 3, 1951)
  • “Title Unknown” (October 10, 1951)

COLLECTIONS

• The Casebook of Gregory Hood (2009) | Buy this book 
  Fourteen  complete scripts from the radio show, as well as an introduction by the editor, Joe R. Christopher.

Respectfully submitted by Stewart Wright. Additional info by Kevin Burton Smith, with special thanks to the Digital Deli Too for getting it right.