Jack Packard, Doc Long & Reggie York (I Love a Mystery)

Created by Carlton E. Morse
(1901-93)

“No job too tough, no mystery too baffling.”
— The Triple A-1 Detective Agency Motto

AN EXTREMELY popular radio show in there 1940s, I Love Mystery followed the adventures of three men who met while fighting with the Chinese against the Japanese in World War II. Upon their return Stateside, they set up the Los Angeles Triple A-1 Detective Agency, specializing in crime and adventure.

Although the A-1 office is “just off Hollywood Boulevard and one flight up,” their cases take them all over the world, where they invariably come across long-lost civilizations, bizarre situations, eccentric characters, oddball settings and plenty of werewolves, ghosts, vampires, monsters, zombies, etc. — a heady brew that fans of Scooby-D00 would instantly recognize (the real villains, of course,  always turned out to be humans).

Adding to the suspense was the fact that, while most radio drama episodes clocked in at thirty minutes once a week, I Love a Mystery was presented as fifteen-minute episodes aired each weekday, with each show ending in some sort of cliffhanger, allowing each story to continue, day after day, for weeks. The kids must have gone completely ga-ga banannas over this stuff!

JACK PACKARD was the nominative leader — a tough, unsentimental type, with no use for women. DOC LONG was the tall, red-headed, woman-chasin’ Texan with an over-the-top shitkickin’ drawl, and REGGIE YORK, the youngest of the trio,  was the cool, chivalric Brit (with appropriate accent, of course, although originally he was written as a Canadian from Montreal).

The radio series made its debut in 1939 on the NBC Blue Network, where it enjoyed comfortable ratings. Reggie, however, was written out of the show in the third season after the untimely death of Walter Patterson, the actor who had played him. Which is when the agency acquired faithful secretaries Jerri Brooker and Mary Kay Brown (“the cutest l’il ol’ secretary to ever fill out a dress so nice,” according to Doc), to hold down the homefront while the Jack and Doc continued to bounce around the globe.

The show moved over to CBS in March of 1943, wrapping in up in December 1944.

But people loved the show, and wanted more, and the demand resulted in three feature films, all quickly churned out in the next few years. 1945’s I Love a Mystery was the first and is generally considered the best of them. It had Jack and Doc involved in a strange Oriental cult and a bizarre prophecy. George Macready was evidently outstanding as a man plagued by his fear of decapitation, not that I’m all at ease with it myself. 1946 brought two more films: The Devil’s Mask (shrunken heads and a murder or two, far-fetched, but quite entertaining) and The Unknown (a ghost or two, a family of crazies, an abandoned Southern mansion, plenty of melodrama and, yes, murder). None of them are classics, but they’re all enjoyable enough, well-shot,  reasonably acted, and a cut above most B-films. The plots, while high-strung at times, even made sense. Sorta.

Still, the films must have done reasonably well, because in 1949, Mutual revived the series, moving production to New York City and adding a new cast (including a young Tony Randall as Reggie), some new scripts and some re-done old ones, eventually signing off for good  in December 1952.

Over the next few decades, there were a few attempts over the years to cash in on the show’s popularity, including a 1967 made-for-television flick that was a misguided attempt to “send up” the old radio show. It was heavily influenced by, according to William DeAndrea, “Avengers-style whimsy and Batman-style-camp.” Evidently, even the producers thought it stank, because it sat unaired for six or so years, before it was eventually released upon an unsuspecting publics aired in 1973. In the eighties there was an comic strip, scripted by Morse himself, and drawn by  long-time fan Don Sherwood, but it only ran for about a year, mostly in the UK.

RADIO

• I LOVE A MYSTERY
  (1939-1942, NBC Blue; 1943-44, CBS)
  15-minute episodes, Monday to Friday, or 30 minute episodes, aired twice weekly
  Created by Carlton E. Morse
  Written by Carlton E. Morse
  Directed by Mel Bailey
  Theme: Valse Triste by Silelius
  Starring Michael Raffretto as JACK PACKARD
  Barton Yarborough as DOC LONG
  and Walter Patterson as REGGIE YORK
  with Gloria Blondell (Joan’s sis) as Jerri Booker
  • SEASON ONE (NBC)
    15 minute episodes, five times weekly
  • “The Case Of The Roxy Mob” (January 16-february 4, 1939; 14 episodes)
  • “Trouble At Sea” (February 3-20, 1939, 12 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Nevada Man Killer” February 21-March 27,1939; 25 episodes)
  • “Turn Of The Wheel” (March 29-April 25, 1939,; 20 episodes)
  • “Whose Body Got Buried?” (April 26-may 16; 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Escapade Of The Desert Hog” (May 17-june 6; 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Blood On The Border” ( June 7-27, 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Flight To Death” (June 28-july 18, 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Murder Hollywood Style” (July 19- August 8, 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Incident Concerning Death” (August 9-29, 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Battle Of The Century” (August 30-September 22, 1939; 18 episodes)
  • “Blue Phantom” (October 2-20, 1939; 15 episodes, first network show)
  • “The Fear That Crept Like A Cat” (October 23-November 17, 1939; 20 episodes)
  • “The Thing That Cried In The Night” (November 20-December 8, 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “Bury Your Dead, Arizona” (December 11-December 29, 1939; 15 episodes)
  • “San Diego Murders” (January 1-19, 1940; 15 episodes)
  • “Temple Of Vampires” (January 22February 6, 1940; 20 episodes)
  • “Brooks Kidnapping” (February 19-March 8, 1940; 15 episodes)
  • “Murder In Turquoise Pass” (March 11-29, 1940; 15 episodes
  • “The Snake With The Diamond Eyes” (April 1-May 6, 1940; 26 episodes).
  • SEASON TWO (NBC)
    30 Minutes episodes, aired twice weekly
  • “The Tropics Don’T Call It Murder” (September 30-December 26, 1940; 26 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Transplanted Castle” (January 6-March 6, 1941; 18 episodes)
  • “Murder On February Island” (March 10-May 8, 1941; 18 episodes)
  • “Eight Kinds Of Murder” (May 12-July 3, 1941; 16 episodes
  • SEASON THREE (NBC)
    30-minute episodes, aired twice weekly
  • “The Monster In The Mansion” (October 6-November 27, 1941; 16 episodes)
  • “Secret Passage To Death” (December 1-February 5, 1942; 20 episodes
  • “Terror Of Frozen Corpse Lodge” (February 9-April 9, 1942; 18 episodes)
  • “Pirate Loot of The Island of Skulls” (April 13-July 6, 1942; 26 episodes
  • SEASON FOUR (CBS)
    A returns to 15-minute episodes, aired five times a week
  • “The Girl In The Gilded Gage” (March 2-April 9, 1943; 15 episodes)
  • “Blood Of The Cat” (April 12-May 7, 1943; 20 episodes)
  • “The Killer Of Circle M” (May 10-June 4, 1943; 20 episodes
  • “Stairway To The Sun” (June 7-july 16, 1943; 30 episodes)
  • “The Graves Of Whamperjaw, Texas” (July 19-August 6, 1943; 15 episodes)
  • “Murder Is The Word For It” (August 9-27, 1943; 15 episodes)
  • “The Decapitation Of Jefferson (August 30-October 1, 1943; 25 episodes)
  • “My Beloved Is A Vampire” (October 4-November 5, 1943; 25 episodes)
  • “The Hermit Of San Felipe Atabapo” (November8-December 3, 1943; 20 episodes)
  • “The Deadly Sin Of Richard Coyle” (December 6-24, 1943; 15 episodes)
  • “The Twenty Traders Of Timbuktu” (December 27-February 24, 1944; 44 episodes)
  • “The African Jungle Mystery” (February 28-March 24, 1944; 20 episodes)
  • “The Widow With The Amputation” (March 27-April 21, 1944; 20 episodes)
  • “I Am The Destroyer Of Women” (April 24-May 12, 1944; 15 episodes)
  • “You Can’t Pin A Murder On Navada” (May 15-June 2, 1944; 15 episodes)
  • “The Corpse In Compartment C, Car 75 (June 5-9, 1944; 5 episodes)
  • “The Thing That Wouldn’t Die” June 12-July 7, 1944; 20 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Terrified Comedian” (July 10-August 7, 1944; 21 episodes)
  • “The Man Who Hated To Shave” (August8-21, 1944; 10 episodes)
  • “Temple Of Vampires” (August 22-August 18, 1944; 20 episodes)
  • “The Bride Of The Werewolf” (August 19-September 9, 1944; 15 episodes)
  • “The Monster In The Mansion” (September 10-November 9, 1944; 23 episodes)
  • “Portrait Of A Murderess” (November 16-December 13, 1944; 20 episodes)
  • “Find Elsa Holberg, Dead Or Alive” (December 14-29, 1944; 12 episodes; last show from Hollywood)
• I LOVE A MYSTERY
  (1949-52, Mutual)
  15 minute episodes, aired five times/week
  Created by Carlton E. Morse
  Written by Carlton E. Morse
  Directed by Mel Bailey
  Theme: Valse Triste by Silelius
  Starring Russell Thorson as JACK PACKARD
  Jim Boles as DOC LONG
  and Tony Randall as REGGIE YORK
  Also starring Mercedes Mccambridge
  • “The Fear That Creeps Like A Cat” (September 3-28, 1949; 20 episodes; first show from New York)
  • “The Thing That Cries in the Night” (September 31-November 18, 1949; 15 episodes)
  • “Bury Your Dead, Arizona” (November 21-December 9, 1949; 15 episodes)
  • “The Million Dollar Curse” (December 12-30, 1949; 15 episodes)
  • “Temple Of Vampires” (January 2-27, 1950; 20 episodes)
  • “Battle Of The Century” (January 30-February 22, 1950; 18 episode)
  • “The Tropics Don’T Call It Murder” (February 23-March 30, 1950; 26 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Nevada Man Killer” (March 31-May 4, 1950; 25 episodes)
  • “The Turn Of The Wheel” (May 5-June 1, 1950; 20 episodes)
  • “The Blue Phantom Murders” (June 2-22, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “The Snake With The Diamond Eyes” (June 23-July 28, 1950; 26 episodes)
  • “Flight To Death” (July 31-August 18, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “Murder In Turquoise Pass” (August 21-September 8, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “Whose Body Got Buried?” (September 11-29, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “Escapade Of The Desert Hog” (October 2-20, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “Blood On The Border” (October 23-November 10, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “Trouble At Sea” (November 13-28, 1950; 12 episodes)
  • “Incident Concerning Death” (November 29-December 19, 1950; 15 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Roxy Mob” (December 20, 1950-January 6, 1951; 14 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Transplanted Castle” (January 9-February 1, 1951; 18 episodes)
  • “Murder Of February Island” (February 2-27, 1951; 18 episodes)
  • “The Monster In The Mansion” (February 28-30, 1951; 23 episodes)
  • “Eight Kinds Of Murder” (April 2-23, 1951; 16 episodes)
  • “Secret Passage To Death” (April 24-May 21, 1951; 20 episodes)
  • “Terror Of Frozen Corpse Lodge” (May 22-June 14, 1951; 18 episodes)
  • “The Pirate Loot Of The Island of Skulls” (June 15-July 20, 1951; 26 episodes)
  • “Brooks Kidnapping” (July 23-August 10, 1951; 15 episodes)
  • “Murder Hollywood Style” (August 13-31, 1951; 15 episodes)
  • “The Girl In The Gilded Cage” (August 3-21, 1951; 15 episodes)
  • “Blood On The Cat” (August 24-October19, 1951; 20 episodes)
  • “The Case Of The Terrified Comedian” (October 22-November 16, 1951; 20 episodes)
  • “The Killer Of The Circle M” (November 19-December 14, 1951; 20 episodes)
  • “Murder Is The Word For It” (December 17, 1951-January 4, 1952; 15 episodes)
  • “Stairway To The Sun” (January 7-February 15, 1952; 30 episodes)
  • “The Graves Of Whamperjaw, Texas” (February 18-March 5, 1952; 15 episodes)
  • “The Decapitation Of Jefferson Monk” (March 10-April 11, 1952; 25 episodes)
  • “My Beloved Is A Vampire (April 14-May 16, 1952; 25 episodes)
  • “The Hermit Of San Felipe Atabaro” (May 19-June 13, 1952; 19 episodes)
  • “The Deadly Sin Of Sir Richard Coyle” (June 16-July 4, 1952; 15 episodes)
  • “The Man Who Hated To Shave” (July 7-July 18, 1952; 10 episodes)
  • “The African Jungle Mystery” (July 21-August 15, 1952; 20 episodes)
  • “The Cobra King Strikes Back” (September1-26, 1952; 20 episodes)
  • “The Widow With The Amputation” (September 30-October 27, 1952; 20 episodes)
  • “I Am The Destroyer Of Women” (October 28-November 19, 1952; 15 episodes)
  • “The Bride Of The Werewolf” (November 20-December 10, 1952; 15 episodes)
  • “Find Elsa Holberg, Dead Or Alive” (December 11-26, 1952; 12 episodes)

FILMS

 

• I LOVE A MYSTERY | Buy this movie
  (1945, Columbia)
  Based on the radio serial “The Decapitation of Jonathan Monk” by Carlton E. Morse
  Screenplay by Charles O’Neal
  Directed by Henry Levin
  Starring Jim Bannon as JACK PACKARD
  and Barton Yarborough as DOC LONG
  with George Macready as Jefferson Monk
  Also starring Carole Matthews, Lester Matthews, Nina Foch
  The first and arguably best of the films, based on an actual story arc from the radio show. Reggie isn’t here, because by then he’d been written out of the show after the untimely demise of Walter Patterson, who’d played the character.
• THE DEVIL’S MASK  | Buy this movie
  (1946, Columbia)
  Based on characters created by Carlton E. Morse
  Based on an original story by Morse
  Screenplay by Charles O’Neal
  Directed by Henry Levin
  Starring Jim Bannon as JACK PACKARD
  and Barton Yarborough as DOC LONG
  Also starring Anita Louise, Michael Duane, Mona Barrie, Ludwig Donath
• THE UNKNOWN  | Buy this movie  | Watch it now!
  (1946, Columbia)
  Based on characters created by Carlton E. Morse
  Based on an original story by Morse
  Screenplay by Malcolm Stuart Boylan and Julian Harmon
  Adaptation by Charles O’Neal and Dwight Babcock.
  Starring Jim Bannon as JACK PACKARD
  and Barton Yarborough as DOC LONG
  Also starring Karen Morley, Jeff Donnell, Mark Roberts, Robert Wilcox, James Bell,  Wilton Graff, Helen Freeman

TELEVISION

• I LOVE A MYSTERY
  (1966, Universal)
  First broadcast February 27, 1973
  Based on characters created by Carlton E. Morse
  Screenplay by Leslie Stevens
  Directed by Leslie Stevens
  Produced by Frank Price
  Starring Les Crane as JACK PACKARD
  David Hartman as DOC LONG
  and Hagan Biggs as REGGIE YORK
  Also starring Jack Weston, Don Knotts, Terry-Thomas, Melodie Johnson, Karen Jansen, Deanna Lund
  Bad. Very bad. This made-for-television movie (and potential pilot?) was a poorly conceived attempt to cash in on Batman-era camp. How bad? It say unaired for six or seven years.

COMICS

• I LOVE A MYSTERY
  (1985, Editors Press Service)
  Syndicated comic strip
  Written by Carlton E. Morse and Kamillia Chadwick
  Art by Don Sherwood
  Stories abound on the internet that there was an actual I Love a Mystery comic book released in the forties, but so far no credible evidence has surfaced. When approached by Street & Smith about a potential comic book in 1943, creator Carlton E. Morse wasn’t particularly enthusiastic, “It’s cheap and childish, and it would harm the program.”  Years later, Morse did relent, and a newspaper strip ran, with scripts by Morse and drawn by long-time fan Don Sherwood. The strip was not widely circulated in the US or Canada, although it did make it to Europe, where it appeared in one of the national newspapers in Great Britain for at least one year. Years later, one of the stories was published as a graphic novel by Moonstone Comics in 2004.
  • STORY ARCS (Incomplete)
  • “Secret Passage to Death”
  • “The Fear That Crept like a Cat”
• I LOVE A MYSTERY: THE FEAR THAT CREPT LIKE A CAT | Buy this book
  (2004, Moonstone Comics)
  Rounds up the story arc from the 1985 comic strip, itself an adaption of the 1939 nstory arc from the radio show.

NOVELS

• Stuff the Lady’s Hatbox (1988) | Buy this book
  The only I Love a Mystery novel by Morse. He did however write two previous novels, both standalone, A Lavish of Sin (1987) and Killer at the Wheel (1987). 

FURTHER INVESTIGATION

• The I Love a Mystery Companion (2003, by Martin Grams) | Buy this book
  The “official guide” to the show, includes a biography of Carlton E. Morse, memories from cast and crew, a complete episode guide (including cast lists and plot descriptions), and more.

Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith. Illustration is by Don Sherwood from the comic strip.