The Adventures of M. Hercule Poirot, also known as Hercule Poirot: Detective Extraordinary or simply Hercule Poirot, was a radio series that first premiered on February 22, 1945, starring Harold Huber as the retired Belgian detective, directed by Carl Eastman. It aired on the Mutual Broadcasting System, and with the American audience in mind, had Poirot relocate from London to New York. Naturally, he finds a corpse before he can find an apartment, and his pursuit of the case quickly brings him into contact with some new allies. Abigail Fletcher joins the investigation because the body was found mysteriously blocking her door from the inside, but Poirot takes a shine to her, and she accepts a position as his secretary. Inspector Stevens was charged with protecting the victim, and welcomes Poirot's assistance on the case. Poirot embarks on weekly crime-solving escapades through America.
The original series came to a somewhat abrupt end due to controversy behind the scenes, when writer Martin Stern won a lawsuit against Eastman and Huber for selling his scripts independently. The final episode aired on February 17, 1946, but Huber wasn't done as Poirot. On April 1 of that year, CBS began Mystery of the Week; airing in a 15-minute time slot alongside the Lanny Ross Show, these episodes were split into five parts. Mystery of the Week ran until airing its final episode on November 21, 1947.
Records of the program are scarce, with even episode listings incomplete, and only a handful of recordings floating around.
This show provides examples of:
- Compressed Adaptation: Rendezvous with Death is a half-hour retelling of Death on the Nile.
- Dead Person Impersonation: In The Careless Victim, reclusive currency expert Jonathan Parrish is killed, along with the officer who could identify the man.
- Even Evil Has Standards: In Death in the Golden Gate, a kidnapper is appalled to discover that he's working for an undercover Nazi.
- Reverse Whodunnit: In Murder Wears a Mask, the audience is present for the murder; while a few parts of the killer's plan aren't explained right away, the main focus is watching Poirot hone in on the real culprit.
