Mr. Chameleon is a detective fiction radio drama created by Frank Hummert and produced by Frank and Anne Hummert.[1] It ran on CBS Radio from July 14, 1948,[2] to 1951[3] or 1953.[1] The series starred Karl Swenson as a New York police detective who is a master of disguise, and who assumes a new identity in each episode in order to catch a criminal.[1] The listening audience is always aware of who Mr. Chameleon is, no matter in which disguise he appears.[1] According to the series' opening voice-over, "Chameleon" is not a nickname or pseudonym but the character's actual surname, one which he has tried to live up to since childhood.[4] His motto is, "The innocent must be protected and the guilty must be punished."[5] The theme song is John Jacob Loeb and Paul Francis Webster's "Masquerade".[1]
In addition to Swenson, Frank Butler was heard in the role of Dave Arnold[6] (a sergeant who was Mr. Chameleon's assistant[7]), and Richard Keith portrayed the police commissioner. The announcers were George Bryan, Howard Claney, and Roger Knapp. The program was directed by Richard Leonard and written by Marie Baumer.[1] Victor Arden's orchestra provided music.[6]
Broadcast initially on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern Time, Mr. Chameleon replaced The American Melody Hour. Sponsors of the program included Sterling Drug[2] and Bayer aspirin.[1]