Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho. This
is your host, Adam Graham. If you have a comment, email it
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Now it's time for us to bring you this week's episode of Sam Spade,
and this one is from a home recording disc Now we've heard about these in
some radio plots. There were a couple of different detective programs, including Patnovak
for Hire, that involved people going to a record store where you could record
your own record in a booth, and there were also some involving home recorded
records. My favorite of these was probably the Nick Carter episode Records of Death,
about a guy finding ten records that chronicle a murder and Nick has to
find the murderer and what happened just from what's on the record. If you
go on to YouTube and you do a search for home recording disc, you'll
get some interesting results. Not many of these survive, so if a record
collector finds one, it's a bit of a find. Most of the ones
I listen to online were family recordings, kind of like how people would use
camcorders back in the nineteen eighties. Occasionally you'd find some disc with a song
that was recorded off the radio, and someone did note that many of these
machines had an option to change your input from microphone to radio, so it
was possible to record off the radio, but it's a bit tricky for recording
a long form program onto a home recording disc. We'll hear that today this
episode of Sam Spade is missing the opening. It's also missing the closing commercial
and final scene with Effie, and in addition to that, there's a ten
second gap while the person doing the recording flipped over the disc, as again
you had a limited recording space on each side of the disc. But the
story is actually complete. This episode was released prior to the caper with two
Deathbeds, which began the longest streak of available episodes of Sam Spade in the
series. So now let's go ahead and we'll bring you today's episode of Sam
Spade. The original air at eight May thirtieth, nineteen forty eight, and
the title is the Prisoner of Zenda Caper. I had not made it squeeze
in sideways in the sixty foot high entrance all of Zenda. I heard music.
It's seemed to be seeping down from one of the upper floors. This
particular music. Didn't see the ft with the suits of armor and heraldic flags
that were gathering dusts around the joint. I was just going to ask the
proll who the jedibug was. When there's double doors at the end of the
carridor were thrown violently open, Johnny, how would you what do you expect?
You gotta have everything you want? You're on. I'll look here,
Johnny. Yes, it's a spade. Oh yeah, good morning, My
check things up there. I'm rocking again in the spade. This is my
major domoment to me taking a drink, Johnny, what it mean anything at
all? There's some gin in the kitchen. That's gin in the kitchen.
What's the two hundred room house? And you tell me that chin in the
kitchen? You told me to lock up the liquor and put the keys in
the safety posit because you're knowell a line. Well, so you're a private
detective. I didn't remember sending for you. You didn't who sent for your
Shamus? The letter is signed Laila McGannon Lda impossible. What does the letter
say? Shamas? That's between my client and me and mister Shamus to you?
What why you she's trans some peoper major domo with two hundred rooms?
Can't you afford better than that? Miss mcgahnon. I'll kill you, you'll
get that. What's the scar? Mister mcgahnon. My wife is not a
well woman. Mister sade, doctor has forbidden all this well she sent me
a retainer one hundred and fifty bucks, one hundred and fifty dollars. Where
did she get? Johnny? Do you hear it? Start? Look at
me? You say you locked up all the liquor. That's what I said,
very well, you and your boys have been running things in this house.
We see the results detectives and that that that rocket. I want all
the servants reports to be here immediately. I'm just charting them all. What
about our detective friend here? I leave that to you. Deed with that
you that's my pleasure. Shall I kill that music first? And never mind
that I look after my wife personally work, mister McGannon, I'm sorry your
wife is sick. Anything you may have heard of the contrary private detectives don't
go looking for trouble. All I want to do is to turn this money
to it. So if you just show me the who the rabbit funds?
That first one, very illegal, very expert. I was on my feet,
but I couldn't straighten up. I moved around in front of me and
let me have two punishing cuts in the midsections. I doubled up and tried
to fall down, but I couldn't. Then I realized it was because two
more members of mister mcgannon's strong arm squad had grabbed my arms and were hustling
me down that long passageway. Then I heard a fund of clap twice as
loud as nothing i'd ever heard before. And that was all, brother,
that was all what happened in there. Oh you're dead worse for this forgot
more. Your head cut here and let me let me help you. Thanks.
Oh Lee, what a miss I get an? Oh, well that's
my card. You think it's naked? Lean on me. It's all right.
I'm wiry. Oh tell me if you feel like it. Tell you
what I'm jail Borden. I'm a friend of Johnny May. Then you're a
friend of mine. Let me have it. I can see that. Oh
please trust me. What did they say about? What about Leela? What's
your she's my idea? You know about it, don't You's an actress?
Oh not just an actress. She was a little lorrange. She was a
big dog. Camille Trilby, old prisoner of Zender McGannon. He broke this
castle for her, just like in the movie of the pre married him for
a castle. He wasn't a big love of a life. He died.
Who was the first? You know? Who was the name? Kind of
rings a belt? Played? Tom Boom, one of the best, the
experts say, only it's hard to play. You can't get any of his
records. He needs hundreds. But something happened to them. Hello, what
do you want Johnny? I didn't know you had companies state. I'm sorry
we had to rought you up. We'll talk about that later. What's his
ankle doing, Brook, sweetheart, Johnny here is definitely not your sight.
What do you want from me? I don't want I know what you've been
playing this for. You want me to get into that house. You figure
on finding out something about Leela. It'll be good for the shakedown. Well,
let's forget it. As long as you're going to take the shamathan within
instead of making you're both wasted your time. So far as Joe Kenyon's concerned.
Even if your hunt is right, he's been dead for nineteen years,
and New York commer side is busy end up with current stuff, even so
with Lee. But now you won't get into see Leliz. Nobody will Why
not Leli gad I. It'll be in the morning's papers. But whether he
can sup your look over there, it won't help any Come on, I'll
drive you home. I've come so long, I've waited so long. I
wondered just how far she had come, or how far she'd gone. What's
the grief on her face? Told me how long she'd waited. With all
her life, I couldn't see her for the kind of woman that put flowers
on Rudolph Valentino's grave. But I couldn't quite see her as a blackmailer either.
As far as I was concerned, what had her had not happened tonight
wouldn't make any sense until I could find out what had happened on another night
nineteen years ago. I had an idea that the subtitle and the silent fiction
might read murder. The makers of Wild Root Cream Oil are prevtting the weekly
Sunday adventure of Nashill Hammett's famous private detective Damned Space now Here is important use
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oil hairtonic. Again and again the choice of men who put good grooming first.
By the way, my girls use wild root cream oil too, and
mothers say it's grand for training children's hair. And now back to the Prisoner
of Zenda Capers A Night's Adventure with Sam Spade. The obituary notices on Layla
Lorraine McGannon. We're just survide what you'd expect on a famous actress who were
sired many years ago to marry a rich and famous man. McGannon was described
as a promoter, political leader, and spinning fears. The late missus McGannon
was described as one of the great beauties of her generation, as indeed she
was where pictures of Billy Dove, Mary Silbn, Clara Bow, Marilyn Miller,
Gene Eagles, Leneada A Lillian and Dorothy get and the fullcast of Scaramus
film pioneers who were her contemporary friends of Lovely Leela Lorraine. But in the
mission in the otherwise fulsome account was provocative to me. There was no mention
of Lela Lorraine's first husband, Joe Kenyon. Pete Day knows all of this
and all about young men with horns, and Pete gave me some information.
Joe Kenyon fran Bonneman. Yeah, the first time I heard that cat,
I was just a little kitten. I'd tell you how to style something like
mis mole, only more legit, you know, two bad. He killed
himself. I had a couple of his side men, barking dog blues,
sweet Lorraine. They were fine, real gone. You know. I kind
of hated the plot with those as some hip collector offered me. Took the
skins of peace for him, so why not. It's hard to name the
McGannon. You know, I blew fifteen bucks in a phone call in New
York. That's when you gave me the run down, Lieutenant on the Joe
Kenyan suicide. He'd taken a long walk on a short tear because of death's
drowning, but the sap wound on the back of his head was never explained.
There was no record as ever having been married to anybody named Leila Lorraine,
but there was a marriage pacific. It made out to Joseph Kenyan and
one Leela Borden Damn, Hold are you okay? Then I'll come in.
Where'd you been looking for? Some answers? I should have come here and
shaken them out of you. What are you talking? Why didn't you tell
me Leyla was your mother? Oh? Well, what difference does it make?
Now? McGannon will get away with it, just the way he got
away with killing my father. And what did your mother send for me?
I don't know, lie number one? You wrote that letter and signed her
name to it? Why? But it's not what the sinstern. It wasn't
a blackmail. I wanted to see my mother after nineteen years, you suddenly
wanted to see your mother. But I didn't know. I'd always been told
my mother was dead. Who told you? Differ? I ant? She
brought me up and he was a sick six months ago. They told her
what she was doing. So she told me about my mother. Why did
you say about McGannon him? Her mother told me how he managed your wife
out nearly every trace of my father, so that it almost seemed he never
visited at all. Her mother has been a prisoner in that castle ever since
he married mus I wanted to help to him. Now he's did. How
did you meet Johnny Mace? Well, he caught me trying to climb over
the wall. At first it was very stern, and then he started laughing.
He said I was hum my boy. He said I had some kind
of a blackmail plan and I met him. Think so because he was my
only name to the people in that house. But he kept putting me off.
Well that's why I find the sink of that letter. I guess I
must have been crazy. Look as you told me what. Well, well,
Johnnie, I don't know. I'm just listen, honey. You know
I do anything in the world for you. You don't really go for that
genrece to you? What, Johnny, I can't hear you. Let's space,
I said, you don't really go for that. Wait a minute,
wait, I'll fix that racket. Don't go away now. You stay right
on the phone there, don't hang up. Damn are you still on the
wire? Yeah? I can't I please hang up. Oh, it's sweet
shut up. Hello, Hello, it's okay, sweet on. I've heard
all I need to, in fact, a little more than I expected.
Then the castle was hideous enough in the daytime if you should have caught it
his knife. The rain stopped about ten minutes before I clambered down from a
bus and slogged up the winding mountain road to the dead end. I took
a plant in the traditional shrubbery and waited. It wasn't long, maybe twenty
minutes. The station wagon shot up in front of the gate. Somebody got
out to open it, and while that was happening, I hitched on and
rode the rear bumper in. We came to rest in a dungeon type garage.
Oh boy, another day, another a half a dollar? Pay any
cribic trool? Ooh ooh, no, not to night. I'm gonna pound
the pill. Are you locking up? Yeah? Yeah, I got it?
Hey, how do you like that? Look? What that depictive done
to my knuckles? Hey? Who's been using this? Uh? Oh oh?
May? I started to having a look, But it was done?
How long since they use that? I never did? What's it for?
It was built according to oarsandic castle specification and it's supposed to be kept locked
locket. Uh what that see? Stupid me? It's hanging in the storeroom.
Well, stupid, you go get it in the storeroom. I'm going
to bed lock a pipe now for no all right, hey, what good
night, sweet trolls. It was real silent pictures stuff, all right.
There were things like it in the Cat in the Canary playing into the opera.
The bat Old Time Fellow was complete without a secret passageway. About halfway
I completely lost my sense of direction. All I knew was that I was
going up, and it was cold, damp, cobwebby and creepy. But
the last five minutes I knew I was going in the right direction. After
all three steps from the top, I felt a sudden rush of warm air
as a door open and a slot of light stabbed down at me. A
robe figure was framed in the doorway. So you've come for me, A
lost eh, Well, I'm ready, come on, Llia, I said,
don't keep me waiting. I followed her and there was dim cavern of
a room. It was all done up and oriental drapes and beaded lampshades.
It smelled of incense. She didn't look quite as dead as her obituary as
it claimed she was. She looked enough like the beautiful Leela Lorraine is twenty
years ago to be your grandmother. But there was no mistaking the grand manner.
She flung herself on a couch in a turkey corner, poured us off
a hooker of gems, down it in one gulp, and took up a
feet of bar. I pause, well, what are you waiting for?
I don't know I do. You're from New York. Foom. You want
me to talk about joking? Well, he plays that horn like the end
of the world, and that's all I just happened. I have a record
here we were rings. I heard it. I was a beeg. Yeah,
the biggest, biggest, biggest ju when Joe made that recording. You
can't see me anymore, but you can still hear him. I guess you
were. I guess you were pretty much in love with them. I hated
him. He used to come home when when he don't love It was some
some weed pat somewhere and I hate laughing men all. It was like a
crazy head. He had green eyes by jealousy, he said, he said
Ross mcdonna. He said, the beauty and the men over and they just
kill his body with him. I killed him to killed my baby. Will
I hit him. He's a wonder. I just haven't ever let here we
right, I was a very start. That's the mgannon. I it's gonna
forget it. Where again? I don't Oh, I really well, you've
seen what you came to see. You like it? Can we talk here?
I don't want to disturb it. Don't worry. I get very an
apology with the McGannon. I think you owe me one too. I suppose
the feeding I took is no more than a hundred and fifty dollars. Well,
I had gotten such a stake of the time you arrived here. We
thought this girl was kind of blackmailers and weak. Well, anyway, i'd
start, Yeah, well what I don't guess. Why did you make thanks
for tough for yourself? Your wife could have told her story to any jury
eighteen years ago and walked out a free woman and let the world know the
sordid truth about her life at Kenyans. No, I had to do what
I did. I had to protect her. Don't you see what she meant?
Not only to be, but so you you told that the baby had
died, she wasn't fit to raise a child. She was already on the
road the way she is. It's all right, it's all right, Lea,
it's all right, it's going to be home too. No. No,
she wasn't fit to raise a child. She was only fit to live
in a place like this where someone like me die too. You wretched that
part of it. Why did you decide her and answered that yesterday we found
out who that girl is, Leela's daughter, little Gail. Well, what
are you going to tell her? Yeah, I'll have to think. Yeah,
your poor little baby, she cried, She cried, Oh to sleep,
Lela. No, No, it's all right, I'm right away now.
I just saw something, DROs. We should take a small house some
morn and Ross. I think I'd like to be pictures of a game,
not those dull based heroines like Princess lazy about Goomom. No, I could
do characters. Ross, Let's read some place small. J McGannon turned slowly
around in his chair and looked at There was happiness and amazement and disbelief in
his grave babies. Then he must have detected something about it that I am
missed. He rushed out of the room, and when he came back he
brought the doctor with him. He lived for about twenty minutes without regaining concious.
Her death. It was fairly accurate after all heart failure through the alcoholism.
It was just date of the day too soon. When I went back
and saw Dale at night, my story went something like this, I have
a diet of natural debt. Her imprison and was voluntary. Her grief over
the loss of her husband and her child had made her secret firement. The
years of delgently with her and her great beauty had only become more delicate and
fragile if she neared the end period and a report. Well, I have
no questions, no, Sam, no questions, and I'd like to say
that I think you're the nicest, most wonderful both of the time. Cursons
don't support the sweetsh not just yet all type. Don't let me forget now,
don't let you forget what? Oh? Of course, yes, indeed,
welcome back. Well, this represents a solid dramatic episode. It's a
case where both Sam and probably most listeners arrived at the wrong judgment and we
got to see that sort of compassionate side of Spade, which Duff did a
great job portraying in a really understated way. I definitely missed the opening and
concluding remarks between Sam and Effie Martin Graham's notes in his book The Radio Adventures
of Sam Spade that the close was actually interesting because, according to the script,
Sam tells Effie good night sweetheart before she can say good night Sam.
So she says good night Sam after that, and then Duff repeats good night's
sweetheart and says, don't forget I always have the last line. Now,
most listeners would think this was a blooper. However, that was actually in
the script. It was written in a way to make it seem like there
was a blooper, like Duff had made a mistake. Pre Planning a blooper
is kind of an odd move, Graham suggition. It was to keep the
closing fresh, And I can't think of any better explanation for messing with the
audience's mind like that. What I would like to know is if Tuttle and
Duff actually made a real blooper when they got to the recording by doing it
the correct way. At any rate, we're unlikely to ever know. Still,
I'm grateful for the recording we have. I also have to say that
whoever recorded this chose a perfect time for the record flip, as that time
when she was on the phone that ten seconds, we didn't have to guess
what happened. Well, not the ideal way for these programs to be preserved.
Given that there are nearly two hundred episodes of this iconic series missing,
I'd gladly welcome any other recordings like this, if only more people had gone
to this trouble. But I do think that recording this much radio was not
what these expensive homework recording machines were built for. And that does conclude our
listen through the adventures of Sam's Spade. However, we do have one more
Maltese Falcon adaptation coming up next week, and so we'll bring you that before
we get into the adventures of the Falcon. Now it's time to thank our
Patreon supporter of the day, and I want to go ahead and thank Robert's
been one of our Patreon supporters since March of twenty nineteen, currently supporting the
podcast at the rookie level of two dollars or more per month. Thank you
so much for your support, Robert, and that will do it for today.
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All those great things that help the channel to grow. We'll be back next
Monday with an adaptation of the moment Tease Falcon. But join us back here
tomorrow for the start of another Yours truly, Johnny Dollar Cereal Where Johnny Dellar,
Pat mccrekan, Universal Adjustment PUREIAU. Oh hi, Patty, this is
my third call where you've been. I'm buying some tackle. I want to
go fishing fish. Yeah, I'm heading down to New York State is Sopus
River, maybe the beaver Kill. Try to snag myself a nice trout and
Patsy, my fishing is one thing you aren't going to interfere with. Wouldn't
think of it? Why don't you try link Mohaffi? Where is that along
the Colorado River up between Nevada and Arizona? What sure be the guest at
Greater Southwest Insurance and my ability? What are you talking about? I don't
know how you'd value those in Shoppers River trout. There's a fish out there
that maybe worth three million bucks. I hope you'll be with us then.
In the meantime, do send your comments to Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot
net, follow us on Twitter at Radio Detectives, and check us out on
Instagram, Instagram dot com. Last Great Detectives from Boise, Idaho. This
is your host, Adam Graham, signing off.