Welcome to the Great Actives of Old Time Radio from Boise Idahol. This is
your host, Adam Graham. If you have a comment, email it to
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Thank you so much for your support. Patrick. Now it's time for
this week's episode of Dangerous Assignment. The original air date October fifteenth, nineteen
fifty two, and the title is to Ask a Guy to Shoot You.
Dangerous Assignment transcribes Darring Ran dunlandz Steve Mitchell. Yeah, danger is my assignment.
I could send to a lot of places I can't even pronounce. They
all spell the same thing, though, trouble. But when I walk into
the Commissioner's office, I don't realize that this assignment's going to show me that
sometimes the only way you can come out of one of these deals alive is
to ask a guy to shoot you, pointing, Commissioner. You sent for
me, Steve, you have a hero of Yin Yi hop sounds like a
new jump tune? Is it that name first came to our attention during the
clock marshal of an American Army officer in the Philippines shortly after the war,
Major Vance Morgan. Oh, yeah, he had something to do with the
disappearance of medical supplies, arms, and ammunition from one of our bases.
There, didn't He's brought out at the trials all against Morgan, yet he
insisted he was innocent. He claimed he'd been investigating the matter before his arrest.
The theft was the work of an organization headed by this Yin yi Hop
I see. Morgan claimed further that he'd actually seen dismissed the hop that he
wasn't an Oriental but an American. You see, the matter wasn't dropped after
Major Morgan was discharged from the service. You mean this Yin yi Hop has
been found? We think so. We think he's a man named Sutherland who
is now living in Rangoon. We're pretty sure he's still active in the business
of running gun. Why don't we grab him? We will as soon as
we find someone who can identify him as Yin yi Hop and that's someone is
ex Major Morgan or is he We got our first lead in him yesterday from
no friend of his in New Guinea, the next Army flyer named Foster.
Check with him, Steve, and move fast. We've got a tip that
someone else is looking for Morgan. Oh Sutherland. Maybe, yes, Steve,
you've got to get to Morgan before they do. Well, that's it.
You've got your assignment. Good luck. The National Broadcasting Company is presenting
Dangerous Assignment, starring Brian don Levy in the role of Steve Mitchell, colorful
two fisted government agent. At all those places of the world where danger and
intrigue walk hand in hand, there you will find Steve Mitchell on another dangerous
assignment. In a moment, we'll bring you tonight's dangerous assignment adventure. But
first let me remind you about some of tomorrow's great shows on the NBC Radio
Network. Thursday brings Western Songs an adventure with Roy Rogers, Dale Evans and
all the folks at the friendly Double R Bar Ranch in Paradise Valley, and
for the whole family's comedy entertainment there his Father Knows Best, starring Robert Young.
Another fine Thursday evening treat is Truth or Consequences, America's favorite party game,
presided over by Ralph Edwards. We know you'll enjoy these three fine programs
tomorrow and every Thursday evening, so be sure to be in our audience for
the Roy Rogers show, Father Knows Best and Truth or Consequences tomorrow. Check
your local paper for the time of broadcast. Sure I've got my assignment.
Get on the trail of an next Army major named Vance Morgan, find him
before some hatchet man out of Rangoon dies and eliminates the prize witness in our
case against an American gun runner formerly known as Yin Ye Hot. It's late
Wednesday afternoon when my plane lands at Monoca on the northwest tip of Netherlands,
New Guinea. I head across the airstrip to a small hangar bearing a sign
East India Freight Company, Nicholas Foster, President inside, sitting in the two
before office. I find Nicholas Foster himself. I flash my credentials. Tell
me Steve, what's all this to do about Morgan? Nothing? We'd just
like his help. His help that chance meaning that he might not be so
eager to cooperate, meaning that the court martial was a big jolt. Well,
we can clear him up. You'll play ball. I'll do anything I
can to help worthy. I can't say I thought you saw him a couple
of days ago. Yeah, I was down at the docks checking on a
cargo coming in from Manila when I spotted Morgan aboard a small ship. One
of those Copra traders was just pulling out a nose around the waterfront. But
no one seemed to know much about it except he had a plantation on one
of the islands off the coast. That ship he was on, called a
Codonna. Should be back in Fort now. Sounds like my best lead.
So you find out what islands Morgan's on when your troubles are just beginning,
what do you mean. You know, just that there's a small scale war
going on. Guerrillas separationalists, they call them. Their beef is with the
Indonesian government. Those islands out there are crawling with the natives armed with poisoned
arrows, and they don't like strangers. Poison arrows yet are real comforting.
Thought. Well, thanks for the info, Foster, I'll see you later.
Ten minutes later, I wind up at the docks and sure enough to
the small copra trader tied up. The only one on board is a native
youngster, and he doesn't tune in on my frequency at all. Even when
I resort to sign language, he keeps grinning and pointing over the rail.
So I have a look. I spot someone swimming underwater, gliding back and
forth along the side of the ship. Then the swimmer comes up for air.
I come up for a little air too, when I see who it
is, and she's up on deck, coming toward me right out of esquire.
Hello, oh, hey, you're quite a swimmer. You are looking
for someone, yeah, the skipper of this ship. I am the skipper.
You What is it you wish? I'm looking for a man named Morgan.
Maybe you could take me to him. Now, that would be impossible.
At this time. My ship is in need of repairs. The hull
has been damaged running the blockade, blockade, I do not know what you
mean. Block You can stop being cagy. I'm just interested in finding Morgan
here. You better have a look at my credentials American agent. I see,
isn't Troubert. No, just want to talk to him worthy. But
there's an island called Epo. He lives there alone, at a small plantation.
Perhaps I could get a message to Morgan. Well, that would save
me a lot of time and trouble. Tell him who I am and that
I've got to talk to him. We need his help. Where are you
stating? Well? I noticed the hotel a few blocks back there as good
as any I know the one you speak of. You can expect me by
sundown. I spend the rest of the afternoon scouting the dock area, just
in case the girl's message doesn't reach Morgan. Fine. Luck is all bad.
I can't find a single skipper who's willing to run the blockade, let
alone face a hail of poisoned arrows. Setting sun hangs over the horizon like
a big orange As I wandered back to the hotel. The girl is already
there waiting for me in the lobby. I'm sorry, I'm late, or
are you early? Your message was delivered, mister Mitchell. Good. What's
Morgan's answer? Well, I don't quite understand. But what did he say?
Two words? Mister Mitchell? Dad? She gives me a nice dead
pan reading without cracking a smile. She turns and walks out. Well that's
it. If Morgan won't come to me, I've got to go to him.
Blockade or no blockade. I hurry over to Foster's office at the airport.
He's not around. I finally find them in a broken down gin mill
near the water. I don't know, no soap Steve. So I fly
over the island of my plane. So the Indonesians don't like this, and
they beef to the Dutch. The Dutch beef to me. I'm in I
can square it. Yeah, yeah, I guess you could. So well,
there's something else wrong with the idea. So your parachute out of my
plane. The natives let's fly with their arrows. You look like a pin
cushion before you hit the ground. Oh, you can drop me off the
island and I swim ashore. Yeah I could do that, I suppose.
Sure. Okay, then, well except for one teensy little thing. Now
what the East India air right Line of which I am president, happens to
have only one plane and one pilot, and at this moment both of them
are in Singapore. A don't say it, so I don't say it.
I just think it. I wander back outside, and then down along the
docks. Suddenly I spot a shift tied up that I didn't see there this
afternoon. It's a small Dutch patrol boat. I head for the office of
the port Director. I filling in on a situation while he shifts a cigar
from one side of his mouth to the other. Finally he grinds it out
in an ash tray. We will, of course be more stigous to cooperate
virtue in this matter. Should however, we must first consult with the Indonesian
authorities. Sure it's their island and their blockade. I see no reason why
they should deny us permission to enter the waters. There will undoubtedly be lookouts
on people, so the problem will be how can we get your show without
being seed? Might take a bit of doing. Tell me. Do you
swim? Yeah, but you may have to before the nights is over.
We pour over the map, took over the strategy, and then he puts
in a long distance called the Batavia. The Indonesian government gives us the green
light, and my friend, the fort director says he'll take it from there.
So there's nothing else for me to do but go back to the hotel
and wait for word that the patrol boat is ready to shove off. It's
almost eleven that night when there's a rap on my door. The gent standing
there holds an automatic in his hand. That doesn't take a genius to figure
out real fast that he's not from the Dutch Patrol. I'll met you.
I don't think we've ever met, Have it you've heard of me? I'm
sure? Allow me to try, I guess, Sutherland. God good for
you, Mitcham all right inside move hmm. I'll packed ready to go,
planning a little trip maybe, of course, board the Dutch patrol ship.
I'll trouble you for your identification, your credentials, Mitchell, hand them over,
why, Suthern, I'll need them. A Lieutenant burn doll arrives to
pick you up. You intend to take my place. Huh, it won't
work, Buster? Why not? Because I happen to know Lieutenant burn Doll
Burndall? Did I say Burn do all? How I wonder who he is?
I really met Lieutenant Vandergraft. Sorry Mitchell, okay, Sutherland, pick
up the marbles and your papers. Mitchell, quick, what's the hurry?
Turn around? Turn around? Okay, okay, but what the gun?
Butt behind my ear knocks me to the floor real fast. I try to
get up with my arms have suddenly turned to jelly. It's no go.
I can feel Sutherland's hands giving me a fast frisk. I can also hear
someone coming up the stairs down the corridor, and I know it's someone from
the patrol boat. I make one more try to get my feet, but
Sutherland slams a heelol and like they say, everything goes black. Steve Mitchell
will continue his dangerous assignment in just a moment. You would be a poor
business man to invest money without determining what your dividend would be. So I'd
like to tell you what return you'll receive on your investment in your community chest.
Normally, about forty percent of one hundred families received directly services of some
kind from one or more Red Feather agencies during the year. Such services include
aid to the handicapped too often children, to the aged, and to the
sick and needy. All families benefit indirectly because these services work to make your
community a healthier, happier, better place in which to live. This year,
it's a bigger red feather because the United Red Feather Campaigns must raise seventeen
million dollars extra to provide for the United Defense Fund services, which include two
hundred fifty seven USO clubs, USO camps, American Relief for Care, and
many others. So when you make your contribution, give enough to cover normal
needs plus an extrama for the added services made necessary by this defense emergency.
Remember, it's a bigger red feather this year. Give the United Way.
Now back to dangerous assignment and Brian don Levi, Steve Mitchell, mister Mitchell's
wait wait a momente, Iron TIV the gag, Well a little mermaid,
thanks? What are you doing here anyway? I came to talk about Morgan
mister Mitchell. I am Anna, I'm his girlfriend. This comes There's no
great surprise, Anna, I'm worried about him. Is he in some kind
of trouble. You sure will be if Sutherland get Oh, I do not
understand. I'm on untimy and I'll fill you in. On the way to
the waterfront. Hey, there's the boat. He's getting ready to shove off.
Two men on day. One of them must be the lieutenant. The
other is Sutherland. Sutherland's pull a gun, Lieutenant, watch out, he's
it, Steve Sutherland gove in. Can you see him anywhere? No?
No, tell him where he is? You? Okay, Lieutenant? Yeah?
Yeah, who are you? Steve Mitchell? But I thought this other
guy was impersonating me. Where'd they get you in the shoulder? Yeah?
He's not bad, bad enough to keep you from doing any swimming, that's
a sense. I will go with you, Steve. You of course I
know every point of that on. It is a long swim. Steve has
seen me sweep. Okay, Anna, looks like there's no time to do
anything else. Let's shove off, Lieutenant. This is as close to the
island as we had. Better cover the boat. Oh far off shore?
Arehway a little less than a mile? You both have your swim fins and
oxygen bottles in place, Face mass right, all right? You can swim
on the surface until you get within a quarter mile of the beach. Then
you should go underwater the rest of the way. You will have plenty of
oxygen to take you in. Okay, we can swim underwater and we llagoon
very near Morgan's plantations. As to your escape plan, you will have only
two hours ashore. A small corporate trader will pick you up at this point
a schooner, which actually is an Indonesian patrol boat. Well, here goes.
We swim as quietly as we can for a few minutes. Then about
a quarter of a mile off shore, we rig up the tubes from our
oxygen bottles and go under water. And it leads it away. And if
I had any doubts about her swimming ability, they're gone now. My only
problem is keeping up with her. We slipped past the reef and threw a
small channel into an inlet. Another minute and she heads for the surface.
I followed. Here we are in the center of a tiny lagoon. We
swim with the shore, climb out, take off our oxygen bottles and swim
fins and hide them in the underbrush. There come the plantations. Half am
miles today. Okay, what was It could be a bird or it could
be a signal. Maake it down? What need you over there? In
the moonlight? Grins? Doesn't something? Pools and arrows? Here they come,
they're go, let's get out of here. Good, the light is
on. He must be here, Hannah. Hello, Morgan, what are
you doing here? Who's this? This is Steve Mitchell. I brought him
to see you. Mitchell, you take a lot of convincing. Fellaw,
didn't you get my answer to your note? Yeah? I got it,
Morgan. You're right, I do take a lot of convincing. Yes,
you do too. You're wasting your time, Mitchell. Look, you're the
only one who can identify Sutherland. Does the boy behind all this gun running
out here? So what Morgan? Steve has come along? Look, so
you're bitter. I can't say I blame you better. I'm bitter and that's
not all. I'm happy here, Mitchell. Now, why should I bother
with anything else? You're a little paradise, Eh, that's right, some
paradise with a small scale war going on around, you know, Subtler.
Sure, for a while, but it'll blow up again. Yeah, as
long as there are guys like Sutherland, on the loose, selling guns,
stirring up the natives to fight instead of letting them settle their problems peacefully.
There's never going to be any piece in any of these places. While rats
like Sutherland are floating around, you threw with a speech, Yeah, okay,
I'll take you back to the beach down bother you probably wouldn't make it
alone if the natives know you're here. I'm the only guy they let alone.
I guess that's because I leave them alone. It's pretty good rule to
follow, Mitchell, you're ready, So the three of us head back to
the spot where On and I had ditched our swim equipment. We pick it
up and start for the I don't wanna admit I'm licked yet, but it
doesn't look like there's much more I can do or say. I don't know
whether anything I've already said has gotten through to Morgan or not. If so,
he gives no sign of it. Then suddenly a bunch of grillas looms
up ahead of us on the trail. Hana and I freeze. Morgan stops
us and steps up ahead. When the gorilla see him, they move aside
and we pass by. They stare at us sullen, suspicious. Two minutes
later we pass another group, same story. Look at them, look at
their faces. Don't worry. You're all right as long as they see me
with you. Hey, don't think that's what's worrying on a Morgan. No,
Well, I recognize some of these people. I know how they used
to be smiling and happy. You remember the festivals, Morgan, So no
more festivals, no more music. Well, could be a lot worse.
I guess what do you mean? They've only got bows and arrows now.
Ought to be a lot more exciting when they get guns. Surfbok squat tonight.
You shouldn't have any trouble getting thrown. There's the coupe try out there
waiting for us. Is that your Sconaela? No, it's an Indonesian patrol
boat. They told us it would be alone to pick us up, Morgan,
if he would only it's about a mile after that boat. Looks like
so, so you think I can make it without swim fins, Morgan?
You win? Mitchell, No, I kind of think you just did.
The three of us way out through the surf and start swimming. They spot
us from the boat and move in closer. Pretty soon we're alongside a husky
Native calls us aboard one by one, and it takes one look at him
and sidelos up to me. Steve, here's the I was trying to find
more than the other day, Sutherland, stooge. That's right, Mitchell.
Well Sutherland, yeah, stand real steal all of you. As you can
see, I got a tommy gun, my boy, Peru, there's real
handy with his knife, and those three in the bow and those sissies either.
Okay, you've proved your point, Sutherland. Now what Now we get
out of here nice and quiet before the real patrol boat shows up. Then
I get all three of you out of my hair once and for all.
I know. Whatever I do, it's got to be fast. Then I
get an idea at all hinges on the fact that Sutherland doesn't want to make
any noise and probably won't risk a shot. I hope suddenly I die toward
him. Sure, and I'll be swinging the barrel of the tommy gun down
at my head. I'm expecting mitile roll with it because it catches me behind
the ear. I fallows a deck and roll onto my back, pretending to
be out. Okay, Paru finish him off with your knife. The native
comes at me with his knife, just what I want. My legs are
doubled up. When he gets close, I lash out and one of my
swim fins slaps him across the face and knocks the doctor and the first catches
Baru full in the back. I died for Sutherland's legs. Before he can
shoot again, he hits the deck hard. Morgan grabbed the tommy gun out
of his hand, swings it towards the three natives in the bow. I
just stay where you are, Fellosten. Don't get any ideas. See why
are you all right? Yeah? Yeah, It's more than we can say
for Beru, I guess. Hey, take a look over there. The
troll balls good. He can put Subtle and his boys on ice for us.
You know, you're a pretty handy lad with those swim fins, Mitchell.
Yeah, but there's one thing I don't understand. Oh what's that?
Usually when you slip a guy of Finn, the least he can do or
say thanks, But not Burw You know, I don't think he liked it
a bit. Our star Brian don Levy will return in just a moment Tuesday
Evenings are filled with top comedy entertainment on the NBC Radio Network, and I'd
like to take a moment to remind you about our Tuesday Night programs. Red
Skelton at zany clown of clowns, makes Tuesday his stopping off place for great
comedy entertainment. We know you'll enjoy the wonderful characterizations of this top radio comedian
when you listen NEETs Tuesday on the NBC station in your own area. And
of course, Tuesday wouldn't be complete without two lovable, laughable comedy teams Fiber
McGee and Molly and Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. With Martin and Lewis,
it's mirth and madness from start to finish. Then from seventy nine wistful Vista,
Fiber and Molly entertain for thirty chuckling good minutes of comedy listening and a
new show on your Tuesday calendar. Two for the Money proves that there's a
lot of laughs to be had when you make it a weekly date with the
Tuesday Night comedy lineup on the NBC Radio Network. Check your local newspaper for
the time of broadcast of all these great shows and tune them in on your
favorite NBC station next Tuesday evening. Next week, I parachute into the jungle,
right into the barrel of a gun. That will be Steve Mitchell's dangerous
assignment next week. Included in tonight's cast were Dan Riss, Betty lou Gerson,
Paul dubav Jack Moyles, and Stacy Harris. This is John Storm Speaking
Dangerous Assignment, starring Brian don Levy and the role of Steve Mitchell with Herb
Butterfield as the Commissioner, is written by Bob Ryf and Adrian John Doe and
is directed by Bill carn Be with us again next week at this time when
Brian don Levy in the role of Steve Mitchell will embark on another transcribed dangerous
assignment. This is MB Do you see the National Broadcasting Company Welcome back?
Well, we finally had an episode where an eloquent speech could come in handy
and Steve made his best shot, but he was no Ken Thurston. However,
Anna came through in the end in a beautifully understated moment that really brought
home the cost of one man just being bitter and refusing to cooperate to people
living in the area. It was a really solid moment by Betty lou Gerson.
What piece of slang that Steve used that's worth explaining for younger listeners was
Steve's statement that the guy wasn't thankful Steve slipped him with fin This is a
pond plane on a fin being slang or five dollars bill, which was a
nice bit of money in nineteen fifty two, and slipping someone of Fenn meant
giving them five dollars during a commercial. Referencing the Red Feather Fund and a
United Way is interesting from a historical perspective. The Red Feather was usually associated
with the Community Chess, which was a precursor to the United Way. In
nineteen forty nine, many of the Community Chess began converting to being called the
United Fund. United Way wouldn't be coined as a term for the Umbrella organization
until nineteen seventy. Listener comments and feedback Now and we start over on YouTube,
and Ronzer writes in regarding the missing episodes, do you suppose that any
of the missing episodes are Steve looking for the Chief Nazi? Well, I
kind of joked about that in an episode. I think it's possible. Certainly
it's implied that Steve had been on a Hitler Hunter too, but whether that
happened on air, I don't know. I'd be curious about the lost episodes.
This isn't a series that's had like some real scholarly research of folks going
through the scripts and things like that. One thing that could be checked,
and I haven't just because I don't really have the time to do it,
is to get a hold of the Australian version of Dangerous Assignment. Those were
based on US scripts, So if you listen to episodes that aren't based on
extant US episodes, then you could find out what some of the missing stories
plots were. Now that wouldn't definitely tell you if, for example, you
look and you don't find any Hitler Hunting episodes in there that Steve didn't do
it, it could be that the episode wasn't one of those that Grace Gibson
picked up. And I'm not certain how the Australian government would view that sort
of plot because they had their own radio sensors which they let some things go
that the US wouldn't allow. But that would be something that could be researched.
But until something definitive comes out. It's still an open possibility. And
then we have a comment from Instagram, Geraldine Wrights. Your show is mind
blowing. Takes me back to my mom and Dad's Sunday night radio gathering.
Well, thank you so much. Appreciate your comment, Geraldine. And now
it's time to thank our Patreon supporter of the day. Thank you to Michael,
Patreon supporter since February of this year, currently supporting the show at the
shamous level of four dollars or more per month. Thanks so much for your
support, Michael, and that will do it for today. If you're enjoying
the podcast, please follow us using your favorite podcast software. You're enjoying the
podcast on YouTube, be sure to lock the video, subscribe to the channel,
and marked the notification bell. We'll be back next Wednesday with another episode
of Dangerous Assignment. But join us back here tomorrow for Mister Chameleon. Where
Holly gym Now? Holly? I just god? Who's this? Jim?
Who's this man? My name is comedian mister Ties. I'm a detective from
Central Headquarters. Detective you're the famous Comeleon. What are you doing here?
What are you doing with my gun? Jim, Jim, Billy Kellum has
been murdered. Murdered, yes, mister Tares. And the bullet that killed
him came from a cold forty five like this gun of yours. I see
that as one contridge missing. Jim. He thinks you killed Billy Kellum.
I didn't kill him, mister commedian, I didn't even see Billy. Dont
holy I'm innocent. You must believe me. I'm innocent. I repeat.
The bullet that killed Kellen was from a forty five Colt, a popular weapon
in Oklahoma, I'm told. And you, mister Taras, come from Oklahoma.
Oh you'll be with us then. In the meantime, do send your
comments to Box thirteen at Greatdetectives dot net, follow us on Twitter at Radio
Detectives, and check us out on Instagram, Instagram, dot com slash Great
Detectives from Boise, Idaho. This is your host, Adam Graham signing off.