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
to me Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot net, Follow us on Twitter at
Radio Detectives, and check us out on Instagram, Instagram, dot com,
slash Great Detectives. If you are enjoying the podcast, please follow us using
your favorite podcast software. A reminder, as you're making your holiday travel plans,
remember Johnny Dollar Air dot com. Johnny Dollar air dot Com is a
price line affiliate length, so part of the purchase price goes to support the
Great Detectives of Old Time Radio at no additional cost to you. Remember when
making your travel plans, check Johnny Dollar Air dot com first. Well,
now it is time for the conclusion of this week's Yours truly Johnny Dollar Cereal.
The original air dates are June sixth, seventh, and eighth of nineteen
fifty six, and this is The Indestructible Mic Matter Episodes three, four,
and five from Hollywood. It's time now for Johnny Dollar. What you're John
Wesley Consgrave, aren't you? That's right? Well, my name is Johnny
Dollar. I'm an insurance investigator. Oh, of course, I've been expecting
a call from you, or at least from somebody like you. What's that
supposed to mean? I expect you're interested in why I've ensured the life of
a Bowery bum for fifty dollars. You bet, I am. I want
to see you? Why not anytime? Only? It won't do you any
good Tonight and every weekday night. Bob Bailey in the transcribed Adventures of the
Man with the Action Packed Expense Account, America's Fabulous freelance insurance Investigator Ours Truly
Johnny Dollar Expense Accounts submitted by Special Investigator Johnny Dollar, location New York,
New York to the Lakeside Life and Casualty Company. Following is an accounting of
expenditures incurred during my investigation of the indestructible mic matter. Expencer con hadem nine
ten cents. The phone called a John Wesley Cosgrave from my dingy little hotel
on the Lower East Side. I had him ten to two seventy TEXI uptown
to see Sergeant Randy Singer detect the Division eighteenth Precinct. You get back to
the glad Hand rescue mission in time after all when the Lamb boys discovered that
so called whiskey was almost pure wood. By the time I got there,
Randy, the poor old coop had drunk nearly half the bottle. Oh it's
too bad. Well, I'm better arrange for him to be hauled out of
the morgue. Uh uh, Oh, Mike's still alive and happy. Oh,
it's impossible. You don't know the half of it. A week or
so ago, somebody stabbed him with an ice pick just below the heart.
Result, he said, the scar itched a little bit. Two days ago,
somebody drove a couple of thirty eight slugs throw him. He said it
gave him a slight twitch in his side for a few whiles. Johnny,
come on, he goes and drinks nearly half a bottle of wood alcohol.
Result a bit of a headache. Indestructible mic, indestructible mic. Where is
he now? Locked up in my room at the Brakley Hotel? I ortis
eat the groceries I picked up for him, and to let nobody in good
good. But whoever's trying to get him is going to give up. Hey,
did you dig up anything on the beneficiary of his fifty thousand dollars life
policy. Cosgrave only enough to scare you to death. Listen to this.
John Wesley Cosgrave formerly known as John W. Gordon, John Dutchy Gordon alias
Skippy Grant alias Duchy Smith eighteen arrest was only one conviction back in nineteen thirty
eight for possession of arcotics. Randy Ever hear a murdering corporation. Sure,
but apparently they had a subsidiary. Apparently your friend Gordon or Cosgrave or whatever
you like to call him, was one of the big shots in it,
but outside of the narcotics. But the department was never able to really pin
anything on him. But this guy's addresses here, let me see six twenty
one's forty ninth Street. Yeah, that's not only a respectable neighborhood, but
pretty plush. That's right. Well, how recent is his record? What's
he doing now? Last pickup was in nineteen forty four numbers game and book
making charges dropped for lack of evidence. Then, apart from the record,
is he still in the rackets? He is? Nobody can prove it.
Like in the old days, he masterminded and let somebody else do the dirty
work. It's listed Here is a quote retired unquote, Well my money says
he's still in business. Well, if you can prove it the department in
the DA's office, I'll love you dearly, but I don't think you will.
Every time we dragged in a stoolie who could give us what we wanted,
something happened to him, like what jump bail. You should have known
better than to let him have bail. One of them poisoned in is selling
the tombs one breakout and his body was found in the East River, even
won suicide, Like to bet I can't tie him in with these attempts on
Mike Finn's life. Well, no, that's something else again. Maybe it's
something we should have. No no hands off and I mean all right,
I don't get testy about it. John. I like the old guy,
and anybody who tries to hurt him has to answer to me. And somebody's
tried expense account out of eleven one sixty five cav Fair of the Smart Water
apartment building at sixty two one East forty ninth, where the dorm and announced
that mister J. Wesley Cosgrave was expecting me and to take the elevator to
apartment eleven B come in mister Dollar. The apartment was expensively but tastefully furnished
with overall carpeting. It fell an inch and a half thick. Several original
oils by famous contemporary artists hung on the walls. But it was the man
himself who really seemed not a character with a rundown Randy had given me.
He was six one or two, built like a man who spends his odd
hours in the gym, quick gray eyes, his hair slightly gray at the
temples, and his tailor was amastic. Do you like it, mister Dollar?
Eh? What that is a genuine Picasso you're looking at. And I
consider myself very fortunate to possess this original by Salvator Dolly. Oh, and
I'm sure you'll appreciate the excellent view of the city from these corner windows.
Yeah. I must have the best, mister Dollar, only the best.
Oh sit down, Please? May I pull you a drink? No?
Oh? Thanks? I suppose you're wondering. I decided to buy old Michael
Flynn the life insurance policy in which he's so proud I am. That was
really very easy to explain. You see, I was born and brought up
in the Lower east Side, mister Dollar in deplorably poor circumstances. My early
life was a never ending struggle for survival and for whatever questionable sort of education
I could glean from those about me, many of them criminals who were my
only companions. That's all very touching, mister Casker, and I'm afraid I
did little to lift myself out of the gutter until one winter night, hungry
and broke, I wandered into the Helping Hand Rescue Mission. Yeah, I
understand. You still go around there now and then, Oh, yes,
I do, in the hope that somehow I can help the poor unfortunates there
the way the Mission and Daddy Bill helped me repay some of the debt I
feel, I owe. Is that the only reason what do you mean?
Is that the only reason You've given jobs to some of those poor unfortunes from
time to time, haven't you? Yes, Yes, I have what kind
of jobs? What business? That's hardly a concern of yours, mister Dollar.
I've contributed much to the Mission. I've tried to make life easier for
some of the deserving habituaries of the Mission. It's the least I can do
after so much was done for me. In the case of Mike, why
his greatest desire in life was to be the proud owner of life insurance?
Why, I don't know, I dom because you sold him on it.
That's a lie, that's a desert. Then why make him name you as
beneficiary instead of a mission of some other deserving cause? And that, mister
doll, it was his own idea, and since it made him happy,
I didn't protest. I suppose the real reason for this particular desire was his
feeling that it might give him dignity. Yeah, yeah, yeah, Now
tell me something, where does all your money come from? Dutchy Dutch?
Who told you that? Nobody calls me duchy? No more, I knew
you and nobody else. Them days are over. I'm respectable, even educate.
I'm wondering. Look at my record. I hadn't been on the blot
of since forty four, and that was a bump to dollar. I make
no pretensions about not having a past. During prohibition and later I made millions,
yes, millions, of rum running. And the policy racket is a
betting commissioner' a narcotics sure, it was hardly a caper in this town.
I didn't have a figure into and I was smart. I pocketed the profits,
not my boys. That's why I can afford to be retired and live
decent. And I'm going to keep on living this way. You were lucky
some of those boys that Mabby yours didn't rint on you. Yeah, thanks
to a couple of convenient rubouts that I had nothing to do with. You
understand, I managed to stay clean with the law. And now you're as
pure as the driven snow dollar. If this was the old days, you
wouldn't even live long enough to regret what you're implicating. You think, which
makes me dead sure, I'm thinking right. I don't know how much money
you've got socked away from those old days. I don't care. But from
once you've just admitted to you dollar, not to any judge or da right,
And I'll never believe that a clever mind like your smartn to keep you
out of the pen. Oh, flattery won't get you. I refuse to
believe you could turn down a chance to make a crooked buck. I don't
know what kind of jobs you sent out those poor suckers from the mission.
On the fact they never came back makes that look pretty bad. You care
along came Mike Flynn, poor old alcoholic Mike. Where the talk of insurance
came from, I don't know, but it was too good to pass up
and sure his life for fifty thousand bucks. Have him name you as beneficiary,
give him a few dollars so I could spend his last days in a
happy alcoholic Hayes. Then rub him out and collect the fifty g mission dollar.
If Mike gets knocked off, neither you nor anybody else is going to
be able to tab me with it. And one other thing, Yeah,
what's that as a friendly piece of advice? If I was you, I
wouldn't even try. Is that a threat? Oh, mister dollar, he
made a miserable host of me. Come let me pour you a drink the
five US twenty five year old Scotch and we can talk of pleasant things.
For some reason or other, I did have the drink with him, But
he knew what was in the back of my mind, and I'm afraid I
knew I was in the back of his. Something along the same line as
a couple of convenient rubouts once or twice, as when aera of education slipped.
But all in all, he made a fair conversationist. Finally I left,
and all the way down to the street, I kept wanting to look
back to see if I was being followed. Somehow, somewhere there was a
way to get this Cosgrave, but I could see it would have to be
through someone else, someone working for him, and whoever that might be could
very well be out to get me first or Mike. I had a'm twelve
two ninety five taxi back to the Braakley Hotel, where I hope the old
boy was still locked up on my room. He was, Oh well,
Johnny man, I was beginning to wonder what had happened to you? Hey,
hey, hey, hey, what was the matter with that food I
left with you? You hardly touched I had enough. It was kind of
dry, though, kind of dry. There's a container of coffee there because
the carfag just doesn't seem to quench my thirst. We should let me bring
the rest of that bottle, Alonge that what alcohol? Any more of that
would have killed you. I did have a kick, though, I don't
know how you live through it, holl Look now I want some lunch,
and Mike, I'm gonna take you along with me. Oh that'll be if
I could I have maybe a little drink too, Oh, sure you can
have one. Oh that's nice. Good of course, the size of the
drinks they serve nowadays, just one, now, come on, Oh that's
fine. One would be a say, oh, there's a lovely saloon just
around the corner. You know, even sandwiches for those that want them.
I understand. I could, oh, on these stairs, and maybe we
could just bring a bottle back, whether it's to your room, if we
are going to come back. Sweet funny. Also, I loved him,
and I knew that without me, he'd be a dead one so fast.
So far the attempts on his life had been made by persons unknown unless the
mission Daddy Bill. Could Daddy Bill be somehow tied in with Cosgraves operations?
I wanted I paid the check that's item thirteen twenty five. When we started
walking to the glendhad Rescue mission along some of the back streets. I want
a time to think it out, if I could think over the incessant pleasant
and I'm really enjoying life now that I have money now. And then sometimes
I get on the subway and I just ride all over town all day.
Yeah, you told me why don't you try that sometimes? John, it's
really want to say. There's a bar there on the corner. Why don't
we just talk? No, No, let's past them. John. Why
do you feel that you have to look after me this? You know?
John? Well? Why? Hey, watch the curve. Why I'm looking
after you, it's because somebody's under Mike, Mike, Mike, listen to
me. Can you hear me? Mike? Hey, mister, get a
cop an ambulance for him or what's left of them? Yes, hurry,
what's the matter with you? Lose your eyes? Buddy? It's too late,
Johnny Dollar. Johnny, this phone number you left for me to call
it? You at Bellevue Hospital? Yeah, Randy, what's wrong? You
at headquarters? Yeah? The truck ran over Mike Flynn, and I'm sure
it was deliberate. But he's alive. I hope he was four hours ago
and I dragged him in here indestructible. Mic. I'm not so sure this
time. What about that truck? Did you get the license? Yeah?
The boys are the first precincer working on it. Check with him, will
you while I stay here at the hospital? Sure, Johnny? And one
other things? Yeah, find out how long that lad hand Rescue mission has
been in existence place where all Mike's been living. Yeah, why, I
don't know yet, But do it, will you? Sure? And you
let me know when Mike's out of danger. Huh, Johnny better pray a
little bit randy. Expense account submitted by Special Investigator Johnny Dollar, Location,
New York, New York, to the Lake Side Light Casualty Company, following
as an accounting of expenditures incurred during my investigation of the indestructible mic matter.
The veneer of Class and Education assumed by Jay Wesley Cosgrave, just wasn't think
enough to hide the fact that he was better known a few years ago as
Duchy Gordon and in the old time racketeer. It looked like a cinch.
Pick up a Bowery bomb like Mike Flynn, ensure his life of fifty grand,
give him a few weeks a high living, then knock him off and
collect the insurance. Yeah. Real sinch, especially for Cosgrave, who learned
as far back as the early days of Prohibition how to employ hired thugs to
do the dirty work while he sat back and collected the profits. I knew
as surely as I'm sitting here that Cosgrave was behind the knifing, the shooting,
and now this accident to old Mike. But how to prove it?
Yeah, sitting here in the waiting over the hospital, waiting waiting for some
word of Mike's condition. Oh, yes, Tuck, can I see him
now? Very shortly? I believe? How is he? Is he a
phone call for you at the floridask? Oh? Great? But how is
Mike? Doc? How is he? You'll be able to see him shortly?
Yeah? Oh nice? Johnny Dollary, Oh, mister doll I was
quite sure that you would be there at the hospital. This is J.
Wesley Cosgrave. What made you think that? Why? Because of the accident
to Michael? Jeremiah Flynn? How did you know about it? I kept
it out of the papers. I find it helpful to know about a lot
of things that don't get into the papers. Well, your boy, Goofed
Cosgrave. Mike is still alive, My boy, You know as well as
I do, Duchy, that one of your mob was at the wheel of
that truck that ran him down. You better keep you a yep shirt dollar
U. I I thought I made it plain to you earlier that I no
longer have any connection with the doings of the shall we say underworld? Oh?
Sure sure. As for poor old Mike, I understand it was an
accident, very unfortun knock it off, Cosgrave. I was there when it
happened. Oh yeah, pretty still, But would be killer to try that
with an investigator right next to Mike, wasn't it. Did you see the
driver of the truck? I suppose I Did you say he wasn't one of
your boys? So what difference would it make to you? Why? No,
none at all? Did you see him? Why don't you worry about
that? For a while? Again? I waited, sat and waited and
paced the corridor of the hospital. Outside. The sun sank slowly behind the
horizon of skyscrapers, and the busy clamor of the day's traffic segued to the
softer, muffled but still busy traffic. Come up night, and I waited
and smoked and waited. Finally, it must have been close to midnight.
The nurse led me quietly down the hall and indicated the private room that I'd
had set aside for Mike. After a brief instruction about not staying too long,
she pushed open the door for me and she tiptoed away, and there
lo and behold and all his glorious head, swathed in bandages, but wearing
a smile of mile wide set indestructible. Mike, Johnny, Mike, Oh,
Mike, you will reprobate it. I guess there is something in prayer
after all. How about this, Johnny, this well, isn't this the
finest place you ever said? Oh? Mike, you're gonna be okay,
aren't you gonna? Yeah? I am, But I guess I had those
doctors scared. Oh my my mind, Johnny. You just should have seen
the way they fluttered around. Or and those nurses, Johnny, I never
saw such beautiful ladies and all mile I am so nice? And doesn't it
smell good in here? The disinfect they usedn't he as much nice? And
Daddy Bill has the mission. And you know, somebody, I haven't seen
a single bit bub, not even a cockgrow. No, Mike, Mike,
I'm so glad to see in one piece. Sure I am. I
don't old bum hasn't any righting and pretty place like this. You had no
more business living through that accident? Then? How you talk? Yeah?
Yeah, you mustn't talk so much? No, matter how good you feel,
you need rest, time to heal up whatever got broken broke me.
Well, you still need rest and quiet. Here, I'll turn off this
light. I'll see you in the morning. Oh but Johnny, Yeah,
Johnny, how can I just sleep? Too much? Pain? Want the
nurse to give you a hype hoe? Oh? They filled me up with
more needles than you ever saw. But there's only one real pain killer,
you know. Yeah, I'll see you later. If the administration of Bellevue
Hospital ever found out that I was back in Mike's from a few minutes later
and why, they'd probably have my neck. But I didn't leave the whole
bottle with him. I swear it. Only about three fingers in his water
tumbling, and the blissful expression on his face as he closed his eyes to
sleep made me sure I'd done right. I'd am fifteen one eighty taxi back
to my dingy little hotel, and I thank whatever gods may be that all
Mike could pull through. Eve been right. They just couldn't seem to kill
him so far. But I knew they wouldn't give up, not with fifty
thousand dollars at stake, fifty thousand more to line the pockets of Dutchy Gordon,
who I was sure was just as much of a racketeer as ever,
despite his present name of Jay Wesley Cosgrave and his pretense of gentility. Because
his henchmen had always feared to squeal or died violently before they could. The
police had nothing on him. My job was to find one of the mob
make him sing. But how I guess I was still thinking or dreaming about
it when my phone rang the next morning. Hello, Joy Dollar, this
is Jad Hello, oh oo Johnny Dollar. Hey he's still in bed?
Oh Randy? Yeah, I thought you were gonna call me. Is he
still alive? Was when I last saw him about midnight? Well it's a
miracle after what that truck did to him? And say, yeah, the
boys downtown found that truck. Yeah, he had it been stolen and was
abandoned. Did they find any Prince plenty who's lefty skillman? Well have they
picked a Yeah? Yeah, they found him all right, died up in
a sack floating in the East River, old time gangsters style. So helped
me. I knew that when Cosgrey sang, yeah, Mike's gonna be okay,
Randy, he was sitting up in bed, pricky as a cockatoo.
No, I don't know how he does it. Why he was all ready
to pack up and go back to the glad hand Rescue mission. Huh felt
he didn't deserve to be in such a nice, clean place as the hospital.
Bless his foolish art. Did you find out anything for me about that
flumphouse? Yeah, that's what I called you about, But you still haven't
told me. What'd you find? Well, according to the records, the
building was put up in nineteen oh one as a mission as a pianost store.
Nineteen one to nineteen six, real respectable place. Then well that section
began to degenerate. Nineteen six to eighteen was a cheap grocery store for nineteen
fifty six nineteen eighteen at twenty two was the second hand clothing store and the
Speak Easy nineteen twenty nine. You going, Randy, I guess the depression
knocked that out, because next it was a saloon. How long? Let's
see nineteen forty four, that's when William Grover Larkin took over the lease.
Daddy Bell, Yeah, Randy, I know it. Yeah what Dutchy Gordon
alsg Wesley Cosgrave told me that he'd got a hand from that mission when he
was just a kid. That would have meant twenty five thirty years ago at
least. Yeah, it's only been a mission for twelve Hey, wait a
minute, lease on that property when it was a speak easy it was in
the name of Larkin too. Had one more fact, Randolph, And you
see what I'm getting at. What's that? Your own police file show Cosgrave
was still in the rackets in forty four. Yeah, but on a charge
that we couldn't substantie right, tie him up. Cosgrave was a rum runner
during Prohibition. Daddy Bell ran to speak for him since nineteen forty four.
Whoa, whoa? Now, boy, you're trying to build a case on
purely circumstantial eleven All right, but I think I can make it stick now.
And where does Cosgrave get the thugs for whatever job he's pulling now?
Of course he is, and he gets him out of that flophouse. The
boys he gives jobs to that I've never seen again. Remember, Yeah,
wow, Hey, maybe it does tie Oh, you bet your sweet life
it does. At least I'm going to tie it up there and I'll take
it easy. Johnny. Just how are you going to go about. Well,
the first thing, I hold it, what's the matter? Somebody outside
the door of this room, I think, hold on, ready, no,
no, wait, wait a minute, Johnny, all right, what
do you think you're doing? Whoever hit me with, whatever he hit me
with, wasn't full of me. In the second before I passed out,
I vaguely remember hearing a voice, the voice of the room port, shouting
at whoever it was, and the sound of footsteps running away in blackness,
a dark, heavy throbbing in my head. Then, after a long time,
another familiar voice. It was Randy, I think dimly somewhere along the
line, I could see figures bending over me, hear the voice again,
and more darkness, and the weird sounds in my brain. Other sounds too
that seemed familiar. It seemed meaningless, meaningless, meaningless. Finally, after
an eternity of jumble sounds and shadows of cold, bright light pierced into my
slowly returning consciousness. Momentarily I could see a man in white and women and
yeah, yeah, a hospital. These were the doctor and the nurses.
I tried to speak to them, I couldn't, but slowly a realization of
what had happened. Came to my muddled fire. Randy on the telephone had
heard the attack on me and had brought help. An ambulance, had brought
me here. For a brief moment, I saw that gwind of a needle
poised above my arm. Then blackness again, but a soft, quiet,
peaceful blackness. Johnny, Johnny, Johnny, Oh wow, Wow, Johnny,
that's the boy. Wake up, Mike. That's right, isn't it
nice? They put you in the same room with me? Yeah? Right,
you're policeman. Friends are to it. And he told me something,
Johnny, and he's right. You've got to be careful. They're out to
get you too, Johnny Dollar, Randy Singer, Johnny, how are you
feeling? Thanks to you and having got me here? Pretty good? Bellevue
is a good hospital. I'll be released within the hour, So Mike Flynn
and I'm going down to the glad Hand Rescue Mission to straighten out a few
things with Daddy. Bill. Sounds to me like I ought to be police
business. Johnny. I'll be right over. No, let me handle this
alone. You got your gun, you bet your sweet life I have,
Johnny. I'll report to you later. Expense accounts submitted by special investigator Johnny
Dollar location, New York City to the Lake Signed Life and Casualty Company.
Following is an accounting of expenditures incurred during my investigation of the indestructible mic matter.
It am sixteen one night a cab fare for Mike Flynn and myself Bellevue
Hospital to the Dingy Hotel Breakley. Both of us had her heads still swathed
in bandages. With the help of the room clerk, I installed Mike in
a small room on the fifth floor, with instructions to keep his door locked.
In my own room, room two o three, I picked up my
thirty eight and down the old clothes I'd bought item seventeen fifty five cents taxi
to the neighborhood of the glad Hand Rescue Mission. For obvious reasons, I
walked the last couple of blocks. When I got there, the big front
assembly room was empty, so was the soup kitchen in the back of the
place. I called Daddy Bill's name a couple of times, it got no
answer, and finally decided to wait for him in the little room back of
the assembly hall that he used for an office. I still felt a little
shaky from the blow on the head, so I didn't mind just sitting a
while, But I left the door open a crack, and a few wants
later heard the street door open. It wasn't Daddy Bill, but I recognized
him as a new coming of the mission, whom I'd seen on my first
visit. He made directly for the little office. Already, Daddy he ain't
Daddy Bill said, Oh, do you know where he is? Out shopping?
At least that's why he say he was going. Didn't I see you
in here the other day? Why? Yes, sir, I guess you
did. My name's Emery. I just read the rods in from Ohio.
Boy, I had to I got myself in a jam back at it.
Yeah, I guess I just got me too much muscle. But they won't
catch up with me here. Daddy Bill promised me that see I should have
known you wasn't him in here? Oh? Sure? He said? He
wouldn't be back for another hour. You playing the white for him? Sure
do? He promised me a job. I wouldn't money on it. Enough
money, he said, to get clear out of the country and he'd help
me do it. Doesn't it strike you funny? Bud? That a guy
running a place like this would help you skip the country man, when you
like me and you get a help in and you just don't ask no questions,
you see, Mike, Mike Flynn, Yeah, he come back.
No, why that Bill left me a package for him? Him? Are
Johnny if they come back here? Well, I'm Johnny. Well here,
I get it right outside the door here, Yes, sir, liquor,
he said, And maybe you let me have some here. See, I'll
take it, licker, did you say? That's what he said? That's
o no, no, hands off, look at it. Man. Well,
Mike always shares this stuff with Lefty skill Man, Lefty Skimmer. It
was Lefty who'd run us down with a truck whose body was found on the
river. Lefty one of Daddy Bill's poor unfortunates. Here at the mission,
things were beginning to add up. And this package left for Mike and me,
Liquory said, But it didn't gurgle. Em Mary, listen to me.
Sure, Johnny get this package. I'm taking it with me back to
the Waldorf Waldorf. Yeah, that's right, that's where I'm staying. Don't
let these close for you. I thought there was something funny about you the
way you talk so fine. You a dick. Never mind. If Dandy
Bill wants me, that's where I'll be. Old. Mikey won't find because
I got him in room two o three at the Brakeley Hotel, Room two.
Forget it. He's still recovering from that accident. Shouldn't be disturbed.
He's all doped up anyway. That's why I took him to the Braakley,
where nobody will find him. I said, forget about that room two o
three. If Daddy Bill wants me, tell him to call me at the
Waldorf. I had an eighteen ten cents phone call from a booth in the
street to Sergeant Randy Singer. I had him nineteen five bucks even for a
fast but gentle taxi ride to the eighteenth Precinct, where Randy had promised to
have the lab boys alerted for me. As I said, Jenny, yeah,
I'm handled softly. Okay, okay, are you gonna stick around.
I'm going back to the Braakley to make sure Mike is all right, and
I'll look here. Jae. Call the Waldorf for me, get me registered
there, and struck the desk that if there are any calls for me I'm
eating lunch or something, and I'll be back in my room and say an
hour do it. I'll see you later. I'm nineteen taxi back to the
Brakeley Hotel to the service entrance in the alley for five bucks. The freight
elevator operator swore tell no one he'd see me. Take the backstairs to room
two oh three, My room, not Mike's, as I told Emory at
the Mission office room. Click, this is Johnny Dollaran two o three.
Oh yes, are you still working there? Listen? Listen carefully. If
the police call me, put them through to anyone else who calls it comes
looking for me. I'm not here, I never was. He never heard
of me, understand. Oh yes, indeed, mister Dolla. We've worked
with police and private investigators before. Okay, but if anybody wants to know
about Mike Flynn, I want Flynn. Yeah, the old bomb I had
you put in the room up on the fifth floor. Oh yes, if
anybody asked for him, tell him he's in this room two o three.
Oh very well. You sure you got that straight? Yes, sir,
time was on my side, I hoped Emory back at the mission. It
said Daddy Bell wouldn't return for an hour, but I couldn't be sure.
As quickly as I could, I spilled a half bottle of whiskey around the
room and the hope it would give the effect Old Mike was there. Then
I pulled down all the shades and drew the drapes tight across the windows.
I turned on the bed and must have the covers so it would be ready
for me. I watched it. I still had time to kill, so
I ran upstairs to Mike's from on the fifth. I'm carrying a fifth Bless
my soul, Johnny, and look what you've brought me. On one condition,
Mike, Oh yes, oh, anything you? Oh, you've been
so good to me. I want you to promise that, no matter what
happens, you'll stay right here in this room until I come back. I
of course, Johnny, anything you say, especially now that you brought me
this bottle of to kind of keep me company. See, wouldn't you like
a little nip before you go? No? No, thanks, so and
keep this store locked now you sure you wouldn't like just one little No.
I hate to think of me having it all alone, and you probably need
as much as I do. Oh say Johnny. Yeah, when are you
and I going to be able to take these awful looking bandages off our hit?
We'll talk about that later. I got to get back to my room.
Now you're sure I can't? I'm sure? Yeah. Now lock this
door all out, Johnny, But if you decide you want to with me
quickly and quietly. I went back downstairs to two or three in cautiously let
myself in, leaving the door unlocked. That would have been there if I'd
made it in time. And now all I could do was wait, hello,
Johnny, Yeah, Randy, better make it fast. Oh what's the
matter? What do you call about it? That pretty little package you dropped
off of the lab land? Yeah, you sure were right about it?
A bomb? Huh? If you or mine could opened that package by now,
you'd be spread all over the island and tiny little pieces. Look,
Johnny, come on, let me in on it. Huh. What are
you up to do down there? I'll tell you when it's all over,
That is, if what I think is going to happen does happen. Are
you sure you don't want some help? No? I think I can gotta
go. I'd heard footsteps out in the hall. Quickly I slid into the
bed, leaving nothing but my heavily advantage head showing the footsteps past, and
then far down the corridor, I heard a door open and close, and
I still awaited and lying there thinking. I began to wonder if I'd been
right in turning down Randy's offer of help. How could he help with him?
Footsteps again, and this time they stopped outside my door. All clear
out here in the hall. That voice was Daddy Bill's and he wasn't alone.
Mike, Mike, what on the light, Mike, Oh, he's
in here all right, Smell that booze. He's there on the bed to
sleep. You mean, drunk close to hey seem end of the world.
Are you sure this is going to be safe? Dutchy, Why do you
suppose that took so long? The case the journey? Yeah? But what
about Dollar? I told you Bill at the wall, doll. Are you
sure you talked to him? No? No, he was in the coffee
shop. Gonna shut up, get this over with. Always we do the
dirty with for you, all right, This is one I'll do myself.
Who's shut up, Johnny, Johnny, Wait a minute, that's Mike,
who's on that bed? Shut up? All right, Dollar, you can
get up out of that bed and take it in the chest, or lay
there and get it in the back. All right, Cosgrave touching both hands
up high, drop that gun, sure, Johnny shut him about there,
Bill, Yeah, Daddy Bill, quiet, Dollar, you'd better do something,
Cosgravy. You have two witnesses, the man who always kept his skirts
clean. Huh. They'll let him lock him both off. Make it look
like a fight between them. Something on the wait, boss, Johnny is
something I'm coming. Oh, no, you do, Hey, Randy,
Hey, you're real rough, aren't you. No? Wait a minute,
are Mike get up off his chest? I want to see what your dear
friend Daddy Bill looks like. Oh what'd you hit him with? Anyway?
Oh? Dear, the poor bottles all broke? I just think it happened
to you, Mike. Ah. Oh, this is Duchy Gordon alias J.
Wesley Conns Gray. He won't be for long line. Well what's that,
Daddy Bill? You're feeling better? You always hung it on somebody else?
And what are you talking about? Left? Shortly all of them.
This one need to hung on me this time. God, Randy's grave dead
as a door. When Daddy Bill comes to after that sock on the chin,
you can tell him he's cooked his own goose. The world will be
a bit better without Duchy Gordon, Alisja Westley Cosgrave, and of course the
courts will take care of Daddy Bill lacking plenty, Mike indestructible, Mike,
well, he'll probably outlive the rest of us. I hope I can get
down to see you now and talk over our great adventure together. Expense acount
total six fifty, which is a lot less than the fifty thousand you might
have had to pay off on Mike. Yours truly, Johnny Dollar. Now,
here's our star to tell you about next week's intriguing story. Next week,
the heady romance of Moonlight on a lonely Beach in Mexico. Moonlight from
a Killer's Moon Join us, won't you? Yours truly? Johnny Dollar?
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, starring Bob Bailey, is transcribed in Hollywood.
It is produced and directed by Jack Johnstone, who also wrote this story.
Heard in this week's cast were Howard McNair, Lawrence Dumpkin, Harry Bartel,
Herb Bigran, Alan Reid, and Roy Glenn. Musical supervision by A Marigo
Marino and Carl Fortina. Be sure to join us on Monday night at same
time and station for another exciting story of yours truly Johnny Dollar Roy Rowan speaking
when welcome back. Last time through, I think The Indestructible Mic Matter was
probably my least favorite serial, but this time I appreciated a bit more.
To be sure, there are flaws, and I think a lot of that
comes down to the writing. As often happens in Johnstone's serials, were treated
to policemen whose arrival is so quick and sudden that they must be teleporting.
Cosgrave's plan was dumb. His big play to collect on Myck's insurance policy attracted
the attention of both the police and the insurance company and put his nice quiet
operation at risk for a reward he didn't really need. His live about having
been helped at the mission was also foolish. It's one of those things where
the writer wants us to believe that we're dealing with a criminal mastermind, but
every step he makes is just so transparent, obvious, and poorly considered.
And I can't say a whole lot for Johnny's insistence on taking Cosgrave himself as
the only thing it served was dramatic tension rather than any real in universe benefit.
Still, I guess having listened to File Advance recently leaves me a bit
more tolerant of dumb plans because this story doesn't feature one of the top ten
dumb plans that I've heard this year. Yeah, if I'm fair, I
don't think the story is bad, even if it has its flaws, and
there's a lot to like about it in terms of production and performance. The
strings really stand out. I think Johnny's real affection for Mike is sweet,
and it speaks to this sort of humanity that attracts people to Bob Bailey's portrayal
of Johnny Doller even seventy years later. Of course, this was a role
made for Howard mcneer, and he really brings the character to life with all
the sort of eccentricity that mcneer really excelled at portraying. When talking about this
run of Johnny Dollar, there are probably three actors people credit a lot of
Bob Bailey, Virginia Greg and mcneer, and that's rightly so. They really
had some solid performances. However, there were so many good performances that have
stood out to me as we've been going through the serials this time. You
know, we've had a few weeks where Jeanette Nolan turned in really intriguing,
well done characters, and I have to admit that Alan Reid really did a
great job with Causgrave. I don't think there was a whole lot to do
with the character that was all that unique in episode five, but he really
got a bit of a chance to shine in episode three where he had this
really long scene. He had to shift from being Causegrave, the retired gentleman,
to being a menacing hood and he did this multiple times throughout the conversation.
Sometimes he was changing within the same sentence, and he does it Flawlessleigh
in a way that makes it really believable that this character is struggling with this
and at the same time brings some solid minutes. Now, Fred Flintstone is
a great legacy for Reid, but he had some serious acting talent that I
think a lot of people forget about. I also had to appreciate the segment
in episode four where Johnny loses consciousness. It's such a great way to take
the audience into this disorienting place with our hero well, some shows will have
the detective near rate as he's drowning or running out of breath, or even
being drug This creates a well crafted sound experience where you really kind of enter
into it with your hero. This must have taken some real skill to design,
particularly with the audio engineering technology that you had available in nineteen fifty six.
Overall, I don't think this is one of my top ten episodes.
I know that many listed as one of their favorites, but I think that
it might at least be in my top fifty after really getting a chance to
reflect on it again. Now. John Abbott noted in his book that Who
Is Johnny Dollar Matter that there was an actual case in nineteen thirty three where
five acquaintances attempted to murder a former firefighter named Iron Mike Malloy, and there
were multiple ailed attempts as we heard in the episode, but in real life
the murder attempt did eventually succeed, even though the criminals were all brought to
justice. The story served as an inspiration for many different programs Beyond the Indestructible
mock Matter. There was an episode of the nineteen eighty series Amazing Stories that
was inspired by the same incident. I also heard an episode of the Mutual
Radio Theater in nineteen eighty and it had the title of Oh Really, Noah
O'Reilly and was set in the Old West, probably about thirty to forty years
before the real life incident that inspired it. Well, now we turn to
listener comments and feedback, and Carrie had a question on listening to our special.
I just finished listening to the House on ninety second Street and noticed that
a lot of the incidental and transitional music seemed to be identical to music from
Tales of the Texas Rangers and yours truly, Johnny Dollar. I wonder if
they use recorded samples or live music reproducing those small snippets of music. Any
thoughts, Well, thanks so much for the question, and I've covered this
in some other context. But by the time you get to the nineteen fifties,
television was really starting to eat into the profit margin of radio, and
so radio shows had to reduce expense in order to continue on the air,
particularly dramatic programs, and what you saw was a shift away from orchestrated scores.
You listen to say, let George do It in the mid forties,
and they've got a full orchestra doing the score. They ended up down ungrading
to organ music. And some programs and I think most of the shows over
MBC started a system where you would have the original feed and then all of
your incidental music would be exactly the same thing across every single show, and
it would come from a pre recorded music library. And this really became kind
of the standard at NBC, but you also began to hear it on CBS
programs. Now, it wasn't true of every program. The big exception over
NBC obviously is Dragnet. But Dragnet one had a sponsor and was therefore bringing
in money and could afford to have its full score, and it was also
a flagship program. But most programs weren't like Dragnet. For so many programs,
once you get past the opening theme, all the incidental music gets all
exactly the same thing, one show very much like another. And that was
just how radio tried to economize because they had to Thanks so much for the
question, Carry and now it's time to thank our Patreon supporter of the day,
and I want to go ahead and thank John. John has been one
of our Patreon supporters since August twenty twenty two, currently supporting the program at
the Detective Sergeant level of seven dollars and fourteen cents or more per month.
Thank you so much for your support, John, and that will actually do
it for today. If you're enjoying the podcast, please follow us using your
favorite podcast software. And if you're enjoying the podcast on YouTube, be sure
to lock the video, subscribe to the channel, and mark the notification bell.
We'll be back with the start of another Yours Truly johny Dollar serial next
Tuesday, but join us back here tomorrow for drag nat where. Nine minutes
later, at four minutes past midnight, the men from the crime lab showed
up. It started to drizzle. They went over the room in detail.
They dusted everything in the room for fingerprints, the walls, the doors,
the fixtures in the bathroom, the lamps, chairs, everything. They took
samples of the girl's blood and their lipstick. Small pieces of flesh and human
hair were found under the girl's fingernails. The nails were scraped carefully and the
contents put in an envelope, marked and sealed head Backstrand ordered. Pictures taken
up the room and the girl's body from different angles. Every object in the
room that could have any possible tie in with a murder was photographed. It
was raining. The rear of the hotel, where the fire escape was overlooked
a vacant lot. Ben had a hunch. While the lab men were at
work, we left the hotel and circled around into the lot for a look
at the ground directly underneath the fire escape ladder was raining hard. Now help,
You'll be with us then. In the meantime, do send your comments
to box thirt 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. Sign
it off.