# Fibber McGee and Molly - "Parakeet's Preference" (Old Time Radio, 1953)

An episode of [Fibber McGee and Molly | Old Time Radio](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1858238532), 14 Oct 2026, 15 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/75787674/57d3a3eafdd8a309_mastered.mp3

Fibber McGee and Molly presents “Parakeet’s Preference,” episode 765 of the classic NBC comedy series, originally broadcast November 6, 1953. Jim Jordan stars as Fibber McGee, with Marian Jordan as Molly McGee. The McGees face a small but pressing household question: does their pet parakeet prefer sunshine or shade? This brief weekday-era episode finds Fibber and Molly trying to settle the bird’s preference in their own comic fashion. Fibber McGee and Molly presents the original broadcast with a newly produced contextual introduction, a short closing announcement, and gently cleaned/mastered audio for a more consistent listening experience. Chapters: 00:00 Victor Sterling Introduction 00:41 Original Broadcast 15:12 Closing Support Old Time Retro Radio at https://www.patreon.com/oldtimeretroradio

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: On October 5th, 1953, Fibber McGee and Molly began a
[0:04] Speaker 1: five-day-a-week run of 15-minute NBC broadcasts after years as a
[0:09] Speaker 1: weekly half-hour program. A month later, on November 6th, came
[0:14] Speaker 1: episode 765, Parakeet's Preference, with Jim Jordan as Fibber and
[0:21] Speaker 1: Marion Jordan as Molly. The McGees take up a domestic
[0:25] Speaker 1: question involving their pet parakeet. Does the bird prefer sunshine
[0:29] Speaker 1: or shade? Fibber and Molly set about finding an answer. Here, then,
[0:34] Speaker 1: are Jim and Marion Jordan in Fibber, McGee, and Molly.
[0:38] Speaker 1: And now, our story begins.
[0:42] Speaker 2: The Fibber, McGee, and Molly Show. Every weekday at this time,
[0:53] Speaker 2: NBC brings you Fibber, McGee, and Molly transcribed. The show
[0:57] Speaker 2: is written by Phil Leslie and Ralph Goodman and directed
[1:00] Speaker 2: by Max Hutto. We'll join Fibber and Molly in just
[1:09] Speaker 2: a moment. Parents are the same everywhere. You want your
[1:14] Speaker 2: youngsters to have the best of everything. But after all,
[1:18] Speaker 2: that's only natural. So it's only natural that many of
[1:21] Speaker 2: you give your youngsters United States savings bonds. Probably no
[1:26] Speaker 2: gift is more rewarding than this gift for the future.
[1:30] Speaker 2: Because when those savings bonds mature, your youngster will get
[1:33] Speaker 2: a return of $ 4 for every $ 3 you invest. $ 100
[1:37] Speaker 2: for every $ 75 you put in. Extra money that he'll
[1:41] Speaker 2: surely need for school or college later on. In the meantime,
[1:45] Speaker 2: tell him what it means to have his name on
[1:47] Speaker 2: a savings bond. Explain how he's Uncle Sam's partner, how
[1:51] Speaker 2: his money helps to build planes, ships, and radar equipment
[1:54] Speaker 2: for our defense. Your youngster will feel mighty proud to
[1:57] Speaker 2: do his part as a citizen and mighty grateful for
[1:59] Speaker 2: those extra dollars when his savings bonds mature. Give your
[2:03] Speaker 2: youngster and a youngster a United States savings bond. It's
[2:06] Speaker 2: one of the best of all gifts, a gift with
[2:09] Speaker 2: a future.
[2:19] Speaker 3: And you know what Mort says to me then? The
[2:21] Speaker 3: big smart aleck. McGee, he says, you'll never teach that
[2:25] Speaker 3: parakeet how to talk, he says. Because to do that,
[2:28] Speaker 3: you have to be smarter than the bird, he says.
[2:30] Speaker 4: Hand me the bird seed there, dearie.
[2:33] Speaker 3: Thanks. Well, I had a very smart comeback for that guy, Molly.
[2:36] Speaker 3: You know what I said? I looked the big windbag
[2:38] Speaker 3: right in the eye, and I says to him, I says, listen, Toops,
[2:42] Speaker 3: I says, this is Mort Toops, you know, Willie Toops' father,
[2:45] Speaker 3: the kid that he... Yes, oh, yes, I.
[2:47] Speaker 4: Know which Mort Toops you mean, dearie. Go ahead.
[2:50] Speaker 3: So I ups to him, and I says, listen, Toops,
[2:52] Speaker 3: I says, I'll teach that ten-weeks-old parakeet how to talk,
[2:55] Speaker 3: and when I do, he'll be easier to understand than
[2:57] Speaker 3: that ten-year-old kid of yours that you taught how to talk,
[2:59] Speaker 3: I says.
[3:00] Speaker 5: Ha, ha.
[3:03] Speaker 6: Belong what crowd the one that always gathers when you
[3:07] Speaker 6: and mort stop for a friendly chat.
[3:09] Speaker 3: There wasn't any crowd around us but there wasn't a
[3:12] Speaker 3: dozen people all together They all left, anyhow, when Mort
[3:16] Speaker 3: refused to knock that stick of wood off my shoulder.
[3:19] Speaker 6: Oh, well, now, isn't that a little silly, getting into
[3:21] Speaker 6: a fight over little birds?
[3:22] Speaker 3: Well, it wasn't that. It was the principle of the thing.
[3:25] Speaker 3: Ever since that loudmouth bought his little kid a set
[3:27] Speaker 3: of encyclopedia, he's become an expert on everything. And don't
[3:31] Speaker 3: keep the bird in the sun, he says. It's bad
[3:34] Speaker 3: for him, he says.
[3:35] Speaker 4: Well, maybe it is.
[3:37] Speaker 3: Birds love the sun. Didn't you ever see them all
[3:40] Speaker 3: out flying around on a nice sunny day?
[3:42] Speaker 2: Well.
[3:42] Speaker 3: Where are they when it rains? They're hiding up in
[3:44] Speaker 3: a tree somewhere. Just let the sun come out again
[3:47] Speaker 3: and the yard's full of them.
[3:48] Speaker 6: I know, dearie, but if the encyclopedia says it's bad.
[3:51] Speaker 3: That's right. Take their word against mine.
[3:54] Speaker 4: Well, I didn't mean that, McGee.
[3:56] Speaker 7: I just thought that.
[3:57] Speaker 3: He's all right right there in the sun, Molly. Look
[3:59] Speaker 3: at him. He's as happy as a fox in a
[4:01] Speaker 3: hen house.
[4:02] Speaker 2: Well.
[4:03] Speaker 3: Okay, if it'll make you feel better, I'll move his
[4:05] Speaker 3: cage in the shade. I'll put him over here on
[4:09] Speaker 3: the table. There.
[4:14] Speaker 4: He does seem to like that better, McGee. Listen to him, Sheriff.
[4:18] Speaker 3: He's probably trying to tell us to put him back
[4:20] Speaker 3: in the sun again. I haven't taught the poor little
[4:22] Speaker 3: guy how to talk yet. He can't tell us what
[4:24] Speaker 3: he wants. He has to just sit there in the
[4:26] Speaker 3: shade and suffer.
[4:28] Speaker 4: Well, I don't know. Let's try him back in the
[4:30] Speaker 4: sunshine again and see what happens.
[4:32] Speaker 5: Okay.
[4:34] Speaker 3: Boy, this cage is kind of heavy.
[4:37] Speaker 2: There.
[4:39] Speaker 3: How's that, Buster?
[4:41] Speaker 1: Better, huh?
[4:42] Speaker 4: He stopped chirping.
[4:43] Speaker 5: Sure.
[4:44] Speaker 3: He's comfortable again. Sunlight's good for him. Everything is better
[4:49] Speaker 3: off in the sunshine, Molly. Everything?
[4:51] Speaker 2: Certainly.
[4:52] Speaker 8: How about my screen phone?
[4:53] Speaker 5: Oh, thanks.
[4:53] Speaker 3: I had one downtown. Oh, you mean the ball.
[4:55] Speaker 6: Come in.
[4:57] Speaker 4: Well, hello, Dr. Gamble.
[4:59] Speaker 3: Morning, my dear. Hello, sonny boy. Hi, Lancelot. Park the
[5:03] Speaker 3: frame and set a spell. No, thanks. I just stopped
[5:05] Speaker 3: by to take a look at the parakeet, kids. I'm
[5:08] Speaker 3: thinking of getting one myself.
[5:09] Speaker 4: Oh, good for you.
[5:12] Speaker 3: I might have known as soon as I'd do something,
[5:14] Speaker 3: you'd have to do the same thing, you old copycat.
[5:16] Speaker 3: You didn't invent parakeets, McGee. These birds have been used
[5:20] Speaker 3: as pets for 300 years.
[5:22] Speaker 5: Really, Doctor?
[5:22] Speaker 4: That long?
[5:23] Speaker 3: They don't live that long. I've been reading up on
[5:26] Speaker 3: birds lately. Got some very interesting bird books from Wally Wimple.
[5:30] Speaker 3: Did you know, for instance, that to teach a parakeet
[5:32] Speaker 3: to talk, you have to be smarter than the bird?
[5:34] Speaker 3: Which really makes it tough for me. Okay, okay, so
[5:37] Speaker 3: you've been talking to more toots.
[5:40] Speaker 1: He gave me a message for you. Oh, he did, huh? Yeah.
[5:43] Speaker 3: He says he still has that stick on his shoulder
[5:45] Speaker 3: any time you want to come over and knock it off. Say, incidentally, Molly,
[5:49] Speaker 3: if I were you, I'd take that bird out of
[5:50] Speaker 3: the sun. Did more tubes tell you that, too? Powder pigeon? No,
[5:54] Speaker 3: this is something I read in one of Wimple's books.
[5:56] Speaker 2: Oh?
[5:57] Speaker 3: It says birds in their natural habitat like shade.
[6:00] Speaker 6: Now, you see, McGee, I was right. Move him back
[6:03] Speaker 6: in the shade before he gets sunburned.
[6:06] Speaker 5: Okay.
[6:07] Speaker 3: The book says so.
[6:08] Speaker 6: I guess....
[6:11] Speaker 2: There.
[6:12] Speaker 3: Back on the table again. In fact, this whole chapter
[6:14] Speaker 3: I read last night was very interesting, Molly.
[6:16] Speaker 4: All about parakeets, was it?
[6:18] Speaker 3: No, this particular chapter was on the American bald eagle.
[6:21] Speaker 3: Bald eagles? Well, it stands to reason, of course, that
[6:23] Speaker 3: if a big bird like the eagle doesn't like too
[6:26] Speaker 3: much sunshine, a delicate little parakeet would.
[6:29] Speaker 4: McGee, what are you doing with the bird cage?
[6:30] Speaker 3: I'm moving it back in the sun again.
[6:33] Speaker 4: But the doctor just said that even a bald eagle
[6:35] Speaker 4: can't stand.
[6:35] Speaker 3: Look, kiddo. If a guy has a bald head, he
[6:38] Speaker 3: stays out of the sun. But if he's got a hat,
[6:40] Speaker 3: how can it hurt him? This bird has enough feathers
[6:43] Speaker 3: on the top of his noggin to protect him from
[6:44] Speaker 3: the rays of the sun. He's no bald-headed eagle. And furthermore,
[6:48] Speaker 3: what does that guy know about.
[6:55] Speaker 2: Back to Espovista in a minute. We Americans have always
[7:03] Speaker 2: been known as a generous people. Perhaps it's because we
[7:06] Speaker 2: realize our good fortune and being in a position to
[7:09] Speaker 2: give that we're so ready to share with those less
[7:12] Speaker 2: fortunate in all parts of the world. Right now, in 1,800
[7:16] Speaker 2: separate community campaigns, the community chest is asking for $ 280 million,
[7:21] Speaker 2: which is the amount needed to expand and carry out
[7:23] Speaker 2: its current program. The United Community Campaign is a once-a-year
[7:27] Speaker 2: appeal which serves all year round. When you give to
[7:30] Speaker 2: your local community chest, you have the satisfaction of knowing
[7:33] Speaker 2: that you're donating to worthy causes of all kinds, both
[7:36] Speaker 2: in this country and abroad. You're helping to care for
[7:39] Speaker 2: underprivileged children as well as for the lonely ages. You're
[7:42] Speaker 2: showing your concern for our servicemen as well as for
[7:44] Speaker 2: the Korean homeless. By eliminating many separate appeals, which would
[7:48] Speaker 2: be more costly in money, time, and effort, your gift
[7:50] Speaker 2: to the community chest is able to do more for
[7:53] Speaker 2: the many. Bear that in mind when you make your
[7:55] Speaker 2: contribution to the United Community Campaign.
[8:08] Speaker 4: McGee, I'm worried about that parakeet.
[8:10] Speaker 3: I keep telling you, Molly, he loves the sunshine.
[8:12] Speaker 1: He's fine.
[8:14] Speaker 6: He's just been sitting there with his head under his
[8:16] Speaker 6: wing for the last hour.
[8:17] Speaker 3: He's probably sleeping. Now, don't go waking him up. A
[8:19] Speaker 3: little bird that size needs his rest.
[8:22] Speaker 4: I can't hear him breathing, McGee.
[8:24] Speaker 3: I'd feel better if he woke up. Well, then wake
[8:27] Speaker 3: him up.
[8:28] Speaker 4: Well, if he's really asleep, though, I wouldn't want to
[8:30] Speaker 4: disturb him.
[8:31] Speaker 3: Then leave him alone.
[8:32] Speaker 4: Well, what if something is wrong with him?
[8:34] Speaker 3: Then wake him up.
[8:35] Speaker 4: McGee, don't shout. Now, look what you did.
[8:38] Speaker 3: You woke up the poor little fella. My gosh, Molly,
[8:40] Speaker 3: you blame me for... Quiet. You'll upset him.
[8:45] Speaker 4: You know how you are when you first wake up.
[8:48] Speaker 7: Hello, baby.
[8:49] Speaker 4: Did you have a nice little nap?
[8:53] Speaker 5: Nap?
[8:54] Speaker 3: I told you he was all right.
[8:55] Speaker 6: Well, maybe, but I'd still feel better if the poor
[8:57] Speaker 6: little fella was out of that murderous sunlight.
[9:00] Speaker 4: Look at him blink his little eyes. He's almost blinded
[9:02] Speaker 4: by that light.
[9:03] Speaker 3: Okay, come on, Buster. Back in the cage. If I'd
[9:06] Speaker 3: have known it was going to be like this, I'd
[9:07] Speaker 3: have put wheels on this dad-ratted cage. If I was
[9:10] Speaker 3: this poor bird, I'd.
[9:13] Speaker 4: Wasn't that our back door?
[9:15] Speaker 8: Grocery boy!
[9:16] Speaker 3: Oh, it's the old-timer.
[9:17] Speaker 8: Hello there, kid. Hi, daughter.
[9:19] Speaker 3: Hi, old-timer.
[9:19] Speaker 5: Need anything from the grocery store today? I was in
[9:22] Speaker 5: the neighborhood and I.
[9:23] Speaker 4: Oh, just a minute, Mr.
[9:24] Speaker 8: Old-timer.
[9:25] Speaker 4: I'll go get my grocery list.
[9:26] Speaker 5: Oh, don't hurry, daughter. I get paid by the day. Hey,
[9:31] Speaker 5: still got that little green buzzard there, huh, Johnny? Yep.
[9:34] Speaker 3: Parakeet.
[9:35] Speaker 2: You laid any eggs yet?
[9:36] Speaker 3: No, he don't lay eggs.
[9:38] Speaker 5: What you do, son?
[9:39] Speaker 2: Can he sing?
[9:40] Speaker 3: No, he don't exactly sing.
[9:41] Speaker 5: Can he talk?
[9:42] Speaker 3: Well, not yet.
[9:43] Speaker 5: I'm... Can he smoke a cigar?
[9:45] Speaker 3: I know a parrot wants to.
[9:46] Speaker 4: No, no, no.
[9:46] Speaker 3: This bird don't smoke.
[9:48] Speaker 5: Can he skip rope?
[9:49] Speaker 2: Turn somersault?
[9:50] Speaker 3: No, no. He just sits there on his.
[9:51] Speaker 5: He's a good flyer, though, huh? Bet he flies real good.
[9:55] Speaker 3: He can't fly at all. His wings are clipped.
[10:00] Speaker 5: Must make a very interesting pet, Johnny. Can't do nothing.
[10:05] Speaker 3: Well, he's just a baby. He's only a couple months old.
[10:09] Speaker 5: I'll tell you one thing. He ain't going to grow
[10:11] Speaker 5: no bigger sitting in a shade like that. All grown
[10:14] Speaker 5: things need sun, son.
[10:16] Speaker 3: Well, that's the way I figured, old-timer, but Molly thinks
[10:19] Speaker 3: he's too delicate.
[10:20] Speaker 5: Sure he's delicate. That shade is too hard on his eyes, Johnny.
[10:24] Speaker 4: His eyes?
[10:25] Speaker 5: Your screen is poor little eyes trying to read the
[10:27] Speaker 5: paper in the bottom of his cage there. You don't
[10:30] Speaker 5: want him to wear glasses when he grows up, do you?
[10:32] Speaker 5: He's got no ears to hook him on. Yeah, that's... Anyways,
[10:37] Speaker 5: all living things love sunshine, Johnny.
[10:39] Speaker 1: That's right.
[10:40] Speaker 3: I don't know why I listen to all these people.
[10:42] Speaker 3: I'm moving this cage back in the sunshine right now.
[10:46] Speaker 3: There he is in the sun, and that's where he stands.
[10:50] Speaker 3: You see, he likes it. You see, putting his head
[10:53] Speaker 3: under his wing, going back to sleep.
[10:55] Speaker 4: Here's the grocery list, Mr.
[10:57] Speaker 6: Oldtimer.
[10:57] Speaker 5: Well, I'll get right to the store with it, daughter.
[10:59] Speaker 2: See you later, Johnny.
[11:00] Speaker 3: So long, Oldtimer.
[11:03] Speaker 6: McGee, what's the bird doing back in the sun again?
[11:05] Speaker 6: I thought you just moved him back in the shade.
[11:06] Speaker 3: I did, but the old-timer says the sun's good for birds.
[11:09] Speaker 3: Makes them grow. Besides, if he strains his eyes and
[11:12] Speaker 3: has to wear glasses... Oh, McGee.
[11:14] Speaker 6: I wish we'd get this thing settled once and for all.
[11:17] Speaker 6: That poor little bird must feel like he's living on
[11:19] Speaker 6: a merry-go-round.
[11:20] Speaker 3: Oh, gee whiz.
[11:21] Speaker 2: I've tried.
[11:22] Speaker 3: Come in. Oh, hi, Wimp. Hello, folks.
[11:26] Speaker 4: Well, I'm certainly glad to see you, Mr.
[11:28] Speaker 3: Wimple.
[11:28] Speaker 8: You are?
[11:29] Speaker 3: We have a problem.
[11:31] Speaker 6: Now, McGee, here's an expert on the subject.
[11:33] Speaker 5: Is Mr.
[11:34] Speaker 4: Wimple's word good enough for you?
[11:35] Speaker 5: You betcha.
[11:36] Speaker 3: If Wallace says the shade is all right, it's all
[11:38] Speaker 3: right with me.
[11:39] Speaker 8: Oh, I don't know anything about shade, Mrs.
[11:41] Speaker 6: McGee.
[11:42] Speaker 7: Every time I try to pull a shade down, it
[11:44] Speaker 7: snaps out of my hand and goes... Oh, we.
[11:50] Speaker 6: Weren't talking about window shades, Mr.
[11:52] Speaker 5: Wimple.
[11:52] Speaker 7: Well, the same thing goes for Venetian blinds, isn't it?
[11:56] Speaker 7: Every time I fool with them, they get stuck in
[11:58] Speaker 7: the middle and I wind up with half sun and
[12:00] Speaker 7: half shade.
[12:01] Speaker 3: We weren't talking about Venetian blinds either.
[12:03] Speaker 2: We were talking....
[12:04] Speaker 3: Hey, that's it. That does it.
[12:08] Speaker 7: What?
[12:09] Speaker 8: Did I do something?
[12:10] Speaker 3: I'm going to set this cage right in the middle
[12:12] Speaker 3: of the window.
[12:12] Speaker 4: But now, McGee, you agreed that.
[12:15] Speaker 3: Come on, kiddo. Untie that tied back curtain on the
[12:17] Speaker 3: side there so it drops down and covers one side
[12:19] Speaker 3: of the window.
[12:19] Speaker 5: Come on.
[12:20] Speaker 4: Well, I don't see what you're... Oh, yeah, do that.
[12:22] Speaker 3: That's it. Right down in front of the cage.
[12:25] Speaker 5: There, we got it.
[12:26] Speaker 4: Well, why didn't I think of that? Half the cage
[12:29] Speaker 4: is sunny and half of it's shady. Yeah.
[12:32] Speaker 3: You see? That way the bird can make up his
[12:34] Speaker 3: own mind. Wimp came up with the idea just like that.
[12:37] Speaker 3: Half sun and half shade.
[12:39] Speaker 5: I did?
[12:40] Speaker 6: We've been fussing about this all day, Mr. Wimple, and
[12:42] Speaker 6: you come along and settle it in three seconds.
[12:44] Speaker 4: That's wonderful.
[12:45] Speaker 1: Yeah.
[12:46] Speaker 7: Well, if there's any other problem I can settle for you,
[12:49] Speaker 7: I think of the answers just like that.
[12:51] Speaker 8: I'm confused.
[13:05] Speaker 2: Biver and Molly will be right back. Well, here we are,
[13:09] Speaker 2: all ready to start off on another weekend again. But
[13:12] Speaker 2: every time we get to the end of one of them,
[13:14] Speaker 2: you can be sure of wonderful entertainment all day Sunday
[13:17] Speaker 2: on the NBC radio network. There's NBC's revolutionary new Sunday
[13:22] Speaker 2: newspaper of the year called Weekend. There's great dramatic entertainment
[13:27] Speaker 2: on Theatre Royal and the NBC Star Playhouse. Adventure with
[13:30] Speaker 2: James Stewart as the Six Shooters. Music on the Golden Voices.
[13:35] Speaker 2: your favorite motion picture stars on two fine shows, The
[13:38] Speaker 2: Hollywood Story and Ask Hollywood. A new concept of history
[13:42] Speaker 2: is brought to your radio speaker on Stroke of Fate,
[13:45] Speaker 2: while Bob Considine brings you news and views on the
[13:47] Speaker 2: present-day world. These and many more wonderful programs bring the
[13:51] Speaker 2: nation's best entertainment into your homes every Sunday when you
[13:54] Speaker 2: set your dial to this, your NBC station. Always remember
[13:59] Speaker 2: to tune where you hear the familiar three NBC chimes.
[14:02] Speaker 2: They're your invitation to the best radio entertainment.
[14:16] Speaker 4: Well, that wraps up another week, Dave.
[14:18] Speaker 3: Yeah, have a nice weekend, everybody.
[14:20] Speaker 6: And if you go anywhere, please drive carefully and courteously.
[14:23] Speaker 6: A little more courtesy can mean a lot fewer accidents.
[14:26] Speaker 3: We'll see you Monday.
[14:27] Speaker 8: Good night.
[14:27] Speaker 4: Good night, all.
[14:34] Speaker 2: NBC has brought you the Pepper McGee and Molly program
[14:37] Speaker 2: transcribed with Phil Thompson as the old-timer and Wallace Wimple
[14:41] Speaker 2: and Arthur Q. Bryan as Dr.
[14:42] Speaker 6: Gamble.
[14:43] Speaker 2: This is John Wald inviting you to be with us
[14:45] Speaker 2: again next Monday night for another visit with Pepper McGee
[14:48] Speaker 2: and Molly.
[14:57] Speaker 3: Laugh with Can You Top This? next on the NBC
[15:01] Speaker 3: Radio Network.
[15:11] Speaker 1: We leave Fibber McGee and Molly with Parakeet's preference. This
[15:15] Speaker 1: is Victor Sterling. Until next time, good night. Follow Fibber
[15:18] Speaker 1: McGee and Molly for more classic broadcasts.

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