# Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar: The Backfire That Backfired Matter (EP5080)

An episode of [The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio| Daily Mystery Dramas](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/335549005), 9 Oct 2026, 28 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/pdcn.co/e/pdrl.fm/997ffb/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/75589535/gd5080.mp3

Today's Mystery: Johnny Dollar is looking forward to making amends with Betty Lewis when an unusual pattern catches his attention: a hot rod races past her home every morning, its engine backfiring at precisely the same spot. When Johnny discovers the car has a phony license plate, he suspects the noise is more than a nuisance. His investigation leads him to a dangerous scheme targeting a former attorney, but can Johnny uncover the plan before the next backfire turns deadly? Original Radio Broadcast Date:September 6, 1959 Originating from Hollywood Cast: • Bob Bailey as Johnny Dollar • Virginia Gregg • Forrest Lewis • Barney Phillips • Tom Holland Support the show monthly at patreon.greatdetectives.net Patreon Supporter of the Day:Don, Michael, Claudia, and Artimo, Patreon Supporter since October 2021. Support the show on a one-time basis at http://support.greatdetectives.net. Mail a donation to: Adam Graham, PO Box 15913, Boise, Idaho 83715 Take the listener survey at http://survey.greatdetectives.net Give us a call at 208-991-4783 Follow us on Instagram at http://instagram.com/greatdetectives Follow us on Twitter @radiodetectives Join us again tomorrow for another detective drama from the Golden Age of Radio.

## Transcript

[0:03] Speaker 1: THE END.
[0:28] Speaker 2: Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio. From Boise, Idaho,
[0:35] Speaker 2: this is your host, Adam Graham. In a moment, we're
[0:39] Speaker 2: going to bring you this week's episode of Yours Truly,
[0:43] Speaker 2: Johnny Dollar. But first, I want to encourage you, if
[0:47] Speaker 2: you're enjoying the podcast, please follow us using your favorite
[0:50] Speaker 2: podcast software. I also want to highlight my Cameo service. Now,
[0:57] Speaker 2: as most of you probably know, Tuesday, October 13th, is
[1:03] Speaker 2: National Yorkshire Pudding Day. Now, some of you may not
[1:07] Speaker 2: have sent appropriate greetings or taken appropriate steps to celebrate
[1:13] Speaker 2: this day, but the good news is you can use
[1:17] Speaker 2: the Cameo service at cameo.greatdetectives.net and I will be more
[1:22] Speaker 2: than happy to be a part of the celebration. Of course,
[1:26] Speaker 2: there are other holidays as well, or birthdays, or anniversaries,
[1:31] Speaker 2: or pep talks. You can check this out over at cameo.greatdetectives.net
[1:37] Speaker 2: for National Yorkshire Pudding Day and all of your celebratory needs.
[1:43] Speaker 2: But now, from September 6th, 1959, here is the backfire
[1:46] Speaker 2: that backfired matter.
[2:04] Speaker 1: Johnny Dollar.
[2:05] Speaker 3: Betty Lewis.
[2:06] Speaker 4: Huh? Oh, hi, honey.
[2:09] Speaker 3: Marry me?
[2:10] Speaker 4: Well, what's that?
[2:12] Speaker 3: I said, will you marry me?
[2:14] Speaker 1: Oh, just round up a preacher and I'll meet you
[2:16] Speaker 1: at the church.
[2:17] Speaker 3: Serious, Johnny? Oh, I wish you were, you rascal.
[2:22] Speaker 1: Oh, with you, Betty, I sometimes wish I could... No, no, no,
[2:25] Speaker 1: wait a minute. It gets me still half asleep this way. Betty,
[2:29] Speaker 1: what did I say? You do it up at the
[2:31] Speaker 1: crack of dawn.
[2:31] Speaker 3: What are you talking about? It's almost 8 o'clock.
[2:34] Speaker 1: Exactly what I said, the crack of dawn.
[2:35] Speaker 3: You just spoiled, Johnny, and... Well, I don't know whether
[2:39] Speaker 3: to forgive you this time or not.
[2:40] Speaker 1: Uh-oh, now what have I done?
[2:42] Speaker 3: My housewarming party.
[2:44] Speaker 4: No.
[2:45] Speaker 3: Oh, yes. It took me three months of hard work
[2:48] Speaker 3: to get my new little house fixed up out here.
[2:50] Speaker 3: No visitors, no fun, no nothing to work. And then
[2:52] Speaker 3: when I do invite you and you accept.
[2:54] Speaker 5: Betty, honest, listen. That says this is crazy business of mine.
[2:58] Speaker 3: Better be good, Johnny.
[2:59] Speaker 1: Well, I was out in Eugene, Oregon, and there was
[3:01] Speaker 1: no way.
[3:01] Speaker 4: Eugene, Oregon?
[3:02] Speaker 5: Yeah, one of those last-minute things, insurance investigation. There was
[3:05] Speaker 5: no way I could get out of it.
[3:06] Speaker 4: Honest?
[3:07] Speaker 1: Honest. I only got back late last night. But I'll
[3:10] Speaker 1: make it up to you. I swear I will.
[3:11] Speaker 6: Well.
[3:12] Speaker 1: Now, let's see. Today is, um... What?
[3:16] Speaker 5: Betty.
[3:16] Speaker 1: Hello, Betty.
[3:17] Speaker 3: What's the matter, Johnny?
[3:19] Speaker 1: You're asking me. Those gunshots.
[3:21] Speaker 3: And if I suddenly groaned and dropped the telephone, would
[3:23] Speaker 3: you come running out here?
[3:24] Speaker 1: Are you kidding?
[3:24] Speaker 2: What?
[3:26] Speaker 3: Only I cannot tell a lie. That was just some
[3:29] Speaker 3: hot rod kid with a cut-down convertible. Oh.
[3:32] Speaker 1: A backfire, huh?
[3:34] Speaker 6: Yes.
[3:35] Speaker 3: Every morning at exactly 8 o'clock. You could set your
[3:37] Speaker 3: watch by it.
[3:38] Speaker 1: Are you sure that's all it was?
[3:40] Speaker 3: Well, if you don't believe it, why don't you come
[3:43] Speaker 3: over here and see for yourself? Tomorrow, maybe.
[3:47] Speaker 1: At 8 o'clock in the morning?
[3:48] Speaker 6: Sure.
[3:50] Speaker 3: And, honey, I'll cook you the greatest breakfast you ever had.
[3:53] Speaker 1: Yeah, but... Maybe even convince.
[3:55] Speaker 3: You that married life isn't such a bad idea after all.
[3:59] Speaker 1: On the strength of a planter of ham and eggs?
[4:01] Speaker 3: Tomorrow. Johnny.
[4:04] Speaker 1: Hey, uh, look, why don't we go somewhere tonight? I'll
[4:07] Speaker 1: take you out to dinner and.
[4:08] Speaker 3: If you're really sorry about missing the party, if you
[4:10] Speaker 3: really do want to see me.
[4:12] Speaker 1: Well, sure I do.
[4:13] Speaker 3: All right, then. Good morning for breakfast.
[4:15] Speaker 1: Betty.
[4:15] Speaker 7: Bye, honey.
[4:18] Speaker 1: So, why not?
[4:27] Speaker 5: CBS Radio brings you Bob Bailey in the exciting adventures
[4:31] Speaker 5: of the man with the action-packed expense account. America's fabulous
[4:35] Speaker 5: freelance insurance investigator. Yours truly, Johnny Dollar. Expense account submitted
[4:59] Speaker 5: by Special Investigator Johnny Dollar. To the Universal Adjustment Bureau, Hartford, Connecticut.
[5:03] Speaker 1: Attention, Mr. Pat McCracken.
[5:05] Speaker 5: Following is an account of expenses incurred during my investigation
[5:08] Speaker 5: of the backfire that backfired matter.
[5:14] Speaker 1: I know, Pat. You haven't assigned me to a case.
[5:17] Speaker 5: I also know I hadn't the least idea that having
[5:19] Speaker 5: breakfast with my best gal was to be only the
[5:21] Speaker 5: beginning of an insurance investigation. And before it was over,
[5:24] Speaker 5: I'd be lucky to get out of the whole mess alive.
[5:27] Speaker 5: But believe me, that's the way it worked out. So
[5:29] Speaker 5: if there's any question about your company paying this expense account, well,
[5:32] Speaker 5: just read on.
[5:34] Speaker 1: Okay, then.
[5:34] Speaker 5: Expense account item one the following morning, that is. Four
[5:37] Speaker 5: dollars and a quarter for a tank full of gas
[5:38] Speaker 5: for my cars. By the unearthly hour of 7.40 a.m.,
[5:43] Speaker 5: I was on my way to far out beyond the
[5:44] Speaker 5: edge of town to 11325 East Maple Drive and the
[5:48] Speaker 5: newly acquired domicile of my date for breakfast, Betty Lewis. Now,
[5:52] Speaker 5: I'm not used to this early morning stuff and was
[5:54] Speaker 5: kind of surprised to find so much of the world
[5:56] Speaker 5: wide awake. It was warm and pleasant, too early for
[5:59] Speaker 5: the scorching summer sun. Front lawns of the rather nice
[6:02] Speaker 5: homes in this section glistened with dew. The fields and
[6:05] Speaker 5: trees were filled with millions of birds, all singing their
[6:08] Speaker 5: heads off with squirrels chattering away.
[6:11] Speaker 1: Yep, real pleasant. Something I'd have to try again sometime.
[6:16] Speaker 5: Betty's place, which I hadn't seen before, turned out to
[6:18] Speaker 5: be a very cute one-story affair, coral roof and shutters
[6:21] Speaker 5: to match. It was set comfortably in between a couple
[6:23] Speaker 5: of somewhat larger homes. As for Betty, who stood there
[6:27] Speaker 5: at the front door waiting for me, well, I don't
[6:30] Speaker 5: know how she does it. But that ever-loving doll, even
[6:33] Speaker 5: at this hour, looked as smart and attractive as.
[6:35] Speaker 1: Any man can want.
[6:37] Speaker 7: I just can't believe it. And it's still a full
[6:40] Speaker 7: six minutes before eight o'clock. Oh, hi, honey.
[6:45] Speaker 1: Yeah, so early in the morning? You mind? I do not.
[6:48] Speaker 1: Come here, yeah?
[6:51] Speaker 6: Johnny.
[6:52] Speaker 7: Gee, what this morning air does to you. Come in, huh?
[6:56] Speaker 1: Said the spider to the fly? Oh, sure.
[6:57] Speaker 7: I make no bones about it.
[6:59] Speaker 1: Your neighbors used to seeing this sort of thing? Oh, sure.
[7:02] Speaker 7: I've been having strange men in for breakfast every day.
[7:05] Speaker 7: You know, just so the neighbors wouldn't be shocked when
[7:07] Speaker 7: I finally dragged you into my trap. How do you
[7:09] Speaker 7: like it, Johnny?
[7:10] Speaker 1: Oh, yeah. Hey, it looks real nice, Patty.
[7:13] Speaker 7: Of course, if I had some nice guy to share
[7:15] Speaker 7: it with. If you had any sense, you'd marry me,
[7:19] Speaker 7: you know.
[7:19] Speaker 4: Yeah.
[7:21] Speaker 5: And if I had any sense, I'd get out of
[7:22] Speaker 5: this crazy business of mine. Then maybe I could settle
[7:25] Speaker 5: down to something like a normal life. Nine to five
[7:28] Speaker 5: in some air-conditioned office. Nice home to come home to.
[7:31] Speaker 1: Maybe raise a family.
[7:33] Speaker 7: Johnny, you know darn well you'd never be happy with
[7:35] Speaker 7: that kind of a routine humdrum existence.
[7:38] Speaker 5: Oh, no?
[7:38] Speaker 4: You know it as well as I do.
[7:41] Speaker 7: And I guess a gal could get pretty miserable wondering
[7:43] Speaker 7: where you are. You're getting slugged or shot at. Maybe
[7:46] Speaker 7: dead somewhere. But we do have fun together.
[7:49] Speaker 1: And I'm all for it.
[7:51] Speaker 7: That is, when you're not standing me up for some
[7:53] Speaker 7: glamorous redhead on an excuse you're working an insurance case.
[7:56] Speaker 1: Betty, so help me. On a stack of Bibles.
[7:58] Speaker 7: Oh, sure. But come on. Come on, or your eggs
[8:01] Speaker 7: will be overcooked. Now, you sit right there when you
[8:04] Speaker 7: can look out the window and drink your juice.
[8:05] Speaker 8: Yes, ma'am.
[8:08] Speaker 7: You really like my country state?
[8:10] Speaker 6: Yeah.
[8:11] Speaker 1: Hey, who lives in that big house across the road?
[8:14] Speaker 3: Oh, old Mr.
[8:14] Speaker 7: Barton J.
[8:15] Speaker 3: Robinson.
[8:16] Speaker 7: Used to be an attorney.
[8:17] Speaker 1: Robinson, sure.
[8:19] Speaker 5: He's the one who prosecuted that big insurance fraud a
[8:21] Speaker 5: few years ago for one of the companies I serve.
[8:23] Speaker 7: See him there eating his breakfast?
[8:25] Speaker 6: Ah.
[8:26] Speaker 1: A bachelor, isn't he?
[8:27] Speaker 7: Yes, he lives all alone.
[8:29] Speaker 1: Hmm. I think I'd better warn him to stay away
[8:32] Speaker 1: from you, that you're my property.
[8:34] Speaker 7: He's the most punctual man I've ever seen. If he
[8:37] Speaker 7: isn't there when I'm eating my breakfast, I know I've overslept.
[8:40] Speaker 4: Here, now.
[8:42] Speaker 7: And if you want some toast.
[8:43] Speaker 4: Got it.
[8:45] Speaker 1: Hey, uh, Betty, I've been thinking.
[8:47] Speaker 6: Yes?
[8:48] Speaker 5: Well, maybe it's just my crazy criminal mind.
[8:51] Speaker 7: Thinking about what, Jim?
[8:54] Speaker 1: Yeah, about that. Holy smoke.
[8:56] Speaker 7: You know, I've got so used to it morning after morning.
[8:59] Speaker 1: Hmm, two of them.
[9:02] Speaker 7: No, crazy kids.
[9:04] Speaker 1: You know who they are?
[9:05] Speaker 7: Oh, somebody had the police come out here a couple
[9:08] Speaker 7: of mornings, but of course they didn't show up then.
[9:10] Speaker 3: And I guess everybody else has just got used to
[9:13] Speaker 3: them the way I have.
[9:14] Speaker 7: Now, let's eat.
[9:16] Speaker 1: Funny, though.
[9:17] Speaker 6: What?
[9:18] Speaker 1: A crazy backfire. Once they get past here, they stop it.
[9:22] Speaker 7: Well, don't worry about it.
[9:26] Speaker 1: But I should have. I should have worried plenty about it.
[9:29] Speaker 5: Perhaps if I'd been a mystery writer instead of insurance
[9:31] Speaker 5: investigator who's used to solving mysteries after they've happened, well,
[9:35] Speaker 5: I would have had sense enough to act right then, immediately.
[9:38] Speaker 1: Or maybe.
[9:38] Speaker 5: Yeah. Maybe there was still time. And you have no
[9:50] Speaker 5: idea who those two are? The ones who go barreling
[9:52] Speaker 5: by on that hot rod every morning?
[9:54] Speaker 7: Nobody could seem to find out, Johnny. And as I said.
[9:56] Speaker 1: Yeah, everybody's got used to the noise of that backfiring.
[9:59] Speaker 1: But listen, Betty... Why don't you eat your breakfast, Johnny?
[10:01] Speaker 1: You call them kids, but they aren't.
[10:03] Speaker 7: Honey, please. I thought we were just going to have
[10:06] Speaker 7: breakfast and talk and sort of make up for lost time.
[10:09] Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm sorry, but now look.
[10:10] Speaker 7: Honestly, do you have to dream up a lot of
[10:13] Speaker 7: mystery and intrigue about even the most normal things that happen?
[10:16] Speaker 5: They cut the backfiring just as soon as they got
[10:19] Speaker 5: around that curve.
[10:21] Speaker 1: 3CFU160.
[10:22] Speaker 2: What?
[10:22] Speaker 1: The license on that car.
[10:24] Speaker 6: Oh, Johnny.
[10:25] Speaker 1: Hey, listen, honey, let me use your phone. Didn't I
[10:27] Speaker 1: see one right here in the living room?
[10:28] Speaker 6: Oh, yeah.
[10:29] Speaker 7: But why? And Johnny, your breakfast will get cold.
[10:32] Speaker 1: Be right back.
[10:38] Speaker 5: My phone call was to Jerry Wilson, who worked in
[10:40] Speaker 5: the Department of Motor Vehicles. It took him a few
[10:43] Speaker 5: minutes to dig into the files for me, but when
[10:45] Speaker 5: he came back to the phone, his answer was short.
[10:46] Speaker 6: And to the point.
[10:49] Speaker 1: Sorry, Johnny, but you must have made a mistake. You're
[10:51] Speaker 1: sure about that?
[10:52] Speaker 3: Absolutely. But what happened? Why do you want to know?
[10:55] Speaker 1: I'm just curious, that's all.
[10:58] Speaker 3: Oh, now, Johnny, I know you better than that.
[10:59] Speaker 1: Back, Jerry, and thanks. Thanks a lot.
[11:01] Speaker 4: Now, Johnny....
[11:04] Speaker 1: Oh, sorry, buddy.
[11:05] Speaker 7: Oh, I guess you're right, Johnny. About driving the wife crazy,
[11:08] Speaker 7: I mean.
[11:09] Speaker 1: I was right about that car.
[11:10] Speaker 7: What?
[11:11] Speaker 1: That license on it is a phony. There ain't no
[11:13] Speaker 1: such number here in Connecticut.
[11:15] Speaker 7: All right. So a couple of kids didn't have enough
[11:17] Speaker 7: money to buy a license.
[11:17] Speaker 5: I tell you, they aren't kids. Now that I've had
[11:20] Speaker 5: a chance to think about it, I'd swear there was
[11:22] Speaker 5: something familiar about the looks of the one beside the driver.
[11:24] Speaker 7: Oh, sure. Some nasty criminal you've tangled with and... Oh, Johnny, listen.
[11:29] Speaker 7: This isn't why I asked you out here to cook
[11:31] Speaker 7: up some deep mystery.
[11:32] Speaker 1: Hey, Betty, this lawyer, this Barton Robinson who lives in
[11:35] Speaker 1: the big house across the road.
[11:36] Speaker 7: I don't care about him, Johnny. I care about you.
[11:40] Speaker 5: You say that every morning at the same time he's
[11:42] Speaker 5: there beside that window eating his breakfast, the same time
[11:45] Speaker 5: that car comes roaring by.
[11:46] Speaker 4: Yes.
[11:48] Speaker 7: When he's here, that is. He was away for five
[11:50] Speaker 7: or six weeks.
[11:51] Speaker 1: Until when?
[11:52] Speaker 7: He must have come back last night. This morning's the
[11:54] Speaker 7: first time in five.
[11:55] Speaker 1: Uh-huh. And when did this... Well, those hot rodders start
[11:58] Speaker 1: coming around.
[11:59] Speaker 7: Oh, well, I guess it was about a week after Mr.
[12:01] Speaker 7: Robinson went away.
[12:03] Speaker 1: Chasing the China.
[12:04] Speaker 4: What?
[12:05] Speaker 7: Johnny, perhaps.
[12:06] Speaker 1: Betty, listen to me. You probably won't forgive me for this.
[12:09] Speaker 2: Johnny.
[12:09] Speaker 1: Now, listen. Sometimes when I'm working.
[12:11] Speaker 6: On a case.
[12:11] Speaker 7: But you're not, dear.
[12:12] Speaker 1: Well, sometimes when I run out of leads, well, all
[12:14] Speaker 1: I have to work on is a hunch.
[12:15] Speaker 7: Three months I've been waiting.
[12:16] Speaker 1: But strangely enough, the hunches usually pay off.
[12:18] Speaker 7: I wasn't going to tell.
[12:19] Speaker 4: You until later.
[12:19] Speaker 1: So maybe my hunch is right this time.
[12:21] Speaker 7: But I called the office and told them I wouldn't
[12:22] Speaker 7: be interested.
[12:23] Speaker 1: Because I got a real big fat one about that car.
[12:25] Speaker 7: I thought you were going to go somewhere, drive out
[12:27] Speaker 7: in the country maybe.
[12:27] Speaker 1: Oh, I'm sorry, honey. I really am sorry.
[12:29] Speaker 7: Like I said, trying to make up for lost time.
[12:31] Speaker 1: But I've got to get on this thing and right now.
[12:33] Speaker 7: Johnny, how can you do this to me?
[12:35] Speaker 5: Look, I'll pick you up tonight. We'll have dinner, take
[12:36] Speaker 5: in a show, make a night of it, anything you want.
[12:39] Speaker 5: I know that walking out on you this way is
[12:42] Speaker 5: a dirty trick, and if you want to, you can
[12:43] Speaker 5: just tell me to... Please, honey, tonight for sure.
[12:48] Speaker 7: Oh, sure, John. You know what a pushover I am.
[12:55] Speaker 3: Thanks, hon.
[12:58] Speaker 1: See you later.
[13:03] Speaker 5: I set out to find that car, who owned it,
[13:05] Speaker 5: and why the big backfire racket in that particular spot
[13:08] Speaker 5: day after day. There was a purpose there, I was
[13:10] Speaker 5: sure of it. Not just a couple of kids out
[13:12] Speaker 5: on a tear. Besides, they weren't kids. I'd seen that
[13:15] Speaker 5: for myself. Because of the way the car had taken
[13:18] Speaker 5: the curve down the road, it left a very clear
[13:19] Speaker 5: set of tire marks. So I started a careful inspection
[13:22] Speaker 5: of driveways, even asked the people who.
[13:24] Speaker 1: Lived along there what they knew about that car. And
[13:27] Speaker 1: it took me most of the day.
[13:28] Speaker 5: Expense account item two, by the way, is a buck
[13:30] Speaker 5: and a quarter for a late afternoon lunch at a
[13:32] Speaker 5: roadside tavern.
[13:33] Speaker 1: I was there, I finally got some information. You want
[13:37] Speaker 1: another bottle of beer, huh, Charlie?
[13:38] Speaker 6: Okay.
[13:40] Speaker 1: Now, as I was saying, mister, I think I know
[13:42] Speaker 1: the very car you mean. Yeah? About a 1941, tied
[13:46] Speaker 1: down with straight pipes. Must have been a convertible before
[13:49] Speaker 1: they throwed the top away. Makes a lot of noise.
[13:51] Speaker 1: You know who owns it and where I can find it? Well,
[13:53] Speaker 1: I think I seen it take the cutoff one morning.
[13:55] Speaker 4: Cutoff?
[13:56] Speaker 8: Yeah, when I was on my way to work here.
[13:58] Speaker 1: What cutoff? About a mile up the road, the cutoff
[14:01] Speaker 1: over to Byerly Swamp. Good. Thanks a lot. Here's for
[14:04] Speaker 1: the food. Well, you interested in buying that old crate?
[14:07] Speaker 1: Something like that.
[14:08] Speaker 5: The cutoff to Barley's Swamp wasn't much more than a
[14:16] Speaker 5: pair of wagon tracks through the woods. But the tire
[14:19] Speaker 5: marks I was looking for stuck out like a sore thumb.
[14:22] Speaker 5: And they finally led off to an old shack half
[14:23] Speaker 5: hidden by a heavy thicket. Behind it, sure enough, was
[14:26] Speaker 5: the car I'd been looking for. The windows of the
[14:29] Speaker 5: shack were boarded up. No sign of life left. Slowly, carefully,
[14:33] Speaker 5: I circled the place. Then I walked over to the door,
[14:36] Speaker 5: turned the knob, opened it. And you know something? I'd
[14:41] Speaker 5: been awfully wrong about there being nobody around.
[14:43] Speaker 6: Okay, mister.
[14:45] Speaker 1: Oh, no, you'll kill him, kill him.
[14:49] Speaker 6: You asked for it.
[14:50] Speaker 7: Clip him, ring it, clip him.
[14:53] Speaker 6: Yeah.
[14:54] Speaker 2: Oh.
[14:55] Speaker 4: Oh.
[15:09] Speaker 6: All right. All right, get some water, Gil.
[15:13] Speaker 8: Bring him, too. We'll find out what he's doing around here.
[15:16] Speaker 1: Let me go through his pockets, Ringer.
[15:18] Speaker 6: See who he is.
[15:19] Speaker 8: Yeah, go ahead.
[15:24] Speaker 1: The one called Ringer was too big for me. So
[15:27] Speaker 1: rather than take any more of it for the moment,
[15:29] Speaker 1: I lay there and let them go through my pockets.
[15:31] Speaker 1: And of course they took my gun.
[15:33] Speaker 5: When the little one, Gil, started pouring water not only
[15:36] Speaker 5: on but into me, well, I had to come to
[15:39] Speaker 5: a choke attack.
[15:40] Speaker 8: Oh, give him the whole bucket.
[15:42] Speaker 7: Yeah, sure.
[15:45] Speaker 8: Johnny Dollar on an insurance stick. No, no, don't try
[15:48] Speaker 8: getting up on your feet.
[15:50] Speaker 1: You think I could if I wanted to?
[15:52] Speaker 7: Yeah, you really clipped him, Ray.
[15:54] Speaker 1: Shut up.
[15:55] Speaker 8: So the coppers have been after me since I got
[15:58] Speaker 8: out of their clink, huh? But they couldn't find me,
[16:00] Speaker 8: so they had to send you out. Is that it, Dollar?
[16:02] Speaker 1: Yeah, what do you think?
[16:04] Speaker 8: I think you're gonna be awful sorry. And awful dead.
[16:08] Speaker 8: You think you or anybody else could keep me from
[16:10] Speaker 8: knocking off that fancy mouthpiece after sending me up the
[16:12] Speaker 8: way he did? Well, nobody's smart enough.
[16:15] Speaker 1: You're gonna knock him off, Ringer, huh? You're gonna kill him?
[16:18] Speaker 8: After we get that lawyer.
[16:19] Speaker 1: Well, why not now, huh?
[16:20] Speaker 8: Anything goes wrong, I might need Dollar for a hostage.
[16:23] Speaker 1: Oh, sure. I mean, what's a hostage?
[16:26] Speaker 8: I mean, nothing is gonna go wrong. I'm too smart
[16:29] Speaker 8: for that.
[16:30] Speaker 1: Yeah, I guess you are at that, Ringer. That business
[16:33] Speaker 1: of driving by his house every day, the backfire.
[16:35] Speaker 8: That's right, so nobody worries about it no more.
[16:38] Speaker 1: And the backfire will cover the shots when you murder
[16:40] Speaker 1: lawyer Robinson.
[16:41] Speaker 8: That's right. Nobody will even notice. And all it takes
[16:44] Speaker 8: is one good shot through his window. Just a little
[16:46] Speaker 8: hole in that window that nobody will notice unless they
[16:49] Speaker 8: go up and look at it.
[16:50] Speaker 1: An elaborate scheme like that just to show how smart
[16:52] Speaker 1: you are?
[16:53] Speaker 8: No, because knowing I'm on the loose again, he has
[16:55] Speaker 8: that house locked up like a bank vault. Not even
[16:58] Speaker 8: Gil and me could get in without setting off an alarm.
[17:01] Speaker 8: And he keeps the blinds down at night. Can't even
[17:03] Speaker 8: see him in there.
[17:04] Speaker 5: But every morning at the same time, he's there at
[17:07] Speaker 5: the window.
[17:08] Speaker 1: So now that he's home, we get him.
[17:10] Speaker 8: Tomorrow morning... Shut up, Gil. Soak up some of that
[17:13] Speaker 8: rawhide so we can tie him up and get out
[17:15] Speaker 8: of here.
[17:15] Speaker 1: Yeah, sure, Ringer.
[17:17] Speaker 8: I want to get some food and some sleep. Then, Dollar,
[17:20] Speaker 8: we'll be back to see you in the morning. And
[17:23] Speaker 8: after we do, you won't see anything anywhere anymore.
[17:27] Speaker 5: Wet rawhide that shrinks when it dries, cuts into ankles
[17:33] Speaker 5: and wrists like a steel pan.
[17:35] Speaker 1: By the time they finally left in their hot rod,
[17:37] Speaker 1: the pain was excruciating. Sure, I could roll around a bit,
[17:40] Speaker 1: maybe even out the door.
[17:42] Speaker 5: What good was that? There was nobody. Nobody ever came
[17:45] Speaker 5: around this neck of the woods. So I lay there
[17:47] Speaker 5: straining against the bonds, hoping they wouldn't cut off the
[17:50] Speaker 5: circulation completely as the rawhide slowly inexorably.
[17:53] Speaker 1: Wait. It was raining, raining hard. I rolled myself painfully
[17:58] Speaker 1: out the door into a puddle in front of it.
[18:01] Speaker 1: It seemed like hours. It was hours.
[18:03] Speaker 5: It was long after daylight before the rawhide finally stretched
[18:06] Speaker 5: enough for me to get a hand free and take
[18:08] Speaker 5: off the rest of the thongs that bound me.
[18:10] Speaker 1: I looked at my watch. 8.15. Which meant they'd done
[18:14] Speaker 1: their job.
[18:15] Speaker 4: Yeah.
[18:17] Speaker 1: Now they'd come back here to... Then I heard it.
[18:20] Speaker 1: The hot rod coming down the soggy wagon road. Quickly,
[18:23] Speaker 1: I ducked back into the shack way to behind the door.
[18:30] Speaker 8: So he wasn't there. We had the storm to cover us, too.
[18:34] Speaker 1: I don't get it, Ringer.
[18:35] Speaker 8: So he wasn't there. That window means somebody warned him.
[18:39] Speaker 8: Means that Johnny Dollar warned him. That means we're taking
[18:43] Speaker 8: care of Dollar right now.
[18:44] Speaker 1: No, wait.
[18:46] Speaker 7: Listen.
[18:47] Speaker 4: What?
[18:48] Speaker 1: That car coming.
[18:49] Speaker 4: Down the road.
[18:50] Speaker 6: Yeah. Yeah, I see it.
[18:52] Speaker 8: It's a girl that lives across the street from that mouthpiece.
[18:55] Speaker 1: What's she doing out here?
[18:56] Speaker 3: I don't know.
[18:56] Speaker 8: If she pulls in here, we start shooting first and
[18:59] Speaker 8: find out afterwards.
[19:00] Speaker 4: She is. Here she comes. Look out.
[19:02] Speaker 6: Shoot.
[19:02] Speaker 5: Let her have it.
[19:02] Speaker 6: Yeah.
[19:04] Speaker 1: Oh, no, you don't, baby.
[19:07] Speaker 8: Darling, I'll kill you.
[19:09] Speaker 6: I'll blast you.
[19:11] Speaker 4: Oh, no.
[19:12] Speaker 1: No.
[19:16] Speaker 3: Betty.
[19:18] Speaker 6: Johnny.
[19:19] Speaker 8: Johnny, if I hadn't run into him, he would have
[19:21] Speaker 8: killed me.
[19:22] Speaker 1: That's okay, honey. You did the right thing. Johnny, when
[19:25] Speaker 1: you didn't come last night, and this morning when the
[19:28] Speaker 1: man at the roadhouse told me where he'd sent you
[19:30] Speaker 1: to find that hot rod. Okay, honey, now.
[19:31] Speaker 7: So I told Mr. Robinson to stay away from his window,
[19:34] Speaker 7: and I came as fast as... Are you all right, honey?
[19:37] Speaker 1: Are you all right? Yeah, sure. A little wet and tired.
[19:39] Speaker 7: Oh, Johnny, I was so worried. I was so worried
[19:42] Speaker 7: about you.
[19:43] Speaker 1: Oh, I'm sure glad you were. Thanks, honey.
[19:48] Speaker 8: Oh, do that again.
[19:50] Speaker 7: That's the sweetest kiss.
[19:56] Speaker 8: Run over me. Try to kill me.
[19:58] Speaker 1: Oh, shut up, ringer.
[19:59] Speaker 8: You think I'm gonna....
[20:03] Speaker 1: Can't you see I'm busy?
[20:05] Speaker 7: Yes. More, Johnny.
[20:15] Speaker 5: It was Betty Lewis who really saved the life of
[20:17] Speaker 5: that insurance attorney. So most of this expense account covers
[20:20] Speaker 5: some well-earned entertainment, plus a little gift for her. No,
[20:24] Speaker 5: not an engagement ring, but a big jug of my sin.
[20:29] Speaker 5: But I must admit, she certainly makes me think about
[20:32] Speaker 5: the merits of.
[20:34] Speaker 1: Yeah.
[20:34] Speaker 5: Expense account total $ 450 even. Yours truly, Johnny Dollar. Now
[20:52] Speaker 5: here is our star to tell you about next week's story.
[20:55] Speaker 1: Next week?
[20:55] Speaker 5: Well, next week, the funniest combination of names I ever saw.
[20:58] Speaker 5: And brother, what trouble they cause. Join us, won't you?
[21:01] Speaker 5: Yours truly, Johnny Dollar. Yours truly, Johnny Dollar, starring Bob Bailey,
[21:14] Speaker 5: originates in Hollywood and is written, produced, and directed by
[21:17] Speaker 5: Jack Johnstone. Heard in our cast were Virginia Gregg, Forrest Lewis,
[21:22] Speaker 5: Barney Phillips, and Tom Holland.
[21:25] Speaker 1: This is Jim Matthews speaking.
[21:30] Speaker 2: Welcome back. I have to say that I really do
[21:34] Speaker 2: appreciate Betty Lewis. Now, the episode illustrates she doesn't love adventure.
[21:41] Speaker 2: She's not a detective. She's not observant in that sort
[21:46] Speaker 2: of way where she is looking for a mystery. When
[21:50] Speaker 2: the chips are down and she realizes there's danger, she
[21:54] Speaker 2: thinks on her feet and ultimately ends up thwarting the
[21:59] Speaker 2: bad guys. And I do think, unlike some guest characters,
[22:03] Speaker 2: she doesn't make Johnny feel almost superfluous like happened in
[22:08] Speaker 2: the red two-parter. I also chuckled at Johnny's line, Can't
[22:13] Speaker 2: you see I'm busy here? And this perfect delivery. Of course,
[22:18] Speaker 2: we have to say that this is a case of
[22:21] Speaker 2: a criminal getting caught because he was too obvious and
[22:27] Speaker 2: trying to not be obvious. I mean, they spend weeks
[22:31] Speaker 2: laying the groundwork and develop a whole pattern here of
[22:36] Speaker 2: stopping the backfiring once they go by that house that
[22:39] Speaker 2: they were targeting. On one hand, which on one hand
[22:42] Speaker 2: makes sense, but on the other, yeah, it just creates
[22:47] Speaker 2: something where even if Johnny hadn't noticed it, You have
[22:51] Speaker 2: to think there might well have been someone in the
[22:54] Speaker 2: neighborhood who might say, you know, this is funny, the
[22:57] Speaker 2: same car going by over and over and over again.
[23:00] Speaker 2: Particularly with the backfire, just, you know, running through the
[23:04] Speaker 2: neighborhood and not all just the same spot, you know,
[23:10] Speaker 2: being a little less obvious, you know, I think would
[23:14] Speaker 2: not have been called out as much of a pattern.
[23:17] Speaker 2: All right, listener comments and feedback now. And we have
[23:20] Speaker 2: a comment regarding the Not in Paris matter. Say, Soft Rats,
[23:26] Speaker 2: you gotta like that Peter Lorre sound-alike Frenchman. And yeah,
[23:32] Speaker 2: I think Lush Agree, the gray cat, is a great character.
[23:36] Speaker 2: He feels very much like a more crooked version of
[23:41] Speaker 2: Pagan Zellschmidt from... The Man Called X. But really well
[23:46] Speaker 2: portrayed by Forrest Lewis. And then we have a comment
[23:50] Speaker 2: from Tracy regarding the twice-told tale with the guided missile
[23:56] Speaker 2: plans from Dangerous Assignment and the picture postcard matter. And
[24:04] Speaker 2: she writes, I love how this also pulled in elements
[24:09] Speaker 2: from Dangerous Assignment, the memory chain. And I actually went
[24:14] Speaker 2: back and, yeah, there are some key things that were borrowed.
[24:21] Speaker 2: For one, the alpine settings. There are also some similarities
[24:27] Speaker 2: in the way that the mystery came out and the
[24:30] Speaker 2: hero's life was endangered. There was even one character whose
[24:35] Speaker 2: name was different by a single letter. Now, I have
[24:39] Speaker 2: to admit, I just did not think of... the memory
[24:43] Speaker 2: chain having an influence on Johnny Dollar because the main
[24:48] Speaker 2: plot was so different in terms of the underlying mechanism.
[24:54] Speaker 2: But if I had made that connection, I think it
[24:57] Speaker 2: probably would have been worth including both episodes of Dangerous
[25:04] Speaker 2: Assignment similar to what we did last year with the
[25:08] Speaker 2: evolution of the Valentine matter. But thanks so much. I
[25:12] Speaker 2: appreciate the comment. Now it's time to thank our Patreon
[25:16] Speaker 2: supporter of the day. And I want to thank the
[25:18] Speaker 2: Patreon supporters who signed up as Patreon supporters during the
[25:24] Speaker 2: month of October 2021. We should have actually done that
[25:28] Speaker 2: a week ago, but it can be challenging doing these
[25:32] Speaker 2: recordings behind. So appreciate everyone's patience. But I want to
[25:36] Speaker 2: thank Dawn, Michael, Claudia, and Artemo, as well as all
[25:46] Speaker 2: supporting the podcast at the Detective Sergeant level of $ 7. 14
[25:50] Speaker 2: or more per month. And I want to thank Lisa,
[25:54] Speaker 2: supporting the podcast at the Rookie level of $ 2 or
[25:58] Speaker 2: more per month. Again, thank you so much for supporting
[26:01] Speaker 2: the podcast these past five years. And that will do
[26:04] Speaker 2: it for today. If you're enjoying the podcast, please follow
[26:08] Speaker 2: us using your favorite podcast software. And be sure to
[26:12] Speaker 2: rate and review the podcast wherever you download it from.
[26:16] Speaker 2: We will be back next Friday with another episode of
[26:20] Speaker 2: Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar. But join us back here tomorrow
[26:25] Speaker 2: as we give away to the great adventurers of old-time
[26:29] Speaker 2: radio and counter-spyware.
[26:32] Speaker 4: Fatso, let's go. Come on, Fatso.
[26:44] Speaker 6: Not so fast, boy. Hey, what's the idea, you guys?
[26:50] Speaker 6: Hijack her.
[26:51] Speaker 4: That's right. Keep your hands on the wheel and sit tight.
[26:54] Speaker 6: Corny, you know I ain't that fast.
[26:57] Speaker 8: Two of you, huh?
[26:58] Speaker 4: Yeah, my pal's kind of slow on his feet.
[27:00] Speaker 6: Always running, always running.
[27:02] Speaker 4: Skip the complaints, pal. Okay, driver, outside and climb down.
[27:08] Speaker 4: What are you going to do with me? Turn around, Junior.
[27:10] Speaker 6: Yeah, but.
[27:11] Speaker 4: Turn around. Okay, Faxo.
[27:14] Speaker 6: Jeez. Did that neat, didn't I, Corny?
[27:19] Speaker 4: Drag him to the side of the road.
[27:21] Speaker 6: Always I get the heavy work.
[27:24] Speaker 4: Good for you, fatso. Helps you reduce. Well, we can
[27:28] Speaker 4: take these masks off now. He's in dreamland.
[27:32] Speaker 6: Glad to get it off. Suffocator guy.
[27:35] Speaker 4: That's how you take the car. I'll follow in the truck.
[27:37] Speaker 6: Oh, Corny, let me take the truck. It's a long
[27:40] Speaker 6: walk to the car, all uphill.
[27:42] Speaker 4: All of 50 feet. Scram, Fatso, start walking.
[27:45] Speaker 6: Oh, always I got the.
[27:47] Speaker 2: I hope you'll be with us then. In the meantime,
[27:49] Speaker 2: send your comments to box13 at greatdetectives.net. Follow us on
[27:54] Speaker 2: Twitter at Radio Detectives. And check us out on Instagram, Instagram.com.
[27:59] Speaker 2: Dot com slash great detectives from Boise, Idaho. This is
[28:03] Speaker 2: your host, Adam Graham, signing off.

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