# The Big Story: The Miracle Phone Call (EP5062)

An episode of [The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio| Daily Mystery Dramas](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/335549005), 15 Sep 2026, 33 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/pdrl.fm/997ffb/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/75016664/gd5062.mp3

Today's Mystery: Newspaper reporter Dorothy Patterson is contacted by the desperate mother of five-year-old Johnny McDermott, who is gravely ill and needs an expensive experimental treatment his family cannot afford. Despite warnings that readers won’t contribute thousands of dollars to help a child they don’t know, Dorothy puts her faith in the generosity of her community and uses her newspaper column to make an appeal on Johnny’s behalf. Original Radio Broadcast: April 1, 1953 Originating in New York Cast: • Jan Miner as Dorothy Patterson • Francis DeSales • Ted Osborne • Joey Fallon • Bobby Rick (probable identification) • Rae Terry • Brenna Rayburn • Bob Sloane, announcer Support the show monthly at https://patreon.greatdetectives.net Patreon Supporter of the Day:Christine, Patreon supporter since November 2023. 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…http://survey.greatdetectives.net Give us a call 208-991-4783 Follow us on Instagram at http://instagram.com/greatdetectives Become one of ourfriends on Facebook. 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.
[0:34] Speaker 2: This is your host, Adam Graham. In a moment, we're
[0:38] Speaker 2: going to bring you this week's episode of The Big Story.
[0:41] Speaker 2: But first, I want to encourage you, if you're enjoying
[0:45] Speaker 2: the podcast, to follow us using your favorite podcast software.
[0:49] Speaker 2: Our listener support and appreciation campaign continues. You can become
[0:54] Speaker 2: one of our ongoing Patreon supporters for as little as
[0:57] Speaker 2: $ 2 per month. Just go to patreon.greatdetectives.net. Now, I should
[1:04] Speaker 2: say before we play today's episode that it was actually
[1:08] Speaker 2: an Easter episode. Had I known that, I might have
[1:13] Speaker 2: played it at Easter instead of now. But it's pretty
[1:17] Speaker 2: rare for a detective program to do an Easter-themed episode.
[1:22] Speaker 2: I think this is only the second one we've ever played.
[1:25] Speaker 2: But at any rate, from April the 1st, 1953, here
[1:30] Speaker 2: is The Miracle Phone Call.
[1:34] Speaker 3: The Big Story. Patterson, New Jersey. The story as it
[1:43] Speaker 3: actually happened. Dorothy Patterson's story as she lived it.
[2:03] Speaker 4: You, Dorothy Patterson, are a newspaper woman, with equal emphasis
[2:08] Speaker 4: on newspaper and woman. It's rough competition in this man's business.
[2:13] Speaker 1: You've got to be good.
[2:15] Speaker 4: And you are. But still, you're a woman, and sometimes
[2:20] Speaker 4: you take a razzing because of it.
[2:22] Speaker 1: Hey, Dorothy, you busy? Uh-huh.
[2:24] Speaker 5: Something important on your mind, Ted, or can it wait?
[2:26] Speaker 1: It's pretty important. Can you hold it a moment?
[2:29] Speaker 5: What's up?
[2:30] Speaker 1: I'm depending on you for the answer to this. I
[2:32] Speaker 1: don't think anyone else can help me.
[2:34] Speaker 5: Sounds like a pretty big order.
[2:35] Speaker 2: It is.
[2:36] Speaker 6: Dorothy, when are you going to throw away those dead
[2:38] Speaker 6: flowers on your desk?
[2:39] Speaker 5: Well, that's the big question. And me right in the
[2:44] Speaker 5: middle of my column for two cents?
[2:45] Speaker 6: Two cents? You don't get the picture. This is a
[2:48] Speaker 6: big money operation. We've got an office pool on how
[2:50] Speaker 6: long you'll keep those flowers there just because you're too
[2:53] Speaker 6: much of a softie to.
[2:54] Speaker 7: Throw them out.
[2:55] Speaker 5: I give up. You guys don't let me get away
[2:58] Speaker 5: with anything.
[2:59] Speaker 4: Do you?
[2:59] Speaker 1: Maybe it's not all for jokes, Dorothy.
[3:02] Speaker 5: What do you mean?
[3:03] Speaker 1: Well, you are a softie.
[3:04] Speaker 6: You go through life believing everybody's thinking about everybody else.
[3:07] Speaker 6: Watching out for everybody else.
[3:09] Speaker 1: It ain't so.
[3:10] Speaker 5: Oh, I don't know.
[3:11] Speaker 6: I do. Maybe that's why I worry sometimes. I'd hate
[3:15] Speaker 6: to see you lead with that soft little chin someday
[3:17] Speaker 6: and get slugged just because you have the idea that
[3:20] Speaker 6: everybody's as nice as you are.
[3:21] Speaker 5: Do you have to be a cynic to be a reporter?
[3:23] Speaker 1: No, but it's like being crazy. You don't have to be,
[3:26] Speaker 1: but it helps.
[3:27] Speaker 5: Dog eat dog. That's your theory, hmm?
[3:29] Speaker 1: I've been around.
[3:30] Speaker 5: The wrong places. It's not true. You can depend on people, Ted. Honestly,
[3:34] Speaker 5: you can. You just have to give them a chance.
[3:44] Speaker 4: That, Dorothy Patterson, is your credo. You can depend on people.
[3:50] Speaker 4: And in another part of the city, something is happening
[3:53] Speaker 4: that will soon put that credo to a test. Something
[3:57] Speaker 4: that will decide whether or not you can really depend
[4:00] Speaker 4: on people.
[4:02] Speaker 5: Jim?
[4:03] Speaker 7: Said you?
[4:05] Speaker 5: Yes. All right, tell me.
[4:08] Speaker 1: Nothing to tell. But you went to visit... I said
[4:11] Speaker 1: there's nothing to tell.
[4:12] Speaker 5: Didn't you go see them? Didn't you explain?
[4:14] Speaker 1: I went.
[4:14] Speaker 8: I went to every hospital, every nursing home, every welfare agency.
[4:18] Speaker 8: And I told them over and over again the same thing.
[4:22] Speaker 8: My son Johnny, five years old, he's got nephritis. He's
[4:25] Speaker 8: going to die. He's all swelled up so he can't
[4:27] Speaker 8: even move. And he's going to die unless we can
[4:29] Speaker 8: get the money for this new surgery. They didn't have
[4:32] Speaker 8: the money.
[4:33] Speaker 5: Somebody must have it.
[4:34] Speaker 8: Three thousand dollars. Marie, it's too much to ask for.
[4:38] Speaker 8: It's too much when the doctors say it probably won't
[4:40] Speaker 8: help anyway. Now, who's going to fork over $ 3, 000 for
[4:44] Speaker 8: something that probably won't work?
[4:46] Speaker 5: I don't care what it costs. It's worth it to
[4:48] Speaker 5: try to save Johnny.
[4:49] Speaker 1: We say that, sure. He's our kid. Other people, well,
[4:54] Speaker 1: it's not their kid. Why should they care?
[4:55] Speaker 5: You're going to give up just like that?
[4:58] Speaker 1: Marie, I.
[4:58] Speaker 5: You're going to sit and watch him die? You're going
[5:01] Speaker 5: to sit and watch him lie there looking at that
[5:03] Speaker 5: baseball bat you gave him, just looking at it because
[5:05] Speaker 5: he can't even close his fingers around it anymore?
[5:07] Speaker 1: Are you.
[5:08] Speaker 5: Marie.
[5:10] Speaker 6: Well, I'm not.
[5:11] Speaker 5: I'm going to do something. I'm going to keep on trying.
[5:13] Speaker 9: How?
[5:14] Speaker 10: I don't know how, but there's got to be a way,
[5:16] Speaker 10: hasn't there?
[5:17] Speaker 5: Hasn't there just got to be a way?
[5:25] Speaker 4: This is the beginning. These are the elements. In one
[5:29] Speaker 4: part of town, a frantic, desperate mother. In another part
[5:33] Speaker 4: of the same town, a reporter. A warm-hearted, compassionate reporter.
[5:38] Speaker 4: Two elements. And when a phone call brings them together,
[5:43] Speaker 4: a big story starts to roll.
[5:48] Speaker 5: Hello, Dorothy Patterson speaking. This is Patterson. I don't know
[5:49] Speaker 5: how to say this. I read your column every day. Well,
[5:56] Speaker 5: I'm glad to hear it.
[5:57] Speaker 6: Hi.
[5:58] Speaker 5: I don't know who else to turn to. I've tried
[6:01] Speaker 5: and tried, but.
[6:03] Speaker 5: Mrs. Patterson, my boy is sick.
[6:06] Speaker 4: He's dying.
[6:08] Speaker 5: Oh, I'm so sorry.
[6:09] Speaker 11: Will you help me?
[6:11] Speaker 6: How?
[6:12] Speaker 5: My name is Lorraine McDermott. I live at 100 Crescent Street.
[6:16] Speaker 5: Would you come tonight and talk to me, please? Well, I...
[6:19] Speaker 5: Don't let me down. There's nowhere else to turn, please.
[6:23] Speaker 5: For the love of heaven, don't let me down. 100
[6:26] Speaker 5: Crescent Street. I'll be there this evening.
[6:28] Speaker 4: 100 Crescent Street is a pleasant, comfortable house As you,
[6:38] Speaker 4: Dorothy Patterson, walk up the broad, worn steps You think
[6:42] Speaker 4: it looks like most of the other houses on the
[6:44] Speaker 4: block A good home, pleasant place to live But as
[6:49] Speaker 4: you ring the front doorbell and wait for an answer
[6:52] Speaker 4: You're aware of something else Something that sets this house
[6:57] Speaker 4: apart from the others on the block The quietness.
[7:01] Speaker 1: This is a quiet house.
[7:04] Speaker 4: Next door, the children shout and play in the yard.
[7:07] Speaker 4: Across the street, you hear the clear call. Ready or not,
[7:11] Speaker 4: I'm coming. But not here. There are children here at
[7:16] Speaker 4: 100 Crescent Street. But they're not playing. One is quiet.
[7:22] Speaker 4: The other is dying.
[7:25] Speaker 5: I guess you can tell just by looking at him, Mrs.
[7:27] Speaker 1: Patterson.
[7:28] Speaker 5: How bad it is.
[7:30] Speaker 10: Yes.
[7:32] Speaker 5: Can he hear me? I don't know for sure. Sometimes, maybe.
[7:37] Speaker 5: He just lies there like that, all swollen. He can't move.
[7:43] Speaker 5: When he has to turn over, I lift him, like
[7:45] Speaker 5: when he was a baby. Funny.
[7:48] Speaker 10: I remember when he was a baby, just a little one.
[7:51] Speaker 10: I used to love picking him up. I used to
[7:53] Speaker 10: look for an excuse. He was so little, his skin
[7:55] Speaker 10: was so soft, I couldn't feel him.
[8:00] Speaker 5: No, I... I don't know if he hears us. He
[8:03] Speaker 5: just lies like that all the time.
[8:06] Speaker 1: I see. Mom!
[8:08] Speaker 5: Yes, dear. Mrs. Patterson. This is my other boy, Buddy. Buddy?
[8:12] Speaker 5: Say hello to Mrs. Patterson. Hello, Buddy. Hello. I'm ready
[8:16] Speaker 5: for bed, Mom. All washed?
[8:18] Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
[8:19] Speaker 5: Even the ears? Why do you always ask that? Because
[8:23] Speaker 5: you always forget to wash them. I wash them. All right, honey.
[8:26] Speaker 5: In you go. Aren't you going to listen to my prayers?
[8:29] Speaker 1: Well, I.
[8:31] Speaker 5: You're not waiting, Mrs.
[8:32] Speaker 1: Patterson.
[8:33] Speaker 5: Not at all. You can listen, too, if you want. Well,
[8:37] Speaker 5: thank you, buddy. I'd like to.
[8:39] Speaker 12: Okay, I know them good. Now I lay me down
[8:42] Speaker 12: to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
[8:44] Speaker 12: If I should die before I wake, I pray the
[8:46] Speaker 12: Lord my soul to take. God bless Mommy and Daddy.
[8:49] Speaker 5: And Johnny and me.
[8:52] Speaker 1: Mom.
[8:53] Speaker 5: Say amen, honey. First, can I put something of my
[8:57] Speaker 5: own on the end?
[8:58] Speaker 1: Oh, all right.
[9:00] Speaker 5: Okay. And God, please make my brother Johnny well. Amen.
[9:06] Speaker 5: Is that all right to put on, Mom? Yes, sure, buddy.
[9:10] Speaker 5: That was fine. Now get to bed at least.
[9:14] Speaker 4: She tucked him in. The small, lean, active body in
[9:18] Speaker 4: the blue sleepers. The body that contrasts so sharply with
[9:23] Speaker 4: the swollen, inert form in the other bed. And then
[9:28] Speaker 4: she puts out the light. and leads you into the
[9:30] Speaker 4: living room. And you, Dorothy Patterson, know that from now on.
[9:36] Speaker 1: It's up to you.
[9:37] Speaker 4: Mrs.
[9:38] Speaker 5: McDermott, you said you wanted me to help. How? Well,
[9:41] Speaker 5: there's a new drug. We just heard about it. It's
[9:44] Speaker 5: called serum albumin. It's supposed to help what Johnny has.
[9:47] Speaker 5: Have you tried it on Johnny?
[9:49] Speaker 10: Well, the doctor says the only way the drug would
[9:51] Speaker 10: have a chance is if he used it for at
[9:52] Speaker 10: least three months.
[9:55] Speaker 5: Johnny lives that long. Well, it costs $ 30 a day.
[10:01] Speaker 5: 90 days at $ 30 a day. We spend every penny
[10:06] Speaker 5: we have, Mrs. Patterson. There's no hospital in town willing
[10:09] Speaker 5: to stand the expense. Not even to save a child? Well,
[10:12] Speaker 5: that's another catch. We don't know that it would. Doctor
[10:15] Speaker 5: doesn't think so. People think spending that much on drugs
[10:19] Speaker 5: for Johnny's foolish. I don't think trying is ever foolish.
[10:23] Speaker 5: Don't you?
[10:24] Speaker 4: No.
[10:26] Speaker 5: I didn't know how you'd feel, but I was hoping. Well,
[10:31] Speaker 5: I guess now we've got to go to work and
[10:33] Speaker 5: raise that $ 3, 000. Do you think it can be done?
[10:37] Speaker 5: Never know till we try.
[10:39] Speaker 10: I don't want you to think we're just asking for charity.
[10:42] Speaker 10: If that's what it is, really. But Jim and I
[10:44] Speaker 10: always made our own way before. We got pried.
[10:47] Speaker 5: Tried won't help, Johnny.
[10:48] Speaker 11: Now, maybe nothing will, but we have to try, don't we?
[10:52] Speaker 11: We do have to try, don't we? Sure, Ted, I
[11:07] Speaker 11: know we probably can't raise that amount of money. Three
[11:09] Speaker 11: thousand's not peanuts, but we have to try.
[11:11] Speaker 4: Dorothy, you're just going to eat your heart out.
[11:13] Speaker 5: What about that woman eating her heart out? What about
[11:15] Speaker 5: that little kid saying his prayers? Please, God, make Johnny well.
[11:20] Speaker 5: I'm going to use that prayer, Ted, for my story lead.
[11:22] Speaker 1: Sob stuff.
[11:23] Speaker 5: No, not sob stuff. True stuff. I can't help it
[11:26] Speaker 5: if it sounds like a tearjerker. It's true. It's happening.
[11:29] Speaker 5: And I think people ought to know about it. I'm
[11:30] Speaker 5: going to tell them the facts. Just the facts. I'm
[11:33] Speaker 5: going to ask them to send money if they can.
[11:35] Speaker 5: And if they can't, I'm going to ask them to pray.
[11:38] Speaker 5: I suppose you call that sob stuff, too.
[11:41] Speaker 13: Oh, look, Dorothy, don't get me wrong. I'm not trying
[11:44] Speaker 13: to be a wet blanket. I'm just trying to... Cushing
[11:47] Speaker 13: the edges for you. This kid's gotten under your skin.
[11:50] Speaker 13: You feel badly about it. You're going to pour your
[11:53] Speaker 13: heart out on an article trying to get money. And
[11:56] Speaker 13: you're not going to get it, Dorothy. Not for a
[11:58] Speaker 13: kid nobody knows. Not for a kid who's probably going
[12:02] Speaker 13: to die anyway.
[12:04] Speaker 4: I see.
[12:06] Speaker 5: I'll take that. Thanks for telling me.
[12:09] Speaker 1: What are you going to do now?
[12:12] Speaker 5: Write the story anyway. What did you think I'd do?
[12:36] Speaker 4: A newspaper story is a lot of things. It can
[12:39] Speaker 4: be a factual account, a statement of who, when, and where.
[12:43] Speaker 4: It can be a vividly painted picture of exciting happenings.
[12:48] Speaker 4: Or it can be a desperate voice crying out for help.
[12:53] Speaker 4: You sit in front of your typewriter, Dorothy Patterson, and
[12:56] Speaker 4: stare at the impersonal keys, searching, praying for the right words.
[13:02] Speaker 4: The words that will tell of one mother's agony. The
[13:06] Speaker 4: words that will tell of a young child, motionless, swollen
[13:10] Speaker 4: beyond recognition of a terrible disease. The words that will
[13:15] Speaker 4: unlock hearts and pocketbooks. You do your best, and then
[13:21] Speaker 4: you have to sit back and wait and hope that
[13:23] Speaker 4: your best is good enough.
[13:25] Speaker 1: Morning, Dorothy.
[13:28] Speaker 5: Hello, Ted.
[13:30] Speaker 1: Liked your story about the sick kid yesterday. Good stuff.
[13:32] Speaker 5: Hope so. The mail sorted yet?
[13:34] Speaker 1: Uh, Just finishing. I suppose you're hoping for a flock
[13:38] Speaker 1: of checks.
[13:38] Speaker 5: That's why I wrote the story.
[13:40] Speaker 1: Sure, that's what I figured. Dorothy, I stopped by the
[13:45] Speaker 1: mail room.
[13:46] Speaker 5: Yes?
[13:47] Speaker 1: Picked up your mail. Here.
[13:53] Speaker 5: Are you joking?
[13:55] Speaker 1: No, Dorothy.
[13:57] Speaker 5: But three letters.
[13:58] Speaker 1: Yes.
[13:59] Speaker 5: I get more than that when I write a story
[14:01] Speaker 5: about a sick cat.
[14:02] Speaker 4: Remember what I told you about leading with your chin?
[14:08] Speaker 5: Two dollars. Fifty cents in this one. Dollars in this one.
[14:18] Speaker 5: Three dollars and fifty cents. And we need three thousand.
[14:22] Speaker 1: Yeah.
[14:23] Speaker 5: Is this all you need, Ted?
[14:26] Speaker 10: All of it?
[14:28] Speaker 1: I'm sorry, darling.
[14:30] Speaker 4: That's all of it.
[14:38] Speaker 1: You feel sick, Dorothy Patterson.
[14:41] Speaker 4: Not only because you dread going back empty-handed to Johnny's mother.
[14:45] Speaker 4: Not only because a child will surely die without the money.
[14:50] Speaker 4: But because the bottom of your belief is the knocked out.
[14:53] Speaker 1: The belief in people.
[14:54] Speaker 4: In their goodness and their compassion. It's almost Easter now,
[15:01] Speaker 4: and as you look out of your window at the
[15:04] Speaker 4: trees swelling with the promise of life to come, your
[15:08] Speaker 4: heart aches. It aches for Johnny, for his mother, and
[15:13] Speaker 4: for the people you tried to reach. The people who
[15:16] Speaker 4: should care, but evidently don't. But if you could look
[15:21] Speaker 4: beyond the budding trees, beyond the fringe of houses outside
[15:24] Speaker 4: your window, you would know, Dorothy Patterson, that things are
[15:29] Speaker 4: happening exciting, wonderful things.
[15:37] Speaker 5: Hey, Mom, look. I made $ 11. 40 this week selling papers. Oh, wait.
[15:42] Speaker 5: Is it okay if I don't give it to you
[15:43] Speaker 5: this time? I thought if you don't mind, I'd send
[15:46] Speaker 5: it to the paper. To that kid, you know. That's right. Vegetables.
[15:55] Speaker 5: And you might as well get used to the idea that.
[15:57] Speaker 10: There won't be any meat for dinner for the rest
[15:59] Speaker 10: of the week.
[16:00] Speaker 5: I'm saving the meat money to turn into the Johnny
[16:03] Speaker 5: McDermott Fund. Dear Mrs. Patterson, I am an elderly widow.
[16:10] Speaker 5: I have no money except my small pension. Would you
[16:14] Speaker 5: accept $ 20 for Johnny? It is all I have at
[16:17] Speaker 5: my savings.
[16:23] Speaker 4: Slowly at first, and then faster and faster the checks
[16:27] Speaker 4: pour in. There's no need any longer to wait anxiously
[16:31] Speaker 4: by the mail room. The letters spill in more and more.
[16:35] Speaker 4: Not only from Patterson, New Jersey, but from all over. Pennsylvania,
[16:39] Speaker 4: New York, as far away as South Carolina and Ohio.
[16:43] Speaker 4: A little girl sends 25 cents. A labor union, $ 500.
[16:48] Speaker 4: The young grandson of a rabbi organizes a drive. And
[16:51] Speaker 4: children from Catholic and Protestant church groups contribute.
[16:56] Speaker 1: You, Dorothy Patterson... Know for sure.
[16:58] Speaker 4: Now that a newspaper story can be many things. And
[17:04] Speaker 4: one of the things it can be is the magic
[17:06] Speaker 4: word that draws people of all ages, of all faiths,
[17:09] Speaker 4: of all occupations together to help an unknown child.
[17:16] Speaker 5: Ted, I'm just so overwhelmed. It's so much more than
[17:20] Speaker 5: I ever dreamed of getting.
[17:22] Speaker 1: How much so far?
[17:23] Speaker 11: Well over the 3,000 mark, about $ 4, 500, and it's still
[17:26] Speaker 11: coming in.
[17:27] Speaker 1: You're going to have a happy surprise for Mrs. McDiarmid.
[17:31] Speaker 5: I'm going over there with a check now. Do you
[17:33] Speaker 5: know something, Ted? I don't think it'll be a surprise.
[17:36] Speaker 5: She believed in people, I'm sure. That's why she called me.
[17:39] Speaker 1: What about you?
[17:40] Speaker 5: You know the answer to that one. I believe, too.
[17:43] Speaker 5: I always have. They took Johnny to the hospital this morning, Mrs.
[17:55] Speaker 4: Patterson.
[17:56] Speaker 5: They're going to start treatments right away. Wonderful, Mrs.
[17:59] Speaker 1: McDermott.
[18:00] Speaker 5: And here's the piece of paper that'll pay for those treatments.
[18:03] Speaker 5: I don't know how to thank you. This check is
[18:06] Speaker 5: for $ 3, 000, but the money's still pouring in. And if
[18:08] Speaker 5: you need more... Oh, no, no. Like I told you before, Mrs. Patterson,
[18:11] Speaker 5: Jim and I, we're not looking for charity. We make
[18:14] Speaker 5: our own way.
[18:16] Speaker 10: I can't tell you how grateful we are for the $ 3, 000,
[18:17] Speaker 10: but that's all we'll need.
[18:20] Speaker 5: If there's more money left, we'll... Maybe someone else can
[18:23] Speaker 5: use it. That's what she said, Ted. Maybe someone else
[18:35] Speaker 5: can use it.
[18:36] Speaker 1: You know, Dorothy, you're converting me. I'm beginning to get
[18:40] Speaker 1: real fond of people.
[18:41] Speaker 11: All day that's been running through my mind about maybe
[18:43] Speaker 11: somebody else can use the money, and I've got an idea.
[18:46] Speaker 1: What now?
[18:47] Speaker 5: Suppose I wrote another story and told the readers about
[18:50] Speaker 5: this surplus money. Suppose I asked them if I could
[18:52] Speaker 5: keep it as the beginning of a permanent fund. A
[18:54] Speaker 5: fund we'd have right here at the paper, ready and waiting...
[18:57] Speaker 5: if anything like this happens again. What do you think, Ted?
[19:02] Speaker 6: After what's happened so far, there's nothing you can suggest, Dorothy...
[19:06] Speaker 6: that I'm not going to say, go ahead.
[19:15] Speaker 4: That, Dorothy Patterson, is the beginning. You even have a
[19:19] Speaker 4: name for this fund... A name that tells exactly what
[19:22] Speaker 4: it is. The Save a Child Fund. This is the
[19:26] Speaker 4: real beginning of your big story. A story without an end.
[19:31] Speaker 4: For as long as the Save a Child Fund goes on,
[19:34] Speaker 4: your big story, Dorothy Patterson, will go on, too. You're
[19:39] Speaker 4: thinking of this, of course, this mild spring morning. But
[19:43] Speaker 4: you're thinking of something else, too. You're thinking of Johnny McDermott,
[19:48] Speaker 4: the desperately sick child who started your story. You're thinking
[19:53] Speaker 4: about him and hoping and praying.
[19:58] Speaker 5: It isn't any use, Mrs. Patterson. I've been getting this
[20:02] Speaker 5: serum for three weeks now. It isn't doing any good.
[20:08] Speaker 5: What do the doctors say?
[20:11] Speaker 4: No.
[20:13] Speaker 1: They just look.
[20:15] Speaker 5: The way they look, it's worse than anything you might see.
[20:19] Speaker 5: Tomorrow's Easter. I bought Johnny an Easter bunny. Big purple one.
[20:24] Speaker 5: He likes purple. He can't even see it. It's a
[20:29] Speaker 5: fine Easter for him. Maybe it will be. How? When?
[20:36] Speaker 5: Easter's a time of life. Not death. It's a time
[20:41] Speaker 5: of miracles. I know. The only trouble is... it's hard
[20:46] Speaker 5: to believe in miracles anymore.
[20:47] Speaker 4: There's so little you can say, Dorothy Patterson. So little
[21:00] Speaker 4: you can do now. Except wait.
[21:04] Speaker 1: Easter morning comes.
[21:06] Speaker 4: Sunlit, joyful morning. In the hospital... The antiseptic whiteness of
[21:12] Speaker 4: the children's ward is brightened with baskets of flowers. Spotlighted
[21:17] Speaker 4: with the glow of the Easter sun. We stand tense,
[21:21] Speaker 4: waiting with Johnny's mother as the doctor makes his usual examination.
[21:27] Speaker 4: And then.
[21:30] Speaker 1: Mrs.
[21:30] Speaker 4: McDermott, I have an Easter present for you.
[21:35] Speaker 5: Johnny?
[21:36] Speaker 1: He's much better. Much better.
[21:40] Speaker 5: You said the serum wasn't working. You said it didn't help.
[21:45] Speaker 1: I know I did. But today, it is working.
[21:52] Speaker 7: Oh, God.
[21:53] Speaker 1: It's almost a miracle. A medical miracle. But Johnny's going
[21:58] Speaker 1: to get well. You, Dorothy Patterson.
[22:09] Speaker 4: not too happy to argue. You're too happy to tell
[22:13] Speaker 4: the doctor... that this is more than a medical miracle.
[22:17] Speaker 1: But you know it.
[22:19] Speaker 4: You know that Johnny McDermott's recovery... is a human miracle...
[22:23] Speaker 4: made possible by the people who helped him... and fought
[22:26] Speaker 4: for him and prayed for him. You know, too, that
[22:30] Speaker 4: it's a miracle... which, because of the Save a Child Fund...
[22:34] Speaker 4: will go on... as long as there are people who
[22:37] Speaker 4: need care... people who do care. That's the joyful ending
[22:43] Speaker 4: of your big story. A big story that will really never.
[22:51] Speaker 6: End.
[23:08] Speaker 4: In just a moment, friends, you'll hear the actual voice
[23:11] Speaker 4: of Johnny McDermott with the final outcome of tonight's big story.
[23:16] Speaker 7: Avast there, lads. This'll be me again. The name is Jones,
[23:20] Speaker 7: Davy Jones. So whatever it is you be doing, belay
[23:23] Speaker 7: it and lay to for a spell of sea talk.
[23:25] Speaker 7: Because if it's sea lore you're after, I'm your man,
[23:28] Speaker 7: right enough. For I've been following the way of wind
[23:31] Speaker 7: and water, sail and rudder, gun and cannon, man and boy,
[23:34] Speaker 7: since there's been men and ships. and a proper American
[23:37] Speaker 7: flag in these waters. I led that I have. And
[23:41] Speaker 7: the most unique naval fighting I've witnessed took place on
[23:44] Speaker 7: the Mississippi River during the Civil War. Since only paddle
[23:47] Speaker 7: wheel steamers could maneuver about in the narrow river channels,
[23:51] Speaker 7: sailing vessels were out. Broadside armament gave way to underwater
[23:55] Speaker 7: rams and guns pointing forward. That meant building the heavy
[23:58] Speaker 7: ships oval in shape with all the heavy armor on
[24:01] Speaker 7: the front end of the gunboat. The rams were something else,
[24:04] Speaker 7: fast and highly maneuverable. Sometimes strengthened by as many as
[24:08] Speaker 7: three iron bulkheads up to 20 inches thick stemmed astern,
[24:12] Speaker 7: they could slip past the heavier side wheelers and ram
[24:15] Speaker 7: them amid ships, crippling them so the heavier gunboats could
[24:18] Speaker 7: finish them off. The best example of these tactics took
[24:22] Speaker 7: place in May of 1862 in the river battle from
[24:25] Speaker 7: Memphis when Union rams and gunboats destroyed seven out of
[24:29] Speaker 7: eight Confederate vessels without any loss for themselves.
[24:33] Speaker 1: So heave to, lads. Man the braces. Get on with
[24:36] Speaker 1: it again.
[24:37] Speaker 4: And rest easy.
[24:39] Speaker 7: Not only have you got the best bloomin' Navy there is,
[24:42] Speaker 7: but by the great jib boom when it comes to tactics,
[24:45] Speaker 7: your Navy can't be beat.
[24:54] Speaker 1: And now here is the voice of Johnny McDermott with
[24:57] Speaker 1: a message to you.
[24:59] Speaker 12: I just want to tell everybody I'm fine now and
[25:01] Speaker 12: back in school, playing baseball and everything. You know a
[25:04] Speaker 12: funny thing? Before I was sick, my hair was brown,
[25:08] Speaker 12: but that serum turned it bright red for a while.
[25:11] Speaker 12: But I am swell now, and I didn't mind.
[25:13] Speaker 4: Mrs.
[25:14] Speaker 12: Patterson has been wonderful helping me and loads of other kids, too,
[25:18] Speaker 12: with the Save a Child Fund.
[25:21] Speaker 11: And so ends another big story.
[25:31] Speaker 14: In order to protect the names of people actually involved
[25:34] Speaker 14: in tonight's authentic big story, the names of all characters
[25:37] Speaker 14: in the dramatization were changed, with the exception of the
[25:40] Speaker 14: newspaper reporter.
[26:00] Speaker 4: The Big Story has been a presentation of the United
[26:03] Speaker 4: States Armed Forces Radio Service.
[26:05] Speaker 12: The Big Story.
[26:22] Speaker 4: THE END.
[26:57] Speaker 15: Welcome back.
[27:22] Speaker 2: Let's go ahead and go through the cast. Dorothy was
[27:26] Speaker 2: played by Jan Miner, a familiar voice to longtime listeners
[27:32] Speaker 2: for her work on shows like Boston Blackie and Casey
[27:37] Speaker 2: Crime Photographer. Also in the cast, Frances DeSales, Ted Osborne,
[27:43] Speaker 2: Joey Fallon, and Bobby Rick, I think. Interestingly enough, there
[27:51] Speaker 2: is a blank space for the name of the actor
[27:55] Speaker 2: who played Boy, and the name is written in. Then also,
[28:02] Speaker 2: Ra Terry and Brenna Rayburn round out the cast with
[28:07] Speaker 2: Bob Sloan as usual, our announcer. Now, this episode is
[28:11] Speaker 2: definitely different. And from just glancing over the scripts for
[28:18] Speaker 2: the big story, it does appear that they did take
[28:21] Speaker 2: these occasional breaks from stories of crime and wrongdoing and
[28:26] Speaker 2: tragedy to highlight a journalistic story that was a bit
[28:32] Speaker 2: more uplifting and positive in its outcome. And certainly this
[28:38] Speaker 2: is a very upbeat, feel-good story. of people coming together
[28:44] Speaker 2: to help someone in need and making some real sacrifices
[28:50] Speaker 2: to do it, not just giving out of abundance. And
[28:56] Speaker 2: it shows the power of the press to bring people together,
[29:00] Speaker 2: which can still happen, but it's much easier in a
[29:05] Speaker 2: society with a higher level of trust as would have
[29:08] Speaker 2: existed at the time of this episode. Now, a couple
[29:12] Speaker 2: of interesting notes on the reporter in this case from
[29:16] Speaker 2: the story behind the big story. First of all, her nickname,
[29:24] Speaker 2: the one she went by, was Pat, even though they
[29:29] Speaker 2: used her proper name, Dorothy. And I guess it was
[29:33] Speaker 2: just a decision that, are we going to expect radio
[29:39] Speaker 2: listeners to listen to a story about Pat Patterson in Patterson,
[29:44] Speaker 2: New Jersey? It's a little too packed. Horrible pun. I
[29:50] Speaker 2: admit it.
[29:51] Speaker 1: Own it.
[29:52] Speaker 2: A really interesting fact to add is that She was
[29:57] Speaker 2: actually a foundling who was anonymously left at the door
[30:02] Speaker 2: of the church. And Dr. Webb suggests that might be
[30:07] Speaker 2: why she was so devoted to charitable work in her
[30:14] Speaker 2: home city. Well, listen to her comments and feedback now.
[30:18] Speaker 2: And we go to Patreon where Jeff comments on the
[30:23] Speaker 2: case hot lad catches a cold-blooded killer, this reporter should
[30:29] Speaker 2: have received a police salary for solving this crime. Well,
[30:33] Speaker 2: I understand the sentiment, and I don't think this is
[30:36] Speaker 2: the first or only case where that's applicable. Although, in
[30:41] Speaker 2: some cases, I would say that dramatic license may have
[30:46] Speaker 2: been taken to enhance the role of the reporter.
[30:49] Speaker 5: Still.
[30:51] Speaker 2: They definitely worked a lot more with police and had
[30:54] Speaker 2: more practical impact on crime solving than most reporters do today.
[31:00] Speaker 2: All right, well now it's time to thank our Patreon
[31:03] Speaker 2: supporter of the day. Thank you to Christine, Patreon supporter
[31:07] Speaker 2: since November 2023, currently supporting the podcast at the show
[31:13] Speaker 2: must level of $ 4 or more per month. Thanks so
[31:15] Speaker 2: much for your support, Christine. And that will do it
[31:18] Speaker 2: for today. If you're enjoying the podcast, please follow us
[31:22] Speaker 2: using your favorite podcast software, and be sure to rate
[31:26] Speaker 2: and review the podcast wherever you download it from. We
[31:30] Speaker 2: will be back next Tuesday with another episode of The
[31:33] Speaker 2: Big Story, but join us back here tomorrow for Broadway's
[31:37] Speaker 2: My B-Ware.
[31:38] Speaker 1: We'll take care of it. Yeah.
[31:42] Speaker 4: That was Georgie.
[31:42] Speaker 5: Georgie Beck.
[31:43] Speaker 9: Yeah, Georgie says be upon it again. Georgie's in danger,
[31:47] Speaker 9: he says. Georgie's upset. Pickpocket with a neurosis, man. You
[31:51] Speaker 9: could ruin him and his business. If he calls once more,
[31:54] Speaker 9: it'll ruin me and mine.
[31:55] Speaker 1: Maybe he's not kidding, Muggler.
[31:57] Speaker 15: Now, did he cut you, Danny?
[31:59] Speaker 1: What are you saying?
[31:59] Speaker 15: Maybe he's not kidding? First time Georgie called, we spent a.
[32:03] Speaker 1: Man on him.
[32:04] Speaker 15: Weeks we spent a man on him. All that was
[32:06] Speaker 15: following Georgie was Georgie's own boozy breath. Lee bagged a
[32:10] Speaker 15: bar and danced me around again, Georgie.
[32:11] Speaker 6: Maybe whoever was following him spotted our man, laid out
[32:14] Speaker 6: for a while.
[32:14] Speaker 1: Now, with our man off, Georgie, maybe he started again.
[32:18] Speaker 1: I got a theory, too. You care to hear it?
[32:20] Speaker 5: Sure.
[32:20] Speaker 4: You won't laugh.
[32:22] Speaker 1: Why should I?
[32:23] Speaker 15: Because it's the end of the day, and you're tired,
[32:25] Speaker 15: and I'm tired, and I'm going to.
[32:26] Speaker 1: Lay a cliche on you.
[32:28] Speaker 15: Nothing's following Georgie to pickpocket. Nothing but his conscience.
[32:31] Speaker 1: Nothing... I'll get him. Lieutenant Clover speaking. I mean, I
[32:36] Speaker 1: have to leave, Lieutenant.
[32:37] Speaker 4: Lieutenant? Maybe not when I'm hurt.
[32:40] Speaker 1: Maybe not when I'm sliced up. Tell me slow, Georgie.
[32:45] Speaker 1: Tell me what's happened.
[32:46] Speaker 4: I told you.
[32:48] Speaker 15: Georgie.
[32:50] Speaker 9: Hello?
[32:51] Speaker 1: Georgie?
[32:51] Speaker 2: I hope you'll be with us then. In the meantime,
[32:54] Speaker 2: send your comments to box13 at greatdetectives.net. Follow us on
[33:00] Speaker 2: Twitter at Radio Detectives and check us out on Instagram, instagram.com.
[33:06] Speaker 2: Slash Great Detectives from Boise, Idaho. This is your host,
[33:10] Speaker 2: Adam Graham, signing off.

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