Show Notes
1001 RADIO DAYS Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar — Episode Show Notes
🎙️ THE QUEEN ANNE PISTOLS MATTER Original Air Date: November 4, 1950 Starring: Edmond O'Brien as Johnny Dollar Series: CBS Radio — The Action‑Packed Expense Account Episode Summary A pair of rare Queen Anne dueling pistols, insured for a hefty sum, suddenly become the center of a suspicious refusal by the intended recipients. Johnny Dollar is dispatched to determine why these antiques — valuable, historic, and supposedly harmless — have triggered fear, secrecy, and a trail of evasive answers. Johnny's investigation uncovers: A collector with something to hide
A delivery that no one wants to accept
A shadowy adversary determined to keep the pistols out of circulation
And a motive buried in the pistols' past that may be worth killing for
This is classic early‑era Johnny Dollar: tight plotting, sharp dialogue, and a case where the truth is hidden behind polished walnut and cold steel. Main Characters Johnny Dollar — Freelance insurance investigator
Pat McCracken — Universal Adjustment Bureau
The Collectors — Nervous recipients with secrets
Unknown Adversary — The force behind the pistols' mysterious danger
🎙️ THE ADAM KEGG MATTER Original Air Date: November 11, 1950 Starring: Edmond O'Brien as Johnny Dollar Series: CBS Radio — The Action‑Packed Expense Account Episode Summary Johnny Dollar is sent from Hartford to New York City to investigate a jewel theft involving Adam Kegg, a wealthy, abrasive man whose personality is as sharp as the stones in his collection. Kegg's jewels have been stolen and are being held for ransom — but the deeper Johnny digs, the more he realizes this is no ordinary robbery. The Case Unfolds A bizarre ransom note
A suspicious bellboy at the Park View Manor
A frightened wife hiding more than she admits
A husband desperate to avoid scandal
And a trail that leads Johnny from Manhattan to Montclair, New Jersey
The Twist Johnny discovers the theft was never about money. It was a revenge setup, engineered by a jilted former lover whose jealousy and rage turned into a deadly scheme. Expense Account Johnny closes the case with a final tally of $230.40, noting that the insurance company could have saved a bundle — if human drama didn't cost so much. Main Characters Johnny Dollar — The man with the action‑packed expense account
Adam Kegg — Wealthy, abrasive victim of the "theft"
Mrs. Kegg — Frightened, secretive, and central to the motive
Bellboy / Accomplice — The first crack in the case
Former Lover — The architect of the revenge plot
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More from 1001 RADIO DAYS
⭐ Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar THE NORA FAULKNER MATTER Original Air Date: June 28, 1959 Starring: Bob Bailey Writer/Director: Jack Johnstone Supporting Cast: Virginia Gregg, Lawrence Dobkin, Harry Bartell, Jack Kruschen Summary Johnny Dollar is called in when Nora Faulkner, a young woman with a modest life‑insurance policy, disappears under troubling circumstances. Her aunt fears she may have fallen victim to a dangerous crowd, and the insurance company suspects the disappearance may be tied to fraud or foul play. Johnny's investigation uncovers a trail involving a manipulative boyfriend, a forged signature, and a scheme designed to cash in on Nora's policy. As he digs deeper, Johnny discovers that Nora is caught between fear, desperation, and the influence of people who see her only as a payday. The case becomes a tense search for a missing woman whose life is worth more dead than alive to the people around her — and Johnny must find her before the worst happens.
⭐ Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar THE ALVIN'S ALFRED MATTER Original Air Date: July 19, 1959 Starring: Bob Bailey Writer/Director: Jack Johnstone Supporting Cast: Virginia Gregg, Lawrence Dobkin, Harry Bartell, Jack Kruschen Summary Johnny Dollar is assigned to investigate the suspicious death of Alvin Alfred, a quiet, seemingly harmless man who was found dead under circumstances that don't add up. Alvin carried a modest life‑insurance policy, but the company believes foul play may be involved — and that someone close to him may have engineered his death for profit. Johnny's investigation uncovers a tangle of deceit involving a manipulative woman, a forged signature, and a carefully staged accident designed to look natural. As he digs deeper, Johnny realizes Alvin Alfred was targeted precisely because he seemed like the last man anyone would murder. The case becomes a study in how greed can turn the most unassuming life into a deadly opportunity.
⭐ Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar THE BOLT OUT OF THE BLUE MATTER Original Air Date: July 26, 1959 Starring: Bob Bailey Writer/Director: Jack Johnstone Supporting Cast: Virginia Gregg, Carlton G. Young, Ralph Moody, James McCallion Summary Johnny Dollar is dispatched to the storm‑swept Massachusetts coast after Thelma Jane Weatherby reports that her uncle, retired sea captain Amos Weatherby, is in mortal danger. She believes her former fiancé, Roger Burton — a man Captain Amos once exposed as a "wife killer" — has returned to make good on his threat of revenge. As a violent storm rolls in, Johnny discovers Burton's elaborate murder setup: an old stone blockhouse once used as a sailing‑ship jail, now housing power company transformers. Burton plans to lure the captain inside and electrocute him by throwing a remote switch that energizes a metal railing. But nature intervenes. A lightning bolt strikes the tower's rod, surges down the wire, and detonates the installation — killing Burton instantly and leaving Johnny shaken but alive. With the threat ended, Johnny files his expense account (totaling $171.50) and signs off with his trademark closing: "End of report… Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar."
1. "The Jack Madigan Matter " Release Date: October 21, 1950. [1] Cast: Stars Edmond O'Brien as Johnny Dollar. [1] Basic Summary: The Assignment: Johnny is hired by a panicked local bail bondsman who finds himself in an impossible legal jam. The Disappearance: Two crucial federal witnesses scheduled to testify against a notorious, dangerous gangster named Jack Madigan have completely vanished into thin air. The Stakes: The bondsman was pressured into putting up the bond money for them by Madigan's associates. Johnny must navigate a dark web of underworld intimidation to locate the witnesses before Madigan can silence them for good. [1, 2, 3]
. "The Sudden Wealth Matter " Release Date: December 13, 1959. Cast: Stars Bob Bailey as freelance insurance investigator Johnny Dollar. Basic Summary: Johnny is called from Hartford to investigate a rash of sudden, suspicious life insurance policy cancellations. He tracks the thread to a corrupt, sweet-talking broker who is targeting unsuspecting locals. The broker convinces these individuals to liquidate their stable insurance assets to invest in a sketchy stock market scheme that falsely promises to "double their money" in less than three weeks. Johnny must expose the financial fraud and the sheer greed driving the operation before the racketeer vanishes with the victims' life savings. [1, 2, 3]