Latest / Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas / Yours Truly Johnny Dollar: The Price of Fame Matter (EP1573)

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Yours Truly Johnny Dollar: The Price of Fame Matter (EP1573) · Great Detectives of Old Time Radio Volume 2|Mystery Audio Dramas

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Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho. This
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is your host, Adam Graham. If you have a comment, email it
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to me Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot net, follow us on Twitter at
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Radio Detectives, and become one of our friends on Facebook, Facebook dot com
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slash Radio Detectives. Well, before we do get started, I want to
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encourage you as you make your travel plans. Remember Johnny Dawl dot com.
1:00
It's a price line affiliate, so you can name your own price on hotels,
1:04
rental cars, airline tickets or more, or choose from Great Publish fairs.
1:11
Plus, part of the purchase price goes to support the Great Detectors of
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Old Time Radio at no additional cost to you. So when you're making your
1:19
travel plans, remember Johnnydollarair dot com. Well, we have our first lost
1:26
episode of nineteen fifty eight, so we are actually there's a missed episode between
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last week and this week. So this week we're going to bring you a
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very special episode of yours truly, Johnny Dollar, that I hope you truly
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enjoy from Groundhog's Day nineteen fifty eight. That's February second of nineteen fifty eight.
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Here now is the price of famematter from Hollywood. It's time now for
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Johnny Deller. Johnny, this is Vincent Price. I'm calling from Hollywood.
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Oh sure, my name's Shirley Temple. Now who is it? And what
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really? Vincent Price? Who I sound like Mickey Rooney? Well no,
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but now tell me mister Price, now that the name is Vincent. Okay,
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Vincent, what can I do for you? Johnny? I have a
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little problem in connection with one of my paintings insured for one hundred thousand dollars
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one hundred thous you call that a little problem. This painting has suddenly disappeared.
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Oh I see, what's the insurance company for State Mutual. Well,
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they have a small branch office right there in Los Angeles. Yeah, I
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know. But Bert Parker, the man who sold me the policy and should
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take care of this matter. Well, every time I've called him, he's
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been out, and I learned just this morning that nobody knows where he is.
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Okay, Vincent, I'll grab the first plane. Bob Bailey and the
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Exciting Adventures of the Man with the Action Packed Expense Account, America's fabulous freelance
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insurance investigator was truly Johnny Dollar, and now act one of yours, truly
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Johnny Dollar. Expense account submitted by Special Investigator Johnny Dollar the Four State Mutual
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Insurance Company Home Office, Hartford, Connecticut, following an account of expenses incurred
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during my investigation of the Price of Fame matter expense account at a one one
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hundred and seventy eight to fifty plain fair and incidentals Hertford to Los Angeles.
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By the time the big Silver Constellation made its landing at the International Airport had
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finally dawned on me that I hadn't arrange with Vincent Price about where on holland
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what time i'd meet him. But as I picked up my luggage, I
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discovered a hundred looking to call him autograph hands. Feeling about the tall,
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gracious man I was looking for. I'm sure, sure, I'm glad to
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look for just one at a time, when you please, I can't very
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well, all right, there you are, now I have to walk just
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one more, please, har mister Price, All right, if you kist
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here, best wishes from t Willie Rocking Horse. Huh ah, yeah,
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Johnny, Oh great, but I didn't see Johnny, Who do you mean
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to say? You folks don't recognize Johnny Dollar on a lad of Lada.
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Oy, Johnny, give him all. I'll wait for you and my cocks
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right over here at the car. Look, well, hey, here,
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I know, buddy slinging. By the time I got away from that mob,
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I felt as though I had been running through a wringer. But we
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finally took off in Vincent's car and gorove to his beautiful home op in one
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of the canyons west of Beverly Hills, among the trees, with spacious lawns
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and well kept gardens. It's furnished in the most excellent taste. I know
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expert, but to say that I was impressed by the extraordinary works of art
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in that home would be the understatement of the week. Engravings, prints,
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fine sculptures, but most of all paintings, and even of my unpracticed eye,
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all of them were well magnificent. Here's a little thing I picked up
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in London, Johnny. It's called The Old Man in Red by Goyah.
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I thought original oils by him were found only in the Big Museum. And
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I've been pretty lucky in getting older. Some of these. Yeah, you've
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known what you were doing too, you like this one. It's called Fright
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and was painted by Kenneth macmanner. Ah, beautiful, beautiful like all the
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rest of them. Ok, how about this one here at the end,
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Night wind By? I'm sorry, Vincent, I can't make out that name.
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You don't have this one lighted like the rest to maintain its somber mood.
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Oh, and that's what made it possible for the substitution of this copy
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to go undetected. That's a copy, yeah, and that's my problem.
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The one hundred thousand dollars Night Wind by Jean Baptiste has been stolen. This
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was left in its play. Oh. I see. It's not a bad
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copy, probably worth a couple of hundred dollars, but it's hardly a genuine
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Baptiste. When did you discover this substitution? When I returned from a lecture
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tour early last week? Oh, that's right. You've been traveling all over
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the country lecturing on art, let's just call it talking about art. Tell
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me have you notified the police about this? I suppose I should have.
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I felt that was Bert Parker's John and you haven't been able to reach him
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over at for State Mutual And I told John the phone. He hasn't been
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in his office for some time. Benson, have you any theories about who
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might have done this? Yes, I'm afraid I have. Why do you
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say it that way? Very few people knew I'd gotten hold of this,
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Baptiste on need, some close friends and a couple of art experts saw and
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the Price was not broken into during the time I was away. Of that,
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I'm sure we'll come on with the family and servants kept very close track
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of anyone who went to the house while I was gone. You have a
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list, Yes, I do have a Listen here Alfred R. Howkinson.
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That's an electrician who came to do some wiring. He wouldn't know a Rembrandt
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from a Mickey Mouse and m Shuman music teacher loves music, hates paintings.
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What about delivery boys? People like that? They never get beyond the back
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door? Go on, read on that. Next one is Ben the guard
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may even forget about him and Bert Elk huh yeah, Bert Parker. He
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was here twice before well, ostensibly to check on some of the paintings he'd
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ensured. The first time, on the eleventh, Missus Price was with him
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while he poked around on the fifteenth, she had to leave to keep an
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appointment in just when he left the house. Nobody seems to know. Are
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you thinking the same thing I am? Now, Look, Johnny, I
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haven't known Bird very long, and well he seemed like such a harmless little
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old fuddy daddy. As for his knowledge of our yeah, I wondered about
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that, and he was perfectly satisfied to take my evaluation and the two or
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three things he'd ensured so well, Johnny, I may be all wrong,
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Vinson. A thing like this may only happen once in a thousand years.
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In any event, the company will certainly make good your loss, where with
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a work of art, it isn't really the money that counts. And Johnny,
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listen, look, I may have jumped to a completely unjustified conclusion about
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Bert Parker. Oh yeah, sure, well, let's go down to his
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office and see. We'll return to Johnny Dollar and the Price of Fame matter
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that's Vincent Price in just a moment, and now act too of yours,
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truly, Johnny Dollar and the Price of Fame muttered a priceless original oil painting
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stolen from the home of Vince Price, famous radio and picture star One of
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the few people who'd had the opportunity was a man who'd sold them the insurance
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on it, Britt Parker. Together we went to Parker's office at four State
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Mutual in downtown Los Angeles. It was on the sixteenth that mister Barker phoned
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in to say he wasn't feeling very good and wouldn't be in for a day
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or two. It was on the fifteenth that he was at your house,
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Vincent. Yes, that's over two weeks ago, and you haven't heard from
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him since, Miss Pritt. No, mister Dalla, We've tried calling his
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apartment, but since there hasn't done anything really pressing here at the office,
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it's the aggress of his apartment. Please, well, it's out in Westwood,
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thirteen oh eight Pandora Avenue. Look, Vincent, I'm going out there.
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I'll call you if I find any transportation. Aren't you Jarney by the
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highest price? You're four in the country? Sure? Why not? Oh
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before you go, mister Price, I wonder if right have your autograph?
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Why didn't you get journey dollars, Miss Pritty? He loved to give them.
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Oh yeah, oh no, no, you know it took a little
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persuading, but the landlord at Bert's a prive and finally led us into his
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forum suite. It was empty except for a few old clothes, and it
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was obvious that he packed and left in a hurry. My rummaged around in
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the closets, tables, bureau or clue as to where he might have gone,
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and came up with nothing. And you give up, Johnny, Yeah,
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events, and I'm afraid song. I poked around that desk some more
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after you'd finished with it and found this wedged in behind a drawer. Oh,
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travel folder, Harris, Yeah, looks real fresh too. Minor travel
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agency, Beverly Hills. Well, what do you think? Pretty much of
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a long shot. But they do pay off sometimes, don't they? Then
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the trooper myself, Yes, sir, first class all the way. What
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was the departure date, mister miner, sixteenth first class straight to Paris?
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Oh, brother, Harris is a pretty big place. Did you make any
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arrangements for him for after he got there? Only for when he alive?
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Reservation? That the lou boys? What the hotel low boys, That's what
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I said? First class too, said he wanted something not too far from
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them. On Maury Momuch if you don't marry. That's what I said.
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Yeah, Now, can I fix you gentlemen up with some plane reservations tool
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or suppose you gave me the same flight heat chuck, and I'll stop at
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the same hotel when I get Hey, wait a minute, journey. You're
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not going to leave me out of this. Well, look, I'm still
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playing a long shot, Vincent, a very long what's the difference. Also,
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I don't know if my expense of cow will get by the Home office
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cent to count. Forget it. I'm having a ball. Mister Bridy start
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making those reservations. Expense account had him two nine hundred and eighty four dollars
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for the plane to Paris. Well, it turned out to be the most
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interesting flight I've ever made because of the company of Vincent Price, an amazing
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conversationalist. He could talk about anything, including art, and he has a
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tremendous sense of humor. So, as he put it, we had a
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ball from the time we took off l as all the time we sat down
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a little bourget Adam three five twenty American taxi into the hotel of wir where
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the manager was well somewhat helpful. Maybe maybe the Mischi Parker leave us,
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but only two days ago after some slight missonder standing about the ladision the deal.
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Yeah you mean he was running out of money, monsieur. I did
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not say that. That's what you meant, isn't it. You don't want
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to spend his time around here? Hm? Both of course, his business,
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he say, took him constantly to MoMA where in Momart? Nah?
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Who is to know? That's like saying somewhere in Brooklyn, god Boklan.
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Perhaps you know my cousin m he was, Johnny, I just got an
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idea. Should works of art, even very good ones. They're sometimes sold
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in rather well, rather unorthodox ways. They they go through some rather strange
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hands. They're not always sold over the counter, so to speak, by
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reputable dealers. You know what I mean? Yeah? But how they can't
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the kind of people? Might you get any ideas? Why don't you just
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go on up to our suite and sit tight for a while. I'll see
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what I can dig up. You are keeping something from me, Vincent,
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But Johnny, there are some things even Funk keeps from wagons. I'll see
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you later, act three of yours, truly, Johnny Dollar, in a
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moment now Act three of yours truly Johnny Dollar and the price of fame matter,
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all of gay romantic Paris just outside the door, and time on my
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hand. Now what did I do? Vincent Price's advice? Went back to
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my room at the Hotel of Wan, waiting two three four hours. Funny.
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Shortly after eight pm, Vincent came induring a couple of packages. Sorry
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to have made you wait, Johnny, but I think I'm on the trail
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lift. Something looks to me like you've been on a shopping spring crops Johnny.
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Before you have you found out where brick Clarker is? No, but
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I think you will. Yeah, try this hard? What's this all about?
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A ten gallon hat? Yeah? I had to guess at you as
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size. We're in Paris. Did you find this cider? And? Oh?
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What are your holy? What am I supposed to be a refugee from
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Texas? Exactly? You made it in oil Wells. Your name is Matthew.
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You're over here to see the sights, all the wild light life you've
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heard about the forty there's their rublandero plast to be gouty. Try on this
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shirt? Oh brother, look, I don't know what this is all about.
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But then don't we better get something to eat? Try to and you
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don't take me in to one of the world famous restaurants in this Maybe tomorrow.
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Yeah good, that shirt's going to be all right. What do you
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mean tomorrow? Yeah? Now, stick this genuine simulated imitation diamond type stickin
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in the front. One a minute, I'll do it for you. Yep.
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What the same day? You are? And with this big hunk of
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glass on your finger. Oh you look, I'm hungry. Well maybe you
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even get food where you're going? Where do you think I'm going? In
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this ring a little joint and the rue Blandell called the Balmacar? What am
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I supposed to do there? If I go there, get around the prosperous
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and see what happened? Oh Vincent, remember you made it in oil media.
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Yeah, but Vincent also you're interested in art and your name is Matthew.
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Look was anyway? Johnny, the taxi that's waiting for you out front
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knows exactly where to take you. The Bamaccapra was really a joint. It
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was dirty, and the people packed like sardines, and it were dirty too.
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Characters who made a business of being characters, and everybody screamed at everybody
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else, except that is for the warmy little man who sidled up to the
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postage stamp sized table on which my glass and a bottle of wine were balanced.
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Halve down you, you and me, sir Matthews. Are you not
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that's right from Cachi? No? Oh yes, sir father the great glorious
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state of Texas. Sit down for yourself a glass that is here, right
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here? Who are you? They called me? Like chagree? What does
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that mean? Well? Live? But what do you call the great cat?
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Hey, that's cuter than the name of my old friend kyote Bell.
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Wait? Do you enjoy the pish night light? Uh? You know something?
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I'm getting fed up with it? Yeah. I think I'll just buy
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me a couple of nice pitches and go on back home. What the kind
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of pictures? Well? Good ones? Oil pictures like that, Mona,
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Lizzie, I've seen a delivery, you know, good ones on me?
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Well, lack a Jean Baptiste. Have you mean you know where a man
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could get a hold of a genuine one of them? With PI price?
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Have coins? Well, listen, I got money and I'll spend it.
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While offered them five hundred thousand dollars for that Mona Lizzie, but they turned
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me down. But if I could get a hold of a genuine Baptist,
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well, Pardner, you just named the price, all right. I'll make
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no promises one to me, but I do have a friend and price like
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consideration. Name your price and take me to it. I would be waiting
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for you at the corner with the taxi. And that is what you call
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it. Okay, okay, I shall be wake, I'll be there,
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pardon you, bet I will. And I'd certainly like to know how Vincent
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set this up the planks. He dropped us off at one of the most
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disreputable looking apartments in the hole of Paris. My friend, who called himself
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the Great Cat, looked carefully around before entering the front door. Then we
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climbed four flights of a dark, musty stairway. You know we memby my
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friend. You are not to paid the price he is at first. If
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you like, I would make you rangements for you now, that would be
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right friendly, are you partner? But how would you come out on this?
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Only, I asked, monsieur is ten percent of what you paid and
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maybe a little extra from him for bringing me up here, Oh, monsieur,
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I don't give me that partner. I've been around. I'm wise how
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you fellas operate? If I can get a hold of a real genuine Baptist,
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you will see, Yes, who is it? I have brought a
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friend, Miss Matthews from Texas. Yes, he would like to buy the
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Night Wind by Baptiste, that is, if it's genuine, genuine. Of
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course it's genuine there on the table. Can't you see yourself as it's still?
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Oh no, well, well, Burt Parker, Johnny, that's right,
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insurance investigator, investigate you. Oh, I've just remember somebody is waiting
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for me. That's right. I am mister price. Oh no, Prac,
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don't beat your price, but I must go without your fee for taking
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care of mister dollar. Listen, listen, both of you. Please,
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I'll give you back the painting. I'll do anything you'll ask. I'll drop
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dead. Oh, dear, dear, Roll Vincent. There it is,
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and it looks like the company has saved a cool hundred thousand dollars. I
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have a confession to make about that journey. Yeah, like how you happen
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to know the way to the painting through that squirmy little fellow who brought me
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here. Oh, that's how I got hold of the batist in the first
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price. The lovely thing, isn't it? Yeah, that certainly is.
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In journey, it is worth one hundred thousand. Oh I'm sure. But
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the truth of the matter is I paid only three hundred dollars for it.
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Oh no, that's okay. Well you've got it back thanks to your own
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efforts and thanks to your being the front man. If I'd tried to get
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it back myself, these people would have run like scared rack. Oh sure,
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sure. Just tell me one thing. Why aren't you an insurance investigator?
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Well, you know, it's every man to his own. Well,
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after all, why aren't you an act Let's get out of here. This
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position of Bert Parker. Well, that's entirely after the company. Vincent,
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now that he has the painting back, doesn't care one way or the other.
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However, from the company's standpoint, well, it's not the kind of
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blank eye that's good for you. Expense account total including incidentals and transportation back
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to the States. Two remarks. Well, the Vincent price my eternal thanks
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not only for the help on this case, but most of all, because
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it's given me a chance to really know him. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar,
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our star will return in just a moment. Now here is our star
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to tell you about next week story, next week the height of sunny Southern
21:26
Jersey in a case that took a very sudden, very strange twist, join
21:30
us, won't you? Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar. Yours Truly Johnny Dollar,
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starring Bob Bailey, originates in Hollywood and is produced and directed by Jack
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Johnstone, who also wrote today's story. Heard in our cast were Virginia Greg
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Junius Matthews, Tony Barrett, Boras, Lewis Howard mcneer, and of course,
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our special guest, Vincent Price. Be sure to join us next week,
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same time and station, or another exciting story of Yours Truly, Johnny
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Dollar. This is Dan Comberly speaking. This is the United States Armed Forces
22:25
Radio and Television Service, Welcome back. There have been better episodes of Yours
23:36
Truly, Johnny Dollar, but I really was struggled to recall it a moment
23:42
one that was so fun to listen to. Vincent Priss and Bob Bailey are
23:48
fantastic together, playing off each other, and this definitely shows Vincent Pross's love
23:56
of good radio rama is returned to radio as clearly he's, you know,
24:04
hit this point of stardom, but just such a great personal interplay. I
24:11
loved Bob Bailey doing a Texas accent, yeah, for comic effect. It
24:19
really was a pretty good and funny better than the serious accents i'd heard him
24:30
try and do for Texas in the nineteen forties. But this is just a
24:33
wonderful episode, and I was so glad to bring it to you. To
24:38
be honest, this has actually been the center of a lot of the planning
24:45
I've put into the series. Originally, after we finished Yours Truly, Johnny
24:52
Doller, I was going to bring you the Adventures of Michael Shane. But
24:57
then about two episodes of Michael Shane came into circulation, and if we'd played
25:06
Michael Shane, we would have been past this point in Yours Truly, Johnny
25:10
Dollar. So I went ahead and jiggled things around so that we would get
25:17
to this having Vincent Price as the saint, and that's certainly not a prerequisite,
25:22
but I think when we've been having mister Price for all these months,
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come into our iPods and all our other various computers and media players and into
25:37
our homes to hear him appear on Johnny Dollars just a little bit more extra
25:41
special. So I hope you've enjoyed this episode. I know that I was
25:48
just delighted to listen to it, and this is definitely a highlight. Johnny
25:53
Dollar really did not have the special guest stars, so this is just a
25:59
very special I should point out regarding the episode that was missing from last week,
26:11
that was the Fire in Paradise Matter and it's one and nineteen fifty eight
26:18
is one of the biggest years for lost episodes during the Bailey run, with
26:23
a total of twelve episodes in nineteen fifty eight being missing, which is about
26:30
a little less than half a whole number of missing half hour Bob Bailey scripts.
26:37
No, we won't have to worry about most of them since they occur
26:41
in the last quarter of nineteen fifty eight for the most part. All right,
26:45
Well, that will do it for today. Join us for Dragnet on
26:51
tomorrow. Next Friday, another episode of Yours Truly Johnny Dollar, and next
26:56
Tuesday, Police Headquarters returns. If you do have a comment, sen it
27:00
to me Box thirteen at Great detectives dot net, follow us on Twitter at
27:04
radio Detectives, and become one of our friends on Facebook, Facebook dot com.
27:10
Slash Radio Detectives from Boise, Idaho. This is your host, Adam
27:15
Grahamson and Off