The Smoky Sleeper Matter

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar — Bob Bailey 30-Minute Era (1956–1960) · Aug 18, 2026 · 28m

Aired: Aug 25th, 1957. A furniture warehouse full of $83,000 worth of mattresses and box springs goes up in flames just outside Vineland, New Jersey, and insurance investigator Johnny Dollar is on the next train to sniff out arson. But the trail leads first to a chaotic Philadelphia furniture chain run by a fast-talking huckster whose sales floor runs on bait-and-switch tactics and label-swapping cons. Sharp dialogue and old-time radio atmosphere make this a classic slice of 1950s insurance-fraud intrigue.