Yours Truly Johnny Dollar Radio

Johnny Dollar - The Soderbury Maine Matter Rehl

https://www.solgoodmedia.com - Listen to hundreds of audiobooks, thousands of short stories, and ambient sounds all ad free! Relive the excitement of Yours Truly Johnny Dollar Radio, where each episode revisits the classic tales of Johnny Dollar, the iconic freelance insurance investigator. Discover how Johnny unravels mysteries and battles crimes primarily through sharp wit and keen perception. This series is a treasure trove for enthusiasts of vintage radio dramas and detective mysteries.

Duration:: 25m
Broadcast on:: 26 Jun 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

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From Hollywood, it's time now for Edmund O'Brien as... Johnny Daller. This is Edward Whiteman, Mr. Daller. I understand that Mr. Soderberry's death brought you here. Yes, thanks for calling back. I try to locate the constable Fred Ramen, I believe his name is. Yes. I haven't found him, so I thought I'd talk with you. You were riding with Mr. Soderberry when he was killed, is that right? Yes, I was. I'll do everything I can to help you. And as a matter of fact, I just left constable Ramen. Oh, where is he? I'd like to see him. He thinks he's found the place from which the shots were fired. The roof of Goodwin's store, I left him there less than five minutes ago. If you'll meet me in front of your hotel, I'll show you. Thanks, Mr. Whiteman, I'll be down right away. Edmund O'Brien. In a transcribed adventure of the man with the action-packed expense account, America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator- Yours truly Johnny Dollar. Expense accounts submitted by special investigator Johnny Dollar to Home Office Britannia Life Insurance Company, Hartford, Connecticut. The following is an accounting of expenditures during my investigation of the Soderberry main matter. Expense account item $42.45, airfare, car rental, and incidentals between Hartford and Soderberry. I for one had never heard of the town, but I found it a few miles from Portland, Maine. First two church spires, and then the small group of companion buildings, all set against a peaceful New England background. The first thing I noticed when I drove onto a single business street was that some bunting. The first thing I noticed when I drove onto a single business street was that some bunting and a few American flags were still standing, reminders of the ceremony during which its leading citizen, Gordon Soderberry, had been murdered. His personal secretary and assistant, Edward Whiteman, gave me the details after I met him in front of my hotel. The ceremony? Oh, yes, you wouldn't have noticed entering town from the east. You didn't know about the factory? No, I hadn't heard. You won? No, Mr. Soderberry. No, Mr. Soderberry built it during the first year of World War II. We won some subcontracts from the shipbuilders and hope to bring new wealth to the town. The ceremony was arranged this morning because it reopened. No, I'd hardly have been called happy even before the tragedy. Oh, the town was in favor of the factory? Definitely not, as we cross over here. These people have settled in their ways. The factory changed things. Outside men came into work, married local girls, and took them away. The farmers in the section lost the free labor of their sons to wages and had to hire older men. I can see how it would upset a place like this. You think somebody could have been incensed enough over the reopening or killed, Mr. Soderberry? I have no idea. I thought I should mention the feeling of the town. He and I were in the first of three cars driving to the factory. We were in the rear seat. Suddenly, he stiffened. He made this sound that I couldn't describe it. I didn't know what had happened. I don't think I heard the shots. He slumped forward. It was all over. This is good with the store. Where was the car? As closely as I can recall, it was directly in front. Straight out from here. Of course, the show first stopped soon as you realized what had happened. That'd be about up there near the wagon. There's a limousine I hear. That's pretty close shooting. The window's up or down? They were down. Open that is. How do you get up in the roof of the store? There are stairs in the rear. Fred, a constable run. Yes? Who's there? Ed Whiteman. There's a man here who's been sent up from Connecticut to see you. Want to ask you some questions? I have to go back to the office. All right. What can I do? Why did you pick this roof as the place where the shooting was done? Because Mr. Soderber is off, it was just in front. And none of the others, three or four doors with the side, have stairs to them. Hmm, that's good enough. You've been resting a rifle barrel on the false front. There'd be some pretty fancy shooting. There'd been some fair riflemen in this section for a good number of years now if you know your history. I've been proud of their shooting at some of the matches we've had, but I can't say I'm so proud now. You have any idea where to start? There's been a man in my mind. Ben Soderber. He had a 16-year-old son killed by a band saw when the factory was opened before. And now he's got another young band. He'll read 16 next week. We walked to the Sutherland House, which was only about a quarter of a mile away, and Fred Ramen gave me the background of the town. The Soderberries had been in control of the town and the surrounding country for more than three generations. Always, they had been respected as thrifty, honest people, but never had they been well liked. The death of 53-year-old Gordon Soderberry meant the last of the male lineage. The sole survivor was his sister, Beth, many years his junior. The constable didn't seem impressed when I told him that potentially she was some $60,000 richer in cash in view of Gordon's insurance policy. We crossed a bridge to reach Ben Soderberlin's house and found his wife waiting for his near the front door. I know why you've come, Fred Ramen. I heard about the trouble. Mr. Soderlin wouldn't do it. He wouldn't do such a thing. Well, I didn't come to see right help that he did. Well, your husband, Mr. Soderberlin, could we talk to him? Who are you? He's Mr. Dollar. Gordon Soderberry ensured his own life. And this man is looking for the one that took it. Maybe both do better as it goes to some other place via question. You'd like to talk to your husband if he'll tell us where he is. He ain't here. And young Ben? Where is he? He ain't here either. Where did he go? We wouldn't come here if we didn't have reason to. The constable told me your husband has made threats against Gordon Soderberry because of the death of your other son. You must have known that. So now you must understand why we're here. Mr. Soderberlin's a God-filling man and he wouldn't take the law into his own hands. You know that, Fred Grinnin. He called you his friend. I'm nobody's friend now. If you're convinced he had nothing to do with the trouble, why don't you tell us where he is? Because he told me not to. I keep my husband's word. He said, "Don't tell anybody so I want." Well, when did he leave? Last night. He drove his truck. I know the sound. And if he'd come through town, it would awoke me. So he went the other way. I know that road. And where he'd pass through. Well, you don't leave me no doubt, Mrs. Soderberlin. I'll have to put the state police after the truck. You have business, but you have to do, not mine. Don't you see you're making it worse by trying to hide the truth? Hide the truth? I'm keeping a trust, young man. And if you don't know the worth of a trust, you don't know the worth of anything. I went back with Constable Raymond to his house where he lived alone, who would stubble as an office. He phoned the description and licensed number of Sutherland's truck to his county superiors. And with the typical disinterest, higher echelon seemed to maintain the lower echelon problems. They told him they wouldn't be able to take delivery of Soderberlin's body until the following day. That left us with no better than a vague prop to when we'd get such vital points as the caliber of the murder weapon, the entry angle of the fatal bullet, and the distance from which it was fired. Raymond left me and went to talk with some of the townspeople in that evening soon after dusk. I went to the Soderberlin home, hoping that his sister Beth would be in condition to receive me. Yes? Is Miss Soderberlin? Yes, she's in. I wonder if she feels well enough to see me. Does she know who you are? Not yet. I've been hired by her brother's insurance company to look into his death. Tell her that, please. Oh, yes, of course. Won't you comment? Thank you. My name is Taft, I'm a friend of the families. Taft, my name is Don. How you do? Beth was in the sitting room. I'll leave it to your judgment, but it's a hope that you visit upset so you won't press. I won't. All right. Beth? Yes, come in, Lawrence. Well, who went? Oh. This is Mr. Dollar, he's from the insurance company. I see. Please, sit down. Thanks. I don't believe I quite understand, Mr. Dollar. I'm an insurance investigator. Oh, well, of course. Then would you prefer that we talked in privacy? I'll leave that up to you, Miss Soderberlin. I think Mr. Taffes stayed out of a sense of duty. No, I haven't. But at least this will give you a chance to leave for a bit, Lawrence. I'll be all right. All right, Beth. I probably should run home for a while. All right. And thank you ever so much, Lawrence. You've been terribly helpful. I'll phone you in an hour. Good evening, Mr. Dollar. Good night, Mr. Tann. Now, Mr. Dollar, when did you arrive? About three this afternoon. Undoubtedly, you know more about this horrible thing than I do. I'm afraid it's not very much. I've been working with Constable Remen. He wants to narrow it down to one of the local men who is against the factory reopening. But from what I've learned, it refuses to be narrowed very much on that basis. Yes, I'm afraid you're quite right. My brother was not famous for making friends. I say that at the risk of sounding cold and unemotional. Emotion very seldom helps in my work. Which is ferriting out the truth. I think Gordon understood what he was doing. I'm sure he did. He knew that our people did test change. They simply can't cope with it. Yet he forced it on him in 1942. You've seen yourself to be a part from your people in this sort of area. Yes, but only by reason of inheritance. Change was forced upon me too. I was much younger than my brother. I was sent to school in England, but I came back and found it quite easy to forget and settle back into this tiny world. I suppose the whole town did during the years after the factory closed. Of course it did. There was one particular man, Ben Sutherland. What do you think of it? I don't know. I suppose his name is in everyone's mind tonight. The death of his son because of the hated factory had had a violent reaction on him. And why not? He knew his son hadn't been born to stand in front of the machine that killed him. What did he say? He can't be located. Loved town last night. He took young Ben with him. I hope it isn't he. He suffered a job. Oh, I could be troubling the general. Is your dog? Yes, general, Scott. He did an alarm when you arrived, did he? Oh, it's the first I've heard from you. Someone else with the animal, perhaps. So that if something happens, he's well able to fend for himself. He's up and up. By the time we got an oil ant in Litten, I found the dog. He was moving silently toward the house, trailing what looked like a fractured front leg. I didn't know what to think when I told the surviving sister about it. She didn't seem frightened. But I couldn't help wondering whether her loyalty to her people wasn't misplaced. And whether the killer hadn't decided to eliminate all the sort of areas from the town that bore their name. I phoned Casco Ramen as soon as I got back into the house, but it was a needless call. The sound of the shots in the quiet village had aroused everyone, and those who cared seemed to know right where to come. The first to arrive was Edward Whiteman, the dead man's assistant. Less than a minute later, the constable and Lauren's tapped. After we'd made another swing around the house without turning up anything, and after we'd satisfied ourselves at Beth Soderberry, it was well-protected, Ramen and I started back to my hotel. Tell me about Beth and these others, Whiteman and this man tapped. Which end do you want first? Whiteman, he's not a native, is he? No, he's from Bangor. He came here when Mr. Soderberry commenced to open up. He's not an old friend like Taffen? Not hardly. Lauren's tapped was orphaned a good deal back. His folks died in the fire. Mr. Soderberry took him in, sent him to school in Brunswick. Taffed helped him with a factory last time. He made a smart man of him, but I wouldn't say happy with him. How come? Unless folks leave town and never come back, they're all mixed up. When they're twisted between like Taff is, it ain't natural. That's pretty much what Beth told me. She and him have been sort of thick, northern. Well, I'll come across here. We've got your direction straight. Yeah. Where was Lauren's Taff this morning, Constable? You mean when the trouble broke out? That's right. We have missed Beth, most likely. Why? I guess we can check that, Bangor. Lauren, thinking he killed Mr. Soderberry. I don't want anything to slip by us. You don't know us people. We pay what we owe if it takes all our life. The debt that was between them two was thicker than blood. Lauren's Taffed would have killed himself before he would have killed Mr. Soderberry. You know them better than I do. That's the truth. I'll see you in the morning. I hope you sleep well. The next day, things moved along a little more according to the book. The county men arrived before noon to remove the body for autopsy and ballistics examination and soon after they left a report. The county men arrived before noon to remove the body for autopsy and ballistics examination and soon after they left, a report came from the state police. Ben Southerland and his truck had been spotted leaving a town five miles away. A car escorted him to Soderberry and the Constable and I were at his house when he arrived. Oh, Ben. What's ever happened to you? Ben. Stop your neck and tongue. Go in the house where you're suited to be. I'll send you a prior to another mine truck. Yes, Ben. I was only worried I had got hurt so horrible. From the look of your face and your clothes, Ben, you've been through one thing or another. Who am I QB? My name is Dollar. I'm an insurance investigator. He's going to help me defend the laws of the state, Ben. And it's true, Fred, that Mr. Soderberry was shot and killed. That's true. When did you hear about him, Mr. Southerland? Those men that stopped me, they told me. They told me you wanted to talk to me about it, Fred. That's true. And I don't take to it because we were friends. You left town. I'd fall ass, Mr. Southerland. Where'd you go? Do I have to answer these strangers' questions? It'll be better if you do. And that night I made up my mind what I had to do. I took young Ben away. That's my youngest son. I sort of took my oldest boy. I knew I spent. But I listened to the talk about the factory and wages and such things. So I didn't take him. And that factory did. And I never got him back. And you blame Gordon Southerberry for it all these years? No, I blame myself. I knew what to do and I didn't do it. Didn't you make public threats against him? That was a coward's talk. I talked big in front of my friends. I didn't know what else to do. I didn't kill him, Fred. Where'd you go the other night? I heard the talk start again. Young Ben talking about the factory and what the wages would buy. He'd be careful, he told me. And if he earned enough wages, he'd go to school like Lawrence Taft. Crazy like his brother. And I'd put an axe handle to him and put him in the truck and carried him away. Where, Mr. Southerland? He's on a farm. Well, he belongs. Up north, both brighten. He's on a farm. Well, he'd be safe. How far away is it? More than 20 miles. What time did you leave? After nine o'clock. You got there before midnight then. He slept in the truck. I left him with Alex Turner. Son of a... Then you had time to drive back here before the factory... Then you had time to drive back here before the factory ceremony started. I went to brighten. Your face has scratched and cut, your clothes are torn. How did that happen? I fought for the men. What man and why did you fight? I don't know what man. I don't know who I fought because I was drunk. I went to brighten to drink and that's what I did. That's for nine years. Has that happened? You didn't come back here last night and have to find out a dog at the sort of very place. I was in front of you worry you'll probably be asked to prove it. That's where I was. And you'd better start remembering who you fought or who you were with. That's all for me, Constable. We were involved with approximately 280 people, most of whom were known to each other by sight at least. The word Constable Remin had been doing without me had alibi'd most of them. Practically everybody had been on the street during the start of the ceremony. And at the time of the shooting, less than 40 were unaccounted for at 5.30 that afternoon when the county officers called in their report. Point of entry was just below the left arm fit. The arm hadn't been touched. Angle of entry still made it look like the killer had fired from the roof of the store. And the murder weapon was identified as a not too common rifle, caliber 253,000. And an hour the unaccounted for citizens seemed to be trimmed down at four who owned that caliber rifle. Then Sutherland was among them. It was close to noon the following day before the results of the test firing came back. The murder weapon was among the rifles that were sent in. Well then I did something wrong. I am no great shapes of trouble like this. It's not necessarily that we did something wrong, Constable. Maybe we just didn't do quite enough. One of those 253,000's got away from us. A man's rifle is no secret here. He's proud of it. What kind of rifle did Gordon sort of very own? Why? The townspeople hated the factory. That's the motive we've given them. But none of them owned the murder weapon. Not even poor Ben Sutherland with a stronger motive than anyone else. Unless he could have bought a rifle with just this in mind and kept it hidden. I don't know. We'll work on that too. But for now let's look at the people we've neglected. Edward Whiteman can't be involved because he was sitting next to the victim. You tell me Lawrence Taft is clear. He wouldn't ever kill him, Mr. Soderbergh. And the sister. She seems to belong more to the town than to the family. She didn't approve of what her brother was doing. I can't hold a thing like that in my mind. We don't kill our kin here. There are some that have. Will you do this for me? Will you get the three of them in here and keep them for an hour? But how would I keep them? I don't know. Right up a statement for them to sign, something about the ballistics reports. You can spend some time over them. Then ask the sister, they're going to detail about what she's going to do with the factory. I'll try to take less than an hour. I ain't saying I can do it word for word, but I'll try. And if you will write that statement, I'll be obliged. I ain't so good with a pencil. It took me somewhat less than an hour and what I found didn't make sense for a while. A rifle. Well hidden beneath some torn clothes in the closet. The rifle's caliber matched that of the weapon that had killed Gordon Soderberry. I reached his home soon after his sister did. Well, yes, he's here, Mr. Gower. How must you know what... how must you know what laid behind the trouble the other morning? I beg your pardon? If you know who killed your brother, you'd better clear your skirts. Two people are going to tear up any lies, you tell. Mr. Daller, if you know, please tell me. Lawrence, tap. I know. No, he didn't. Why didn't you say that? You better say that first, Lawrence. Oh, I know. No, he didn't. Why didn't you say that? We pretty much cleared up. We pretty much cleared the whole town of the murder. You can't do that without having something left over. Oh, but you were wrong. Lawrence wouldn't kill my brother. That's what I've been told. But would you react the same way if Edward Whiteman was dead, and I told you Taff had killed him? I'm sorry. Lawrence, Lawrence, come here. I'm here. But, listen. It isn't true. It isn't true, is it? I heard what you said, Mr. Daller. What reason would you have the same thing like that? I just left your house. In it, I found a rifle in some clothing that was torn by the dog last night when you evidently came back to over here when I said the best. Lawrence. You didn't have any reason to kill Gordon so at a very dead year? No. I didn't. But you hated Whiteman, didn't you? What reason would I... the factory for one? You were important last time, but you were left out the other morning, isn't that right? Oh, always the factory. What difference did it make to you, Lawrence? Remin told me the people... Remin told me you people always paid your debts. Maybe that was it. That an outsider came in and forced him out so he couldn't prove himself. Maybe he was afraid Whiteman would force out of your life, too. I don't know. Lawrence, you didn't think that I... Yes, you did try to kill Edward Whiteman. Yes. And Gordon Soderberay was killed by mistake. Yes. And I know. I didn't mean to. I know I'm weak and I'm mixed up. I don't know where I'd belong up, but I knew he couldn't stay here. Whiteman was taking my place and I knew people were laughing at me because I failed. I did try to kill him. Thought it was for you. I didn't know until later. Later, I found out. It was Gordon Soderberay. Gordon Soderberay. Gordon Soderberay. Gordon Soderberay. Gordon Soderberay. Gordon Soderberay. Gordon Soderberay. Everything. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. Everything Soderberay. The expense account item two, same as item one, transportation back to Hartford. Expense account total, eighty-four dollars, ninety cents. Remarks? None. Except that maybe the now wealthy Beth Soderberay may have been right. That anybody with generations of background in an insular village like that does take a gamble when he comes out. To say nothing of a half-generation, heart-fortian, when he goes in, he goes truly, Johnny Dollar. Yours truly Johnny Dollar stars Edmund O'Brien in the title role and is written by Gill Dowd with music by Wilbur Hatch. Edmund O'Brien can soon be seen in the Paramount Pictures production, Warpath. Featured in tonight's cast were Robert Schutt, Howard McNair, Virginia Gregg, Larry Thor, Sammy Hill, Herb Butterfield and David Light. Yours truly Johnny Dollar was transcribed in Hollywood by Jaime Del Valle. This is Bob Lomond inviting you to join us next week at this time when Edmund O'Brien returns as yours truly Johnny Dollar. Hello, it is Ryan and I was on a flight the other day playing one of my favorite social spin slot games on Chumbakocino.com. I looked over the person sitting next to me and you know what they were doing. They were also playing Chumbakocino. Everybody's loving having fun with it. Chumbakocino's home to hundreds of casino-style games that you can play for free anytime, anywhere. 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