Yours Truly Johnny Dollar

Over at "The Eternal Kenaz" I am offering a regularly updated 21+ hour marathon.  Featuring the great OTR drama, "Yours Truly Johnny Dollar" featuring among others the great Edmond O'Brien. Click to listen Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama about a freelance insurance investigator that aired from February 11, 1949 to September 30, 1962 on CBS. There were 811 episodes in the 12-year run, and over 720 still exist today, I have around 600. Charles Russell was the first to star as Johnny Dollar, the smart and tough detective who tossed silver dollar tips to bellhops. With the first three actors to play Johnny Dollar there was little to distinguish it from other detective series at the time (Richard Diamond, Philip Marlowe and Sam Spade).While always a friend of the police,Johnny wasn't necessarily a stickler for the strictest interpretation of the law. He was willing to let some things slide to satisfy his own sense of justice, as long as the interests of his employer were protected. After a year-long break (August, 1954 to August, 1955), the show changed from a 30-minute, one-episode-per-week affair to a 15-minute, five-nights-a-week series that introduced the most successful Johnny Dollar, Bob Bailey, who had just come off another large detective series, Let George Do It. With a new lead and 75 minutes of air time (minus commercials), it became possible to develop more complex story lines with interesting characters. The episodes usually started with a phone call from an insurance agent, calling on Johnny to investigate an unusual claim. Each episode required Johnny to travel to some distant locale. The weekly story ws recounted as Johnny listed each line item from his "action-packed expense account." The episodes generally finished with Johnny tallying up his account and travelling back to Hartford, Connecticut, where he was based. The final episodes of Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar and Suspense, airing on CBS, are often used to mark the end of the Golden Age of Radio. The last episode of Johnny Dollar ended at 6:40 p.m. Eastern Time on September 30, 1962. Actors who portrayed Johnny Dollar Dick Powell (Audition show in 1948) Dick Powell, of Rogue’s Gallery fame, cut the original audition tape, but chose to do Richard Diamond, Private Detective instead Charles Russell (February 1949 - January 1950)Charles Russell, the first to play the role, would throw silver dollars to bellboys and waiters. Luckily, this trite gimmick did not survive long. Edmond O'Brien (February 1950 - September 1952)Through the first three actors to play Johnny Dollar (Charles Russell, Edmond O'Brien, and John Lund), there was little to distinguish the series from many other radio detective series. Dollar was just another hard-boiled detective in a medium that was overloaded with the stereotype.  John Lund (November 1952 - September 1954) Gerald Mohr (Audition show in 1955)Gerald Mohr, of The Adventures of Philip Marlowe fame, auditioned in 1955, prior to Bob Bailey getting the title role. Bob Bailey (October 1955 - November 1960) On October 3, 1955, after a hiatus of over a year, the show came back with a vengeance. A new production team, including director/writer Jack Johnstone, a new star, Bob Bailey, from the radio series Let George Do It, and a new format would set the series apart from its competitors. Johnny's cases were now a continuing serial, five days a week, for fifteen minutes each evening. With 75 minutes of airtime, minus commercials and openings and closings, there was sufficient time to develop good storylines and interesting characters. During this time, Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar attracted some of the best writers in Hollywood, including Jack Johnstone, E. Jack Neuman (using the pen name John Dawson), Robert Ryf, and Les Crutchfield. Bob Bailey also wrote a script while he was playing Johnny Dollar. He used the pen name Robert Bainter (Bainter was his middle name) as the scriptwriter for "The Carmen Kringle Matter", which was aired on Saturday, December 21, 1957 on the West Coast, and on the following day for the rest of the country. Bob Bailey, generally thought of as the most popular of the Johnny Dollars, brought a new interpretation to the character – tough, but not hard-boiled; streetwise, but not overly cynical, Bailey's Dollar was smart and gritty when he had to be. But Bailey's Johnny Dollar was also human. His character would get emotionally involved in a number of his cases. He had a streak of impatience, and would occasionally not fully listen to a witness and rush off on a tangent before realizing his mistake. Bob Readick (December 1960 - June 1961)In December 1960, the show moved to New York. Robert Readick started the New York run as Dollar, but only lasted a short while. Mandel Kramer (June 1961 - September 1962)An era passed. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was the last continuing detective series of the Golden Age of Radio. Mandel Kramer was the last Johnny Dollar, and a close second in popularity to Bailey, when the final episode, "The Tip-Off Matter", was aired on September 30, 1962. Guest Stars: The guest stars and supporting casts were always first rate, attracting the best radio actors in both Los Angeles and New York. Pat McCracken was played by several actors – most frequently, by Larry Dobkin. Particularly noteworthy was the work of Virginia Gregg, who played many roles, including Johnny's girlfriend Betty Lewis. Harry Bartell was also a frequent guest, who did many of the Spanish dialect roles when Johnny went to a Latin American country. Other frequent guest performers were Parley Baer, Tony Barrett, John Dehner, Don Diamond, Sam Edwards, Herb Ellis, Frank Gerstle, Stacy Harris, Jack Kruschen, Forrest Lewis, Howard McNear, Marvin Miller, Jeanette Nolan, Vic Perrin, Barney Phillips, Jean Tatum, Russell Thomson, Ben Wright, and Will Wright. Vincent Price co-starred as himself in "The Price of Fame Matter" and went to Europe with Johnny on the case. Links Jim Widner on Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar Thrilling Detective: Johnny Dollar Graphic novel by Eric Theriault, written by David Gallaher Later, Kenaz About Me Name: Kendall Oliphant Location: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Kendall-def'n Celtic meaning ruler of the valley. Oliphant-def'n Terrible thunder. Later used as a word to describe the physical Elephant as well. Favourite Saying. Old enough to know better, still young enough not to care. 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