Case Closed! – Episode Summary

Podcast: Case Closed! (old time radio)
Host: RelicRadio.com
Air Date: October 8, 2025
Episodes Featured:

1. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar – “The Smoky Sleeper Matter” (August 25, 1957)
2. Casey, Crime Photographer – “Lady in Distress” (October 23, 1947)

Episode Overview

This episode of Case Closed! offers two classic golden-age radio crime dramas:

• Johnny Dollar tackles an apparent arson case and insurance fraud, ultimately exposing a widespread scam in the bedding industry.
• Casey, Crime Photographer investigates the disappearance of a Southern heiress singer entangled in blackmail, fake murder, and nightclub rackets.

Both stories showcase sharp detective work, colorful characters, and the twisting schemes that defined mid-century radio mysteries.

Story #1: Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar – "The Smoky Sleeper Matter"

Main Theme

Johnny Dollar, an insurance investigator, probes a suspicious warehouse fire at a bedding company's facility. While the initial evidence points to an accidental cause, Dollar suspects a deeper fraud involving forged invoices, fake retail values, and insurance chicanery.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Case Setup and Initial Suspicions (00:00–03:00)

• Johnny is called by Fred Larkin at the New Jersey Fire and Casualty to investigate a fire in Vineland, NJ.
• The loss involves $83,000 of bedding. The insured is Ben Murray, owner of a Philadelphia furniture chain.
• The business is known for aggressive sales tactics, including "switching" merchandise and manipulating customers.

Memorable exchange:

• Fred Larkin (02:16): “His salesmen are the sharpest bunch you ever saw. Too sharp, if you ask me. Almost like a bunch of con men.”

2. Digging into Murray's Operations (03:00–09:00)

• Johnny visits Ben Murray, observing chaotic business practices and hints of shady dealings such as altering labels and staged sales.
• Murray bristles at Johnny’s questions, defensively claiming honest business but revealing more than he intends.

Notable quotes:

• Ben Murray (06:53): “Volume, Dollar, that's what does it. I work on a narrow margin, see? Sometimes I even lose money just to keep the volume up.”
• Johnny Dollar (07:12): “Narrow profit margin, huh?”

3. Examining the Fire and Its Aftermath (09:00–13:50)

• Johnny visits the remains of the warehouse with Sergeant Tomasso and arson expert Adam Bowles.
• Bowles claims an old alcoholic, Jerry Cumber, accidentally started the fire by falling asleep with a cigarette.
• Dollar isn't convinced, noting inconsistencies and suspicious product labels.

Adam Bowles (12:11): “I found out who started the fire... Poor old Jerry Cumber... He went to sleep with a lighted cigarette in his fingers.” Johnny Dollar (13:25): “After a couple of things I heard at the Benmer office, plus a couple of things I've seen here, Adam, I think this case is just starting for me.”

4. Following the Money (15:33–19:00)

• Johnny telephones Larkin to double-check the manufacturer's invoices for the bedding losses.
• He discovers Murray insured the goods for more than double their actual purchase price using fraudulent invoices, inflating both insurance and tax benefits.

Larkin (16:55): “They cost Ben Murray exactly $25.50 a piece.” Johnny (18:08): “Give me the name and address of the manufacturer... Golden Bedding Corporation, Wood Vine, New Jersey.”

5. Undercover at the Manufacturer (19:00–25:24)

• Johnny, posing as a furniture buyer, confronts Golden Bedding’s president and uncovers cooperation in the invoice fraud.
• The manufacturer confirms the scam: falsified invoices, fake retail tags, mass production of inferior goods, and kickbacks.

Manufacturer (22:56): “For you... I'll name you a price that you... But on the books? I send you a bill says $29.96 double? ...For tax purposes, I'd only be showing about half the profit I was actually making. Smart boy, Bonnie.”

• When Johnny reveals his true identity and threatens legal action, the manufacturer panics, offering a bribe.

Johnny Dollar (25:25): "You ruined me. Yes, Fred. I'm afraid that your nice client, Ben Murray, based his insurance claim on a lot of values that didn’t exist on the hiked up prices. Hiked up to cheat you and the income tax boys. And if that isn’t outright fraud, I’ll eat my shirt."

6. Resolution and Justice

• Johnny instructs Larkin not to pay the claim and to pursue legal steps against both Murray and Golden Bedding.
• The episode closes with Johnny’s signature expense statement—a fraction of the $83,000 scam prevented.

Key Timestamps

• 00:00 – Johnny takes the case
• 03:00 – Explanation of Murray’s “special sales” business model
• 06:53 – Volume and profit margins exposed
• 09:00 – Arrival at warehouse; details of arson claim
• 13:25 – Johnny expresses ongoing suspicion
• 16:54 – Invoicing investigation reveals fraud
• 19:00 – Johnny's "undercover" meeting with Golden Bedding’s president
• 22:56 – Smuggling details of fake invoicing and manufacturing scam
• 25:25 – Johnny shuts down the fraud, exposes Murray and Golden

Story #2: Casey, Crime Photographer – "Lady in Distress"

Main Theme

Casey investigates the strange case of Mary Bell Warren, a Southern heiress and nightclub singer, who borrows money from a cowboy, disappears, and is found to be embroiled in a blackmail and murder hoax in a seedy nightclub.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Call for Help and Setup (30:13–31:10)

• Cowboy Tom Morrissey helps a distressed Southern woman, “Mary Bell,” who flees shadowy pursuers in a club district.
• She refuses to go to the police and borrows $100 from him.
• Tom, lovestruck, enlists Casey’s help to find her when she fails to meet him later.

2. Uncovering Mary Bell’s Identity (33:00–35:45)

• Casey and Tom discover from society files that Mary Bell is indeed a real heiress, contradicting earlier suspicions that she was running a scam.
• They trace her recent performance as a singer at Pink Banister’s club, suggesting she is undercover.

3. The Club Connection and First Clues (38:00–40:25)

• At Bannister’s club, Casey learns Mary Bell (alias Lottie Dunbar) left early due to sickness after witnessing a fight in the club.
• Suspicion arises that she was snooping, which led the club goons to keep her under surveillance.

4. The Nightclub Rackets and a Chase (41:56–44:39)

• Casey, Annie, and Tom are tailed by a Bannister thug after visiting Mary Bell’s hotel.
• After a car chase, they capture the thug and force him to reveal that Mary Bell was caught snooping on Bannister's crime after a staged fight.

5. Confessions and Conspiracies (46:30–48:21)

• South American playboy Senor Gallo confesses to a supposed murder in Bannister’s office, which the club boss claims to have covered up.
• Casey and Tom realize this "murder" is likely a con, intended to blackmail wealthy or vulnerable patrons.

Senor Gallo (47:08): “Last night in that office, I killed a man.” Casey (51:49): “There wasn’t any killing. Those guys simply put on an act that was convincing to Gallo, expected to collect millions for covering up his crime. But Ms. Warren got wise to the gag and Gallo confessed.”

6. Solving the Case and the Real Motive (49:31–54:24)

• Bannister's scheme is fully exposed—he’d faked murders and used them to blackmail the wealthy.
• Mary Bell was working to exonerate her brother, a previous victim of the racket, explaining her undercover role.
• Police raid Bannister’s hideout and rescue Mary Bell.
• Tom and Mary Bell are reunited, hinting at budding romance.

7. Epilogue and Reflections (54:24–55:54)

• The team discusses Mary Bell's cleverness, and the scheme’s collapse.
• Lighthearted banter closes the story as Casey and Ethelbert contemplate the future of Tom and Mary Bell.

Key Timestamps

• 30:13 – Tom meets Mary Bell and learns of her distress
• 33:00 – Casey looks up Mary Bell’s background
• 37:30 – Annie recognizes Mary Bell as a club singer
• 38:15 – Bannister’s evasive answers prompt further suspicion
• 41:56 – Mary Bell is missing from her hotel
• 42:26 – The Bannister enforcer is tailed
• 44:16 – The thug spills the kidnapping plot
• 46:30–47:08 – Gallo confesses to the fake murder
• 51:49 – Casey reveals the entire murder was a staged blackmail plot
• 52:05 – Mary Bell is rescued
• 54:07 – The true motive: clearing her brother’s name
• 55:10 – Closing reflection and comic relief

Notable Quotes

• Fred Larkin (Johnny Dollar, 02:16): “His salesmen are the sharpest bunch you ever saw. Too sharp, if you ask me. Almost like a bunch of con men.”
• Ben Murray (Johnny Dollar, 06:53): “Volume, Dollar, that's what does it. I work on a narrow margin, see?”
• Johnny Dollar (25:25): “Your nice client, Ben Murray, based his insurance claim on a lot of values that didn’t exist on the hiked up prices.”
• Senor Gallo (Casey, 47:08): “Last night in that office, I killed a man. … I am a murderer.”
• Casey (51:49): “There wasn’t any killing. Those guys simply put on an act that was convincing to Gallo, expected to collect millions for covering up his crime. But Ms. Warren got wise to the gag and Gallo confessed.”

Episode Highlights

• Johnny Dollar’s persistence peels away the layers of a fire-for-insurance racket, outsmarting both insured and manufacturer.
• Casey’s cynical compassion cuts through a tangle of deception, eventually rescuing a brave woman and exposing a lucrative blackmail scheme.
• Sharp, period dialogue and dark comic relief balance the suspense.

Conclusion

This episode stands out for the complexity of its cons and the resourcefulness of both heroic investigators. "The Smoky Sleeper Matter" is a masterclass in insurance fraud detection, while "Lady in Distress" delivers a twisty noir adventure set among nightclub crooks and society heiresses. Both are quintessential golden age crime radio stories—crackling with tension, wit, and that uniquely vintage hardboiled charm.

Next Week:
Look forward to another gripping Johnny Dollar case: The case of a girl who is willing to kill for money she didn't need.
(Johnny Dollar: "Join us, won't you?" [Episode Teaser, 26:50])