It's A Racket 47-01-29 Ep001 Alasko Tungsten Mine

Summary

Podcast Summary: Harold's Old Time Radio - "It's A Racket 47-01-29 Ep001 Alasko Tungsten Mine"

Title: It's A Racket 47-01-29 Ep001 Alasko Tungsten Mine
Host/Author: Harold's Old Time Radio
Release Date: March 22, 2025
Description: Dive into the Golden Age of Radio with "It's A Racket," where host Harold unveils classic radio shows that captivated families before the advent of television. This episode explores the intricate tale of deceit involving the Alasko Tungsten Mine scam.

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Introduction

The episode opens with a gripping introduction by the narrator and Frank Graham, setting the stage for a deep dive into a sophisticated financial scam.

Narrator [00:09]: "It's a jackpot."
Frank Graham [00:10]: "Watch out."
Narrator [00:11]: "It's a racket."

Frank Graham emphasizes the prevalence of cunning crooks preying on unsuspecting individuals, urging listeners to remain vigilant against such schemes.

Frank Graham [00:14]: "Thousands of ruthless, vicious jip artists are just waiting for a chance at your money... Your only protection is vigilance."

Overview of the Scam

The core of the episode revolves around Henry Forsyth, a reputable rancher who becomes the target of a fraudulent investment scheme centered on the fictitious Alasko Tungsten Mine.

Setting the Scene:

Henry Forsyth, a successful rancher known for transforming his neglected land into a thriving operation, regularly visits his local bank in Cheyenne. His routine is disrupted when he attempts to secure his investment in the Alasko Tungsten Mine.

Narrator [00:48]: "When rancher Henry Forsyth stepped into his Cheyenne bank to put his $8,000 worth of Alasko tungsten mine stock into his safety deposit box..."

Key Characters

• Henry Forsyth: A savvy rancher seeking to invest his earnings.
• Dr. Buell: A con artist posing as a reputable doctor with inside information.
• George Clark: An accomplice in the scam, presenting himself as an executive involved with the Department of the Interior.

The Plot Unfolds

Initial Contact:

Henry's routine is shattered by an encounter with Dr. Buell, who feigns an accidental meeting. This encounter is meticulously orchestrated to build trust.

Henry Forsyth [01:05]: "I'm sorry to say, Henry, those stocks are worthless."
Dr. Buell [01:08]: "Worthless?"

Building Trust:

Over the course of a week, Dr. Buell steadily gains Henry's confidence through friendly interactions, culminating in a seemingly lucrative investment opportunity.

Narrator [03:04]: "That's how it began, an accidental meeting on the street... But it wasn't accidental to the man who called himself Dr. Buell..."

The Pitch:

During a luncheon meeting, the scam intensifies as Dr. Buell introduces confidential information about a new tungsten mine in Alaska, enticing Henry with the promise of high returns.

Henry Forsyth [05:33]: "From the Secretary himself. What's it about?"
Dr. Buell [05:35]: "It seems to be about a new tungsten mine. Yeah, in Alaska."

Execution of the Scam

Brace for Investment:

Henry, seeing the potential for significant profit, decides to invest a substantial sum based on the insider information provided by Dr. Buell and George Clark.

Dr. Buell [08:01]: "Don't worry about us."
Henry Forsyth [10:02]: "Yes, he said the Alaska tungsten stocks are the 10 cents a share and climbing."

False Assurance:

Dr. Buell and George Clark present forged documents, including a telegram from the Department of the Interior and fake stock certificates, to legitimize the investment opportunity.

Narrator [10:25]: "Spread before them was a telegram from the Department of Interior authorizing Clark to sell some Alaska tungsten stock at 10 cents a share."

The Downfall

After the initial investment, Henry visits his bank to deposit his stocks, only to discover the horrifying truth.

Henry Forsyth [11:30]: "Sorry, Henry. There's no such thing as the Alaska tungsten mine. You've been taken for a ride."

The revelation unfolds as Henry learns that he has fallen victim to an expertly executed scam, losing $8,000 to fraudsters who vanished without a trace.

Conclusion and Lessons

Frank Graham delivers a compelling conclusion, emphasizing the importance of due diligence and skepticism when approached with "get rich quick" schemes.

Frank Graham [12:27]: "Learn how the get rich quick schemes and the plausible sounding rackets operate. Check your own business relations carefully and remember, before you invest, investigate."

Final Insight:

The episode serves as a cautionary tale about the ease with which trust can be exploited by deceitful individuals. It underscores the necessity of verifying information and consulting reliable sources before making financial decisions.

Frank Graham [13:05]: "The more plausible it sounds and the easier it seems, the more likely you'll find out it's a racket."

Epilogue

The narrator hints at future episodes, promising to unveil more scams targeting specific groups, such as veterans, thereby reinforcing the ongoing need for awareness and vigilance.

Narrator [13:05]: "I'll be back again tomorrow with the inside story of a racket that is right now being worked on unsuspecting veterans..."

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Takeaways:

• Vigilance is Key: Always scrutinize investment opportunities, especially those that promise unusually high returns.
• Verify Information: Consult trusted institutions like business bureaus, banks, or law enforcement before committing funds.
• Skepticism Towards Quick Profits: If an investment sounds too good to be true, it likely is.

This episode of "It's A Racket" masterfully illustrates the mechanics of a classic investment scam, blending drama with practical advice to educate listeners on protecting their financial interests.

Transcript

[Narrator]

It's a jackpot.

[Frank Graham]

Watch out.

[Narrator]

It's a racket.

[Frank Graham]

Thousands of ruthless, vicious jip artists are just waiting for a chance at your money. They're smooth. Their schemes sound like easy money. They know they're filthy business. Your only protection is vigilance. And to show you what to watch out for, the American Broadcasting Company presents It's a Racket with Frank Graham exposing the methods by which the tricksters, crooks and confidence men take their annual toll of honest capital and savings. Listen, learn and watch out.

[Narrator]

It's a racket.

[Frank Graham]

Here's Frank Graham.

[Narrator]

When rancher Henry Forsyth stepped into his Cheyenne bank to put his $8,000 worth of Alasko tungsten mine stock into his safety deposit box, he couldn't help but talk to the bank manager, his friend Alfred Drew, and tell him what a killing he'd made.

[Henry Forsyth]

Killing? I'm sorry to say, Henry, those stocks are worthless.

[Dr. Buell]

Worthless?

[Henry Forsyth]

Sure, I don't know where you got them, but there's no such thing as the Alaska tungsten mine. The FBI's been after those racketeers for a month. You've been taken for a ride.

[Narrator]

Behind those simple words, you've been taken for a ride lies a fabulous story of the cunning of the professional racketeer. The almost unbelievable story of the Alaska tungsten mine swindle, which I'll tell you in a moment.

[Frank Graham]

This is a tip on an investment. The most profitable investment a person can make today, and anybody can make it. It doesn't call for hundreds or thousands of dollars. What it calls for primarily, is common sense and an appreciation on the part of the investor that a return of $4 for three is a pretty good deal. That's why United States E class savings bonds pay at maturity $4 for every three you put into them. Take advantage now of the opportunity to buy United States Savings Bonds. They can be purchased at banks or post offices or through the payroll savings plan where you work. Think of your future today and buy United States Savings Bonds. Now here again is Frank Graham.

[Narrator]

The ranch and desert lands of Wyoming flew by as Henry Forsyth drove his station wagon along the highway. He was driving into Cheyenne from his ranch more than 50 miles out. This was a ride Forsyth took once a week, every Thursday morning, to get his hair cut, do some bank business and chat a little with the boys down at his club. Forsyth was a rancher, and he had a reputation for being a smart one. Hadn't he built a small and neglected ranch into one of the biggest and best in the county? As the outskirts of the city became Visible, he slowed his car down to comply with the speed laws. A few moments later, he was riding down one of the main streets, heading for his barber shop, when suddenly, from between the cars parked along the curb, a man stepped out, right out in front of Henry Forsyth's car.

[Dr. Buell]

Hey, did you get hurt there?

[Henry Forsyth]

No, no, no. It's quite all right.

[Dr. Buell]

Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't see you coming out from behind those cars.

[Henry Forsyth]

Perfectly all right. It's my fault. I guess I was busy looking the town over and didn't watch myself crossing the street.

[Dr. Buell]

Oh, stranger. Here.

[Henry Forsyth]

Yes, I was looking for a good barbershop. I need a haircut so badly.

[Dr. Buell]

You better hop in. I'm just going to the barber myself.

[Henry Forsyth]

Right. My name's Bueller, Dr. Buell. I'm hoping to start an office in town.

[Dr. Buell]

Good. Can always use another good doctor. My name's Forsyth, Doc Henry Forsyth. I've got a ranch out of town, away. Maybe I can help him.

[Narrator]

That's how it began, an accidental meeting on the street, or so it seemed. But it wasn't accidental to the man who called himself Dr. Buell, and whose knowledge of medicine was limited to administering an aspirin for a hangover. No, Dr. Buell was no doctor, and the accident was no accident, for Buell knew that Forsyth came to town every Thursday to get a haircut. After an hour at the barbershop, two men were friends. They talked about their families and their various business problems and had made a date to meet the following Thursday for lunch. The two men shook hands and parted Forsyth to go about his business firm in the belief that he'd made a new friend, Dr. Buell, back to his hotel, smiling inwardly at the knowledge that by this simple, seemingly innocent maneuver he had taken the first step in his operation to fleece Henry Forsyth. The week went by rapidly, and on the appointed day at lunchtime, Dr. Buell and Henry Forsyth met as they had planned. They shook hands warmly and walked into a restaurant to get their lunch and discussed Buell's problem of opening his office. But as they sat down at their table, something very strange happened. Something very peculiar indeed.

[Henry Forsyth]

What's the trouble, Henry?

[Dr. Buell]

I don't know. There's something on my chest. Let's see. Well, I'll be. It's a wallet. A wallet? Yes. Someone must have lost it. Say, look at this money. Whoever lost it is certainly a rich man.

[Henry Forsyth]

What about a name? Identification?

[Dr. Buell]

There's a letter here. Look at this letterhead, will you? The Department of the Interior of the United States of America. To Mr. George Clark, Cheyenne Hotel, from the Secretary of the Interior. Confidential.

[Henry Forsyth]

From the Secretary himself. What's it about?

[Dr. Buell]

Let's see. Seems to be about a new tungsten mine. Yeah, in Alaska.

[Henry Forsyth]

You better not read anymore, Henry. It says confidential.

[Narrator]

You.

[Dr. Buell]

Yes, you're right. Well, at least we got the fellow's name and where he's staying. Come on, we better get this wallet. Doing.

[Narrator]

As the two men left the restaurant and headed down the street for the Cheyenne Hotel, Forsyth's mind was spinning from the few sentences he'd read in that confidential letter to George Clark from the Department of the Interior. The confidential letter which talked about a big strike in a new tungsten mine in Alaska. Being a businessman, Forsyth knew what a thing like this could mean. He knew how a new vein of ore could bring up the value of a mine. He knew that money would be needed to further explore the resources of the mine. He knew the value of tungsten and that stocks would be sold by the mine operators. Even as he walked through the traffic, Henry was walking in another world. At the Cheyenne hotel. Inside room 312, Mr. George Clark, tall, good looking man with ruddy cheeks, the executive type, had been peering out the window through the curtains. He'd seen Forsyth and Buell come hastily across the street and into his hotel lobby. The fish had been hooked, he thought to himself. He turned from the window in a quick movement, loosened his tie, lighted a cigarette and prepared to play the worried man just as the door buzzer rang. Clark waited for the buzzer to ring a second time. Then, in three quick steps, he went to the door and flung it open.

[Dr. Buell]

Yes, Mr. Clark? Yes, Dr. Buell here. And I found something that belonged.

[Narrator]

My wallet.

[Dr. Buell]

Yes.

[Narrator]

Thank heavens, man. I've been looking all over creation for that thing. Come in, come in, both of you, please.

[Henry Forsyth]

We knew right away that you'd be worried about it.

[Narrator]

I can't tell you how worried I've been. Won't you sit down?

[Dr. Buell]

Thank you.

[Narrator]

Let's see now. Bad enough to lose the money, but there's a mighty important let. It's here. What a relief.

[Dr. Buell]

That letter was the only clue to who owned the wallet. I had to read a little of it to find out who you were.

[Narrator]

Oh, I see.

[Dr. Buell]

I realize it was a confidential letter.

[Narrator]

That's all right. It's all right. I. I don't quite know what to do.

[Dr. Buell]

Oh, there's no need to worry about us. We'll just forget the whole thing.

[Narrator]

Well, I'm afraid you've stumbled onto something that will be pretty hard to Forget.

[Henry Forsyth]

I'll admit this looks like big news in a business way.

[Narrator]

It is.

[Dr. Buell]

Don't worry about us.

[Narrator]

Now, look here, I'm in a spot. But I am terribly indebted to you gentlemen.

[Dr. Buell]

Oh, that's all right, Mr. Clark. Anyone would have done the same.

[Narrator]

I'm not so sure. Well, since you've entered the picture, I might as well tell you the whole story.

[Dr. Buell]

Not unless you want to.

[Narrator]

I think I'd better. The situation is this. A few days ago, there was a new discovery in the Alaska tungsten mine. The news isn't out yet. You see, we've been cooperating with the Department of Interior and keeping it quiet for a few days now. Alasko tungsten has been selling for as low as 3 cents a share. And it'll continue to sell that cheaply until the news is out. Then the price will skyrocket. Yes, sir. It'll go sky high. To Henry Forsyth, the rancher, the inside story of the tungsten strike in the Alaska tungsten mine sounded like a fabulous stroke of luck. If he could capitalize on it. Yes, a stroke of luck. That happens once in a lifetime. But before the two men left George Clark's apartment, they were sworn to secrecy. Mr. Clark even went so far as to make a deal with them. A deal whereby he might be able to cut them in for a chance to buy stock in return for their keeping the secret from the public. He praised their business judgment, but pleaded with him to be patient until he could wire the Department of the Interior and get permission for them to buy the stud. That night, Henry Forsyth slept very little. He realized that he was on threshold of one of the biggest strokes of fortune any man had ever had. The inside news of a fabulous tungsten strike. The inside news in a chance to operate first. A chance to buy stock for as low as 3 cents a share. A chance to make a fabulous sum of money in the flick of an eyelash. The next day, after breakfast, the telephone rang in Forsyth ranch house. He ran to it and yanked it off the hook.

[Dr. Buell]

Hello, Henry.

[Henry Forsyth]

Dr. Buell?

[Dr. Buell]

Yes. Any news?

[Henry Forsyth]

Yes, I just talked to Mr. Clark on the telephone. He wants us both to come down with our money.

[Dr. Buell]

What?

[Henry Forsyth]

Yes, he said the Alaska tungsten stocks are the 10 cents a share and climbing.

[Dr. Buell]

There must have been a leak someplace.

[Henry Forsyth]

Still, a wonderful chance. It's since the stocks are on the open market, he's been authorized to sell us as much as we want.

[Dr. Buell]

How much you putting into it?

[Henry Forsyth]

Well, I've got Henry. Every cent. About 10,000.

[Dr. Buell]

Well, I can't do as well as that. But I can go in for 8,000.

[Henry Forsyth]

Well, whatever it is, you better hurry. I told him we'd meet him at his hotel in a couple of hours.

[Narrator]

Two hours later, Forsyth, Dr. Buell and George Clark sat around a small table in Clark's hotel room. Spread before them was a telegram from the Department of Interior authorizing Clark to sell some Alaska tungsten stock at 10 cents a share. Spread before them also was the assayers report on the mine and a bundle of stock certificates. Take it, Forsyth. I've already told it to Buell over the phone. You can buy the stock if you want to. Only Dr. Buell made a little mistake when he said you could buy all you want. You can't. You can only go up to 20,000.

[Dr. Buell]

Well, Dr. Buell wants 10,000 and I can handle eight. We're just inside the limit.

[Narrator]

Yes, that's right. Looks like this is your lucky day. Is it a deal?

[Dr. Buell]

Sure it is, Clark. And believe you me, it's one of the best deals I ever made in my life.

[Narrator]

One of the best? Oh no, Forsyth. The best. When Forsyth walked into his bank the following Monday morning to deposit his stocks in a safety deposit box and to tell the bank manager of the killing he made, he learned the terrible truth.

[Henry Forsyth]

Sorry, Henry. There's no such thing as the Alaska tungsten mine. You've been taken for a ride.

[Narrator]

Taken for a ride? Yes, Henry Forsyth had been taken for the same merry ride that has been the fate of so many others. The smooth talking, believable confidence men had baited the trap perfectly. When the banker exposed the racket, it was too late. The phony Dr. Buell and the honey honest appearing Mr. Clark were gone and so was Henry Forsyth's $8,000. Instead of investigating before he invested his money, Henry listened to the buildup and tossed away his savings. It would have been so easy to be sure. He could have followed the lead of thousands who every day consult their better business bureaus, police departments or their bankers. He forgot the warnings. He tried to get rich in a hurry and he found out it's a racket.

[Frank Graham]

Every day, Monday through Friday, the American Broadcasting Company presents It's a Racket with Frank Graham exposing the methods of the shysters and crooks who yearly take millions of dollars from a gullible public. This program hopes to save much of this money for you who earned it rightfully. Follow these stories closely, day by day. Learn how the get rich quick schemes and the plausible sounding rackets operate. Check your own business relations carefully and remember, before you invest, investigate. The more plausible it sounds and the easier it seems, the more likely you'll find out it's a racket.

[Narrator]

I'll be back again tomorrow with the inside story of a racket that is right now being worked on unsuspecting veterans. It sounds like a way to get started in business with Uncle Sam putting up all the money. If you're a veteran or if you know a veteran, listen to tomorrow's story on It's a racket.

[Frank Graham]

This is abc, the American Broadcasting Company.