Podcast Summary

The Great Detectives of Old Time Radio

Episode: Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar: The Ugly Pattern Matter (EP4820)
Host: Adam Graham
Airdate: October 10, 2025
Featured Drama Date: June 29, 1958

Overview

This daily detective podcast, hosted by Adam Graham, features an episode from the classic radio series Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, titled "The Ugly Pattern Matter." Johnny Dollar, the freelance insurance investigator with an "action-packed expense account," is called in to untangle a string of murders among the executive ranks of a small fishing tackle company. As the bodies pile up, Dollar must decipher an elusive pattern to stop the killer before another partner falls.

Key Discussion Points & Plot Breakdown

1. Introduction & Case Setup

• [02:20] Johnny Dollar is contacted by Barry Winters from Masters Insurance and Trust over a troubling pattern: three executives of the Simplex Tackle Company, all covered by group life policies, have been murdered in the span of a month.
• Each death occurred on a Wednesday and involved varying methods (car accident, strangulation, gunshot), raising suspicions of an inside job.
• The company, a small partnership with nine officers and about 21 workers, is under police investigation but lacks clear leads.

Notable Quote:

"Why call on me? Because, Johnny, those three deaths were all murders."
— Barry Winters ([02:43])

2. Establishing the Pattern

• [05:15] At the Simplex factory, Johnny consults with President Hanley Thomas. The theory is floated that employee resentment or insider knowledge may have played a role.
• Dollar and Thomas discuss two possible murder patterns: alphabetical order (Adams, Bowers, Dalvors) or by ascending salary rank.
• Both Dollar and Thomas note that the next likely victim is either James Williams or Charles Hart, based on their $16,500 salaries.

Notable Quote:

"It's the pattern again... No, no, I think that was just coincidence. The pattern, if there is one, is based on their order of rank. That is, if these salary figures mean anything."
— Johnny Dollar ([07:34])

3. The Next Victim

• [09:32] As they discuss, police Sergeant Dennis calls: James Williams has been found murdered at his vacation cabin at Parvin’s Pond, bludgeoned to death. The murders seem to strictly follow an internal pecking order.

Notable Quote:

"I’m afraid I have some bad news... Another one of your partners, Williams. Discovered his body over at Parvin’s Pond this morning. He’s been murdered."
— Sergeant Dennis ([11:14])

[Act Break at 12:00] Brief patriotic interlude (skip).

4. Heightened Stakes & Company Motives

• [14:45] At Parvin’s Pond, Sergeant Dennis and Johnny Dollar examine the murder scene, confirming Wednesday as the murder day and reinforcing the idea of an inside job.
• There's discussion of labor unrest due to the high executive salaries during the ongoing recession, with employee resentments a possible motive.
• Officers claim no colleagues could be responsible; all are "fine men," despite being "hard headed businessmen, everyone looking out for himself."

Notable Quotes:

"If there’s to be another victim… I worked out another step in the pattern of these murders based on the earnings of these men."
— Johnny Dollar ([17:30])

5. The Search for Charles Hart

• [18:25] Charlie Hart, the next likely target, hasn’t been seen since the last murder. His secretary and Hanley Thomas cast suspicion on him but also reveal company history: Hart and the first victim, Adams, originally founded the business before Thomas and others bought in.
• It's revealed that when a partner dies, the remaining ones absorb the departed's share—potentially a motive.

Notable Quote:

"But to imply that Charlie could have been driven by jealousy or, well, or any other motive to commit these crimes? That’s absurd."
— Hanley Thomas ([21:14])

6. Confrontation & The Culprit Revealed

• [25:38] Johnny finds Hart hiding in his apartment, armed for protection. Both men realize the killer is striking by salary rank—and that Wednesday is near.
• Johnny urges Hart to stay put and sets a trap for the real killer.

Notable Quote:

"That company was once yours... You were the boss, the head man until Hanley Thomas came along."
— Johnny Dollar, grilling Hart ([28:20])

• [29:10] Johnny and Sergeant Dennis confront Hanley Thomas at the plant after hours, bluffing evidence of his guilt (fabricated fingerprints on the murder weapon). Pressured, Thomas confesses, revealing collaboration with his wife, but is shot dead during a failed escape.

Notable Quotes:

"You and your brothers and brother-in-law—the whole company’s yours, once you got rid of the men who started it. Who made it possible for your capital to make it pay off."
— Johnny Dollar ([29:40])

"She helped me plan the whole thing... No, no, that was just to protect myself from this."
— Hanley Thomas, breaking down ([31:10])

"No, it is, Sergeant. I haven’t seen that fast a draw except on TV. That’s where I lear[ned]."
— Johnny Dollar, after Thomas is shot ([31:22])

7. Epilogue

• Johnny wraps the case, noting “quick justice” with Thomas’s death. Expense account comes to $101—“Why bother?” says Johnny, highlighting his trademark sardonic wit.

Host Adam Graham’s Commentary & Listener Feedback

Analysis of the Episode

• [27:04] Adam Graham highlights the misdirection about the villain’s identity—“always be suspicious... when they mention someone used to be a promoter, that’s a big giveaway.”
• Commentary touches on 1958 economic anxieties, noting that while the characters discuss the recession as “bunk,” it was a real and severe downturn.

Notable Quote:

"Johnny said the recession of 1958 was not bunk, which was why he was not an economist with an action-packed expense account."
— Adam Graham ([27:25])

Listener Interactions

• Comments on previous episodes include jokes about purchasing dynamite, Johnny Dollar’s piloting skills, and a Dragnet-episode crossover.
• Shoutout to Patreon supporter Philip.

Notable Moments & Quotes

• Pattern Discovery:
  "The three men were killed in, well, in alphabetical order... Adams, Bowers, Dalvors."
  — Johnny Dollar ([07:18])

• Classic "Dollar" Sarcasm:
  "Expense account total, including a lot of mileage on my car, $101 even. Remarks: Why bother?"
  — Johnny Dollar ([31:46])

• On Management and Labor:
  "Nine big money making officers. At least there was nine. Yeah, I know what you mean."
  — Sergeant Dennis ([15:47])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:20] – Johnny gets the assignment and case details.
• [05:15] – Discussing patterns (alphabet and salary).
• [09:32] – News of next murder (Williams).
• [14:45] – At the murder scene; discussion about motive and company structure.
• [18:25] – Looking for Charles Hart; company’s origins revealed.
• [25:38] – Charlie Hart confrontation.
• [29:10] – Final confrontation and confession from Hanley Thomas.
• [31:46] – Expense account wrap-up.
• [27:04] – Adam Graham’s analysis and listener feedback.

Summary

The Ugly Pattern Matter delivers a classic Johnny Dollar mystery, where patterns and motives are hidden among salary sheets and boardroom politics. The plot cleverly misleads both the characters and listeners, with suspicion thrown on the most obvious target, only for Johnny’s logic and bluffing skills to expose the true killer at the top. Adam Graham’s commentary contextualizes the episode within both its economic era and the conventions of Golden Age radio plotting.

This episode exemplifies Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar at its best: sharp dialogue, convoluted motives, and the satisfying takedown of a greedy executive—delivered with Dollar’s characteristic wit.