Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar: The Fishing Boat Affair

This you can really call a fish story and I was the live bait This is another in the adventures of America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator Johnny Dollar At insurance investigation Johnny Dollar is only an expert at making out his expense account. He's an absolute genius expense account submitted by special investigator Johnny Dollar

Two intercontinental marine insurance company, Hartford, Connecticut. The following is an accounting of my expenditures during assignment in San Pedro, California, investigating the loss of two pieces of property insured by you. Or the tuna were running and so was everybody else.

Or I caught a fishing boat but you should have seen the one that got away. to count out of one $176.87. Airfare from home base and hard for it to off-taste in California. Expense account out of two, $10.

Can't fare, Los Angeles Municipal Airport, to the waterfront office, to the Pacific Deep Sea Canning Company in San Pedro. There was perfume in the air, channel number five. Inside, the name on the door said, Walt.

That's who I wanted to see, so I walked in. Well, who are you? I'm here to follow up the claim you made to Winter Continental Marine Insurance Company. My name is Johnny Dollar. Oh, would you bring the money? I need boats. A tuna running.

No, Mr. Walton. I didn't bring any money. All I brought is a suspicious nature and an inquisitive mind. What the devil do you mean by that crack? I don't get your fishiness to Mr. Walton. This is standard procedure.

No insurance company is going to shell out $400,000 without first taking a long lingering look. Well, there's not much to look at. Yeah, so I understand. According to your claim, too, of your boats, the...

Now, here. The Frank Walton and the Nancy Walton left port Monday afternoon and headed out in a southerly course. When you try to establish radio contact Tuesday morning, you couldn't raise them. Teases of wreckage and the bodies of two men were found Tuesday night into getting that both boats were lost.

That's the story. What made you so sure that both boats went down? Because of those two men whose bodies were found, one silled in the Nancy Walton, the other silled in the Frank Walton. What more do you people want?

Just enough time to check everything thoroughly. You know, this wouldn't be the first time time a shipwreck has been faked to collect insurance. See what you mean. I guess the faster I guess do you satisfy the faster I'll collect my money. Sorry I lost my temper dolla. I'll do everything I can. Sam Captain Carpool him. Carpool is my

fleet Captain dolla. He can give you all the details. But I'm telling you there aren't anymore. Well one thing for sure Mr. Walton we can't blame on the Pacific Ocean. According to my report those boats sailed in fine weather. That's That's right.

Call me boss. Yes, George, this is Mr. Dollar from the insurance company. He's here to investigate the sinking. So, I'm happy to meet you too, Captain. What do you want? First, I want your theory as to what could have happened.

I don't know. I wasn't there. Maybe they run into each other. As fleet, Captain, you'll fire the hands for the boats, don't you? That's right. Are you the kind of man that would hire the kind of skippers that run into each other and clear weather?

They were good skippers! Now you listen to me. I've been copying this fleet of five years. First time we ever lose a port to lose a man. You think we like this idea? No, I don't, Captain Carpo.

I don't think you like it. Any better than the insurance company likes the idea of losing $400,000. Well, at least if I find those sunken boats, that'll be salvage. No, Mr. Dora. That would be Miracara.

The meeting busted up without me getting busted up, which was unusual in itself. And I hitch myself a ride out to an outfit who knows more about salt water than a Coney Island sappy maker.

The U.S. Coast Guard, and clothes, find the statement of the commander of the station. Lieutenant Senior Grade, Miles P. Endicott, Jr. We've made thorough patrols using both air and surface crafts. The bodies of the men recovered show signs that lead us to believe that they were blown clear the law ships by violent explosions.

All the Lieutenant needed to say to make my eyes light up was that one word, explosion. Because in a Marine insurance investigator's book the word, explosion, sets off another word. Scuttling. A widely used wet variety of fraud.

In other words, blowing up your own ship to collect the insurance. and continuing this chain reaction I found the best available lead. The man in charge of the vessels involved Captain George Carpo. I found him at 11 that night at a combination restaurant bar named after the oriental fishing bird the comrade. As I looked in through the greasy window an interesting sight tweeted me.

Captain Carpo slipping into a booth already occupied by an olive skin brunette. It was good enough looking, but obviously less than a queen. Carpo stuck his face in hers, spat a few words at her that I couldn't hear.

She took his sledgehammer fisted her and stopped out through a back door. I gave the front door some business and trying to look like I belonged to the place, strolled to the bar, bought myself a blast, and walked it over to the ladies booth.

Well, who sent for you? The am I? I haven't got anything to lose if you haven't. What do you mean by that? If those are your own teeth, maybe you don't want to lose them.

Oh, Carpo's a jealous time, huh? You don't believe in Sharon and the Wilk. Are you Carpo's girl? It's a lot of time. Who are you? Well, if Captain Carpo comes back, he'll tell you anyway.

So the name is Dollar, Johnny Dollar. I'm an insurance investigator. Investigate in what? Marine life? Uh-uh. Marine death. There was two sinkings in the Walton fleet. Company that sent me here ensured the boats. Sounds to me like you got yourself a tough job.

Warren. Oh, I don't know. We even ask questions. They've been reported over the all-hands what? Who knows? Maybe I'll bump into a talkative seagull. Or maybe if I'm lucky a talkative girl. What have you got that could make a girl talkative, Mr.?

Well, discounting money, natural beauty, and charm. I have money. Not too much money, but money. Keep coming. I know enough not to talk before. I give what I want. Well, that makes it an Mexican standoff. I know enough not to play for something I haven't heard yet.

Let's start out with an inexpensive question like, uh, what's your name? You can have that for free. Anita Vargas. How long you know in Carpo? You'll pardon the expression on and off for the last six months.

How's he for money? Is he turning to a big spender recently? Sure. Instead of two drinks a night he's now buying before. Carpo will never be a big spender. Where is he looking? 1423 for Raid Street.

How far is that from here? It's here! He lives upstairs! That call for a change is seen. I didn't know whether Anita Vargay's really had anything to sell or not, but I didn't want what was left of our tatatatat to be interrupted by a violent re-arrival of the mighty Captain Carpo.

So, expense account item three, $4. Thinking about tabs. Item four, six bits. taking up a taxi which dropped this of another bar slightly less oriental but definitely more obnoxious they grabbed ourselves at table with a view a view of the sawdust on the floor and waited for a waiter he didn't come but somebody

else did the owner of the lost fishing boats mr. Roscoe Walton I met him in college Roscoe now beat it since one of you been getting drunk don't tell me He's your boyfriend too. Uh huh, part time.

Maybe I'd better get lost. Uh, I'll call you later. Yeah, maybe you better get lost. Stay that way. Go ahead, Tony, you better go. Well, uh, happy hangover, Mr. Walton. Good on, look like no college boy to me.

I was no professor of mathematics either, but I could add this much up. If those tuna clippers had gone down by explosion, somebody had to buy some explosives. Maybe locally. That problem I took to the local police who went to work looking up names in the dynamite register.

And since those explosives would have been planted while the boats were under the care and supervision of Captain Carpo, that problem I decided to take to him. It was 1.30 in the morning when I got back to the front of the Cormorant restaurant and bar.

The grease joint was dark, but a light was burning on the second and top floor. I got halfway up the front stairs to ask my leading suspect a few questions about explosions when I heard some.

Carpow was still moving when I got up there, but not for long. The back door was as open as the captain's life was closed. I looked on the back fly to stairs. It was either too dark, or there wasn't anybody there, and I wasn't going down a look.

I've been over the body just to make sure. Oh, first they beat him after death. I wonder why they didn't finish him that way. Well, sir, perhaps it would be best if you were to remain where you are.

At least my pistol seems to recommend it. Well, well, you seem to have done an estimate of our damage to my good friend Captain Carpool. The poor fellow seems to be definitely dead. In just a moment, we will return to the second act of Johnny Dollar.

dollar. But first, you might be interested to know that CBS has acquired a couple of blocks of wood. You're not interested? Well, would you be interested if you knew that those blocks of wood had been carved into certain figures? No. Well, then I'll try this. Would you be interested if you knew that those carved blocks of wood could talk? Ah, now you're beginning

to sit up and take notice. Well, we might as well come out and tell you that these talking blocks of wood are named Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snird. That they and a lively fellow named Edgar Bergen will be making their first appearance over most of these same CBS stations this Sunday evening, and that you'll be able to hear them every Sunday thereafter.

Now with our star Charles Russell, we return to the second act of yours truly Johnny Dollar. I was again. Always the suspect, but never the tried. With a dead body at my feet and a pistol at my head.

A man holding it was not a small and a large Thomas Mitchell type. His frame was fighting the scenes of a sloppy tweed suit. And his pouchy face was fighting the alcoholic content of his blood.

What do you have to say for yourself? Don't be ridiculous. I came to talk to this man. Killing him would hardly be the way to kick off a conversation. How about you? What are you doing here at 1.30 in the morning?

Most amusing, most. Two accused men, each of them judging the other. Aha! With a dead man for a jury. All right then. That's for my testimony. My name is Critic. I was on my way to discuss with the good Captain Carpar, matter of possible neutral profit. Naturally, when I heard the shots from the street,

I hastened to his assistance. I won't ask you how you knew Carpar was getting shot instead of doing the shooting. putting. My name is Dollar. I'm an insurance investigator from Hartford, Connecticut. I was sent out here to look into two sinkings in the captain's fleet.

Oh, then you and I shall come and interest my business. This is ship-serving. It's obvious that I should put up this pistol and replace it with a shake of hand. How do you do, sir?

In my business, you never know. How do you do? This is indeed a most fortunate meeting. They have pretty that it should take place upon the very threshold of tragedy. Poor poor couple, his face seems to have enjoyed the worst of an encounter with a monkey's fist.

How are you? A monkey's fist. I mean, what's that? Well, a monkey's fist, sir, is a highly complicated nut, all went about a slug of lead to then weak. Ordinary, lead is intended for use at the end of a heaving line.

However, it is sometimes used by Simon and the forecussor in the administering of torturous meetings. What do you mean to that? Well, if we can take the word of the centuries for it, torture suggests the violence seeking of information.

That would indeed seem to be the case. I'm gonna look to this room, a monkey's fist, or any other kind of knot wouldn't be hard to lay your hands on. What's that one on the wall there?

Well, that is a miniature of a knotted ship spender. Anders? There's a device for cushioning the shock between a ship and a war for another vessel. In modern sailing, this type has largely been replaced by the commercial cock Right. Oh, somebody evidently heard the shots and notified the police.

Look, Mr. Cricket. I feel like talking but not to the police. Spending. Ha ha. Left in. You would be kind enough to join me in a nightcap at my quarter. Leave me to it. Cricket's quarters turned out to be afloat and more to a dock.

It was a PT boat, ex-navy. Sit down. Sit down. Make use of comfortable. Alright. Now first, that night is now. Yeah, this is here. Yo ho ho, girl. Head of bottle of bra. Ah, and now what?

If you do the honors, I will invite the London Simpane to play behind our chair to costume the pathetic, ooh, utterly beautiful. Wow, sweet phonograph records, soft lights, and hide liquor. This is the kind of stuff I enjoy my time off, which this doesn't happen to be.

Hey, there we are. Now, now to business. Mr. Dada, I assume that the insurance company that sent you out here is not dissatisfied with the story of the thinking of the two wrestles, Frank and Nancy Walton.

I assume, brother, that you have been authorized to spend any necessary money to not only view the evidence first hand, but also if that evidence proves a criminal intent to be able to retrieve it from the ocean floor for use in court.

Are my assumptions correct? They are, but it can't be as simple as you make it sound. The first job seems to me the toughest, finding the spot where those clippers went down. Ah, ah, ah, I would venture to say that with my special equipment, I could detect the presence of the fillings in Davy Jones teeth.

Ha ha, it is fantastic, sir. And, uh, about your price. Is that fantastic, too? My proposition is it. A flat price of $5,000, and in the event that criminal intent is proved, the position of the recovered house.

I assume this 5,000 is only payable if you succeed in locating the boats. Let us substitute the term, the returnable for the word payable. I will need $5,000 in advance, and our contract shall speak that in the unlikely event of failure, you shall get your money back less mind necessary expenses. Agreed?

Agreed. I'll have your money for you in the morning. Good. I trust I shall have your boots for you in the afternoon. I couldn't tell yet about its fantastic sonic sounding device, but otherwise, Mr. Cricket was well equipped.

If I shift to show a telephone, he ordered me a taxi, to which I ordered to a corner near Roscoe Walton's Pacific Deep Sea canning Company. Carpo's death made me want to get a good look at Carpo's office.

Something about the way he died kept baiting up the thought that there was something fishier about this case than just plain old-fashioned insurance fraud. The only thing that was out of place in the place was under a rug.

Under Carpo's desk, a wall safe sunk in the floor. That proved easier to open, a poker hand with free ashes. I lifted the heavy steel door. The first thing I saw was an oblong package, brown paper.

I stuck one hand in to lift it out, and I couldn't. So I used two, and my back is as heavy as lead. So when I tore off the wrapping, I saw that it was as valuable as gold, because that's what it was.

A gold ingot. I didn't mean that time to wonder because the subject suddenly changed from lead to gold to cold steel in his hand. Hold it there. Hey, Mr. Dollar. It's a little late to be canning fish, isn't it, Walton?

Yeah, but it seems to be just bright for breaking and entering. What are you doing here? Entering the last phase of this investigation, Walton, and breaking the back of your little racquet. Or I should say big.

What do you mean, racquet? Tell me it looks like your boats have been bringing in more than fish from the Mexican coast. This heavy little handful makes it look like they've been hauling in Mexican gold.

I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not going to stand here and be accused. Yes, all right. You're not going to stand there. Not on those feet! You mean that? You! Make this... Oh, yeah?

Are you kidding? You'll never make a living being a fight referee. I'm what is commonly known as the winner. Yawnee, do you really believe what you say to his two? What about smuggling in Mexican gold?

Listen, Nita, when you find a private citizen with a gold ingot, he is not using it for a watch-fob. The only thing I learned after that was that two hours in the sack does not constitute a good night's sleep.

By turn in the morning, one phone call east and one telegram west delivered $5,000 into my hands from a local bank. And I, after a quick call to the Coast Guard, to cover a few final details, placed myself into the hands of Mr. Cricket, deep sea guide extraordinary.

New jolting hours later, our fucking drunker with a briny had us crashing to the swell somewhere off the island of San Clemente, which is somewhere some 60 miles off the coast of Southern California. Where, Donna, my boy, enjoying the voyage?

Yeah. Ha ha, come now. This isn't what a tailor would call rough with us, do you understand? I understand. I only hope my breakfast does. Oh, this is nothing. Why, I recall one time off the Spanish coast.

Yes, sir, sir, sir, sir! Yes, my man! Oh, I can't reduce your RPM! Now, now, darling. Now, prepare to be a me. As the cricket had good reason to chirp about one thing, he sure knew his business.

An hour later, the hoax had been located. We were riding on a mushroom anchor. A diver of them put over the side was tug-award top side by a cable on a wing. Now get your helmet off!

Now, darling, we shall see! We shall see! For 5,000 bucks, I'm gonna have to see. Hey, hey, where are they? One knock. We hit it right on the nose. They're both down there 30 yards apart.

Hey, hey, where the dollar? Are you satisfied? It's about 90%, Mr. Kregott. Oh, and the 10%. Oh, look, it's this way, Mr. Kregott. If this case gets any place, I'll probably have to testify in court.

So far, everything I've got is secondhand. That isn't worth much in court. I've got to see those boats. What? What good heavens, men? You mean you want to go over this side? I don't particularly want to, but it seems to be part of this job.

Many times before in my career, I've thought I had a heavy weight on my shoulders. But that diver's helmet set the new record. and those lead shoes and that rubberized canvas suit didn't feel exactly zoot.

The temperature of the water outside felt much cooler than that forming on my brows. This was a steam bath, very tight. Eight days later, in my mind at least, my lead wedge, he's broke through a foothold on a slimy bottom, and I had arrived ship-side.

I had no immediate way of determining the sex of a sunken ship. I couldn't tell from a bath to beam whether I was looking at the prank or the Nancy Walton. About that, a passing current grabbed me and invited me out to dance along the ocean floor.

I grabbed out for anything for support. There turned out to be a rope hanging from the Clippers' gunnel. Where is all that? Going to drift past on across. All right. I had a chance to take a closer look at what I was hanging onto.

The line was secured to a woven rope ship spender, which Mr. Cricket had not so long before told me was fashioned about a buoyant core of cork. But this one felt heavy enough to be loaded with county car.

As for buoyancy, this was about as buoyant as a lead balloon. It was resting on the bottom and heavy to lift. The next truck that swept out of me was metal. I clawed a shark knife out of the diving suit belt, started hacking at the woven road, then threw a thin layer of canvas.

And that's as far as I got. And our dollar. Are you there? They sent the three little fishies. Oh, oh. Yeah, they're here all right. Are you? Yep. They're blasted in all directions. And I have earned my $5,000.

All farewell. What? What are you talking about? Uh-huh. Oh, how are yourself? What'll I get you? In this boat hitting your $5,000 for your insurance company. You see, when my driver comes down to recover your unfortunate body, he will continue our search for the goal.

Oh, well, I've got news for you. Cal, you evidently didn't knock the hiding place at a car for before you killed him. But I was lucky. Not only have I already found that goal, I have sexed it.

You're not, darling. You're bluffing. If you think so, turn off my air. I'll think about it. All the way. The trip up was slower than the trip down, which was luck for me. The first thing I heard when I broke to the surface was muddled by the helmet, but unmistakably gunfire.

The Marines had to land, but by George the Coast Guard certainly had, and I had a grand stance seat for the whole affair. My wishman was busy looking bullet, and the winch just didn't decide to stop on its own hook, so I went riding Skywood until I was stopped by the kick of the boom.

And there I was, hanging on its own hook, just spent it over the deck looking through my helmet glass at the racing battle ball. Cricket directly below me was pumping a high-powered rock right at the queen shop, shouting first Whoever had opened fire on the US government was on the senior grade, miles to the end of June,

it was just full of under against the sky at the flying bridge of the post-grad cutter. I looked down 20 feet between my dangling lead point and speech and saw it quick and taking care of the lane on his direction.

But once again, I grabbed my radar edge sharp, and I stuck it under the copper rim of my breastplate, and ripped to the canvas and bombs away by waste in the rest. Expense account, item five.

The cab fare to the San Pedro Police headquarters where I made my statement and heard Mr. Crickets, a badly damaged Mr. Crickets. Well sir, during a short stay in Cleveland, it was brought to my attention that every city in the country was suffering an epidemic of small-time gold rubbers, dentist offices, one shops and so forth.

Such a condition picked by curiosity. Well, there's my love for money. And I studied the situation more closely. To my own childhood, I learned that the gold was being melted down by an Indian goods.

It's an off-omewhere to the Orient, for use in the gold and guns smuggling traffic. It occurred to me that if I could intercept the gold immediately after its dispatch, under the guidance of Captain Copper to a larger ship being met at sea by his tuner clippers, and I can realize for myself, that I need a proper.

Expanse account, item six. Seven dollars and fifty cents, five pound box of chocolate for a need of our gaze, address and Pedro Municipal Jail. seems that the police sometimes classify a part-time girlfriend as an all-time accomplice expense account item seven airfare Los Angeles the Hartford 176 dollars and 87 cents and being Friday what do you think they serve for dinner on the plane

what else tuna fish salad uh... expense account total twelve hundred and sixty four dollars and uh... twenty eight cents yours truly Johnny dollar truly Johnny dollar is produced and directed by Gordon T Hughes and stars Charles Russell stripped by Paul Dudley and Gil Dowd featured in the cast were Willard Waterman Junius Matthews Edmund McDonald Georgia Ellis Larry Dobkin and Paul Jubon special

music is written and conducted by Wilbur Hatte be sure and be with us at the same time next week when another unusual expense account is handed in by yours truly Johnny Dollar. Every fall the ladies like to go out and get some new fall clothes.

Well CBS has gone out and gotten some new fall shows. One of the gaseous of these new programs is the Red Skeleton Show which makes its bow over most of these same CBS stations this Sunday night.

There's no one quite like Red Skeleton as you will find out when you tune in tomorrow. The Red Shelton Show is a part of the CBS Great Sunday Night laugh lineup. Don't miss it. Now stay tuned for Vonman Roles, who follows immediately over most of these same CBS stations.

All Masters who's speaking. This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.