A Missing Salesman: Father Knows Best (May 3, 1951)

Father Knows Best, old-time radio on Stupid Potato

“A Missing Salesman” is an episode of Father Knows Best, the old-time radio show, first broadcast May 3, 1951. Listen free on Stupid Potato: no sign-up, no app.

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What happens

Jim Anderson must deal with an insurance client, Floyd Miller, who is due to visit the family home on Saturday, after a letter that was misplaced for a week. Meanwhile the household is busy with spring cleaning, and the family tries to track the salesman down before the visit. Jim's wife Margaret and his children Betty, Bud and Kathy all take part in the search, while Jim takes calls and worries about the appointment. The series, Father Knows Best, aired on May 3, 1951, and stars Robert Young as Jim Anderson.

The Anderson white frame house on Maple Street in Springfield, during spring

Characters: Jim Anderson, Margaret Anderson, Betty Anderson, Bud Anderson, Kathy Anderson, Floyd Miller, Mr. Gribble, Mr. Phillips

Listen for: The phone calls, Jim's fumbling attempts to locate Floyd Miller, and the family's scramble to clean the house before the insurance client arrives

Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.