What happens
Fred Allen hosts this installment of his Town Hall Tonight variety show, first broadcast on November 16, 1938, with Portland Hoffa and Peter van Steeden appearing alongside him. The program opens with a mock news segment about Hollywood personalities disputing their income tax exemptions, including a studio executive, a glamour actress, and a leading man whose toupee is questioned. A comedian then argues for a deduction on his many sets of false teeth before a tax board. Later, a card detective named Mickey McDougall explains how crooked card players cheat, and the show closes with a bet between Allen and Peter van Steeden over who can get the bigger laugh.
A radio variety show broadcast from the Town Hall in New York, with comic news items, interviews, and skits presented before a live audience.
Characters: Fred Allen, Portland Hoffa, Peter van Steeden, Harry, Mickey McDougall, Mrs. Anastasia Feel-a-Seven, Columbine Calhoun, Delsart Trundle
Listen for: The mock tax appeal hearing with the comedian and his collection of false teeth, and Mickey McDougall's explanation of card-sharp tricks and slang.
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.