What happens
Marjorie and Uncle Mort Gildersleeve prepare a birthday dinner for Judge Hooker, a neighbour they have never warmed to. Oliver Honeywell, a lodger who cuts his own hair, is also invited. The Great Gildersleeve is a Hollywood-produced comedy series, first broadcast on NBC on November 9, 1941, starring Harold Peary. Gildersleeve's loyal cook Birdie tells the judge she will consider a move to his house, and the judge's offer of a better wage makes her waver. The household gets through the meal with gifts, ties and a tense dinner, and Birdie's position in the Gildersleeve home comes under strain.
The Gildersleeve household, with a birthday dinner for Judge Hooker
Characters: Gildersleeve, Marjorie, Leroy, Birdie, Judge Hooker, Oliver Honeywell
Listen for: Birdie's conversation with the judge about changing employers
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.