Friend's Payoff: Gunsmoke (July 12, 1959)

“Friend's Payoff” is an episode of Gunsmoke, the old-time radio show, first broadcast July 12, 1959. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

A wounded man arrives in Dodge City with a cryptic note for Marshal Dillon. Matt discovers his old friend Abraham Butler has been shot in the back and is hiding out. A stranger has been asking questions around town, trying to track down Butler, forcing Matt to protect his injured friend while uncovering what trouble has driven Butler to seek refuge.

Dodge City and the surrounding territory

Characters: Matt Dillon, Chester, Justin, Doc, Abraham Butler, Stranger

Listen for: The mystery of who shot Abraham Butler and why a stranger is hunting him through Dodge City.

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.