The Melanie Carter Matter: Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar (November 12, 1949)

“The Melanie Carter Matter” is an episode of Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, the old-time radio show, first broadcast November 12, 1949. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Wealthy elderly Melanie Carter, fearing her greedy niece and nephew might murder her for her insurance money as happened to her late husband, hires insurance investigator Johnny Dollar to look into whether they pose a genuine threat. Dollar moves quickly through Boston, investigating both relatives' financial situations and discovering them very interested in a mysterious California oil investment opportunity.

Boston, Massachusetts—primarily Beacon Hill and Cambridge, with visits to Harvard Square and the Vassure Trotting Club, spanning the Charles River

Characters: Johnny Dollar, Melanie Carter, Crystal Carter (niece's wife), Chalmers Carter (nephew), Sophia Carter (niece)

Listen for: Dollar's running commentary on his expenses and investigative moves, the contrast between Melanie's elegant nineteenth-century home and her modern wheelchair, and the suspicious speed with which the relatives respond to news of available money

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.