 Johnny dollar now it's been a long time. Yeah, I know what can I do for you? Money, I hope Johnny well next birthday every 30. Huh? 30 what? Now why Johnny? I think it's time you went to the home for the agent. I what? And if you think I'm kidding. Yeah, what's a gag? I told you I want you over at the Mackley rest home. Where's that? Frog Mountain, New York. Where's that? Down along the Hudson River above the Kipsy near Kingston. But just to pay him a little visit, not to stay. That's right. What goes down there? Sudden death Johnny. Deaths. Oh, four of them in a row, three of them insured by us. Well, after all, if they're old folks. That's a beneficiary of all that insurance. Yeah. The sole beneficiary of all the insurance on them just happens to be the Mackley rest home. Oh, yeah. Okay. Now I'll kind of drop in on CBS radio brings you Bob Bailey in the exciting adventures of the man with the action fact expense account. America's fabulous freelance insurance. Investigate yours truly. Johnny dollar expense account submitted by special investigator Johnny dollar to the new Britain Mutual Insurance Company Home Office Hartford, Connecticut. Following is an account of expenses incurred during my investigation of the paradise lost matter. I decided my own car would be handy to have along. As usual, the gauge set nearly empty. So expense account item one is five twenty for a tank full of gas. I drove west on forty four then cut across the Rhine back then Rhine Cliff where I took the ferry over the Hudson to the town of Kingston, New York. On round twenty eight, I passed through Stony Hollow and a few miles further on, I found a sign indicating frog mountain on a side road to the left. At one side of it overlooked the famous Ashokan reservoir and I well, some pretty big fish come out of that water. Thinking about it, I almost drove on past what was obviously a rest home for the Asian in among the trees. It was a large, very old frame house set on the side of the mountain. Sitting about on the front lawn, reading, chatting, playing cards or just enjoying the afternoon sun with a happy looking customers. As I stopped the car, a pleasant looking middle aged man walked over to me smiled and said, How do you do, young man? How do you do? Oh, how do you do? My name is Johnny Dollar. A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Dollar. I'm Justin Perry. You have some elderly relatives, perhaps very dear to you, who you'd like to provide a quiet, comfortable retirement home. Well, no. Oh, Justin Perry, I'm the owner of Paradise Paradise, a really appropriate name for our lovely place. Don't you agree? Well, I look at the happy faces of our guests and you can then you say you don't wish to send someone to us on our way to this isn't the Macley rest home. Oh, no, no, Mr. Dollar. This is paradise. The Macley place is further up the road. Oh, oh, oh, oh, I see. I see. Well, thanks very much. That's all I did you say. Yes, that's right. Edward. Edward. Yes, dad. Would you like to show Mr. Dollar the way to the Macley place? Sure, dad. Anything you say, then go ahead. Well, if it's just up the road about a mile or so. Oh, then I'm sure I'll be able to find it all right. Whatever you say. Sure. Thanks a lot. A very nice spot. And some of the folks on the lawn waved surely as I drove on back up the road toward the mountain. I wondered if the Macley place would be the same. It wasn't. At least while I was brand new, modern ranch type of thing built on the single level, a lot of native stone and glass all very pretty and smart and practical but lacking in warmth. The guests, the residents, though well dressed and apparently wealthy were sitting by themselves for the most part, reading or just just sitting. No one seemed to notice me as I parked my car and then walked in through the door at one side, Mark. Oh, Mr. Macley. Yes, that's right. Peter Macley. And who are you? My name is Johnny Dollar. Oh, yes, yes, the insurance investigator. How are you? I am. Alternate the insurance company said you'd be coming along. I'm interested on. He did. Yes. I don't see why, though. You don't, huh? Well, what do you mean by that, Mr. Dollar? Well, it's quite a layout you have here, Mr. Macley. Must have set you back a lot of money. That's no secret. But I suppose it's all bought and paid for. Oh, far from it, Mr. Dollar. It'll be some years before we get our heads above water. Even with the help of two or three nice fat insurance legacies. Now, look here, Dollar. Well, if you're referring to the fact that some people happen to die and just happen to leave some insurance for us. Just happened to, huh? Now, what's that mean? Just exactly what you think it does, Macley. Are you trying to imply that I or anybody else... If this you fits where... If you're saying that you suspect we might have murdered those old people... Did I say that? Well, that's what you meant, isn't it? You've no right coming here accusing me of something like that. Now, look. Now, what's more, you're not the police, and you have no authority around here. So just go on. Get out of here. Sorry. But I'm not leaving this place until I find out something more about how those people die. Dollar, you're going to be sorry for this. Is that a threat? You take it any way you like. Well, it may sound a bit corny, Macley. I just remember that anything you say now might be used against you. Why, you arrogant... And now act two of yours truly, Johnny Dollar, and the Paradise Lost Matter. But, Mr. Dollar, I freely admit it was too bad that four of the old people died here within a month and a half. It's most pathetic, most unexpected. What's more important to me is that it gives our place a black eye. Unexpected by whom, Mr. Macley? By everyone. Including the doctor who comes up here from Kingston to attend them and who is always on call in case of emergency. Now, how is this, Doctor? He's Dr. Nathan Ways from over in Kingston. Just how do these four people die? Well, according to their death certificates, the first one was an accident. Old Mr. Bartley slipped and fell off the corner of the porch one night while he was walking in his slip. Oh, it was poisonous. Now, look here, darling. Okay, okay. What about the other three? They were natural causes. That is the... Well, their hearts gave out. According to the death certificate. That's right. But what really happened? Poisoned, perhaps, something like that. Dollar. Dollar, you don't know what you're talking about. We'll see, Mr. Macley. Now, where will I find this, Dr. Ways? Someone mentioned my name. Hello, Doctor. Doctor, this is Johnny Dollar. He's an investigator from the insurance company. How do you do, Mr. Dollar? Doctor. Dollar seems to have the absurd, the fantastic idea that the recent deaths here were deliberate. Yes. Why? Yes, in order that we could benefit from the insurance, those... Those fine old people were kind enough to leave us. Well, now, that is rather absurd, Mr. Dollar. Is it, Doctor? This place is up to its neck in debt, isn't it? I told you that, darling. Isn't that to be expected when you consider the cost of building a fine new establishment like this? All right. After all, it's less than two years old. Now, what did you do before this, Macley? In some business where you could go around making contacts that would assure you plenty of wealthy, gullible customers for this racket? Dollar! Well... Dollar, my wife and I have been in this business of taking care of old people ever since my parents died. That's over 15 years ago. Yeah, where? In Pennsylvania. I can check on that, you know. I know that. I know that. Why did you pack up and come here to New York? Tell him, Peter. Well, well, for one thing, the air, the climate is much better here than it was in the coal region. Yes. And? Tell him, Peter. Well, we had to close down over there. Why? Because our building, our facilities were considered substandard, according to some new regulation. And suddenly a lot of your patients started dying off. No! No, not that, nothing of the sort. Peter is telling you the truth, Mr. Dollar. You investigated, Doctor Wayne. Well, no, not exactly. I see. But I have talked with many of these fine old people who move from there to here, and they are intelligent, wealthy people. Wealthy? Yes. Yeah, I'll bet they are. Dollar, will you listen to me? And it was so easy to talk a lot of them into buying a hunk of insurance and making this place the beneficiary. Now, that's not true. Isn't it? Then how come three of the four people suddenly died around here? No, so it's only true, Mr. Dollar. It was I who suggested to them, unknown to Peter, that they leave something to this rest home. You. And they thanked me and wondered why they hadn't thought of it before. How many of your people are planning to leave you money, Mac Lee? I don't know, Dollar. I don't know if any of them are. What's more, I don't care. My wife and I knew the financial responsibility we were taking on in the beginning. And unless we lose our reputation, our clients held through more of these unfortunate deaths. Oh, sure, they're bad for business, aren't they? Yes, yes, they are. Exactly, Mr. Dollar. Well, as long as the insurance money keeps rolling, will you stop it? No, not Dr. Way. Mr. Dollar, I'm afraid these accusations tell me this, Doctor, you issue the death certificate. I did. For all of you mean, our top says on the mall, huh? Well, good heavens, no. Why not? The accident in case of Mr. Bartlett was all too obviously an accident. Was it? As for the others, well, after all, they were well along in years. Oh, so you gave them a quick once over scribble now, natural causes and let it go at that. And that's why I want those bodies exhumed and autopsy performed. Mr. First, though, I'm checking up on you. Well, by all means, do. I want you to. Oh, I will. Meantime, if you'd like, I'll drive back to Kingston and arrange for the bodies to be made available. Yeah, you do that. I followed the doctor into Kingston, parked my stuff at a hotel and dropped in at police headquarters where I talked with Lieutenant Connolly, a dollar. I'm glad you're looking into this. Frog mom's a bit out of arduous diction, officially, that is. But I've wondered about those deaths myself. Well, how much do you know about Peter Macley, Lieutenant? Well, I thought a lot of that man ever since he came to these parts. Oh, he's not the kind you might expect to be running an old folks home. But well, he's OK. I see. How well do you know, Dr. Way, one of the finest people we have here in Kingston and without a doubt, the best man to make those autopsies you want. He's connected with the department. Yeah. And if you ask me, he'll get you results so fast, it'll. Oh, no, wait a minute, dollar. You're not thinking that Dr. Way. And I'll tell you this about Pete Macley dollar. It took a lot of guts for him to go that place it is. What do you mean by that? I mean, it gets some of the folks around town who were partial to Justin Perry, who runs the Paradise Home, who were afraid it might put him out of business, Macley's place being so much nicer and modern at all. It still doesn't mean anything. Lieutenant, you know, those old folks like things new and modern and a ferry doesn't improve that place. It is. Oh, yeah. Oh, hello, Dr. Dennis, Mr. Dollar, I'll be able to make those autopsies tonight when I'm finished. I'll call you to a hotel. Sure, Doctor, you do that. I talked further with the lieutenant, but I'm afraid I didn't give much help from he was convinced a little too convinced that Peter Macley was all right and he spent all his time defending him. A late dinner at the hotel was item two, four twenty five. Item three was thirty five cents for a magazine. I went up to my room, sprawled out the big over stuffed chair, put my feet on the window sill and promptly went to sleep. Yeah, the combination of a big dinner in the quiet night had really got to me too much from my own good. He must have used a calling card to slip the lock on the door, because the first thing I remember was hearing the door close when the light switch went off. Huh? Who's that? What's the idea, turning off it? Oh, no, you. And now act three of yours truly, Johnny Dollar. Another piece of tape to hold this bandage on your head. You'll be. Yeah, there you are. That's right. Now don't tell me you fell asleep and fell out of your chair and did this. Oh, and here, here, perhaps a drop of this medicinal brandy. Oh, yeah. You look at the morning. Yes, and I've done the autopsy. Oh, I knocked on your door and didn't get any answer. Doc. But it wasn't locked. So I came on in and what happened? Oh, somebody sneaked in and slugged me. Are you kidding? But come on, what about the autopsy? Yes, yes. Well, no question about it. Mr. Bartley's death was an accident. But the others poisoned a poison that made it look like heart failure. OK, then. Hello. Hello. Your order, please. Lieutenant Art Conley of Police headquarters. I'll call you right back, sir. Emergency operator. This isn't OK. OK. Now, Mr. Dollar, the doctor, somebody at Macley's rest home gave them poison. So that's it. But the only medicines those people get are the ones that I myself prescribe. And I have never prescribed even the most minute dose of sodium serous. Lieutenant Johnny Dollar, I'm glad you called, Dollar. Doc told me the result of his autopsy is on his way over to see you. Then you know. I still refuse to believe that Peter Macley. No. Then why did he come here and try to put me out of the picture? What? I don't know what scared him off before he could finish the job, but I'm thankful something did. When? Last night I was asleep. Well, then you're wrong. It wasn't Peter Macley. No. Knowing that sometime you have to suspect even your best friend on a case like this, I had Macley here at headquarters all night. So, Dollar. Doctor. My prescriptions? Yes. I've been thinking about that. They're always made up at Pearson's drugstore by Mrs. Pearson herself. Then she is going to have some visitors. What? Come along, Doctor. So early in the morning. This is Pearson. This is Johnny Dollar, a special investigator. Oh, exciting. Mrs. Pearson, I want to know if you stuck a drug called sodium therb. What do you call it, Doctor? I didn't. But it's sodium theromiliculate. But I doubt very much. Yes, I do. You do? Oh, Doctor Morley, the veterinarian used it now and then to take care of hopeless animals. And you have it here now? Yes. One of these back shells. I have a single bottle that I. Hey, wait. Wait a minute. Yes. On a motorcycle out there with a sidecar. He pulled away from in back of this place. Yes. He helps in the store and makes all the deliveries for me. And he must have seen us in here. Must have seen me. What? He makes all the deliveries, including prescriptions for the Macley Rest Home. That's right. Doc. He's taking some of Dr. Wade's prescriptions up there now. Good. No, no, listen. Let me find that bottle of. Doc, Doctor, listen. That may be the answer that he's the delivery boy for Mrs. Pearson. Yes. Well, I'm afraid I don't know. No, no, Doc, we've got to go after that kid. The bottle, Doctor. Doctor, would you listen to me? So many of them are missing unless we could. What was that, Mrs. Pearson? Well, a lot of these sodium ferromilist tablets are missing. And that's the answer, Doc. He's the answer. Come on. Have you ever tried to chase a motorcycle up a tortuous, treacherous, modern road while I did? We did. The sidecar was the only thing that kept him from running away from us and the fact that he kept looking back knowing we were chasing him. He'll kill him, sir. Looking back at us, that was his big mistake. You'll never make that turn. That was young Edward Perry's fatal mistake. Like new one. No, no. Now, that's, that's easy. I'll take it easy, sir. And now we can try now. We can try. But, but why had he saw you there in the store? So dollar there. All right, just take it easy. Knew you'd got wise that I wasn't. I was put in that poison in Dr. Presbyterian. Give him something to knock him out, Doctor. I'm afraid there's no use. I'm afraid. But it was dad. No, Justin Perry, dad made me. Said him enough. Enough people at Macleys died off. They'd, oh, he's, he's, he's, he's dead. He's dead. Leave Macleys. Come to dad's place. Eddie, why? To the paradise. We'd put. We'd put Macleys out of business. Buries our own dollar. Right, Doc. Ask me. Justin Perry murdered his son as much as though he'd done it with his own tool. Expense again, total. Call a fifty bucks. Yours truly. Johnny dollar. Johnny dollar starring Bob Bailey originates in Hollywood and is written, produced and directed by Jack Johnstone. Heard in our cast were Virginia Greg, Harry Bartell, Edgar Barrier, Sam Edwards, Stacey Harris, Junius Matthews and Forest Lewis. Be sure to join us next week. Same time and station for another exciting story of yours truly. Johnny dollar. This is John Wall speaking. Johnny dollar has come to you through the worldwide facilities of the United States Armed Forces radio and television service.