Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar (1949-1962) aired “The Delectable Damsel Matter” on June 15, 1958. We’ve showcased eight previous episodes of this highly regarded show, the first back in 2019 and the last back in October of 2025. Guest host Pete Wood wrote the introduction to the May 2020 episode, from which I have taken the liberty of selectively editing for current purposes and for those not familiar with the show.
Johnny Dollar ran on CBS from February 18, 1949 until September 30, 1962. Three actors—Charles Russell, Edmond O’Brien, and John Lund—played Dollar as a not too original tough-talking private eye until the initial incarnation ended in September, 1954.
After a one year hiatus the show returned with a new star and a new format. Bob Bailey (1913-1983) played Dollar as a freelance insurance investigator, and radio veteran Jack Johnstone took over production and directing duties, as well as writing many of the episodes.
Bob Bailey was Dollar until November 1960 when the network fired him when he refused to relocate from Hollywood to New York. Bob Readick then portrayed Dollar from December, 1960 until June 1961 with Mandel Kramer taking over the role until the program’s last episode in September of 1962.
Bob Bailey was the heart and soul of the series. Of the 827 episodes, Bailey played Dollar for 484. Second place O’Brien, by contrast, only appeared in 103 episodes.
The show typically began with a phone call from some insurance executive who wanted Dollar to investigate some unusual claim. Dollar traveled all over the United States and sometimes out of the country. He told the story through flashbacks as he explained each item on his “action-packed expense account.”
Bob Bailey had a long radio career, beginning in the early thirties and ending with Johnny Dollar. He starred in programs too numerous to name, but his most successful role until Johnny Dollar was as private investigator George Valentine in Let George Do It from 1946 to 1954 on the Mutual Broadcasting System. Virginia Gregg played his secretary, Brooksie, for many episodes.
Virginia Gregg (1916-1986) appears in this episode and deserves mention as a recurring and much appreciated member of the cast. She had roles in dozens of Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar episodes and enjoyed a long career in radio, television, and films. She appeared on such radio programs as The Adventures of Sam Spade, Dragnet, Dr. Kildare, Gunsmoke, The Jack Benny Program, One Man’s Family, The Zero Hour and Mutual Radio Theater. She often did double duty with roles in both the radio and television versions of programs. Gregg once said of her work as a character actress on television: “I work steadily, but I have no identity.” She added, “When casting people have a call for a woman who looks like the wrath of God, I’m notified.” On TV, Gregg appeared in programs such as Hawaiian Eye, 77 Sunset Strip, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Perry Mason, The Rockford Files, Maverick, My Favorite Martian, and The Twilight Zone. Her forty five film roles included the voice of Mrs. Bates in Psycho, Psycho II, and Psycho III. Oh, yeah, and she also played double bass for the Pasadena Symphony. Virginia Gregg died of lung cancer on September 15, 1986.
“The Delectable Damsel Matter” begins in the usual manner, with a phone call offering Johnny a job. This time the phone call comes from Hollywood and an insurance agent friend of Johnny’s named Rip Single (gotta love names like that). It seems a very rich woman, a well known socialite in Hollywood named Hildy Ransom who Rip used to date, has offered him a large reward if he can recover an obscenely expensive piece of her jewelry recently gone missing known as the Cape Star. It’s a cut emerald the size of a robin’s egg, encrusted with diamonds and rubies, clocking in at approximately $300,000. Rip has decided it would be best to bring Johnny in on the case due to his former relationship with Hildy, enticing him with the chance to meet the beautiful (blonde and single) socialite, but before Johnny can get all the information from Rip or even agree to take the case, his friend hangs up, leaving Johnny no viable alternative but to accept the case.
One of the standard storylines of the private detective genre or that of a freelance private insurance investigator like Johnny Dollar is tracking down missing or stolen jewels, money, people, or property. In this case we also have another regular feature that seems to appear in many of such stories…a beautiful woman (usually a blonde). This time around Johnny must find a world famous emerald brooch worth over a quarter of a million dollars that belongs to the gorgeous and seductive Hildy Ransom, the epitome of the idle rich woman replete with yacht, who seems more interested in getting Johnny to pay attention to her freely offered charms than she is in retrieving her missing brooch worth a king’s ransom. It proves to be a case worthy of Johnny’s talents but not without its hazards. Yes, Johnny has his hands full with this caper, but only time will tell whether the real danger comes from his pursuit of an expensive brooch or a flirtatious blonde in “The Delectable Damsel Matter.”
(The linked 8 disc CD at top left includes this episode and 15 other episodes, all remastered and restored.)
Play Time: 24:35
{With summer vacation just starting and the weekend over, the neighborhood gang was up, dressed, and on its way to the nearby book store early on Monday morning to see what new SF magazines awaited them. Astounding Science Fiction (1930-present, now Analog) had long been a favorite and was a quick grab. It was a monthly in 1958. The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction (1949-2024) and Galaxy (1950-1980) were both relative newcomers on the SF magazine block, each supplying different directions and fresh voices along with established masters of the genre, with both achieving high measures of success. They too were monthlies in 1958.}
[Left:Astounding SF, 6/58 – Center: F&SF, 6/58 – Right: Galaxy, 6/58]
To view the entire list of weekly Old Time Radio episodes at Tangent Online, click here.