When Lum found out his guest of honor was uninvited, he ran off to the schoolhouse to patch things up. Meanwhile, Cedric had a mishap in garnishing the plates. Um, make that varnishing the plates. Today, the gents talk about the latest in practical, and romantic gifts, artificial flowers. How did the party go? Lum and Abner describe the impression it made on Miss Emiline. What did the other guest think about the food, or the buffet style supper?

Nobody seemed to eat much. Lum just thought it was due to the high society event, until Abner filled him in on the varnish mix up. Still, the party made enough of an impression that Lum wants to buy a big diamond for his fiancé. Squire Skimp enters, and could help. He also wants to clarify a point or two to write his newspaper column.

A 30 minutes salute to the reporters at the Associated Press. Beginning with the history of the AP we eavesdrop on a meeting of arguing reporters who have to share the same telegraph line. With the weight of sharing heavy national news, there are sure to be blunders. But somehow accurate news is reported.

To facilitate such high level matters as reporting what the president says, close relationships at the top need to be made. Reporters have made adventuresome journeys across the Great Plains of the West to transmit news of the Civil War. Sometimes performing their duties at the cost of their life, and other times with unexpected reward.

Headlines drive front page news, but when sources have it wrong, it’s up to editors to make sure the story is accurate. One example is traumatized With errors surrounding the end of world war one. Other Battles are traumatized that attract reporters to danger zones. And where one reporter may fall, others close ranks to continue bringing accurate reports.

To wrap up the show the head of the Associated Press tells how people can become a reporter today. Also more dramatizations of how news gets from front line battle zones to the public. In particular for 1940, the activities between the Germans and Russians.

Homicide Detail. Twelve men are missing.

On a sultry day, Joe and Ben get off to a fist fight, when they go to interview Henry Ross. He claims he didn’t know they were cops, but he has some info on a guy named Davis. Paul Davis drove to take a job on an oil derrick. But according to his wife. He never got there.

Handwriting experts link Ross to the missing persons. He is also known under the alias of Henry Carter. Joe Friday continues to parade out the evidence, but will his man cooperate? The interrogation lingers on, with Joe detailing it in voiceover.

Henry admits to being involved in the murders, and is willing to draw maps and diagrams of the operation.

Taking his captors to a local diner, Ross feasts, while Joe describes the menu options. Ross shares the details on meeting and killing Davis. Why did he do it? Where is the body? What about the other missing men?

Opening the days mail, a letter from Chicago begins a chain reaction in the Anderson family. Bud wants to go camping at beaver lake with his friends. After the good news that Jim has just recieved, it doesn’t take much arm twisting to get permission. Will Betty and Cathy also get permission to join their friends as well?

Margaret is a little worried that Kathy has never spent the night away from home before. With the kids all going separate ways, Jim thinks it’s the ideal time for he and Margaret to slip away to that convention in Chicago. Hmmm… Things are just a little too perfect, this can’t last for long

Everyone sets about to pack up for the weekend, with mother as the focal point to settle arguments, and find missing items. Face with her trip two blocks down the Road, Kathy seems to be having second thoughts. When Betty gets that Joan of arc look in her eyes, Bud knows his weekend with his pals is doomed.

The teenagers are willing to sacrifice their weekend, so their parents could have time away. Realizing the trouble she has cause, Kathy agrees to give it another go at her friends house. Will Jim and Margaret get there weekend alone? Or not

In trying to get the number of guests to match the number of seats in his buffet supper, Lum has had to cancel invitations. He left it up to Abner to randomly pick someone, and make the phone call to inform the unfortunate person. Today, Lum discusses his menu of cold, fried rabbit with Abner.

Trying to abide by standards of etiquette, Lum wants to garnish his place settings. Will the affair be worthy of being written up in Lewella Parson’s column? Lum tries to imagine the good impression the party will make on Miss Plat. Speaking of her, Abner has a hard time breaking the news to Lum that it was her, who was randomly picked to cancel the invitation.

Lum blows up on Abner, over his brainless way of cancelling the guest of honor. Is there any way to repair the infraction? How is Cedric coming along with his garnish job? He arrives once Lum storms out to report to Abner that the varnish won’t be dry in time.

Today in the Jot Em Down store, Abner tries to console Lum. When Mr. Chancelor left previously, he mentioned having an engagement with Miss Plat . Now that he has been calm down, the gents talk over Plans for honoring miss Platt

There seems to be too many guests you are invited. So the gents – hash over their list. Who can they uninvite? Will grandpap be willing to be taken off the list? Here he comes now! Beating around the bush, Abner is confused over grandpap, and insurance. Does he have enough, or not?

As the phone ring, Lum comes up with a good idea for the final selection. He’ll just have Abner randomly pick the final name. All options are off once the name has been picked. It’ll be up to Abner to make the phone call, and stick two their guns. Lum doesn’t want to know anything about who would is, as long as the call is made.

Burglary detail. A rash of shoplifting jobs has the attention of Joe Friday, and his partner, Ben Romero.

Interviewing the detail chief, the detectives go over the mode of operation of the bandits. What might connect the string of shoplift jobs together? A teenage clerk in a department store seems to be at the center of the thefts of make up and cos metics.

Joe and Ben go to interview the young lady. Will she be able to offer a suitable explanation of the missing products from the departments where she has worked? Ben complains about his foot problems as the cops continue their mundane search.

Another store clerk report strange packages, and an unknown tall, blonde woman in the department. What does Joe make of it? More questions reveal the unknown woman is also at the center of the robberies. The woman is identified to be the wife of a doctor. Will she hold up under the routine questioning of the detectives?

As dinnertime approaches, Gildersleeve gets onto his nephew, Leroy for being so messy. Why can’t he the more like his sister? As if on cue, Marjorie enters to show off her new ballerina dress. Gildy departs, so Leroy takes time to demonstrate his latest baseball move. Of course. The result is a broken vase.

Taking Leroy for a haircut, the Conversation in Floyd’s barber shop turns to the latest teams and games. Later. At home, has the hard feelings soften ed any? Maybe the mood has. But Leroy is still on the hook when it comes to working off his debt over the broken vase.

Gildy dozes, dreams, and waits for his date with Eve Goodwin. His dreams are interrupted to go look for Leroy.. He finds a knickerbocker clad Judge Hooker, but no Leroy. In Peavy’s drugstore, Gildy gripes over the window display, but no Leroy. Eve arrives for dinner. But still no Leroy. Has he run away? He manages to show up alright, and has even learned the importance of hard work to replace broken vases;.

On an earlier episode we learned how a sponsor cells a show to a client. Today we’ll learn how a producer uses an advertising firm to sell a show to a sponsor. An itemized list of the talent, and costs is compiled into a book, and delivered buy direct messenger boy. When everything looks good, the firm requests an audition recording be made. Months go by as the audition circulates, before it’s finally purchased.

Sound effect of the week, perfecting the sound of opening a bottle of beer. A representative of a sponsor agency is on hand to tell how commercials are made. Is a traumatized ad better than a straight commercial? How long should a good commercial be? Is it better to advertise at the beginning, middle, or end of a show?

Get a behind-the-scenes look at how a news story is dramatized. A salute to a radio program gone by, Lazy Dan, is reproduced. Though the act maybe top notch, the minstrel show style and dialects are definitely not politically correct. The one man show is currently active in other productions and commercials.

Letters from listeners. Facsimile newscasts are explained, Summer replacements, And other summer replacements such as quiz shows are topics. Freedom radio stations are ones that broadcast at the border of countries where Broadcast our sensor. A man known only as Rudolf explains the dangers of operating close to communist countries where liberties are restricted. It could mean death, if radio DJs and operators are caught.

Featuring: Ken Carpenter, John Scot Trotter, Skitch Henderson, Lena Romei, and The Charioteers

Playlist:

* Sun in the Morning and the Moon At Night (Bing Crosby).

* Introduced as, “The melodrama, the Perils of Skitch Henderson,” he plays piano instrumentals.

* South America Take It Away (Bing and Lena Romei).

* Bing discusses family Halloween plans with Lena. Though absent, Bob Hope gets teased about dating a witch.

* How High the Moon (Les Paul Trio).

* You are Too Beautiful (Bing Crosby).

* By and By When the Morning Comes (The Charioteers).

* Route 66 (Bing Crosby).

* Blue Skies (Bing Crosby).

Note: Transfixed by Bing’s beautiful talk, Skitch claims to be the cobra to Bing’s flute.