Ranger Bill xx-xx-xx (203) One Million Years Ago
"Ranger Bill" is a classic Christian radio program from the 1950s, produced by Moody Radio.
The show features over 200 episodes and stars Miron Canaday as Ranger Bill, a forest ranger in the fictional town of Knotty Pine, located in the Rocky Mountains. Alongside his friends Stumpy Jenkins and Grey Wolf, Ranger Bill tackles various adventures and moral dilemmas, often with a strong Christian message.
The show remains a beloved piece of old-time radio history and is still enjoyed by many fans today.
Listen to our radio station Old Time Radio https://link.radioking.com/otradio
Listen to other Shows at My Classic Radio https://www.myclassicradio.net/
Entertainment Radio | Broadcasting Classic Radio Shows | Patreon
Remember that times have changed, and some shows might not reflect the standards of today’s politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Entertainment Radio
The show features over 200 episodes and stars Miron Canaday as Ranger Bill, a forest ranger in the fictional town of Knotty Pine, located in the Rocky Mountains. Alongside his friends Stumpy Jenkins and Grey Wolf, Ranger Bill tackles various adventures and moral dilemmas, often with a strong Christian message.
The show remains a beloved piece of old-time radio history and is still enjoyed by many fans today.
Listen to our radio station Old Time Radio https://link.radioking.com/otradio
Listen to other Shows at My Classic Radio https://www.myclassicradio.net/
Entertainment Radio | Broadcasting Classic Radio Shows | Patreon
Remember that times have changed, and some shows might not reflect the standards of today’s politically correct society. The shows do not necessarily reflect the views, standards, or beliefs of Entertainment Radio
Transcript
00:00Ranger Bill, warrior of the woodland, struggling against extreme odds, traveling dangerous
00:23trails, fighting the many enemies of nature, this is the job of the guardian of the forest,
00:29Ranger Bill. Pouring rain, freezing cold, blistering heat, snow, floods, bears, rattlesnakes,
00:36mountain lions, yes, all this in exchange for the satisfaction and pride of a job well
00:42done.
00:43Hello there, boys and girls. Today's story is one that ought to keep you guessing right
00:56up to the very end. It did us, I know that. We were all involved in it one way or another,
01:02Stumpy and Gray Wolf and even Henry. It was one of those times when you absolutely can't
01:07believe what you see and can't believe what you hear, and you end up wondering what to
01:12believe. It all happened not so very long ago, out in the state of Utah, in what is
01:17called the Badlands. The Badlands is the name the earliest explorers gave to this part of
01:22our country, because it was just exactly that, bad. Just rocks and bare windswept mountains
01:30and sand and dust, no water or hardly any, and mighty few trees and bushes. A miserable
01:37place no matter how you look at it. But that's where this adventure took place. I call it
01:43A million years. A million years. That's what they are. A million years old. Watch.
02:00Watch where? Oh, Morgan, the cliff. The cliff over there. The most perfect cliff in the
02:07world. Hundreds of feet high, nearly a mile long, and almost perfectly flat. Straight
02:15up and down, smooth, grayish white rock. Get the idea, Morgan? Get the idea? Well, no.
02:22I can't say I do. Maybe you'd better go over it again, slow. Oh, Morgan, you wear me out.
02:28You wear me out. But Mr. Vlandingham... Don't talk, Morgan. Please don't talk. Just watch.
02:35And listen. And listen. And don't keep repeating everything I say. You make me nervous. Okay,
02:41Mr. Vlandingham. Are you ready now? Yes, Mr. Vlandingham. What do you want me to do? Good.
02:48Now just watch. That's all. Okay. Now. Now be quiet. Don't move. Just watch.
03:02Over there at the cliff. They'll be along in a minute. You can hear them now,
03:07but you can't see them. You will, though. You will. Don't mind. Kind of spooky. All
03:14them funny looking trees with them big fat leaves. This is all vegetation. Authentic to
03:20the very last detail. But I never see such trees. Of course not. Ah, now they're beginning to stir.
03:29Here comes the first one. Isn't he a beaut? Scampering along there like a great big rabbit.
03:36See him? Yeah. Only he looks more like a horse to me. Kind of a half rabbit and half horse. Of
03:42course. He's Eohippus. The two-toed horse. The great, great, great, great grandfather of Old
03:49Dobbin. See him scamper. Here comes the rest of his family. Looks like they're scared of something
03:56like me. Yes. Looking up into the air. No wonder. Here it comes. Black, glistening wings. Like
04:06polished patent leather. Exactly. Those claws, those talons, that beak, and a 40-foot wingspread.
04:15It's flying right over them little horses, them hippie hippo hooses.
04:20It's eating them. It's diving. Oh dear. But it sees them. They see it too. They can run into those
04:28low-hanging trees. There they go. Oh good. And there he goes. Back over the mountain. The world's
04:37first bird of prey. The pterodactyl. Oh, I'm glad he didn't see them little horses. Hey, what's that?
04:43Cephalodon. He's like a monstrous bear. But a bear with scales instead of fur. Yeah. I never see
04:49such animals. Now what's that? Diplodocus. And over there by those tall trees is a magatherum.
04:56He weighs 20,000 pounds, but he wouldn't hurt a flea. Just the same. Hey, now there's some animals.
05:04I know what they are. They're elephants. No, no, Morgan. Those aren't elephants. They look like
05:09elephants, but they're not. Did you ever see elephants with heavy coats of long brown hair?
05:15Already strong. And with tusks 25 feet long. Tusks so long and heavy, they have to slide them along
05:22the ground. Oh no. Come to think of it, I didn't. I can't say I have, but if they're not elephants, what are they?
05:28They're mammoths, Morgan. Great hairy mammoths. Oh hey, there's a baby mammoth. My goodness, I never
05:35thought I could be a baby one of them things. But there it is. Yes, but oh my. Well, Mr. Vlandingham,
05:42do you see what I see? Certainly. The largest animal that ever lived. The largest. The dear old
05:51gigantosaurus. 60 feet long if he's an inch. Well, that neck of his must be 20 feet long.
05:57Longer. Oh, he'll probably eat them mammoths up at one go. Gigantosaurus? Not him. Big as he is,
06:04all he eats is grass. Him? Right. Then they're mammoths. They know he ain't dangerous. They ain't even
06:10moving out of his way. Look at him bump into them, poking his head around. He looks as though he
06:15ain't got much sense. He hasn't. With all that size, his brain isn't as big as an orange.
06:22Just the same. What's the matter, Morgan? Coming up a valley. That, that, that. That what?
06:30That terrible, terrible monster. Yes, Morgan. Here he comes. King of the prehistoric world.
06:38The fiercest, most dangerous animal that ever walked the face of the earth. Oh, them teeth,
06:43them long fangs, them horny scales, them ravening jaws. Hey, hey. Yes? It looks like he's gonna,
06:52he's gonna attack one of them gigantosus and it looks like the gigantosus is gonna fight back.
06:59Of course, he's fighting for his life and he knows it. Trinosaurus Rex is a carnivore,
07:05a meat eater. And with those, with his tremendous size and strength, his fangs, he's the most
07:12dreadful and terrifying and horrible creature to ever walk the face of the earth. And there he is,
07:19right in plain sight. He's getting closer. Can you stop it? I can, but I won't. Oh, there they go.
07:28Oh, look at them fight.
07:31No.
07:55Well, Stumpy, what's the name of that tune? Ah, glad you asked me that, Henry.
07:59The name of that tune is, I wonder where Bill and Gray Wolf went with all them picks and shovels
08:04and spyglasses early in the morning, because it's too hot today to do much but sit around the shade
08:08and drink lemonade. Brother, I made some lemonade just in case. Here you are. Thank you, Henry,
08:17thank you. Say, are Bill and Gray Wolf around? Yeah, I think I see them come in a while back.
08:23They look tired. A couple of coyotes has been chasing Jackrabbits. Here, here they be.
08:28Ho! Ho yourself and see how you like it. Hi, Gray Wolf, Bill. Have any luck? Oh,
08:36I got a lot of fresh air. It's about warm. Well, where have you been? If you don't mind
08:40my asking. Oh, we don't mind. We go hunting. Hunting? This time of year? There's nothing to
08:46hunt. Well, it depends on what you hunt for. Oh? This time we not hunt for deer, bear, antelope,
08:52usual kind of game. Well, then what kind of game did you hunt for? Dinosaurs.
08:58Dinosaurs? What on earth are you? Oh, yeah, I get it. You're out on an expedition, sort of,
09:07looking for dinosaur bones. No, not dinosaur bones. Dinosaurs. Say, Gray Wolf, this is a fiercely
09:15hot day and you've been right out in it, right in the sun. Are you sure you feel all right? I feel
09:20fine. Maybe I better explain before you explode, Henry. Henry sounds like a motorboat. Maybe you
09:29better let Bill explain. Well, it's like this. We have been out hunting dinosaurs, pal. Oh,
09:35not you too, Bill. I can't stand it. Yeah? Dinosaurs, all right. But the last of the
09:40dinosaurs died a million years ago. Yeah, we know. And that's what makes it such a strange assignment.
09:46Henry, for several weeks now, or maybe a couple of months, we kept on getting the weirdest reports
09:53from up in the Badlands. Oh, that's where those scientists and expeditions keep digging up those
09:57old dinosaur bones. Up in that big flat valley, the one that has a tremendous cliff all along one
10:02side? Is that where you mean? Yeah, exactly. And if the reports we've been getting just were about
10:07dinosaur bones, that wouldn't have meant anything at all. But these reports, these reports, Henry,
10:15have all been about live dinosaurs. What? Well, we look for tracks. No tracks there,
10:20but ground dry and hard, rocky, much wind. Tracks that get blown away fast. Couldn't find a sign
10:26of anything out of the ordinary. Two men up there. They haven't seen anything. Two men?
10:32Prospectors? No, gold up there. More than likely, them are bone diggers,
10:37scientifical fellers. Archaeologists? Paleontologists? That's what I said.
10:42What? Yeah, they're up there looking for specimens. Yeah, plenty old bones there.
10:48They even showed us some that they'd unearthed. What, no live dinosaurs? Nope, just bones.
10:54Do you mean to say all these different people saw these live dinosaurs in broad daylight?
10:59No, no, they didn't. Hey, wait a minute. Maybe you've given us some sort of a clue as to what's
11:05going on up there, Henry. All the people that saw the dinosaurs moving around saw them on a
11:11moonlit night. Well, there she be, the Badlands. No wonder they call her that.
11:25Seems like there's somebody digging here all the time. Lots of them big colleges dug here,
11:30the Harvards and the Yales, all them fellers, bone diggers. It's a mighty big valley.
11:36Used to be a marsh, Bill said. Dry as a bone now, though. Dry as a bone, I said. Nothing but bones
11:45here now. I said she's dry as a bone. Joe, get it? I got it. Hey, Henry, something's moving down
11:57there. You see the dust swirling? Yeah. It's those two paleontologists. Their camp's down there.
12:06Say, let's pay them a visit. Well, sure, why not? It's plum downhill all the way. Let's go.
12:15Of course, if we go downhill now, that means when we come back,
12:19we're going to be uphill every single day.
12:28Come on, Morgan, get on your feet. Look alive. Grab one of those shovels.
12:31Got to pretend to be digging. What for? We're getting company, that's why. Come on, get up.
12:38Hi there. Hi. You'll find us hard at work. Come on, get busy and dig, Morgan. Seems like a pretty
12:46hot day to be digging. Well, we scientists are taught not to mind the weather. Let me introduce
12:51myself. My name is Vallandigham, Carteret Vallandigham, and this is my assistant, Morgan.
12:57Hi, my name's Henry, and this is Stumpy. Nice to meet you. Show our guests some of our recent finds.
13:06Oh, yeah, here. Wow, sure is a big thing. What is it? Maybe I should say, what was it?
13:17Why, it's a find. We haven't been able to classify it just as yet. Isn't that right,
13:26Morgan? Right, Mr. Vallandigham. Plenty of them bones here, that's for sure.
13:31Yes, I know a great many scientific expeditions have been here. A rich field, a very rich field.
13:38Of course, all they found was bones. What do you mean? Oh, nothing. You ain't seen any live
13:46dinosaurs, have you? Why, no. No, of course not. Live dinosaurs? That's ridiculous. That's absurd.
13:56Whatever gave you that idea? It ain't my idea. Lots of folks have been telling it around that
14:02they saw live dinosaurs right here in this here valley, right here. Preposterous. Are you digging
14:11into the Pleistocene, the Jurassic, or the Mesozoic strata? Well, right now, we're digging
14:21into... You tell him, Morgan. What? Well... Oh, I see. Excuse me, you really didn't want to tell,
14:29because you're on the track of something special, and so it's something that's a secret.
14:33Yeah, well, that's it. It's a secret, all right. You understand how it is. Sure, I shouldn't have
14:39asked. Well, Stumpy, let's go. Goodbye, Mr. Vallandigham, Mr. Morgan. So long. We'll let
14:47you know if we see any live dinosaurs. So long. Yeah, I can imagine. Henry, there's something
14:56about them fellows that don't ring true. Uh-huh. One thing. Two things, really. They didn't even
15:03know what kind of a bone that was they'd found. Yep. They didn't seem to know any of those scientific
15:09terms I ask about. The stuff we learned in school. Yep. But what I noticed was their hands. Their
15:14hands? A prospect, or a scientist, or anybody that digs all day is going to have calluses on
15:21their hands. And them fellers' hands was smooth as silk. They never dug up no bones, nowhere, nohow,
15:28no siree. Two more people come here today, plenty scared. Yeah? See dinosaurs last night,
15:40green ones, gray ones, and red mammoths. They mentioned the colors? Yep. Mentioned the colors.
15:47Why, just that. Say, Bill, them bone diggers we seen, like I say, they ain't dug up nothing,
15:54never. Yeah, that's right, Bill. I agree. Well, if I think you and I should pay another call to Mr.
16:00Vallandigham and Mr. Morgan. Any time. You get any information on either one from Washington?
16:05No, nothing. Vallandigham has been a promoter of various projects, real estate mostly, and Morgan
16:12has had a series of odd jobs, sort of a drifter. Somebody's right, I think. Whatever they are,
16:18or whatever they're up to, they certainly aren't bonafide paleontologists. How come they not see
16:24dinosaurs? Right there. On the spot. Plenty of people see dinosaurs. But not them. I wish I could
16:32see some. Some dinosaurs. Oh, me too. Likewise. Hey, Bill. What, Henry? I'm sitting here looking
16:40right at that calendar on the wall behind your desk, and it's the kind that shows the changes
16:45of the moon. And she's gonna be a full moon tonight. Hey, Stumpy. Yep. Let's you and I go back there
16:54again.
17:06Uh-huh, I thought so. What's the matter, Bill? Storm warning, Graywolf. I've been waiting for it.
17:12All this hot weather, drought, low pressure area on the way, and fast. Well, that means sandstorm
17:18this time of year. Yeah, a bad one. I missed my guess. Well, we've had our warnings out for three
17:23days now. Hey, we could visit her. Looks like she's in a hurry. No good running so fast on such a hot day.
17:29I come in. You the forest ranger? We got something to report. You told us there were dinosaurs,
17:36live ones in the valley where we've been digging. We didn't believe you, but we gotta now.
17:41Look here at these pictures I took. Pictures? Yeah, tracks. Hundreds of them. The sand's been
17:47drifting pretty deep lately, so we could see tracks. Look here. Giant three-toned feet. Big
17:53claw up behind there. See? Yeah. And look. That jagged furrow in between the foot tracks.
17:59Just like the kind of mark that would be made by a big dragging scaly tail. I took these pictures
18:05this morning. They're proof. Proof that there are live dinosaurs in that valley. And show them the
18:10pictures of the bushes. Oh, yeah. Look here. See this chaparral and mesquite bushes all cut down?
18:16But cut down raggedy. Cut down in sweeps. Cut down by the stroke of a horny scaly tail.
18:25Well, aren't you going to say anything? Uh, you seem to be doing all the talking, Mr.
18:30Villanigan. This, uh, evidence certainly seems indisputable, but even so, I'd like to go out
18:38to that valley and see for myself. See if perhaps I might even catch a glimpse of those
18:44living dinosaurs. Good. And then if you did, why, you'd, uh, you'd tell everybody. What's that?
18:49Well, uh, I mean that that everybody would would know about the dinosaurs if you saw them
18:55officially. If I did see any live dinosaurs, I'd make my regular report in the usual way.
19:01However, the whole matter will have to wait for a few days. Why? We've had urgent storm warnings.
19:06What appears to be a very severe, even dangerous sandstorm is headed this way.
19:11I suggest you and your partner stay in a hotel in town until it blows over.
19:14What? Leave all? I, I mean, well, we, we have all sorts of, uh, of scientific equipment out there.
19:22We have to, uh, take care of it. Isn't that correct, Morgan?
19:25Yep. Uh, but their scientific junk is mighty tricky.
19:29So, uh, thank you for your advice, Mr. Ranger, but we'll have to hurry back.
19:34Just a little puff of wind and a few grains of sand can detour the true scientific attitude.
19:38I've given you the formal warning. I can't very well arrest you and detain you,
19:43but you should not go. Mr. Ranger, we scientists just have to protect our, uh, our, uh...
19:49Investment? Well, not exactly, but that's the general idea.
19:53Come along, Morgan. Come along. Uh, Mr. Villanigan, uh, wait a minute.
19:59They're gone, Bill. Gone fast. Yeah.
20:02Now, Gray Wolf, I guess they just didn't believe me.
20:05No. They're men of mystery, Gray Wolf. Somehow or other, I think that they have the key to this
20:13whole affair, those live dinosaurs. But just how they fit in is more than I can figure out.
20:20However, right now, my real concern is the weather. If that sandstorm hits,
20:25Villanigan and Morgan and the dinosaurs are going to be in trouble, real trouble.
20:36What's the matter? You keep staring up at the sky, stuff. There's nothing up there.
20:40I don't like the looks of her, Henry, and that's a fact.
20:43See how she's got that sickly yaller color? Well, yeah, not to mention it.
20:49In the old time, we'll tell you that when the sky is yaller like that, it means a storm's brewing.
20:54Who's afraid of a rainstorm? This ain't no rainstorm, Henry. It's a sandstorm.
21:00Stuffy, we've come all the way over to this valley again to see if we could see those
21:04live dinosaurs. And I'd sure hate to turn around and go back now just because the sky is a funny
21:11color. Come on, let's look for dinosaurs. What's the matter with you? Oh, nothing, I guess.
21:22Well, get busy. The sky is clouding over, getting dark. It's got that funny yellow color.
21:27This ought to be a good time to see some dinosaurs. Well, let's go. I don't like the
21:33looks of things. Well, who asked you? Get ready now. You and I are going to see some dinosaurs.
21:40If anybody else that happens to be anywhere in this valley, I'll see them too.
21:45What's the matter, Morgan? What's the matter? You scared? I just don't like it, that's all.
21:52I don't like any part of it. Way out here in the desert and these dinosaurs. Oh, for a grown man,
21:59Morgan, you act like a mighty scared one. Tell me you're getting afraid of those dinosaurs.
22:05Mr. Blandingham, I just don't...
22:10What was that? Nothing but a puff of wind.
22:13Buck up, get ready. We're going to see some dinosaurs.
22:23It sure is getting dark. See the clouds piling up there in the west?
22:28It's still afternoon, but almost dark as night. Yep. Say, there's that big flat cliff they all
22:35talked about where everybody saw the dinosaurs. We're almost there. Yeah, let's not go no closer.
22:42Them dinosaurs is around, I ain't hankering to get anywhere. Henry, take a look, take a look.
22:49I am looking, and I see them too, Stuffy. If they are right over there by that cliff,
22:56they're just where everybody said they'd be. Dinosaurs. What do we do now? I don't know.
23:03You can even hear them bellowing and roaring. Look at that big feather floundering along there now.
23:08Let's get out of here as fast as we can. We're sooner said than done. Feet about face. Now Henry, let's get out of here.
23:18Henry, the sandstorm, it's hit us. Take off your jacket and flick it over your head.
23:26Never saw one like this. Me neither.
23:31Stuffy, you can't stand up. You can't walk. The wind's too strong. Keep a hold, Henry. Keep your head covered. Hang on. Hang on, Henry.
23:53Mr. Blandingham, Mr. Blandingham, where are you? Over here,
23:58crawl over toward me. Over this way. Okay. Hey, Mr. Blandingham, what about the dinosaurs?
24:06I can see them over there in between. Forget about the dinosaurs. They won't hurt you.
24:13What I'm concerned about is getting out of this sandstorm alive.
24:16How does sand not get in here? That's right, Gray Wolf. Lucky we had one of these in our area.
24:32Government built only a few. Call them sandmobiles. Heavy tires, small windows, seal the course. Each
24:38of these trucks is equipped with compass and radio and radar. Only way in the world you can get about
24:43during a sandstorm like this one. I hope we find Henry and Stumpy. We'll find them, all right.
24:49I've been praying that we'll find them soon. Look, Bill, a speck on radar screen. Good. Watch close,
24:54Gray Wolf. Bill, I think I see a mound in sand. Another mound. It waved at us. Bill,
25:01it's Henry and Stumpy. They're safe. Great. Now all we have to do is find those two fake scientists.
25:14Mr. Forrest Ranger, I cannot, simply cannot thank you enough. The storm's over now, but the fact
25:20remains you saved our lives. What can I do for you? What can I do for you? Well, for one thing,
25:27Mr. Villanigan, you might explain the meaning of that movie projector we found buried in the sand.
25:33Movie projector. Yeah. Well, sir, I see I might as well tell you everything.
25:41Mm-hmm. The fact is, I'm a real estate agent.
25:55Desert, sort of a health resort. I had a scheme to make this place popular.
26:01I spent years and years with little models of dinosaurs, moving each one an eighth of an inch
26:07at a time. I see. Slowly, slowly photographing each tiny model in color until at last I had a
26:15movie of what looked like real dinosaurs. Mm-hmm. I made up a sound effect recording.
26:22Then when at night I projected the fake dinosaur movie on that flat cliff and played the amplified
26:28recording, anybody would think at first glance he was seeing a real life-sized dinosaur.
26:35The tracks in the sand? Oh, those. Those I made with big claws made out of lumber. I wired them
26:44to the rims of our jeep and dragged an anchor behind to look like the marks made by a giant
26:49clawed and tailed animal. Mm-hmm. Cut down trees with a ragged scythe to look like the
26:56blows of a scaly tail. But what was the idea? Well, I thought we could get to get the people
27:02to talking about the valley, and then they would want to come here. And then when I built my motel,
27:08it would be a success. Well, I can't say that you've committed any serious crime, Mr. Vlanigan,
27:14but you have caused some of us a lot of worry. I know. And I know this. If I'd believed you when
27:22you warned me about the sandstorm, well, it's taught me one thing. The good people are the
27:28people you can believe. I'm through with fakes. I want to learn how to be one of those kind of
27:35people you can believe. I want to quit being a flimsy faker and get to know how to be honest.
27:42How do I go about doing it? You really want to know? Of course I do. Well, it's like this. There's
27:50just one important thing you have to know and accept and believe. Once you've done that, then
27:57all the rest comes along just as naturally. Well, see you next week for more adventure with Ranger Bill!
28:27Hi there, boys and girls. This is Ranger Bill back again for just a third of a minute.
28:57With an extra word of thanks to you for joining us today. Hope you'll team up with the Rangers
29:04every week at this time when your local station gives us this chance to get together. See you then!
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