The story of Dr. Kildare.
Whatsoever house I enter, there will I go for the benefit of the sick.
Whatsoever things I see or hear concerning the life of men, I will keep silence thereon,
counting such things to be held as sacred trusts.
I will exercise my arms only for you.
The story of Dr. Kildare, starring Lou Ayres and Lionel Barabour.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer brought you those famous motion pictures.
Now this exciting, heartwarming series is heard on radio.
In just a moment, the story of Dr. Kildare.
But first, your announcer.
Now the story of Dr. Kildare, starring Lou Ayres as Dr. Kildare
and Lionel Barabour as Dr. Gillespie.
Blair General Hospital.
One of the great citadels of American medicine.
Clump of gray-white buildings planted deep in the heart of New York,
the nerve center of medical progress.
Where great minds and skilled hands wage man's everlasting battle against death and disease.
Blair General Hospital.
Where life begins, where life ends, where life goes on.
Parker, for the first time in months, I get a chance to relax for an hour
and read a book, and what happens?
Well, after all, Dr. Gillespie, I only want to...
Oh, shut up!
Well...
The history of modern medicine, the book I've wanted to read for a year,
and you come popping in here with a handful of fiddle faddle.
Well, these letters are all addressed to you, and somebody has to answer them.
I don't see why.
But you have to answer letters. People always do.
Well, I don't. Throw them in the wastebasket.
If it's ending important, they'll write again.
And then get out of here.
Oh!
Confounded, Parker, if Pastor had had you for a nurse,
he'd have never discovered germs.
Huh?
He'd have been too busy planning some way to murder you.
I never saw such an insulting man in my life.
Oh, Jimmy, come on. Come in, come in, come in.
Thanks.
No, no, no, leave the door open.
Parker was just leaving.
Well, I guess I can certainly take a hint.
All right, now.
Let's say something's wrong. What is it?
Hmm?
I just lost a patient, Dr. Gillespie.
Oh, I'm sorry, Jimmy. Who was it?
The old fellow in 531, sarcoma.
Entered about a week ago.
And in bad shape, too. I remember him.
Jimmy, I could have told you then.
We tried everything. Radium, x-rays, traces.
All this knowledge we think we have.
I were only working in the dark.
Well, sometimes, sometimes, yeah.
But we know more now than we did last year.
And more then than 10 years before.
I know. And 10 years from today, we'll know still more.
But there are so many thousands of sufferers
who could use more knowledge now.
It takes time and research, Jimmy.
Sometimes you younger doctors don't realize
how fast medicine's moving.
Just in the last 30 years or so.
The faster the better. It's still too slow.
Oh, fine. Fine.
And think that way, if you like. That's what keeps it moving.
But don't forget it is moving.
Like I was just reading here.
Only 60 or 70 years ago,
they were operating frequently without any anesthetic.
I know, I know. Must have been rough.
Rough? Why, at the big hospital,
they'd ring a bell in the lobby
for the interns to come and hold the victim down.
That must have been quite a pleasant sound
for the patient and the doctor.
There's no bell here at Blair General...
Not that kind, Lee.
Here, Kildare speaking.
Here's Wayman. Here.
What?
Yeah, yes, of course. I'll be right down.
What is it, Jimmy? Accident a few blocks from here.
Man caught in one of the service tunnels below the subway.
Badly hurt. I'm going over with Wayman in the ambulance.
I'll see you later.
No, no, no, Jimmy. If it's important enough for you,
it's important enough for me.
He's a maintenance man, electrician.
Started down this man way to service a fan.
Slipped, I guess, and fell.
He's hung up about 30 feet down.
Gee, this doctor, this ain't gonna be easy.
It could be, Wayman. How big is the man way, officer?
Two feet in diameter. It is vertical,
with an iron ladder down one side.
Two feet? There's not gonna be much room to work, Jimmy.
I went down fastened a rope sling under his arms,
tied him to the ladder so he wouldn't fall on down the shaft.
Good.
I didn't want to move him till you got here.
You see, one of the iron rungs of the ladder
must have gotten out loose some way and bent out.
It's run through his stomach by the great horn spoon.
Is he bleeding badly?
Not as far as I can tell.
He was unconscious when I came up.
Here we are.
Pull back now.
You'll find, miss, another one of you fell down on top of him.
There's going to be pretty cramped quarters down there, Jimmy.
Yes, I know.
Oh, is that cord long enough to drop the light down to where he is?
Yeah, I used it when I went down.
Go ahead. Now go ahead and lower it, Wayman.
I'll get down there and see what I can do.
All right, Doc.
I'm confounded, Jimmy. Be careful.
You want us to tie a safety rope around you, Dr. Kildare?
No, it'll be only in the way.
Tie it to this medical kit and lower it after I get down.
Well, here goes.
I'll know better what I need after I see him.
Oh, by the way, officer, what's his name?
Sam Novitski.
Okay.
What difference does that make?
Patient always feels more confident when the doctor uses his name.
Just yell out the shaft if you want something, Doc.
And watch yourself.
Right, Wayman.
Easy now, Sam. It's all right.
Who is that?
I'm a doctor from Blair Hospital.
Let me...
Let me get around.
Doc, I'm sorry.
No, no, you're not. I'm going to take care of you, Sam.
Everything is all right.
It hurts bad.
I know it does, but it's nothing we can't fix. Believe me now.
Oh, Wayman, hurry up with that kit.
Coming down now, Doc.
Oh, and something else, Wayman. Send down two pints of plasma.
Dr. Kaldor.
No, use the kit and the morphine.
Doc, I guess my life is in your hands now.
Yes, I guess that's right.
Don't let me die.
Sam, that's a deal.
Hey, it's on its way up, Dr. Gillespie. You can stop worrying.
Worrying? Who's worrying?
Well, you've been hopping around on one foot for the last 20 minutes.
Ah, ridiculous. Wayman, you're out of your mind.
Are you trying to tell me you haven't been...
Wayman!
Yes, sir. I mean, yes, sir.
Here, Dr. Kaldor, let me give you a hand.
Thanks, officer.
Jimmy, how is he? What's the story?
He's badly hurt, but we still have a chance. Good chance.
He's groggy from the morphine and the plasma's taking care of the shark pretty well.
Good.
Seems to have a strong heart. That's in our favor.
Well, if you're through with emergency treatment now, we'd better get him out of that hole.
And there's the problem, Dr. Gillespie.
What do you mean? Well, one end of that iron rung is still welded to the side of the ladder.
I'm afraid to pull it out of the wound until we get him to the hospital.
Mmm, that means you'll have to find some way to cut it off the ladder.
I know. That's why I came up.
Oh, uh, do you have a hacksaw there in those tools?
Yes, there's one here, Dr. Gilded.
Do you want a mechanic to go down and cut it up?
No, no, no. There's only room for one. I'll have to do it myself.
Jimmy, what about a tetanus shot?
I'll make a serum test when we get him in the ambulance.
We can give him a shot at the hospital. The sooner he's operated on, the better.
Here, let's have that hacksaw.
All right, now take it easy.
Doc. Doc.
What is it, sir? What is it?
Doc, am I still... am I still...
You're still alive and you're still gonna stay that way.
I made a deal with you, didn't I?
Yeah, that's right.
Well, you just grit your teeth and keep on fighting,
and in 15 minutes you'll be in the hospital.
All right, wait a minute.
All right, Wayman, careful now.
Slide the stretcher under.
Right, boss. Here we go.
Is he unconscious, Jimmy?
Yes, I gave him another morphine along with a penisor.
All right, Wayman, let's go.
Lucky they let me bring the ambulance right down the tunnel here.
We'd have had a pack of my hundred yards.
Yeah. Oh, would you mind bringing my kit, Dr. Gillespie?
I've already got it, Jimmy.
Here we are.
Easy now.
Lock her down.
Right, Wayman. Now let's go.
Now you take the seat, Dr. Gillespie. I'll ride the side of the stretcher.
Good.
Turn the head and up the side ramp.
Okay, Mac. Ready, Doc?
Anytime. Let her roll.
I've got operating room four all set up and ready, Dr. Killear.
An intern and two nurses are standing by there now.
Fine, Parker. Wayman, you wheel them in here and get them off the stretcher.
Killear and I'll go ahead and scrub up.
Gotcha, Doc.
And be careful not to move that iron bar.
Yes, sir.
Oh, by the way, Parker, we'll need a type B formula for the tetanus shot.
He's allergic to horse serum.
All right, Dr. Killear, I'll drop from the dispenser.
I'm assigned as operative assistant, Doctor.
What anesthetic do you plan to use?
He may have serious internal injuries. What do you think, Dr. Gillespie?
Better play it safe and don't take chances on nausea afterwards.
Yeah, right. Okay, we'll use sodium pentothone.
Very well, Doctor.
Come on, Jimmy, let's go to work.
Hey, Jimmy, I haven't been as tired as this for weeks.
I haven't either.
Quite a day. But he came through the operation all right.
Barring shock, I think he'll pull through now.
Oh, no doubt of it all. He's one of the 97.6%.
What do you mean by that?
Well, according to this book here, History of Modern Medicine,
that's the present rate of recovery from serious abdominal injuries.
I see.
Whereas the recovery rate at the time of World War I was only 38%.
That's remarkable improvement, Jimmy.
All right, no argument.
Furthermore, in this particular case,
the patient wouldn't have had any chance of being even one of the 38%.
No. Oh, why not?
Number of reasons.
Any one of which would have killed him.
In the first place, without plasma,
he'd have died of shock right there in that hole.
Very probably.
And before the discovery of penicillin and the sulfur compounds,
he'd have died of blood poisoning.
Well, puncture of the peritoneum was usually fatal.
Of course, morphine and antitetinus serum had been known for a few years, but...
But I know.
We hadn't stumbled under the phenomenon of anaphylaxis.
We'd have given him a standard serum shot
without realizing he might be allergic to it,
and that itself would have killed him.
And we didn't have penethol. We'd have had to use ether.
You'll ask me, speaking, huh?
Oh, for you, Jimmy.
Yes?
What?
Well, yes, that's all you can do.
All right, Parker, I'll be right down.
What's the trouble, Jimmy?
It might have been better if we didn't have those medical improvements.
Patient's alive, all right,
but they've had to put him in a mechanical respirator.
He's paralyzed.
We return to the story of Dr. Kildare in just a moment.
Now we continue with the story of Dr. Kildare,
starring Lou Ayres as Dr. Kildare
and Lionel Barrymore as Dr. Gillespie.
Well, Jimmy, judging by the general area involved
and the nature of the paralysis,
I'd say something's affected the sympathetic system
pretty close to the spinal column.
Yes, that's where it has to be.
It's a place where that many nerve chains lie close together.
Now, now, now, look here on the chart.
If there were an injury or pressure or whatever
anywhere along any of these two trunks
would account for the whole set of symptoms,
but nowhere else.
That iron bar went in about here
and ran back and up there.
Yes, it perforated the peritoneum here,
missed the front of the diaphragm,
pushed this lobe of the liver aside
and lodged against the horn of the seventh dorsal vertebra.
Here. That's right.
And he's paralyzed from the chest down.
It's strange the paralysis would occur suddenly
two hours after the operation.
In a military case, you suspect a piece of shrapnel in the wound.
Yes, yes, one that had shifted
and was pressing on the nerve trunk or something.
Well, anyway, here's what did it.
This end broke loose from the weld on the ladder
and, of course, I saw it off the other end.
Oh, it's a jagged break all right, but still...
You know, there is one possibility.
There could have been a metal fragment on this broken end
that came off and lodged in the wound.
Well, yeah, it would certainly fit the symptom.
And right now, it seems to be the only explanation that does.
We'd better check it.
Oh, Parker.
Jimmy, I suppose you realize
that this means using another modern medical technique.
Yes, I know, Doctor. I'm way ahead of you.
Did you want me for something, Dr. Killian?
Yes, yes, Parker. Would you set up an x-ray room right away?
Hello, Sam. How are you feeling?
He can't very well answer you
with the faceplate of that respirator over his mouth.
I know.
Sam, just nod your head if you're all right. Good.
Yes, a patent central there, Dr. Killian,
if you'd like to ask him anything.
No, I don't think it'll be necessary, Parker.
Just a few x-rays, Sam.
I want to take a look inside of you and make sure you're all right.
Okay. Fine.
Larry, can you get a focus on him
without moving him off the stretcher?
What are you planning to shoot?
Dorsal region of the spine, from as many angles as possible.
Well, I think I can get it all right.
These new machines are pretty flexible.
What is it, orthopedic?
No, no, no. We're looking for a small piece of metal
lodged near the spine.
We're not sure of the size yet.
Hmm. They should want a fluoroscope first and plates later, huh?
No, I think that's the best idea.
Okay, let's move him in a little.
There. I'll try a straight frontal first.
Dorsal, huh?
Yeah, yeah. Probably near the center.
Seventh or eighth vertebra.
All right.
Move the screen back a little, Jimmy.
Hmm. There you are.
It's all right, Mr. Givett.
It isn't going to hurt you there.
Nothing there that I can see.
No, not a sign.
I can give you a little more density if you want.
There you are.
Hmm. Not a thing.
It can't be above the fifth or below the ninth.
Well, there's a lot of bone in there, you know.
But I'd still hate to shoot this up any higher.
Oh, it wouldn't do any good, Larry.
Oh, you can cut it now.
Okay.
Can you give us a transverse shot now?
Straight across from the side?
I think so. Have to lower the tube first.
Oh. For anywhere else but along the spine.
It may not be any larger than a buckshot, you know.
There are about 20 places it could be hidden by the bone shadow.
It's possible there's no fragment of metal there, Jimmy.
Oh, there's got to be.
What else explains it?
Okay. Anytime you're ready.
All right, Larry.
Parker, how's he holding up?
Fine. I'm checking his pulse.
Oh, just a minute.
He's writing something.
Hmm? Writing something?
Oh, it's for you, Dr. Kildare.
Here.
Let me see.
Jimmy, what is it?
Says Doc. Is it still a deal?
That's right, Sam. It's still a deal.
All right, Larry. Turn it on.
I don't know, Jimmy.
With nothing from the fluoroscope,
I doubt that this photograph will show anything either.
Oh, probably not. But we can't miss any chances.
It's just too bad modern medicine had to pick this particular time
to fall down on the job.
Oh, Confound, if only we could be sure
the exact location of that fragment,
it'd be simple enough to get it out.
I know. But without being sure, it's impossible.
There's no shape to stand. A major exploratory would kill him.
Here we are.
Oh, hello, Wayman.
Hiya, Doc. And, uh, sir,
I just got back and they said you was taking x-rays,
so I didn't bother you.
Oh, what'd you find out?
Well, I matched this here bar up with the place on the laddie, see?
And there's a piece missing, all right.
We searched the whole shaft and the floor at the bottom.
Really shook it down.
Well, that settles it, Jimmy. There's our problem.
Yeah, sounds like it.
Oh, Wayman, could you tell anything about the size of the piece?
Well, the way we figured, it's kind of a three-cornered shape
and about as big around as a lead pencil.
Confound, it's a chunk of metal.
No bigger than the nail of your little finger,
and it's paralyzing a man.
Probably kill him.
With all our knowledge, we can't do a single thing to prevent it.
Dr. Kildare, Larry said to tell you
that he's going back to work on the photograph.
Oh, good.
Mr. Novitski, back to bed and give him the sedative you left.
That respirator's bothering him quite a lot.
I know, it's bound to.
Tarnation.
Well, it certainly seems a shame that there isn't some way
of locating a little tiny bit of metal like that.
After all, they've got machines to find gold and uranium.
Parker.
Hmm?
Parker, you're an angel.
I'm a what?
Never mind.
Call the Radford Electronics Laboratories.
It's uptown somewhere.
And get Dave Radford on the phone.
All right, Dr. Kildare.
Radford Electronics...
Jimmy, what are you up to?
Just playing a hunch.
You know, there may be one of those modern advances
that even you haven't heard.
Well, if you weren't in such a darn hurry, Jimmy,
I'd be glad to explain how the gadget works.
Dave, I wouldn't know any more after you explain it.
All I hope is that it does work.
And you mean to say that's all there is to it?
That little black box you carry?
That's right, Dr. Gillespie.
The batteries, vacuum tubes, relays, condenser circuits,
self-contained.
They're all in there.
We call it the Berman detector.
The army medics used a few of them during the war.
Shell fragments, shrapnel and so on.
Worked very well.
Here we are.
You go ahead.
This is Miss Parker, Mr. Radford.
How do you do, Mr. Radford?
I don't think he'll wake up.
Dr. Kildare's been sleeping pretty soundly
from that sedative.
Well, it'll be better if he doesn't.
I guess you can see why we're concerned, Mr. Radford.
Only where he can breathe, huh?
Yeah.
That's tough.
Well, maybe we'd better see what we can do.
It takes a minute to warm up.
How's the thing work, Dave?
I mean, I mean, how do you go about using it?
Well, this metal rod unclips from the side here.
Ah.
It's attached to the circuit through this flexible cord.
So I just move the tip of the rod at random like this until...
Uh-huh.
You must have a scalpel in that pocket, Dr. Gillespie.
Confounded, it's a stopwatch.
And point that thing in some other direction.
Well, it's completely harmless.
Well, we can start any time now.
Good.
Now, if we're right, the fragment is against the spinal column
somewhere between here and here.
And you think it's a piece of mild steel about the size of a pea?
Yes.
Okay, we'll try an arbitrary setting and see what we get.
I'll move it slowly along from...
By the great bones.
There it is.
Yeah.
Just under the eighth dorsal.
Parker, Parker set up an operating room.
You know, Jimmy, this is a very interesting book I'm reading.
The History of Modern Medicine.
Oh, yes.
Yes, I've been glancing through that one myself the last few days.
Since the accident of Novitski's, by any chance?
As a matter of fact, I think it was the next day that I first looked at the book.
How is he?
Oh, fine, fine. I just came from there.
It's the fourth day now. I think he's out of danger.
Still breathing normally?
Normally, except for the fact he's snoring his head off.
Good sign.
You know, Jimmy, it just goes to show what modern medical techniques can do for a patient.
I know. I didn't have any argument with you in the first place.
A fact of which I was aware.
But I just had a bad setback.
I'd fought the case for a week in every way I knew and then lost it.
You know how you feel.
Yes, as though you were three inches tall with a head of solid bone
and both hands cut off at the wrist.
We have come a long way, Dr. Gillespie, and we've still a long way to go.
You know, there's one thing in the profession that hasn't changed, though.
Must have been the same for doctors 50 years ago or 500.
What do you mean?
Well, the feeling you get in a case like Sam Novitski's.
When you put a patient back on his feet, after all the odds say, should be dead.
Jimmy, if it weren't for that feeling, we wouldn't be in the medical profession, neither would we.
And with that pearl of wisdom, I hereby declare today's session in philosophy adjourned.
In just a moment, we will return to the story of Dr. Kildare.
And now, once again, the story of Dr. Kildare, starring Lou Ayres as Dr. Kildare.
Dr. Kildare and Lionel Barrymore as Dr. Gillespie.
Oh, no, it's no use, Dr. Gillespie.
I can't get a thing out of this culture.
It looks completely homogeneous.
Well, now, Jimmy, maybe you haven't got the microscope focus, probably.
Well, Parker, what do you want?
Mr. Novitski is leaving and he wants to say goodbye.
I wasn't sure whether you'd mind.
Of course not, Parker. Send him in.
All right, Dr. Kildare.
I never saw a faster convalescence.
I hope I'm not busting in on something.
Oh, no, Sam, come on in. We're just doing a little research.
Research, huh?
Well, I guess I got a little different idea about that kind of stuff than I had a few weeks ago.
Well, there's quite a bit of it behind the simple fact that you're able to walk in through that door today.
I know, Dr. Gillespie.
Makes me feel pretty guilty, too.
Huh? What do you mean?
Well, there's a young doctor who lives on the top floor of the apartment house where I got his license about a year ago.
Well, he ain't gone into practice. He's working on a cure for some disease.
He's got cages full of mice in his rooms and he's up half the night sometimes.
Really serious about it, huh?
Yeah, and I've always ribbed him about not getting some patients and making an honest living.
Well, I'll tell you one thing.
When I get home, I'm going to climb up them stairs and shake his hand.
You know, that's a very good idea. And do something else, Sam.
Shake his hand twice, will you?
Once for me.
You have just heard the story of Dr. Kildare starring Lou Ayres and Lionel Barrymore.
This program was written by Les Crutchfield and directed by William P. Russo.
Original music was composed and conducted by Walter Schuman.
Supporting cast included Virginia Gregg, Ed Max, Frank Gerstel, Byron Cain, Vic Perrin, and Tudor Owen.
Dick Joy speaking.