Why Hank Gutstop didn't work until near the end of the series (Jimbo and Keith Heltsley)

There are currently 610 episodes of Vic and Sade where we are sure of the show's plot. Hank Gutstop, a friend and fellow lodge brother to Vic, is mentioned once in about every 13 episodes, on average. But it wasn't until Valentine's Day of 1944 (or thereabouts) that Hank ever had a real job. There's no indication that Hank was lazy, as he is seemingly active - even if it only be him hanging around the pool hall or going to lodge meetings. 

There is the blight on him that he might sleep on the platform of the interurban station or perhaps the courthouse lawn, but might that only be because he had no other place to go?  If he were truly a bum wouldn't he be sleeping at a lodge brother's house or hotel room?
Every indication exists to show Hank was innovative, enthusiastic, well-liked (by the men on the show, anyway) and a very talented singer. He could make men cry with his voice. But some kind of wall obviously existed between Hank and women. I think he probably liked them but they didn't reciprocate. Sade especially didn't like him and neither did her friends, all who talked about him behind his back. 

Certainly, part of the reason for Sade's ire was the fact that the man was constantly borrowing small sums of money from Vic. Though he paid Vic back at times (at least small sums) and tried to work for the Gooks to erase a larger part of his debt, Sade still harbored ill feelings for him. As a matter of fact, there were only two known men she really disliked on the show and he was one of them.

So what exactly was it that made it impossible for Hank Gutstop to hold a job until the middle of February, 1944? And how is it that the job that he finally gets is such a prestigious one with seemingly good pay?

The answer to this is simple in that Hank was nothing more than a prop by writer Paul Rhymer. You might say that Hank was actually little more than a MacGuffin, a trick that Rhymer used often in his radio plays.. - By Jimbo Mason

 --------

Comedy works best when situations are realistic, but just wacky enough to do that thing you really wanted to but before modesty and restraint kept you from doing it. It can also be from a tragic event or character who takes the abuse as the butt of a joke so no real harm befalls the main character. Hank is like that. He’s a caricature. He is someone designed to always be on Sade’s bad side, and just plain creeps her out. He has his hooks in her because nearly everybody else loves the guy. Vic is his friend and lodge brother. Hank hangs out in the same circles as Uncle Fletcher, and is admired by Rush.

Hank is everything Sade hates. He’s always jobless, or at least under-employed. He offers no financial security, he’s always in debt to Vic, and thus irresponsible. I think he secretly has a crush on Sade that keeps him lurking nearby, but if so it never is revealed by Paul Rhymer.

Hank is the punchline of a running gag, and because of that his character isn’t really developed further than being two dimensional. There isn’t much else I can say about him than that. - by Keith Heltsley (Retro Radio Podcast)

The first robin of the spring (an Illinois' thing?)

When I first read the Barbara Schwarz notes on this episode and also this one (each dealing with Hank Gutstop spotting the first robin of the spring and being hailed for it) I found them to be in the 'ridiculous' category.

Now, this very well could be or perhaps it was a tradition in Illinois or the Upper Midwest.  I write this because just this morning, I was checking out a Fibber McGee and Molly episode from 1945 where Fibber can't find his newspaper and he's anxious to find it because there is word in there about him being the one who spotted the first robin of the spring (the episode is from April 10 of 1945.)

Now, you may recall that the McGees live in Wistful Vista, which is very much like Peoria, Illinois.  Peoria and Bloomington (the city the Gooks live in, despite what you may have read) are not that far apart - less than 50 miles.  This might be some sort of tradition in this part of the country - or it could be phony stuff cooked up by writers Paul Rhymer and Don Quinn.  Rhymer and Quinn were buddies (one reason because they grew up in the same neck of the woods, one would think.)

So, without further ado, here's that bit of Fibber McGee and Molly - from the episode titled, No Newspaper:

(((HEAR)))

Stories of Gumpox and Rishigan Fishigan often confused

EVEN IN THE METICULOUS NOTES, stories about Mr. Gumpox and Rishigan Fishigan are often reversed.

Why this is is beyond my knowledge.  I can see how they could be confused but even information from AUDIO episodes is somehow confused - so I know there was a confusion somewhere.

For instance, there is a story told by Clarence Hartzell - who when the stories were recorded, must have been close to 80 years old - seems to confuse Gumpox and Rishigan Fishigan, when he tells about a bed hopping across the floor when a long train went by - the longer the train, the farther the bed went.

This story is actually about Rish Fish but Hartzell audibly told it as a Gumpox story.

And some Hank Gutstop stories are attributed to Gumpox, even though they are from audio episodes.

Examine the notes I was given:

All red info is wrong and is really Hank Gutstop's info

This is not a knock on the notes, as I am VERY appreciative of them!  But I am just pointing out that this much information is hard to keep track of (trust me, you would not believe how hard it is.)

Why is Hank Gutstop is missing?

Though the notes did not seem to emphasize it much, it's important to note that Hank is missing.

I can't tell you anything else now but the episode connects to the next two - thus, three straight episodes deal with the same subject. 

Even when Mis' Keller and Harry Feedburn were getting chummy, we didn't have three episodes in a row on the same subject (1944 seems to be the year we have the most information for the series, both audio-wise and note-wise.  All the remaining two months of notes are about 1944.)

I haven't looked at it that closely but we may have a near complete log of 1944 before it's over with.