1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:13,920 Suspense! 2 00:00:13,920 --> 00:00:18,680 In the finest homes and restaurants where distinguished hospitality is a gracious tradition, 3 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:29,360 the choice in wines is C-R-E-S-T-A, B-L-A-N-C-A, Cresca, Blanca, Creta, and Piazza. 4 00:00:29,360 --> 00:00:32,800 Cresca Blanca. 5 00:00:32,800 --> 00:00:35,680 Yes, the best serve Cresca Blanca. 6 00:00:35,680 --> 00:00:39,800 And whatever the occasion, there's a magnificent Cresca Blanca California wine 7 00:00:39,800 --> 00:00:43,200 to bring rare pleasure to every discriminating taste. 8 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,320 That's why for gracious dining this holiday weekend, 9 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:53,200 the smart hostess offers her guests distinguished Cresca Blanca wines from the finest of the vines. 10 00:00:53,200 --> 00:01:01,760 Schenley's Cresca Blanca Wine Company, Livermore, California. 11 00:01:01,760 --> 00:01:06,200 And now for Roma wines, that's R-O-M-A. 12 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:08,920 Roma wines for your everyday pleasure. 13 00:01:08,920 --> 00:01:12,400 Schenley brings you radio's outstanding theater of thrills. 14 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:15,160 Suspense! 15 00:01:15,160 --> 00:01:20,200 Tonight, Roma wines of Fresno, California present Alan Baxter as star of a suspense play 16 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:24,160 produced, edited, and directed for Schenley by William Spear. 17 00:01:24,160 --> 00:01:38,160 Alan Baxter in Money Talks, a remarkable tale of suspense. 18 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:41,360 I had my credentials and the letters of recommendation in my hand. 19 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:46,360 I was wearing the dark blue with a conservative pinstripe and a Van Huesen collar with a knit tie 20 00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:48,960 and was showing it all off to Mr. Purley. 21 00:01:48,960 --> 00:01:53,960 Mr. Purley was one of a mere eight vice presidents of the Banker's Industrial Trust Company. 22 00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:59,960 He had a big shiny desk with nothing on it and the kind of a mind that went right along with it. 23 00:01:59,960 --> 00:02:01,960 He was my meat. 24 00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:06,960 Well, Mr. Golf, of course the bank does occasionally have openings for the right kind of man. 25 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:09,960 I don't like to blow my own horn, Mr. Purley, but... 26 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:12,960 Have you had any previous experience in banking, Mr. Golf? 27 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:16,960 No, sir, I haven't, but there's this. 28 00:02:16,960 --> 00:02:20,960 Ah, yes, yes. So you're a graduate of the Harvard Business School. 29 00:02:20,960 --> 00:02:23,960 Yes, sir. Investment banking was my field. 30 00:02:23,960 --> 00:02:27,960 Well, I must say, Mr. Golf, your grades there were exceptional, most exceptional. 31 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:33,960 I worked hard, Mr. Purley. Banking was my first love, you might say, ever since I can remember. 32 00:02:33,960 --> 00:02:35,960 It's always been more than just a business to me. 33 00:02:35,960 --> 00:02:40,960 It's been, well, I suppose you could call it an ideal, a sacred trust 34 00:02:40,960 --> 00:02:44,960 in the best tradition of our financial and national institutions. 35 00:02:44,960 --> 00:02:46,960 I guess that sounded a little romantic. 36 00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:48,960 No, not at all, Mr. Golf, not at all. 37 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:53,960 I see you graduated four years ago, Mr. Golf. Now, during the past four years? 38 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:56,960 Well, you know how it's been with everybody the last four years. 39 00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:59,960 Oh, of course. I didn't see you wearing any veterans insignia. 40 00:02:59,960 --> 00:03:02,960 I don't like to be ostentatious about it, Mr. Purley. 41 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:07,960 Oh, yes, yes, yes. Do you understand, Mr. Golf, that you'd have to start in a rather minor capacity? 42 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:11,960 Oh, I'm not worried about that, sir. Frankly, Mr. Purley, I'm ambitious. 43 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:16,960 Without being conceited, I'm confident I can make my mark with Bankers Industrial. 44 00:03:16,960 --> 00:03:18,960 You'll give me a chance. 45 00:03:18,960 --> 00:03:21,960 I like your attitude, Mr. Golf. You come in tomorrow morning. 46 00:03:21,960 --> 00:03:23,960 I think we can work something out. 47 00:03:23,960 --> 00:03:26,960 Thank you, Mr. Purley. This is a day I'll never forget. 48 00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:29,960 I think I can safely predict that you won't either. 49 00:03:34,960 --> 00:03:38,960 I gave him the old do or die, look him straight in the eye, handshake, and he left. 50 00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:41,960 That was more than two years ago. 51 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:46,960 The whole thing was phony as an eight dollar bill, all but the part about ambition. 52 00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:48,960 There was nothing phony about that. 53 00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:51,960 I was going to make my mark with Bankers Industrial, all right. 54 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:55,960 About a hundred thousand dollars worth. 55 00:04:01,960 --> 00:04:05,960 You probably know how a bank works, the bookkeeping, I mean. 56 00:04:05,960 --> 00:04:10,960 All day long the tellers pay it out and take it in, and then at three o'clock the bank closes. 57 00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:12,960 Only that's when the work really begins. 58 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:16,960 Because then the tellers have to hand over their checks and receipts and statements of cash on hand 59 00:04:16,960 --> 00:04:20,960 to girls, you see, running those big calculating machines. 60 00:04:20,960 --> 00:04:24,960 When it's all over, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth in a big bank like this one, 61 00:04:24,960 --> 00:04:29,960 it has to balance out to the last penny. I mean penny. 62 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:32,960 That's where Anita Willoughby came in. 63 00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:37,960 She was young and demure looking, but sort of intense too, if you know what I mean. 64 00:04:37,960 --> 00:04:40,960 She looked like just what the doctor ordered. 65 00:04:40,960 --> 00:04:42,960 Of course, I couldn't start anything in the bank. 66 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:45,960 Banks are poison on office romances. You'll see why after a while. 67 00:04:45,960 --> 00:04:48,960 But a couple of weeks of little attentions and I was ready. 68 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:51,960 It just happened that I was looking into the window of a men's furnishing store. 69 00:04:51,960 --> 00:04:53,960 She was passing by on her way home. 70 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:56,960 I was lighting a cigarette and it just happened. 71 00:04:56,960 --> 00:04:59,960 I turned suddenly and of course it just happened. 72 00:04:59,960 --> 00:05:01,960 I bumped right into it. 73 00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:04,960 Oh, Miss Willoughby. Oh, I am sorry. 74 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:08,960 Oh, it's all right, Mr. Gough. Just startled me a little. 75 00:05:08,960 --> 00:05:12,960 It's terribly clumsy of me. You on your way home? Going my way? 76 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:15,960 I don't know. What is your way, Miss Gough? 77 00:05:15,960 --> 00:05:19,960 Well, as a matter of fact, I was just going down here a couple of blocks to where I left my car. 78 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:20,960 You have a car, Miss Willoughby? 79 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:22,960 No, unfortunately I don't. 80 00:05:22,960 --> 00:05:25,960 Well then, perhaps I could give you a lift, Miss Willoughby. 81 00:05:25,960 --> 00:05:31,960 Perhaps you could, Mr. Gough. 82 00:05:31,960 --> 00:05:35,960 Well, we wound up having dinner. It went on from there. 83 00:05:35,960 --> 00:05:41,960 After the first ten minutes I knew that demure act was strictly something for Mr. Purley and the adding machine. 84 00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:45,960 Anita Willoughby was smart. She'd been around and she knew the score. 85 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:48,960 I was glad of this because it would take less sales talk later on. 86 00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:55,960 In another way, it was too bad, really. It was too bad because I was going to have to kill her. 87 00:05:55,960 --> 00:06:07,960 For suspense, Roma Wines are bringing you Alan Baxter in Money Talks. 88 00:06:07,960 --> 00:06:20,960 Roma Wines presentation tonight in Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills, Suspense. 89 00:06:20,960 --> 00:06:25,960 Suspense, Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills, is presented for your enjoyment by Roma. 90 00:06:25,960 --> 00:06:29,960 That's R-O-M-A, Roma California Wines. 91 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:34,960 Those better tasting wines enjoyed by more Americans than any other wine. 92 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:40,960 Speaking of enjoyment, here's a practical hint from Roma to make your holiday weekend cool and comfortable. 93 00:06:40,960 --> 00:06:45,960 Whether you're planning a trip to the country, a gay picnic at the beach, or a quiet rest at home, 94 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:48,960 keep cooler with refreshing Roma wine and soda. 95 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:53,960 Simply half-fill glasses with Roma Burgundy, Roma Sauternes, or your favorite Roma wine. 96 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:59,960 Fill up with ice and soda, sweeten to taste, and garnish with a fragrant sprig of mint or colorful fruit slices. 97 00:06:59,960 --> 00:07:04,960 You'll find delicious Roma wine and soda America's smartest way to cool off. 98 00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:07,960 A wonderful way to say welcome when friends drop in. 99 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:09,960 A marvelous thirst for adventure anytime. 100 00:07:09,960 --> 00:07:15,960 To beat the heat you can't beat refreshing Roma wine and soda iced. 101 00:07:15,960 --> 00:07:21,960 Made with better tasting Roma wine from America's greatest reserves of fine wine. 102 00:07:21,960 --> 00:07:27,960 And now Roma Wines bring back to our New York Soundstage, Alan Baxter in Money Talks. 103 00:07:27,960 --> 00:07:31,960 A tale well calculated to keep you in suspense. 104 00:07:39,960 --> 00:07:44,960 If you're cool-headed and cold-blooded, if you have a plan, if there's something you really want, 105 00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:49,960 all the laws and locks in the world won't stop you from latching onto it. 106 00:07:49,960 --> 00:07:52,960 That's what I'd always figured and that's what I figured now. 107 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:56,960 That's why I sold two years of my life to a bank for a lousy 60 bucks a week. 108 00:07:56,960 --> 00:07:58,960 That's why I made the play for Anita. 109 00:07:58,960 --> 00:08:02,960 That's why I was going to have to kill Anita. 110 00:08:02,960 --> 00:08:05,960 Before that there was a lot of other ground I had to cover with Anita. 111 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:08,960 I spent six months more covering it and then I was ready. 112 00:08:08,960 --> 00:08:13,960 We were having dinner at a quiet little place we used to go to and Anita was happy as a lark. 113 00:08:13,960 --> 00:08:18,960 I was bearing down hard on an act I'd been working up all week. 114 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:19,960 What's the matter, Cliff? 115 00:08:19,960 --> 00:08:20,960 Oh, I don't know. 116 00:08:20,960 --> 00:08:24,960 Oh, come on. You've been moody like this for days. 117 00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:26,960 What's on your mind? 118 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:28,960 Well, it's about us, I guess. 119 00:08:28,960 --> 00:08:29,960 What about us? 120 00:08:29,960 --> 00:08:30,960 I don't know. 121 00:08:30,960 --> 00:08:33,960 When I first started to work in that salt mine two years ago, 122 00:08:33,960 --> 00:08:35,960 I thought I was going to set the world on fire. 123 00:08:35,960 --> 00:08:37,960 But now... 124 00:08:37,960 --> 00:08:39,960 What's all this got to do with us, Cliff? 125 00:08:39,960 --> 00:08:42,960 What kind of a life is it to look forward to? 126 00:08:42,960 --> 00:08:44,960 Two years and I'm third assistant cashier. 127 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:48,960 Maybe in ten years I'll even get to be first cashier. So what? 128 00:08:48,960 --> 00:08:52,960 Well, you didn't expect them to make you majority stockholder, did you? 129 00:08:52,960 --> 00:08:54,960 Or if you did, you shouldn't have. 130 00:08:54,960 --> 00:09:00,960 Honey, I wish we could get away from here, go places, see things, have fun. 131 00:09:00,960 --> 00:09:01,960 So do I, Cliff. 132 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:03,960 Yeah, but on what? 133 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:07,960 Well, maybe in ten years or so when you are first cashier. 134 00:09:07,960 --> 00:09:09,960 All right, laugh at me. I got it coming. 135 00:09:09,960 --> 00:09:12,960 It's a job, that's all, Cliff. That's the way most jobs are. 136 00:09:12,960 --> 00:09:16,960 But it's not the kind of job you want your husband to have, is it? 137 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:17,960 My husband? 138 00:09:17,960 --> 00:09:20,960 What do you think I've been talking about all this time? 139 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:24,960 What's the use if we can't look forward to getting married and having some fun, 140 00:09:24,960 --> 00:09:27,960 some romance, some glamour in our lives? 141 00:09:27,960 --> 00:09:33,960 Well, it's a funny proposal, Cliff, but I like what it says. 142 00:09:33,960 --> 00:09:38,960 But if some guy with a hundred thousand bucks came along, I can't blame you. 143 00:09:38,960 --> 00:09:41,960 I'd rather have you with my hundred thousand, Cliff. 144 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:44,960 Darling, why can't we have both? Where's the justice in it? 145 00:09:44,960 --> 00:09:48,960 When I think of the millions, millions in cash money that's gone through my hands 146 00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:51,960 in the past two years, what have I got? 147 00:09:51,960 --> 00:09:55,960 Doesn't it make you feel funny sometimes, Cliff? 148 00:09:55,960 --> 00:09:56,960 What? 149 00:09:56,960 --> 00:09:58,960 Handling all that money. 150 00:09:58,960 --> 00:10:02,960 Yeah, yeah, sometimes I can almost hear it talking to me. 151 00:10:02,960 --> 00:10:03,960 So can I. 152 00:10:03,960 --> 00:10:09,960 You too, huh? Listen, Nina, do you ever get to thinking how you could get that hundred thousand? 153 00:10:09,960 --> 00:10:14,960 Of course I have, but I never thought of a way it'd work. 154 00:10:14,960 --> 00:10:16,960 Suppose you had, suppose there was one. 155 00:10:16,960 --> 00:10:22,960 Listen, Cliff, I've got no scruples. You only live once, but I'm allergic to penitentiaries. 156 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:24,960 I asked you a question. 157 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:28,960 You mean a way that was absolutely certain, guaranteed safe? 158 00:10:28,960 --> 00:10:29,960 Yeah. 159 00:10:29,960 --> 00:10:31,960 I'd buy it. 160 00:10:31,960 --> 00:10:36,960 Listen, baby, you know what's the matter with all those guys that try to clip a bank? 161 00:10:36,960 --> 00:10:38,960 They're not dishonest. 162 00:10:38,960 --> 00:10:41,960 No, I mean it. Look what happens, what always happens. 163 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:43,960 The guy's hard up or he's got a tip in the market or the races or something, 164 00:10:43,960 --> 00:10:46,960 and he dips into the till, and after a while he takes a little more and then a little more, 165 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:48,960 but he always figures he's going to pay it back. 166 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:50,960 He covers it up with a lot of fancy bookkeeping. 167 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:53,960 So along comes some auditor that's a little smarter than he is, 168 00:10:53,960 --> 00:10:56,960 and bluey, the big vacation, the long-term lease. 169 00:10:56,960 --> 00:10:59,960 All because the guy is fundamentally honest. 170 00:10:59,960 --> 00:11:01,960 Well, you can't win, I guess. 171 00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:03,960 No? Listen, you know the guys that do? 172 00:11:03,960 --> 00:11:05,960 The big shots, the president's board chairman. 173 00:11:05,960 --> 00:11:08,960 When those guys clip a bank, they grab themselves anywhere from a hundred grand 174 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:11,960 to a cool million one fine night and blow. 175 00:11:11,960 --> 00:11:13,960 You never hear of them again. 176 00:11:13,960 --> 00:11:15,960 But you can bet they're sitting pretty somewhere. 177 00:11:15,960 --> 00:11:17,960 You know why? Because they were dishonest. 178 00:11:17,960 --> 00:11:19,960 They planned it. 179 00:11:19,960 --> 00:11:22,960 They'd laugh themselves to death at the idea of paying it back. 180 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:24,960 Only you're not a big shot, darling. 181 00:11:24,960 --> 00:11:26,960 Listen, they do it all at one clip. 182 00:11:26,960 --> 00:11:28,960 They're out of the country before anybody finds out. 183 00:11:28,960 --> 00:11:30,960 That's what I'm talking about. 184 00:11:30,960 --> 00:11:32,960 Sure, but they have the chance. You don't. 185 00:11:32,960 --> 00:11:36,960 No, but us, between us, we do. 186 00:11:36,960 --> 00:11:38,960 We? 187 00:11:38,960 --> 00:11:41,960 Dick Breen, the first cashier, takes his vacation in August. 188 00:11:41,960 --> 00:11:43,960 Every Thursday, Jerry Malone the second goes over to investment. 189 00:11:43,960 --> 00:11:45,960 They're teaching us out of the business. 190 00:11:45,960 --> 00:11:47,960 That means that for two Thursdays in August, 191 00:11:47,960 --> 00:11:49,960 I take his place and consign for cash from the vault. 192 00:11:49,960 --> 00:11:50,960 But, Clare... 193 00:11:50,960 --> 00:11:51,960 Wait a minute. 194 00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:53,960 All I have to do is give you a receipt 195 00:11:53,960 --> 00:11:55,960 so that when you add it up at the end of the day, we get our balance. 196 00:11:55,960 --> 00:11:56,960 Don't you see it? 197 00:11:56,960 --> 00:11:57,960 What kind of a receipt? 198 00:11:57,960 --> 00:11:59,960 Any kind. One of the big payroll receipts will do it. 199 00:11:59,960 --> 00:12:00,960 But how you... 200 00:12:00,960 --> 00:12:02,960 How do I get it? I write it myself. 201 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:04,960 You won't question it. 202 00:12:04,960 --> 00:12:05,960 Oh. 203 00:12:05,960 --> 00:12:07,960 Now, do you get it? 204 00:12:07,960 --> 00:12:09,960 Oh, it's awful risky, Cliff. 205 00:12:09,960 --> 00:12:11,960 What about the next day? 206 00:12:11,960 --> 00:12:13,960 I've been trying to tell you. You don't wait for the next day. 207 00:12:13,960 --> 00:12:15,960 Do you realize how far from these United States you can get 208 00:12:15,960 --> 00:12:17,960 in 18 or 20 hours nowadays? 209 00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:19,960 You can get to places where you can live like a king 210 00:12:19,960 --> 00:12:21,960 for the rest of your life on $100,000. 211 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:23,960 The rest of my life, Cliff? 212 00:12:23,960 --> 00:12:25,960 Sure, baby, sure. Why not? 213 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:28,960 Well, what about it? 214 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:38,960 All right, Cliff. I'll do it. 215 00:12:38,960 --> 00:12:41,960 The first Thursday in August was six weeks away. 216 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:45,960 But waiting for them to pass was like living through six lifetimes. 217 00:12:45,960 --> 00:12:49,960 We went over it again and again, every detail, every possible variation. 218 00:12:49,960 --> 00:12:52,960 There's no use saying I wasn't nervous, because I was. 219 00:12:52,960 --> 00:12:55,960 A couple of times I even thought Anita and I were being followed in the car. 220 00:12:55,960 --> 00:12:59,960 I was that bad. I managed to keep under control at the bank. 221 00:12:59,960 --> 00:13:02,960 And the big day finally rolled around. 222 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:05,960 I waited until about a quarter of twelve, just before the noon rush hour, 223 00:13:05,960 --> 00:13:09,960 and then I marched over to Mr. Purley's desk, trying to look casual and nonchalant. 224 00:13:09,960 --> 00:13:13,960 This was the worst part. Right here, right now. 225 00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:17,960 My hands were sweating and my mouth was dry until I began to be afraid 226 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:19,960 the words would stick in my throat. 227 00:13:19,960 --> 00:13:23,960 There was nothing to it, really. It's the kind of things that's done every day in a bank, 228 00:13:23,960 --> 00:13:26,960 not the way I was doing it. 229 00:13:26,960 --> 00:13:29,960 Sure, I was scared. 230 00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:31,960 Hello, Cliff. What is it? 231 00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:34,960 You want to countersign this for me, Mr. Purley? 232 00:13:34,960 --> 00:13:35,960 A hundred and four thousand. 233 00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:36,960 Cash? 234 00:13:36,960 --> 00:13:40,960 Yeah, Eastern Chemical. They want us to get their payroll together on Thursdays after this. 235 00:13:40,960 --> 00:13:42,960 Some kind of new accounting system over there. 236 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:44,960 Oh, well... 237 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:48,960 There you are. 238 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:53,960 Thank you, Mr. Purley. 239 00:13:55,960 --> 00:13:58,960 There it was. Just as simple as that. 240 00:13:58,960 --> 00:14:02,960 After all those weeks of worry and jumpy nerves, there it was. 241 00:14:02,960 --> 00:14:06,960 I went to the vault and drew the cash, and the worst was over. 242 00:14:06,960 --> 00:14:10,960 I came out on the floor again. The noon crowds are beginning to line up in front of the windows, 243 00:14:10,960 --> 00:14:12,960 keeping everybody on the jump and minding their own business. 244 00:14:12,960 --> 00:14:15,960 I took over Harrison's cage, same as I always did at the lunch hour, 245 00:14:15,960 --> 00:14:18,960 and I don't think he even noticed the canvas bag I was carrying. 246 00:14:18,960 --> 00:14:20,960 It's that usual. 247 00:14:20,960 --> 00:14:24,960 After he left, I simply took a minute to transfer the cash from the bag into my own briefcase, 248 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:26,960 and that was that. 249 00:14:26,960 --> 00:14:30,960 When he came back, I strolled over to Anita's machine with the Eastern Chemical receipt 250 00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:33,960 that I'd made up the night before. 251 00:14:33,960 --> 00:14:35,960 Oh, Miss Wellaby. 252 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:36,960 Yes, Mr. Gough? 253 00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:39,960 Eastern Chemical has changed their payroll date to Thursday. Here's the receipt. 254 00:14:39,960 --> 00:14:41,960 Don't forget to include it in your tally. 255 00:14:41,960 --> 00:14:45,960 Yes, Mr. Gough. 256 00:14:48,960 --> 00:14:52,960 There was nothing to do now but sweat it out until five o'clock. 257 00:14:52,960 --> 00:14:57,960 I went out to lunch myself, but I didn't eat much. I was beginning to get nervous again. 258 00:14:57,960 --> 00:14:59,960 I went back to my desk and tried to look busy. 259 00:14:59,960 --> 00:15:02,960 I kept thinking of all the things that could go wrong. 260 00:15:02,960 --> 00:15:06,960 Purley happened to call Eastern Chemical on some other business. 261 00:15:06,960 --> 00:15:08,960 But it turned out to be one of those days that come about twice a year 262 00:15:08,960 --> 00:15:13,960 when you can't get a balance and you can't find the error and everybody has to go over every transaction of the day until they do. 263 00:15:13,960 --> 00:15:18,960 That hundred and four thousand item would stand out like a red flag at a businessman's lunch. 264 00:15:18,960 --> 00:15:22,960 I was beginning to think about what I would have to do afterwards, too. 265 00:15:22,960 --> 00:15:25,960 But, well, that wasn't getting me anywhere, and I knew it. 266 00:15:25,960 --> 00:15:28,960 Finally, three o'clock came and the bank closed. 267 00:15:28,960 --> 00:15:32,960 The gang went to work on their totals and the girls began to bring me their balance sheets. 268 00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:34,960 Anita was the last one. 269 00:15:34,960 --> 00:15:35,960 Hey, you want us to go up? 270 00:15:35,960 --> 00:15:36,960 The balance? 271 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:37,960 Uh-huh. 272 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:38,960 How are the others? 273 00:15:38,960 --> 00:15:40,960 Well, I guess that's all then, Miss Willoughby. 274 00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:41,960 Good night. 275 00:15:41,960 --> 00:15:42,960 Good night, Mr. Gough. 276 00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:43,960 Oh, Mr. Purley. 277 00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:44,960 Oh, uh, yes, Cliff. 278 00:15:44,960 --> 00:15:46,960 Oh, I got your balance. 279 00:15:46,960 --> 00:15:49,960 Yes, sir. All in order, I guess. Here you are. 280 00:15:49,960 --> 00:15:51,960 Uh-huh. 281 00:15:51,960 --> 00:15:53,960 All right, Cliff, thank you. 282 00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:55,960 Well, going to do a little homework tonight? 283 00:15:55,960 --> 00:15:57,960 A pretty bulky briefcase you're taking home there. 284 00:15:57,960 --> 00:15:59,960 Oh, yes. 285 00:15:59,960 --> 00:16:03,960 Yes, I wanted to do a little reading up on that South American situation. 286 00:16:03,960 --> 00:16:05,960 Good boy. Well, good night, Cliff. 287 00:16:05,960 --> 00:16:07,960 Good night, Mr. Purley. 288 00:16:12,960 --> 00:16:18,960 Well, I had a hundred thousand dollars in wonderful bright green folding money. 289 00:16:18,960 --> 00:16:21,960 Driving out of town, I felt edgy and depressed. 290 00:16:21,960 --> 00:16:24,960 I even got the idea I was being followed again. 291 00:16:24,960 --> 00:16:28,960 I knew what it was all about. Of course, it was Anita, what I was going to have to do. 292 00:16:28,960 --> 00:16:31,960 I tried to forget it up until now. I tried to kid myself it would be some other way. 293 00:16:31,960 --> 00:16:34,960 But I know there wasn't. She was smart, too smart. 294 00:16:34,960 --> 00:16:38,960 She'd have the little poison blue after me before I could get to the airport. 295 00:16:38,960 --> 00:16:43,960 One thing was for sure, I wasn't splitting that dough with her or anyone else. 296 00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:48,960 So it had to be this way. It just had to be. 297 00:16:48,960 --> 00:16:51,960 So far, I was pretty sure the idea had never entered her head. 298 00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:56,960 I'd let her get the plane tickets to Mexico, although of course I had other than my own to Rio. 299 00:16:56,960 --> 00:17:00,960 And I told her to meet me at the little shack I had in the country because it would be safer. 300 00:17:00,960 --> 00:17:02,960 She'd already arrived when I got there. 301 00:17:02,960 --> 00:17:04,960 Cliff, can I come? 302 00:17:04,960 --> 00:17:06,960 Okay, baby. Are you ready? 303 00:17:06,960 --> 00:17:10,960 Of course. You're early. Are you sure? 304 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:12,960 You mean did I get it? 305 00:17:12,960 --> 00:17:17,960 Look at that. What do you think that stuff is, huh? How about that? 306 00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:19,960 So you did. You really did. 307 00:17:19,960 --> 00:17:22,960 Of course I did. Did you think I wouldn't? 308 00:17:22,960 --> 00:17:25,960 Well, something might have gone wrong, Cliff. 309 00:17:25,960 --> 00:17:27,960 Not with me, baby. Not with me. 310 00:17:27,960 --> 00:17:31,960 Have you got that Eastern chemical receipt? I told you to slip it out of the heap when you got through. 311 00:17:31,960 --> 00:17:34,960 Yeah, I've got it. Let's see it. 312 00:17:34,960 --> 00:17:36,960 Here. 313 00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:39,960 Uh-huh. Okay, that's all I need. 314 00:17:39,960 --> 00:17:41,960 But... that's what? 315 00:17:41,960 --> 00:17:46,960 I'm sorry about this, Nita. Honestly. I really am. 316 00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:49,960 Cliff! No! No! Cliff! 317 00:17:49,960 --> 00:18:02,960 I got the rope and tied her up and tied a towel over her head, mostly because I didn't want to see her face. 318 00:18:02,960 --> 00:18:06,960 And I got out the gasoline and spread about half of it around the room. 319 00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:11,960 I took the rest of it down the cellar and poured it in a big shallow pan I had down there. 320 00:18:11,960 --> 00:18:16,960 There was a candle set in the middle of the pan and it came about three inches above the level of the gasoline. 321 00:18:16,960 --> 00:18:22,960 It would take about two hours to burn down. By that time, I'd be in a plane over the Atlantic Ocean. 322 00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:26,960 The way it was pretty rugged and I felt sort of bad about it. 323 00:18:26,960 --> 00:18:31,960 But you always hear that they suffocate from the smoke before the fire ever gets to them. 324 00:18:31,960 --> 00:18:35,960 So I lit the candle and I got out of there. 325 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:39,960 Well, it was over. It was done with now. 326 00:18:39,960 --> 00:18:45,960 And I began to hear it again. All the way down there in the clipper, I could hear that money talking. 327 00:18:45,960 --> 00:18:50,960 Maybe I'd get a rancho, one of those cattle outfits with a big hacienda and a couple dozen servants. 328 00:18:50,960 --> 00:18:53,960 Plenty of dough and Argentine beef. 329 00:18:53,960 --> 00:18:56,960 Or maybe it'd be oil or nitrates. 330 00:18:56,960 --> 00:19:00,960 All I knew for sure was that this hundred thousand was all I needed. 331 00:19:00,960 --> 00:19:05,960 If it was smart operating, I'd roll it up to a million before I was forty. 332 00:19:05,960 --> 00:19:11,960 In Rio, I registered under my new name of Clarence Gage for the best suite and the best hotel in town. 333 00:19:11,960 --> 00:19:13,960 Got ready to relax. 334 00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:19,960 Next day, I got the times that they fly down here for the big shots and there it was on the suburban page. 335 00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:23,960 I found Anita and she'd been identified by jewelry and stuff. 336 00:19:23,960 --> 00:19:26,480 I mentioned that she was employed at the blueprints and she was a very good 337 00:19:26,480 --> 00:19:31,960 and she'd been identified by jewelry and stuff. I mentioned that she was employed at the Bankers Industrial 338 00:19:31,960 --> 00:19:33,960 and hinted she might have been in some trouble there. 339 00:19:33,960 --> 00:19:37,960 I was all to the good and I relaxed even more. 340 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:42,960 And then the next day, I got a very funny feeling. 341 00:19:42,960 --> 00:19:46,960 All the way up in the elevator, I felt it. 342 00:19:46,960 --> 00:19:49,960 I didn't like it. I didn't like it at all. 343 00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:53,960 When I opened my door, I liked it even less. 344 00:19:53,960 --> 00:19:54,960 Mr. Gage? 345 00:19:54,960 --> 00:19:56,960 Yeah? Who are you? 346 00:19:56,960 --> 00:19:59,960 Gorman's the name. Sam Gorman. 347 00:19:59,960 --> 00:20:01,960 You and me have got a little bills to transact. 348 00:20:01,960 --> 00:20:04,960 Have we? I don't think I know you, Mr. Gorman. 349 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:07,960 Well, maybe this heater will jog your memory, huh? 350 00:20:07,960 --> 00:20:11,960 Guns never remind me of anything but trouble and I don't like trouble. 351 00:20:11,960 --> 00:20:15,960 But you got it, Mr. Goff. You got it. 352 00:20:15,960 --> 00:20:18,960 All right. What's the pitch? 353 00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:21,960 You mean this heater doesn't remind you of anything? 354 00:20:21,960 --> 00:20:24,960 Like money? About a hundred grand? 355 00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:27,960 Or somebody named Anita? 356 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:29,960 You got a rotten memory, haven't you? 357 00:20:29,960 --> 00:20:31,960 You're a cop. You're wasting your time. 358 00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:33,960 Cop? 359 00:20:33,960 --> 00:20:36,960 I know some guys who get a big kick out of that. 360 00:20:36,960 --> 00:20:38,960 No, I'm no cop, Mr. Goff. 361 00:20:38,960 --> 00:20:40,960 Well, let's talk then. What do you want? 362 00:20:40,960 --> 00:20:42,960 Can't you guess, Mr. Goff? 363 00:20:42,960 --> 00:20:43,960 I wouldn't try. 364 00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:46,960 I want the bill, Mr. Goff. The money. 365 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:48,960 What makes you think you're going to get it? 366 00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:51,960 Well, for one thing, this. 367 00:20:51,960 --> 00:20:53,960 Wouldn't try that again. Gun or no gun? 368 00:20:53,960 --> 00:20:54,960 No. 369 00:20:54,960 --> 00:20:57,960 Cut it out, Sam. I said no rough stuff. 370 00:20:57,960 --> 00:20:58,960 Anita. 371 00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:00,960 Yeah. I owe him at least that much. 372 00:21:00,960 --> 00:21:03,960 Oh, don't be silly, Sam. All we want is the money. Now start looking for it. 373 00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:07,960 Sure. He just tried to fry in gasoline. That's all. No rough stuff. 374 00:21:07,960 --> 00:21:10,960 Did it just make complications with the local police and you know it? 375 00:21:10,960 --> 00:21:13,960 Now stop being jealous. Find the money. 376 00:21:13,960 --> 00:21:16,960 Anita. They said... What's said in the paper... 377 00:21:16,960 --> 00:21:18,960 That little fire at your place? 378 00:21:18,960 --> 00:21:20,960 Oh, they found somebody all right. 379 00:21:20,960 --> 00:21:22,960 It just didn't happen to be me. 380 00:21:22,960 --> 00:21:24,960 You don't mean... You didn't deliberately... 381 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:26,960 Yes, him, well, yes. 382 00:21:26,960 --> 00:21:29,960 I don't think the guy's got much of a sense of humor, sugar. 383 00:21:29,960 --> 00:21:32,960 It was somebody Sam didn't like. And nobody that'll be missed. 384 00:21:32,960 --> 00:21:35,960 All right, I've got no sense of humor. Maybe I'm dumb, too. I don't get it. 385 00:21:35,960 --> 00:21:39,960 Well, you see, Civ, we never did like the idea of leaving the country. 386 00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:40,960 You said it. 387 00:21:40,960 --> 00:21:42,960 But this way, I'm off the hook. 388 00:21:42,960 --> 00:21:47,960 We can go back any time we want to, because legally, I'm dead. See? 389 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:51,960 May I ask who this we is that suddenly got into the conversation? 390 00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:53,960 Me and Sam. My husband. 391 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:54,960 Your husband. 392 00:21:54,960 --> 00:21:55,960 That's me. 393 00:21:55,960 --> 00:21:59,960 Mm-hmm. I went to work in the bank for the same reason you did, Civ. 394 00:21:59,960 --> 00:22:02,960 There was gonna be a stick-up and I was gonna help from the inside. 395 00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:05,960 Only your way seems so much better. 396 00:22:05,960 --> 00:22:07,960 Well, how do you like that? 397 00:22:07,960 --> 00:22:09,960 Yeah. How does it feel, wonder boy? 398 00:22:09,960 --> 00:22:12,960 It's like me trying to tell you how to be dishonest. 399 00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:15,960 Aw, there don't have to be any hard feelings, Civ. 400 00:22:15,960 --> 00:22:17,960 At least I don't have any. 401 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:19,960 It was really Sam's fault what happened to me. 402 00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:20,960 What? 403 00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:21,960 We're almost dead. 404 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:24,960 He lost you somehow, following you out to the place. 405 00:22:24,960 --> 00:22:26,960 We were almost certain that you'd try it, of course. 406 00:22:26,960 --> 00:22:27,960 Yeah, of course. 407 00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:30,960 Yeah. I still owe him some lumps for that. 408 00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:33,960 A hundred thousand really wasn't enough for both of us. 409 00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:35,960 If it were two bits, I'd give it to him. 410 00:22:35,960 --> 00:22:37,960 Sam, haven't you found that money yet? 411 00:22:37,960 --> 00:22:39,960 Of course I have, wonder boy. 412 00:22:39,960 --> 00:22:41,960 I don't think I have it here, do you? 413 00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:42,960 I do. 414 00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:44,960 Look for a brown leather briefcase, Sam. 415 00:22:44,960 --> 00:22:46,960 Two will get you ten. It's all right there. 416 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:49,960 Yeah? Well, here's the briefcase. 417 00:22:51,960 --> 00:22:53,960 Well, well, well. 418 00:22:53,960 --> 00:22:57,960 I guess wonder boy just didn't have much confidence in thanks, huh? 419 00:22:57,960 --> 00:22:59,960 Not that I blame him. 420 00:22:59,960 --> 00:23:01,960 Well, I guess we better get going. 421 00:23:01,960 --> 00:23:04,960 Listen, Nita, it was a bum deal all the way around. 422 00:23:04,960 --> 00:23:07,960 I'm sorry. I'm sorry about that other part, about you, I mean. 423 00:23:07,960 --> 00:23:09,960 I believe it. You even said so. 424 00:23:09,960 --> 00:23:11,960 No hard feelings, Cliff. 425 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:14,960 I think wonder boy is leading up to something. 426 00:23:14,960 --> 00:23:16,960 I can see you, the intellectual type. 427 00:23:16,960 --> 00:23:18,960 All right, how about leaving me a little? 428 00:23:18,960 --> 00:23:19,960 Nuts. 429 00:23:19,960 --> 00:23:20,960 Why not, Sam? 430 00:23:20,960 --> 00:23:21,960 Just a thousand or so. 431 00:23:21,960 --> 00:23:24,960 What's the use? They won't get him anyplace, even down here. 432 00:23:24,960 --> 00:23:27,960 Listen, you don't think I'm going to stick around down here now, do you? 433 00:23:27,960 --> 00:23:29,960 I've got to get back to the States and make another pitch. 434 00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:31,960 Give him the money, Sam. One thousand. 435 00:23:31,960 --> 00:23:33,960 And, uh, Cliff. 436 00:23:33,960 --> 00:23:34,960 Yeah? 437 00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:37,960 I'd be a little careful about going back to the States if I were you. 438 00:23:37,960 --> 00:23:40,960 Sure. That goes double, Nita. 439 00:23:40,960 --> 00:23:41,960 What does? 440 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:42,960 About being careful. 441 00:23:42,960 --> 00:23:43,960 I don't get it. 442 00:23:43,960 --> 00:23:47,960 You will. And that money begins to talk. 443 00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:57,960 Talk about honor among thieves. 444 00:23:57,960 --> 00:24:02,960 But it could have been worse. I'd only lost two years of my life, not all of it. 445 00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:07,960 So, a month later, I was out on the West Coast, credentials, dark blue, pinstripe, Van Huser and all, 446 00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:10,960 and this time the sucker was a Mr. Ambrose. 447 00:24:10,960 --> 00:24:15,960 Uh-huh. Well, your record at the business school is certainly impressive, Mr. Gage. 448 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:17,960 I worked hard, Mr. Ambrose. 449 00:24:17,960 --> 00:24:20,960 Banking has always seemed more than just a business to me. 450 00:24:20,960 --> 00:24:27,960 It's been, well, an ideal, a sacred trust, and the best tradition of our financial and national institutions. 451 00:24:27,960 --> 00:24:29,960 Ah, you've got the right spirit, Mr. Gage. 452 00:24:29,960 --> 00:24:33,960 Come in tomorrow morning, and I think we can work something out. 453 00:24:38,960 --> 00:24:41,960 So, it all began all over again. 454 00:24:41,960 --> 00:24:46,960 Only about three months later, there was a little man in a derby hat standing in line in front of my window, 455 00:24:46,960 --> 00:24:49,960 and his business was strictly personal. 456 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:50,960 You Clarence Gage? 457 00:24:50,960 --> 00:24:52,960 Yes, that's right. 458 00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:54,960 Can we have a little private talk? 459 00:24:54,960 --> 00:24:58,960 Well, I guess, oh, can you take over for me a minute, Harry? 460 00:24:58,960 --> 00:25:01,960 And maybe for a little bit longer than a minute. 461 00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:03,960 Well, now, what can I do for you, Mr.... 462 00:25:03,960 --> 00:25:06,960 I used to work on a name of Clifford Goff on the East Coast. 463 00:25:06,960 --> 00:25:07,960 Oh. 464 00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:10,960 Yeah. Headquarters. 465 00:25:10,960 --> 00:25:13,960 Listen, you got me all wrong on that. I didn't have anything to do with it. 466 00:25:13,960 --> 00:25:16,960 What would I be working here for if I had that kind of dough? 467 00:25:16,960 --> 00:25:18,960 I can prove to you, I never got a cent. 468 00:25:18,960 --> 00:25:21,960 Now, wait a minute. You knew the girl, didn't you? 469 00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:26,960 Sure. When I heard what had happened, well, I'd been going around with her, and I got scared, that's all. 470 00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:30,960 Yeah, I bet you didn't. Well, she's dead. 471 00:25:30,960 --> 00:25:33,960 Anita? Oh, no, she's not dead. It was another girl that... 472 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:38,960 Get your coat, Mr. Goff. You're under arrest for attempted murder and grand larceny. 473 00:25:45,960 --> 00:25:50,960 Well, it's a funny thing what happens to people when they hear that money begin to talk. 474 00:25:50,960 --> 00:25:54,960 I guess Anita finally heard it, too, before she died. 475 00:25:54,960 --> 00:25:59,960 You see, Sam Gorman had started a big gambling joint in Las Vegas, and it was held up, and he was killed. 476 00:25:59,960 --> 00:26:02,960 There was a girl with him that was killed, too, Anita. 477 00:26:02,960 --> 00:26:07,960 But before she died, she talked money, told him everything. 478 00:26:07,960 --> 00:26:11,960 Well, she won't talk anymore, but that money will. 479 00:26:11,960 --> 00:26:31,960 So, I wonder who that money is talking to now. 480 00:26:31,960 --> 00:26:38,960 In just a moment, we will bring you Alan Baxter, tonight's star of Suspense. 481 00:26:38,960 --> 00:26:45,960 Presented by Roma, that's R-O-M-A, Roma Wines, America's Largest Selling Wines. 482 00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:50,960 When you enjoy your favorite Roma wine, you taste the rich reward of nature's treasure, 483 00:26:50,960 --> 00:26:55,960 selected grapes pressed at the peak of taste goodness, then guided unhurriedly 484 00:26:55,960 --> 00:27:01,960 with the ancient skill of Roma master vinterners and winemaking resources unmatched in America, to taste perfection. 485 00:27:01,960 --> 00:27:05,960 These Roma wines are placed with mellow Roma wines of years before, 486 00:27:05,960 --> 00:27:11,960 and from these, the world's greatest wine reserves, Roma later selects for your pleasure. 487 00:27:11,960 --> 00:27:16,960 This holiday weekend, when entertaining friends serve Roma California wines, 488 00:27:16,960 --> 00:27:21,960 you ask for a grand and glorious fourth, enjoy better tasting Amber Roma Sherry, 489 00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:30,960 Ruby Red Roma Port, or Golden Roma Muscatel, and you enjoy America's favorite wines, now at lowest prices in years. 490 00:27:30,960 --> 00:27:35,960 This is Alan Baxter. It was a great pleasure to appear on tonight's broadcast of Suspense. 491 00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:38,960 Next week, Suspense will again originate from New York, 492 00:27:38,960 --> 00:27:44,960 and Roma Wines will bring you one of the most provocative and glamorous actresses in America, Miss Gloria Swanson. 493 00:27:44,960 --> 00:27:48,960 Tonight, tonight's Suspense play was written by Robert L. Richards. 494 00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:55,960 Next Thursday, same time, you will hear Miss Gloria Swanson as star of Suspense, 495 00:27:55,960 --> 00:28:00,960 produced for Schenley by William Spear. 496 00:28:00,960 --> 00:28:26,960 This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.