1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,000 And now, Auto Light and its 60,000 dealers and service stations present... 2 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:14,000 Suspense! 3 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:24,000 Tonight, Auto Light brings you Mr. Dana Andrews in... 4 00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:31,000 If the Dead Could Talk, a suspense play produced and directed by Anton M. Lieder. 5 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:41,000 Friends, you know what happens when you take a fish out of water? Sure, it dies. 6 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:46,000 Well, by Cornelius, the same thing happens when your car's battery runs out of water. 7 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:49,000 It lies right down and quits. No water, no light. 8 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:51,000 So, what did the Auto Light people do? 9 00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:55,000 They made the Auto Light stay full battery with an extra large liquid reserve. 10 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:57,000 Gave it more room for more water. 11 00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:03,000 Result? The Auto Light stay full battery needs water only three times a year in normal car use. 12 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:09,000 Think of it. Auto Light stay full batteries need water only three times a year in normal car use. 13 00:01:09,000 --> 00:01:13,000 Just like that, Auto Light practically eliminates one of your major battery bothers. 14 00:01:13,000 --> 00:01:21,000 So, friends, be right with Auto Light. Switch to an Auto Light stay full battery tomorrow. 15 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:29,000 And now, Auto Light presents Dana Andrews in a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense. 16 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:39,000 They'll never know how it happened. No one will ever know. 17 00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:44,000 I knew I was going to have to kill him almost from the first. That's how I am. 18 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:49,000 That's what my blood is. I couldn't change it even if I tried. 19 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:57,000 We were on a circus train, the three of us in the Trapeze Act, going from Tulsa to St. Louis. 20 00:01:57,000 --> 00:02:01,000 Fran had asked me to come and sit with her, but she had something to tell me. 21 00:02:01,000 --> 00:02:05,000 When I went over, she was staring out the window into the night. 22 00:02:05,000 --> 00:02:10,000 And the dim train lights made her features kind of soft and blurred. 23 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:14,000 And I stood watching her getting all choked up like I always did, 24 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:19,000 wanting to freeze this picture of her in my brain with all the other pictures. 25 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:22,000 Then she saw my reflection on the window glass and she turned. 26 00:02:22,000 --> 00:02:23,000 Oh, Joe. Hi. 27 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:27,000 Sit down, Joe. Sure. What's the secret? 28 00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:32,000 Joe, I can't keep it inside me a second longer. If I do, I'll bust. 29 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,000 Tommy and me have been talking about getting married. 30 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:36,000 You're cute. 31 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:38,000 Well, honey, did you tell him? 32 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:41,000 As she told me. Congratulations. 33 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:43,000 That's all? Just congratulations? 34 00:02:43,000 --> 00:02:46,000 Well, you know Joe's a man of few words. 35 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:51,000 So what do you think, Joy Boy? At least we'll be able to keep her in the act now. 36 00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:55,000 That's probably the only reason he's marrying me. 37 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:58,000 Well, the way I figured, it had to be one of us. 38 00:02:58,000 --> 00:03:01,000 Joe, you're my pal. I couldn't let it happen to you. 39 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:03,000 Well! 40 00:03:03,000 --> 00:03:06,000 And then Tommy threw his arm across my shoulder. 41 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:12,000 I felt every nerve in my body tighten up like somebody was turning a screw. 42 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:16,000 And I thought, so this is how your life goes smash. 43 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:23,000 Rattling through the night on a dinky train with a circus fat lady sitting across the aisle munching chocolates. 44 00:03:23,000 --> 00:03:31,000 I didn't know what I was going to do. Not then. 45 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:35,000 At first I tried to go on just like before. 46 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:40,000 When we got to St. Louis, Tommy and me shared a room in a theatrical hotel like always. 47 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:46,000 And the three of us went on through our routines on the high trapeze like always. 48 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:49,000 Yeah, that part was the same. 49 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:53,000 That part was as natural as breathing. 50 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:59,000 But the other things, like the looks they gave each other, they're long walks together. 51 00:03:59,000 --> 00:04:01,000 Nothing worked for me. 52 00:04:01,000 --> 00:04:05,000 Drinking myself blind, taking out a different girl in the show every night of the week. 53 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:07,000 Nothing worked. 54 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:12,000 I still woke up in the middle of the night, shivering, my heart pounding and crying her name. 55 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:15,000 Fran! Fran! Fran! 56 00:04:15,000 --> 00:04:18,000 Joe, Joe, what's wrong? 57 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,000 Huh? Oh. 58 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:22,000 Uh, nothing's wrong. 59 00:04:22,000 --> 00:04:23,000 You were yelling in your sleep. 60 00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:24,000 I'm okay. 61 00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:25,000 You sure? 62 00:04:25,000 --> 00:04:28,000 Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay. 63 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:31,000 What are you getting dressed for? It's the middle of the night. 64 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:32,000 I'm going for a walk. 65 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:33,000 But, Joe... 66 00:04:33,000 --> 00:04:35,000 Look, I want to go for a walk, so I'm going for a walk. 67 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:39,000 Joe, Fran and I were noticing. 68 00:04:39,000 --> 00:04:40,000 Noticing what? 69 00:04:40,000 --> 00:04:43,000 We've been going at this night life pretty hot and heavy lately. 70 00:04:43,000 --> 00:04:49,000 For a fellow who works on a trapeze 60 feet up and without a net, ladies and gentlemen. 71 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:52,000 Well, that's not so good, Joe. 72 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:55,000 What's the matter? You afraid someday I won't catch you, Tommy? 73 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:59,000 Look, why don't you take it a little easier, kid? It's all right to have a good time. 74 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,000 Good time? So that's what I'm having. 75 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:13,000 What do you know? 76 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:16,000 I walked the dark, empty streets for hours. 77 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:19,000 I didn't know where I went or why. 78 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:22,000 Why did it have to be him and Fran over and over again? 79 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:25,000 Why did it have to be him and not me? 80 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:29,000 And then it was like coming out of a sleep almost. 81 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:34,000 I realized that for a long time I'd been looking through the lighted window of an all-night pawn shop, 82 00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:36,000 looking at a gun. 83 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:39,000 At first I started walking away fast. 84 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:45,000 Then I turned back and went into the shop. 85 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:48,000 Yes, sir. What can I do for you? 86 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:51,000 That revolver in the window there, the black one next to the binoculars. 87 00:05:51,000 --> 00:05:53,000 Oh, yes, that's the beauty, ain't it? 88 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:54,000 Yeah, I want it. 89 00:05:54,000 --> 00:05:57,000 Good enough. Can't go wrong on that one. 90 00:05:57,000 --> 00:05:59,000 You got your permit, of course. 91 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:03,000 No, I'm just passing through town. I didn't have time to get one. 92 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:07,000 Well, I'm sorry, mister, but I can't help you. 93 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:11,000 I've got a hundred dollar bill that says you can. 94 00:06:11,000 --> 00:06:18,000 You've just bought yourself a gun. 95 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:21,000 It was after three in the morning when I got back to the hotel. 96 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:23,000 The gun was in my top coat pocket. 97 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:27,000 As I walked through the lobby, the circus fat lady was sitting on the big sofa 98 00:06:27,000 --> 00:06:29,000 counting the faces that went through the revolving door. 99 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:31,000 She stopped me as I went past her. 100 00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:32,000 Turning in, Joe? 101 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:33,000 Yeah. 102 00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:37,000 Lucky you can sleep. Wish I could sleep. 103 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:39,000 I started for the elevator and then it hit me. 104 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,000 How dumb can a guy be, walking into the lobby like that, 105 00:06:42,000 --> 00:06:44,000 being seen going up to the room? 106 00:06:44,000 --> 00:06:47,000 Is that all you want, Joe? That he should be dead? 107 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:49,000 No matter what happened to you? 108 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:52,000 Don't you want friends? Don't you want to live? 109 00:06:52,000 --> 00:06:54,000 I turned back and started out again. 110 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:57,000 No, Patsy, I guess I won't go upstairs after all. 111 00:06:57,000 --> 00:06:58,000 Oh? 112 00:06:58,000 --> 00:07:01,000 Nothing to do till tomorrow afternoon anyhow. 113 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:03,000 Maybe I'll take in an all-night show. 114 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:07,000 I haven't seen a show since I was a little girl. 115 00:07:07,000 --> 00:07:15,000 Can't fit in the seat. 116 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:17,000 I went around to the back of the hotel. 117 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:21,000 Tommy and me roomed three stories up next to the rusty fire escape. 118 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:25,000 It was so quiet there, I could hear the pounding inside my head. 119 00:07:25,000 --> 00:07:29,000 The first rung of the fire escape was a good ten feet off the ground. 120 00:07:29,000 --> 00:07:33,000 I jumped for it and pulled it down. 121 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:35,000 It made enough noise to wake up half the building. 122 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:37,000 I scrambled up into the shadows. 123 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:41,000 I expected the lights to start going on in every window. 124 00:07:41,000 --> 00:07:43,000 But nothing happened. 125 00:07:43,000 --> 00:07:47,000 So, when I started up the fire escape, 126 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:55,000 I started up for Tommy. 127 00:07:55,000 --> 00:07:57,000 I reached the landing. 128 00:07:57,000 --> 00:07:59,000 The room was dark. 129 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:01,000 The window was closed. 130 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:04,000 I tried raising it, but it was locked. 131 00:08:04,000 --> 00:08:07,000 Why did everything have to go bad for me? 132 00:08:07,000 --> 00:08:09,000 Wait a minute. 133 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:11,000 He never locked the window before. Why did he lock it now? 134 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:13,000 What was he afraid of? 135 00:08:13,000 --> 00:08:15,000 How could he know what was inside me? 136 00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:19,000 Suddenly I had to do something, so I smashed the window with my fist. 137 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:21,000 I didn't care. Let him know it was me. 138 00:08:21,000 --> 00:08:23,000 Let him know what was coming. 139 00:08:23,000 --> 00:08:27,000 I reached in, unlocked the window, went over the sill. 140 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:29,000 I took the gun out of my pocket. 141 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:32,000 I could feel the blood running warm down my arm. 142 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:34,000 And then I saw that he was gone. 143 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,000 The room was empty. 144 00:08:36,000 --> 00:08:38,000 I sat down on the bed. 145 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:40,000 I felt weak in my knees. 146 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:43,000 I sat there a long time, numb. 147 00:08:43,000 --> 00:08:45,000 Then I heard a key in the door. 148 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:47,000 It was him. He'd come back. 149 00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:50,000 I put the gun back in my pocket. 150 00:08:50,000 --> 00:08:52,000 I held it there. 151 00:08:52,000 --> 00:08:54,000 The door swung open. 152 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:56,000 I saw him framed in the light from the hall. 153 00:08:56,000 --> 00:09:00,000 And I thought, now, do it now. 154 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:11,000 For suspense, Auto Light is bringing you Mr. Dana Andrews. 155 00:09:11,000 --> 00:09:16,000 In radio's outstanding theater of thrills, Suspense. 156 00:09:23,000 --> 00:09:29,000 Ab, you know this spell of freezing weather that drifted over sunny California by mistake last week? 157 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:30,000 I'll see. 158 00:09:30,000 --> 00:09:35,000 Well, by Cornelius, I haven't had so much fun since my Auto Light stay full battery last needed water. 159 00:09:35,000 --> 00:09:37,000 And that's a mighty long time ago. 160 00:09:37,000 --> 00:09:39,000 You mean you enjoyed the cold, Harlow? 161 00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:41,000 Yes, I did. 162 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:44,000 Listen, I was purring along up in the mountains in my Auto Light equipped car, you see, 163 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:47,000 when I spied a stricken stranger stuck in the snow. 164 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:49,000 He had on a raccoon coat and a coon skinned cap, 165 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:51,000 and he was looking under the hood of his car, muttering, 166 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:55,000 Water, water everywhere, not a drop in my battery. 167 00:09:55,000 --> 00:09:57,000 Friend, I said to this shivering shambles, 168 00:09:57,000 --> 00:10:01,000 if you had an Auto Light stay full battery in that thirst-starved convertible, 169 00:10:01,000 --> 00:10:05,000 you'd be singing How Deep is the Ocean instead of How Dry I Am. 170 00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:07,000 What do you mean, asks he? 171 00:10:07,000 --> 00:10:11,000 I said that Auto Light stay full batteries have an extra large liquid reserve. 172 00:10:11,000 --> 00:10:16,000 Auto Light stay full batteries, I said, need water only three times a year in normal driving. 173 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:18,000 You get that, pal? Only three times a year. 174 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:23,000 And then I explained that thanks to extra plates and special fiberglass insulation, 175 00:10:23,000 --> 00:10:27,000 Auto Light stay full batteries have extra power and extra long life, too. 176 00:10:27,000 --> 00:10:29,000 But Harlow, did you get the poor fellow unstuck? 177 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:34,000 Sure did. I just happened to have an extra Auto Light stay full battery in my trunk. 178 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:38,000 I handed it to him until he could get one of his own at his nearest Auto Light dealers. 179 00:10:38,000 --> 00:10:41,000 I'll sure switch to Auto Light, he said as he zoomed off, 180 00:10:41,000 --> 00:10:44,000 and I answered, you're right with Auto Light. 181 00:10:44,000 --> 00:10:48,000 Right, Harlow, but right now, suspense. 182 00:10:48,000 --> 00:10:53,000 And now, Auto Light brings back to our Hollywood soundstage, 183 00:10:53,000 --> 00:11:00,000 Mr. Dana Andrews as Joe, in a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense. 184 00:11:00,000 --> 00:11:05,000 I held the gun in my pocket. 185 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:09,000 The door swung open and I saw him framed in the light from the hall. 186 00:11:09,000 --> 00:11:12,000 And I thought, now, do it now. 187 00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:14,000 When did you come back, Joe? 188 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:16,000 A while ago. 189 00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:17,000 Where's the lights, Joe? 190 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:18,000 Don't turn the lights on, Tommy. 191 00:11:18,000 --> 00:11:20,000 What's the matter with you? 192 00:11:20,000 --> 00:11:21,000 I said... 193 00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:22,000 What have you got against lights? 194 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:24,000 How can you just sit there in the dark? 195 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,000 You know, Fran and I wonder what happened to you. 196 00:11:26,000 --> 00:11:28,000 We were out looking for you. 197 00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:33,000 I held tight to the gun in my pocket. 198 00:11:33,000 --> 00:11:36,000 I followed him with it as he moved around the room, 199 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:38,000 stopping at the dresser to comb his hair, 200 00:11:38,000 --> 00:11:42,000 whistling because he was getting franned and it was such a good feeling. 201 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:46,000 And all I had to do was just squeeze the trigger. 202 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:48,000 Come on in. 203 00:11:48,000 --> 00:11:50,000 Say, honey, fact tells me that... 204 00:11:50,000 --> 00:11:52,000 Oh, you got back, Joe. 205 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:53,000 Yeah. 206 00:11:53,000 --> 00:11:55,000 Yeah, what did you do to yourself? 207 00:11:55,000 --> 00:11:56,000 Look at that arm, Tommy. 208 00:11:56,000 --> 00:11:58,000 His arm, it's bleeding. 209 00:11:58,000 --> 00:11:59,000 I didn't notice that. 210 00:11:59,000 --> 00:12:00,000 Joe, you take your coat off. 211 00:12:00,000 --> 00:12:02,000 I'll get some towels and a maculacrome from the bathroom. 212 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:04,000 What did you do, get yourself in a brawl? 213 00:12:04,000 --> 00:12:05,000 Not exactly. 214 00:12:05,000 --> 00:12:07,000 Tommy, where's the maculacrome? Hurry up. 215 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:08,000 I'll show you where it is. 216 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:10,000 Get your coat off, Joey. 217 00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:12,000 Here. 218 00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:14,000 I hurried to the dresser, 219 00:12:14,000 --> 00:12:17,000 dug the gun out of my pocket and put it in the drawer. 220 00:12:17,000 --> 00:12:20,000 Fran came back with an arm full of stuff. 221 00:12:20,000 --> 00:12:22,000 Her fingers started to probe my arm 222 00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:24,000 while she was rolling up my sleeve. 223 00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:27,000 Look what this guy did to himself. 224 00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:30,000 Joey, you big silly kid, you. 225 00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:32,000 What are you fighting for? 226 00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:33,000 Tommy, get a... 227 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:34,000 Hey, what happened to this window? 228 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:36,000 Well, that's how I cut myself just now. 229 00:12:36,000 --> 00:12:38,000 I thought it was stuck. 230 00:12:38,000 --> 00:12:41,000 You know me, long on muscles and short on brains. 231 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:43,000 Well, it's all right. 232 00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:45,000 Just a little cut. 233 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:47,000 Our boy's gonna be all right, Tommy. 234 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:49,000 The show goes on, doesn't it, Joey? 235 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:51,000 Sure, sure. 236 00:12:51,000 --> 00:12:54,000 What a sweet, helpless guy this is. 237 00:12:54,000 --> 00:12:56,000 We gotta take better care of our boy, Tommy. 238 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:57,000 Yeah. 239 00:12:57,000 --> 00:13:00,000 You know, our Joey's just a great big kid. 240 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:03,000 He likes to go on adventures with silly blondes, 241 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:06,000 but there's nobody got wrists like this man 242 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:09,000 to catch my Tommy when he flies through the air 243 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:11,000 with the greatest of ease. 244 00:13:11,000 --> 00:13:13,000 You know, Joe, 245 00:13:13,000 --> 00:13:16,000 I wouldn't trust Tommy's life in anybody's hands but yours. 246 00:13:16,000 --> 00:13:19,000 And she leaned over me and I could smell her hair. 247 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:22,000 And her warm breath danced around my eyes. 248 00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:26,000 And him and that whistling, why shouldn't he whistle? 249 00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:28,000 He had the world. He had Fran. 250 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:31,000 There. How's that feel, Joey? 251 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:35,000 Her talking into my face, smoothing my hair. 252 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:39,000 Now, don't you punch any more windows in the nose, you understand? 253 00:13:39,000 --> 00:13:41,000 Didn't she see what she was doing to me? 254 00:13:41,000 --> 00:13:43,000 Didn't they see what was happening to me? 255 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:46,000 How could two people be so blind? Couldn't they see? 256 00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:48,000 Feel better, Joey. 257 00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:50,000 I asked you. 258 00:13:50,000 --> 00:13:52,000 Leave me alone. Leave me alone! 259 00:14:01,000 --> 00:14:03,000 So I went walking in the streets again, 260 00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:06,000 burning inside like a guy with 105 fever, 261 00:14:06,000 --> 00:14:09,000 still smelling the perfume in her hair, 262 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:12,000 still hearing her whistling, 263 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:15,000 still hearing her voice in my head. 264 00:14:15,000 --> 00:14:19,000 It was after four in the morning when I got back to the hotel. 265 00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:21,000 Nobody in the lobby. 266 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:24,000 Nobody but the room clerk taking a snooze at the desk. 267 00:14:24,000 --> 00:14:27,000 This time, Tommy was in bed asleep. 268 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:30,000 I sat on the edge of the bed for a long time, 269 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:32,000 listening to his breathing. 270 00:14:35,000 --> 00:14:38,000 Then I went to the drawer and got the gun. 271 00:14:38,000 --> 00:14:40,000 I laid it aside for a moment 272 00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:43,000 and then I scattered the stuff on the drawer like a burglar would. 273 00:14:43,000 --> 00:14:45,000 He was looking for something. 274 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:48,000 Then I went over to where his pants were hanging on a chair. 275 00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:52,000 I guess I got a little excited as I grabbed for the pants, the chair fell over. 276 00:14:58,000 --> 00:15:02,000 I waited, my heart hammering away like it was trying to break loose. 277 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:05,000 But he didn't wake up. 278 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:08,000 I found his wallet and his pants, 279 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:10,000 then his watch on the nightstand. 280 00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:12,000 Then I went over to the broken window, looked down. 281 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:15,000 It was dark, a lot of sound. 282 00:15:15,000 --> 00:15:18,000 Tomorrow all the cops in the city would be looking for the burglar 283 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:22,000 who came up the fire escape and killed his victim when caught in the act. 284 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:25,000 I went back to the dresser for the gun. 285 00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:28,000 I went over to the bed. 286 00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:31,000 I wouldn't let him take her away from me. 287 00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:32,000 Simple as that. 288 00:15:32,000 --> 00:15:35,000 I raised the gun barrel level with his head. 289 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:38,000 My finger curled around the trigger. 290 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:40,000 I felt a tiny nerve start throbbing in my wrist. 291 00:15:40,000 --> 00:15:42,000 I squeezed the trigger. 292 00:15:42,000 --> 00:15:44,000 What is this? 293 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:45,000 Are you Joe? 294 00:15:45,000 --> 00:15:47,000 Yeah, yeah. 295 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:49,000 What a bad Joe. 296 00:15:49,000 --> 00:15:51,000 Okay. 297 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:58,000 When Tommy had gone back to sleep, I broke open the gun. 298 00:15:58,000 --> 00:16:00,000 It was empty. 299 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:02,000 But it had been loaded before. 300 00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:04,000 They must have found the gun after I left. 301 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:06,000 But why had they taken the bullets? 302 00:16:06,000 --> 00:16:07,000 I didn't understand. 303 00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:09,000 How could they know anything? 304 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:11,000 All of a sudden I was afraid. 305 00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:13,000 I put the wallet and the wristwatch back. 306 00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:15,000 I put the gun back in the drawer. 307 00:16:15,000 --> 00:16:17,000 What was I going to do? 308 00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:21,000 I flopped down on the bed and tried to think. 309 00:16:21,000 --> 00:16:34,000 But somewhere along the line I fell asleep. 310 00:16:34,000 --> 00:16:36,000 I slept until almost noon. 311 00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:38,000 When I woke up, Tommy was gone. 312 00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:41,000 I dressed and went down the hall to Fran's room. 313 00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:42,000 She was gone. 314 00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:45,000 At the desk, they didn't know what had happened to them. 315 00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:47,000 I went down to the armory where we were playing. 316 00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:49,000 They went around there. 317 00:16:49,000 --> 00:16:51,000 It was getting close to the matinee. 318 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:53,000 I went to the dressing room. 319 00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:55,000 No sign of either of them. 320 00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:57,000 Then, just a few minutes before we'd go on, 321 00:16:57,000 --> 00:17:00,000 the door burst open and they were standing there. 322 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:03,000 We thought we weren't going to make it. 323 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:04,000 That's no kidding. 324 00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:05,000 Where were you? 325 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:08,000 Just feast your eyes on the little gold object 326 00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:14,000 third finger left hand, sometimes called a wedding ring. 327 00:17:14,000 --> 00:17:18,000 Well, aren't you at least going to say bon voyage, weren't you? 328 00:17:18,000 --> 00:17:19,000 Sure, sure. 329 00:17:19,000 --> 00:17:24,000 Best of everything. 330 00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:26,000 Fran left a change into her costume 331 00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:33,000 and Tommy started getting ready, happy as a lark. 332 00:17:33,000 --> 00:17:36,000 And I felt the heat choking me till I couldn't breathe, 333 00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:39,000 burning in me like fire. 334 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:42,000 Then I realized something that sent the cold shivers through me. 335 00:17:42,000 --> 00:17:44,000 If I went up on that trapeze today 336 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:47,000 and if his life depended upon my catching him, 337 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:49,000 he would die. 338 00:17:49,000 --> 00:17:51,000 It made me sick thinking about it. 339 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:53,000 Everybody's got to have some kind of belief. 340 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:56,000 I grew up different, not like most people. 341 00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:58,000 The only belief I had was the act. 342 00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:00,000 I had to keep the act clean. 343 00:18:00,000 --> 00:18:02,000 I couldn't let it happen that way. 344 00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:04,000 But it would happen. 345 00:18:04,000 --> 00:18:07,000 If I went up there, it would happen. 346 00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:08,000 Three minutes. 347 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:10,000 Okay. 348 00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:13,000 Well, we'd better be getting out of here, Joey. 349 00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:14,000 Well, Joe, come on, come on. 350 00:18:14,000 --> 00:18:15,000 They're not going. 351 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:16,000 What? 352 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:17,000 What are you talking about? 353 00:18:17,000 --> 00:18:18,000 I'm not going on. 354 00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:19,000 Can't you understand English? 355 00:18:19,000 --> 00:18:20,000 What, Joey? 356 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:21,000 I'm not going on. 357 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:26,000 He couldn't do anything with me and time was running out. 358 00:18:26,000 --> 00:18:27,000 He left and I thought, 359 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:29,000 what I'd better do is just pack and leave 360 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:31,000 and never see either of them again. 361 00:18:31,000 --> 00:18:34,000 Then just beyond the door, I heard him whispering to somebody. 362 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:36,000 I knew what it was. 363 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:38,000 He was putting her to work on me. 364 00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:39,000 I didn't want to see her. 365 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:42,000 I went to close the door, but she was already standing there, 366 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:44,000 her hand on the doorknob. 367 00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:46,000 But it was the wrong hand. 368 00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:48,000 It was the hand with a ring on it. 369 00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:50,000 His ring. 370 00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:52,000 Is it something to do with the act, Joe? 371 00:18:52,000 --> 00:18:54,000 No, nothing with the act. 372 00:18:54,000 --> 00:18:55,000 Well, then... 373 00:18:55,000 --> 00:18:56,000 Don't ask me to go out there, Fran. 374 00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:58,000 You know we can't go on without you. 375 00:18:58,000 --> 00:18:59,000 Well, do what you can. 376 00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:00,000 Fake those triple plays. 377 00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:02,000 Look pretty and swing hard. 378 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:03,000 Just don't ask me to go out there. 379 00:19:03,000 --> 00:19:05,000 Joey, what's wrong with you lately? 380 00:19:05,000 --> 00:19:06,000 Look, don't... 381 00:19:06,000 --> 00:19:07,000 I'm worried about you. 382 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:10,000 You've been acting so funny the last week or so. 383 00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:12,000 What were you doing with a gun, Joey? 384 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:13,000 I... 385 00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:15,000 We found it in your dresser last night. 386 00:19:15,000 --> 00:19:17,000 Scared me to death. 387 00:19:17,000 --> 00:19:19,000 I made Tommy take the bullets out. 388 00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:21,000 I just bought it for protection, that's all. 389 00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:23,000 Protection from what? 390 00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:26,000 Joey, you've been so moody, so melancholy. 391 00:19:26,000 --> 00:19:29,000 I'm so afraid you might hurt yourself. 392 00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:32,000 You think that's why I bought the gun, to hurt myself? 393 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:34,000 Gosh, I hope not. 394 00:19:34,000 --> 00:19:35,000 I could... 395 00:19:35,000 --> 00:19:36,000 It's our cue. 396 00:19:36,000 --> 00:19:38,000 Come on, Joel. 397 00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:40,000 She moved up close to me. 398 00:19:40,000 --> 00:19:43,000 Her hand touched the side of my face. 399 00:19:43,000 --> 00:19:44,000 Soft and warm. 400 00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:46,000 We'll be waiting for you. 401 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:48,000 We won't go on without you. 402 00:19:50,000 --> 00:19:52,000 She left. 403 00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:54,000 I didn't know what to feel. 404 00:19:54,000 --> 00:19:57,000 Inside me, some of the hate was unwinding. 405 00:19:57,000 --> 00:19:59,000 I didn't want to hate him. 406 00:19:59,000 --> 00:20:01,000 I began thinking maybe I could... 407 00:20:01,000 --> 00:20:03,000 I could get by today after all. 408 00:20:03,000 --> 00:20:06,000 And after today, I'd just beat it and never see him again. 409 00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:10,000 I began thinking how lucky it was that everything had gone wrong last night. 410 00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:12,000 I started for the door. 411 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:19,000 And then I saw the two of them behind some props, kissing each other. 412 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:21,000 While they were waiting for me. 413 00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:24,000 I'd never seen him kissing her before. 414 00:20:24,000 --> 00:20:27,000 I felt cold and empty. 415 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:29,000 I went back into the dressing room. 416 00:20:29,000 --> 00:20:34,000 On the table was the tube of Vaseline I used to hold my hair in place. 417 00:20:34,000 --> 00:20:37,000 I stuck the tube into the waistband of my trunks. 418 00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:40,000 I didn't worry anymore about hurting the act. 419 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:53,000 The act went off like clockwork. 420 00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:55,000 It always did. 421 00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:57,000 It was such second nature to us by now. 422 00:20:57,000 --> 00:21:01,000 The precision climb up the ladders to the two little takeoff platforms. 423 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:03,000 Me on one side of the ring. 424 00:21:03,000 --> 00:21:05,000 The two of them on the other. 425 00:21:05,000 --> 00:21:08,000 I felt good like I always felt up here. 426 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:12,000 I knew what was going to happen, but I wasn't fighting it anymore. 427 00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:14,000 When it came, it came at so long. 428 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:16,000 And then it was time. 429 00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:20,000 All the easy stuff was over. 430 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,000 We were ready for our big specialty. 431 00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:24,000 Tommy's Triple Somersault. 432 00:21:24,000 --> 00:21:29,000 Ladies and gentlemen, your kind attention, please. 433 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:39,000 It is once again my privilege to present the most breathtaking trapeze stunt in all the world. 434 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:43,000 I was already on the lower trapeze, lolling on the crossbar. 435 00:21:43,000 --> 00:21:47,000 It was Tommy's stunt, so no one noticed me. 436 00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:52,000 I reached up into the waistband of my trunks and flicked the cap off the tube of grease. 437 00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:57,000 I pinched the tube and a coil of Vaseline spurted into my palm. 438 00:21:57,000 --> 00:22:02,000 I greased my wrists until they were as slippery as a pair of heels. 439 00:22:02,000 --> 00:22:05,000 That was where he was going to hang on to. 440 00:22:05,000 --> 00:22:08,000 Where he was going to try to hang on. 441 00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:11,000 ...the great Joseph. 442 00:22:11,000 --> 00:22:15,000 The slightest miss will mean instant death. 443 00:22:15,000 --> 00:22:17,000 Tommy signaled that he was ready. 444 00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:19,000 I was ready too. 445 00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:26,000 I turned lazily on the bar until my head hung down. 446 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:30,000 I was dangling by my legs, flexing my arm. 447 00:22:30,000 --> 00:22:34,000 My eyes running over the row upon row of tiny upturned faces. 448 00:22:34,000 --> 00:22:37,000 It was a matter of seconds now. 449 00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:40,000 Five thousand pairs of eyes watching. 450 00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:43,000 Five thousand hearts starting to speed up. 451 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:45,000 Even the peanut and popcorn boys had stopped. 452 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:50,000 Just the roll of the drums building up louder and louder. 453 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:54,000 Without looking, I knew Fran was putting on Tommy's blindfold. 454 00:22:54,000 --> 00:22:57,000 For another second, I'd swing around and face them. 455 00:22:57,000 --> 00:22:59,000 And begin the count. 456 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:01,000 I began turning. 457 00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:05,000 What happened? I turned quickly. 458 00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:07,000 Fran was alone on the platform. 459 00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:09,000 For a split second, I couldn't figure it out. 460 00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:11,000 And then I saw Tommy falling through the air. 461 00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:14,000 He grabbed at a guy wire as he passed and he held on. 462 00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:17,000 He slid down the wire spiraling down in a sickening crazy corkscrew. 463 00:23:17,000 --> 00:23:20,000 Down all the way to the bottom but never letting go. 464 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:22,000 He landed in a huddle at the bottom. 465 00:23:22,000 --> 00:23:24,000 Then he picked himself up. 466 00:23:24,000 --> 00:23:26,000 So he was all right. Nothing broken. 467 00:23:26,000 --> 00:23:31,000 Except the way he held his hand, you could tell it was as raw as if he'd cut it open with a knife. 468 00:23:31,000 --> 00:23:34,000 I swung around and looked up at Fran. 469 00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:36,000 She caught my eye and formed the words, 470 00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:38,000 My fault with her lips. 471 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:40,000 And then, sorry. 472 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:43,000 Then she had made him slip. 473 00:23:43,000 --> 00:23:45,000 She had kept him from swinging out on that trapeze. 474 00:23:45,000 --> 00:23:47,000 But why? I swung back. 475 00:23:47,000 --> 00:23:50,000 All of a sudden, I wanted to get down. I wanted to get away. 476 00:23:50,000 --> 00:23:52,000 But while my back was turned to her, 477 00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:55,000 she must have passed along the signal because suddenly I heard... 478 00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:57,000 Ladies and gentlemen, 479 00:23:57,000 --> 00:24:04,000 this unforeseen accident will not in any way change our spectacular triple somersault. 480 00:24:04,000 --> 00:24:10,000 The event will continue with the great Thomas's understudy, 481 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:20,000 The Lovely Frances. 482 00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:22,000 I guess at first I was just too shocked to think. 483 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:24,000 This was something I'd never figured out. 484 00:24:24,000 --> 00:24:27,000 Sure, she'd done the trick before, but then there was a split second 485 00:24:27,000 --> 00:24:30,000 in which she signaled me to drop my head and begin the count. 486 00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:34,000 And then before I could get my own desperate signal back to her to stop, not to go ahead, 487 00:24:34,000 --> 00:24:38,000 the black mask had dropped over her eyes and I was cut off from her. 488 00:24:38,000 --> 00:24:41,000 Fran, don't do it! Don't do it! 489 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:44,000 But the drums had already begun that thunder. 490 00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:46,000 My voice couldn't reach her now. 491 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:50,000 She'd swung the empty trapeze out into space. 492 00:24:50,000 --> 00:24:52,000 The count had begun. 493 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:55,000 One as she let go. 494 00:24:55,000 --> 00:24:59,000 Two as the trapeze made its mark. 495 00:24:59,000 --> 00:25:02,000 Three as it returned. 496 00:25:02,000 --> 00:25:07,000 Twice more the empty trapeze would swing out and then on its return she would grab it. 497 00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:11,000 Fran, don't do it! Don't do it! 498 00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:14,000 But I knew she could only hear the drums 499 00:25:14,000 --> 00:25:21,000 if there were only some way to stop the drums. 500 00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:35,000 I heard the terrified roar of thousands of throats and I knew it was death. 501 00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:40,000 And who is the next of kin of the deceased? 502 00:25:40,000 --> 00:25:43,000 Look, officer, I told you I'm only the manager of this outfit. 503 00:25:43,000 --> 00:25:47,000 Why don't you ask those two over near the body? They know all about it. They're part of the act. 504 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:51,000 I told you I'd get to them. Now, how exactly did the deceased... 505 00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:56,000 Listen, officer, why so many questions? It wasn't murder, you know. It was just an accident. 506 00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:59,000 Slipped and fell off the trapeze. 507 00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:02,000 I guess it was the excitement of seeing Tommy take that bad spill. 508 00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:06,000 Why can't you just put it down as an accident and let it go? 509 00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:10,000 Look, I'm only following the rules, mister. I don't tell you how to run your circuits. 510 00:26:10,000 --> 00:26:15,000 Yeah, yeah, but when you're all finished with your questions it'll still add up to the same thing. 511 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:20,000 An aerialist named Joe Crosby was accidentally killed while giving a performance. 512 00:26:20,000 --> 00:26:22,000 Just as simple as that. 513 00:26:22,000 --> 00:26:26,000 Yeah, poor Joe himself couldn't tell you any more. 514 00:26:26,000 --> 00:26:52,000 Even if the dead could talk. 515 00:26:52,000 --> 00:26:58,000 Thank you, Dana Andrews, for a splendid performance. Mr. Andrews will return in just a moment. 516 00:26:58,000 --> 00:26:59,000 Uh, Harrow? 517 00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:00,000 Yes, Hap? 518 00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:01,000 A question. 519 00:27:01,000 --> 00:27:02,000 Shoot. 520 00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:03,000 Do you ever run out of words? 521 00:27:03,000 --> 00:27:10,000 Oh, now, Hap, be sensible. How could any guy run out of words with those sensational auto-lights stay full batteries to talk about? 522 00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:11,000 I got my answer. 523 00:27:11,000 --> 00:27:20,000 Why, Hap, those auto-lights stay full batteries have the start of a jackrabbit, the power of a bulldozer, and the life of a redwood all wrapped up in one. 524 00:27:20,000 --> 00:27:25,000 And to top it all off, they need water only three times a year in normal car use. 525 00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:28,000 So, friends, when you buy a battery, buy the best. 526 00:27:28,000 --> 00:27:29,000 Switch to auto-light. 527 00:27:29,000 --> 00:27:36,000 Makers of over 400 automotive, aviation, and marine products in 27 plants from coast to coast. 528 00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:39,000 Auto-light, the lifeline of your car. 529 00:27:39,000 --> 00:27:42,000 Always remember, auto-light means batteries. 530 00:27:42,000 --> 00:27:43,000 Stay full batteries. 531 00:27:43,000 --> 00:27:45,000 Auto-light means spark plugs. 532 00:27:45,000 --> 00:27:48,000 Ignition engineered resistor spark plugs. 533 00:27:48,000 --> 00:27:50,000 Auto-light means ignition systems. 534 00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:52,000 The lifeline of your car. 535 00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:02,000 And now here again is Mr. Dana Andrews. 536 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:06,000 My thanks to Tony Leeder for the opportunity of appearing again on Suspense. 537 00:28:06,000 --> 00:28:09,000 There's always a pleasant and rewarding experience. 538 00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:15,000 And you'll have a pleasant and rewarding experience, I'm sure, next week when radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills brings you Robert Montgomery 539 00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:19,000 in another gripping study in Suspense. 540 00:28:20,000 --> 00:28:24,000 Dana Andrews appears through the courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn, producers of Enchantment. 541 00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:28,000 Tonight's Suspense play was adapted by Larry Marcus from the short story by William Irish. 542 00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:32,000 Music was composed by Lucian Morrowek and conducted by Lud Bluskin. 543 00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:36,000 The entire production was under the direction of Anton M. Leeder. 544 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:45,000 In the coming weeks, Suspense will present such stars as Fibber McGee and Molly, Charles Lawton, James Wyman, James Mason, and many others. 545 00:28:45,000 --> 00:28:52,000 Make it a point to listen each Thursday to Suspense, Radio's Outstanding Theatre of Thrills. 546 00:28:52,000 --> 00:29:06,000 Next Thursday same time, hear Robert Montgomery. 547 00:29:06,000 --> 00:29:14,000 Remember, you're right with auto light. So switch to auto light. Good night. 548 00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:29,000 This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.