WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:12.100 Auto Light and its 96,000 dealers bring you the brilliant young motion picture star, Mr. 00:12.100 --> 00:18.800 Richard Bassehart, in tonight's presentation of Suspense. 00:18.800 --> 00:27.020 Tonight, Auto Light presents the story of a man who found it necessary to commit the 00:27.020 --> 00:32.960 perfect crime, a tale we call The Perfectionist, starring Mr. Richard Bassehart. 00:32.960 --> 00:44.320 Hip, hip, hooray! Hip, hip, hooray! Harlow, why the cheers? For the team, 00:44.320 --> 00:49.360 Hap. What team, Harlow? Why, the team under your car's hood, the Auto Light Electrical 00:49.360 --> 00:53.960 System, the family team of precision-made units, including the generator, battery, 00:53.960 --> 00:58.720 coil distributor, starting motor, and all the other important parts of the complete 00:58.720 --> 01:03.680 Auto Light Electrical System used as original factory equipment on many leading makes of 01:03.680 --> 01:08.080 our finest cars, trucks, and tractors. Does this team play full-time, Harlow? 01:08.080 --> 01:13.560 It works full-time, Hap, every time you press the starting switch, every second your engine is 01:13.560 --> 01:18.800 running, and whenever you use your horn, lights, or radio. That Auto Light Electrical System is a 01:18.800 --> 01:23.780 real winner, eh, Harlow? You bet, Hap, with all units related by Auto Light Engineering 01:23.780 --> 01:29.920 design and manufacturing skill to give you the smoothest performance money can buy. So, 01:29.920 --> 01:34.520 friends, when your Auto Light-equipped car needs replacement parts, take a tip from me, 01:34.520 --> 01:40.880 and insist on Auto Light original factory parts. And remember, from bumper to tail light, 01:40.880 --> 01:48.080 you're always right with Auto Light. And now, with The Perfectionist and the 01:48.080 --> 01:55.440 performance of Mr. Richard Baseheart, Auto Light hopes once again to keep you in suspense. 01:55.440 --> 02:16.720 There, it's all written. I couldn't confess it verbally to these police, 02:16.720 --> 02:21.320 as stupid men, men who discovered nothing about the murder through their own efforts. 02:21.320 --> 02:29.560 It was a mishap, a blunder which revealed me. I know, I killed him. When it comes to murder, 02:29.560 --> 02:35.200 few know it as I do. Few could have planned as I planned. Few could have put the body in such 02:35.200 --> 02:41.160 a trunk as I designed, a perfect trunk for transporting the body, perfect. I'm a perfectionist, 02:41.160 --> 02:55.480 and that is my failing. I have been, in my perfection, destroyed by imperfect men. 02:55.480 --> 03:01.200 The man I killed, he was old, old enough to be my father. I had planned each step and shipped 03:01.200 --> 03:04.480 his body in the trunk to a city only 90 miles away from the scene of the murder. 03:04.480 --> 03:13.480 Only 90 miles. And it was the fourth remaining step of a calculation in which each move had 03:13.480 --> 03:18.160 the precision of a mathematical equation. Your check, please. 03:18.160 --> 03:22.680 Here you are. It's a medium-sized trunk. Now we go by the numbers. 03:22.680 --> 03:27.960 It was train 91 out of Carleton. We arrived 30 minutes late at 721 a.m., precisely. 03:27.960 --> 03:31.640 You should have been a train man. You're better than the dispatchers. 03:31.640 --> 03:44.160 Gee, I'm sorry, mister, but I think we sent your trunk out by mistake. 03:44.160 --> 03:48.480 You what? We'll get it back. It happens sometimes. 03:48.480 --> 03:53.000 You idiot. You stupid idiot. Wait a second. I don't have to check. 03:53.000 --> 04:00.120 Yes, yes. You're quite right. And I apologize. When was it delivered? 04:00.120 --> 04:04.520 Yesterday. Has anyone phoned about it? Has anyone 04:04.520 --> 04:07.440 called? Complaining of the error? No. 04:07.440 --> 04:11.480 Well, perhaps they don't realize they have the wrong trunk. Perhaps they haven't opened 04:11.480 --> 04:14.560 it yet. Do you think that's possible? Do you think they might not have called because 04:14.560 --> 04:17.480 the trunk is still closed? It's the only reason. People really beef when 04:17.480 --> 04:20.960 they get the wrong trunk. They scream like wounded eagles. 04:20.960 --> 04:24.440 Give me their name and address. Oh, I'll look it up in the book. 04:24.440 --> 04:32.560 Oh, yeah. Yeah, here it is. Name's Granik. Yes, thank you. 04:32.560 --> 04:36.720 Whoa. Ain't you going to write it down? I don't have to write it down. 04:36.720 --> 04:47.880 Oh. Well, see you. Clerk, let me see that trunk. 04:47.880 --> 04:51.240 What? I want to see the trunk. I want to be sure it's 04:51.240 --> 04:55.720 not mine. The claim check's wrong. Yes, perhaps that's where the mistake lies, 04:55.720 --> 05:00.280 in the claim check. Okay, okay. So much nonsense about a lousy 05:00.280 --> 05:10.200 trunk. Yeah, it's right here. Come on in here and 05:10.200 --> 05:16.360 look. Yes. This is my trunk. 05:16.360 --> 05:19.240 You sure? You have skeleton keys. Open it. 05:19.240 --> 05:26.600 But your trunk, you got a key. I lost my key. Here's $10. 05:26.600 --> 05:36.320 Open it. Okay. 05:36.320 --> 05:39.960 That is my trunk. The drafting equipment, surveying instruments, 05:39.960 --> 05:42.800 they're mine. The tags must have been mixed up. 05:42.800 --> 05:45.600 If you want proof, why even they phone? This is my trunk. 05:45.600 --> 05:53.680 This one, not the other one. I hated that clerk. 05:53.680 --> 05:57.640 I hate anyone I have to depend on. And I had to depend on him. 05:57.640 --> 06:01.760 I had to ask him to help me when I know you can never trust anyone's help, ever. 06:01.760 --> 06:05.960 But I had to discover who the other people were and their trunk would tell me. 06:05.960 --> 06:09.200 I had to know their secret before they found out mine. 06:09.200 --> 06:13.000 Take their trunk, not to exchange it with mine. They might doubt me, ask me to open 06:13.000 --> 06:17.680 it. No. I had to get my trunk my own way and dispose 06:17.680 --> 06:29.080 of the body before anyone missed the man I had killed. 06:29.080 --> 06:32.640 Their name was Granick. And some letters in their trunk told me he had been a cripple 06:32.640 --> 06:37.640 for three years, paralyzed in the waist down. An accident, four. 06:37.640 --> 06:41.840 I knew more than that, much more. I knew he had just come out of a rehabilitation 06:41.840 --> 06:45.360 hospital. But did I know enough to get my trunk without 06:45.360 --> 06:49.720 their knowing who I really was or knowing the trunk was gone? 06:49.720 --> 06:51.760 They would know nothing. Nothing. 06:51.760 --> 06:54.880 Absolutely nothing of me, but I would know about them. 06:54.880 --> 07:00.080 Doesn't it give you a sense of power to know someone else's secret without their knowing 07:00.080 --> 07:01.080 any of yours? 07:01.080 --> 07:18.920 Yes? How do you do? This is Granick? 07:18.920 --> 07:23.600 Yes. My name is Christenton. Is your husband around? 07:23.600 --> 07:28.200 My husband is in the living room. I know. You're going to say he can't come 07:28.200 --> 07:31.400 in through the door. I know of this accident. 07:31.400 --> 07:35.280 What did you say your name was? Christenton. Chris. 07:35.280 --> 07:38.000 I know your husband has a great problem. He must. 07:38.000 --> 07:41.560 Anyone handicapped like that must have. You have no right to say anything like that. 07:41.560 --> 07:45.320 No, no. Didn't they call you from the office? Didn't 07:45.320 --> 07:48.240 they tell you I was coming here? Who is it, Betty? 07:48.240 --> 07:49.920 It's just someone... If they didn't call you, then you must listen 07:49.920 --> 07:52.120 to me. It's to your benefit to listen before I see 07:52.120 --> 07:53.120 him. Betty! 07:53.120 --> 07:57.340 In a minute, dear. We're a non-profit organization devoted solely 07:57.340 --> 08:01.120 to evaluating the attitudes of the crippled. How they're functioning. How much help they 08:01.120 --> 08:05.000 need. How dependent they are on others. On their loved ones. 08:05.000 --> 08:08.520 You know what I mean, Mrs. Granick? Surely you must know how terribly dependent 08:08.520 --> 08:12.920 such victims become with an inability to help themselves. A refusal. 08:12.920 --> 08:16.680 Or rather, a refusal to see what they're doing to the lives of their loved ones. 08:16.680 --> 08:22.480 Isn't that so, Mrs. Granick? Do you... do you want me to tell him who you 08:22.480 --> 08:25.960 are? You can tell him I'm from the hospital. 08:25.960 --> 08:31.040 Routine. Interview. Checkup. Follow through checkup. 08:31.040 --> 08:38.760 Come in. Mr. Christianson. 08:38.760 --> 08:43.200 Two hours had been lost. But once more I began to feel better. Control 08:43.200 --> 08:47.800 of the whole situation was coming back into my hands. 08:47.800 --> 08:51.800 Once more I knew I could succeed. I could get the trunk and dispose of the body as I 08:51.800 --> 08:56.880 had planned to do it. Not as circumstance dictated. And because I had control again, 08:56.880 --> 09:02.520 I was able to listen to this wasting hulk of a man, this William Granick, as he regaled 09:02.520 --> 09:06.520 me with his memories. But the trunk. Where was the trunk? 09:06.520 --> 09:11.920 I suppose everyone goes through this. Maybe I've taken longer to recuperate. Why is that? 09:11.920 --> 09:17.160 It's because of your active life, Mr. Granick. Your previous activity was outdoors. 09:17.160 --> 09:23.080 Always. Civil engineering isn't for sissies. No, it's for men. For real men. Building 09:23.080 --> 09:26.320 bridges and roads. That's for doers. You were a doer. 09:26.320 --> 09:30.560 Was a doer. Was. Bastards. And will be again. 09:30.560 --> 09:34.000 Never again. You had a hobby? 09:34.000 --> 09:38.720 Yeah. When I worked out the hospital. Dull and stupid. 09:38.720 --> 09:41.600 He still has his drafting equipment. We get that. 09:41.600 --> 09:47.080 Yes. That would be good. Work hypothetical engineering problems. I used to do that. 09:47.080 --> 09:51.520 I was going to be an engineer. For amusement, I used to pose hypothetical problems myself 09:51.520 --> 09:54.440 and work them out. Really? Where'd you study? 09:54.440 --> 09:57.360 Back East. Long time ago. Couldn't be too long. 09:57.360 --> 10:01.520 It's very long. But you're a young man. 10:01.520 --> 10:07.160 You. About your civil engineering. The drafting equipment. Surveying instruments. 10:07.160 --> 10:12.920 I lost interest. Can't do anything with it. I can't sit indoors and pretend it's outdoors. 10:12.920 --> 10:15.240 Where is the equipment? Around. 10:15.240 --> 10:18.600 You know very well where it is, Bill. We put it in storage back home where we used 10:18.600 --> 10:20.680 to live. We took it out of storage, Mr. Christensen. 10:20.680 --> 10:24.760 Had it shipped here. Is it in a packing crate? 10:24.760 --> 10:27.720 No. Well then what? What is it in? 10:27.720 --> 10:32.160 Well what difference does it make? In case I could help. To get it for you. 10:32.160 --> 10:34.480 A woman alone can't do it. Such equipment is heavy. 10:34.480 --> 10:36.840 She isn't alone. I'm here. 10:36.840 --> 10:41.440 Yes, darling. Yes, you are. You are here and you do help me. 10:41.440 --> 10:47.160 It's in a trunk. An old trunk. And where is this old trunk? 10:47.160 --> 10:50.520 In the closet. But I don't want to see it. Had a man who delivered it put it there in 10:50.520 --> 10:53.960 the closet. I'm through with it. And you haven't opened the trunk? 10:53.960 --> 11:00.960 You haven't opened it for a long time. In a way that's better. 11:01.160 --> 11:03.120 It's raining. What? 11:03.120 --> 11:09.000 It started to rain. Are you a... 11:09.000 --> 11:14.920 Maybe it's presumptuous but not many people come over these days but... 11:14.920 --> 11:18.040 Are you busy for supper? Why no. 11:18.040 --> 11:25.400 No I'm not. I'd be delighted. 11:25.400 --> 11:28.400 I was exhilarated. The excitement of getting my trunk. 11:28.400 --> 11:31.880 The thrill of my long battle almost won. Almost over. 11:31.880 --> 11:37.320 Ah, it's important to be exact. Only the exact survive. 11:37.320 --> 11:41.520 I felt as if I could do anything that night. Anything I wanted to. 11:41.520 --> 11:46.380 All the skills I developed over the years. Waiting... 11:46.380 --> 11:49.320 Waiting for them to go to bed. Waiting to get to the trunk. 11:49.320 --> 11:56.320 I used one of those skills. I made a pencil drawing of the man. 11:56.320 --> 12:00.720 All right, turn your head. A bit this way. I guess. 12:00.720 --> 12:03.800 There. There, that's it. 12:03.800 --> 12:08.800 No, it's not right. We'll start over. 12:08.800 --> 12:13.040 It's about the tenth time. I'm going to do this in oils ultimately. 12:13.040 --> 12:16.120 It must be right. Exactly right. 12:16.120 --> 12:19.920 Yeah, maybe in engineering you have to be that accurate or a bridge would collapse if 12:19.920 --> 12:22.720 we went off a fraction. But in this... 12:22.720 --> 12:27.480 In Europe... I studied in Europe. I was told I had a great talent. 12:27.480 --> 12:31.840 Truly great talent. Correggio. You ever heard of him? 12:31.840 --> 12:36.240 He was my teacher. He told me I'd never make a living at it because I was too demanding 12:36.240 --> 12:37.800 of myself. That's not good. 12:37.800 --> 12:42.800 To be too demanding. Expect too much of yourself. 12:42.800 --> 12:49.320 That's... it's wrong. It's gone. Once you decide to abandon a talent, never turn 12:49.320 --> 12:51.560 back. My husband is going to turn back. 12:51.560 --> 12:55.880 Of course, but that's different. I mean, an artist. When he doesn't feel greatness 12:55.880 --> 12:59.400 in one field, he should go on to another. And an engineer. 12:59.400 --> 13:03.360 I'm sure you were a fine engineer. Yeah. 13:03.360 --> 13:07.800 That was one of the best. He's won an award. 13:07.800 --> 13:12.800 Uh, Mr. Creslinson? Would you like to see him? 13:12.800 --> 13:16.080 Uh, why, yes. They're in the trunk, honey. 13:16.080 --> 13:18.080 I'll show you. No! 13:18.080 --> 13:24.280 Please, don't bother yourself now. We'll have lots of time to talk. 13:24.280 --> 13:27.800 Lots of other conversations. Many. Many. 13:27.800 --> 13:30.960 I guess it would be kind of boasting. It wouldn't be. There's nothing wrong with 13:30.960 --> 13:35.960 being proud of what you've done. No, no, no. Never mind, Betty. 13:35.960 --> 13:41.880 Oh, excuse me. It's awfully late. 13:41.880 --> 13:45.880 You know, Mr. Creslinson, you've been kind of good for me. 13:45.880 --> 13:47.880 Brandon. How's that? 13:47.880 --> 13:51.600 Oh, Brandon. Brandon Creslinson's my first name. 13:51.600 --> 13:55.440 Oh. I'm glad I've helped you. But how? 13:55.440 --> 14:00.440 Well, by showing me that we shouldn't hold on to something we can no longer do. 14:00.440 --> 14:04.320 But you can, darling. You can. I'm a cripple. I can't. 14:04.320 --> 14:09.840 And what would you propose as a solution? Maybe I ought to start with those drafting 14:09.840 --> 14:13.000 instruments. Start? How? 14:13.000 --> 14:18.520 Maybe sell them. Maybe get them out of the trunk tomorrow morning and sell them. 14:18.520 --> 14:23.520 Yeah. Well, I'd better get to bed. 14:23.520 --> 14:29.440 Good night, Mr. Creslinson. See him out, Betty. I can manage the crutches. 14:29.440 --> 14:33.040 Would you mind if I finished filling in my report here? 14:33.040 --> 14:37.840 Oh, certainly not. Go right ahead. Thank you. 14:37.840 --> 14:46.840 I'll see myself to the door, Mrs. Gunnick. Well, good night, Mr. Creslinson. 14:46.840 --> 15:14.840 Good night. Now wait. Wait for them to sleep. 15:14.840 --> 15:20.920 Auto Light is bringing you Mr. Richard Baseheart in The Perfectionist in tonight's production 15:20.920 --> 15:42.920 in radio's outstanding theater of thrills, Suspense. 15:42.920 --> 15:47.160 Hey, Harlow. What are you doing? I'm showing you how the Auto Light electrical 15:47.160 --> 15:52.160 system in your Auto Light equipped car provides the power for starting the engine, sounding 15:52.160 --> 15:56.440 the horn, and playing the radio. And the lights and heater, too, hey, Harlow? 15:56.440 --> 16:02.000 Right, Hap, as well as the power that's so important every second your engine is running. 16:02.000 --> 16:07.160 They're all powered by the Auto Light electrical system in which every unit and component part 16:07.160 --> 16:12.900 are related by Auto Light engineering design and manufacturing skill to give you the finest 16:12.900 --> 16:16.800 performance money can buy. The electrical system is mighty important 16:16.800 --> 16:20.400 to us car owners, Harlow. And that's why you should treat your car's 16:20.400 --> 16:25.640 electrical system to a periodic checkup at your authorized Auto Light service station 16:25.640 --> 16:31.360 or the dealer who services your make of car. You can quickly locate your nearest authorized 16:31.360 --> 16:36.600 Auto Light service station in the classified section of the phone directory or call Western 16:36.600 --> 16:42.600 Union by number and ask for operator 25. She'll quickly tell you the name of your nearest 16:42.600 --> 16:48.000 authorized Auto Light service station. And remember, from bumper to tail light, you're 16:48.000 --> 16:54.440 always right with Auto Light. And now, Auto Light brings back to our Hollywood 16:54.440 --> 17:01.200 sound stage Mr. Richard Baseheart in Elliot Lewis's production of The Perfectionist, a 17:01.200 --> 17:21.120 tale well calculated to keep you in suspense. I waited until the house was silent, motionless, 17:21.120 --> 17:28.760 staring, listening. There, in the open closet, in the trunk was the body. My heart started 17:28.760 --> 17:38.280 to pound. I advanced toward it in the dark. I felt wonderful. Here, so near completion. 17:38.280 --> 17:56.400 Here, in the dark. In a moment, I would have it open. In a moment. She, she came into the 17:56.400 --> 18:02.920 room and turned on the light. I slammed the lock back and whirled to face her. What do 18:02.920 --> 18:08.920 you want, Mr. Christensen? I, I only wanted to, I. You had the key to that trunk, didn't 18:08.920 --> 18:18.160 you? I, I wanted to tell you something. Yes? Don't, don't press me. Don't demand. I'll 18:18.160 --> 18:27.720 wait. Well? It's, it isn't easy. It isn't easy. It's very difficult to admit an error. 18:27.720 --> 18:36.280 A lie, not an error. No, no, no, not a lie. Yes, it's a lie. You're not from the hospital. 18:36.280 --> 18:39.600 You were never near the hospital my husband was in. How did you know? How did you find 18:39.600 --> 18:43.760 out about us? Who are you? Can you forgive me? Listen, don't judge before you listen. 18:43.760 --> 18:47.040 What's your name? And don't come any closer. I have this poker. I won't be threatened. 18:47.040 --> 18:56.080 I won't. I mean you no harm. My real name is Brandon, Carl Brandon. I mean you no harm 18:56.080 --> 19:05.640 at all. Please believe me. Please. Please. Why did you come here? I'm, I'm a student. 19:05.640 --> 19:11.160 Yes, I was in the army and wounded. I had wonderful dreams and plans about what I'd 19:11.160 --> 19:17.760 do after I got out. Wonderful dreams. My father's a rich man. He's old and rich. But I couldn't 19:17.760 --> 19:23.680 take anything from him after the war. A pension isn't enough. But I couldn't take anything 19:23.680 --> 19:27.160 from him anymore. He gave me money and he told me what to do all the time. Why did you 19:27.160 --> 19:34.720 come here? I obtained a part time job in the hospital to support myself. I did work there, 19:34.720 --> 19:40.600 you see. But in their storage room. And I, I heard about the trunk your husband had. 19:40.600 --> 19:45.480 With his drafting equipment in it? Yes, yes. The valuable equipment. I knew I could steal 19:45.480 --> 19:49.240 it and sell the things. I knew they were valuable. I know about things like that. I, I contended 19:49.240 --> 19:52.840 the cost of each instrument. Didn't the fact that my husband and I couldn't afford to buy 19:52.840 --> 19:58.240 new ones affect you any? Yes, yes. That's, that's what I'm trying to say. Yes, I, I admitted 19:58.240 --> 20:01.800 everything. Why do you keep accusing me? I admitted everything and I ask your forgiveness. 20:01.800 --> 20:08.120 Yes, I was wrong. What more can I do? What more do you want me to do? To leave. Turn 20:08.120 --> 20:14.040 to my father and say that I was wrong. I made a mistake. That he was right. Give me money. 20:14.040 --> 20:19.280 Tell me what to do. Order my life. Live my life. Show me my failings. Show me where I'm 20:19.280 --> 20:27.080 not as strong as he is, as bright as he is, as, as strong as, as strong. No, wait. Don't 20:27.080 --> 20:56.840 leave. What? Stay awhile. Just a minute. Sit down, Mr. Brennan. Go on. That's it. The, 20:56.840 --> 21:06.200 the Mr. Brandon sounds wrong. Mind if I call you Carl, isn't it? Yes, Carl. Carl Brennan. 21:06.200 --> 21:12.400 It's a nice sounding name. Betty, make some coffee, will you honey? Coffee? Yeah. How 21:12.400 --> 21:19.400 do you like it, Carl? Just plain black coffee. The way they drink it in the army, huh? The 21:19.400 --> 21:26.760 army? Oh, yes, as always. I was in myself. I know what it's like to come out and, and 21:26.760 --> 21:31.680 be hit with civilian life. If it isn't a problem, there's nothing one cannot work out if one 21:31.680 --> 21:36.880 has the willpower and the self-discipline. No, I couldn't have. Not without Betty. It 21:36.880 --> 21:45.640 takes a woman or a friend or just somebody who cares. It takes someone to help. I don't 21:45.640 --> 21:50.480 need any help, Mr. Granick. Bill. Just call me Bill. Mr. Granick, I don't need any help. 21:50.480 --> 21:54.080 I'm fully capable of solving my own problems without help, without advice. We all need 21:54.080 --> 22:01.160 help sometimes. None of us can live without it. You're bitter. I can understand it. I, 22:01.160 --> 22:05.960 I've felt it. But you have to listen to other people sometimes. Now, why don't you try your 22:05.960 --> 22:10.400 homey little platitudes on yourself? Did they do you any good in that wheelchair? Did they 22:10.400 --> 22:13.800 made you bounding with hope and ambition? Are you a better person now than you were 22:13.800 --> 22:18.240 before you were paralyzed? Don't preach to me. You better leave right now. Now. No, no, 22:18.240 --> 22:23.840 no, Betty. You have to listen. Maybe he's right too. Maybe he can see my problem clearly 22:23.840 --> 22:36.720 the way I can see his. I can't stand waiting. Waiting sometimes makes me angry. I'm sorry. 22:36.720 --> 22:44.000 Sure. Sure, I understand. And even though I'm not too much older than you, Carl, I, 22:44.000 --> 22:50.160 I've seen an awful lot. I've been around a lot. And that's why even though we might 22:50.160 --> 22:57.080 not meet again, I, I like to talk to you straight. Like a member of your own family would. I 22:57.080 --> 23:02.320 don't need instruction. It's advice. And I don't need advice. We all need it sometimes, 23:02.320 --> 23:06.340 Carl. His advice was just like yours. To do things the way he did them. But letting me 23:06.340 --> 23:09.440 know that I could never do the things the way he did them. That I was incompetent and 23:09.440 --> 23:13.360 he was better. Always better. I don't mean that. Not that way. Well, I did something 23:13.360 --> 23:18.000 better. Braver. Something more daring. More skilled than he ever dreamed of doing. You 23:18.000 --> 23:23.560 understand? I've accomplished what he could never do. What do you mean? What are you trying 23:23.560 --> 23:28.280 to say? That you can keep your rotten advice to yourself. That you're nothing but a cripple. 23:28.280 --> 23:33.080 You're the cripple. Not my husband. You're the cripple in your head. Only his legs are 23:33.080 --> 23:41.760 far but. Betty. All right, Carl. What is it that you've done that's so great? Get up. 23:41.760 --> 23:54.360 Go ahead of me. I'll show you. Do as I say. Now. Right now. I knew then. I knew I'd have 23:54.360 --> 23:59.520 to kill them. And perhaps they knew. A woman with a cripple for a husband. Perhaps they 23:59.520 --> 24:05.240 knew they had to be killed because. Because. I don't know why. I knew then but I can't 24:05.240 --> 24:10.400 remember now. I knew more and more as they went fearfully toward the closet. Afraid to 24:10.400 --> 24:15.440 make a move to attack me. Afraid because he was a cripple and she was powerless. And I 24:15.440 --> 24:22.640 opened the closet door. My excitement was so great I hardly remember each step. I'm 24:22.640 --> 24:30.440 not lying. I barely remember. I turned the key in the lock. Each move was precise. Not 24:30.440 --> 24:35.480 a motion wasted. Not one action misplaced. For this was my victory against everything 24:35.480 --> 24:42.680 that stood in my way. Not to argue. Not to discuss. But to kill. To kill perfectly. Quickly. 24:42.680 --> 24:48.600 Kill. What stands in my way. Kill. The granics. Kill. The man in the trunk. The man who looked 24:48.600 --> 25:06.240 like my father. And I swung it wide. It will do no good. It will not help. The time is 25:06.240 --> 25:19.960 past. Why not me first Carl? Afraid of me? Afraid of a cripple? Why didn't I think? Why 25:19.960 --> 25:24.680 didn't I calculate? Why for the first time in my life an act of passion without thinking 25:24.680 --> 25:31.440 I leaped at him like an animal. Like a beast. Have you ever fought a man whose legs are 25:31.440 --> 25:36.000 useless? Have you ever felt the arm of a man who uses his arms to sit and go and move and 25:36.000 --> 25:43.520 rise their steel? They went to my throat and I struggled in a dream. I can even feel them 25:43.520 --> 25:56.840 now. This wasn't the way. Where was my triumph? My victory? Where was my glory? Afraid of 25:56.840 --> 26:16.400 me? Please. Please. Afraid of a cripple? Perfect man? Stop. Please. Stop. I didn't mean it. 26:16.400 --> 26:28.840 I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. Bill. Call the police first, Betty. Then come back and help 26:28.840 --> 26:58.080 me up. Suspense. Presented by Auto Light. Tonight's star, Mr. Richard Baseheart. 26:59.560 --> 27:04.720 This is Harlow Wilcox speaking for Auto Light, world's largest independent manufacturer of 27:04.720 --> 27:09.760 automotive electrical equipment. Auto Light is proud to serve the greatest names in the 27:09.760 --> 27:16.120 industry. That's why during the early months of 52, the Auto Light family will join together 27:16.120 --> 27:20.800 in saluting the leading car manufacturers who install Auto Light products as original 27:20.800 --> 27:26.960 equipment. Our Auto Light family is made up of the nearly 30,000 men and women in 28 great 27:26.960 --> 27:32.800 Auto Light plants from coast to coast. Our family also includes more than 18,000 people 27:32.800 --> 27:38.280 who have invested a portion of their savings in Auto Light, as well as 96,000 Auto Light 27:38.280 --> 27:43.120 distributors and dealers in the United States and thousands more in Canada and throughout 27:43.120 --> 27:48.520 the world. Our Auto Light family will salute the Dodge Division of Chrysler Corporation 27:48.520 --> 27:53.280 on the next Auto Light Suspense television program. Check the day and time of Suspense 27:53.280 --> 27:58.360 on television so that you will be sure to see this program. And be with us next week 27:58.360 --> 28:08.560 for another thrilling Suspense program on radio. 28:08.560 --> 28:13.680 Next week on Suspense, our star will be Mr. Joseph Cotton, who will portray a man without 28:13.680 --> 28:20.000 emotion, the mechanical man in a tale we call Carnival. In weeks to come, we shall also 28:20.000 --> 28:32.200 present Mr. J. Carroll Nash, Mr. James Mason, and Miss Barbara Stanwyck, all on Suspense. 28:32.200 --> 28:36.360 Suspense is produced and directed by Elliot Lewis, with music composed by Lucian Morawick 28:36.360 --> 28:42.720 and conducted by Lud Bluskin. The Perfectionist was written for Suspense by Arthur Ross. In 28:42.720 --> 28:48.120 tonight's cast, Charlotte Lawrence was Betty Granick, William Conrad was Bill Granick, 28:48.120 --> 28:52.880 and Joseph Kearns was the attendant. Tonight's appearance is made possible through permission 28:52.880 --> 28:58.040 of 20th Century Fox. Mr. Baseheart may currently be seen in their production of Decision Before 28:58.040 --> 29:04.120 Dawn. And remember next week on Suspense, Mr. Joseph Cotton in Carnival. This is the 29:04.120 --> 29:19.120 CBS Radio Network.