Auto Light and its 96,000 dealers bring you Miss Linda Donnell in tonight's presentation
of Suspense.
Tonight, Auto Light presents the story of a woman who knew her husband was trying to
kill her and was powerless to stop it.
A dramatic report we call A Killing in Las Vegas, starring Miss Linda Donnell.
Hi, a Hap.
Oh, hello Harlow.
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And now, with a killing in Las Vegas and the performance of Miss Linda Darnell, Auto Light
hopes once again to keep you in suspense.
Yes, ma'am?
I'd like to see the policeman in charge, please.
Maybe I can help you, ma'am.
What is it?
My husband is trying to kill me.
I see.
You'd better come with me.
Oh, Hank, I think you'd better talk with this lady.
Oh, yes, ma'am.
Come in.
Now, have a seat.
Thank you.
Now, what is it you want to see me about, Miss...
Mrs. Evans, Dixie Evans.
I'm a dancer over at the Oasis Club.
Oh, yeah, the Oasis.
You must be one of the new acts.
I don't believe I've seen you.
Well, I just started my run this week.
Well, what's your trouble, Mrs. Evans?
My husband is trying to kill me.
Your husband?
Yes, twice in the last 24 hours.
Well, maybe you'd better start at the beginning.
Well, my husband Charlie and I arrived here in Las Vegas about a week ago.
Frankie Parris, a booking agent in Los Angeles, had gotten me a six-week run at the Oasis
Club over on the main highway.
Yeah, I know the place.
Well, Charlie doesn't usually bother to travel with me when I go out on road bookings, but
this time he did.
Charlie likes to gamble.
I guess that's why he came with me.
Well, last night, Charlie didn't show up at the club at 1.30 to pick me up like he usually
does, so I waited for him.
And by 2 o'clock, the club had been emptied and everybody had gone home.
I was still in the back waiting for him.
Who is it?
Oh, it's you, Dixon.
Hi, Barney.
What are you doing out here all alone?
Well, I'm waiting for my husband.
He's late.
Sure is.
It's almost 2.30.
You know where he is?
No.
Getting lucky, I hope.
That's what I call wishful thinking.
Did the house get much play tonight?
About usual.
Hey, would you like me to give you a lift downtown to your hotel?
Oh, no, no thanks, Barney.
I'd better wait for him.
He'd have called me if he wasn't coming.
He'll be along any minute.
Yeah, if nothing happened to him.
I know him like a book.
After living with him for seven years, I should know.
He'd have called.
You've been married that long, huh?
Well, uh, look, Dixie, I don't like to leave you out here all alone like this.
Oh, don't be silly.
Well, if I can't offer you a lift to town...
No, thanks.
Just the same, Barney.
Tell you what I'll do.
I'll wait around until he gets here.
I don't want you to get lonesome.
Oh, no.
You go on home and get some sleep.
I won't be lonesome.
I've got all those wide open spaces of Nevada just to keep me company.
Okay, Dixie.
And besides that, I've got a strong pair of lungs.
I can always scream for help.
Sure, but who'd hear you?
Like you said, those are wide open spaces out there.
Are you trying to scare me?
Nope.
I'm just tired.
I'll see you tomorrow night.
Good night, Dixie.
Good night, Barney.
Bears.
Charlie?
Is that you?
Who is it?
Charlie?
Then before I could move, I felt someone grab me from behind.
It was a man.
He twisted me.
He twisted my arms and yanked me back in the shadows.
I kicked and spit and tried to fight myself loose, but it was no use.
His hands were like steel.
I tried to scream, but his hands glommed around my throat.
When I came to, I was lying on the gravel back of the club.
It was still dark.
I took a deep breath and my lungs felt as if they were going to burst.
And my throat ached.
I staggered to my feet and ran around in front of the club onto the main highway.
It wasn't long before a passing cab picked me up and took me back downtown to the hotel.
When I let myself into the room, Charlie was in bed.
I sat down and started to cry.
He got up, came over, and put his arms around me.
It's when I should have known, when he put his arms around me.
Look, Dixie baby, come on, get a hold of yourself now.
I take hold, honey.
You shake me like a leaf.
What is it?
Oh, Charlie.
Charlie, it was terrible.
Someone, someone tried to kill me.
Oh, baby.
Oh, Charlie.
Look, will you stop crying while you have to tell me what you're talking about?
Someone tried to kill you?
Yes, yes.
Where?
In the back of the club, the Oasis.
I was waiting for you and...
Didn't she get my telephone message?
Message?
Yeah, I left a message for you.
Well, no.
Oh, well, what happened?
Well, I was back there waiting for you.
I heard a noise and first I thought it was you.
I called your name and then this man rushed up behind me, grabbed me around the throat
and I...
Did you see what he looked like?
No, I couldn't see his face.
It was too dark, but he tried to choke me, Charlie.
Look, Dixie...
Oh, it was terrible.
His hands were around my throat.
Well, what happened after that?
I don't know.
I passed out.
I guess he thought I was dead.
But why did he want to kill me?
Just wait a minute, Dixie.
How do you know he wanted to kill you?
I don't know.
Was anyone from the club around here?
Oh, no.
Everybody was there.
I don't know.
Was anyone from the club around here?
Oh, no.
Everybody had gone home.
I see.
Oh, it could have been someone trying to rob the club.
Huh?
Yeah, sure, that might have been it.
Some guy was going to break in and rob the club.
He thought everybody had gone home.
When he got around and back, he found you.
He got scared and he attacked you.
Well, maybe... maybe a rider.
Of course I'm right.
You say you called me?
Yeah, I sure did.
I was having a run of luck at the club Crackwheel.
I still want about 500 bucks, baby.
I didn't want to leave.
So I called the club and told them to tell you to take a cab on home.
But I didn't get the message.
No, didn't I?
I guess somebody just forgot to give it to you.
Charlie, maybe I ought to call the police.
What for?
To tell them what happened.
Oh, it's late now, honey.
I'm going to get up in the morning.
All right, Charlie.
You won $500, Charlie?
Yeah.
Isn't that great?
Can I see it?
Oh, I didn't want to carry a lot of money with me.
I told them to make it out to me in a check and pick it up tomorrow.
Oh.
Now you get to sleep, Dixie.
You get a good night's rest.
You need it.
Okay, Charlie, I will.
I am tired.
I had a very restless night.
I didn't get much sleep.
But the next morning, the more I thought about what Charlie had said,
the more I began to believe that maybe he was right.
Maybe it had been somebody just wanting to rob the club.
We got up late and had lunch at one of the restaurants along 5th Street,
then played some bingo at the palace.
Then we walked around town for a while and went back to our hotel about 2.30.
Hey, Dixie, why don't you go upstairs and take a nap, huh?
I've got to get some rest. You had a pretty restless night there.
Yeah, I know.
Oh, Charlie, you're not going to...
Oh, no, honey.
I'll go on over and pick up the check at the club card room.
You should be ready for me.
You can get yourself a half hour of sleep. It'll do you good.
Maybe I will.
Have you got your key?
Uh-huh.
Good. Okay, I'll come wake you up in about half an hour.
All right.
Oh, Charlie.
Yeah, Dixie?
Lay off the dice table, huh?
Oh, sure.
Yes, ma'am?
Three, please.
Yes, ma'am.
Three outs.
Oh, brother, this feels good.
I didn't even bother to take my clothes off. I was too tired.
All I could think about was getting some sleep, and the bed felt soft and good.
I started to drift off into a dream.
It was a terrible dream.
I saw the man in the back of the club in my dream.
He was chasing me now. I tried to run away, but he caught me and tied me up.
Then he picked me up in his arms and carried me over to where a train engine stood and laid me down in front of it.
The train in my dream hadn't started to move yet, but I could hear the hissing of the engine.
And it seemed that the louder the hissing got, the harder it was for me to breathe.
I tried to wake up, but it was hard, and then finally I did.
But the hissing of the train didn't disappear with the rest of my dream.
The hissing became the gas jet in the corner of the room.
Oh, the window.
The window.
I've got to break it.
I've got to break my show off.
The Auto Light is bringing you Miss Linda Darnell in our killing in Las Vegas.
Tonight's production in radio's outstanding theater of thrills, South Spence.
Harlow, I've told you before that I have an Auto Light stay full battery.
What do you think of it, Hap?
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And the Auto Light stay full needs water.
Only three times a year in normal car use.
So friends, visit your auto light battery dealer, the man who services all makes of batteries.
To quickly learn his location, just call Western Union by number.
And ask for me, Operator 25, I'd gladly tell you the name and address of your nearest auto light battery dealer,
where you can get an auto light staple, the battery that needs water only three times a year in normal car use.
And remember, from bumper to tail light, you're always right with auto light.
And now, auto light brings back to our Hollywood sound stage,
Miss Linda Darnell in Elliot Lewis's production of A Killing in Las Vegas.
A dramatic report, well calculated to keep you in suspense.
All right, Mrs. Evans, just try to finish your story if you can.
You say you tried to break the window with your shoe.
Yes, it finally broke and I got some fresh air.
And this was how long ago?
About an hour.
Then what happened after you were able to revive yourself?
I was scared. I asked myself, what have I done so bad that someone wants to kill me for it?
Because now I believe that someone was trying to kill me.
I tried to get hold of Charlie, my husband, to tell him to come back to the hotel right away.
Main desk.
Would you ring the club cartwheel for me, please?
Just a moment.
Club cartwheel, Julio Coles speaking.
My name is Evans, Mrs. Dixie Evans.
My husband was coming in to pick up a check.
Can you tell me if he's still there?
Pick up a check? Does he do work here?
No, no, he came in there last night.
He had a run of locking.
He said he told you to make out a check for him.
What was that name again? Evans?
Yes, yes, Charlie.
He's in the club.
He said he told you to make out a check for him.
What was that name again? Evans?
Yes, yes, Charles Evans.
Just a second.
Does anybody know anything about a check for Evans?
No.
You mean he hasn't picked it up yet?
No record of a check waiting for him.
But he told me.
Yeah, lady, sure, he told you.
I'm sorry I bothered you.
Main desk.
Would you get me the Oasis Club, please?
The number is 4062.
One moment.
Oasis Club.
This is Dixie Evans.
I was wondering if there were any messages left there for me last night.
Oh, boy, wait a minute. I'll look.
Uh-uh. Not a one, Mrs. Evans.
Thank you.
And just like that, I find out that my husband, Charlie, is the person who's been trying to kill me.
My own sweet, loving husband.
He didn't win a pile at the club cartwheel.
And he didn't leave a message for me at the Oasis Club.
I guess I must have surprised him when I walked into the hotel room last night.
He'd left me for dead.
So he'd had to try again.
Sleep, Dixie.
Get some rest.
So he could turn on the gas jet in the room and try again.
What does a woman do when she finds out that her husband is trying to murder her?
What does she do?
What would any other woman do?
She'd go to the police.
So I came to talk to you.
Oh, is that all of it, Mrs. Evans?
Yes. Isn't it enough?
Mrs. Evans, tell me something.
A man who tried to choke you back at the club, did you see his face?
Well, I didn't see his face.
You didn't see his face?
No, but...
Then how do you know it was your husband, Mrs. Evans?
Because I told you he'd tried it again.
Only a little while ago up in our hotel room,
I found the gas jet in the room turned on.
You don't believe me, do you?
Does your husband own a gun?
Yes.
Has he ever threatened you with it?
Well, no.
Has he ever threatened you at all?
No. No, but don't you understand...
Why are you so certain that the man who tried to choke you
in back of the Oasis Club was your husband?
You didn't see his face.
I know, but...
Well, then you can't be sure.
But up in the hotel room...
You'd be quite surprised at the number of people who die every year
by accidentally bumping against a gas jet
and turning it on and never knew they did.
I tell you, my husband is trying to kill me.
Why?
Can you tell me why your husband wants to kill you?
Well, I don't know why.
I don't know. I haven't the slightest idea.
There, you see, you can't tell me why.
Now, look, Mrs. Evans, why don't you go back to your hotel now
and get some rest? We'll look into it for you.
Look into it?
But aren't you going to arrest him or something?
Well, I'll see how we can.
You haven't given us any kind of substantial evidence
that it'll prove your husband is trying to kill you.
In fact, you can't even tell me why he wants to kill you.
I can't tell you why. I don't know myself.
Well, you'd better get back to your hotel, Mrs. Evans.
Get some rest. We'll get on this right away.
Yes. Maybe you're right.
I'll go back to my hotel.
Thank you, Lieutenant.
Not at all.
You get taken care of, lady?
Oh, yes. Yes, thank you.
Dixie.
John.
Hello, Dixie.
Why get in the car, my dancing wife?
I've come to take you home.
Charlie, I thought we were going back to the hotel.
This isn't the way. What are we doing on the highway?
Charlie, what's the matter? What's wrong?
Oh, don't turn the radio louder, Charlie. I want to talk to you.
Charlie, you're mad at me, aren't you?
What have I done that's made you mad?
Charlie, take me back to our hotel. Let's get home.
I want to go home. I don't want to go for a ride.
I'm tired now. I'm awfully tired, Charlie.
Please don't turn it louder. It makes my head hurt.
Please, Charlie.
Charlie, don't I mean anything to you anymore?
What is it? What are you mad at me about?
Is it the divorce, Charlie?
I don't want to hear you talk.
That's everything. That's what you're mad at me about, the divorce.
But I can't give it to you, Charlie. I can't.
Look, it doesn't matter anymore.
She's married now. She wouldn't wait any longer.
Yesterday she got married.
Oh, Charlie, I didn't know it meant so much to you.
I only tried to do what I thought was best for the both of us.
We're not getting any younger.
And when two people were married for as long as we were married,
I thought maybe we should try to make something of it.
You thought that? What about me?
You?
What about what I thought?
Oh, you're right, Charlie.
But you can't kill me now.
Why can't I?
I told the police.
You told them what?
That you were trying to kill me.
That it was you in back of the club.
That you turned on the gas jet.
Oh, no. You can't kill me, Charlie.
They'll pick you up in a minute.
Okay, Dixie.
Shall we go back to the hotel now?
Okay, Dixie.
What do we do now?
There's nothing to do, Charlie.
We just go on, I guess. Like we have.
You do that?
You stay with me, married to me, knowing I want you dead?
I have to, Charlie.
Because I won't give you a divorce.
Well, like chess, Dixie, we're stalemated, aren't we?
Looks that way.
You know how much I hate you.
Now I know.
Up to now, it's been a game of cat and mouse.
You were the mouse and I was the cat, ready for the kill.
But you tricked me, my pretty wife.
Must feel pretty proud.
But look, the game's gonna change, Dixie.
Work hard. You make lots of money because I'm gonna spend it all.
Charlie.
Have I been a good husband to you, Dixie?
And think back. Remember all the soft, sweet things that we ever held between us?
Think about them, because those soft, sweet things will become just a memory.
From now on, I'm gonna make life hard for you, Dixie.
I'm gonna make it so hard for you, you'll wish that I had killed you.
I'm tired, Charlie.
I'm gonna try to get some rest.
Yeah, get some rest.
Get a lot of rest, Dixie. You're gonna need it.
Did you tell the police why I wanted to kill you, Dixie?
Did you tell them how I asked you in a civilized manner for a divorce?
You tell them that.
Goodbye, Charlie.
Dixie!
Dixie, what did you do?
Dixie!
Don't die!
The police, Dixie, they'll think I did it.
Dixie!
Please, Dixie, don't die!
Dixie, don't die!
Suspense!
Presented by Auto Light, tonight's star, Miss Linda Darnell.
This is Harlow Wilcox speaking for Auto Light,
world's largest independent manufacturer of automotive electrical equipment.
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on the next Auto Light Suspense television program.
If you live in a television area, check the day and time of Suspense on television
so that you'll be sure to see this program.
And remember, be with us next week for another thrilling Auto Light Suspense program on radio.
Next week on Suspense, our star will be Mr. Herbert Marshall
in a radio dramatization of the true story of the 39 steps.
In weeks to come, we shall also present Ray Milan and Frank Lovejoy, all on Suspense.
Suspense is produced and directed by Elliot Lewis with music composed by Lucian Morrowick
and conducted by Lud Bluskin.
A Killing in Las Vegas was written for Suspense by Richard George Petticini.
In tonight's story, Lamont Johnson was heard as Charlie and Joseph Kearns as the lieutenant.
Featured in the cast were Jerry Hausner, Charles Calvert, Eve McVeigh, and Jim Nusser.
Linda Darnall will soon be seen in David E. Rose's production of Saturday Island.
And remember, next week on Suspense, Mr. Herbert Marshall in The 39 Steps.
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