WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:10.000 And now, tonight's presentation of radio's outstanding theater of thrills, Suspense. 00:15.000 --> 00:21.000 Tonight, the story of a perfect fraud that succeeded only too well. It's called Final Payment. 00:21.000 --> 00:30.000 So now, starring Harry Bartell with Peter Leeds, here is tonight's Suspense play, Final Payment. 00:42.000 --> 00:46.000 Silence! Silence in the courtroom! 00:46.000 --> 00:51.000 There's another outbreak such as this, our Lord of the Courtroom, clear. Your Honor. 00:51.000 --> 01:00.000 Yes, Mr. Sheridan. I'd like to request a 30-minute recess. I assure you, Your Honor, we were certainly not prepared for anything like this. 01:00.000 --> 01:06.000 I understand, Mr. Sheridan. And in view of the unusual circumstances, I grant your request. 01:06.000 --> 01:16.000 This court is recessed and will reconvene in 30 minutes. 01:16.000 --> 01:22.000 All right, all right. What's everybody staring at me for? What's wrong? 01:22.000 --> 01:27.000 You can't possibly suspect a thing, not a thing. 01:27.000 --> 01:34.000 But maybe, was there something we missed? Something we didn't think about? 01:34.000 --> 01:43.000 The day it started, Chicago. The day I ran into Sam at the lunch counter. Maybe there was something then. Maybe that's when we made a mistake. 01:43.000 --> 01:46.000 Gee, Joe, it sure has been a long time, hasn't it? 01:46.000 --> 01:49.000 Ten years. You know, it doesn't seem that long. 01:49.000 --> 01:53.000 Hey, what happened to you after the Italian campaign? One day you were there, the next day gone. 01:53.000 --> 01:56.000 Well, I was shipped back to the States and then out to the Philippines. 01:56.000 --> 01:57.000 Do you see any action? 01:57.000 --> 01:59.000 Oh, some. A little. 01:59.000 --> 02:03.000 You know, Sam, you haven't changed a bit. Put on a little weight, maybe. 02:03.000 --> 02:06.000 Haven't we all? And some gray hair. 02:06.000 --> 02:07.000 Oh, I'm a lot grayer than you. 02:07.000 --> 02:10.000 Well, maybe I haven't got as many worries as you have. 02:10.000 --> 02:12.000 I guess you live right. 02:12.000 --> 02:15.000 I guess I do. Oh, you're married, Joe? 02:15.000 --> 02:17.000 Oh, yeah. I got a couple of kids. 02:17.000 --> 02:19.000 Oh, that's wonderful. 02:19.000 --> 02:24.000 I'm working with a construction gang right now. It isn't what I want, but it'll do. 02:24.000 --> 02:25.000 Temporarily, you mean? 02:25.000 --> 02:26.000 Yeah. 02:26.000 --> 02:28.000 Got to keep the family eating, huh? 02:28.000 --> 02:29.000 Sure do. 02:29.000 --> 02:32.000 Bet it gets rough sometimes. 02:32.000 --> 02:34.000 Yeah, sometimes. 02:34.000 --> 02:37.000 It takes a lot of sweat to keep a family these days. 02:37.000 --> 02:39.000 You got a family, Sam? 02:39.000 --> 02:42.000 Oh, no, no. But I know the problems. 02:42.000 --> 02:44.000 Hey, what are you doing in Chicago? You live here? 02:44.000 --> 02:46.000 No. I'm just passing through. 02:46.000 --> 02:48.000 What kind of work you're doing? 02:48.000 --> 02:52.000 Well, Joe, right now let's just say I'm in between jobs. 02:52.000 --> 02:54.000 Actually, Joe, I'm looking for a partner. 02:54.000 --> 02:55.000 A partner? 02:55.000 --> 03:00.000 Mm-hmm. A partner to split a profit of $100,000 with me. 03:00.000 --> 03:02.000 A hundred? Say, Joe, I'll tell you what. 03:02.000 --> 03:04.000 I'm going to be in town for another couple of days. 03:04.000 --> 03:09.000 Look, here's the phone number of the hotel where I'm staying. 03:09.000 --> 03:14.000 You know, it never occurred to me, but you might be interested in hearing about this deal. 03:14.000 --> 03:18.000 Sam, I don't have an old spare tennis shoe. I couldn't invest in a business. 03:18.000 --> 03:23.000 Joe, I said I'm looking for a partner to split $100,000 with. 03:23.000 --> 03:25.000 I didn't say anything about investing money. 03:25.000 --> 03:33.000 If you're interested, give me a call. 03:33.000 --> 03:36.000 Maybe it was the night I called Sam at his hotel. 03:36.000 --> 03:39.000 I remember I called him right after work. 03:39.000 --> 03:45.000 And then I called Mary, told her I'd met a friend and wouldn't be home for dinner. 03:45.000 --> 03:47.000 And there was that bar over on Halsted where we met. 03:47.000 --> 03:51.000 Maybe somebody in there remembered. 03:51.000 --> 03:57.000 It's a new twist on an old racket, Joe, a guy who pretends he's hurt, only he isn't. 03:57.000 --> 04:00.000 The insurance company's a wise, Sam. You never get away with it. 04:00.000 --> 04:04.000 Wait, wait. Now, first I got to know if you're interested, Joe. 04:04.000 --> 04:08.000 First I got to know that. Then I'll tell you the twist. 04:08.000 --> 04:11.000 Well? 04:11.000 --> 04:14.000 Yeah. Yeah, all right. I'm interested. 04:14.000 --> 04:17.000 Good. Now, this is the way it works. 04:17.000 --> 04:20.000 You and the family move to a small town. 04:20.000 --> 04:24.000 You buy yourself a moderately cheap car. Get a job. 04:24.000 --> 04:28.000 You live there a couple of months and you call on the insurance agent of a big company. 04:28.000 --> 04:30.000 You take out a small policy. 04:30.000 --> 04:35.000 A couple of months later, you increase this policy to $100,000 liability. 04:35.000 --> 04:40.000 In the meantime, I arrive in the same town, take up residence. 04:40.000 --> 04:45.000 Now we both live there, maybe on the opposite sides of the town. 04:45.000 --> 04:46.000 You still with me? 04:46.000 --> 04:48.000 Yeah, go ahead. 04:48.000 --> 04:53.000 Then one day, a year later, I step off the curb at a certain intersection. 04:53.000 --> 04:58.000 You're driving home from work. You hit me. 04:58.000 --> 04:59.000 Hit you? 04:59.000 --> 05:01.000 Yeah. 05:01.000 --> 05:07.000 I dodged a lot of tanks in Italy, but somehow I can't dodge the right fender of your car. 05:07.000 --> 05:10.000 I tell you to forget about it. You do. 05:10.000 --> 05:17.000 You don't even bother to tell the insurance company about it because I seem like such a nice guy. 05:17.000 --> 05:25.000 Only I'm not a nice guy because a couple of weeks later, I got you in court and I'm suing you for a couple of hundred thousand dollars. 05:25.000 --> 05:31.000 You know, Joe, I figure by the time we settle, it'll be an even hundred thousand. 05:31.000 --> 05:33.000 But when the insurance company finds out... 05:33.000 --> 05:34.000 It'll be too late. 05:34.000 --> 05:36.000 I don't get it, Sam. They'll fight it. They'll... 05:36.000 --> 05:42.000 Oh, sure, sure. They'll have some notice before and they'll come to you and give you a big thing on how they're going to fight this case. 05:42.000 --> 05:43.000 That's what I mean. 05:43.000 --> 05:48.000 And you, Joe, you're going to cooperate with them 100%. 05:48.000 --> 05:52.000 And now the twist. It takes place the day you go under cross... 05:52.000 --> 05:57.000 I don't understand anything about it. I don't understand. But my gosh, you just stood there like this. 05:57.000 --> 05:58.000 Oh, no, I don't... 05:58.000 --> 06:05.000 You go under cross examination. You're going to break down and confess it was your fault. 06:05.000 --> 06:08.000 Confess? But, Sam... 06:08.000 --> 06:17.000 Joe, the worst you can get is maybe a charge of criminal negligence, maybe a fine, your driver's license suspended for a year. 06:17.000 --> 06:27.000 But it's... it's worth 50 G's, isn't it? It's crazy. So crazy it could come off. 06:27.000 --> 06:33.000 Well, Joe, $50,000. 06:33.000 --> 06:34.000 You know, if I thought for one minute... 06:34.000 --> 06:36.000 What can go wrong? 06:36.000 --> 06:40.000 I don't know. I don't know. 06:40.000 --> 06:41.000 I got to talk this over with Mary. 06:41.000 --> 06:47.000 Oh, no. No, you don't talk this over with anyone. You understand me? No one. 06:47.000 --> 06:53.000 You're the only one besides myself that knows. We can't afford to take a chance, Joe. Not even on your wife. 06:53.000 --> 06:56.000 But if I just pick up stakes and take off of some small jerk water town, Mary's going to want to know... 06:56.000 --> 07:04.000 Take up some excuse. It doesn't matter anything. Better climate for the kids. You want to get ahead? 07:04.000 --> 07:10.000 Well, what do you say? 07:10.000 --> 07:19.000 All right. Count me in. 07:19.000 --> 07:26.000 When I told Mary what I decided to do about the move and all, she raised some questions, but that was the end of it. 07:26.000 --> 07:30.000 I took the few dollars we had in the savings account and bought a cheap car. 07:30.000 --> 07:40.000 And a week later, we piled our belongings into it and headed for a small town in Indiana. 07:40.000 --> 07:45.000 Sam picked this town in Indiana because a big insurance company had a local office there. 07:45.000 --> 07:50.000 I got a job with a machine shop. The pay wasn't high, but it kept us in food and clothes. 07:50.000 --> 07:55.000 And there was enough left over to make payments on the insurance policy I'd taken out. 07:55.000 --> 08:02.000 Three months later, I called the insurance agent and told him I wanted to increase my liability policy to $100,000. 08:02.000 --> 08:08.000 Was it then? Was there some slip up that night Mr. Hirsch came to the house? Did something happen then? 08:08.000 --> 08:15.000 Well, Mr. Thurston, I think we've got everything. All you do now is just sign right here. 08:15.000 --> 08:17.000 Here you are, Mr. Hirsch. 08:17.000 --> 08:19.000 Well, that does it, Joe. You're all set. 08:19.000 --> 08:21.000 Sure makes me feel a lot better. 08:21.000 --> 08:27.000 I'm sure it does. Well, I guess I'll be on my way. 08:27.000 --> 08:29.000 I want to thank you very much, Mr. Hirsch. 08:29.000 --> 08:31.000 Oh, my pleasure. 08:31.000 --> 08:39.000 It wouldn't have been then, there wasn't anything. 08:39.000 --> 08:44.000 Then one day on a coffee break at a little cafeteria, I noticed someone out of the corner of my eye. 08:44.000 --> 08:47.000 He sat down on a stool next to me. 08:47.000 --> 08:49.000 Hiya, kid. 08:49.000 --> 08:51.000 Sam. 08:51.000 --> 08:55.000 I got in town about a week ago. How's everything going, Joe? 08:55.000 --> 08:56.000 Fine. 08:56.000 --> 08:58.000 You're keeping up the payments on the policy? 08:58.000 --> 08:59.000 Yeah. 08:59.000 --> 09:04.000 Good. I'll contact you again right before we're ready to pull it off. 09:04.000 --> 09:14.000 Six months passed, six months of waiting. 09:14.000 --> 09:16.000 I got a promotion at the machine shop. 09:16.000 --> 09:18.000 Mary seemed real happy. 09:18.000 --> 09:20.000 But every day I waited for some word from Sam. 09:20.000 --> 09:23.000 Maybe something had gone wrong. 09:23.000 --> 09:26.000 And then one night I went to a union meeting. 09:26.000 --> 09:30.000 I sat and listened to the guys discuss plans for the company's annual picnic. 09:30.000 --> 09:34.000 Then we took five for a smoke. 09:42.000 --> 09:44.000 Pardon me, mister, you got a light? 09:44.000 --> 09:46.000 Yeah, sure. 09:48.000 --> 09:50.000 Thanks. 09:54.000 --> 09:55.000 The time's ripe, Joe. 09:55.000 --> 09:56.000 Are you sure? 09:56.000 --> 09:57.000 I'm sure. 09:57.000 --> 10:00.000 Now listen carefully and get this in your head. 10:00.000 --> 10:01.000 Yeah, I'm listening. 10:01.000 --> 10:06.000 Day after tomorrow, 515 at the corner of 3rd Avenue and Wabash Boulevard. 10:06.000 --> 10:07.000 Yeah. 10:07.000 --> 10:09.000 I'll be on the southeast corner. 10:09.000 --> 10:13.000 I've clot you the last week. You hit the corner at 515 exactly. 10:13.000 --> 10:14.000 Remember that? 10:14.000 --> 10:18.000 515, corner of 3rd Avenue and Wabash Boulevard. 10:18.000 --> 10:20.000 You'll be on the southeast corner. I got it. 10:20.000 --> 10:21.000 Good. 10:21.000 --> 10:22.000 Now go on home, buddy. 10:22.000 --> 10:25.000 The next time I see you, we're gonna have an accident. 10:25.000 --> 10:28.000 An accident worth 50,000 bucks. 10:40.000 --> 10:43.000 You are listening to Final Payment, 10:43.000 --> 10:56.000 tonight's presentation in radio's outstanding theater of thrills, Suspense. 10:59.000 --> 11:03.000 This Sunday night on CBS Radio, Cornell Wild stars as Charlemagne 11:03.000 --> 11:08.000 in a radio hall of fame dramatization spotlighting great moments in French history. 11:08.000 --> 11:11.000 Edward Arnold is your host, as the radio hall of fame brings to light 11:11.000 --> 11:15.000 stirring events of bygone days with pomp and splendor and high drama. 11:15.000 --> 11:19.000 That's Sunday night on most of these same stations. 11:19.000 --> 11:24.000 And now we bring back to our Hollywood soundstage, Harry Bartel and Peter Leeds, 11:24.000 --> 11:28.000 starring in tonight's production of Final Payment, 11:28.000 --> 11:45.000 a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense. 11:48.000 --> 11:50.000 I've got to think. 11:50.000 --> 11:53.000 I've got to go back over everything to remember if there was a slip. 11:53.000 --> 11:55.000 I've got to remember. 11:55.000 --> 11:57.000 The instructions. 11:57.000 --> 11:59.000 Sam gave me the instructions that night at the union meeting. 11:59.000 --> 12:02.000 I memorized them. I memorized them. I know I did. 12:08.000 --> 12:10.000 Thursday was like a nightmare. 12:10.000 --> 12:13.000 I could hardly concentrate on what I was doing at work. 12:13.000 --> 12:15.000 All day long I was nervous. 12:15.000 --> 12:17.000 Then it was five to five. 12:17.000 --> 12:19.000 Time to wash up and get moving. 12:19.000 --> 12:22.000 Punched my time card, put it back in the rack, 12:22.000 --> 12:25.000 walked out to my car in a parking lot and started. 12:25.000 --> 12:29.000 I drove east on Wabash Boulevard. 12:29.000 --> 12:32.000 My watch said 513. 12:32.000 --> 12:34.000 Traffic was light. 12:34.000 --> 12:38.000 Third Avenue was six long blocks away. 12:38.000 --> 12:40.000 My hands were so wet from perspiration, 12:40.000 --> 12:45.000 I could hardly grip the steering wheel of the car. 12:45.000 --> 12:48.000 I kept in the right-hand lane. 12:48.000 --> 12:50.000 Four blocks away. 12:50.000 --> 12:52.000 Kept the car going slow. 12:52.000 --> 12:56.000 Then I had to stop for the light at the corner of Fourth Avenue. 12:56.000 --> 12:59.000 Looked at my watch again. 12:59.000 --> 13:01.000 It was 514. 13:05.000 --> 13:07.000 The light changed. 13:07.000 --> 13:09.000 I moved ahead. 13:09.000 --> 13:12.000 I was just supposed to keep driving. 13:15.000 --> 13:17.000 And then I saw him. 13:17.000 --> 13:20.000 Standing alone on the curb at the corner of Third. 13:20.000 --> 13:22.000 He stepped off. 13:28.000 --> 13:30.000 I didn't see him. 13:30.000 --> 13:32.000 Is he hurt bad? Is he going to be all right? 13:32.000 --> 13:35.000 Somebody please call an ambulance, quick! 13:37.000 --> 13:39.000 Gee, mister, I'm sorry. I'm awful sorry. 13:39.000 --> 13:41.000 No, no. 13:41.000 --> 13:43.000 Oh, there, there. 13:43.000 --> 13:46.000 Hey, hey, I can stand up. 13:46.000 --> 13:48.000 There's no broken bones. 13:48.000 --> 13:51.000 I guess I'm okay, fella. Just shook up a bit. 13:51.000 --> 13:52.000 Don't worry about it. 13:52.000 --> 13:53.000 Yeah, sure, but you ought to see it. 13:53.000 --> 13:56.000 Now, look, look. I'm okay. 13:56.000 --> 13:58.000 See? 14:06.000 --> 14:08.000 The cop came. He took our names. 14:08.000 --> 14:10.000 No one had actually seen the accident, 14:10.000 --> 14:12.000 so there were no witnesses. 14:12.000 --> 14:15.000 We both told the cop that we didn't know who was wrong. 14:15.000 --> 14:16.000 Then the ambulance arrived, 14:16.000 --> 14:18.000 and they took Sam down to the emergency hospital 14:18.000 --> 14:20.000 for a general checkup. 14:20.000 --> 14:21.000 He said he had a headache. 14:21.000 --> 14:23.000 He made it look good and sound good. 14:23.000 --> 14:26.000 My car hadn't even touched his head. 14:26.000 --> 14:28.000 When I got home, I told Mary about the accident. 14:28.000 --> 14:30.000 Accident? Where, Joe? 14:30.000 --> 14:33.000 Down the corner of Third Avenue and Wabash Boulevard. 14:33.000 --> 14:34.000 What happened? 14:34.000 --> 14:36.000 Some guy stepped off the curb 14:36.000 --> 14:37.000 and didn't bother to look where he was going. 14:37.000 --> 14:39.000 He stepped right in front of the car. 14:39.000 --> 14:40.000 Oh, Joe. 14:40.000 --> 14:42.000 Now, don't worry, honey. 14:42.000 --> 14:43.000 I guess I'm lucky. 14:43.000 --> 14:45.000 Guy wouldn't even hurt. 14:45.000 --> 14:47.000 Shook up a bit. That's about all. 14:47.000 --> 14:49.000 But, Joe, you never can tell. 14:49.000 --> 14:51.000 Did you get his name and address? 14:51.000 --> 14:52.000 Look, look, honey. 14:52.000 --> 14:54.000 I said never mind about it. 14:54.000 --> 14:56.000 It's all taken care of. 14:56.000 --> 14:58.000 The police were there. There's nothing to worry about. 14:58.000 --> 15:00.000 But I do worry about it, Joe. 15:00.000 --> 15:03.000 Did you get in touch with the insurance company? 15:03.000 --> 15:05.000 Insurance company? 15:05.000 --> 15:07.000 What for? I didn't even scratch a paint on the car. 15:07.000 --> 15:08.000 Oh, that isn't what I meant. 15:08.000 --> 15:10.000 I mean about if he should suddenly find something wrong, 15:10.000 --> 15:12.000 and then he'd sue yours. 15:12.000 --> 15:13.000 Oh, don't be silly, honey. 15:13.000 --> 15:15.000 I told you he was a real nice guy. He told me to forget it. 15:15.000 --> 15:18.000 Well, you never can tell about these things. 15:18.000 --> 15:19.000 What are you doing? 15:19.000 --> 15:22.000 I'm gonna call the man from the insurance company. 15:22.000 --> 15:25.000 I said to forget it. Do you hear me? 15:25.000 --> 15:29.000 Why, Joe, I don't understand. 15:30.000 --> 15:33.000 I'm sorry, honey. It's just... 15:33.000 --> 15:35.000 Look, the guy was a nice guy. 15:35.000 --> 15:36.000 He knows it was his fault. 15:36.000 --> 15:39.000 He's not gonna cause me any trouble. 15:39.000 --> 15:42.000 What about dinner? 15:42.000 --> 15:44.000 Let's have dinner, huh? I'm hungry. 15:44.000 --> 15:46.000 All right, Joe. 15:46.000 --> 15:49.000 We'll forget it if you say so. 15:54.000 --> 15:57.000 A week later, the insurance company got served with the papers. 15:57.000 --> 16:00.000 Sam filed a suit against me for $200,000. 16:00.000 --> 16:03.000 Naturally, as soon as the insurance company received the papers, 16:03.000 --> 16:05.000 they called me on the telephone. 16:05.000 --> 16:07.000 They were upset. Real upset. 16:07.000 --> 16:10.000 I just wish you'd called us when it happened, Mr. Thurston. 16:10.000 --> 16:12.000 You made a big mistake by not calling us. 16:12.000 --> 16:15.000 Yeah, I know, Mr. Hirsch. I guess I ought to have my head examined. 16:15.000 --> 16:17.000 My wife told me to call. I guess I should have. 16:17.000 --> 16:20.000 But you see, when it happened, he seemed like such a nice guy. 16:20.000 --> 16:22.000 He told me not to worry about it. 16:22.000 --> 16:24.000 Even when the ambulance carried him away, he told me to forget it. 16:24.000 --> 16:27.000 Well, sure. That's an old trick. A lot of them pull it. 16:28.000 --> 16:30.000 What do you mean, an old trick? 16:30.000 --> 16:33.000 Well, a lot of people try to beat the insurance companies that way. 16:33.000 --> 16:35.000 You'd be surprised. 16:35.000 --> 16:37.000 Well, what's going to happen? 16:37.000 --> 16:39.000 Well, I think we got a good case. 16:39.000 --> 16:42.000 We've got no witnesses, but then neither has he. 16:42.000 --> 16:45.000 The police report gives a pretty comprehensive picture of the thing, 16:45.000 --> 16:47.000 the way it was reported. 16:47.000 --> 16:50.000 So, in the final analysis, it's your word against his. 16:50.000 --> 16:53.000 Yeah, I see. Well, that's good, isn't it? 16:53.000 --> 16:57.000 Well, it means we've got at least a 50-50 chance. Maybe better. 16:57.000 --> 16:59.000 You see, when they got him to the hospital, 16:59.000 --> 17:02.000 he put up a big fuss about being examined. 17:02.000 --> 17:04.000 Why? 17:04.000 --> 17:07.000 Unless he'd already figured cashing in on this thing. 17:07.000 --> 17:10.000 Things like that make me suspicious, Mr. Thurston. 17:10.000 --> 17:12.000 Very suspicious. 17:18.000 --> 17:22.000 The lawyers got together and agreed on an early date for the trial. 17:22.000 --> 17:25.000 The attorney for the insurance company, a Mr. Sheridan, 17:25.000 --> 17:30.000 met with me a number of times and made me go over and over the details of the accident. 17:30.000 --> 17:33.000 And then the day the case arrived, 17:33.000 --> 17:36.000 according to Sam, I was supposed to break down and confess it was my fault 17:36.000 --> 17:39.000 while I was being cross-examined. 17:39.000 --> 17:41.000 And Sam didn't show up in court. 17:41.000 --> 17:43.000 His attorney said he'd been indisposed, 17:43.000 --> 17:47.000 but he would deliver the brief without his client's presence. 17:47.000 --> 17:52.000 That kind of upset me. I depended on Sam to be there to give me reassurance. 17:52.000 --> 17:56.000 All right, Mr. Thurston, now in your own words, 17:56.000 --> 17:59.000 tell the court what happened on that day. 17:59.000 --> 18:01.000 Well, I... 18:01.000 --> 18:03.000 Go ahead, take your time. 18:03.000 --> 18:07.000 Well, I was driving home from work. 18:07.000 --> 18:10.000 I was going maybe 30 miles an hour, 18:10.000 --> 18:13.000 maybe a couple of miles one way or the other. 18:13.000 --> 18:15.000 I... 18:15.000 --> 18:16.000 You were driving home? 18:16.000 --> 18:19.000 Yes, sir, and I was in the right-hand lane, 18:19.000 --> 18:22.000 and this fella, Mr. Monroe, 18:22.000 --> 18:26.000 he stepped off the curb and right into the path of my car. 18:26.000 --> 18:28.000 He stepped into the path of your car? 18:28.000 --> 18:30.000 Yes, sir, that's right. I guess he wasn't looking. 18:30.000 --> 18:32.000 Is that all? 18:32.000 --> 18:34.000 Yes, sir, that's all. 18:34.000 --> 18:35.000 Your witness? 18:35.000 --> 18:37.000 Any cross-examination, Mr. Green? 18:37.000 --> 18:38.000 Yes, sir. 18:38.000 --> 18:40.000 Proceed. 18:43.000 --> 18:47.000 Now, Mr. Thurston, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you. 18:47.000 --> 18:48.000 Yes, sir. 18:48.000 --> 18:51.000 Try to answer these questions as honestly as you can. 18:51.000 --> 18:53.000 I object, Your Honor. That is not... 18:53.000 --> 18:55.000 Objection sustained. 18:55.000 --> 18:58.000 Now, according to your earlier testimony, Mr. Thurston, 18:58.000 --> 19:01.000 you were going east on Wabash, is that right? 19:01.000 --> 19:02.000 Yes, sir. 19:02.000 --> 19:05.000 Mr. Thurston, do you know if there is a stop signal 19:05.000 --> 19:07.000 at the corner of 3rd Avenue and Wabash Boulevard, 19:07.000 --> 19:10.000 the intersection where the accident occurred? 19:10.000 --> 19:12.000 Yes, sir, I think there is. 19:12.000 --> 19:14.000 There is? 19:14.000 --> 19:17.000 Mr. Thurston, do you remember if the light was green or red 19:17.000 --> 19:19.000 as you approached the corner? 19:19.000 --> 19:21.000 I think it was green. 19:21.000 --> 19:22.000 I see. 19:22.000 --> 19:24.000 Now, according to your testimony, 19:24.000 --> 19:26.000 you said you saw Mr. Monroe step off the... 19:26.000 --> 19:28.000 No, no, no, excuse me. 19:28.000 --> 19:32.000 I didn't see him. I mean, I kind of saw him and yet... 19:32.000 --> 19:35.000 Mr. Thurston, you either saw him or you didn't. 19:35.000 --> 19:37.000 Now, which is it? 19:37.000 --> 19:39.000 Or perhaps you can explain to the court 19:39.000 --> 19:41.000 how you can kind of see a person step off. 19:41.000 --> 19:42.000 Well, what I meant to say... 19:42.000 --> 19:44.000 Either you saw him or you didn't. 19:44.000 --> 19:46.000 Which is it, Mr. Thurston? 19:46.000 --> 19:47.000 Well, I... 19:47.000 --> 19:50.000 May I remind you that you are under solemn oath 19:50.000 --> 19:52.000 to tell the truth? 19:52.000 --> 19:55.000 Is it possible you didn't see him and the light had turned red, 19:55.000 --> 19:57.000 is that the way it was, yes or no? 19:59.000 --> 20:00.000 No. 20:00.000 --> 20:02.000 No, I didn't see him. 20:02.000 --> 20:04.000 What did you say, Mr. Thurston? 20:04.000 --> 20:06.000 I didn't say him. I said I didn't say him. 20:06.000 --> 20:08.000 Why didn't you see him, Mr. Thurston? 20:08.000 --> 20:10.000 Where were your eyes when they should have been watching the street 20:10.000 --> 20:12.000 in front of you while you were driving? 20:12.000 --> 20:14.000 Where were your eyes, Mr. Thurston? 20:14.000 --> 20:15.000 I don't know. 20:15.000 --> 20:17.000 Yes, you do. You know very well where they were. 20:17.000 --> 20:19.000 Now, tell us. 20:19.000 --> 20:21.000 On the light? On the traffic in front of you? 20:21.000 --> 20:23.000 They couldn't have been on the light. 20:23.000 --> 20:26.000 You told us yourself you didn't know whether the light was green or red. 20:26.000 --> 20:28.000 You said you didn't see the plaintiff. 20:28.000 --> 20:30.000 Well, then, where were your eyes? 20:30.000 --> 20:31.000 Somewhere else, I guess. 20:31.000 --> 20:34.000 Where, Mr. Thurston? You tell us where. 20:36.000 --> 20:38.000 I buy a paper every night. 20:38.000 --> 20:40.000 It was on the seat next to me. 20:40.000 --> 20:43.000 Maybe for just a second I took my eyes off the road 20:43.000 --> 20:44.000 and looked down at the paper. 20:44.000 --> 20:46.000 You took your eyes off the road to look down at the newspaper 20:46.000 --> 20:47.000 on the seat beside you. 20:47.000 --> 20:50.000 And it was during that time that the light changed to red. 20:50.000 --> 20:52.000 The plaintiff stepped off the curb and you hit him. 20:52.000 --> 20:55.000 Isn't that right, Mr. Thurston? Isn't that the way it was? 20:55.000 --> 20:57.000 Yes, that's what happened. 20:57.000 --> 20:58.000 I didn't see him. I didn't mean it. 20:58.000 --> 21:01.000 I can't hear you, Mr. Thurston. Speak up. 21:01.000 --> 21:03.000 I didn't see him. I didn't mean it. 21:03.000 --> 21:05.000 That's what happened. It was my fault, but I couldn't help it. 21:05.000 --> 21:07.000 I swear I couldn't. 21:17.000 --> 21:19.000 Nothing. 21:19.000 --> 21:21.000 There wasn't a slip in the whole setup. 21:21.000 --> 21:23.000 It was perfect. I know it was. 21:25.000 --> 21:27.000 Now the recess is over. 21:27.000 --> 21:30.000 Everybody is against me. I can feel it. 21:30.000 --> 21:32.000 Even Mary. 21:32.000 --> 21:35.000 But she'll understand. I know she'll understand. 21:37.000 --> 21:41.000 Your Honor, I am sure you realize that under the circumstances 21:41.000 --> 21:44.000 of what has just happened, the defense would like to request 21:44.000 --> 21:46.000 to stay on the verdict at this time. 21:46.000 --> 21:49.000 We would like to probe a little more thoroughly 21:49.000 --> 21:53.000 into what to us appears to be a definite reversal of opinion 21:53.000 --> 21:55.000 on the part of the defendant. Something... 21:55.000 --> 21:57.000 Your Honor, if I may interrupt. 21:57.000 --> 21:59.000 Mr. Green? 21:59.000 --> 22:01.000 Your Honor, his request may not be necessary 22:01.000 --> 22:03.000 in view of some news I've just received. 22:03.000 --> 22:06.000 Whoa, this is highly irregular. 22:06.000 --> 22:10.000 My client's absence in this courtroom has been most conspicuous. 22:10.000 --> 22:12.000 I can now tell you the reason. 22:12.000 --> 22:15.000 This morning he was rushed to the Veterans Hospital. 22:15.000 --> 22:18.000 I have received some news from the hospital. 22:18.000 --> 22:21.000 He suffered a severe brain concussion when he fell. 22:21.000 --> 22:24.000 His head struck the pavement. 22:24.000 --> 22:28.000 Your Honor, my client died an hour ago. 22:28.000 --> 22:32.000 No. No, Sam didn't die. It's a trick. 22:32.000 --> 22:34.000 You're lying. He couldn't have died. 22:34.000 --> 22:36.000 I didn't hit him that hard. 22:36.000 --> 22:37.000 You're lying to try to trick me. 22:37.000 --> 22:39.000 Now that isn't the way you had it planned. 22:39.000 --> 22:41.000 He wasn't hurt. He said he wasn't. 22:41.000 --> 22:58.000 This isn't the way it was going to be! 22:58.000 --> 23:01.000 I'm waiting for another trial. 23:01.000 --> 23:03.000 My trial. 23:03.000 --> 23:07.000 A manslaughter. 23:07.000 --> 23:10.000 I shouldn't be here. 23:10.000 --> 23:14.000 This isn't the way it was going to be. 23:14.000 --> 23:39.000 Sam didn't tell me he had a steel plate in his head. 23:39.000 --> 23:41.000 Suspense. 23:41.000 --> 23:48.000 In which Harry Bartel and Peter Leeds starred in Dick Pedicini and Phil Cole's Final Payment. 23:48.000 --> 23:54.000 Next week, the story of a man who insisted upon finishing the murder he had never committed. 23:54.000 --> 23:58.000 We call it the case history of a murderer. 23:58.000 --> 24:11.000 Next week on Suspense. 24:11.000 --> 24:14.000 Suspense is produced and directed by Anthony Ellis. 24:14.000 --> 24:18.000 The music was composed by Lucian Morrowick and conducted by Wilbur Hatch. 24:18.000 --> 24:28.000 Featured in the cast were Vivi Janis, Barney Phillips, Victor Rodman, John Lark, and Byron Cain. 24:28.000 --> 24:57.000 America listens most to the CBS radio network. 24:58.000 --> 24:59.000 Next week on Suspense.