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The Whistler - "Till Death Do Us Part" (Old Time Radio, 1950) · The Whistler | Old Time Radio

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Roy Layton is about to lose his room in a
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Los Angeles boarding house when Linda McKelvey offers him $ 5, 000
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: for a temporary marriage. It is an arrangement born of
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: pressing need, with an inheritance at its center. From November 26, 1950,
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: this is The Whistler, episode 443, Till Death Do Us Part.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: Joel Malone wrote the script, with Bill Foreman, Wally Maher,
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: and Gene Spaulding in the cast. The broadcast came to
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: CBS Pacific Network listeners under the sponsorship of Signal Oil.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: And now, we return to the original broadcast.
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: And now, stay tuned for the mystery program that is
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: unique among all mystery programs. Because even when you know
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: who is guilty, you always receive a startling surprise at
• 0:46
  Speaker 2: the final curtain. In the Signal Oil program.
• 0:51
  Speaker 3: The Whistler.
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: Signal, the famous go-farther gasoline, invites you to sit back
• 1:09
  Speaker 2: and enjoy another strange story by The Whistler.
• 1:31
  Speaker 4: I am the Whistler, and I know many things, for
• 1:35
  Speaker 4: I walk by night. I know many strange tales hidden
• 1:39
  Speaker 4: in the hearts of men and women who have stepped
• 1:41
  Speaker 4: into the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless terrors of
• 1:45
  Speaker 4: which they dare not speak.
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: And now for the Signal Oil Company, the Whistler's strange story,
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: Till Death Do Us Part.
• 2:04
  Speaker 4: Roy Layton's quarters in the cheap boarding house were anything
• 2:08
  Speaker 4: but inviting. And from where he sat on the edge
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: of the sagging brass poster bed, Roy's view of the
• 2:14
  Speaker 4: outside world was a dismal one.
• 2:16
  Speaker 3: The assortment of.
• 2:17
  Speaker 4: Unopened bills and collection notices in the nearby wastebasket held
• 2:21
  Speaker 4: their grim message too. They told him that he'd have
• 2:24
  Speaker 4: to be moving on soon, change his address The one
• 2:28
  Speaker 4: letter he wanted, but had given up hoping for, wasn't there.
• 2:32
  Speaker 3: Never would be, he reasoned.
• 2:34
  Speaker 4: And the knock on the door, rousing him from his
• 2:36
  Speaker 4: mental fumbling, could mean only one thing.
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: The landlady and her oft-repeated demand.
• 2:43
  Speaker 5: I'm back again, Mr. Layton. To ask you once and
• 2:46
  Speaker 5: for all, do you have.
• 2:48
  Speaker 3: The rent money. I know, I know. Well, it's like this, Mrs. Fisaker.
• 2:53
  Speaker 6: I know how it is. I can see. I have eyes.
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: Then there's no use talking. You know that the minute
• 2:59
  Speaker 3: I hear from my uncle... You've been saying that for
• 3:01
  Speaker 3: months now.
• 3:02
  Speaker 6: The minute you hear from your Uncle Morton in Mexico. Well,
• 3:06
  Speaker 6: I'm tired of that, too. Tired of hearing of an
• 3:09
  Speaker 6: uncle that, for all I know, might not even exist.
• 3:12
  Speaker 3: Oh, you're so sweet. A real doll. I'm sorry about
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: the rent. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going out
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: to get a breath of air. Good night, Mrs.
• 3:21
  Speaker 5: Fazakaly.
• 3:22
  Speaker 3: I'd appreciate it if you'd fix the latch while I'm out.
• 3:25
  Speaker 5: I'll fix the latch.
• 3:27
  Speaker 6: A welded shop, that's what I'll do.
• 3:38
  Speaker 4: As you leave the house and start walking toward Vermont Avenue,
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: you're pretty sure that this time your landlady means what
• 3:44
  Speaker 4: she says. It's tough, isn't it, Roy? Things never seem
• 3:48
  Speaker 4: to go right for you. You'd like a drink, then
• 3:51
  Speaker 4: decides you'd better skip it. Conserve the few dollars you
• 3:55
  Speaker 4: have left in case your landlady carries out a threat
• 3:58
  Speaker 4: to lock you out. Then you remember Angelo's, a second-rate
• 4:02
  Speaker 4: cocktail lounge a couple of blocks away. Where as late
• 4:05
  Speaker 4: as yesterday, your credit was still good. But once there,
• 4:08
  Speaker 4: you find things have changed at Angelo's, too. Mac, the bartender,
• 4:13
  Speaker 4: is even slower than usual in coming over to you.
• 4:15
  Speaker 3: Sorry, kid.
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: And when he does.
• 4:16
  Speaker 7: No dice.
• 4:17
  Speaker 6: Huh?
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: What are you talking about, Mac? I didn't even order.
• 4:21
  Speaker 7: Well, I thought I'd save you the trouble. Angelo says
• 4:23
  Speaker 7: no more stuff on the cuff.
• 4:25
  Speaker 3: But, Mac, I haven't run up a bill on him.
• 4:27
  Speaker 3: At least not a big one.
• 4:28
  Speaker 7: Yeah, Angelo knows that. But he wants to keep it
• 4:30
  Speaker 7: that way. I'm sorry, kid. I just work here. I
• 4:33
  Speaker 7: want to keep on working here.
• 4:35
  Speaker 6: In that case, you better get busy and fix my
• 4:36
  Speaker 6: friend a drink.
• 4:37
  Speaker 8: Huh?
• 4:38
  Speaker 6: You don't mind, do you, Roy?
• 4:41
  Speaker 3: Roy?
• 4:42
  Speaker 6: Roy Layton. That is your name, isn't it?
• 4:46
  Speaker 3: Sure. Why, how did you know?
• 4:48
  Speaker 6: Oh, I know quite a little about you. Been checking up. Um,
• 4:53
  Speaker 6: what's his name?
• 4:55
  Speaker 7: Oh, Mac?
• 4:55
  Speaker 6: Mac, yes. Mac, you'd better get started before all your
• 4:59
  Speaker 6: eyes melt. A pair of scotch and so is.
• 5:01
  Speaker 3: Oh, sure, lady.
• 5:03
  Speaker 7: Sure.
• 5:04
  Speaker 3: Say, now, wait a minute. Why should a good-looking, strange gal.
• 5:07
  Speaker 6: Now, Roy, don't go saying things you don't mean. Besides,
• 5:12
  Speaker 6: I don't have to be a strange gal. Not if
• 5:16
  Speaker 6: you know my name. It's Linda. Linda McKelvey.
• 5:21
  Speaker 3: So?
• 5:22
  Speaker 6: So, uh, don't you think it's kind of pretty?
• 5:25
  Speaker 7: Maybe.
• 5:27
  Speaker 3: Anyway, these drinks are. Set them down easy, Mac. Yeah.
• 5:30
  Speaker 3: And since I'm drinking with a lady, trot out a
• 5:31
  Speaker 3: couple of cocktail napkins.
• 5:33
  Speaker 7: Okay, okay.
• 5:34
  Speaker 6: Thank you, Mac.
• 5:35
  Speaker 7: Skip it.
• 5:37
  Speaker 6: To us, Roy. Huh?
• 5:39
  Speaker 3: Sure. To us.
• 5:40
  Speaker 8: Mmm.
• 5:44
  Speaker 3: Drinks okay.
• 5:45
  Speaker 6: Very good for a place like this.
• 5:48
  Speaker 3: You look like you could afford better. What brought you around?
• 5:51
  Speaker 6: You?
• 5:52
  Speaker 3: Me?
• 5:54
  Speaker 5: Oh, sure.
• 5:55
  Speaker 3: Now, look, lady.
• 5:57
  Speaker 6: Linda.
• 5:58
  Speaker 3: Linda, look, I'm just sitting here minding my own business.
• 6:02
  Speaker 6: But unable to do any, huh?
• 6:04
  Speaker 3: So that's my business, too.
• 6:05
  Speaker 6: And mine. Roy. Roy, I've been checking up on you
• 6:11
  Speaker 6: for quite a while. And you fit my picture very nicely. And, uh,
• 6:17
  Speaker 6: you do need $ 5, 000.
• 6:18
  Speaker 3: Yeah. I need $ 5, 000. Oh, I get it. Santa Claus
• 6:27
  Speaker 3: finally got my letter and he sent you to bring it.
• 6:31
  Speaker 6: It's nothing like that. It's nothing altruistic.
• 6:35
  Speaker 3: Big word. You are out of place here.
• 6:37
  Speaker 6: So are you, Roy. I've got $ 5, 000. It says you.
• 6:43
  Speaker 3: Are.
• 6:44
  Speaker 6: Going to listen to me?
• 6:45
  Speaker 3: How can I help it?
• 6:47
  Speaker 7: Go ahead.
• 6:47
  Speaker 8: Roy.
• 6:49
  Speaker 6: Roy, I'm... Well.
• 6:53
  Speaker 6: I'm used to nice things. To be crass, I like money.
• 6:59
  Speaker 6: My share, I mean. Maybe even a little bit more.
• 7:02
  Speaker 6: I guess I'm just not a very nice person.
• 7:08
  Speaker 3: Not many of my friends are. But I'm still listening.
• 7:11
  Speaker 6: Fair enough. Oh, how about going somewhere else, huh? My
• 7:17
  Speaker 6: car's parked outside.
• 7:18
  Speaker 3: Okay, lady. Linda.
• 7:21
  Speaker 6: Linda. And you'd better get used to it.
• 7:31
  Speaker 4: It's as bewildering to you as it was to Mac,
• 7:34
  Speaker 4: isn't it, Roy? This girl, Linda McKelvey, dropping into your
• 7:37
  Speaker 4: life from nowhere. Talking in circles and buying rounds of drinks.
• 7:42
  Speaker 4: You wonder when the dream will turn into a nightmare.
• 7:45
  Speaker 4: When she's going to give you the name of the
• 7:47
  Speaker 4: bank she once held up. But it's nothing like that,
• 7:50
  Speaker 4: is it? And sitting beside her in the car, you
• 7:53
  Speaker 4: finally get the complete picture.
• 7:55
  Speaker 5: It's a little fantastic.
• 7:57
  Speaker 3: You want her to repeat parts of it. And then
• 8:00
  Speaker 3: it's all quite clear. You really mean it? You want
• 8:05
  Speaker 3: me to marry you and you'll pay me 5,000 bucks?
• 8:08
  Speaker 6: Now, is it such a difficult assignment?
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: No, no, but... But you.
• 8:13
  Speaker 6: Still can't see why, huh? All right, I'll run through
• 8:17
  Speaker 6: it again. As many times as you want to hear it, Royce.
• 8:21
  Speaker 6: I've got to have a husband. A legal, honest-to-goodness man
• 8:24
  Speaker 6: about the house.
• 8:25
  Speaker 3: And you've got to have him, me, by this certain
• 8:28
  Speaker 3: date you mentioned.
• 8:29
  Speaker 6: Yes, my 25th birthday, two months from now. It's all
• 8:33
  Speaker 6: simple enough. My late uncle was eccentric, narrow-minded, opinionated.
• 8:38
  Speaker 3: And rich.
• 8:39
  Speaker 5: Very rich.
• 8:40
  Speaker 6: According to his will, if I marry on or before
• 8:43
  Speaker 6: my 25th birthday, I inherit over a quarter of a
• 8:47
  Speaker 6: million dollars. And if I don't, Everything goes to charity.
• 8:51
  Speaker 3: And you are your favorite charity.
• 8:53
  Speaker 6: I certainly am.
• 8:56
  Speaker 3: But why me, Linda? You could have lots of guys.
• 8:59
  Speaker 6: I don't want lots of guys.
• 9:00
  Speaker 3: Oh, now wait a minute. You don't know me for madam.
• 9:04
  Speaker 6: All right, Roy. I'll tell you the truth. I love
• 9:09
  Speaker 6: someone else, but I made the mistake of falling for
• 9:12
  Speaker 6: a married man. And his divorce won't be final for
• 9:15
  Speaker 6: six months. That's too late to meet the demands of
• 9:18
  Speaker 6: the inheritance.
• 9:19
  Speaker 3: Oh, that's different. You want to eat your cake and
• 9:21
  Speaker 3: have 250 Gs.
• 9:23
  Speaker 6: Well, something like that. Well, Roy?
• 9:27
  Speaker 5: I marry you, we.
• 9:28
  Speaker 3: Make it look good, and then later we get a
• 9:30
  Speaker 3: quiet divorce.
• 9:31
  Speaker 6: Exactly. You're $ 5, 000 richer and nobody's the wiser. Once I've
• 9:37
  Speaker 6: got the money, there's nothing anybody can do about it.
• 9:40
  Speaker 6: What do you say, Roy?
• 9:42
  Speaker 9: I say I wish I had a rich uncle. Mine,
• 9:45
  Speaker 9: he doesn't even answer my letters. Yours leaves you a
• 9:47
  Speaker 9: quarter of a million bucks.
• 9:48
  Speaker 6: Why, that 5,000 will give you a new start in life, Roy.
• 9:52
  Speaker 6: And until we're divorced, why, you'll dress well and live
• 9:56
  Speaker 6: quite comfortably in Mr. and Mrs. Roy Larson's. Layton's apartment. Well,
• 10:04
  Speaker 6: must I unbended knee?
• 10:07
  Speaker 3: Find a preacher, honey. I'll do anything for money.
• 10:12
  Speaker 5: Flatterer.
• 10:22
  Speaker 4: The wedding a few days later isn't what every boy
• 10:25
  Speaker 4: and girl dreams about, is it, Roy? But the hollow
• 10:28
  Speaker 4: words the pair of you speak are just as binding
• 10:30
  Speaker 4: in a legal sense. And you drive off swiftly as Mr.
• 10:34
  Speaker 4: and Mrs.
• 10:35
  Speaker 3: Roy Layton. You even have a sense of elation in
• 10:38
  Speaker 3: the new clothes you're wearing.
• 10:40
  Speaker 4: And returning to Linda's top floor apartment, Twelve floors up
• 10:43
  Speaker 4: in the best part of town makes it complete. More
• 10:47
  Speaker 4: complete than either of you expected. For as you step
• 10:50
  Speaker 4: from the elevator and she opens the door to let
• 10:52
  Speaker 4: you in.
• 10:53
  Speaker 6: Congratulations!
• 10:56
  Speaker 3: What the devil?
• 10:57
  Speaker 6: No, no, Lindy, dear, don't come in.
• 10:59
  Speaker 5: He must carry you.
• 11:01
  Speaker 6: Carry you across the threshold.
• 11:02
  Speaker 3: Oh. Yes.
• 11:04
  Speaker 4: Well, Roy?
• 11:06
  Speaker 3: Oh, of course. Oh, great, great.
• 11:08
  Speaker 5: That's better, much better. And now we'll all just scoot
• 11:11
  Speaker 5: right along, Mrs. Layton. We just didn't want you two
• 11:14
  Speaker 5: to arrive without any reception at all.
• 11:15
  Speaker 6: Why, that's awfully nice of you, Mr. Knowles and Miss Prentiss.
• 11:18
  Speaker 6: Not at all. I enjoyed it. Also romantic. This is Roy,
• 11:26
  Speaker 6: my husband.
• 11:27
  Speaker 3: Nice to meet you.
• 11:28
  Speaker 5: You'll forgive us, won't you, Mrs.
• 11:29
  Speaker 6: Layton?
• 11:29
  Speaker 5: We just wanted you to know your neighbors are happy
• 11:32
  Speaker 5: for you.
• 11:32
  Speaker 6: Why, of course. It was nice of you all to
• 11:35
  Speaker 6: think about it.
• 11:35
  Speaker 5: Well, we'll be running along.
• 11:36
  Speaker 3: Good night. Good night. Good night.
• 11:39
  Speaker 6: And drop in and see us any time, Mr. Knowles.
• 11:41
  Speaker 3: Good night.
• 11:42
  Speaker 8: Good night. Phew.
• 11:44
  Speaker 6: Wow.
• 11:46
  Speaker 3: How did they get in here?
• 11:47
  Speaker 6: Mr. Knowles manages the apartment.
• 11:50
  Speaker 3: Oh. Wow. Incidentally, it's some layout.
• 11:56
  Speaker 6: As I told you, I like nice things, Roy.
• 11:58
  Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah.
• 12:00
  Speaker 6: You know that Miss Prentiss, we'll have to watch her.
• 12:03
  Speaker 6: She's the inquisitive type.
• 12:04
  Speaker 7: Hmm?
• 12:05
  Speaker 6: Wait. She can help us in a way. Her balcony
• 12:10
  Speaker 6: adjoins this one. It won't hurt a bit to let
• 12:13
  Speaker 6: her see us out there once in a while looking
• 12:15
  Speaker 6: over the city.
• 12:16
  Speaker 3: My arms around you, a few fervent kisses. Is that
• 12:19
  Speaker 3: the idea?
• 12:21
  Speaker 6: Just for Miss Prentiss, yes.
• 12:24
  Speaker 3: Well, anyway, this beat stevedoring in Frisco, working in the
• 12:28
  Speaker 3: Oklahoma oil fields.
• 12:30
  Speaker 9: Digging around Mexico when Uncle Mort was wildcatting.
• 12:33
  Speaker 6: Well, make yourself to home, Mr. Layton.
• 12:37
  Speaker 3: Okay, Mrs. Layton, I'll do just that.
• 12:48
  Speaker 4: It's all going smoothly, isn't it, Roy? Just as Linda planned.
• 12:53
  Speaker 4: As the weeks go by, you meet.
• 12:54
  Speaker 7: Other people in the apartment.
• 12:56
  Speaker 3: People Linda had.
• 12:57
  Speaker 4: Met before she married you.
• 12:58
  Speaker 5: They seem to like you.
• 13:00
  Speaker 4: And most of all, they approve of the match. Linda
• 13:03
  Speaker 4: assures you there'll be no trouble in having her uncle's
• 13:05
  Speaker 4: lawyer accept it all as completely genuine. As the weeks pass,
• 13:10
  Speaker 4: both play your roles well. And then late one afternoon,
• 13:14
  Speaker 4: you hear some excitement in the hall and rush to
• 13:16
  Speaker 4: the door.
• 13:17
  Speaker 3: Oh, my.
• 13:19
  Speaker 6: Oh, you poor dear.
• 13:20
  Speaker 3: You might have been killed.
• 13:21
  Speaker 6: I'm all right now.
• 13:22
  Speaker 4: Really, I am.
• 13:23
  Speaker 6: You'd better lie down, dear, as soon as you get inside.
• 13:26
  Speaker 5: That fool, he wasn't even looking where he was going.
• 13:28
  Speaker 3: What is it? What's happened?
• 13:29
  Speaker 6: I'm all right now, Roy. It was nothing at all.
• 13:32
  Speaker 5: She was backing out of the garage. Another car hit her.
• 13:34
  Speaker 6: Well, thanks very much, you two, but... Please don't bother anymore.
• 13:38
  Speaker 6: Roy can take care of me.
• 13:39
  Speaker 3: I'll carry you to the bedroom.
• 13:40
  Speaker 6: You don't have to carry me, Roy. I'll be all right.
• 13:42
  Speaker 6: Poor Dee.
• 13:43
  Speaker 3: Maybe I'd better call a doctor.
• 13:44
  Speaker 6: No, Roy, I'm not hurt. I'm just shaken up. I
• 13:47
  Speaker 6: don't think it's bad. It's only... Well, it could have
• 13:50
  Speaker 6: been so much worse. Just think, Mr.
• 13:52
  Speaker 3: Layton.
• 13:53
  Speaker 6: What would you have left if anything really happened to her?
• 13:57
  Speaker 3: Yes. Yes, what would I have? It's a terrible thought,
• 14:04
  Speaker 3: Miss Prentiss.
• 14:17
  Speaker 2: If rising prices have given you the idea that pennies
• 14:20
  Speaker 2: have lost their purchasing power, folks, you haven't tried Signal
• 14:24
  Speaker 2: Ethyl Gasoline. Here's why I say that. For pennies extra,
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: you can enjoy the premium quality of Signal's famous Go-Farther Gasoline.
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: but what a wonderful extra dividend those pennies return in
• 14:37
  Speaker 2: driving pleasure. An extra you can feel and hear and see. Yes,
• 14:42
  Speaker 2: with signal ethyl powering your motor, you can see your
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: car step out front when the traffic light goes green.
• 14:49
  Speaker 2: On signal ethyl diet, you'll hear your engine purr contentedly
• 14:53
  Speaker 2: as you soar effortlessly up hills where pings force other
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: cars to shift. And should an emergency call for swift accelerations,
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: you'll feel the way your motor takes hold with smooth,
• 15:04
  Speaker 2: eager power on Signal Ethyl. When a tank full of
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: this Signal super fuel is all it takes to discover
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: the best performance your car can deliver, don't you think
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: you owe it a try? My guess is you'll say
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: Signal Ethyl is the best investment you've ever made in
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: driving pleasure.
• 15:42
  Speaker 4: Miss Prentiss' question planted an interesting thought in your mind
• 15:46
  Speaker 4: when she asked you what you'd have left if anything
• 15:49
  Speaker 4: happened to Linda, didn't it, Roy? In the days that
• 15:52
  Speaker 4: follow Linda's near accident, you often ask yourself the same question.
• 15:56
  Speaker 4: What would you have if anything fatal happened to Linda?
• 16:00
  Speaker 4: And the answer is very attractive, isn't it, Roy? You'd
• 16:03
  Speaker 4: have a quarter of a million dollars. As Linda's husband,
• 16:06
  Speaker 4: you'd inherit her money. But there's an easier way than murder,
• 16:10
  Speaker 4: isn't there, Roy?
• 16:11
  Speaker 3: A safer way.
• 16:12
  Speaker 4: If you can make Linda fall in love with you,
• 16:15
  Speaker 4: you'll be able to share her money. It's worth a try.
• 16:19
  Speaker 4: You plan your campaign very carefully. Carry it out with
• 16:22
  Speaker 4: all the charm at your command. Then one evening, while
• 16:25
  Speaker 4: the two of you are out dancing, you suggest a
• 16:28
  Speaker 4: breath of air and lead Linda from the dance floor
• 16:31
  Speaker 4: to the beautiful terrace outside.
• 16:37
  Speaker 6: May I have a cigarette, Roy?
• 16:38
  Speaker 3: Why, sure, sure. Here you are.
• 16:41
  Speaker 6: Thanks. Thanks again. Oh, isn't it a beautiful night? I
• 16:52
  Speaker 6: just love it out here.
• 16:54
  Speaker 3: Linda.
• 16:55
  Speaker 7: Yes?
• 16:56
  Speaker 3: Linda, I've been thinking about us. This little act we're
• 17:00
  Speaker 3: putting on.
• 17:01
  Speaker 6: You've been doing splendidly, darling.
• 17:02
  Speaker 3: Uh-huh. Yes, the happy, devoted husband. Head over heels in
• 17:06
  Speaker 3: love with his pretty bride. Yes, yes. Only now, Linda.
• 17:12
  Speaker 7: Now it's no longer a night.
• 17:14
  Speaker 3: What?
• 17:16
  Speaker 6: What do you mean?
• 17:18
  Speaker 3: Isn't it quite obvious?
• 17:20
  Speaker 6: You're... You're in love with me?
• 17:21
  Speaker 3: Oh, so much in love with you, Linda.
• 17:23
  Speaker 6: No, wait, Roy. I know, I know.
• 17:25
  Speaker 3: It wasn't in the bargain to fall in love, but...
• 17:28
  Speaker 3: I have fallen in love, Linda. I couldn't help it.
• 17:30
  Speaker 4: Roy.
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: Now, look, look, I'm really not such a bad guy.
• 17:35
  Speaker 3: I'm a good dancer. I wear my clothes well, in
• 17:38
  Speaker 3: perfect health. Oh, I do have a few faults.
• 17:41
  Speaker 6: That's true, but... Roy, I'm not in love with you.
• 17:46
  Speaker 3: But you, you could be, darling.
• 17:49
  Speaker 6: No, Roy, please don't.
• 17:54
  Speaker 3: Oh, Linda, Linda, darling.
• 17:56
  Speaker 6: Let me go, Roy, please.
• 17:58
  Speaker 3: I shouldn't have kissed you, I know that, but Linda.
• 17:59
  Speaker 6: Look, we made a bargain. Now, let's keep it that way.
• 18:03
  Speaker 3: Oh, but Linda, please.
• 18:04
  Speaker 6: I mean it, Roy.
• 18:10
  Speaker 3: Okay. Okay.
• 18:12
  Speaker 6: I'm sorry, but that's the way it's got to be. Yeah.
• 18:18
  Speaker 3: I'm sorry, too. Very sorry.
• 18:21
  Speaker 4: She means it, doesn't she, Roy? And you're certain there's
• 18:32
  Speaker 4: nothing you can do to make her change her mind
• 18:34
  Speaker 4: about the divorce.
• 18:35
  Speaker 3: There isn't time.
• 18:37
  Speaker 4: Linda has told you the money from her inheritance is
• 18:40
  Speaker 4: already deposited to her credit at her bank. And in
• 18:43
  Speaker 4: a week or so, the two of you will be
• 18:45
  Speaker 4: on your way to Reno and that quiet divorce. No,
• 18:49
  Speaker 4: there isn't time to make her fall in love with you, Roy.
• 18:52
  Speaker 4: But you decide there is time for something else. Next day,
• 18:57
  Speaker 4: Linda leaves before luncheon to spend the afternoon at her
• 19:00
  Speaker 4: lawyer's office. finishing up her affairs. Long after she's gone,
• 19:04
  Speaker 4: you pace the floor of the apartment, searching your mind
• 19:07
  Speaker 4: for a plan, a way to kill Linda, make it
• 19:10
  Speaker 4: appear to be an accident. Early that afternoon, you're in
• 19:14
  Speaker 4: the bedroom looking around when.
• 19:19
  Speaker 3: Hello? Roy?
• 19:20
  Speaker 7: Yes?
• 19:21
  Speaker 6: This is Amelia Fleming.
• 19:22
  Speaker 5: Oh, Mrs. Fleming, how are you?
• 19:24
  Speaker 3: I'm splendid, thank you. Oh, is Linda home? Why, no, no, no,
• 19:27
  Speaker 3: she isn't. I don't expect her back until after five
• 19:29
  Speaker 3: or so. I see. Well, it was nothing important, Fred.
• 19:32
  Speaker 9: Well, I'm sure she'll be back around five.
• 19:34
  Speaker 3: Why don't you call her then?
• 19:35
  Speaker 6: You better have her call me. I'd probably call while
• 19:38
  Speaker 6: she was in the bathtub.
• 19:39
  Speaker 3: Oh, don't you worry about that.
• 19:41
  Speaker 5: Linda generally takes the phone right... Yes?
• 19:45
  Speaker 3: Roy?
• 19:45
  Speaker 6: Oh, yes.
• 19:46
  Speaker 3: Yes, Mrs. Fleming. I'll tell Linda you called... and have
• 19:50
  Speaker 3: her phone you. Oh, that's fine.
• 19:51
  Speaker 5: Bye.
• 19:54
  Speaker 4: You stand there for a moment, staring at the telephone
• 19:56
  Speaker 4: in your hand. Then slowly you replace the receiver, walk
• 20:00
  Speaker 4: back into the living room. A plan has suddenly emerged,
• 20:04
  Speaker 4: hasn't it, Roy? A telephone, a loose wire... and a bathtub.
• 20:10
  Speaker 7: Full of water.
• 20:11
  Speaker 4: You've read of it happening, and you're sure there's no
• 20:13
  Speaker 4: reason why it can't work. And by the time Linda
• 20:16
  Speaker 4: returns shortly after five, you've arranged everything. You wait until
• 20:20
  Speaker 4: you hear the bath water running. Then you call out
• 20:23
  Speaker 4: to her in the bedroom.
• 20:24
  Speaker 3: Linda?
• 20:25
  Speaker 8: Yes?
• 20:25
  Speaker 5: I'm going out for a few minutes, fresh out of cigarettes.
• 20:28
  Speaker 5: Can I get you anything?
• 20:29
  Speaker 6: Not a thing, Roy.
• 20:31
  Speaker 5: I'll be back soon.
• 20:32
  Speaker 6: No hurry. I'm going to soak in the tub for
• 20:34
  Speaker 6: a while.
• 20:41
  Speaker 4: You walk down to the corner drugstore. Wait over a
• 20:44
  Speaker 4: cup of coffee for five minutes. Then you step to
• 20:47
  Speaker 4: the phone booth. But there's someone inside. You look at
• 20:50
  Speaker 4: your watch and return to the counter. Five minutes go
• 20:53
  Speaker 4: by and then ten. And then the booth door opens
• 20:57
  Speaker 4: and the woman who had been monopolizing the phone walks away.
• 21:00
  Speaker 3: Still time, isn't there, Roy?
• 21:03
  Speaker 4: You're certain of that. Linda will still be in the tub.
• 21:06
  Speaker 4: The phone on the stand within easy reach. When she
• 21:09
  Speaker 4: answers it, the loose wire will pull away from the
• 21:12
  Speaker 4: receiver and fall into the tub of water.
• 21:17
  Speaker 6: Hello?
• 21:19
  Speaker 4: Linda?
• 21:22
  Speaker 3: Linda? That does it. Slowly, you walk back to the apartment.
• 21:31
  Speaker 4: But instead of going on up to your apartment on
• 21:33
  Speaker 4: the 12th floor, you stop at the manager's apartment and
• 21:36
  Speaker 4: ring the bell.
• 21:38
  Speaker 3: Yes? Oh, Mr.
• 21:40
  Speaker 7: Layton.
• 21:40
  Speaker 3: Mr. Knowles, I wonder if you'd do something for me.
• 21:42
  Speaker 3: Of course, of course.
• 21:44
  Speaker 9: Well, our refrigerator's been acting up a bit lately.
• 21:46
  Speaker 3: I'd like you to have a look at it, if
• 21:47
  Speaker 3: you don't mind.
• 21:48
  Speaker 7: Be glad to, Mr. Layton.
• 21:49
  Speaker 3: I hope I'm not taking you away from your dinner.
• 21:51
  Speaker 7: No, nothing like that.
• 21:53
  Speaker 5: Come on, let's go up and have a look at it, eh?
• 22:03
  Speaker 3: It seems like it's been running a lot more than
• 22:05
  Speaker 3: it should.
• 22:06
  Speaker 5: Is that so? Well, we just see what's wrong.
• 22:08
  Speaker 3: Yes, come in, come in.
• 22:10
  Speaker 6: Linda!
• 22:11
  Speaker 5: Linda, you home, darling?
• 22:15
  Speaker 3: Oh, that's funny. She shouldn't be around. Linda!
• 22:18
  Speaker 6: Yes, Roy?
• 22:20
  Speaker 3: Linda.
• 22:21
  Speaker 6: Why, what's the matter, Roy?
• 22:24
  Speaker 3: Oh, nothing, nothing. It's just that you answered so suddenly,
• 22:27
  Speaker 3: that's all.
• 22:28
  Speaker 6: Oh, good evening, Mr. Knowles.
• 22:29
  Speaker 3: Good evening, ma'am.
• 22:30
  Speaker 9: I asked Mr. Knowles up to have a look at
• 22:32
  Speaker 9: our refrigerator, Linda. You know it hasn't been acting right.
• 22:36
  Speaker 6: Oh, hasn't it?
• 22:36
  Speaker 3: No, no, it hasn't.
• 22:38
  Speaker 6: Well, I'm awfully glad you're here, Mr. Knowles. I was
• 22:39
  Speaker 6: about to come downstairs to ask you to call the
• 22:41
  Speaker 6: telephone company. Something rather startling just happened. It scared me
• 22:45
  Speaker 6: to death.
• 22:46
  Speaker 3: What's that, ma'am?
• 22:47
  Speaker 6: Well, I'd just gotten out of my tub when the
• 22:49
  Speaker 6: phone rang. It was on the stand in the bathroom,
• 22:51
  Speaker 6: and I picked up the receiver, and by the way,
• 22:54
  Speaker 6: I just slipped out and fell into the tub.
• 22:57
  Speaker 5: Say, we'd better see about that right away. Good thing
• 22:59
  Speaker 5: you weren't in the tub when it happened, Mrs.
• 23:01
  Speaker 3: Layton.
• 23:01
  Speaker 6: Well, I should say so. I might have been electrocuted.
• 23:11
  Speaker 4: It didn't work, did it, Roy? And Linda is still
• 23:13
  Speaker 4: very much alive. Somehow you managed to cover your disappointment.
• 23:18
  Speaker 4: Act properly concerned over the near tragedy. You've got to
• 23:21
  Speaker 4: find another way now. And there isn't much time left.
• 23:26
  Speaker 4: It's after dinner that the idea comes to you. Perfect,
• 23:29
  Speaker 4: isn't it, Roy? And this time you'll make certain. While
• 23:33
  Speaker 4: Linda is busy in the kitchen... You slip out onto
• 23:36
  Speaker 4: the balcony, take a wrench, and loosen the bolts on
• 23:40
  Speaker 4: the handrail. If Linda leans against the rail, your problem
• 23:43
  Speaker 4: is solved. If not a light push, just the slightest
• 23:47
  Speaker 4: jar will accomplish your purpose. And Linda's money will belong
• 23:52
  Speaker 4: to you. At the sound behind you, you drop the
• 23:55
  Speaker 4: wrench into the flower box and straighten up.
• 23:57
  Speaker 6: What are you doing, Roy?
• 23:58
  Speaker 3: Oh, nothing. I'm just looking for my cuff link. I
• 24:01
  Speaker 3: must have dropped it here somewhere. Oh.
• 24:04
  Speaker 6: Oh, Roy, I meant to tell you. While I was
• 24:07
  Speaker 6: downtown today, I made plane reservations for tomorrow. We'll be
• 24:12
  Speaker 6: leaving in the afternoon, four o'clock.
• 24:16
  Speaker 3: Oh, I see.
• 24:18
  Speaker 9: So this is our last evening here.
• 24:21
  Speaker 6: I'm afraid so.
• 24:23
  Speaker 3: Well, I'm going to miss all this, Linda. You won't
• 24:27
  Speaker 3: change your mind, I suppose.
• 24:30
  Speaker 7: I mean, about us.
• 24:31
  Speaker 6: No, Roy. Okay. I won't change my mind.
• 24:36
  Speaker 3: All right. Well, say, how about a drink out here
• 24:40
  Speaker 3: on the balcony, huh? One last look at the city
• 24:43
  Speaker 3: of Los Angeles together.
• 24:46
  Speaker 6: Why, Roy, I think that's a wonderful idea.
• 24:48
  Speaker 3: All right, you just stay right here, Linda. I'll get
• 24:50
  Speaker 3: the drinks. Our farewell drink.
• 25:04
  Speaker 2: There's only one accurate way to compare the cost of
• 25:07
  Speaker 2: automobile batteries. Compare the cost per month. That is the
• 25:11
  Speaker 2: price of the battery divided by the number of months
• 25:14
  Speaker 2: for which the battery is guaranteed. Measured by that yardstick,
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: one of today's lowest cost batteries is the extra long
• 25:21
  Speaker 2: life signal deluxe battery, guaranteed a full 30 months on
• 25:25
  Speaker 2: a service basis. Think of it, that's two and one
• 25:28
  Speaker 2: half years. The secret of this amazingly long life is
• 25:32
  Speaker 2: Signal's microporous all-rubber separators, which have been called the greatest
• 25:36
  Speaker 2: battery improvement in 20 years. Because these unique separators hold
• 25:40
  Speaker 2: twice as much acid solution between the plates, you get
• 25:43
  Speaker 2: up to 35% more power for quicker starting, plus plenty
• 25:47
  Speaker 2: to spare for your radio and the other electrical gadgets
• 25:50
  Speaker 2: on today's cars. So before you buy any battery, get
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: your Signal dealer's generous trade-in offer for your old battery
• 25:58
  Speaker 2: plus his convenient credit terms. See for yourself that it
• 26:02
  Speaker 2: actually costs less per month to enjoy the quicker starting,
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: the long, trouble-free performance of today's finest battery, the Signal
• 26:11
  Speaker 2: Deluxe Battery.
• 26:22
  Speaker 4: There's little question of the suspect's guilt. To Police Lieutenant Cosgrove,
• 26:26
  Speaker 4: it was a clear case of murder. The victim had
• 26:29
  Speaker 4: been deliberately pushed off the 12th story balcony. Lieutenant Cosgrove
• 26:34
  Speaker 4: knew that. And before long, he'd know the motive, too.
• 26:38
  Speaker 4: As he paced slowly back and forth in the small
• 26:40
  Speaker 4: room at police headquarters, he felt certain that a full
• 26:43
  Speaker 4: confession was close at hand. Finally, he stopped pacing, sat
• 26:48
  Speaker 4: down in a chair facing the suspect, who was sitting
• 26:51
  Speaker 4: rigid and tense, trying to avoid the lieutenant's gaze.
• 26:54
  Speaker 8: Look, you might as well break down and tell us
• 26:57
  Speaker 8: what this is all about. You know, Miss Prentiss, who
• 27:01
  Speaker 8: lives in the apartment next to yours, saw you push
• 27:03
  Speaker 8: your victim off the balcony.
• 27:05
  Speaker 6: All right. All right.
• 27:08
  Speaker 3: Why, Mrs.
• 27:09
  Speaker 7: Layton? Why did you do it?
• 27:12
  Speaker 6: It's a long story.
• 27:13
  Speaker 3: All right, take your time.
• 27:16
  Speaker 6: Well, perhaps it isn't such a long story at that.
• 27:21
  Speaker 6: You see.
• 27:23
  Speaker 6: I was born in Los Angeles Lived here until a
• 27:26
  Speaker 6: few years ago when I took a job in Mexico
• 27:28
  Speaker 6: And up to six months ago I was secretary to
• 27:33
  Speaker 6: a man there named.
• 27:34
  Speaker 8: Morton Layton Layton Any relation to the deceased?
• 27:39
  Speaker 6: Yes Yes, he was Roy's uncle He died about six
• 27:45
  Speaker 6: months ago Before that he'd been trying to find Roy
• 27:48
  Speaker 6: Roy wrote him several letters before he died But Morton
• 27:52
  Speaker 6: Layton never knew about them I... I destroyed them.
• 27:56
  Speaker 3: Why?
• 27:57
  Speaker 6: Because I didn't want them to get together. And then when...
• 28:02
  Speaker 6: when old man Layton died, I came back to Los
• 28:06
  Speaker 6: Angeles where I knew I'd find Roy and marry him.
• 28:11
  Speaker 7: And murdered him because you thought.
• 28:13
  Speaker 6: Roy never knew it. He never knew that he was
• 28:16
  Speaker 6: a missing heir. You see, his uncle struck it rich
• 28:20
  Speaker 6: in Mexico. He left him a quarter of a million dollars.
• 28:26
  Speaker 6: I was trying to get that money for myself. As
• 28:30
  Speaker 6: Roy's widow.
• 28:51
  Speaker 2: Let that whistle be your signal for the Signal Oil program,
• 28:54
  Speaker 2: The Whistler, each Sunday night at this same time. Signal
• 28:58
  Speaker 2: Oil Company has asked me to remind you that the USO,
• 29:01
  Speaker 2: which serves as a home away from home for our
• 29:03
  Speaker 2: boys in uniform, is one of the worthy services you
• 29:06
  Speaker 2: help when you contribute to the community chest. Featured in
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: tonight's story were Bill Foreman, Wally Mayer, and Gene Spaulding.
• 29:16
  Speaker 2: The Whistler was produced and directed by George W. Allen,
• 29:19
  Speaker 2: with story by Joel Malone, music by Wilbur Hatch, and
• 29:22
  Speaker 2: was transmitted to our troops overseas by the Armed Forces
• 29:24
  Speaker 2: Radio Service. The Whistler is entirely fictional. All characters portrayed
• 29:28
  Speaker 2: on The Whistler are also fictional. Any similarity of names
• 29:31
  Speaker 2: or resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
• 29:35
  Speaker 2: Remember at this same time next Sunday, another strange tale
• 29:38
  Speaker 2: by The Whistler.
• 29:39
  Speaker 7: Marvelous!
• 29:40
  Speaker 2: Miller speaking for the Signal Oil Company. Stay tuned for
• 29:43
  Speaker 2: our Miss Brooks starring Eve Arden, which follows immediately over
• 29:45
  Speaker 2: most of these stations. This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.
• 30:01
  Speaker 2: You have been listening to The Whistler, Till Death Do
• 30:03
  Speaker 2: Us Part. Follow The Whistler for more classic broadcasts.