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The Whistler - "Murder on Paper" (Old Time Radio, 1945) · The Whistler | Old Time Radio

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: In Florida, gambler Fred Wallace has married wealthy widow Vera Durante,
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: yet his money troubles and renewed connection with Vera's friend,
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Leta Martin, place his ambitions under growing pressure. From January 29, 1945,
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: this is The Whistler, Murder on Paper, Episode 140, a
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: CBS Pacific Network presentation sponsored by Signal Oil. Bob Shopfer
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: is the whistler, with Elliot Lewis, Ken Christie, and Ann
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: Stone in the cast. As Wallace searches for a way out, greed, romance,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: and a calculated plan draw the lines of this half-hour
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: crime drama. Now, back to the golden age of radio.
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: Signal gasoline, the gasoline that does go farther. The Signal
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: Oil Company presents The Whistler. The Signal Oil Company and
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: your neighborhood signal dealer bring you another.
• 1:09
  Speaker 3: Curious story by The Whistler.
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: Tonight, murder on papers.
• 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 stepped into
• 1:42
  Speaker 4: the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless terrors of which
• 1:47
  Speaker 4: they dare not speak. Well, to begin with, I'm not
• 1:58
  Speaker 4: telling this story.
• 2:00
  Speaker 3: No.
• 2:01
  Speaker 4: Fred Wallace is telling it. Fred Wallace is a writer
• 2:05
  Speaker 4: of detective stories for pulp magazines. And this is the
• 2:09
  Speaker 4: best story he's ever told.
• 2:11
  Speaker 3: Yes. Go on, Fred. Continue your dictation.
• 2:15
  Speaker 4: You were a writer and a police reporter, and you
• 2:18
  Speaker 4: never held a job very long. Just why was that, Fred?
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: I was a victim of the ponies. I couldn't stay
• 2:24
  Speaker 3: away from the racetracks. I was hitting the 40-year mark,
• 2:27
  Speaker 3: and I was down at Hialeah Park in Florida when
• 2:29
  Speaker 3: I met a gorgeous blonde from California named Lita Martin,
• 2:32
  Speaker 3: her friend Vera Durant. This Vera was a widow who
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: was tossing money around and having a time of her life.
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: She wasn't too pretty, not as pretty as Lita, but
• 2:41
  Speaker 3: her husband had left her a half a million dollars.
• 2:44
  Speaker 3: Not made up for it. What more could I ask? Uh,
• 2:49
  Speaker 3: am I taking too much time? All the time you want, Wallace. Well...
• 2:54
  Speaker 3: By the time the Hialeah meet was over, Vera and
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: I were married and on our way to her place
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: in Los Angeles. Santa Anita was closed, but Hollywood Park
• 3:01
  Speaker 3: was about to open, and I'd figured on running a
• 3:03
  Speaker 3: stable and a string of ponies. I didn't mention the
• 3:06
  Speaker 3: subject until we'd pulled out of San Bernardino. What's the
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: matter with the idea, Vera? I thought you were crazy
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: about horse racing.
• 3:16
  Speaker 5: I had a lot of fun at Hialeah, Fred. I
• 3:19
  Speaker 5: enjoyed watching the horses run.
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: You won some money, didn't you?
• 3:22
  Speaker 5: A little, but... I didn't go for that reason. My
• 3:26
  Speaker 5: friend Lita insisted I spend the season in Florida just...
• 3:29
  Speaker 5: just to get my mind off things.
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: Well, you certainly seem to have a good time.
• 3:33
  Speaker 5: Now that I think of it, it seems silly. It's gambling,
• 3:37
  Speaker 5: and I don't approve of gambling.
• 3:38
  Speaker 3: What? Well, that's certainly news to me. The way you
• 3:43
  Speaker 3: threw down $ 100 bills, I thought you were an old-timer
• 3:45
  Speaker 3: at it.
• 3:46
  Speaker 5: It was my first time at such a place. Oh, Fred, darling...
• 3:50
  Speaker 5: There's no reason why we can't go to the races
• 3:52
  Speaker 5: once or twice.
• 3:53
  Speaker 3: Once or twice?
• 3:54
  Speaker 5: I know you've been able to get by on your gambling,
• 3:57
  Speaker 5: but you're 40 years old. It's time you settled down
• 4:00
  Speaker 5: and accomplished something in a bona fide business.
• 4:03
  Speaker 3: Business? What do I know about business? But I know horses,
• 4:06
  Speaker 3: and with a good string I can clean up.
• 4:09
  Speaker 5: Fred, darling, there's no need for you to clean up.
• 4:12
  Speaker 5: All you need to do is learn the business my
• 4:14
  Speaker 5: husband left me. And to be able to take care
• 4:16
  Speaker 5: of that.
• 4:17
  Speaker 3: Oh, a chemical plant. Are you kidding, Vera?
• 4:19
  Speaker 5: I'll speak to Mr. Adamson tomorrow as to the right
• 4:22
  Speaker 5: job to start you on. And you'll find it most
• 4:24
  Speaker 5: exciting when you get into it.
• 4:27
  Speaker 3: Okay, honey, I'll try.
• 4:37
  Speaker 4: Well, Fred, you weren't exactly conscious of it at the time,
• 4:41
  Speaker 4: but that was when you got the idea for all this.
• 4:45
  Speaker 4: You could pick horses, but you couldn't pick women. Once
• 4:50
  Speaker 4: Vera got home, she was entirely changed, wasn't she, Fred?
• 4:54
  Speaker 3: She was all business and hung on to nickels like
• 4:57
  Speaker 3: they were $ 20 bills. What a change. But I went
• 5:00
  Speaker 3: to work in the chemical plant at $ 75 a week
• 5:02
  Speaker 3: and tried my best to like it. I was bored stiff.
• 5:06
  Speaker 3: And finally, I located a bookie and started playing the
• 5:09
  Speaker 3: horses again. One day, I got a bit too deep
• 5:11
  Speaker 3: and I borrowed some dough from a guy. When I
• 5:14
  Speaker 3: stalled him a little too long, he threatened me. He
• 5:17
  Speaker 3: was a well-known gangster, and I got frightened. I went
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: home during lunch hour to see if I could wangle
• 5:21
  Speaker 3: some extra dope and beer. But beer, honey, a thousand
• 5:26
  Speaker 3: dollars isn't going to break you. You act like you
• 5:28
  Speaker 3: didn't know where your next meal was coming from.
• 5:30
  Speaker 5: You have a salary of $ 75 a week, friend, and
• 5:33
  Speaker 5: a car, and all your living expenses are free. Any
• 5:37
  Speaker 5: sensible person can certainly get along on that.
• 5:39
  Speaker 3: Sensible or not, I need a thousand bucks now, and
• 5:41
  Speaker 3: I gotta have it.
• 5:42
  Speaker 5: Why?
• 5:44
  Speaker 3: All right. I borrowed that much from a guy to
• 5:46
  Speaker 3: place a little bet, but I picked the wrong guy.
• 5:49
  Speaker 3: He turned out to be a gangster. He's put me
• 5:50
  Speaker 3: on the spot.
• 5:51
  Speaker 5: Oh, don't be so corny on the spot.
• 5:55
  Speaker 3: You won't let me have the money?
• 5:56
  Speaker 5: That's Charlie's non.
• 5:57
  Speaker 3: I'm not kidding. This guy's serious. But do you care? No.
• 6:01
  Speaker 3: You got more money than you can ever use, and
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: what good will it do you? None. You're a cheap
• 6:05
  Speaker 3: little penny pincher.
• 6:08
  Speaker 5: You better go, Fred. Back to the place.
• 6:10
  Speaker 3: What good is your money? No good. You don't enjoy
• 6:13
  Speaker 3: life and you never will.
• 6:14
  Speaker 5: Please.
• 6:14
  Speaker 3: What good is a lot of money if you can't
• 6:15
  Speaker 3: use it? You might as well have a bunch of
• 6:17
  Speaker 3: rocks in the bank. You're a stingy, selfish, self-centered tightwad, Vera.
• 6:22
  Speaker 3: Do you hear me? Stingy, selfish, and miserable. I gave
• 6:31
  Speaker 3: her the works. But when she pranced out of the
• 6:34
  Speaker 3: room and slammed the door, I knew she meant it.
• 6:36
  Speaker 3: And I knew, too, that I'd overplayed my hand. Then
• 6:40
  Speaker 3: I got to thinking about what I'd said. That her
• 6:43
  Speaker 3: money was no good to her and that she didn't
• 6:45
  Speaker 3: enjoy life. All kinds of dough and she didn't enjoy life.
• 6:51
  Speaker 3: That's what I was thinking that day on the train.
• 6:55
  Speaker 3: If she didn't enjoy life, why should she go on living?
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: With the prologue of tonight's story, Murder on Paper, the
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: Signal Oil Company brings you another of the strange tales
• 7:16
  Speaker 2: by the Whistler. But before we go on with the story,
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: let's consider carbon, that word you hear so often in
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: connection with automobile motors. Well, just what is carbon and
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: what does it do? Well, coal is carbon.
• 7:28
  Speaker 3: So is soot.
• 7:30
  Speaker 2: Some motor oils form the hard kind of carbon in
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: the cylinder head, gradually building up a thick, hard crust
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: that causes knock, loss.
• 7:37
  Speaker 3: Of motor efficiency.
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: lower gasoline mileage. It can even cause costly repair bills.
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: That's why the solvent refining of Signal four-star motor oil
• 7:47
  Speaker 2: is doubly important to you at this time when you
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: want your motor to last out the duration and you
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: want all the miles you can get from ration gasoline.
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: You see, because of solvent refining, which is the latest,
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: most costly process known to oil engineers, Signal four-star motor
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: oil actually forms less carbons. and it's soft, soot-like carbon
• 8:08
  Speaker 2: that tends to blow out with the exhaust gases. Thus,
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: by keeping your motor cleaner, more efficient, solvent-refined Signal four-star
• 8:16
  Speaker 2: motor oil does two important things. One, aids longer motor life,
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: and two, helps your gasoline go farther. So for your
• 8:26
  Speaker 2: motor's next refill, ask your neighborhood Signal gasoline dealer for
• 8:30
  Speaker 2: your best buy today, Signal four-star motor oil.
• 8:36
  Speaker 3: And now.
• 8:37
  Speaker 4: Back to the Whistler. That's when the whole thing crystallized,
• 8:51
  Speaker 4: wasn't it, Fred? It was as clear as a bell.
• 8:54
  Speaker 4: As a writer, you'd plotted a hundred murders... where the
• 8:57
  Speaker 4: killer was always caught.
• 8:59
  Speaker 3: This time, you'd shuffle them all together.
• 9:01
  Speaker 4: and plot one where the killer would never even be suspected...
• 9:06
  Speaker 4: You didn't have the plot yet, did you?
• 9:09
  Speaker 3: But I knew I was going to kill my wife, Vera.
• 9:13
  Speaker 3: I grabbed my hat and left the house, got into
• 9:15
  Speaker 3: Vera's convertible coupe and started driving. I headed out sunset
• 9:18
  Speaker 3: toward the beach. I don't know why, except maybe I
• 9:20
  Speaker 3: didn't want to go back to the plant. And Vera
• 9:23
  Speaker 3: had a beach house at Malibu. I pulled up in
• 9:26
  Speaker 3: front of it, got out, walked down the side of
• 9:28
  Speaker 3: the house toward the beach, sort of aimlessly. Started to
• 9:32
  Speaker 3: flop down on the sand. I didn't see Vera's friend, Lita,
• 9:35
  Speaker 3: stretch down on the beach next door.
• 9:39
  Speaker 5: Fred! Fred, hey!
• 9:41
  Speaker 3: Oh, hi, Lita.
• 9:43
  Speaker 5: What are you doing down here at this time of day?
• 9:45
  Speaker 3: I don't know, just monkeying around.
• 9:46
  Speaker 5: Oh, yeah? Well, come on over here and sit down, Fred.
• 9:50
  Speaker 5: I won't bite you.
• 9:51
  Speaker 3: Yeah? Okay. I knew I shouldn't have done it, but
• 10:02
  Speaker 3: I sat down close to her. Too close. And when
• 10:05
  Speaker 3: a guy gets that close to a gal like Lita Martin, well,
• 10:10
  Speaker 3: it's like sticking your nose over a can of ether.
• 10:16
  Speaker 5: Are you afraid of me, Fred? Afraid?
• 10:18
  Speaker 3: Afraid? Not in the least. Why?
• 10:20
  Speaker 5: Oh, I don't know. Something's wrong with you. A domestic problem, Fred?
• 10:25
  Speaker 3: No, a business problem.
• 10:27
  Speaker 5: Business? Oh, you're worried as much about the business as
• 10:30
  Speaker 5: you are about the North Pole. I'm going to the
• 10:33
  Speaker 5: races this afternoon. Want to come along?
• 10:35
  Speaker 3: No, I haven't time for that sort of thing. Besides,
• 10:38
  Speaker 3: Vera doesn't approve of it. I've got a lot of
• 10:40
  Speaker 3: work to do at the plant, and she'll expect me
• 10:42
  Speaker 3: to make a report to her this evening.
• 10:44
  Speaker 5: Oh, that's good. I'm glad to hear that you're making
• 10:47
  Speaker 5: such an effort to learn the chemical business. But it's
• 10:50
  Speaker 5: certainly a mystery to me.
• 10:52
  Speaker 3: What is?
• 10:53
  Speaker 5: How you ever took up with a girl like Vera
• 10:54
  Speaker 5: in the first place.
• 10:56
  Speaker 3: Vera and I are very happy.
• 10:58
  Speaker 5: You really love Vera? And not just her money?
• 11:02
  Speaker 3: What a thing to say. Of course I love her.
• 11:04
  Speaker 3: What's wrong with Vera?
• 11:06
  Speaker 5: Nothing's wrong with her. She's one of my best friends.
• 11:09
  Speaker 5: But you and Vera are as much alike as night
• 11:12
  Speaker 5: and day. At least you were. You get a kick
• 11:16
  Speaker 5: out of everything, Fred. Vera is such a tightwad that
• 11:19
  Speaker 5: she never enjoys anything, except making money. She's never really
• 11:23
  Speaker 5: enjoyed life. How could she?
• 11:26
  Speaker 3: What?
• 11:26
  Speaker 5: Well, she has everything to make life livable, but she'll
• 11:29
  Speaker 5: never enjoy a minute of it.
• 11:32
  Speaker 3: Yeah.
• 11:33
  Speaker 5: Oh, when are you going back to town?
• 11:36
  Speaker 6: What?
• 11:38
  Speaker 3: Oh, I'm going back now.
• 11:39
  Speaker 5: Oh, good. You can take me in. I'll tell the
• 11:42
  Speaker 5: maid I'll go in with you. I'll change in just
• 11:44
  Speaker 5: three minutes.
• 11:45
  Speaker 4: Uh.
• 11:46
  Speaker 5: You don't mind taking me in, do you, Fred?
• 11:48
  Speaker 3: Why, no. It's a pleasure, Lita. Glad to.
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: And it was on that ride back from the beach
• 12:02
  Speaker 4: that you got the idea.
• 12:04
  Speaker 3: Wasn't it, Fred?
• 12:06
  Speaker 4: A few blocks from the beach, you realized the convertible
• 12:10
  Speaker 4: was pulling hard to the left. You stopped on an
• 12:13
  Speaker 4: incline and found the valve in the right front tire
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: was leaking. You jacked the wheel up to change, but
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: you didn't pull the emergency brake on hard enough. The
• 12:23
  Speaker 4: car slipped off the jack and started to roll. But
• 12:26
  Speaker 4: a call to Leta and she grabbed the emergency, eh, Fred?
• 12:30
  Speaker 3: That gave me the idea how to get rid of Vera.
• 12:33
  Speaker 3: She planned to go up to her mountain place that
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: evening because the first snow had fallen. A perfect setup.
• 12:38
  Speaker 3: But I needed a witness for what I was going
• 12:40
  Speaker 3: to do, so I worked it so that Vera invited
• 12:41
  Speaker 3: Leta About an hour before we left, I put the
• 12:45
  Speaker 3: leaky tire back on the wheel, then loosened the bolt
• 12:48
  Speaker 3: on the emergency brake to where it would just barely
• 12:50
  Speaker 3: hold when pulled all the way back. I dropped a
• 12:53
  Speaker 3: couple of sleeping tablets and Vera's tea just before we left.
• 12:56
  Speaker 3: Vera sat in front with me and Leta in the
• 12:58
  Speaker 3: rear with the luggage. After we passed the crest line turnoff,
• 13:02
  Speaker 3: I picked a spot on a downgrade. I pulled off
• 13:05
  Speaker 3: to the side facing a five or six hundred foot drop.
• 13:08
  Speaker 3: I stopped, eased the handbrake back all the way. It
• 13:12
  Speaker 3: held just barely.
• 13:15
  Speaker 5: What's the matter, Fred?
• 13:16
  Speaker 3: I put that tire back on the wheel. I thought
• 13:18
  Speaker 3: I'd fixed it, but it's almost flat again. I can
• 13:20
  Speaker 3: feel it. I'll have to change again.
• 13:22
  Speaker 5: Oh, well, can I help you?
• 13:23
  Speaker 3: Oh, thanks, Lita, but I can handle it. I guess
• 13:26
  Speaker 3: Vera's sound asleep. Hand me the jack and that wrench
• 13:30
  Speaker 3: under your feet.
• 13:30
  Speaker 5: Okay.
• 13:31
  Speaker 3: I left them out because I didn't trust my job
• 13:33
  Speaker 3: on that tire. Thanks, Lita. I'll have it changed in
• 13:37
  Speaker 3: a jiffy. I jacked up the right front wheel till
• 13:41
  Speaker 3: it just barely cleared the ground, removed the hubcap... I
• 13:44
  Speaker 3: applied the lug wrench, and I was all set to
• 13:45
  Speaker 3: throw the car in motion. I wanted to get Lita
• 13:48
  Speaker 3: out of the car on the opposite side because she
• 13:50
  Speaker 3: was to be my witness if I needed one. Lita,
• 13:54
  Speaker 3: bring me that flashlight beside you. I guess I'll need
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: your help after all. It's dark out here.
• 13:58
  Speaker 5: Yes, Fred.
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: As Lita slammed the door, I gave a terrific pull
• 14:03
  Speaker 3: on the lug wrench. The car rolled off the jack
• 14:05
  Speaker 3: and went into motion. I yelled just for effect, but
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: it was only a few feet to the edge. The
• 14:08
  Speaker 3: car shot over, hit a ledge about 20 feet below,
• 14:10
  Speaker 3: and then crashed on down to the bottom. I stood
• 14:22
  Speaker 3: there looking down, acting as though I was paralyzed. Then
• 14:27
  Speaker 3: I turned around with a horrified look on my face
• 14:29
  Speaker 3: and let out a terrific groan.
• 14:32
  Speaker 5: But.
• 14:34
  Speaker 3: But Lita wasn't there. She disappeared. I was frantic. I
• 14:38
  Speaker 3: screamed into the dark. Lita! But no answer. My witness
• 14:42
  Speaker 3: had disappeared.
• 14:50
  Speaker 4: You were terrified, Fred. You stood there trembling in the dark,
• 14:55
  Speaker 4: screaming for Leta as though she were a mile away.
• 14:58
  Speaker 4: Then it came to you. You grabbed the flashlight and
• 15:02
  Speaker 4: shot it around and down on the ledge below. And
• 15:04
  Speaker 4: there was Leta, on the rocks of the ledge and
• 15:07
  Speaker 4: blood on her face.
• 15:09
  Speaker 3: I knew then how she'd got there. She jumped on
• 15:11
  Speaker 3: the left running board to grab the emergency brake and
• 15:14
  Speaker 3: gone over with the car. That's what I hadn't counted on.
• 15:17
  Speaker 3: Lita wasn't supposed to have touched the brake. Only this
• 15:20
  Speaker 3: afternoon she'd pulled it on. Now when it didn't work,
• 15:22
  Speaker 3: she'd know for sure that it had been tampered with.
• 15:25
  Speaker 3: She could tell them that the accident was no accident.
• 15:30
  Speaker 3: I picked up her rock. Started down to the ledge
• 15:33
  Speaker 3: to give her a good bash on the head.
• 15:38
  Speaker 4: But her car pulled up, Fred. Vera, your wife was dead,
• 15:43
  Speaker 4: but they rushed Leta to San Bernardino. You never left
• 15:47
  Speaker 4: Leta's side for three days because your witness was now
• 15:51
  Speaker 4: a good prospect for state's witness. When she came to.
• 15:56
  Speaker 3: But I thanked my lucky stars when she regained consciousness.
• 16:00
  Speaker 3: She knew me, but she couldn't seem to remember just
• 16:03
  Speaker 3: what had happened. I was awful sweet to her. I
• 16:08
  Speaker 3: told her my own private version of the accident, Fred,
• 16:13
  Speaker 3: what happened? Don't you remember, Lita? No.
• 16:17
  Speaker 5: All I can recall is a terrible crash. Nothing more.
• 16:23
  Speaker 3: The tire went flat, and I stopped to change it.
• 16:25
  Speaker 3: I jacked the wheel up and started to remove the
• 16:27
  Speaker 3: lug nuts, and it slipped off the jack and rolled
• 16:29
  Speaker 3: over the cliff.
• 16:31
  Speaker 5: Well, where was I?
• 16:32
  Speaker 3: Vera was asleep in the front seat, and you were
• 16:34
  Speaker 3: sitting in the back seat. You must have been thrown
• 16:37
  Speaker 3: clear when the car hit the ledge. Or maybe when
• 16:39
  Speaker 3: you saw the car rolling, you tried to jump out.
• 16:42
  Speaker 3: Perhaps that's what saved you. Poor Vera.
• 16:45
  Speaker 5: She didn't have a chance, did she?
• 16:47
  Speaker 3: No. What do you mean?
• 16:49
  Speaker 5: Well, didn't you say she was asleep?
• 16:51
  Speaker 3: Did I say that? Well, yes. That's right, she was.
• 16:55
  Speaker 5: Well, at least she didn't suffer. She probably never knew
• 16:58
  Speaker 5: what happened.
• 16:59
  Speaker 3: Lita, you can't remember a thing about what happened?
• 17:02
  Speaker 5: No, I can't seem to remember just what it was
• 17:06
  Speaker 5: all about. It's It's all very hazy. But did the
• 17:11
  Speaker 5: doctor tell you?
• 17:13
  Speaker 3: Tell me what?
• 17:14
  Speaker 5: Well, he said my loss of memory was only temporary.
• 17:18
  Speaker 5: At least he hoped so. And maybe in time, he
• 17:22
  Speaker 5: didn't say how long, but that in time everything will
• 17:24
  Speaker 5: clear up. In a way, I hope that won't happen. Why?
• 17:30
  Speaker 5: I'd rather not know any more about it than I do.
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: For your own sake, I hope. I mean... I hope
• 17:37
  Speaker 3: you never remember about it. It was too gruesome. Lita?
• 17:43
  Speaker 5: Yes, Fred?
• 17:44
  Speaker 3: Look, it was all my fault, darling. It was pure
• 17:46
  Speaker 3: negligence on my part. I should have put a rock
• 17:48
  Speaker 3: under one of the wheels. There's nothing that can be
• 17:49
  Speaker 3: done about... about poor Vera now. But you're going to
• 17:54
  Speaker 3: be all right. And I want you to know that
• 17:56
  Speaker 3: I'll do all in my power to make up for it.
• 17:58
  Speaker 3: It's my duty. It's the least I can do.
• 18:00
  Speaker 5: What are you getting at, Fred?
• 18:01
  Speaker 3: It'll be my duty from now on to take care
• 18:03
  Speaker 3: of you, Lita. Vera would want it that way, I'm sure.
• 18:07
  Speaker 5: Fred, I don't understand.
• 18:08
  Speaker 3: Later on, we can be married, and I'll always stay
• 18:10
  Speaker 3: right by your side. After all, you and I always
• 18:13
  Speaker 3: thought a great deal of each other, didn't we?
• 18:15
  Speaker 5: Are you trying to say that I'm paralyzed or something?
• 18:17
  Speaker 3: No, darling, not that. Haven't you looked in the mirror?
• 18:21
  Speaker 5: I think.
• 18:22
  Speaker 3: Leave it. As soon as you're out of here, I'll
• 18:23
  Speaker 3: spend every dollar Vera left me. I'll have the best
• 18:26
  Speaker 3: plastic surgeons in the country, and you'll be just as
• 18:29
  Speaker 3: beautiful as ever. Fred, I.
• 18:42
  Speaker 2: You are listening to The Whistler, brought to you by
• 18:45
  Speaker 2: your friend, the Signal Oil Company, marketers of the famous
• 18:49
  Speaker 2: Signal Gasoline, your best buy today. Remember to let every
• 18:54
  Speaker 2: go signal remind you, you do go farther with Signal Gasoline.
• 19:19
  Speaker 4: Well, everything Vera had was left to you, wasn't it, Fred?
• 19:25
  Speaker 4: But you dumped it all on the market, including the
• 19:28
  Speaker 4: plant and all the real estate. Turned it into cash.
• 19:32
  Speaker 4: Married Leta... Had her face fixed up and bought another
• 19:36
  Speaker 4: beautiful place up at Big Bear Lake. And took Lita
• 19:39
  Speaker 4: up there. You had no servants because you wanted her
• 19:43
  Speaker 4: all to yourself, didn't you, Fred?
• 19:46
  Speaker 3: I watched her like a hawk because I wanted to
• 19:48
  Speaker 3: be around if she should regain her memory. But after
• 19:51
  Speaker 3: a while, she got to acting kind of strange. She
• 19:52
  Speaker 3: began to ask funny questions. About what happened that night,
• 19:55
  Speaker 3: I mean. The cloud was beginning to clear up is
• 19:58
  Speaker 3: what I figured. It was getting on my nerves. And
• 20:01
  Speaker 3: I knew for sure that if it cleared up and
• 20:02
  Speaker 3: she remembered about grabbing for that break, the whole thing
• 20:05
  Speaker 3: would come out. She'd know that I'd killed Vera. Then
• 20:10
  Speaker 3: one afternoon.
• 20:11
  Speaker 5: Fred, I've just had another one of those terrible dreams. Nightmares.
• 20:16
  Speaker 3: Nightmares? Since when have you been having nightmares in the afternoon?
• 20:19
  Speaker 5: I've had several of them. It's terrifying, Fred. I can't
• 20:24
  Speaker 5: understand why I always dream the same thing. I seem
• 20:28
  Speaker 5: to be driving a car at fast speed. There's a
• 20:32
  Speaker 5: high wall in front of me. I grab the handbrake
• 20:35
  Speaker 5: and pull and pull, but the car won't stop. And
• 20:40
  Speaker 5: just as I'm about to crash, I wake up in
• 20:44
  Speaker 5: a cold sweat.
• 20:46
  Speaker 3: Are you dreaming? Or is it just your imagination?
• 20:51
  Speaker 5: Why do you say that?
• 20:51
  Speaker 3: If you've got something on your mind, why don't you
• 20:53
  Speaker 3: say it?
• 20:53
  Speaker 5: I don't know what you mean, Fred. I didn't mean
• 20:55
  Speaker 5: to upset you.
• 20:56
  Speaker 3: I'm not upset.
• 20:59
  Speaker 5: Oh, I forgot to tell you, dear. There was a
• 21:02
  Speaker 5: man here to see you this afternoon. Said he'd drop
• 21:04
  Speaker 5: by later.
• 21:05
  Speaker 3: Yeah, what man?
• 21:06
  Speaker 5: He said his name was Jenkins. He owns the garage
• 21:08
  Speaker 5: in the village.
• 21:09
  Speaker 3: Jenkins? What about him?
• 21:10
  Speaker 5: Well, it was something about your brakes. I think he
• 21:12
  Speaker 5: said your brakes were loose. He said he'd come by later.
• 21:14
  Speaker 3: Brakes? I don't know what he's talking about. I've never
• 21:16
  Speaker 3: had my car in his garage. The only connection I
• 21:19
  Speaker 3: had with him was when he hauled that wrecked convertible
• 21:21
  Speaker 3: up the....
• 21:23
  Speaker 5: What's the matter, Fred?
• 21:26
  Speaker 3: There's nothing. Maybe I'd better run down to the village
• 21:29
  Speaker 3: and see Jenkins. Why? How do I know until I
• 21:31
  Speaker 3: get there?
• 21:41
  Speaker 4: Yes, Fred, you don't like the looks of this. Rush
• 21:44
  Speaker 4: down to the garage at the village and see Jenkins.
• 21:47
  Speaker 4: See what he's told Lita. See what he's found out.
• 21:51
  Speaker 3: Oh, yes, yes, Mr. Wallace.
• 21:52
  Speaker 6: Well, I got a little bill here for $ 18 that
• 21:55
  Speaker 6: I can't overlook. Then I had something I wanted to
• 21:58
  Speaker 6: tell you about the Chrysler convertible, the one that went
• 22:01
  Speaker 6: over the cliff.
• 22:02
  Speaker 3: What about it?
• 22:02
  Speaker 6: Well, you know I hauled it up the hill and
• 22:05
  Speaker 6: took it to my shop. I've looked it over, and
• 22:08
  Speaker 6: it can be fixed up.
• 22:09
  Speaker 3: I told you I didn't want it fixed up. Junk it.
• 22:11
  Speaker 3: Junk it?
• 22:12
  Speaker 6: Then you'll have to sign this pink slip over to me.
• 22:15
  Speaker 3: I'll sign it, give it here. But I want it junked.
• 22:18
  Speaker 6: Yes, sir, but I can only get a hundred for
• 22:20
  Speaker 6: it as junk. All right, junk it, and you keep
• 22:22
  Speaker 6: what you get for your trouble.
• 22:23
  Speaker 3: I don't want anything. There you are. But what I
• 22:27
  Speaker 3: wanted to tell you was.
• 22:29
  Speaker 3: I know why it rolled over the cliff. Why? The
• 22:31
  Speaker 3: emergency brake wouldn't hold. I know that. And that's something
• 22:35
  Speaker 3: I can't understand.
• 22:37
  Speaker 6: Handle pulls all the way back to the last notch,
• 22:40
  Speaker 6: and the brake lining barely touches the brake drum.
• 22:43
  Speaker 3: I can't understand that. I can. The brake lining was worn.
• 22:46
  Speaker 3: It was loose. The brake was loose, but the lining
• 22:49
  Speaker 3: wasn't worn. What? It couldn't have been.
• 22:52
  Speaker 6: I relined all the brakes for your dead wife last summer,
• 22:55
  Speaker 6: and I cinched up the emergency to where it had
• 22:57
  Speaker 6: worked when pulled only halfway back.
• 22:59
  Speaker 3: That's what this $ 18 bill's for. Well... Then the bolt
• 23:05
  Speaker 3: on the brake must have worked loose. No, no, no.
• 23:07
  Speaker 6: I checked on that. The nut was screwed clear to
• 23:10
  Speaker 6: the end of the bolt. But it still had a
• 23:12
  Speaker 6: cotter key in it. I've never made a mistake like
• 23:15
  Speaker 6: that in my life.
• 23:15
  Speaker 3: Well, then how would it get loose? I don't know.
• 23:18
  Speaker 3: I don't know.
• 23:19
  Speaker 6: Unless somebody loosened it on purpose. Maybe somebody had it
• 23:24
  Speaker 6: in for you. It's the only thing I could think of.
• 23:27
  Speaker 6: As I was telling your wife on the phone... I
• 23:29
  Speaker 6: said as I was telling your wife. Talk to my
• 23:32
  Speaker 6: wife about this?
• 23:33
  Speaker 3: Yes, yes.
• 23:33
  Speaker 6: Didn't she tell you her code? How much did you
• 23:35
  Speaker 6: tell her? Well, I tried to explain about the break.
• 23:37
  Speaker 6: You have no right to talk to my wife about
• 23:39
  Speaker 6: such things. But I just thought you ought to know.
• 23:43
  Speaker 3: Yes, of course. I just meant that you shouldn't have
• 23:46
  Speaker 3: bothered my wife about it. She's been very nervous since
• 23:50
  Speaker 3: the accident. I try not to mention it to her. Oh, oh. Well, I'm... Sorry.
• 23:56
  Speaker 3: It's all right, only we're both trying to forget the
• 23:59
  Speaker 3: whole thing. Sure, sure, Mr. Wallace. So just send me
• 24:02
  Speaker 3: a bill and I'll mail a check. Just forget about this. Sure, sure.
• 24:06
  Speaker 3: I'll get the bill for you in just a minute.
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: Never mind.
• 24:08
  Speaker 3: I have to hurry. I have to get home right away.
• 24:17
  Speaker 4: Well, Fred, Jenkins stumbled onto the evidence, didn't he? He
• 24:22
  Speaker 4: doesn't seem to suspect anything. But he talked to Leta. Leta,
• 24:28
  Speaker 4: whose memory is returning. Now she knows what happened.
• 24:33
  Speaker 3: All the way back, my mind was going a mile
• 24:35
  Speaker 3: a minute. Leta knew. And I had to make my
• 24:37
  Speaker 3: plans quickly. Plans to get rid of her. I drove
• 24:40
  Speaker 3: in the back directly into the garage. I guess that's
• 24:42
  Speaker 3: why I didn't see the car parked in front. When
• 24:45
  Speaker 3: I rushed into the house, Leta was standing in the
• 24:46
  Speaker 3: hall waiting for me.
• 24:47
  Speaker 5: Oh, darling, I was hoping you'd get back.
• 24:49
  Speaker 3: So you knew all the time.
• 24:51
  Speaker 5: I don't know what you're talking about, but whatever it is,
• 24:53
  Speaker 5: it'll keep. Right now, come in the living room.
• 24:55
  Speaker 3: But it won't keep. The game's up, Lita. Jenkins told you,
• 24:58
  Speaker 3: didn't he? Didn't he?
• 25:01
  Speaker 5: Well, he said something about the brakes on the convertible,
• 25:04
  Speaker 5: but I.
• 25:04
  Speaker 3: That's not all. He told you why they didn't work,
• 25:06
  Speaker 3: why the car went over the cliff, didn't he?
• 25:08
  Speaker 5: Fred, Fred, listen, the sheriff's office.
• 25:09
  Speaker 3: Oh, so you got the sheriff's office in on it, too. Well,
• 25:12
  Speaker 3: what were you waiting for? Why didn't you turn me
• 25:14
  Speaker 3: in long ago? You knew about the brake. You probably
• 25:16
  Speaker 3: even knew about me putting the leaking tire back on
• 25:18
  Speaker 3: and jerking the car off the jack. My only mistake
• 25:22
  Speaker 3: was in not letting you go over the cliff with Vera.
• 25:26
  Speaker 3: Now it looks like I'll have to do that all
• 25:27
  Speaker 3: over again. Fred. As if you didn't know. Now I'll
• 25:30
  Speaker 3: have to take care of you. I don't think so, Wallace.
• 25:32
  Speaker 3: I think I'll have to take care of you.
• 25:34
  Speaker 4: What?
• 25:34
  Speaker 5: Fred, I tried to tell you. The sheriff sent a
• 25:36
  Speaker 5: deputy out to see me and.
• 25:37
  Speaker 3: Oh, you did trap me, you dirty... Stand aside, Mrs. Wallace.
• 25:40
  Speaker 3: I've heard all I need. You won't catch me. Fred, don't. Don't, Fred.
• 25:54
  Speaker 2: The Whistler will bring you the rest of the strange
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: story in just a moment. Meantime, Signal Oil Company wants
• 26:00
  Speaker 2: to pass along this important War Production Board warning about
• 26:02
  Speaker 2: the shortage of auto batteries. Due to increased military requirements,
• 26:07
  Speaker 2: WPB announces 40% fewer new batteries will be produced for
• 26:11
  Speaker 2: civilian cars during January, February, March. You know what that means.
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: More and more cars that need new batteries will have
• 26:18
  Speaker 2: to make the old one do.
• 26:19
  Speaker 3: So play safe.
• 26:20
  Speaker 2: Keep your present battery working for you as long as
• 26:23
  Speaker 2: you can... by seeing that it gets the regular attention
• 26:26
  Speaker 2: it needs. That means stopping at your neighborhood signal gasoline
• 26:30
  Speaker 2: dealer every two weeks for his complete battery checkup. He'll
• 26:33
  Speaker 2: add distilled water to restore the safe level and remove
• 26:36
  Speaker 2: destructive corrosion from the terminals. If your battery seems run down,
• 26:41
  Speaker 2: his hydrometer test shows whether it needs recharging. And your
• 26:44
  Speaker 2: signal dealer is equipped to give you a quick, thorough
• 26:47
  Speaker 2: recharge job. All this is part of your signal complete
• 26:51
  Speaker 2: go farther service. Every car needs it more than ever today.
• 26:56
  Speaker 2: See that your car gets it by stopping at least
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: every two weeks at your neighborhood signal gasoline dealer.
• 27:02
  Speaker 3: And now, back to the whistler. And what happened then, Fred,
• 27:16
  Speaker 3: after you ran out the door? I saw the deputy's car,
• 27:19
  Speaker 3: but I didn't see the other guy, the driver. until
• 27:22
  Speaker 3: I ran past and there was a gun in my face.
• 27:25
  Speaker 3: I took a wild poke at him, but he just
• 27:26
  Speaker 3: slapped me on the side of the head with the
• 27:27
  Speaker 3: gun barrel. When I woke up, I was sitting here. Yes, Fred.
• 27:34
  Speaker 4: Sitting in the sheriff's office, and now you're speaking into
• 27:37
  Speaker 4: a microphone, making a record of your confession. You may
• 27:42
  Speaker 4: have been excellent at plotting murder on paper, but when
• 27:46
  Speaker 4: a man's emotions become involved with the real thing, it
• 27:50
  Speaker 4: isn't so good. You see, you were perfectly safe. You'd
• 27:55
  Speaker 4: committed the perfect crime. Neither Lita nor anybody else suspected
• 28:00
  Speaker 4: a thing till you yourself divulged it. And the sheriff's
• 28:03
  Speaker 4: deputy has just told you that all he came by
• 28:07
  Speaker 4: your place for was to return Vera's purse, which a
• 28:10
  Speaker 4: couple of Boy Scouts had found in the brush where
• 28:13
  Speaker 4: the accident had occurred. Yes, it was just nerves, Fred.
• 28:18
  Speaker 3: Nerves. That's all. Well... Guess that'll be my last murder
• 28:24
  Speaker 3: plot for a long while. Yes, Fred.
• 28:27
  Speaker 4: I can assure you that the gentleman at San Quentin
• 28:31
  Speaker 4: will see to that.
• 28:59
  Speaker 2: Next Monday at 9 o'clock, The Whistler will bring you
• 29:01
  Speaker 2: another strange tale. The curious story of Murder is Legal.
• 29:06
  Speaker 2: The Whistler is broadcast for your entertainment by the marketers
• 29:09
  Speaker 2: of Signal Gasoline and Oil and fine quality auto accessories
• 29:14
  Speaker 2: and by your neighborhood Signal dealer.
• 29:17
  Speaker 3: This program, directed by George W. Allen, story by J.
• 29:21
  Speaker 2: Donald Wilson, music by Wilbur Hatch, is transmitted to our
• 29:24
  Speaker 2: troops overseas by the Armed Forces Radio Service. Bob Anderson
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: speaking and inviting you to listen next Monday night at
• 29:32
  Speaker 2: 9 when.
• 29:37
  Speaker 2: The Signal Oil Company presents.
• 29:30
  Speaker 3: This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.
• 30:15
  Speaker 1: Our presentation of The Whistler, Murder on Paper, is complete.
• 30:19
  Speaker 1: Good night, and thank you for sharing this broadcast.