Original subtitles

"The glorious gifts of the gods may not be cast aside."

"Behold," the noble Homer said.

"Cometh the java,

hot, black and delicious."

Is something wrong, Dad?

Wrong?

No, no, no.

Eggs the way you like them?

Oh.

Just not enough, that's all.

Muriell, baby, I'm awfully hungry this morning.

How about another egg

and some more of that venison sausage?

Of course.

Thank you, baby.

Here we are.

Dad?

Your breakfast is getting cold.

Dad?

What is it, Muriell?

Dad.

He didn't finish his breakfast and I...

I'm looking for him.

It's obvious he's not here.

Sorry, Nancy.

Oh, what are you doing

banging around this time of night?

I'm sorry I woke you, Glamis.

Oh, it's not me, silly.

You might have wakened Hartley.

Hartley? Hartley Elliott, here?

Mm-hm.

In the guestroom.

Something went wrong with his car

when he brought me home, so of course I asked him

to spend the night in the guestroom.

Well, Dad didn't finish his breakfast,

and he hasn't left for the office.

Well, I just don't know where he is.

Well, did you look out in that smelly old shop of his?

Muriell Gilman. Mm-hm.

Now for the address.

6231 Vauxman.

Oh, fine, Miss Gilman.

Yes, and try not to worry too much.

I'll have Mr. Mason call as soon as he comes in.

You're very welcome.

Bye.

Gilman.

Carter Gilman.

Morning, Della.

Morning, Perry.

A young woman just called and she's lost her father

and she seems terribly frightened.

What do you mean she's lost her father?

Well, it just so happens that he disappeared

right in the middle of breakfast.

A good place to disappear.

Perry, she found your name

on a list of appointments in his briefcase.

Do I know him?

Not that I know of. Carter Gilman?

That rings no bells.

Perry, yesterday afternoon, late, a man called.

He wanted an appointment and said it was of extreme urgency.

I gave him an appointment at 11:30.

Here, 11:30 this morning.

"Mr. Edward Carter."

Edward Carter, Carter Gilman.

Mm-hm.

Carter Gilman's address is 6231 Vauxman.

Mr. Edward Carter also left an address.

6231 Vauxman?

I think we better get in touch

with your frightened young lady right away.

The red stain on the floor

is not blood. It's paint.

Oh, thank heaven.

But there was obviously quite a fight in here.

This must have been knocked over during the struggle.

Your father's workshop?

Yes.

Woodworking is his hobby.

He's very good at it.

He certainly uses fine woods.

A hundred of these bills scattered on the floor.

Ten thousand dollars.

But where did it come from?

I don't know.

That money isn't mine, I don't want any part of it.

All right, Miss Gilman,

I'll hold it for a while.

Now, other than you and your father,

who was in the house?

Nancy, my stepmother.

Glamis Barlow, my stepsister.

And... And Hartley Elliott,

Glamis' boyfriend.

He spent the night here.

I saw him leave a few minutes ago.

Now, you said your father seemed preoccupied

with something outside the dining room window?

I guess he saw something out there.

But why didn't he tell me?

Mr. Mason, do you think he saw someone

coming into this workshop?

Or someone leaving it.

Now, suppose you find me a recent picture of your father.

What are you going to do, Mr. Mason?

Call the police?

No. Not yet.

I'll wait and see what happens at 11:30.

He's here, Perry.

Uh, bring him in.

Tell Gertie to get hold of Paul for me.

Mr. Edward Carter.

Mr. Mason.

Uh, won't you sit down, Mr. Carter?

I believe you told Miss Street

this was a matter of extreme urgency.

I'm acting on behalf of a friend.

A very dear friend.

A woman who happens to be married to a man

who is also a friend of mine.

And her name?

Gilman. Nancy Gilman.

I'm visiting her and her husband at the moment.

What about Mrs. Gilman?

Mr. Mason, Mrs. Gilman is being blackmailed.

And, uh, you being her friend,

want me to do something about it?

Yes, sir, that's why I'm here.

I wanna know what's in her past

so that we know what hold the blackmailer has over her.

Do you know who the blackmailer is?

Yes, sir, I do.

A woman private detective named Vera M. Martel.

She has an office in Las Vegas.

I'd like to know a little more about, uh, Nancy Gilman.

About her husband, for instance.

Well, Mr. Gilman was married before.

He has one daughter, Muriell. She's 20.

He married again and the second wife, Nancy,

has a daughter by a prior marriage.

Glamis. Glamis Barlow.

I'm very fond of the entire family,

and particularly the two daughters.

They're as different as night and day.

But where Mr. and Mrs. Gilman are concerned,

they're duplicate and devoted daughters.

But you think there is something in Mrs. Gilman's past

which would, uh, lay her open to blackmail.

Uh, Mr. Carter,

perhaps what you need is a good private investigator.

But you don't understand, Mr. Mason.

I want you as an attorney.

Yes, of course, hire anybody else as necessary,

but you do it.

Do you happen to know if there's a workshop

someplace around the Gilman house?

Why, yes, of course,

I... I've seen it there.

Why do you ask?

Mr. Carter, I'll take your case on one condition:

I want you to assign to me all your right, title and interest,

whatever it may be,

to the contents of that workshop.

All those contents that exist at the present time

or existed at any other time during the day.

Well, I'll sign anything, Mr. Mason,

but, quite obviously since I'm only a guest at the house

and own nothing in the workshop or any place else there,

uh, such a paper would be a legal absurdity.

Hm. I'd simply like to have, uh,

what we lawyers call, "color of title,"

to give me a legal right to explore the premises.

Now, if it's agreeable, I'll have my secretary

get together with you in the outer office,

draw up a bill of sale and we'll go right to work.

Look, Mr. Mason.

Apparently I have no choice.

Thank you.

Perry, what on earth?

If that $10,000 from the workshop

now locked in our safe

is money he collected to pay blackmail,

I'd have a legitimate excuse to, uh, hold it.

Moreover, I couldn't be accused of suppressing evidence,

you understand?

Hi, Perry. You wanted to see me?

Suspected blackmail victim, Mrs. Nancy Gilman.

Nancy Gilman is supposedly being blackmailed

by a private investigator named, uh, Vera Martel,

who evidently... Wait a minute.

Wrong tense.

Was, not is.

Your lady private eye isn't blackmailing anybody.

She's dead.

Where's Gilman?

He called his office

and, whatever it was his secretary told him, he...

He signed the bill of sale without even reading it

and just hurried out.

Well, no hope of catching him now.

Paul, are you sure Vera Martel is dead?

Well, I didn't check the corpse personally, but I'm sure.

What happened?

The highway patrol found a body

down a ravine in the Hollywood Hills.

Turned out to be one Vera Martel.

Accident?

Supposed to look like it, but it wasn't. It was murder.

She was strangled sometime this morning.

Pretty funny routine too.

What do you mean?

Well, Vera's clothes were loaded with sawdust.

Sawdust from real expensive wood yet.

And one spot on her dress was all smeared with red paint.

Figure that one.

I can.

It won't take the police long either.

What?

I've been playing a blind hand and I've just been raised.

Paul, I'm gonna start a little rough probing

in the hope I can push someone into running.

If they start running, I'll wanna know where they go

and what they do.

All right.

We checked his office, he wasn't there.

Now, do you still insist none of you knows

where Mr. Gilman is?

If you doubt our answers,

why waste our time and yours with stupid questions?

Would you also characterize murder as stupid?

It's Dad. I knew something was wrong,

I knew it.

Oh, relax.

If if he were dead,

Mr. Mason wouldn't be asking where he is.

Mr. Mason, is there anything else you wish to know?

Yes.

Did any of you withdraw $10,000 from the bank?

Does any one of you know if Mr. Gilman

withdrew $10,000 from the bank?

Do any of you know Vera Martel?

Thanks.

You've been a big help, all of you.

Mr. Mason.

You pick a name out of thin air and you throw it at us.

Who is Vera Martel?

She was a private detective.

Possibly a blackmailer.

She was murdered this morning.

Well, what has that got to do with us?

I have reason to believe the police are going to claim

that she was strangled to death

in the workshop behind your garage.

And that $10,000,

either a bribe or blackmail payment,

was left in that workshop

while someone disposed of Vera Martel's body.

You're either drunk or crazy.

That is probably the police.

When they're finished,

let me know if you think they're drunk or crazy.

Well,

Perry Mason answering doors.

Counselor, we traced a taxi receipt

in a dead woman's purse to this address.

I have a search warrant here.

You'll find the sawdust and the red paint

in the workshop behind the garage.

Excuse me. Sergeant.

Paul.

Hi, Alan. Is she here?

Uh, you were right. She did come here to Las Vegas.

One of my men spotted her coming into town.

How'd you figure?

Well, I tailed her to Victorville.

Just outside of town, I blew a fuel pump,

got stranded in the desert and lost her.

But, Las Vegas was the only place

she could have been going to.

Well, we had the same bad luck.

My man spotted her, all right, but that's all.

Then he lost her in downtown traffic.

But we'll find her, don't worry.

And I may have something for you

on the girl knowing Vera Martel.

Vera Martel.

Are the cops crawling all over her office now?

Not that I know of.

Have you got a car? Yeah, I rented one for you.

Waiting out front alongside mine. Good.

I had a hunch you might be headed here.

Oh, I know you're inside.

Now, the cops take a dim view of breaking and entering.

But then, I'm not a cop.

I'm a friend. I work for Perry Mason.

So, uh, maybe you better come on out now.

Carter Gilman?

I don't know who you are, mister. Not yet.

But you made us move in before we wanted to.

This place has been staked out for an hour.

Gilman, you're under arrest.

You're wanted in Los Angeles for the murder of Vera Martel.

Thank you.

Uh, I'm lucky they didn't toss me in the clink.

What about Carter Gilman?

Well, he waived extradition and they flew him down to L.A.

I imagine they're booking him now.

Glamis Barlow?

Oh, we found her, all right.

She went straight to her father's house and stayed there.

Her real father?

Steven A. Barlow.

He and Glamis' mother were divorced several years ago.

He lives in Las Vegas.

There's only one trouble:

He really isn't the real father.

Well, now, that really makes sense.

Perry, I think we hit the jackpot.

I had to get a friend stoned to do it

and he'll probably hate me,

but I found out why Mrs. Gilman was being blackmailed.

Before she became Mrs. Nancy Gilman,

our girl was Mrs. Steven A. Barlow.

Before that, Miss Nancy Adair,

an, uh, uninhibited Greenwich Village artist.

Uninhibited?

You mean, her daughter, Glamis Barlow,

isn't Glamis Barlow?

You guessed it.

The real papa's John Yerman.

Only it seems this Yerman was a creep

and Nancy came to despise him.

And, as to Nancy,

impending motherhood alone was no must for matrimony,

so she left him. Disappeared.

How in the world did you get all this information?

Well, the answer to that is part of the story.

Nancy then married Steven A. Barlow.

Glamis was born, years go by,

she divorces Steven A. Barlow and marries Carter Gilman.

But in the meantime,

big things are happening to John Yerman.

He inherits $20 million.

And I suppose Yerman wanted to find this girl

he'd never seen?

That's right.

However, he died a little over a year ago

without ever seeing her.

Nonetheless, he willed every cent of his estate

to the unknown child, if alive.

Did his estate, uh, locate Glamis?

Well, yes and no.

Glamis still doesn't know about either Yerman or the money.

Nancy, Mrs. Gilman, went to New York,

established Glamis' identity

and settled with the estate.

How much was involved in the settlement?

Two million dollars, tax free, on one condition:

That Glamis, or anyone else,

need never know the true story of her birth record.

As far as I can find out, the money's in a secret trust

and Glamis still thinks that this Steven A. Barlow

in Las Vegas is her real father.

So...

Muriell, Glamis, Nancy, Carter,

and now Steven Barlow, are involved.

Well, there's one more.

The Gilman's overnight guest.

Glamis' boyfriend, Hartley Elliott.

Oh, yes. By the way, Paul,

I wanna get to that boy first.

Tonight?

If possible.

I'll check with Della right after my visit

with Carter Gilman.

Let's go over this.

You were eating breakfast,

you, uh, saw something or someone

through the dining room windows.

Someone inside the workshop.

It looked like Vera Martel.

You, uh, sent Muriell to get more food,

so you could go out to the workshop?

No.

I wanted to watch the workshop without Muriell knowing.

But you did leave the dining room

and go out there?

Later.

After I saw somebody running out of the workshop

upset, frightened and almost panicky.

Who was it?

A member of my family.

Which member of your family?

Sorry, I'm not gonna tell you that.

You, uh, went to the workshop.

What then?

Well, I saw the money scattered around the floor,

signs of a struggle,

and what appeared to be a pool of blood,

but no Vera.

I ran outside,

I ran after...

The member of my family.

But I lost her.

I looked around without much luck

and found myself at a bus stop.

I finally gave up took the bus downtown from there.

I remembered I had an appointment with you

and, well, I came back to your office

instead of going back to mine.

Why were you in such a hurry to leave me office?

Well, I spoke to my secretary on the phone.

She said there was a letter from Vera Martel.

I rushed over to have a look at it.

It, uh,

contained a carefully worded suggestion

that she had something that I might wanna buy.

Well, at that point, Mason,

I decided that perhaps I should handle matters myself.

So I went straight to Las Vegas.

To do what?

Rifle Vera Martel's office?

Somebody had searched the place before me.

By the way, how did you get into her office?

Well, I'd taken impressions of Vera Martel's keys

and had duplicates made. You what?

Well, she'd been hanging around my office

asking questions as a prospective investor.

I finally found out who she was

and what she was.

One day, I found her car next to mine in the parking lot.

I, uh, use modeling clay

to make forms for my woodworking lathes.

I had some in the trunk of the car

and I used that to take the impressions.

Who made the keys?

A locksmith.

I can't remember his name.

You will when he's put on the witness stand

to testify against you.

Witness stand?

Mr. Gilman,

before the police finish,

they'll have a case not only against you,

but at least one other member of your family.

Now, I must have the truth,

all of it.

I refuse to tell you.

Very well.

Just think this over:

You may not have been the only witness.

Someone else may have seen the frightened person

who ran out of that workshop.

And they'll likely have no compunction whatsoever

about revealing, in court, the identity of the person

you're trying to protect.

You wanted to ask me a few questions, Mr. Mason?

How well do you know the Gilman family, Mr. Elliott?

Well, I don't.

Except, of course, for Glamis.

And I have met her, uh, stepsister, Muriell.

You've been going with Glamis?

Yes.

We've been thinking seriously of getting married, in fact.

Now, that particular night when you brought Glamis home,

your car battery went dead, I understand.

Yes.

I stayed overnight in the Gilman guestroom,

had a new battery brought over in the morning.

You got up early, then.

Did you see or hear anything unusual?

As a matter of fact, yes.

I happened to look out of the window while I was dressing

and I noticed someone running from the workshop

in back of the garage.

Someone who seemed frightened?

Yes.

I must admit, I was a bit curious.

But then Glamis said something to me

that made me realize I must have been wrong.

Glamis said something?

Uh, sure.

She was the one I thought I saw.

You mean, you saw Glamis running out of the workshop

just a few minutes before you heard Muriell

looking for her father?

That's right.

You tell that story on the witness stand

and you'll be putting the girl you hope to marry

into the gas chamber for first-degree murder.

He's kidding, isn't he?

No, I'm afraid not.

Well, if I'm not subpoenaed, I can't testify.

And if I can't be found, I can't be subpoenaed.

Mr. Elliott.

If you're thinking of running away,

as an attorney and an officer of the court,

I must tell you it's your duty to testify.

You've done your duty.

Now, don't worry about mine.

There was a broken hyoid bone

and distinctive petechial hemorrhagic spots.

And could you tell us, doctor, at what time death occurred?

Vera M. Martel had been strangled to death manually,

sometime between 7:45 a.m. and 9:15 a.m.

She had been dead for some time

before her body was thrown down the side of the cliff.

And there were bits of sawdust

found under the decedent's fingernails,

is that correct?

That is correct.

Thank you, Dr. Hoxie,

that'll be all.

This is another sample of the sawdust

identical to the sawdust

found on the clothes and body of the victim.

And this, lieutenant?

Yes, those are human hairs

identical to those of the victim,

Vera M. Martel.

And finally this.

Yes, that's modeling clay.

Now, lieutenant, would you please tell this court

exactly where you found the sawdust,

the bits of the decedent's hair,

and the modeling clay?

In the trunk of Carter Gilman's car.

Uh, continue, Mr. Fellows.

Well, this man came to me with clay exactly like this.

There were impressions in the clay.

And, using them, I made him a set of keys.

Now, these keys in this case

belonged to the decedent, Vera Martel.

I ask you to examine them

and to tell us if there's any similarity

between Vera Martel's keys and the ones you made up.

Yes they're absolutely identical.

And would you tell this court, please,

for whom you made a duplicate set of Vera Martel's keys?

I made them for Mr. Carter Gilman.

Now, Miss Gilman, when you left the dining room,

where did you go?

To the kitchen.

I prepared the sausage and egg that my father had asked for.

And then what?

Well,

when I came back...

my father was gone.

That'll be all.

Your witness.

The defense has no questions at this time.

The prosecution's next witness was apprehended a few days ago

at the airport, trying to leave town.

I call Hartley Elliott to the stand, please.

Mr. Elliott, when you were getting dressed

on the morning of the murder,

you stood and looked out the window?

Yes.

You were able to see the door of the workshop?

Yes.

Did you see anybody running out of that door?

I don't remember.

Really, Mr. Elliott?

Well, let me be more specific then.

Did you see Glamis Barlow run out of that workshop door?

I refuse to answer.

On what grounds?

No grounds. I simply refuse to answer.

The witness will answer.

Unless the question tends to incriminate or degrade him.

I refuse to answer.

Mr. Elliott, unless you answer that question,

you are going to jail for contempt.

I refuse to answer.

Very well.

It is the judgment of the court

that you be committed to county jail

for contempt of this court

and held there until such time

as you either answer the question

or give just cause why you shouldn't answer it.

I refuse to answer.

Bailiff,

remove the witness from the court.

All right, Mr. Burger, call your next witness.

Glamis Barlow to the stand, please.

Is Glamis Barlow in the court?

She will be shortly, Your Honor.

I've had her subpoenaed

and, since she's a material witness

and I was afraid she might leave the jurisdiction of this court,

I had her taken into custody a few hours ago.

If it please the court.

Just a moment, Mr. Mason.

Mr. Burger,

this court is conducting a preliminary hearing.

It is not intended to function as a grand jury.

I'm well aware of that, Your Honor.

Your Honor, apparently Mr. Burger

would like nothing better than to have Miss Barlow

joined as a codefendant in a superior court trial.

But I will not stand by and allow her to be maneuvered

into a situation in which she might forfeit

her constitutional rights.

The court feels as you do, Mr. Mason.

Great care will be exercised.

Will you take the stand, please, Miss Barlow?

Raise your right hand, please.

Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth,

the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

I do.

State your name.

Glamis Barlow.

Be seated, please.

Now, Miss Barlow,

the court advises you that you do not have to answer

any question which, in your opinion,

may tend to incriminate you.

Now, remember, any answers you do give here

may be used against you at any time.

Now, do you understand that?

Yes, Your Honor.

Very well.

You may proceed, Mr. Burger.

Miss Barlow,

are you acquainted with the decedent, Vera Martel,

or were you acquainted with her during her lifetime?

I do not know a Vera Martel.

I call your attention now

to the morning of the 13th of this month

and I ask you if, between the hours of 8:00 and 8:30,

you were at your residence? I was.

Between those times, or at any other time during that morning,

did you have the occasion to visit the workshop

of the defendant, Carter Gilman?

Objected to, Your Honor.

The question is leading and suggestive,

and a deliberate attempt to make the witness

testify against herself.

The court is inclined to sustain that objection.

Your Honor,

this witness has been advised of her rights.

She hasn't been charged with any crime yet.

Will you state it is not your intention

to charge her with a crime

the moment this preliminary hearing is over?

If it please the court,

I will make no statement whatever at this time

as to the intentions of the prosecution.

I believe that my question is perfectly proper

and I demand that this witness answer it.

Well, I want to answer the question.

No, no, no!

I wasn't anywhere near the room!

Mr. McCoy, will you please tell this court where you reside.

I live in Las Vegas, Nevada.

And what is your occupation, sir?

I'm a card dealer.

Are you acquainted with Glamis Barlow?

Yeah, I know her by sight.

And I've seen her frequently around the casino where I work.

Did you happen to see her on the 13th of this month?

Yes, I did.

Where? If the court please.

This is a continued, obvious attempt

to try Glamis Barlow as a codefendant at this hearing.

It is the contention of the prosecution, Your Honor,

that Carter Gilman killed Vera Martel in his workshop,

and that Glamis Barlow was his accomplice in that killing

and in disposal of the body.

Carter Gilman had had duplicates made of Vera Martel's keys.

The prosecution further claims

that the defendant delivered those keys to Glamis Barlow,

who then preceded him to Las Vegas,

where she entered Vera Martel's office

and searched there for an incriminating document.

Incriminating to whom?

Incriminating to Glamis Barlow and Carter Gilman.

I, uh...

I am inclined to rule

that, uh, this line of questioning

be permissible as tending to prove motivation.

However, I would like a statement from you,

Mr. District Attorney,

as to what you expect to prove by this witness.

It just so happens, Your Honor, that Vera Martel's office

is just across the hall from the offices

of the casino which employs this witness.

He is prepared to make a positive identification

of Glamis Barlow as the woman he saw

surreptitiously leaving Vera Martel's office.

The same office in which Carter Gilman

was later arrested.

We renew our objections.

There is no proof Carter Gilman did, in truth,

give any office key to Glamis Barlow.

Before ruling on this objection,

the court wishes to take this whole matter under advisement.

This court is adjourned until 10 a.m. tomorrow.

Perry,

I finally located that ten grand

you found in the workshop.

The blackmail money? Good.

Maybe good, maybe not.

Who told you it was blackmail money?

It had to be.

The money had to belong to one of the Gilmans.

Obviously the one who was being blackmailed

by Vera Martel.

Nope, you're wrong.

That money belonged to Vera Martel.

Belonged to Vera Martel?

She withdrew it from her own account in a Las Vegas bank.

Ten thousand dollars in 100 dollar bills.

Well, good evening, Perry, Paul, Della.

Well, Lieutenant Tragg.

What can I do for you?

Nothing. Uh, nothing for me.

Perry, unofficially, and as a friend, I'm tipping you off.

Two hours after court,

Hartley Elliott cracked and hollered for the D.A.

He's ready to go on the stand and testify

as to whom he saw running out of that workshop:

Glamis Barlow.

All right.

But you didn't just come here

to tell me something unofficially now, did you?

Somebody else talked, Perry.

This is a subpoena.

Duces tecum directing you to appear in court

as a prosecution witness.

And ordering you to bring with you

the $10,000 you took from the scene of the murder.

I'm sorry, Perry.

Really sorry.

Paul, with your men following Glamis Barlow in Las Vegas,

wouldn't it have been impossible for her

to have broken into Vera Martel's office

without them seeing you?

I swear she never went near the place.

This dealer, Glenn McCoy,

is prepared to swear that he saw her

coming out of the office.

Perry, he's got to be lying.

At the time he says he saw her,

my men had her under surveillance.

I wonder, Paul, I really wonder.

Paul, outside of the police department,

who is the best lie-detector technician in town?

Uh, Cartman Jasper.

Della, get hold of this Mr. Jasper.

I'll need him and his equipment.

When?

Uh, about an hour.

Half an hour if he can manage it.

Paul, when did, uh, Vera Martel get that money out of her bank?

Ten days before she was killed.

I wanna know exactly what she did

every hour of those ten days.

Where she went, who she saw.

All right, Perry, I'll check into it.

Perry, it's too late for bail.

Now, just how do you intend to get Glamis Barlow out of jail

for the lie-detector test?

The test isn't for Glamis.

It's for her mother, Mrs. Gilman.

But why is Glamis in jail in the first place?

If it's just because they wanna use her as a witness,

it seems to me you could have gotten her out, Mr. Mason.

You could have done something.

The minute we post a bond,

she'll be rearrested and charged

as an accessory after the fact of murder,

or as codefendant in the murder.

You're sure of that?

Yes, I'm sure of that.

For the moment, I'd rather she stay right where she is.

Then exactly what is it you're doing here?

What is it you want?

I wanna know whether or not you ever knew Vera Martel.

I never heard of the creature.

She wasn't blackmailing you?

Mr. Mason,

I've lived my own life.

I assume by now you know the truth about Glamis' birth.

Anyone could dig into my past and find out about that.

I don't deny it.

You haven't answered my question.

Not Vera Martel, not anybody,

ever has or ever will blackmail me.

Mrs. Gilman, are you telling the truth?

Will you take a lie-detector test?

Right now? Tonight?

It wouldn't be admissible in court as evidence,

but if you didn't know Vera Martel,

if she wasn't blackmailing you,

then at least I'd want the newspapers to know about it.

You have nothing to fear, Mrs. Gilman.

The truth will help both your husband and your daughter.

Well?

Mrs. Gilman, answer my questions

either yes or no.

The polygraph will be checking on your pulse,

blood pressure, skin resistance

and respiration as you answer.

Avoid any muscular movement

and try to think only of the questions and answers.

Are you ready?

Yes.

Is your first name Nancy?

Yes.

Are you married to Carter Gilman?

Yes.

Did you know a person named Vera M. Martel?

No.

Do you live in Los Angeles?

Yes.

Has anyone tried to blackmail you

during the past three months?

No.

Are you the mother of a daughter named Glamis?

Yes.

Do you know Steven A. Barlow?

Yes.

Very good, Mrs. Gilman.

Now, we'll repeat the same questions,

in the same order,

two more times,

just to make sure of our results.

Are you ready?

Yes.

I just put her to bed with a sedative.

She was about ready to collapse.

Well, Mr. Jasper?

As far as your case is concerned, Mr. Mason,

she's telling the truth.

I'm sure she never knew Vera Martel

and she's never been blackmailed.

Well, what about this, uh,

identical reaction each time to the same question?

There's no doubt of it.

She's lying about Glamis.

Could it be a reaction of shame?

No, definitely not.

It's something else.

Some emotional disturbance in connection with the statement

that she has a daughter named Glamis.

Do you suppose Glamis isn't her daughter?

That could be, I suppose.

Well, considering her real father's $20 million

and that Mrs. Gilman has already taken two million of it,

that certainly should have been a setup for blackmail.

Now what do you think, Perry?

I think we'd better get in touch with Paul.

Yeah.

Yeah.

What time?

4:05 to L.A. Good.

Perry, we found something.

Vera Martel?

For nine of her last ten days,

she did nothing out of the ordinary,

went nowhere unusual and saw nobody special.

The tenth day?

Vera took a plane to Redding, California.

She stayed there half the day,

then she flew to Los Angeles.

And, of course, she was murdered here the next morning.

What happened in Redding?

I've got an operative there, Alan Connors, he's a top man.

He's waiting to give you a full report.

Go ahead, Connors, this is Mason.

Well, Vera Martel was met at Redding Airport

by Phyllis Monroe.

Phyllis drove her straight to the Monroe estate.

Estate?

Well, the Monroe's are upper, upper crust in Redding.

The mother's dead.

The father is, or was, a big shot tycoon.

It's not common knowledge but, uh,

the old man's had some rough going business-wise lately.

The daughter, Phyllis,

is the most attractive dish in town.

How long was Vera at the Monroe place?

A couple of hours.

Vera took the first plane out of Redding,

the 4:05 to Los Angeles.

Connors, get all you can on the Monroes.

Most important of all, get pictures of them.

I want you to fly the stuff down here tonight

so I have it in my hands before court convenes in the morning.

Charter a plane if you have to.

But please get that stuff down here.

Alan, let me know what time you're going to arrive.

I'll meet you.

If the witness will now answer

all questions willingly and fairly,

he will be deemed to have purged himself of the contempt,

and the sentence will be revoked.

You may proceed.

Mr. Elliott,

did you see Glamis Barlow at approximately 8:25

on the morning on the 13th day of this month?

Yes, sir.

Where was Glamis Barlow

and what was she doing when you saw her?

She had just come out of the workshop

and she was running away.

You're sure of that, Mr. Elliott?

She was not walking,

Glamis Barlow was running away?

Yes, running away.

No more questions.

Your Honor,

I had Mr. Mason served last night

with a subpoena duces tecum.

I should like to know at this time,

if he brought to court with him

the evidence that he surreptitiously

and wrongfully removed from the scene of the crime.

Your Honor, I must certainly object.

One moment, Mr. Mason.

Uh, let me understand this.

The prosecution calling the defendant's lawyer

as a witness against the defendant himself?

Yes, Your Honor.

When he has certain knowledge of the commission of a crime,

even the defense attorney is a proper witness.

I have never defied the process of this, or any other, court.

Nor do I intend to start now.

When I've completed my cross-examination

of this witness and I am called to the stand,

I will answer any and all questions.

Very well.

The inquiry as to compliance with the subpoena duces tecum

will be suspended until after

Mr. Mason's cross-examination of the witness.

You may proceed, Mr. Mason.

How long have you known Glamis Barlow, Mr. Elliott?

About two months.

I understand you're a manufacturer's agent.

Within what territory do you operate?

The state of California.

Exactly where do you live?

Well, I travel a great deal.

Actually, I don't have a residence as such.

But you do have a legal address, a place where you vote.

I believe it's the, uh, city of Redding,

isn't that so, Mr. Elliott?

Uh, yes, that's right.

Now, Mr. Elliott, will you please tell me the...

Your Honor, may I have a moment?

Very well, Mr. Mason.

But please be brief.

We're waiting, Mr. Mason.

You, uh, said you lived in Redding, Mr. Elliott?

Yes.

In Redding, did you happen to know a family

by the name of, uh, Monroe?

G.W. Monroe?

That's right.

Yes, I... I knew him.

And the Monroe daughter, Phyllis?

Yes, I knew her.

Now, uh, Mr. Elliott,

you testified you saw Glamis Barlow

running from the workshop.

I show you a photograph.

Is that the person you saw running from the workshop?

I repeat, is that the person you saw running from the workshop?

Yes.

That's very strange, Mr. Elliott,

because that is not a photograph of Glamis Barlow.

It's a photograph of Phyllis Monroe.

Now, was it Glamis Barlow or Phyllis Monroe

you saw running from that workshop?

Well, I... I don't know.

So now you are not able to swear

it was Glamis Barlow you saw?

No, sir.

Your Honor, I would like to interrupt

my cross-examination of Hartley Elliott

long enough to have Mrs. Nancy Gilman

return to the stand.

Is Glamis Barlow your daughter?

Yes.

What was her father's name?

John Yerman.

Is Phyllis Monroe your daughter?

Yes.

Glamis Barlow and Phyllis Munroe

are identical twins,

both daughters of John Yerman?

Yes.

Was Phyllis aware that she'd been adopted by the Monroes?

No.

She was never legally adopted.

Nobody knew.

Your Honor, I have no further questions of Mrs. Gilman.

I would now like to continue

my cross-examination of Hartley Elliott.

Did you know Vera Martel?

Well, uh, yes, I, uh...

I met her in Las Vegas.

Did you enter into a business deal with her?

Mr. Elliott, when you first met Glamis,

you must have realized she was an identical twin

to Phyllis Monroe.

You saw a chance to pick up some money.

Blackmail money.

You hired Vera Martel to investigate both girls,

did you not?

Yes.

She found out about the illegitimacy and...

And the estate.

But then you started dating Glamis Barlow.

The two of you decided to get married.

A half interest with Vera in the blackmail money

was nothing as compared to a half interest in Glamis' estate,

with the opportunity to set aside the settlement

and claim $10 million.

You then told Vera Martel to drop the whole thing,

did you not?

Yes.

But she lied to me.

She said she would,

but then she contacted Phyllis Monroe

and she was going to contact the Gilmans.

And that would have killed your chance to share

in that $10 million.

So you had to keep Vera away from the Monroes

and the Gilmans.

Yes. Yes!

Now, the business of your car not running

when you brought Glamis home was all a fake, was it not?

When Vera Martel arrived at the Gilman house,

you intercepted her.

You weren't in your upstairs room

at 8:25 that morning, you were meeting Vera.

You took her out to the workshop to have a talk with her,

isn't that so?

Yes.

And someone interrupted you?

Phyllis.

She'd tried to catch Vera at the hotel,

followed her out in a taxi.

That $10,000 wasn't blackmail money.

It was Vera's.

She was using it as bait!

She'd, uh, given the money to Phyllis earlier,

up in Redding, is that correct?

Yes.

She told Phyllis that she'd found out about some property,

willed to her by a distant uncle.

A... A ranch or something.

Then sweet Vera made a deal with Phyllis.

Ten thousand dollars for a half interest

in whatever inheritance

Vera could produce for Phyllis.

Ten thousand dollars

for a half interest in a $10 million inheritance!

G.W. Monroe was having business troubles,

he needed money, so Phyllis accepted the 10,000.

Then she got the truth,

the whole shocking truth.

Who told her? Her father?

Yeah, old G.W.

He told her everything.

And Phyllis came to Los Angeles

to catch Vera.

It was funny. It was real funny.

She she threw the $10,000 in Vera's face.

Then ran off.

Then what did you do, Mr. Elliott?

You quietly put your hands around the throat

of this woman who stood in your way

and you...

Yes.

I choked her.

I didn't mean to kill her,

I only wanted to scare her.

But she fought with me.

Then I heard somebody coming out of the house.

It was Mr. Gilman.

So I... I jerked Vera back into the garage.

I only wanted to keep her quiet,

but when Mr. Gilman left the workshop,

Vera...

She...

Sh... She was dead.

So it was Phyllis you saw

running out of the workshop, Mr. Gilman.

And it was also Phyllis that McCoy, the dealer, saw

coming out of Vera's Las Vegas office.

She'd been there trying to gather some evidence

of her background.

Since one person can't be in two different places

at the same time,

either you or McCoy were lying, Mr. Gilman.

Or you were mistaken, or, uh...

Or there were two girls.

When were you sure, Mr. Mason?

When Mrs. Gilman took the lie-detector test.

She was telling the truth

when she said Glamis was her daughter,

but she was only telling part of the truth.

Glamis was only one of two daughters.

Mr. Mason, what about the Yerman estate

and the girls' share in it?

That's a tricky question.

Was the two million on inheritance

or was it a settlement?

Will, uh, Phyllis get the balance of the estate,

or will she share with Glamis in the $2 million?

It's a very thorny legal problem.

Well, what can we do about it?

Well, simple.

Just hire a good lawyer.