Original subtitles

Get that, would you please, Eve?

Chief Ironside's office.

Hello, Mr.

Bartlett. Ted Bartlett.

Ted! When did you get in town?

Been in about three days. I meant to call you.

Well, it's about time you got around to it. We gonna see you this trip?

Sure.

Let's go over to Charlie's and have some ribs.

Great. Want me to pick you up?

No need. I'll be over in your building later on going over some mug shots. I'll

call you from downstairs.

Well, did he say what he wanted?

Okay, put him on.

Yes, this is Ted Bartlett.

When?

Right now.

Do you have the papers with you?

Okay, I'll be right up.

Mr. Bartlett?

Nobody should die in a hotel hallway.

His papers say he's Ted Bartlett, licensed as a private investigator

of Los Angeles. His papers are correct.

Yeah. He wasn't robbed.

Did you know him?

Yes, anyway.

Talked to him less than an hour ago.

He was shot twice.

First slug tore through the right lung.

That's what got him in the heart.

Close range.

Neat job.

Not so neat.

Third shot missed completely.

Must have been quite a struggle for a shot to go in that direction.

Anybody hear the shots?

Haven't found anyone yet.

Could have been a silencer.

Do you have any idea how the killer got away from here? There seemed to be only

two choices.

Elevator or stairs.

Unless he had a room right here on this floor.

Yeah, we're looking into that right now.

Eve's checking with the bell captain to see who came out of the elevators.

Good. Oh, uh, excuse me, Chief.

This is a homicide job.

You coming or not?

We were rookie cops together.

Made detective bureau same time.

Partners for a while.

Friends for a very long time.

You're coming or not?

Ed, we left to call L .A.

Find out why Ted was in San Francisco.

Right. If you were going to kill someone, would you kill a friend of

Ironside?

Not even as a last resort.

The car stops at five, then it goes on to the top, and it comes back down

And this girl is still in the car.

Where did they go?

No place.

This guy, he acted, I don't know, relieved somehow.

Then he just got back in the car, and they went on up again.

What floor?

Sixteen. I didn't see him come down again.

Anything, Eve?

Maybe.

Sixteenth floor, a man and a woman.

All right, go up and check it out.

Pick up some men from the fifth floor to help you and don't take any chances.

Right. Edna will be talking to the telephone operators.

Call me as soon as you know something.

You come with me for identification.

Yes, ma 'am.

Yes, I'll see that he gets the message.

Thank you.

No calls out after he called you, Mr. Ironside, but there was one calling.

Local or long distance?

Local, and I can tell you who it was.

You can?

Well, he didn't exactly give me his name. He said he was Mrs.

Waring's lawyer.

Thank you.

You have been very helpful to us.

Good afternoon. May I help you?

Mrs. Waring.

Ring any bells?

None? Yes, I'll tell him.

Mr. Ironside, Miss Whitfield says she's in 1607 and she wants to see you right

away.

I'll check Bartlett's L .A. office, see if I can find out why he was here.

A policeman's log.

Miss Norma Wales and her fiancé, Jerry Pearson.

Chief Ironside.

How you doing?

Hello.

Well? You're not going to believe it.

Are we on an investigation or playing 20 questions?

She was on the elevator when it stopped at the fifth floor.

Miss Wales, did you see anything?

No.

Nothing at all?

Nothing at all, Mr. Ironside.

I'm blind.

Were you alone in that elevator?

Yes.

Tell me, why does a blind person in a strange hotel ride an elevator alone?

Well, I didn't mean to. Jerry was with me, but he stepped off for a moment, and

the doors closed, and suddenly there I was on my way.

I'd already punched number 16, and then I stepped off the elevator to give my

car keys to the doorman, and I just didn't think about the doors closing on

And the elevator stopped at 5.

I don't know what floor it was. I only knew it wasn't mine.

How did you know that?

Well, I wasn't going to get off at any floor.

I was afraid, and I decided to ride the elevator up and then down again so Jerry

would find me. And no one got on the car when it stopped at five?

No, sir.

All right.

Think about this.

When the car stopped and the doors opened, exactly what happened?

Nothing really happened, but I knew someone was out there.

What about sounds?

Well, first there was the hum of the doors opening.

And then nothing.

And then the doors started to close again.

And I think I heard a thump. And I thought it was the sound of the doors

closing, but then they bumped together after. And that was all?

Yes, the elevator went the rest of the way up and then down again.

Miss Wales, there was someone in the hall when your car stopped at the fifth

floor.

And he had just killed a man.

Well, that's what this is all about.

Yes.

And that thump Miss Wales heard was a bullet aimed at her.

Honey, honey, it's all right. It's all over now.

Not quite.

If you were the killer and the elevator doors opened, what would you see?

A girl? No, Mr. Pearson.

You'd see a witness.

But I didn't see anything.

You know that.

But the killer doesn't.

I don't know, Bob.

I just don't know.

Look, he took one shot at her. He will again.

He's hiding her out of town by now.

Possibly. On the other hand, he got in and out of the hotel once. Suppose he

does that again. This time to remove the witness. Now he must have had a good

look at her. You keep her guarded.

I have her guarded.

You want him walking the streets.

But I think of setting her up as a decoy.

What if he slips by you?

What if... What if he's on his way right now to kill her while we're talking?

Commissioner, I don't see how this girl will be in any more danger than she is

right now.

What if we publicize the fact that the girl is blind?

Assure the killer that she can't possibly identify him. Would you believe

if you were he?

Or would you think it was some police trick to keep you from coming after the

girl? He could see.

He's already seen.

He's seen a girl alone in an elevator, no cane, no dog, no nothing.

Just a pair of fancy sunglasses that any tourist would wear.

Now he can identify that girl.

I know this case is personal to you, Bob, but are you sure you're being

objective? Who said I was being objective? I am trying to find a killer.

You don't have to do it this way. If the girl's willing, it's exactly the way

I'll do it.

How do I look?

You look beautiful.

Is my makeup all right? Yeah, it's fine.

You look like you're planning on going out.

Well, of course, dinner.

How about room service?

Can't we even go out to dinner?

Hold it.

Who is it?

I'm inside.

Easy with that. We're on your side.

Alma, sit down. I want to talk to you.

We were going to dinner.

I won't take long.

Is everything all right? Are we back to normal now?

No, we're not back to normal.

This is police business.

Maybe you'd better wait outside.

Jerry and I are going to be married, Mr. Onside. I'd like him to stay.

I have to say is for you.

Yes, sir.

The man who killed Ted Bartlett meant to kill you in that elevator.

It's my opinion he'll try again.

I don't know how long you feel you can put up with limited movements, police

escorts, and fear.

I think I have a way of getting it all over with quickly.

However, it depends on your cooperation.

What do I have to do?

Show yourself.

Let it be known that you're a witness and that you're cooperating with the

police. Out of your mind? That's an open invitation to him.

Exactly.

Absolutely no.

I didn't ask you. I asked Norma. Now, what about it, Norm? Will you help us?

I don't know. I mean, suppose he... You really want him to come after me. Is

that it?

That's it.

But the thought of that man...

What you're asking me isn't fair, Mr. Unsighted. It wouldn't be fair for a

normal person, but I can't see. I couldn't protect myself. I wouldn't know

I was coming from or how.

You'd be completely protected.

You don't understand, not at all. I live with fear all the time.

Fear of little things that don't matter to people like you.

Curbs, streets, a child skate in the sidewalk.

Strange voices.

You don't know the fear of a simple wrong turn.

I can't, Mr. Headside. I can't. I can barely live with the fear I have now. I

can't add more to it. Please don't ask me.

All right, Norma, I won't ask you.

Eve, you stay with them until I can arrange for a 24 -hour guard here.

Is that really necessary?

Yes, Mr. Pearson, it's necessary.

If you like, Officer Whitfield will station herself outside.

They're gone now.

I'm going to go inside and wash up.

Then we're going to look for a good rest.

Me, huh?

Okay.

Jerry, don't open the door.

Why, honey?

I can't go out there.

I can't.

I can't. He's out there somewhere.

He's out there waiting for me.

He's waiting for me to kill me for something I didn't even see.

Jerry, I can't do it. I can't. Call Mr. Artson. Tell him I'll do it.

Chief Ironside, sir, you're on the Hilltop Hotel murder case, aren't you?

That's right.

There's been an unconfirmed report of a witness. Is this young lady the one?

All I can say is that the killer has not yet been apprehended. But you did have

the lady in for interrogation all morning.

Yes, we did.

Did you see the killer?

Yes. All right. Miss Wales saw the killer when her elevator stopped at the

floor. How close was he?

Close enough for me to get a good look at him. What did he look like? Can you

describe him for us?

I'd, uh...

Rather, Miss Wales saved that for the police artist.

Tomorrow morning you'll have a full description, right down to the last

must have been a terrifying moment.

I'll never forget that face as long as I live.

I'm afraid we can't say anymore. Miss Wales has had a tough morning.

I want to get her back to her hotel to rest.

Of course, Chief. Thank you, Miss Wales.

Uh -huh.

That should do it.

That should more than do it.

Was I all right?

You were perfect.

I thought you were going to bump your pretty nose on the microphone once, but

you came off fine.

Just as though I could see.

When I was a little girl, I used to play a game.

I suppose all children do it.

They close their eyes and pretend they're blind.

They stumble and fall and laugh.

Today, I was playing that game in reverse.

You didn't miss a thing, Miss Wells.

Most of those people were plain ugly.

I don't suppose anybody's interested in what I think about all of this.

At the moment, I can't think of an answer to that.

Ed, did you manage to get Los Angeles?

I finally made contact about half an hour ago. Did you happen to find out

he was working on? He'd been retained by a Mr. E .J. Waring of Chicago.

Waring? Same name as yesterday, only yesterday it was Mrs.

It seems that Mrs. Waring got tired of waiting for her husband to come home

the factory he owns and ran off.

Waring hired Ted Bartlett to find her. Ted only handled big cases, not errant

wives. Well, the office says he traced her to San Francisco.

Last time he called in, he said he'd found her. Where is she?

He neglected to tell that to his secretary.

Well, he wouldn't neglect telling it to his client. Call Mr. Waring in Chicago

and see what you can find out.

I will. Is Eve all set?

She's at the hotel waiting.

seven, twelve, and sixteen.

What was that for?

Confusion to the enemy.

She wanted the man to know where she was.

Apparently it's confusion to you also.

Off you go.

Not you.

Where's Noah going?

Where she'll be safe. What kind of a fool do you think I am? Eve.

Not quite as plush as your other room, but we can't have everything.

I don't know how to play cops and robbers, but I want to be with Norma,

don't want to be here.

You will stay here for a while.

I don't think you can make me do that.

Mark, what were you doing the first time you were arrested?

I do believe it was in the middle of a rumble. Some of us, some of them.

If I remember correctly, I was pushing this cat's head through the cement.

Think you can do the same thing on the side of law and order?

Be glad to.

Can I wrestle?

Norma, can you hear me all right?

We wired you.

Yes, everything you say will be picked up downstairs.

Make yourself comfortable, Norma. I'll be down shortly.

As he said, every word, every sound made in this room is being picked up

downstairs.

We'll have police guards outside and in here.

Everything but Norma.

She'll be where she's safe.

If it's so well guarded, what makes you think the man's going to try it? Well,

if it wasn't well guarded, he'd think it was a fake.

But we have left him one little flaw to take advantage of.

All right, let's go, Mark. Eve, stay out of sight, and if the going gets rough,

don't take any chances.

Not yet, man.

Mr. Waring?

Sergeant Brown, San Francisco Police.

My secretary told me you've been trying to get me.

What can I do for you, Sergeant?

You employed a private detective named Ted Bartlett, didn't you?

Yes, very good man.

Can you tell me exactly what it was he was doing for you?

What's the matter? Is he some kind of trouble?

Oh, he's been shot, Mr. Waring.

Murdered. Well, I'm very sorry to hear that.

Of course, I'd only spoken to him over the phone, but I liked him.

It might help us if you tell us what he was doing for you.

Well, sure.

He, uh, located my wife.

Is she back in Chicago with you now?

Joan here?

Not a chance.

No, I didn't want her to come back.

Then why did you try to locate her? She owns half of the business.

I needed her to sign some papers before the divorce.

There's a merger going on. I needed her signature.

Was she willing to give it?

I don't know.

It means a lot of money.

Can you tell me where to find her?

Sure. Just a minute.

Here we are.

1975 Hollister Drive.

Thank you. Goodbye.

Checked out before homesign arrived.

William Melhorn was in 315.

But according to Eve's notes, you don't want him.

She says the man you're looking for was on a floor higher than five.

The up button was pushed, or that car with Miss Wells on it never would have

stopped. The man we want never pushed that button at all.

No? If you'd just shot a man and he was lying on the floor in plain sight, would

you have taken a chance on getting an empty elevator?

No. Ted pressed that button himself.

The up button. Why?

No. Obviously, because he wanted to go up.

You want three guesses?

Top of the hilltop.

Very classy saloon.

He was on his way to meet someone. Had to be.

What about the rest of the list?

Mrs. Eleanor Kirby checked out of 1423 just after Homicide got here, and

Stoddard left in a big hurry five minutes later. He was in 1018.

Do me a favor, Mark.

Remind Eve to have them all checked out and make sure they're all real names of

real people.

No, sir.

Why not?

Dear Chief, I've checked them all out and they're all real names of real

Yours faithfully.

Who is it?

Flowers for you, Miss Wells.

Did you hear that, Chief?

Flowers, all right. Long -stemmed red roses.

They're beautiful.

I'll save them for you, Miss Wells.

Flowers. Jerry still thought... Quiet now.

No card, though, Chief.

Just addressed to Miss Wells at the hotel.

Mr. Pearson, did you send these? No, I didn't.

He didn't.

Well, who could... Not an admirer, Norma.

One of the oldest tricks in the game.

Get your room number.

Our man is closing in.

Sixteenth floor, O'Malley.

Where's Norma?

Norma?

You are a young fool. Did anyone see you come in here?

I don't think so.

Was anyone on the elevator with you?

I don't know. I don't remember.

Well, that's just great.

Go through with this. She's getting out of here right now.

Jerry, please. Well, why do you have to do it?

Why? Because you're scared. Okay, we'll be on a plane in two hours and out of

this crazy city.

Get a job back home.

But I gave my word. To whom?

Ironside?

Honey.

Listen, he doesn't care about you or how you feel. What's it to him if you

don't?

I think it matters. I think it matters very much to him. You've done enough.

What more does he want from you? Listen, you can't help him.

You're somebody who's... Who's got to be taken care of?

And she'll continue to be as long as you treat her as such.

You never mind your two -bit psychology. I'm looking after her. You've got what

you want. Your little trap is set. Now, it doesn't matter if she stays or not.

It does matter. Why? She can't identify him. No, but he can identify her.

If you think you can get her out of this city without his knowing it, you're

wrong. You're very wrong.

You wouldn't even make the airport.

Well, I'm sure you'd give us a police escort.

Of course.

If Norma wants to go.

Do you, Norma? She is going.

Norma?

I don't know.

I'm not as scared as I was before.

Maybe because you're here, Chief Ironside.

But Jerry's right. I'm helpless. I need Jerry to take care of me.

And he's done so much.

If Jerry wants me to go, I think I should.

Norma, how long have you been blind?

I don't see that that's any of your business. Shut up, Mr. Pearson.

How long have you been blind, Norma?

About two years.

And what have you done these past two years?

Don, I... I've been blind. You haven't done one thing except allow yourself to

be let around. Isn't that it?

Norma, you said you weren't as scared as you were before.

Well, it wasn't me being here that did that.

It was because for the first time in two years, you were doing something.

Now, I want you to stay.

It'll not only help me, it will help you. Don't you listen to him, Norma.

Stop it.

Stop it, please. I... Now, listen. I'm so mixed up.

If there's a charge I can bring against you, I will. Jerry, please, I have to

think.

Well, all right, then, honey, will you think? I can't think. I can't think of

you shouting at all the time and pushing. I... I can't think.

Listen, you don't have to think, and I'm going to think for you, okay? Mr.

Pearson.

Norma's in protective custody. I'm going to stretch the law a little and include

protection against mental anguish.

Now get out.

Tell me to get out.

I'll have you escorted out if you like.

Mark, we could do with some coffee and sandwiches. Room service is too slow.

In other words, split.

Precisely. Mr. Pearson?

Honey, I'm going back to my place and I'm going to pack.

And I'll be back soon.

And then I'm going to take you home.

I don't need your company.

No, but you need somebody to show you the light. And I've elected myself.

Officer Gates.

Norma, where's home?

Seattle.

Why don't you tell me about it?

There's not much to tell.

What are you doing in San Francisco?

Jerry insisted there's a specialist here he wanted me to see.

Did you see him?

Yes.

No hope.

I could have told him that. I only did it to make him feel better.

Better about what?

Jerry was driving the car the night of the accident.

He blames himself for my blindness.

Do you feel that?

No.

Then why are you leaning on him so much?

He wants me to.

And you're going to marry him?

Yes.

We're looking for an apartment here near his office.

And you're going to lean on him for the rest of your lives.

What else can I do?

Well, you can learn to do for yourself.

Sure, you need a little help, but it doesn't mean you have to stop living.

Don't you think it's strange that you never tried to memorize a room,

learn to get around by yourself?

Norma. This chair...

is my white cane.

Where's yours?

I'm really very sorry to hear about Mr. Bartlett.

He was a very pleasant man.

Did he say anything at all to you that made you think he was worried or afraid?

No. He was very pleasant.

Talked to me like a father.

He was very careful to point out that not letting my husband know where I was

would mean great satisfaction to me and very little money.

So you signed the papers?

Well, I gave them to the attorney to check over.

I assumed they'd been in touch.

Who is your attorney, Mrs. Waring? His name is William Chapman.

His office is downtown, not too far off the square.

Thank you.

Can you tell me anything else about Ted Bartlett?

Excuse me. Sure.

And it's a man.

My fiancé.

Well, that is, he will be as soon as my divorce is final.

I hope you'll be happy.

We will be.

He's quite a man.

Anything else I can do for you, sir?

No, thank you.

Thank you very much.

Dispatcher, please.

Hello, this is Mr. Johnson. I brought the perfume to be delivered.

The one for normal whales at the Hilltop Hotel.

That's right.

I want it to be delivered at exactly 8 o 'clock.

It's very important that you be on time.

It's for a very special occasion.

What time is it?

Nearly 8 o 'clock.

Maybe he won't come tonight.

He has to. It's his last chance.

Do you remember what the chief said to the TV camera?

Tomorrow morning you give his description to the police artist.

He's got to try tonight.

If he heard it. He sent you flowers and all that. He heard it.

Where's that bag you were going to pack?

I thought better of it.

That's good.

You want something to eat?

I would like to talk to Norma.

Hello, darling.

I'm glad you're still calling me darling.

Why shouldn't I?

Well, I guess I got a little out of hand.

You were only worried about me.

I have a feeling I was a little worried about me, too.

I just didn't know that.

Norma, I've got something I want to tell you.

What?

I left here and I went to my apartment and I packed my stuff.

I started to call the office and tell them that I was quitting and going back

Seattle.

I cannot leave towns.

And I can't quit jobs every time I get worried about you.

Maybe that's unselfish.

But I think there's more to life than that for both of us. I know.

Chief Ironside and I had a long talk about that while you were gone.

You're not mad at me?

No.

I love you.

A white cane.

Operator, there's somebody waiting for me on the 16th floor.

Would you call the floor phone for me, please?

Who is it?

Delivering.

You guys are crazy.

I'm the only one.

Hang on to it.

Chief, the hall phone rang. O'Malley went to answer it. We've got the guy.

What guy?

I told you, place delivery.

Calm down.

You'll get your chance to prove it in just a few minutes. Let's go.

Room 716, please.

Hello. This is Sergeant Smith.

Chief Ironside said if you didn't go up to 16 right away.

Both of us?

No, no, just you.

He said the girl would be all right. They have the guy.

Okay.

Chief wants me. Will you be all right alone?

I guess so.

Mama, don't you open this door to anyone, okay?

Jerry? Swales?

Chief wants me to bring you upstairs.

Swales?

I'll call the coroner, Chief.

Norma. It's all right, Norma.

Mary Ann.

It's all right.

It's all over.

I thought you were upstairs.

I thought Jerry... You didn't really think that the Chief would be very far

from you, did you?

You had the police around you all the time.

Jerry's waiting for you upstairs.

Can't remember his first name.

He was wanted for murder.

Ted and I worked on his case together.

Long time ago.

Long time ago.

All right, Mark.

And you recognize him after all this time?

You don't easily forget the face of a man you've hunted.

Why didn't you find him in all these years?

We thought he was dead.

There was a body identified as his about ten years ago. We just stopped looking.

Well, Sherlock, were you able to talk to Mrs. Waring?

Yes, I'm satisfied she didn't know who she was tying up with.

Seems Marston's been safe and respectable all these years.

Well, just how did Ted Bartlett get on to me? She has a picture of Marston in

the living room.

Ted showed a lot of interest in it. She mentioned it to Marston. Must have

scared him silly. Silly enough to kill.

And if he hadn't tried to kill me, you never would have caught him. Not

completely true.

Once Ed started to retrace the case and was led to the mug files, he would have

identified him sooner or later.

Nice job.

I wish I deserved that, but I don't.

Why not?

His picture's not on file.