All language subtitles for the_streets_of_san_francisco_s05e14_who_killed_helen_french

The Streets of San Francisco, a Quinn
Martin production, starring Carl Malden.

Also starring Richard Hatch.

With guest stars Marlon Mason,

Alan Fudge, John Carr.

Special guest star, Trish Stewart.

Tonight's episode, Who Killed Helen
Brent?

Oh, Doug, I forgot to tell Helen
something before we left. Is she still

do you mean, is she still up? What do
you think?

Uh, this is Betty Rollins. May I speak
to Helen for a moment?

What, checking up, huh?

Huh?

Well, listen, the next time you and Ed
are invited to a party over here, do me

favor. Don't come!

Please don't drink anymore. It's late.

It's early.

Leave it alone.

Doug, please, the neighbors.

I said leave that alone.

And there's blood all over everything.
It's just horrible.

The man is crazy when he's drunk.

He's killed her. I just know he has.

Miss Rollins, you called the police?
Yes, and I should have done it last

Where's the husband? He's inside.

Dan, talk to her.

The man is brutal when he's drunk. We
all knew that, but I had no idea he'd go

this far.

Your name?

Betty Rollins.

Who the hell are you now?

Lieutenant Lightstone.

Yeah.

What is the big deal? I must have had a
little argument with my wife, and she

took off.

You guys have no right.

You're listening to a hysterical woman.
You had an argument?

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

Did this happen during the argument?

That... I don't know. I spilled
something, maybe.

And he kept getting a busy signal? Yes,
and then when I got here this morning,

the phone was off the hook. It was just
lying there.

Your wife just left. Wouldn't she have
taken her purse?

Don't ask me.

Ask her when she comes back.

She always comes back.

Well, until she does, you're the only
one I can talk to.

There appears to be bloodstains here and
in the bathroom.

Was your wife hurt during the argument?

I don't know. What argument?

Well, now, is that your car parked
outside?

Yeah. Why?

Your wife is missing.

She didn't take her purse or your car.
Maybe she called someone to pick her up.

I don't know.

Do you mind if I borrow this? It's her
address book.

I don't care.

Thank you.

Did you go anywhere last night?

No.

I stayed right here. I had a few. I went
in, went to sleep, and that's all.

And I still don't know what the big deal
is all about.

Well, your wife is missing under a set
of circumstances you can't explain.

Now, that may not be a big deal as far
as you're concerned, but

I'm going to have to ask you to stay
with this policeman until the lab men

out the rest of the house.

Maybe they can explain things you can't.

So what did you notice when you pushed
the rope up?

It's terrible, ladies. Excuse me.

What happened to the lady?

She left me for a hairdresser.

Couldn't fight it.

Anything? Yeah, she said Mrs. French has
an appointment with a dentist this

morning. We'll have to find the name.

Well, I've got her address book here.
Maybe it's in here.

I had a party last night.

I got the names, five couples.

Mr. French managed to insult most of
them by midnight, and they all left.

Yeah, he's got problems.

He passed out, and he...

Couldn't tell me anything about
bloodstains in the living room or the

And then he had a hard time explaining,
well, what looked like a burnt blouse in

the fireplace.

He's got another problem. Take a look at
this.

Could be bloodstains there in the front
seat.

Take a look at this.

That looks very fresh to me.

It sure does, doesn't it?

But he said he didn't go anywhere last
night.

We don't have anything to hold him on,
but that doesn't mean we can't impound

his car.

Let's find out how recent this dent is.

I want this car brought in.

Very recent, Lieutenant.

Last few hours.

You're sure?

No oxidation at all on the first
straight metal.

Did you get a sample of that stain on
the front seat? Yeah.

Fingerprint section also lifted some
latent prints from inside.

Well, can you get a make on that blue
paint that's here?

We'll do what we can. Don't forget the
tires, will you? The mud, the dirt.

Next on the list, Lieutenant.

Good. Here's something you might find
interesting.

We found this credit card receipt on the
front seat.

It's a car wash.

Made out yesterday.

That means that these were left here
since then.

Lipstick on both of them.

Maybe your lady in question was driving
the car herself. Oh, no way.

Why not?

I checked out Helen French's purse.

There were no cigarettes, matches, or
lighter.

I say she's a non -smoker. Well, she's
also non -existent since midnight last

night. Nobody from the party has heard
from her. Cab companies don't show a

at that address.

She's not a patient in any hospital.

What about her dental appointment? She
didn't keep it.

I talked to her dentist, and he said she
didn't even call to cancel her

appointment, which is, quote, very
unlike Mrs. French.

Did you check out her accident reports?

Four hit and run so far from last night.
None of them seem to match up with

French's car.

All right, until anything more turns up,
we'll just have to keep looking for the

lady.

Huh?

That's right.

Every name in that book, one by one by
one.

So you know Mr. and Mrs. French?

Sure. But I haven't seen Helen or Doug
for a couple of years.

Ever since my mouth healed up.

Forgot to duck, huh?

And who needs a guy like that?

Mrs. French still has you and your wife
in her address book. Have you heard from

her? No.

I think she was embarrassed to call
after what happened.

Did you and Mr. French used to work
together?

Sure. Doug and I used to pedal for the
same company.

Then Doug switched to this new outfit.

Shot up in the company.

Fat expense account, lots of booze.

Booze is one thing he couldn't handle.

Believe me, it cost me two teeth.

I don't know how Helen takes it. She
must think the only two colors in the

are black and blue.

You beat her?

You know that for sure?

Nobody runs into doors that often.

My wife used to see her after she'd
spent a week in that private hospital.

Still wearing shades to cover up the
black eyes.

Face like a lump.

Do you know what private hospital she
went to? Kind of a convalescent place.

Payson.

No, Pearson.

Helen used to go there to cover for
Doug.

but I had managed to keep my name out of
police records, Lieutenant.

Don't tell me some gentleman has filed a
complaint.

No, your name isn't in the police
records. It's right here in Helen

address book.

Soames.

Angela Soames.

Excuse me.

Hello?

Well, of course I remember you.

Aren't you sweet to say so?

Uh... Give me half an hour to become
desirable.

All right.

Oh, I know.

I'll be there.

I really shouldn't talk that way in
front of a cop, should I?

It's been 12 years since I've worked
with Weiss.

Oh, Lieutenant, I'm an interior
decorator.

A gentleman calls, and I go over and
decorate his otherwise bleak world for a

while.

Well, interior decorating isn't in my
department.

I'm looking for Helen French.

Oh, God.

Don't tell me he's beaten her up again.

We don't know what's happened to her.

By any chance, she hadn't called you
since last night, did she? No.

Poor Helen.

Poor lost Helen.

I hope you never find her.

She was a prisoner.

That's the kind it happens to, you know.
What happens?

I've known Helen since high school.

Did you know her husband?

Thank heavens, no.

Our friendship was separate from that
side of her life.

Helen married the first man.

Who stole her innocence.

Doug French.

Big shot. Going places.

Not long, the little girl becomes a
doormat.

Then she becomes a punching bag.

She told you all that?

I often wished his girlfriend could see
him beating up on his wife.

He beat his wife?

And you say he has a girlfriend?

Oh, hell, I knew about it.

Uh, Susan somebody or other.

Maybe that explains the cigarette butts
in the ashtray, huh?

Yeah, maybe.

The lab says that the blood found on the
carpet in the bathroom and on that

scrap of woman's blouse from the
fireplace all matched the blood in the

type O.

And according to the Pearson
Convalescent Hospital, where Helen

an occasional patient, her blood type is
O.

And they haven't heard from her this
time?

Nope. Tried to get some particulars, but
they're closed -mouthed.

They said there are regular doctors in
St. Louis attending a seminar.

So she didn't go back to her regular
hospital?

None of her friends have heard from her.

I don't like it.

Pick them up.

On what charge, assault?

We can't make that stick.

Come on, Mike. Don't you think we're
dealing with something more than a messy

house and a missing persons report?

Sure.

But what have we got?

Nothing.

Unless we can prove that he lied about
never leaving the house last night.

Okay, so we have to prove he had
opportunity to dispose of the body,

Mm -hmm.

Exactly. Now you're cooking.

Homicide stone.

Yeah, that fits.

Is the witness still there?

Okay, we're on our way.

Early morning hit and run. Just
reported. Sounds good. Did you say

That's what I said. Come on, let's go.

I'm just coming off work. Night shift.
I'm a waiter in this restaurant right

here. And I come out from my car and I
see this big bozo weaving all over the

street. Almost hits me.

Did you see the car?

Yellow sedan and wham, he smacks right
into me.

Parked. Just sitting here.

What time did it happen?

About 2 .30 in the morning. I remember I
had just cleaned up, walked out and...

I figured I'd better check it today, you
know, for my insurance.

The car's been sitting here since the
accident.

Did you see the driver of the vehicle?

This close he was, almost hit me.

Oh, yeah, a big guy, reddish hair, navy
blue jacket.

Douglas French was arrested on suspicion
of murder today following the

unexplained disappearance of his wife,
Helen.

While police will not reveal what
evidence they have gathered to support

charge, they are reportedly seeking a
mystery woman in connection with the

Elvis, so now you're a mystery woman.

You worried about this?

Damned right I am.

Your

Honor,

the people strongly recommend that a
higher bail be set in this particular

instance. The evidence clearly indicates
that the defendant attempted to mislead

the investigating officers about where
he was on the night in question.

Your Honor, if the investigating
officers have been misled, it is only by

own zeal to string together flimsy bits
of purely circumstantial evidence. All

right, all right, gentlemen.

Let's don't try the defendant nor the
San Francisco Police Department today.

Mr. Filer, your motion for continuance
is denied.

The defendant is bound over for a
preliminary hearing before the Superior

on the 25th.

I could get something for you. $25 ,000.

Court's adjourned.

Thank you, Your Honor.

What's the matter?

The DA made it stick, didn't he?

Yeah, sure.

But a tough jury could make it come
unstuck.

Our job isn't done yet.

This company's making bail for him.
Good, I'm glad.

Maybe he'll get nervous, stumble around,
and show us where he hid the body.

Like bodies, I found a warm one.

Our mystery lady is no mystery anymore.

The lab came up with a lady who left her
prints in French's car.

Now, you bring good news. Where do we
go?

That's the kicker named Susan Ross, and
she lives just two blocks from where

French slammed into that other car.

Don't give me an answer now. I want you
to mull it over. If you think I'm

guilty, take a walk. I'm gonna find
somebody else. It's just a problem, you

know? I don't know what to think. You
haven't told me anything. I told you, I

don't know anything. I passed out. I
can't remember.

Doug, no jury in the world is going to
buy that.

Now, listen to me. I've got to be honest
with you.

I tried to make a great show in there of
sweeping circumstantial evidence away

like it was so much dirt.

Well, it isn't. It's damned
incriminating. And there are plenty of

life right now on a whole lot less.

Do you understand that?

So I've got to have the truth.

I mean, if it's bad, we'll...

plea bargain. We'll go for a reduced
charge.

You want the truth?

Yes,

I want the truth.

So do I. Set up a polygraph test for me.

A polygraph? A lie detector test. Set it
up.

Look, I tell you, I haven't seen Doug
French in two, three months.

I don't believe you, Miss Ross.

I believe you saw Mr. French the same
day.

Maybe even the same night his wife
disappeared.

I want to talk to a lawyer.

We already told you, you're entitled to
one. If you come downtown with us, I

promise you there'll be a lawyer
present.

No, wait.

You know, Mr. French had his car washed
the same day.

And afterwards, we found cigarette butts
with lipstick on them in his ashtray.

Same kind.

Mrs. French doesn't smoke.

We also found your fingerprints on the
dashboard and on the car handle.

All right.

All right, so he was here.

Now, why didn't you say so from the
start?

Because I don't want to get involved.

But you are involved.

Now, what time was he here?

He called around one, I guess.

One in the morning?

Yes, he'd been drinking.

I could tell I didn't.

I told him I'd be outside.

I don't want him up here when he's been
drinking.

Where'd you go with him?

We didn't go anywhere. We just sat in
his car and talked.

Maybe an hour. What'd you talk about?

I don't remember.

Just talk, that's all.

Did he say anything about his wife,
about what happened that night?

No. I don't know anything about his
wife. Are there any bloodstains in the

Bloodstains?

No. You're doing it again.

What? Mine.

We know there were bloodstains in the
car.

If you saw any such evidence, if Mr.
French told you anything about what

happened to his wife, you could be an
accessory to murder.

Are you accusing me?

No, nobody is accusing you. But you are
making it very difficult for us to

believe you.

Is your name Douglas French?

Yes.

Are you employed by the Overdyne
Corporation?

Yes.

Did you kill your wife?

No.

I don't get it.

He is intentionally sticking his neck
out. Why?

Maybe they're trying to dazzle us with
footwork, Mike.

French is a professional salesman, and a
lawyer's good. He'll take the right

case to a jury.

Maybe they think French can beat the
Polly.

Anyway, they've got nothing to lose.
We're going all the way.

Helen, French's doctor's back in town.
You want to make an appointment?

As soon as we can get a reading on his
blood pressure in there.

Well, he isn't lying.

If he was a pathological liar, would it
show?

No, because if he was a pathological
liar, it wouldn't show up on the graph.

He says he can't remember.

What do you say? If this guy is a
blackout alcoholic, it's possible that

really doesn't remember.

I had a case once where an alcoholic
flew coast to coast, stopped in four

states, got home, sobered up.

He didn't even remember leaving the last
bar he was in.

Mike, I don't want to let this guy off
on a reduced plea.

I want to prove that French formed the
intent in advance.

before he got himself drunk enough to
really do it.

Well, I guess it's time we saw a doctor.

Say, how many times has Mrs. French been
a patient here, doctor?

I'd have to consult the admitting
records to be certain.

Oh, perhaps five or six times in the
past three years.

Were her injuries serious?

Well, whenever there are severe bruises
and lacerations about the face and ears,

possibility of concussions.

I'd say they could be serious.

Did she ever tell you that her husband
had beaten her?

No, Lieutenant. I couldn't testify to
that under oath.

She implied that, but that's all.

Tell me, did you ever try to offer her
any advice?

Naturally, I recommended marriage
counseling.

I understand her husband refused.

Did she have any outside interests?

Not really.

Over a while, she was with a little
theater group, Stage West, I think.

She seemed interested.

I don't know how it worked out.

You get a lot of cases like this?

Too many.

Seminar I just attended, they claim that
wife beating is the single most

unreported crime in the country.

And sometimes we hear about it too late,
after they're dead.

French?

I'm asking you a question.

Is that where you buried your wife?

God help me.

I don't know.

Looks like our stakeout on him is not
going to pay off.

Maybe he really doesn't know or can't
remember. How do you read him?

How do I read him? I don't read him.

No dice, Lieutenant.

We've covered every square foot.

Okay, Tanner. Pack it in.

What about it, Lieutenant?

He can go.

Thank you very much.

I really thought we had him.

Well, he's had one nightmare. Maybe
he'll have another one.

I still want a tail on him around the
clock.

Mike, what if he's telling the truth?

What, that he didn't kill her?

Maybe she killed herself.

I mean, a lady like that, beaten, afraid
to go home, afraid to complain, maybe

she just crawled off somewhere. Maybe.

But either way, if he killed her or she
killed herself, we still have to find

the body.

Okay, so where do we look? There must be
a million places.

I don't know. Where do we look? Who
knows where to look?

Maybe we ought to go to that little
theater group the doctor was talking

How's that going to help? They wouldn't
know where he buried it.

Well, somebody there might know
something about her habits.

Might give us a clue.

There's supposed to be three glasses
there. Now, I want three there tonight,

okay?

Excuse me.

As we were saying, the people who come
here are frustrated.

They're fearful.

Unfulfilled. They're beautiful.

What about Helen French?

She was a cocoon.

Wrapped. Rigid. Rigid. I'm beginning to
understand why. Oh, yes.

An occasional bruise would appear.
Accidents, she claimed.

Her husband never came around.

Did she like it here?

Ah, I began to unwrap the threads that
were restraining her.

There are no directors in New York
anymore, you know. They're all

choreographers.

Well, I cast her in a small but vital
part. An inspiration.

She played a bouncy broad on the make
for another woman's husband.

What a metamorphosis. She emerged,
spread her wings.

Lovely to see.

Was she good?

We'll never know.

She just disappeared before the dress
rehearsal.

Never gave any reason?

Well, in retrospect, she may have had
bruises that makeup wouldn't cover. Did

she make any friends while she was here?

I mean, were there any, uh...

Relationships with other members.
Someone she could have gone off with.

an astute observer of the human scene,
Lieutenant.

They come here to play out their
fantasies.

All their fantasies.

Even Helen.

At first, she was afraid of men.

Until I put her on that stage.

She was really quite good.

Doug, I'm scared.

What are you talking about?

What's the matter with you?

Well, didn't the police tell you?

They don't tell me anything.

You tell me.

Well, they know.

About us.

Doug, they came to talk to me.

Lieutenant Stone and some younger guy.

About what?

They know that we were together that
night.

What?

Don't you remember?

You came over late, and we sat in your
car, remember?

You told them that?

Well, I couldn't deny it. They already
had my fingerprints from out of your

What else did you tell them?

Well, I didn't tell them about the rest.
Honest, Doug.

But I'm afraid.

I mean, if they make me get up on that
stand, I can't lie.

I'll go to prison. What are you saying?

Don't you remember?

Remember what?

You had blood all over you, and you were
saying wild things. Wild things? About

killing a woman.

Don't you see?

Don't make me tell it.

I know they will.

Look, I don't want to hurt you.

Maybe I better get out of town. For you.

Where would you go?

Far away.

Maybe out of the country.

Look, I'm going to need some money.
You've got to help me.

I've got some you can have, I guess.

Well, not just some.

I'm going to need a lot to get away
where they can't find me.

How much?

Ten thousand dollars at least.

I don't have that kind of cash.

Mom! How much can you get?

Five, five. Maybe five.

I've got a joint savings account. Doug,
I want to get away tonight.

Can you get it?

Yes.

It's not for me, Doug.

It's for you.

You bring the money by my apartment, and
I'll be packed and ready to leave.

Okay?

All right.

All right. Let's go.

Hi, Johnny?

Yeah, it's me.

Oh, yeah.

He bought it.

Oh, come on, Lieutenant, be honest.

You found me irresistible, right?

Well, I would hate to deny that under
oath.

But actually, I'm still interested in
Helen French.

Can't win them all.

Did you find her?

No, we're still looking.

You're a real doll, you know.

I could shatter your reserve off -duty.

Well, I'm not going to argue that point
with you.

But could I ask you a personal question?

I mean, about Mrs. French.

Shoot.

Sometimes when a wife finds out that her
husband is playing around... She goes

out and does a little freelance
romancing herself, right?

Not Helen Tennant.

Not that I didn't try.

I told her that I could get her lots of
company with men who would treat her

tenderly.

But she wasn't interested.

Married to a monster like that could
turn you off men altogether.

Funny.

Really is funny how some women can
handle all kinds of men, and then there

some who find it difficult to handle
just one.

Well, let me tell you something even
funnier, Lieutenant.

This is right down your alley.

Nice society out there.

It's hell -bent on persecuting the likes
of me.

But they don't even care that the
Hellens are getting beaten.

Killed.

Poor little fool.

Fool?

No.

for a lost victim.

Homicide Stone.

I lost him, Mike.

Well, did you lose him or did he lose
you?

Well, he looked too smashed to even know
I was following him. Well, come on,

let's have it. He met a woman fitting
the Ross girl's description at

Wharf earlier.

Then he made a visit to a savings and
loan bank.

And when he came out, he was carrying a
big wad of dough.

Where'd you lose him? He spent a while
in a bar.

Now, I picked him up when he came out,
and then I lost him in traffic. But it

looks like he may be headed towards the
girl's neighborhood.

All right, see if you can pick him up
again. We're on our way.

We'll worry about that when we get to
Mexico.

At least then I'll be rid of this creep
and then we can be together.

That was silly. I didn't sleep with him.

I just scared the hell out of him.

I'll bring the money. Don't worry about
it.

We can stop shaking long enough to sign
for it.

I know.

You lied to me, little tramp!

You get away from me!

I'll kill you.

You're crazy! You're crazy!

I've already told you. You yelled out he
killed her. Now he's trying to kill me.

Well, he did kill her, didn't he? You
tell us.

He says that you tried to extort money
from him.

He's lying.

He had $5 ,000 in his pocket when he
came to your apartment. He said he got

for you.

Well, I only asked for his help to get
away for a while so that I wouldn't get

involved in all this.

What was he paying you for?

To help him dispose of his wife's body?

No. The real reason he didn't go up to
your apartment that night was that he

didn't want to leave the body alone in
the car, right? No.

I didn't see anything.

Now, why didn't you let him go to your
apartment?

Because my boyfriend was up there.

Oh, now we know.

A boyfriend, huh?

Look, I have been trying to get rid of
Doug for a long time.

It's not easy.

And suddenly it became easier, didn't
it?

He told you that he had killed his wife,
and you thought, well, now here's my

chance to blackmail him and go off with
number two. No, no, that is not how it

happened. Why don't you sit here for a
while and think it over?

Let's book her.

Suspicion of extortion.

Tanner said they met around noon.

Let's find out what time Mr. French
withdrew that money from the bank and

he stopped at the bar. Let's check it
all out. Good idea.

Sekulovich, book her.

Yes, Lieutenant.

The withdrawal receipt was signed by
Douglas M. French.

$5 ,000.

Did Mr. French leave a balance after
taking that much out?

$112 .68.

She darn near cleaned him out, didn't
she?

You know, we're going to need a positive
identification of this signature.

Could you verify it?

I think so. We have the information and
signature cards they filled out when

they opened the account.

looks genuine?

Wouldn't you say, Lieutenant?

Yeah, it certainly does.

The account was opened three years ago.

Hello. I think we have a mutual friend.

The telephone company?

All I had was a number.

You're, uh, Angela, right?

Right.

That's the trouble with the world.

We're all just numbers.

But you had a nice voice.

You match your voice.

Not many people do.

Thank you.

Would you like a drink?

Scotch. Very light.

Yours, too.

Very light.

I don't want you to dull your senses.

I don't drink.

Still, uh... Do the telephone company?

But, unfortunately,

business ethics require that I collect
for the retirement fund before I show

my birthmark.

Well, if there's one thing I admire,
it's ethics.

Second only to birthmarks.

Tell me a story.

Something wrong?

No, no, nothing.

I know what's bothering you. You're
suffocating. No, no, it's not that.

Look,

I'm sorry.

What's the matter?

You don't like me?

No, no, no, I do like you.

It's just that, uh... Well, I guess I'm
a little kinky about certain things.

Surprise me.

Not kinky -kinky.

It's, uh... Look, you're beautiful.
You're really beautiful.

But I've got this thing about, uh... You
know, all that makeup and stuff on your

face. What?

I told you, Kiki.

That's the whole deal?

Would you mind taking it off?

Just you watch.

Mother Nature's about to astound you.

Look, I hope you don't mind.

You hush.

Some gals wouldn't do this. You know
suppose not

Now what's the matter?

Hey, Mike, wait up.

Say, are you still going to prosecute
French for assault?

Ah, you know, it's the same old story,
Mike. Bad evidence, bad witnesses.

No justice.

Due process of law.

By the way, something in a bank file put
you on to her. What was it?

Well, when you open a new savings
account in this state, you've got to

give your mother's maiden name.

Oh? So she gave her mother's maiden
name.

Soames, Angela Soames.

Must have been a pretty comfortable name
for her.

Especially when she wanted to escape
from herself.

Well, at least she's alive.

Alive? I don't know about that.

I talked to her doctor.

He said that she's going to be
institutionalized for a long time.

A long time.

That's life.

See ya.

I cannot even remember breakfast. How
about getting some food?

Yes, I'd like that. What do you feel
like? Oh, I don't know. Why don't you

of something? Maybe something kinky. Not
kinky kinky, but kinky.

I'll give you kinky.