Original subtitles

Yes, sir.

How are you tonight?

Can you bust this up a little for me?

Nickels and dimes.

Nickels and dimes.

Check.

Hello? Hello, Jeannie.

How are you, dear?

You stop it, stop it, stop it!

What's the matter with you?

Jeannie, I don't have many more dimes, so if you hang up on me again, I may

to come over there in person.

You know, dear, I told you it wouldn't do any good to get an unlisted number.

How did you get this one?

Oh, I dropped by your apartment while you were at work and copied it off your

telephone.

We all have so much to talk about.

He knows, of course, what happened between you and Joey Walters.

Certainly he knows.

How? You told him how you and your girlfriend picked Joey up in the bar.

How you let him on and gave him your money.

Then said he'd robbed you.

Called the police.

Put an innocent man in jail.

That's just crazy.

What do you suppose he'll think when I tell him you tried to pull the same

on me?

When I describe the apartment.

Joey needs the money for appeals and lawyers.

The FBI.

A Quinn Martin production starring Ephraim Zimbalist Jr.

Also starring Philip Abbott, William Reynolds, with guest stars

John Erickson, Sarah Marshall,

Roy Poole.

Tonight's episode, The Phone Call.

Whether it was murder or suicide, the cause of the violent death of Sergeant

Paul Devlin's wife, Jean, on the eve of his homecoming could not be immediately

determined. But the reason was clear.

Investigation by New York City police turned up at least two letters demanding

money on threat of death.

Both were forwarded at once to the FBI in Washington.

There were no latent prints except Mrs. Devlin's. The paper's common,

untraceable. So's the ink.

Yes? The SAC from New York for Inspector Erskine on line three.

All right, thanks.

Yes, Gary?

Inspector, I have a little more information on the Devlin woman now.

Good, go ahead.

She was 23 years old. She lived alone.

Her husband's in Vietnam.

Or rather, he was. He completed a tour of duty last week.

I understand he'll be arriving back here late this afternoon.

Morgan, this is Arthur Ward.

Has the husband been notified?

Yes, he has.

What about the name in the notes, Gary? Any luck with that?

Yes, sir.

About a year ago, Mrs. Devlin and a girlfriend named Margaret Campbell were

mugged and robbed in Veterans Park.

They identified their assailant as a paroled convict named Joseph Alvin

He's back serving a ten -year sentence in the state penitentiary.

I suppose you've talked to Margaret Campbell.

Not yet, Mr. Ward. She dropped out of sight right after the trial. We're

to locate her now.

Was she single, Gary?

She was then, yes.

brothers or boyfriends who might be overseas?

Not that we know of.

You see that as part of the pattern, Inspector?

Morgan, we've been running into a rash of extortion phone calls and letters to

the families of servicemen.

A mind behind a campaign like this makes me sick to my stomach.

I want you to make the Devlin cases special.

Give it top priority.

Yes, sir.

Has the autopsy report come in yet? Yes.

There was no sign of prior violence whatsoever.

Could it have been a suicide?

Well, some of her friends mentioned that she'd been extremely depressed ever

since the Walters trial. She underwent psychiatric treatment for a short time.

What's the psychiatrist's name?

Millard Kern.

Tom and I'll be up there in a couple of hours, Gary. Tell him I'd like to talk

to him, will you?

Right. Well, I don't know what it's worth, but the landlady said the phone

ringing just about the time Mrs. Devlin fell.

She said it kept on ringing, she thought, for two or three minutes. It

before the police got there.

Too bad.

It would have given a lot to have heard the voice on the other end of that line.

in the living room?

My sofa. I can sit on it if I want to, Colonel.

Wow. The cleaning lady was here today.

She asked me if I wanted to get out of bed for a while. I said, sure. She

brought me in here.

She just left.

Mm -hmm.

Where's your wheelchair?

In the kitchen.

Baby, what did I tell you about staying by that chair?

What would you have done if the house had caught on fire?

Sat here and sizzled.

Oh, Belle.

I'm sorry. Really.

How do you feel?

Great. This polio's not so bad.

I moved my toe today.

You mean that?

It's not bad for three years of exercise and operations, huh?

I moved one toe, one inch, all by myself.

That's worth all the money you're spending on me, isn't it?

Oh, come on, baby. It's a start.

We both knew it would be a long haul.

I feel sorry for you.

Boy, what a bargain you got.

No wonder you're so interested in Vietnam.

You've lost me.

Find your secret hoard.

Every time there's a story about a local man being sent overseas, you've marked

it.

So?

You'd like to join the parade.

You'd like to get out of this prison I got you in and go fight somebody.

Is that right, Madam Freud?

Isn't it?

Come on, Jailer.

I'll put you back in your chair.

Sergeant Devlin?

Yeah?

I'm Inspector Erskine with the FBI.

This is Special Agent Colby.

Some of your men already talked to me. They met me at the airport.

Yes, I know.

We just want to ask you a couple more questions, Sergeant.

You wouldn't care to thank you now.

People always talk about the past.

When somebody they love dies.

There must be something wrong with me. All I can think about is the future.

Places we might have seen together.

Kids that would have looked like her.

When did you hear from her last, Sergeant?

Four days ago. We talked by overseas telephone.

Did she mention any threatening calls?

Letters? No.

But then she would have kept it from me anyway.

She was always afraid of worrying me.

I didn't even know about the robbery until Walters was convicted.

Inspector.

Before we get any deeper into this, can I ask you one question?

Of course.

When you catch the man who did this to my wife, how will the courts punish him?

If he's convicted of extortion, he'll be sent to a federal penitentiary.

He's guilty of murder.

Not in the eyes of the law, Sergeant.

The law's wrong.

He caused my wife's death.

He ought to be executed for it.

Sergeant.

Believe me, I know what you're going through.

But if you have any ideas about taking the law into your own hands, I advise

to forget them. That isn't the way.

Is the interview over?

Almost.

Do you know where Margaret Campbell is now?

No.

Jean wrote me. She changed her name right after the trial.

I can give you her old address.

If she should contact you, would you have her get in touch with us, please?

Yes, of course I will.

But she disappeared because she was afraid of what Walters might do to her

he got out.

Don't you think she'd be safer if she remained hidden as long as Walter's

is loose?

She might be, if she's covered her tracks well enough.

But it isn't really hard to track down someone like that.

It's just time -consuming.

Well, Sergeant, thanks for your cooperation.

Yeah.

And, uh, good luck.

Same to you.

Suicide?

Well, I suppose most of us are capable of an act like that if we're pushed far

enough, Inspector.

All I can say in Mrs. Devlin's case is that she certainly didn't show any

suicidal tendencies while she was coming to me.

But then she wasn't a patient of mine for very long, so... How many times did

you see a doctor?

Oh, three, four.

She was worried about the trial.

It had just ended.

And she was afraid that Walters would be paroled or escape and would try to hurt

her again.

Did this fear seem to be abnormal to you?

No, not at all.

Walters had threatened her several times.

He'd maintained from beginning to end that he was innocent. All this was

reported in the newspapers.

And she'd received a number of crank calls.

Did she talk much about a Margaret Campbell?

Yes, a great deal.

They were very close.

Did she happen to mention that Miss Campbell had changed her name?

Yes.

Doctor, it's very important that we get in touch with her as soon as possible.

Is there any way you can help us without violating her confidence?

Her records would be in the inactive file downstairs.

I'll have them brought up for you.

Hello, Margaret.

Hello.

I didn't know if this was a work day for you or not.

I just took a chance to drop by.

Come in.

Keep expecting you to look like the boy in the yearbook.

It's been a long two years.

Paul, I'm so sorry about...

Did Jean ever tell you about those letters,

Margaret?

I mean, Mary, I guess, don't I?

Jean sent me your new name and address.

Doesn't matter now.

He's found me.

The telephone rang this morning.

And somebody said, Hello, Margaret.

This is Joey Walter's friend.

Gene took the easy way out, so I guess you're going to have to pay me now.

I hung up.

And he called again.

And again.

Finally, I just let the phone ring.

He said he'd kill me if I called the police.

Oh, Paul.

Don't worry.

I'll take care of it.

Next time he calls, you make a date to meet him.

And then tell the police where he'll be.

No. The police won't help.

The jury'd give him a year or two at the most.

And he'll probably be out in a couple of months.

That's odd.

Is something wrong?

I don't know.

Lucille? Yes, Doctor?

What's this?

Oh, yes.

Dr. Sand came by last month to get these records. That's the receipt.

Came by here?

In person?

Yes. He said he'd spoken to you. He gave me your note.

I don't know any Doctor.

Charles Sand?

May I see that, please?

Certainly. Nurse, do you have the note by any chance?

Oh, it ought to be in the folder.

Yes, it is.

Is that your signature?

No, it isn't.

That's pretty close.

It isn't?

What did this Dr.

Charles Sand look like, do you remember?

Well, he was young, about 40, I think.

He was average looking.

He wore glasses, it seems to me.

Did he have a mustache?

Hello?

Excuse me.

I talked with Joseph Walters up at the penitentiary.

Talk? More like... A monologue.

A co -operative? That's the word.

Doesn't have any relatives.

Won't admit to having any friends.

And he may be telling the truth of that. He doesn't have any up there.

What about visitors?

Letters? None, according to the warden.

Tom, have the document section make a handwriting comparison.

These two signatures with the extortion notes.

Let's see what the Bureau has on the name Charles Sand, particularly in the

fraudulent check file.

Yes, sir.

Five dimes.

Right. Thanks.

Hello. Hello, Margaret.

How are you tonight?

Why won't you tell me who you are?

I have told you, dear.

I'm a friend of Joey Walters.

Hey, Smokey!

Hey, Smokey!

Tell Art we got a request down here. The old gray bear.

Now, Joey's getting a little discouraged, dear.

He's innocent and he wants out, but that takes money.

Listen...

Yes.

No.

Hey, you remember where Veterans Park is, don't you, dear?

Do you recall the night you and Gene lured Joey Walters down there?

Margaret?

Yes? You remember the fountain where you said Joey robbed you?

Yes.

Well, you leave the package in the trash barrel by the...

In advance.

Joey will be very grateful.

Paul?

Don't worry. Just put it out of your mind.

Don't kill him.

I won't.

You may wish I had, but I'm through.

Paul?

Be careful.

I guess I worried as much as Jeannie did when you went overseas.

If anything happened to you... Margaret.

I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Thank you.

in 10 seconds, 12 midnight exactly.

Our program continues now with the Hunt Quartet by Mozart.

Who pulled the cord out of the wall?

Who's here?

Where are you?

Margaret!

You move one more step, I'll cut your throat.

If you're wondering, it was the back bedroom window you left open.

Please don't hurt me.

But we struck a bargain, dear.

You were supposed to be at the fountain.

I watched for a long time through the binoculars.

Finally, I decided I'd better come over here to see what had happened.

Now, where's the money, Margaret?

I'm not going to leave without the money.

I have

to have that

money.

Oh, I beg your pardon. I must have the wrong number.

Devlin?

Yes.

Who's this?

Inspector Erskine.

What's happened?

That's what we'd like to ask you.

Where's Margaret?

Is she all right?

She'll be all right. The doctor's with her now.

What did he do to her?

What did who do to her?

The extortionist. He called when I was there.

Traces.

Where are you?

Me there?

Yes, I'm here.

Sergeant, if you knew where Miss Campbell was, why didn't you tell us?

You could have saved us a full day and this never would have happened.

Did he hurt her?

Did he beat her or did he, uh... No, he didn't hurt her.

Took a few dollars, but she's all right physically. She's suffering from shock.

She fainted by the time we got here.

By the way, she wants to see you.

Tell Margaret.

But I'll call when I'm finished.

Devlin?

Hello? Keep him on the line. I'm trying to trace you through the circuits now.

Well, you want to put a surveillance on Devlin's apartment in case he shows up

there?

I'm going to go out to state prison and re -interview Walters.

See if I can expedite the child's sand identification.

Tell him I'm afraid we'll have a murder on our hands if Devlin gets to the

extortionist before we do.

Inspector Erskine, I'd like to talk to you for a minute.

Yeah, well, like I told this other gentleman who was up here, I sure would

to cooperate, but I can't.

It's against my religion.

Is that a fact?

Yeah, you see, I belong to this sect that doesn't believe in policemen.

And you're one of the prime martyrs of the order, I suppose.

Yeah, well, I've had my raw deals.

Do you ever have one as raw as the beating you gave Gene Devlin and

Campbell? I never laid a hand on those girls.

Uh -huh.

What do you know about extortion?

What?

Well, Mr. Colby told you why he wanted your cooperation.

Well, he said somebody had been playing games with the devil woman. But that

doesn't have a thing in the world to do with me.

Maybe not.

Unless that somebody happens to be a friend of yours.

What friend?

Have you ever seen any partners mentioned in my record?

I've always worked alone, all my life.

Somebody's trying to pull something.

Another frame -up, huh?

Well, this one's a frame -up.

All right, who's behind it?

I don't know.

I'm telling you the truth.

Did you ever hear the name Charles Sand?

Sand?

What does he do?

He could be a con man, could pass checks.

He's average looking, could wear glasses, could have a mustache.

No. What about the initials?

C .S.

I don't know. I just can't think.

I'm sorry. Maybe if you give me a day or two.

We don't have a day or two.

Well.

All right, Walters, if you do think of anything, have the warden call me in New

York.

Oh.

There was this one character right after the trial. He was a newspaper man.

Funny, though, he took all these interviews with me, but I never saw

printed in the papers.

Do you remember his name?

Clark Simmons.

Thank you, Walters.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hold your horses.

Sit down. I'll be with you in a minute.

Okay, what do you have?

There.

I hear this place really swings when the band's working.

Well, they keep time and they're loud.

I mean, what more could a music lover want? What do they play? Turkey in the

Straw? Old Gray Mayor?

Yeah, you know, all the good ones.

Are you Smokey?

Yeah, that's right. Well, you can help me then.

A friend of mine called me from here last night.

Said he wanted to see me at his place today, but he forgot to give me his

address. Hmm.

What's his name?

Well, he's a friend of a friend.

He called about 11 .15.

Oh.

You mean the telephone man.

That's what I call him.

That's all he comes in here for. He uses a phone.

I can't even sell him a cup of coffee.

He ain't a bookie, is he?

No. Because that's all I need. Some nut making book out of my booth.

Do you know where he lives?

Yeah, I think so.

Look, I get all kinds in here. You know.

Now, I don't care what they do, how they act, just so they don't tear up the

place, right?

But this fella... No offense.

To what?

Well, he's a friend of yours.

An acquaintance.

It's a duty call.

Come on, go ahead, tell me where he's... Anyway, so I asked around.

Turns out he lives right over here in Herald End.

Second house from the end.

He's married. His wife's a cripple.

I guess he just comes in to get out of the house, you know?

Second house on the end.

I'm ashamed to tell you what all I had of that guy paid for.

Spy, blackmailer, smokies.

No, Jack hasn't shown up yet, Benny.

Now, what would I lie to you for?

Yeah, I'll tell him. I got all this poor little kids are crying for.

Poor little John, poor little Seldy.

Poor little Ann.

Poor little Betsy.

Poor little Tom.

All right.

I couldn't tell when it was coming. Well, keep at it. I'll get back to you

later. Do we have an accent?

No.

I just talked to the deaf on surveillance. No sign of him.

All right, call the bureau again, see how they're coming along with Clark

Simmons' lead.

Did he use any words or phrases that sounded strange to you?

No. But when he called me dear... Dear?

Well, it seemed natural to him. He wasn't mocking me or anything.

Are you tired, Miss Campbell? Would you like to rest?

No, no, really, I am all right.

Is there any news about Paul?

Not yet.

He thinks he's doing the right thing.

And do you think he's doing the right thing, Miss Campbell?

Well, I can understand how he feels.

Can't you?

Yes, very easily.

Then if he should find the man and... And what?

Murder him?

That isn't the right word, and you know it.

What word would you use, Miss Campbell?

Well, retribution.

Payment. And what if this man should have a son, say, and the son killed

I have loved him for so long, and he's been so hurt.

Please help him.

Hello?

Yes, Arthur.

Hello, Lewis.

I was about to phone you when Colby's call came in.

Well, we've located your man.

Got a pencil?

Yes, go ahead.

Clark Simmons is one of half a dozen aliases he's used. The initials are

CS.

Clark Simmons, Christopher Slavin, and so forth.

Mm -hmm.

Charles Sand.

Yeah. You can add the name Sand to the list now.

Handwriting analysis shows that the two extortion notes... And the Sand and Kern

signatures were all written by the same man.

Incidentally, it's not surprising that he convinced Joey Walters he was a

newspaper man and Miss Trask that he was a doctor. Seems to be his profession.

What kind of artist?

Well, in a way, he's an actor.

Married. His real name is Curtis Stone.

Then he moved to New York City.

Last known job was with Banner and Field as a theatrical agent.

Last known address, 932 Harold Avenue.

Harold Avenue. Right, thanks, Mark.

Gary, see if you can get a phone number for Curtis Stone, 932 Harold Avenue.

Right.

I'm sorry. I was in the back of the house.

Mrs. Stone? Yes?

I guess these are for you.

Why, thank you.

Is Curtis home?

No. Oh, he just called. He's on his way.

Well, I'm an old army buddy of his.

Could I come in and wait for him?

What's the matter?

Bert wasn't in the army.

I'm sorry, Mrs. Stone. I'm coming in.

I don't keep much money in the house if you're thinking of robbing me.

Nothing's going to happen to you, Mr. Stone. Just relax.

Stay in here.

I can watch you.

NY40.

NY40, go ahead.

Agents contacting Banner Enfield report that Curtis Stone left the office 15

minutes ago, is en route to his home.

Has Morgan talked to Mrs. Stone yet?

No, sir. Her phone doesn't answer.

Thanks, 40 clear.

But what do you think he's done?

Listen, you're making a terrible mistake. My husband wouldn't... Did you

hear the name Jerry Walters?

Walters is an ex -con.

He beat my wife and another woman.

Almost to death.

About a year ago.

Kurt told me about the case. He said Walters was innocent.

Did he also tell you what he tried to do about it?

He knew Jean was alone.

But I was in Vietnam.

Tried to extort money from her.

For Walters, he said.

He telephoned her.

Wrote letters to her threatening to kill her unless she gave him a thousand

dollars.

He pushed her off that balcony as if he'd done it with his own two hands.

That can't be true.

I heard his voice when he called the other woman last night.

He used the phone in Smokey's Tavern down the street. Where was your husband

from 11 o 'clock on, Mrs. Stone?

know. Maybe it is true.

And if it is, my heart aches for you.

Is what you're doing any different?

You bet it is. I got a reason.

Well, maybe he had a reason too.

Maybe he's wrong.

Maybe he's sick. But what right have you to judge? And if he's wrong, so are

you. How are you going to get away from that?

Put the gun down.

We have a warrant for Stone's arrest.

Turn him over to us.

Put the gun down.

I'm coming up there to take him into custody.

All right, Curtis, put your hands on top of the car.

Spread your legs apart and step away.

Then on Tuesday, I bought some eyeglasses at a Folsom station.

Went to Dr. Kern's office as Dr. Charles Sand.

How did you know Mrs. Devlin had been a patient?

One of the newspaper columnists had mentioned it shortly after the trial.

Where did you get Dr.

Kern's signature to copy, Mr. Stone?

Well, Kern's written several books.

At least one of them in the public library is his autograph.

Suppose Miss Trask had called the doctor for confirmation.

In that case, I'd have just walked out.

But I timed my visit for Kern's lunch hour so the problem wouldn't come up.

At any rate, I got the reports and I found Margaret Campbell's new name and

address in them and that was it.

How many other women did you call?

I don't know.

Half a dozen.

All servicemen's wives?

Yes. The same reason?

Money? I had to have that money to pay for my wife's operations.

I couldn't think of any other way to get it.

That'll be all for now, Mr. Stone.

Wait outside, please.

going to be very hard on my wife.

Sorry about that.

I love her.

Really, I love her very much.

I talked to Margaret.

She says she feels a lot better.

Good.

Why don't you run over and see her?

I thought... The U .S. Attorney declined to prosecute you on obstruction of

justice charges.

So, as far as the Bureau is concerned, you're free to go.

Thanks.

Curtis Stone was convicted on two counts of extortion and is now serving his

sentence in a federal penitentiary.

Repair and Synchronization by Easy Subtitles Synchronizer 1.0.0.0