Original subtitles

That's it.

Everybody out of the line, squad!

Move! Now you get out of here and leave me alone.

Riles, tell me the truth.

Do you even know who that man is? No comment. Not about nothing.

You'd rather spend the rest of your life with the death of hundreds of people in

your conscience.

On your study, not on mine. On yours.

You stop it. Mama, please.

It's my chance, Mama. That's all.

It's my chance to show him.

I can't tell you, Mama, but you're going to see.

Everybody will.

And nobody will ever laugh at me again, Mama.

Once his friend Ryle's flown safely to North Africa.

Otherwise, the bomb's already been set, and it goes off in less than 31 hours.

Only 22 minutes left.

I had to split our crews.

There's just officers in here, huh?

What the devil sort of building is this?

Captain, I got a hunch. It's not much, but it's all we have to go on. If I were

you, I'd concentrate on that building.

What are you getting?

Did you ever hear of a pyromaniac who didn't come to his own fire?

The FBI.

A Quinn Martin production.

Ephraim Zimbalist Jr., also starring Philip Abbott and

Shelley Novak, with guest stars Victor French, Richard O

'Brien, and Mario Rocuzzo as Michael Staley. Tonight's episode,

Tower of Terror.

You bucking for overtime or something?

You should be hanging with those guys that are still down there. Sorry, it

a little longer than I figured.

Ha! Spent too much time on the 18th looking at them chicks.

What? What?

Come on, let's go.

I'll get that.

Hey, listen, I'm sorry if I kept you working late, but I can do all of this

Yeah? You sure it's all right? Ah, take off. I'm not going anyplace tonight.

Thanks.

Okay.

Perfectly all right.

Anytime.

Hey, Staley, there's lots of good -looking chicks in them offices.

Maybe if you polish up the windows real nice... One of them don't notice you.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

Thank you.

We'll take care of it. Okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Goodbye. Fine.

Hey, right on time.

Thanks, you guys. Oh, put that jacket in my locker for me, will you? See you in

the morning. Goodbye, Joe. Have fun.

Hey, you forgot to punch out. You do it for me.

I'll stash this.

Locked again.

You'd think those engineers had a space station in there.

I'll be up on 18.

That same evening, an airmail special delivery letter arrived at FBI

headquarters in Washington, D .C.

It was addressed to the director.

Inspector Lewis Erskine was summoned to take immediate charge of the case.

He was first shown an enclosure which came with the letter.

It's a rather complicated diagram.

According to the lab, whoever drew it knew what he was doing.

He said he included it in his letter to prove he means business.

What does he want? Who is he?

I haven't got the slightest clue as to identification.

This has all been to the lab. Everything.

Canadian stamp.

We don't know what town it came from.

The Canadian authorities are trying to help us with a trace.

Whoever sent this said he would phone with further instructions, but roughly

demand is this.

Either we release his friend here from federal penitentiary or that whole

elaborate bomb goes up.

It's already been planted in a high -rise in a major city.

How do we know it's on our side of the border? We don't know it yet.

Who is this friend he's so anxious to spring from prison?

Vince Riles.

He got ten years for robbing a federal payroll in Chicago, remember? Tried to

break out a couple of months ago.

Killed a guard.

And he'll never get out now.

But he's our only lead to the identity of who sent us that threat.

Lou, you've got 42 minutes to get to the airport.

Leave Chris here until you've talked to Riles. I've already alerted the warden

of his prison that you're coming.

I don't know about the rest of it, but that wasn't by any amateur.

You know what our bomb experts say?

If this thing was put together with the amount of explosives indicated and

placed in the right spot, it could bring down the whole monument.

You're crazy.

Why ask me?

Some guy wants to get me out of this rat trap.

Why should I tell you who he is?

Because the lives of innocent people are at stake. Oh, well, I've killed once

already. What's a few more lives?

Royals, when you made your prison break and murdered the guard, it was sort of a

spontaneous thing.

I mean, you thought you saw a chance to jump on a laundry truck and the guard

got your way, right? All right, what are you driving at? It was a one -man job.

There was no one waiting for you outside.

So what?

What, are you hitting some kind of a deal here? Is that what you're doing?

No, I'm not.

Well, you listen to me.

I don't help anybody.

Not you, not anybody.

So you better do what my bomber friend says and turn me loose. Yeah, then you

know it, but that's not what I'm getting at.

When you robbed a federal payroll, that was a solo job, too.

Now, you're divorced, you have no family, never been part of a mob, you

have any visitors. All right, so what? So now, all of a sudden, you have such a

good friend on the outside that he'd kill a whole building full of people

to get you free. So he loves me.

Now, you get out of here and leave me alone.

Riles, tell me the truth.

Do you even know who that man is? No comment, not about nothing.

You'd rather spend the rest of your life with the death of hundreds of people on

your conscience. No, on yours, buddy, not on mine, on yours.

You, stop it.

You don't think Riles even knows?

Inspector, do you think there might be a clue in his file as to someone who

might make him talk?

Wait a minute. There's a call coming in right now. Hold on, okay?

Yes, this is Assistant Director Ward speaking.

Well, I was out of my office for a minute. I'm sorry.

Yes, your letter was given to me last night.

If you could give me the first line of it, then I could be assured whom I'm

speaking.

It was something like, hundreds of people are going to die unless you

Vince Riles.

All right.

Well, I'm glad you reached me personally.

Now, there are a couple of things I'd like to explain to you about the demands

you made to the director in your letter.

Oh, no.

Don't you give me any speech.

I'm the one who's in charge of this, you understand?

Now, I got a flight schedule right here.

So you listen carefully.

Take it easy.

That's right.

I'm sorry I didn't hear that. Would you... What time?

Well, I'm sorry. Before we do anything like that, we'd have... And don't you

interrupt me.

Now, unless Vince Riles announces on radio and TV that he's safe over there,

that I saved him, the whole building's going to go off. You understand me? The

whole building.

Hello, hello?

We got part of it, sir.

Payphone from area code 612.

It'd be Minneapolis -St. Paul.

Well, I want his friend Riles flown safely to North Africa.

Otherwise, the bomb's already been set, and it goes off in less than 31 hours.

Captain Jenkins, Minneapolis Police.

Captain Williams, St. Paul Police.

I don't know what it's worth, but Riles' ex -wife is the only lead we have at

this point. Riles still won't talk?

Has Treasury been notified? Yes, sir. We're maintaining a close liaison with

them. Good. Chris Daniels will be on the next flight from Washington. Someone

pick him up. The meeting is scheduled in my office in a half hour.

Only 27 hours left.

One thing we've got against this, Inspector.

The number of buildings here in the Twin Cities with at least 20 stories.

There are 12 of them.

Hey, Prager.

Hey, what are you doing up here, buddy, huh?

You gonna have cocktails with the big shots? No, no, no, I'm collecting bills.

Now, the company said I might find you up here.

Listen, I tried to phone you this morning, Mort. No, you didn't.

Now, where's my money?

Listen, it's like I told you when I gave you the first tour.

You're gonna get it all right. It just might be another week or so before...

Look, I want it now.

Now, look, Staley, I got a chance at being a powder boss again.

There's a big construction job going on, but it's in Honolulu.

Now, I've got to pay for my own ticket in the morning.

That's great, that's great.

But if you could just wait a couple more days, Maury, if you could just wait

until after... No!

Now, listen, Staley.

When you first looked me up and promised me that money to do all that work on

the slide rule and draw that fancy diagram for you, well, I thought you

just plain nuts.

I had money to throw away.

And the way I needed dough, well, who cared?

I've been remembering.

And I've seen where you work now.

In the old days, you couldn't even read a compass right, let alone fire a

bazooka, because you're just too stupid.

So whatever you're doing with this explosive stuff, somebody else is in it

you. So somebody can pay me.

Murray, look, I don't even get off work until 6 o 'clock, see?

Listen, I'll give you till 9 tonight, the mall entrance of the 700 building,

the escalator. Staley, you be there.

Sure, Maury, sure.

I know how you need it with all those kids.

I'll bring as much as I can, really, for old time's sake.

$500, Staley.

No, I'm telling you. You better be there, and you better be there with all

money. I got a cop friend that lives on my block, and I just might tell him

about all this, huh?

Oh, Georgia, you get down from there. Oh, I'm sorry.

Inspector, I'm so sorry. No, no, no, please don't bother Mrs. Rogers.

I'm Miss Morton now. Oh, what's been in me? Miss Morton,

we have to know who Riles' friends are, as I explained to your brother on the

phone. Why? What happened? Tell me. Now, now, Vince is not in any more trouble.

How could he be? Oh, don't you underestimate my Vincy.

If the warden at that prison has a wife, he better lock her up. Irene. Oh, but

it's so ridiculous.

You said his friends.

Acquaintances? Partners from the past? Any names you can remember?

Of course!

There was this redhead in St.

Louis once.

He gave her my favorite necklace.

Oh, but that was 15 years ago. And he bought me another one.

No, no, I mean recently.

Oh, but that's what I mean. He ditched that redhead in two weeks.

That's the way he treated everybody. Except me. Was there anybody who stood

for him at the trial? My ex -husband, Inspector, was a very big operator.

you know? Hasn't double -crossed...

A lot of people may die if we can't find the man who planted a bomb in a 20

-story building.

At the time of his trial, I didn't even stand by him. How could I? My dear

brother wouldn't let me. He wouldn't even let me see Vincy. Oh, but wait a

minute. Wait a minute! There was this one character that told me several times

about him. Who was that? He wanted me to help Vincy, give him messages.

Well, he was the only one in the whole world who could save his old buddy.

He wouldn't tell me what his name was. I just hung up on the creep. Oh, look

what I did. Would you look at that? My goodness gracious.

Inspector, it's obvious she can't remember.

As a matter of fact, I don't think she even wants to. She just never got over

the guy.

Old buddy's an army expression.

Riles was a sergeant in Korea.

Oh, yeah, Vince wore every medal he could steal.

Just one of the ways he tried to impress my sister.

She might have photographs, scrapbooks.

They could remind her of some names.

Inspector, there's not one thing left in this house to remind Irene of the past.

Well, you see how she is when you just talk about riles.

I'm sorry.

I burned everything.

Mother, I just put some candy in your room. It's all right. I came up the back

way. Snooping around?

Trying to scare me to death?

Do you know it's half past eight? And I'm supposed to have supper at seven

sharp. You heard what the doctor said. I'm sorry, Mother.

What are you doing with my purse? I bumped it. I'll get it, Mother. I'll get

Michael!

Have you been drinking?

Mom, I was just late getting off work. That's all. I'm sorry about your dinner.

Little brat!

My TV.

Mama, listen to me. I couldn't find your bank book, Mama. It wasn't in your

purse. My what?

And your last Social Security check. That wasn't in your bureau, Mama.

Why, you little snoop.

Of course it wasn't.

I gave that check to Mr. Endicott for the new sink.

You never fixed the old one, did you?

You couldn't even make it stop dripping.

Mama. Mama.

I need some more money, Mama. I gotta have it. If I don't get it, everything

will be ruined. Everything I've planned, Mama. Why?

I do in trouble with some awful woman.

That's why you've been neglecting me.

Mama, please.

It's my chance, Mama, that's all.

It's my chance to show him.

I can't tell you, Mama, but you're going to see.

Everybody will.

And nobody will ever laugh at me again, Mama. Because I can do something. Stop

it. Stop that.

You have been drinking.

Mother, give me that wallet.

No, no. Give it to me.

He said he sounded like a creep?

That's right.

The only man in the world who could help you, he said.

He told her he was an old buddy of yours.

Oh, yeah, he's probably the Green Hornet, the Superman.

You don't know who he is, do you?

Still no comment.

Miles, he's threatening to blow up a building full of people.

All right.

All right, so I don't know who your bomber is.

Guessed it right the first time.

Thanks.

For what?

For what?

I mean, that gadget of yours goes off. I get blamed, don't I?

You just confirmed you're wasting your time here, that's all.

Happens in 13 hours and 21 minutes.

Exactly at noon tomorrow.

Look.

These aren't complete. They're copies of ID photos and service records.

Take a look.

For what? Why?

Look, I've tried to think. I've tried to think.

I mean, that's what's so crazy about this. I can't even guess who it might

Come on. And that wasn't such a big outfit you were in.

Got smaller, too.

Stupid as much a target you ever saw.

Yeah, but which one of them would remember you?

Someone you helped, maybe.

What do you think I got all those medals for?

I saved all their necks one time or another.

Nah.

Nah, I can't even recognize their faces.

Cohen, O 'Brien.

What about him?

Nah, he wiped his own nose.

Sure no friend, either.

I forgot about him.

He came from Minneapolis, too.

You know this guy could booby -drap a safety pin?

Prager, Maury Prager, that's his name.

That's the best demolitions man in Korea.

You gonna buy it, buddy?

What?

Oh, no, no. I was just looking for something, that's all.

My horses don't come in either.

I've been listening on the radio, and it wasn't there.

Say, you didn't happen to see anything on TV tonight about Vince Riles, did

Should have been on by now.

Riles? He the pro hockey player?

No, no. He was a guy that, well, he did a favor for me once in the Army.

Okay, General.

Closing time. Please.

I'm sorry.

I guess I just... Doesn't make any difference.

Not now.

It's all right. Where were the FBI?

You are?

Is this the Prager house?

Of course.

Is Maury Prager your father?

Is he going to be all right?

Just a moment. Is your mother home?

No, but a real policeman came to get her.

Only I know him. He just ran the block.

Where is your father, honey?

Well, in the hospital, I guess.

That's where my mother went to see him.

My dad was going to go to Honolulu tomorrow.

Dr. Combs, these gentlemen are from the FBI.

We'd like to speak to Maury Prager.

Sorry, you can't. Doctor, it's urgent. You're too late. What happened? He fell

or was pushed from the terrace at the mall of the 700 building.

But he's already under now. He's gone into surgery.

We're not even sure that he'll make it.

Quarter to six.

That's still more than six hours.

I'm relieved.

Lieutenant, what's the latest from Billy?

They've got every man out they can find, Captain.

Give me the total.

Between them, bomb squad, and the fire department.

Well, we've really only cleared four buildings.

That's as of 5 .30.

Mr. Daniels.

What's the word on Prager? He's still alive, but that's it.

Captain, what about the county shift that goes off at noon?

Stop saying noon.

My deadline is 10 o 'clock.

Deadline to do what?

If we don't come up with this bomber, we'll have to start evacuating these

buildings.

We've got six here. Two more in St. Paul.

Can you imagine what's going to happen if this hits the media, radio,

television?

We start herding people into the streets.

By 12 noon, we could have full -scale panic.

I think he's coming out of it

Have you ever seen this before?

Prager, did you draw this?

Did you draw this?

Don't move your head, Mr. Prager.

Please don't move your head.

Prager.

Did you draw this diagram?

Anyway.

Who?

What was the name?

Staley. Staley, Staley, Staley.

Oh, yeah, I remember him. Mickey Staley, yeah.

Look, Inspector, he wouldn't hurt anybody.

Couldn't do anything right.

I mean, he was like a gopher, you know, a rabbit.

Used to tag around after me, dig foxholes for me, shine my shoes.

Inspector, I guess I did save his life once.

He froze under mortar fire.

Really bad. I mean, so bad I had to throw him over to my shoulder and carry

out of there.

Never saw anybody so scared.

You know, when we got back, I think he wanted to kiss me.

Me, I just thought it was funny.

So I shoved him out in front of the whole outfit.

Just the way he was, crying and shaking.

He nearly laughed himself to death.

We're with the FBI. I'm Inspector Erskine. This is Special Agent Daniels.

Does Michael Staley live here?

I'm his mother.

Do you know where he is? It's urgent.

No, I don't. He didn't come home.

May we come in?

Oh, I knew something awful was going to happen.

What's he done?

Take it easy. We just want to find him, that's all.

I had to cook my own supper, my own breakfast.

Oh, I didn't sleep a wink.

He left last night?

Was he alone?

Well, of course.

My son is a good boy.

Inspector.

Just a picture of your son?

Yes.

That's Riles.

Mm -hmm.

Yes.

Isn't that boy handsome? And brave, too.

That was Michael's best friend once.

I don't know whatever happened to him, but I always used to tell Michael... If

only he'd stand up straight like that. Mrs. Staley, where might we look for

Michael?

You must have some idea. Does he have a job?

He certainly does.

For 15 years.

And never missed a single day.

Doing what, Mrs. Staley, and where?

Washing windows. Here, in Minneapolis.

You know, on those great big high -rise buildings.

I got your message. I picked up Mr. Roberts. He's a foreman. How many

Well, my washing outfit handles five of that size. In this area, sir.

Staley works the mall one time or another.

But only two or 20 stories or more.

We're clearing this out now.

It narrows it down somewhat anyhow.

Still a lot of floor space.

Only 22 minutes left.

I had to split our crews.

They're just officers in here, huh?

What the devil sort of building is...

Captain, I got a hunch. It's not much, but it's all we have to go on. If I were

you, I'd concentrate on that building.

What are you getting?

Did you ever hear of a pyromaniac who didn't come to his own fire?

Take a look.

Where would he have a front row seat?

Jenkins? Daniels. We found him. He is up here. All right. I switched all my men

to this building.

I just hope you're not too late.

No, no That's it

Now

listen

to me you don't need to do this

Roz doesn't want you to help him. He wants you to tell us where the bomb is.

I don't believe you.

He says he's sorry.

He never realized... Look.

He said you're a great guy.

He said that?

A bigger man than he ever was.

I don't believe you.

Why would he say anything about me, huh?

I've never been anybody in my life. I've never done anything in my life.

Not until right now. Staley, where's the bomb?

Stay away. I'll take you with me. Just tell us where the bomb is.

No. No way. I'm not going to tell you.

Try to understand.

There are people in that building.

People like you.

People who could be your friends.

Staley.

Look at me.

It's too late.

I know you can't stop it. It's too late.

There it is.

No, I tested it. It works.

It didn't. It has to.

I know it does.

It's dry down there. It's dry in that chiller room. There's nothing drier than

that place.

It's going to go off. I know it will.

Jenkins, we've got him. He says the bomb's down in the chiller room.

Daniels, we're all clear now.

this bomb isn't ticking anymore.

I'm fine. He's clean. He wasn't armed.

Oh, no, no, I don't like guns.

Snicker?

This is Michael Staley.

That him?

Isn't that nothing?

Don't call me that. That's not true.

I would have shown all of you.

See, there's the Sergeant Riles.

And he saved my life once.

But everybody laughed.

But he's the one who needed me.

And I was going to show him.

Michael Staley was tried and found guilty in federal court on charges of

the mail and telephone to transmit a bomb threat.

He also was convicted in state court for the attempted murder of Maury Prager.