Original subtitles

Hey, Mom!

It's starting!

Big deal.

Well, now you're going to take your money.

You know you said you got me.

Now you're going to take your money.

Oh, little baby.

Give yourself more time.

for you, honey.

Oh, open it, please.

Our landlord, Potter.

Why is it we can never find him, but he can always find us?

What do you want?

Um, new fire regulations.

Buildings built before 1940 are required to install fringes.

Oh, well, why don't they just drive a stake through my heart?

Because they want to see you suffer first, Johnny.

Here you go, Bernie. How you doing? You don't look so good. My God.

Could you... Can I take a rain check on this?

What? Is there anything the matter? Anything I can help with? Yeah, a friend

mine, Ivory Chambers, he had a fire.

Thanks.

On the house.

Look at this.

Big Joe Turner.

Candyman been here and gone.

Candyman. He was playing at Roundhouse. Remember that club?

Down by the waterfront near the cop shop.

I think I sold him a new microphone.

Yeah, that was it.

How's the detective business, Bernie?

Same old, same old.

Oh, Ivy.

What about your insurance?

How's your coverage?

You know, I was thinking about changing insurance companies.

They got this thing about sprinklers.

Have you got any idea what sprinklers cost?

It's all over, Bernie.

Last verse.

No encore.

Secret. Ginny, you played in Ivory's band? I didn't know you played

professionally.

Neither did the band.

Wow. Do you still play?

Look, I'll be right back. Why don't you stay here? You call the fire inspector

and see if he'll meet us at Ivory's place. What instruments did you play?

Where are you going, Bird?

I can't believe it. I took my first piano lesson in his back room.

Believe it.

Man, he's burned out. Where am I going to buy my sax reed?

What do you want? You want the whole local?

Yeah, because I figure between 500 and 1 ,000 people are going to show up, so we

want a big hall.

We?

How many times has Ivory carried musicians on credit? How many benefits

Ivory played in? All rights, all rights.

Leave the violins and the case. I'll find you a hall. Thank you.

Arnie Armisen.

Arnie Armisen and Zach Zachary aren't even around here. What, they quit paying

dues or something?

Something like that.

Arnie died last year.

Zach passed almost three years ago.

I just saw... Zach.

Sally Sullivan, this is Celeste Renaud. She's the president of the local and a

very good horn player.

Hi, my pleasure. Nice to meet you.

Sally does a little leg work for me every now and then.

Which reminds me, what did you hear from the arson investigator?

He's going to meet us at Ivory's in an hour.

Good. Thank you. See you later.

Nice to meet you.

See the pattern of intense heat there.

You're saying that it was definitely arson? Here's that way.

How's Naveen doing?

Terrible. Took a new job. Didn't work out, I heard.

Too bad. He had an accident.

How did it start?

Good question. If I had all the answers, I wouldn't be standing here inhaling

ashes. If he had half the answers, he'd been promoted a long time ago.

Any hunches? Wild guess, maybe?

Yeah, honey, obvious. Your guy wanted to collect some of the insurance, and he

figured a little paint and varnish in the ventilation system might pay off

pretty good.

Brilliant theory.

Ivory didn't have insurance.

Well, if this isn't an insurance scam, then what are you two doing here?

What am I doing here?

He's a friend.

You have a friend?

Your partner here gave me the impression it was a case.

She never mentioned it was charity.

Mind the tape.

You know what this is?

Um, yeah, it's a skate key, you know, for roller skates.

Is that it?

That's it. The report's going to say it's arson.

Probably insurance -related.

It expired.

He told you that.

Now you know why he never got promoted.

See you around. I got a guy fired up his barbecue on a carport.

Says the wind changed direction.

Torch his Rolls Royce.

Why would anybody burn...

Place.

Hey, man.

Just be at the benefit.

All right?

Good.

And you let me know if there's anybody who for any reason might want to go to

China.

Good.

Must have woken up half the musicians in the city.

I got about 30 absolutely will be there.

That ought to pay the cost of the hall.

Look, you're tired. Go home.

No, no. I want to find out who burned this place. Everyone I've talked to says

he hasn't got an enemy in the world.

Hey.

How's it going?

It's going to be a great party.

Everybody's going to be there. Nice.

I appreciate it.

Bernie mentioned you've got a couple of kids.

Yep. Two live ones.

There's a box of stuff I salvaged out in front of the shop. You're welcome to

poke through it. Help yourself.

Great. I'll check it out.

Night. I gotta sleep.

Take care.

So, you're probably wondering why I burnt my own shop.

Well, I didn't.

But I... I figured maybe you'd want to hear it from me.

I know you better than that, man.

I don't want to be on the street in the winter, you know.

Ray, Ray, boil it first, would you?

Hang on a second.

Hi, fellas.

I overheard you talking about being evicted from the hotel beside the music

store. Why's that?

So what, have you accomplished something?

I do private investigations.

Sure.

And I'm the cleanest I am.

Let's see some ID, babe.

Hey, you ain't no P .I.

You're the waitress at the Pacific.

Yeah?

Part -time.

And if you guys ever want to see another bowl of Johnny's clam chowder, you're

going to quit giving me grief.

Well,

so what do you want to know?

Owns the hotel. Why are you being evicted?

We're getting bounced because there's a new development going up.

Yeah. Only the fat cat who owns it can't get his permit. It's been stalled at

City Hall.

Huh.

Great. Thanks.

Try and die, Ray.

Do you remember who offered to buy you out?

No. I didn't pay any attention because I wasn't thinking about moving.

Everybody knows my shop is here.

The hotel residents have had eviction proceedings against them for the last

or seven months. Did you know that?

Then maybe the fire was intended for the hotel.

You'd like to think that a professional arsonist could get the right address.

You mean they started the fire here thinking it would spread to the hotel?

No, no, no. It was definitely a professional job. It's just something...

Not kosher.

Ivory, did you put in the stench yourself?

Mm -hmm, yeah.

I tied into the hotel line. The fumes were getting to me.

Where does it go?

Into the alley.

Into the alley?

The pipe runs from your back room through the hotel, right? Yeah.

It's the kitchen fan.

She can smell everything they're cooking.

Fire investigators said the fire began in and around the vent in your workroom,

right? Right. Sally, have you got a fingernail file? Oh, I have a penknife.

Great.

So standing right here, this looks like a vent that comes directly out of the

hotel. Ray!

How'd you like doing the nickel?

A nickel?

Wow. Yeah, when I give you a signal, I want you to chuck that ball hard as you

can into that vent.

Okay. No problem.

Don't talk to strangers, Ray.

The pipe.

The guy thinks it's a hotel pipe, but it takes a left turn.

Okay, let's do it.

Marie?

Ray! Check it now!

Come on, ball.

Come on, ball. Come on. Come, come.

So much for that theory.

Oh!

There it is. Oh, you're too much, man.

See, a guy gets a tennis ball, he fills it up with kerosene or something

flammable, he lights it, and he rolls it in.

You're good.

That's too weird for a tennis ball. No, no, no. He thinks it's going into the

kitchen. Well, a kitchen fire's unnatural.

Where's that skate key?

That's too small for a skate game, huh? Just watch.

It's a wind -up toy.

Not a tennis ball. It's a wind -up toy.

Sally, go down to City Hall.

Find out who owns the hotel.

I'll check with you later.

Where are you going?

Hey, lady, come and look at my chicken.

How about a nice dog to take home to the kitty, lady?

Tell me something good.

It's warm.

Yeah.

See, Nettie?

Not that he, my man.

Can I help you?

Yeah, tell him Bernie's looking for him. Got a job for him. Big corn.

Tell him to come on down to the office.

No, dude.

Hey, I can let you have the duck for five skins, my man.

Got one. Got one.

So you don't forget to give him that message.

I won't do it.

Check you later.

I can bring the pipes in off the street. Through that wall?

I'll save you 700 bucks.

Are you crazy?

Okay, through that wall. What's the entire damage?

Oh, well, come on over here. I'll show you.

So the hotel is owned by a company in the Grand Caymans?

Yeah.

The owner's hard to track. We send him registered mail. He sees it's from our

tenants association and he cars it.

Do you, um...

Have a name for the owner?

Jack Potter.

Potter?

He owns this place.

Wouldn't surprise me.

He owns half the city.

Well, I got another meeting. I better fly.

Do you have an address for him?

I got 200 addresses for him. None of them valid.

Be careful, Sal.

He's a powerful man.

I'll catch you later.

Thanks, Durs.

Next meal's on the house.

Oh, I need a signature.

I'm not signing it.

Find the landlord.

Get him to sign.

You know the weasel who set the fire and you're not going to turn him in?

No, I'm not going to turn him in.

Terrific. Excellent work.

Burning a hotel is attempted murder.

Am I right?

That depends on who's prosecuting the case. This guy owns the parking lot I

in.

Oh, Bernie, what do we do? Just roll over and play dead?

Ignore it? You jump on Potter, he's going to find out everything about you.

out your weaknesses, find out you work at the Pacific Cafe, and shut it down.

How's he going to shut down a restaurant?

He tried to burn down a hotel.

Come on in, Eddie.

Eddie, you know Sally?

Sally, my pleasure to meet you.

Sit down, Eddie.

So, Bern, what's the deal?

I don't got a lot of time. I'm getting ready for a little vacation.

I figured someplace not quite as warm, huh?

So, what's the job?

I've replayed at your daughter's wedding, am I right?

I didn't know. I didn't.

I messed up, you know.

I didn't know it was his joint.

It happens.

We know you tried to burn the hotel.

Yeah, I figured so.

So, maybe the police would like to know.

Sally, I don't think so.

Now, you turn me in, Byrne. Your name won't be worth squatting the street. You

know that.

Yeah, I know that.

That does not stop me.

You could have killed a hotel full of people. Do you know that?

They got fire alarms.

Now, what is this, Byrne?

You can't set me up like this.

That ain't right.

Eddie, we got a little problem.

You messed up. The hotel's still standing. You messed up. It's okay,

tenants, they didn't get burned out, but pottery can't stiff ivory like this.

Potter? Who said anything about Potter? Who gave you Potter?

I did.

All right.

Okay, all right. I don't know what to do, right?

I turn Potter, I'm dead.

What am I gonna do?

Put me with Potter. You go on a holiday.

Foxman, don't. No, I'll handle it.

I'll be finished.

It's time to retire, Eddie.

Yeah?

You've lost your job.

All right, all right, okay.

I'll put you with Potter.

I trust you, Bernie.

My life, right?

Listen, Bernie, do me a favor.

Tell Ivory I'm sorry.

I'd like it better if you sent him a postcard.

Nice meeting you, Miss Sally.

You're gonna let him go.

Eddie lit the match.

Potter ordered the bonfire.

Do you know how many Eddies there are in the world?

So?

Now what?

Private investigator.

I'm a friend of Eddie Pace.

Eddie was reminding me of your reputation as a generous man.

One might even say a philanthropist.

Lost lid.

Hey, Bernie.

Sally.

Beautiful thing here you did for me. Yeah, sure.

Listen, you know, you go on and then... But you join me on the set, right? I

think everybody's having too much fun.

You know, somebody left something for you. I don't know what it is, but... So,

would you like to struggle, Mrs. Sullivan?

Hey, sounds good to me. What is this?

Anonymous donation.

$30 ,000?

Yeah, guy didn't leave a name or a number. I guess you can pick up that

now.

But who in the hell?

Music lover, I guess.