All language subtitles for Alfred.Hitchcock.Presents.S06E22.The.Horseplayer.1080p.PCOK.WEBRip.AAC.2.0.H.265.-EDGE2020_track3_[eng]

Good evening,
ladies and gentlemen.

Someone had the brilliant idea

that I should don this costume
in order to dramatize the title

of tonight’s play.

It is called
"The Horseplayer."

Just a moment,
you forgot something.

I’m sure you want to know
who authored
this clever charade.

His previous works
include the following

one-minute audio collage.

-[priest] ...For the conversion
of sinners...
-[rain pouring]

...and for the liberty
and exaltation

of Holy Mother Church.

St. Michael, the archangel,
defend us in battle,

be our protection
against the wickedness

and snares of the devil.

May God Rebuke him,
we humbly pray,

and do Thou,
Prince of the heavenly host,

cast into hell Satan
and all the evil spirits

who wander through the world
seeking the ruin of souls.

-Amen.
-Amen.

[priest] The sacred heart
of Jesus.

[acolytes] Have mercy on us.

Most sacred heart of Jesus.

Have mercy on us.

[priest] Most sacred heart
of Jesus.

Have mercy on us.

I have been asked to announce

that the meeting
of the mothers’ committee

has been postponed
until next Thursday.

[knocking]

[priest] Come in.

Ah, Mr. Cheever.
I was expecting you.

Father Amion,
I brought those figures

we were talking about.

I’m afraid
it’s not very good news.

You see, Father,
it’s not just a matter

of a few broken shingles.

I could plug up one leak,
all right,

but another
would just break out

-someplace else.
-Yes. I understand Mr. Cheever.

You’re gonna have
to have a whole new set

of drains, downspouts...

I just can’t see it
being managed

for anything less than $1500.

Well, I’m sure
you’ve done your best.

Unfortunately, Mr. Cheever,
it seems

that the church treasury
has as many leaks

as the church roof.

We had so many repairs
this year.

But I have placed the facts
before the bishop,

and maybe he could work
a minor miracle.

Meanwhile, well,
we can only hope

for fair weather.

I’m very sorry, Father.

Thank you. Goodbye.

[man] Oh, Father...

would you take a look
at this?

What is it?

It’s a $10 bill, Father.

And so it is.

I don’t think I’ve seen
a $10 bill

in a mid-week collection
since before the war.

Did you see
who the kind donor was?

Oh, I couldn’t help
noticing him, sir.

Even before
he gave me his donation.

He was in the first pew
on the left.

I don’t think he’s ever been
at service before.

What was so unusual about him?

Well, he was sort
of a rough-looking fellow, sir,

uh... sort of sporty clothes.

Oh, you mean the gentleman
in the sport shirt?

Oh, yes. I did see him.

I don’t think
it’s very charitable

of you, Morton,
to criticize his attire.

Oh, I wasn’t criticizing him,
sir,

-especially after I saw
his donation.
-Huh?

Well, I didn’t quite mean it
like that, sir.

I understand how you feel.

It does seem a shame that
we should be so preoccupied

with our expenses,

but... I’m sure
things will improve.

Yes, Father.

The Lord will provide.

[priest praying in Latin]

Amen.

Dominus vobiscum.

[acolytes] Et cum spiritu tuo.

Oremus.

Orate Fratres.

[whispering]

May I speak with you
for a moment?

Huh? Oh, sure, Father.

I’ve been wanting to talk
to you for the past week.

Oh, really?

By the way, I enjoyed your
sermon very much, Father.

Oh, I hope you realized
that some of it

was meant for you.

I couldn’t help noticing
how generous you’ve been

to our poor church.

Are you new in the parish?

Oh, no. I’ve been around
this neighborhood

over 20 years now,
only, huh...

you know,
I ain’t never been much

for churches.

In fact, the first time
I came in here

was about two weeks ago,

on a Tuesday.

Well, I’m certainly glad
that you’ve changed your mind.

Seems to me I’ve seen you
here several times

during the past two weeks

Well, yeah.

It’s OK, ain’t it, Father?

I mean, you don’t mind, huh?

Mind?

Why should I mind?

Well, I don’t know.

By the way, my name
is Sheridan,

and I-- I sure
appreciate it, Father.

It’s meant an awful lot to me
to come here to the church.

Well, I’m glad.

Yeah, I’m glad too, you see?

When I saw that little sign
of yours,

you know the little sign
you got outside,

says "Try Prayer"?

I says to myself,
"Well, whatta you got to lose?

You ain’t had no luck
at nothing else, so...

why not give
this prayer thing a chance?"

So I came in and tried it.

And did it help?

Oh, boy. I’ll say it helped.

Well, it makes me very happy
to hear you say so,

-Mr. Sheridan.
-Yeah.

You won’t believe this,
Father,

but that day I had six winners
out of eight.

Six out of eight,
and one of them was

a 20-1 shot.

I’ve never had a day
like that

since I’ve been going
to the track.

In fact, I was down
to my last two bucks.

Just a moment...

I don’t understand
what you mean.

The track, Father,
you know, the horses.

Look, I don’t want you
to get sore.

I suppose a guy like you,
you probably don’t go in

for gambling
and stuff like that, huh?

You mean...

my sermon sent you
to the race track?

Oh, no.
I was gonna go anyhow,

I go to the track all the time.
That’s how I make my living.

You see, I used to be
in the hardware business,

but I got kind
of tired of it,

so, as I say, when I saw
that sign of yours,

I says, "Why don’t we give it
a whirl, Charlie?

What have we got to lose?"

So I started praying.

Boy, how I prayed.

"Give me a winner, please.
Please, God, give me a winner."

So what happened?
I got six of ’em.

And I’ve been picking ’em
real good ever since.

Mr. Sheridan,

I don’t think you understood
my message at all.

I said that prayer
could work miracles

but not for such selfish aims.

Well, it sure is a miracle,
all right, Father?

And believe me,
I owe it all to you.

There’s been
a misunderstanding.

You’ve made a mistake,
Mr. Sheridan.

Prayer isn’t intended
for horse races.

You can’t pray
for your purse

and neglect your soul.

Oh.

I thought you’d be sore.

Oh, no. I’m not angry.
Just look at it this way.

Now... suppose everyone
at the track prayed

for his horse to win.

Now, you know that isn’t
impossible, don’t you?

So don’t you realize
what a dilemma

would be presented
to the Lord?

Is that fair?

Yeah, I never thought
of it that way,

I guess you are right.

Then you do see
the error of it?

Well, yeah,
it would be tough,

that is if everybody prayed
for a winner.

Only they don’t, see?

Everybody ain’t wise
to this prayer racket, Father.

And that’s their hard luck,
ain’t it?

[knocking]

Come in.

Father Amion.

[Amion] Yes, Morton?

That man, he’s back again.

I suppose you mean
Mr. Sheridan.

Yes, Father.

As I passed his pew
a few minutes ago,

he kept saying something
about Satan.

Satan? Oh, I don’t think
you heard correctly, Morton.

Oh, yes I did, Father.

He kept saying Satan...
or... or devil,

or something like that.

That’s it! Red Devil.

He kept saying it
over and over.

I wouldn’t worry about it,
Morton.

Red Devil is undoubtedly
the name of a horse.

[knocking]

Excuse me, could I see
Father Amion for a minute?

Come in, Mr. Sheridan.

[mumbles]

I hate to butt in on you
like this, Father.

I know you are a busy man.

That’s quite all right,
Mr. Sheridan.

But I just came in
to make a little donation.

By the way, you know
that roof of yours is leaking?

I just got a shot of water
right in the head.

-I’m aware of it.
-Well,

anyway, as I was saying,

I came in to donate
these 30 bucks.

You see, I was
at the track yesterday,

and I had
a pretty good sized bet

on a horse named
Branding Iron.

You know, one of the horses
I was praying for?

So as they lined up
at the starting gate,

I says to myself,
"If branding Iron wins

this race, I’m giving
30 bucks to the church."

So there you are, Father.

He wins by seven lengths.

There is no need
for you to tell me

where your donation
comes from,

Mr. Sheridan.
I thank you for it,

but I’d rather not discuss
the source.

Oh, you’re still mad at me,
huh?

I was never mad at you.

I’m praying for you,
Mr. Sheridan.

Oh, yeah?

Boy! No I know I can’t miss.

Oh, don’t misunderstand me.

I’m praying for your soul,

not your horses.

Oh.

Now, I don’t want you to think
that I’m ungrateful.

Frankly, as you know,
our church is a poor one,

and we can use any donations.

You’ve been a great help

and I appreciate it.

You’re welcome, Father,
and you deserve it.

And if I have again
anything special,

you know,
a horse that’s real hot

and you’d like to put down
a little money...

Really, Mr. Sheridan!

Wait a minute.

I think I got
just the horse for you.

Red Devil in the fourth race
at Belmont.

Do you mind if I use
your phone a second?

[Amion] Mr. Sheridan.

Remember where you are.

I’m sorry, Father,
I only thought that--

I have no wish to interfere
with your way of life,

and I certainly don’t want
to be involved in it.

Our church will survive
without race horses.

[Amion] You take care
of that cold, Mrs. Spencer.

And tell your husband
I’ll stop by

to see him next week.

[loud honking]

Hi, Father,
can I give you a lift?

[Amion] No, thank you.

I’m only going a few blocks
and I rather enjoy the walk.

Oh. How do you like it?

Brand new,
and I don’t really even owe
a nickel on it.

It’s a very handsome vehicle.

Yeah, thanks.

Funny how these things
work out, huh?

You know, it was less
than a month ago

I only had two bucks
to my name.

[Amion] Remarkable.

You know something, Father?

You know how many winners
I had last week alone?

No.

[Sheridan] Fourteen out
of eighteen.

Seems every time
I pray real hard

for a horse, it turns out
to be practically a sure thing.

Say, Father, I couldn’t help
but notice

that roof of yours
still needs fixing.

You ain’t had no luck
raising the dough, huh?

Not for the moment, no.

Well, look.
I know how you feel about
the races and all that,

if you’ve got a few bucks
to spare,

there’s a horse going
this afternoon

named Sally’s Pal--

Mr. Sheridan,

I thought
we’d closed that subject.

But just listen to me
a minute, Father.

Let me tell you
about this horse.

You see,
they’ve been training him

in secret, and I got it
straight from the owners

that the horse
is absolutely ready.

In fact, he busted
the track record

by over 2/5 of a second.

Not only once,
but a couple of times.

This afternoon he’s starting
in his first big race,

and all he’s got against him

is a bunch of broken down
fillies, well...

I don’t have to tell you,
Father,

you know how colts
run away from fillies.

I know nothing of the kind.

Well,
take my word for it, Father,

they run like burglars.

And according
to the morning-line,

the horse had a pay
of about 15-1,

probably even more than that.

So it looks
like a pretty good spot for you

to pick up a fast buck.

And if I
really start praying--

I’m afraid I have to go,
Mr. Sheridan.

I have a church council meeting
this morning.

Oh, well, it’s up to you,
Father.

All I know is I’m putting
my last buck on this horse,

right on the nose,

so if everything goes
all right,

I probably won’t be seeing
you around no more.

Why is that?

Oh, I guess
I forgot to tell you

I’m buying me a place
down in Florida,

got a wonderful location,
right between

a catholic church
and Hialeah.

Well, I wish you
the best of luck,
Mr. Sheridan.

I really do.

[Sheridan]
Thank you, Father.

Uh... Mr. Sheridan,
you are really sure

of this horse, aren’t you?

Oh, sure,
I’m absolutely positive,
Father.

You know, like I told you,

I’ve been praying real hard
all week.

Plus, which I know
the horse has got the stuff.

If-- If someone bet $500
on this horse,

what might he expect to win?

Well, let me see.

Let’s just say worse comes
to worse and the horse only pays
ten bucks,

the least a guy could pick up
would be about $2500.

$2500.

[Sheridan] Mm-hmm.

Mr. Sheridan,
if I were to give you $500,

could you... arrange this...

transaction for me?

You mean it, Father?

[Amion] Would you?

Well, sure, I’d be glad to.

You know, you do unto me,
I do unto you.

-Good morning, Father.
-Good morning.

Closing out
your savings account?

Yes.

-Anything wrong, Father?
-Nothing wrong.

Our service
has been satisfactory,

hasn’t it?

Very satisfactory.

How would you like
the money, Father?

Doesn’t matter.

Oh, put it
in large bills, please.

[banker] Fifties?

That will do it.

Thank you.

[banker]
Thank you, Father.

[Sheridan] OK, Father.

Good luck to us.

I don’t know what came over me,
Your Excellency.

I’ve never done
such a thing before.

Now, now, Father.

I find it hard to believe
you could have done anything

really wrong.

The moment I did it,
I regretted it.

If I could have found the man,
I would have stopped him,

but I don’t even know
where to reach him.

Please, Father.

How can I help you
if I don’t know

what it is you’ve done?

Your Excellency...

I bet money on a horse.

I see.

And just how much money
did you bet?

All I had.

$500. I went to the bank
and closed out

my savings account.

Well...

that is something
to be concerned about.

Whatever possessed you,
Father?

You were never a gambling man,
nor did you ever care much
about money.

I don’t care
about the savings.

I just hope
that I’d make enough money

to pay for the roof repairs
we’ve needed for so long.

I see.

I shall never forgive myself
for what I did.

I shall never understand
why I did it.

The man I gave the money to,

he seemed so sure of himself,

so successful.

Help me to understand
what I’ve done.

Help me.

Help me, please,
to explain it to myself.

Yes.

I find it hard to believe,
Father.

If I didn’t know you better,

if you were a young man,

I might understand
such rashness.

But it’s 40 years,

40 years
since you took your vows.

And to do such a--
such a--

such a foolhardy thing.

I know, I know.
Please, tell me what must I do?

[bishop] You say...

you don’t know how
to find this man

to whom you gave the money.

[Amion] No.

So there’s no way
of preventing this bet

from being made?

No.

There isn’t.

You see...
the race is this afternoon.

Then... there’s only
one thing to be done.

Only one way
to make restitution.

And that is?

You must pray, Father.

You must pray
as you have never prayed
before.

And I’ll add my prayers
to yours.

You must pray
for that horse not to win.

-Not to win?
-Yes.

You can’t expect
a reward for your error,

no matter what
the consequences.

I can see no other expiation,

except to ask the Lord
to withhold this victory.

You must pray for this
with all your might.

But the money,
Your Excellency,

we’re in such need now.

The money does not matter.

You are right, of course.

I’ll do as you say,
Your Excellency.

We must pray that the horse...

won’t win.

[Amion praying in Latin]

Soul of Christ
be my sanctification.

Body of Christ,
be my salvation.

Grant me, oh, Lord,
this wish I ask

in sorrow and repentance.

Amen.

Father Amion.

[Amion] Yes, Morton?

Look, he’s back.

It’s all right, my son.

I understand.

You understand what?

About the race this afternoon.

You’ve just returned?

Yeah, I just got back
a little while ago.

And, uh...
this horse, this...

Sally’s Pal, it didn’t win?

No, it dud.

Well, now, I don’t want you
to blame yourself.

You were trying to do good
in your own fashion.

Whatever blame there is
must fall on my shoulders.

[Sheridan] I just
don’t understand it, though,

Father, you know,
it was a sure thing

if I ever saw one.

At the head of the stretch
he’s leading by four lengths.

Then all of the sudden,
he quits on me.

I just don’t understand it.

Sure thing like that,
and he quits.

Trouble is I had my last nickel
bet on him,

right on the nose, so...

now I’m back
just where I started

from what,
two buck on my pocket.

I think maybe I ought to go
back in the hardware business.

What do you think, Father?

I think it’s a very good idea.

Yeah. I think so too.

Well... anyway,
here’s your money.

My money?

[Sheridan] Well, yeah.

You don’t think I was
gonna risk your dough

on a win bet, did you?

I took the $500
and I bet him to place,

so he came in second
and paid eight dollars

and forty cents, so...

there you are,
it’s, uh, $2100 you won.

The sponsor is being
unusually difficult

about this matter
of the horse costume.

I’ve explained
the labor-saving advantages

of employing a real horse
to do the work of two men,

but he is so enchanted
with this pun of his,

on the word
"horseplayer,"

that he insists
on having it out with me.

I shall be back shortly.

It will only take a minute
to put him in his place.