Original subtitles

Hey, Dagger,

we got company.

Came on early.

Hold it!

Hello, Johnny.

Listen, bum, you let this hood by your soul, not mine.

Get him out!

Look at all that's here.

Some for them, some for us, some for you.

Tell the crumb he wants to hijack shipments.

He does it where I can't see him.

All right!

Unload this truck!

Everything off!

Now!

Go!

So far no ID, no stair boons, no bullet holes.

Yeah, somewhere a family won't serve the soup until he comes home.

What we do have is a bruise on the back of

his neck like somebody gave him a karate chop.

He's a dock worker.

In these clothes he was probably still on the job.

Where'd he go in?

Around 59th Street.

Beaten up?

Wasted.

And still they go on trying to deal with these hijackers all by themselves.

Guys on the waterfront have a code.

Don't think anybody, no matter what he did, take care of it on your own.

It's dumb!

Oh yeah, it's dumb.

But you know, you have to take a minute sometime to admire him.

Hank's money's no good today.

One money, the ward gave me 26 bucks on my fare to the city.

Hey Gino, you got your friend back.

Man, he was moping around while you were gone.

Not me.

Oh, boy.

So, how was it?

If I had your guts it'd be better.

Like I said before, we stand together, they can't kill us all, right?

Yeah, just like Johnny Bannister.

What happened to Johnny Bannister?

I killed him.

I figured that was an accident.

You figured, don't you know?

Haven't I told you a hundred times what this is all about?

How did it happen?

Cops fished him out of the river.

We heard he was all broken up.

That don't mean that nobody did it.

Nobody?

You're right.

It wasn't nobody.

It was Dagger, bribing us and conning us and threatening

us to help them steal and killing us if we don't.

But Dagger never tried to hustle me into no deals.

Not once, not all the time we was playing cards.

You did what?

Well, I just hung around for a few games.

Well, what am I going to do with you?

All those months in the slammer, worrying that those

bums are going to con you into something real bad.

And he sits down and plays cards with them.

Gino, you're going to wind up in the morgue with a tag on your toe!

Hey, easy.

They couldn't wait for you to get out.

This party was his idea.

Yeah?

Is that right, this was all your idea?

So?

Where's the bruds?

I don't know.

Hello, Hank.

Dagger wants to see you outside.

Tell Dagger he's at a party.

No, it's all right. I'll see Dagger.

Why not? Come on, sir.

Hello, Hank.

Probably belong next to the garbage.

Get the car.

Hey, come on.

I got a present for you.

Like Bannister got?

Bannister was a fool.

Sure. He had a family. He didn't want to take no chances.

He didn't want no trouble.

He was dumb.

Hank, come on.

I know how to show a guy how I feel when he does something for me.

We had no deal. We had no agreement.

But you didn't talk to the crime commission about me.

I didn't talk because I'm not a stoolie.

Take it. Money don't know who its father is.

Hank, enjoy.

Look at this!

This is what you're all afraid of!

You okay?

Yeah, I'm all right.

Gino. - What?

For the last time, they're friends of mine.

Not both.

Okay.

[voices talking over each other]

We're gonna have a game later.

Yeah, I gotta stay with Hank.

When are you gonna be your own mayor, Gino?

Yeah, okay, okay. Why am I so hot?

Because I'm waiting for you to say that you also thought he was a human being.

Saw who saw?

The floater?

Yeah, male, Caucasian, about 40.

Good general health, no alcohol in blood, no water in lungs.

Dead before he went in, broken fibula, broken vertebrae, broken ribs.

There was another big score on the docs.

They hijacked over half a million in electronic components.

Pier?

72.

Okay, Frank.

Bracca, Saperstein, the floater's picture, fast.

Well, I think when I have and ID now.

I just heard where he worked.

Who told you?

You did, Frank.

Pier 72.

Let's go.

- They work all day? - They tip off after lunch.

- And nobody saw anything or anybody?

I mean, what am I, so profound I leave you all speechless?

They've got you on your knees.

Next position is belly up.

I wonder if somebody get it through his head

that you guys can't fight these guys alone.

- We don't know what happened to Bannister.

- You don't know what happened to John Bannister?

- No, if you didn't even know what happened to Seymour Gold,

who sat in his ripped-off truck with a bullet in the back of his head,

right outside that diner where you guys eat.

- You don't think we'd touch?

- Now where do you think I'd get an idea like that?

- Pier 72, Dispatch.

- Yeah, it's good to see you out, Mr. Shop Steward.

- So? - So, I can't wait to be with you again.

Look, baby, the sign you're carrying, "Clean your own house,"

well, nobody's reading it.

- I'll get the message.

- I think they already got one.

You know, I walked on the dock, and they jumped like the ground was hot.

Somebody's making a deal to score again, right?

- Yeah, that's what we heard.

- Now, details,

details, like who are they leading on this time?

- That's all you get. - Listen to me.

These guys are a nickel and diamond anyway.

They're going for big scores, and they kill people.

The Hudson River is filling with bodies.

I gave you enough time to do it your way, so tell me.

Where do we meet?

I'll be there.

- Where the hell have you been? I had a hard time covering for you.

- In a game.

- Dagger again after I told you?

- Hey, yeah, but this time I won, huh?

- I see that.

What's he want you to do for it?

- Nothing.

- Don't tell me nothing.

Gino, you know what he's about.

He ain't one of us.

- What about Kojak, huh?

I mean, you know, he ain't one of us either.

- Listen, I want you to forget that telephone call, OK?

- Sure, and you go right back in the slammer, right?

- Gino, I can't make it for both of us.

It's just too much.

- Maybe you won't have to.

I can do something for you too, you know?

I'll see you later.

- Would you look at that scene, and how many of those trucks are legitimate?

If we stopped to check all of them,

there would be a jam from here to the Canadian border.

How about that lunch wagon over there?

He gets on any dock he wants, and while the guys are eating,

maybe he's checking out which truck to carry what

load, and what's staying overnight on which dock.

- So where do we start?

- We already started when I made that phone call.

- All I heard was, was a big bus going down tomorrow, or maybe the next day.

- They come near my dock, I'll break their heads.

- Yeah, but look what Bannister got.

Maybe we should try to get along.

- No, no, we get along with part of them, with thieves.

- Right.

- Next thing we'll be knocking each other off to cover ourselves.

- All right, remember, you guys,

one of us stays close to him at all times,

especially since he may die, you eat his own money.

(laughing)

- See you tomorrow.

- See you tomorrow.

- Hey look, I'll see you guys later, all right?

I gotta call you later.

- Yeah, see you tomorrow.

- Hey, let's go this way.

- Why, this way?

- Come on.

(dramatic music)

Now just listen, huh?

They only wanna get along.

Is that what you told him?

- We told him he's okay with us, that's what we told him.

- So you get him in the game and you feed him a few bucks.

- And you buy it.

- He knows what he's doing.

- He don't know.

He don't even see you.

He don't look past the fancy clothes and the big mouth.

- Hey, come on, Hank, huh?

Don't put me down.

- Hey, you did it for the money, do you know why-- - Shut up.

- Now wait a minute,

I mean, do what?

- I'll see you at the game tonight.

- I only tried to bring you guys together, huh?

I mean, do what?

- Go ahead, I'll be okay.

I said go on.

I'll meet you later.

Go on.

- You're gonna stick to your stupid honor code and you're gonna tell me you did it.

- Gotcha.

- You did it, Chino.

Please, you can't make it alone.

(radio chatter)

- What do you got?

- Nobody heard anything.

Nobody saw anything.

And nothing happened.

- Kojak's been close to this.

What does he say? - I don't know.

- You don't know?

- Hey, you've seen one warehouse, you've seen them all.

- Yeah.

- It's a state of the art, Frank.

It looks and it smells like what it is, only these days it's refreshing.

- You're really hung up over this one, huh?

- Well, I called him,

I pressured him to meet me, only I got here third.

- Don't let it get you.

It happens in this job.

- Sure it does.

- Where you going?

- Well, do what you just called it, Frank.

Do my job.

- Ace nine bets.

I raise.

- Ta-da, whoop.

- Kojak, what are you doing here?

- Well, I'd like you to listen to me,

Mr. Dirty Dagger.

You know, there's nothing romantic about what I do.

Usually it's not very exciting.

What are you playing, Harlow?

- Charming cards.

- But at a time like this, I feel it cooking inside me.

I can't wait to grab people.

I can't wait to start shaking the tree, you know what I mean?

Hey, huh, what's that, huh?

I'm gonna pin you with this one, baby.

One way or the other, I'll nail you into the box.

And I came here to tell you that.

- He threatened me.

- Mr. Dagger, I'm not threatening you.

I'm simply informing you

that I'm about to focus my

investigation of several recent homicides on you.

- He just threatened me.

- You know, the worst of it is that when I get you,

you'll be lying in the same ground with Hank.

- Now I ask you, is that a threat?

- Get through, guys.

Come on, come on, up on the bar.

Anything that cuts on the bar, you've been through before, what do you say, huh?

- Okay, a man was knifed in an alley three blocks from here.

Most of you knew him.

I want you to tell my officers what you heard and what you saw.

I want to even know about a piece of paper

that blew down the street when there was no wind.

I want it all.

- Tingo.

- Didn't I warn you, no more number games.

Didn't I say, make me look bad, and I'll shut you?

- We make it look better every time.

- Freeze!

- What did you say to myself?

- Well, I heard you've been sweeping up what you could on Dagger,

so I got a name.

- I didn't hear a name.

- Dave.

Officer, honestly, really, I only came here to buy a whole seal dress, really.

Yeah, well, I knew I'd like both of them, sweetie.

Now, you didn't tell me you're still competing with Vegas, Davey boy.

I knew, but you didn't tell me.

Well, I knew and you told me the recession was gonna last a while.

You wanna buy a dress factory? Extremely deflatable price.

The guy was hit on Pier 72? Yeah, I heard.

Now, what else you hear?

Nobody knows who did it.

Uh, Davey, Davey, suddenly I can see this place of yours on the Manhattan South Board

and it's scheduled for regular visits by our gambling squad.

Theo, I'm only filling my natural human need for excitement.

I bet you need to be a fence and deal with animals like Dagger.

How natural is that?

He's a degenerate. Would I deal with a degenerate?

Wait, he made it sound so easy.

Guys pick a crate of Japanese portables off the docks, right?

And I move them.

What's wrong with that? More than them get damaged in transit.

You know, when I was in the war, a Nazi officer, I just captured, he stood there.

We're here standing.

He explained to me the way you're explaining.

That shooting up a squad of Greek commanders while they stood with their hands up

was really nothing terrible because most of

them would have died sooner or later anyway.

So you know what I did?

I broke his jaw.

Okay.

Look, it's a real big score this time.

Maybe a million bucks.

It's got me worried.

I got the word out to get ready to receive it.

And where?

It's watches. I don't know where. Top Stuff, Swiss.

They already got a customer.

All I do is stand between them.

Call me.

On my mother's grave.

Davy, can we get off the record for a second?

I mean, be unofficial, just two guys.

Sure.

Don't use your mother's name that way.

You put her through enough when she was alive.

Hello.

What time is it?

Tuesday.

I could talk better after dark.

Hank is dead.

You thinking about something?

Yeah.

It's a nice robe.

Gino gave it to me.

He's also thinking about what we get to work with at the start of our lives.

And what we do with it.

Well, I'm gonna get myself squared around.

Well, I'm gonna try.

You know, every day I try.

And something like this happens.

I say to myself, what the hell?

We're all gonna end up dead.

What difference does it make how we get there?

Hank was trying to get there a different way.

I don't know who did it, Theo.

I swear.

Maybe you don't know what you know.

People do that.

They rule out a lot of things a cop can use.

Like what?

Like who was with Hank before he died.

So far, all I have is that he left the dock with

a gang of guys, then everybody went with your way.

I didn't even see him all day long.

You're lying, lady. He said you had company.

Yeah, well, there's nobody you need to know about.

You hear anything about a John Bannister?

That's the guy you found on the river? No.

You meant the type.

Not like us.

Ordinary guy.

Wife, kids, dull.

Nobody I need to know about.

So you mad now, huh?

Yeah, I'm mad.

Okay.

Dagger, he calls me up.

He says he wants me to get some of my girlfriends together.

He wants to celebrate something.

When?

Tomorrow.

Theo!

Are we still friends?

I'm so very sorry.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Gino.

Oh, my Gino.

What's to happen to you?

I'll be okay.

He loved you more than a brother, Gino.

Who did this to him?

I don't know.

Thanks God they didn't hurt you, too.

Hey, Lieutenant, Bender just got here.

Gino showed yet?

They're all in there now.

Let's go.

Hey, that's nice and Ginorous, Gino.

Oh, yeah, he's got a big heart.

He even bought Claire a new bathrobe, huh?

I was in the game.

I got lucky.

Tell him who you beat.

Lucas, uh, Jones.

And Dagger?

Huh?

Yeah, he took a pot from Dagger.

All for nothing.

Ain't that right, Gino?

Yeah, that works.

Hard at times.

One hell of a way to pay a condolence call, isn't it?

He got no right to talk to me like that.

Hey, take it easy, all of you.

This is a wake.

Besides that, you're upsetting his old mother.

It's our problem, Kojak.

Oh.

No more, Freddy.

Now, come on.

Let's have a little talk.

What for?

Come on. Let's go.

No, wait.

So talk.

Kojak knew.

Knew what?

That the score was really big.

Hey, we better cool it.

The stuff is already sold.

If we don't deliver, the big boys will take us out.

He know where?

No, Dagger. He asked me.

So we tell him.

Or he won't quit digging.

Go find Gino.

Boy, you have big shots, right?

Your co-workers, your fellow workers.

All big shots, big mouths.

Let's take up a collection, they say.

So what do they do? Ones, fives?

Not a test spot in a pile.

Then you dump in how much, Gino?

$100.

Hey, that's half your pay.

No wonder the guy's got angry.

He ashamed him.

But it's a beautiful gesture.

And there's Hank's mother, that nice old lady.

She's got nobody but you, right?

She must be thrilled.

Oh, cut it, Frank. He's upset enough.

Gino, I saw Clara's robe.

Class.

She can wear it at the funeral.

You hear about a big score coming down?

No, no.

John Bannister is dead.

Hank is dead.

When are you guys going to stop honoring those killers?

Why don't you let me out of here?

And I'll find out who done it.

Hey, I know what to do to him.

Well, we know who did it, Gino.

We need a witness.

We know he left work with a bunch of you guys.

From there on, it gets a little fuzzy.

Now who was with him last?

Nobody's got no respect for a stoolie,

no matter what it's about.

Ask Hank, he'll tell you.

Oh, boy.

We're sitting here, we're talking.

For a minute I forgot.

You'll improve your memory at the grave.

Please call Jack.

I got a headache and I've been drinking.

Gino.

It's all... Gino, knocking around in my head.

You just got to help me get it all together.

Like he said, guys will find out who set him up.

Who set up?

You mean he was led there?

Well, somebody must have left him alone.

Who did?

You stuck to him like glue since he came back into town.

I guess I know why I'm here.

This guy thinks I had something to do with Hank's death.

I'll say it simpler.

You're our number one suspect.

Gino.

You know, maybe the guys will get the same idea.

And what good is your crummy code then?

We was all walking along.

And this guy said that he had some personal

to talk to Hank about and why did I get lost?

So I didn't like it.

But Hank said, go on, go on.

So I left.

Oh, I didn't want to.

This guy got to be shop steward, so when Hank came back, he had to give the job.

I guess he didn't like that.

Bender.

I did something terrible just now so you won't tell nobody, right?

Hmm.

Crocker.

He's lying to cover for himself.

Oh, Frank, don't tell me he's lying, okay?

Fine, I won't tell you he's lying.

Good, then I want you to think about it for a while.

The name is Bender Dockworker Union Officer.

Bring him in.

Come on, what's this all about, huh?

There's a big score coming up. What's that about?

Look, a guy comes on a dock, he says, turn your back.

You know how many times that can happen?

You know how much was lifted from the dock

since I've been in this room? What am I gonna do?

Make my wife a widow while they drive away with the goods?

Well, Hank tried to fight him.

Yeah, and Hank is very dead.

And you were the last one with him.

Me? No.

No, I left him with Gino.

Bender, you told your wife you were with Hank,

but you weren't.

Then you say you went for a long walk,

but you can't remember where.

Look, if I tell you, and, uh,

I don't have nothing to do with this, will you, uh. ..

I mean... I think you went to an X-rated movie.

Yeah.

Well, almost.

Hey! Hey, guys!

I won again.

Hey, drinks are on me.

Hey.

Hey.

Hey, you're sitting there with such a heavy horse.

And you're feeling no pain.

He was the greatest guy I ever saw.

Gino, what happened?

You were not supposed to leave him alone.

I don't want to talk about it anymore.

So, uh, that's all I'm gonna say.

We just left Bender at his house.

Cops let him go.

It was you or him yesterday afternoon.

We narrowed it to that.

No.

I won't think of nobody,

even if he did it to my best friend.

Hold it! We're not sure.

We're not sure.

Yeah, I can handle myself.

Forget them.

You're with us now, listen.

I want you to do something.

Sure, Dagger.

You want me to teach you how to play cards?

Call Kojak.

We'll tell you what to say.

Okay.

Then we want you to set up a guy.

Who?

What are you worrying about?

It's a piece of cake.

I gotta hurt him?

You gotta kill him.

The cards.

I let you win.

And you sold your friend out.

If the guys find out, you're wasted.

They didn't know what you were gonna do with them.

You knew. - No.

You wanted to feel big.

You wanted to feel important.

And now you're here.

I'll ask you again, is this a setup?

You said it takes more guts to open your mouth, so I'm opening it.

They're gonna hit this Pier 26 today, 4 o'clock this afternoon.

I gotta get them in.

I know it's this afternoon.

I got it firsthand.

I just want to know how Dagger pulls it off.

I guess they figure I'm gonna get them in.

In where?

Pier 26, I told you.

What time?

4 o'clock.

I told you that too.

Yeah.

And how would you do it?

They didn't tell me that yet.

What'd you do that for?

It's my lie detector.

I ain't lying.

Your yellow sheet is this long with the sole charges.

You got a temper that won't stop.

How come I'm still standing?

And how come you want me to buy this story?

Okay.

So forget it.

Got any money?

I see. You won again.

Now you give me a minute, Gino.

I want to understand you.

Maybe I'm slow, okay?

You're fingering Dagger.

You won't know.

Ha ha.

You won't have to put too much together if we come down on him.

Yeah, we've been walking along the waterfront together,

smelling the stink of the river together, having an argument together,

where everybody including Dagger can see us.

I know why you won't believe me.

Because you think I've walked away from Hank and let him get killed.

I know what happened to Hank.

And I know how it happened.

And I know who left him alone.

You notice how some of them seagulls out there stay together?

But there's always one or two that are left alone.

Maybe once.

Just for a second, they did something.

And they can't never take it back.

So they just sit out on them pylons.

By themselves.

And sit.

I thought you said Pier 26.

I got it mixed up.

Yeah, but this is Fred's place.

So it'll be easier to get in.

Missed this morning's shape-up.

I figured the guys are mad at me.

Are they wrong?

You want to hear it all?

Go ahead, talk.

Better keep walking.

Hey, what are you up to?

I'm sorry, Fred, I didn't know it was going to be you, I swear.

Great pleasure to say that Gino ripped us off.

But he did rip us off.

No.

He told me what he knew so they caught him on the location of the rip-off.

Let's see about some of the hangouts he gave us.

Come on.

When do I get paid?

Tonight, at the game.

Nothing changes, Dick.

There's nobody in sight.

You did fine, Gino.

Three blacks from the hikes.

We could have deliberately stuck in a wheel bow.

Unload the truck, Jones.

DeVito, come over here.

I want to tell you something.

You know what's been happening in this warehouse... - Hold it.

Freeze!

Nice shirt, Frank.

You're a captain.

Gino's with us on this all the way, and I want you guys to know that.

Dagger won't beat this one.

They, uh, fooled me, didn't they?

He told me everything he knew about them.

That's how we got here.

You're gonna arrest me?

Hey, baby.

What happened between you and Hank was not against any law, and I'm not a priest.

You did what you did for your own reasons, and you'll have to live with them.

Why don't you take a trip?

Move someplace else.

Just don't go back.

Uh, Lieutenant.

There's a knock when you walk into private quarters.

That's a knock. She says it's important.

Where's Gino?

Uh, trying to live with himself.

Theo, we won't have time.

The guys were gonna kill Bender.

I couldn't let them do that.

He didn't leave Hank in that alley. You know that.

Where are they now?

They were in the tavern bracing themselves for the funeral.

Working up a whole head of steam over Gino.

Theo's scared.

I'm sorry I'm late.

I did something important today.

Something Hank would be proud of.

He shouldn't have come, Gino.

Hey, hey, Fred.

Tell him what we did today.

We got Dagger, huh?

Tell him, Fred.

Gino!

He... He was my friend, Kojak.

So this poor slobber gets punished, right?

The gang's the juicier,

and the gangs that are gonna use you, they go on.

Is that the way it is?

Yes.

It's a new hero among you.

And I don't want to hear that he got what he deserved.

Somebody just killed the man.

But I'm gonna find out who you are.

And I'll pluck you out.

You have a code, too.