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00:00The Adventures of Michael Shane, Private Detective.
00:10The people who make 76 gasoline and Triton motor oil, Union Oil Company present...
00:20The Adventures of Michael Shane, Private Detective, starring Wally Mayer and Kathy Lewis.
00:30The Adventures of Michael Shane, Private Detective, starring Wally Mayer and Kathy Lewis.
00:38It's one of those drowsy summer afternoons.
00:41The sort of day executives spend on their favorite golf courts, and office workers spend watching the clock.
00:47But not Mike Shane. He's hard at work.
00:50Hunched over a desk in his private office, Mike's mind is clicking like a Powell Street cable car.
00:55In fact, he's right in the middle of a crossword puzzle.
00:59All this night, his capable assistant is daydreaming in the outer office, gazing out a window at San Francisco's rooftops.
01:05A quiet day? Let's be frank, it's a downright dull afternoon.
01:09But wait!
01:11Is this Michael Shane's office?
01:13Ah, yes. Do you wish to see him?
01:15Idiotic question.
01:17Of course I wish to see him. In there, I suppose.
01:20Wait! Well, of all the nerve.
01:23Are you Michael Shane?
01:25Yes. And the young lady who was suffering from spring fever is my usually capable assistant, Miss Phyllis Knight.
01:30Won't you have a chair?
01:32I'm Winifred Spencer, the society columnist.
01:35I believe that is the correct title, although most of my readers and radio listeners prefer to call me a gossip writer.
01:42I know something of your work as a detective, Mr. Shane.
01:45Well, I'm just an amateur, Miss Spencer, in comparison with you, when I think of all the skeletons you've dug out of closets.
01:50I'm afraid I've found one too many, Mr. Shane.
01:53I received this letter this morning.
01:56I'm going to kill you.
01:58Your poison words have caused grief, wrecked fortunes, divorce, suicides.
02:04Now they're going to cause your death.
02:07There are scores who would like to kill you. None has a better reason than I, so I'm going to kill you.
02:12What would you do if you received such a letter?
02:14I'd read it the second time on a train, a fast train.
02:17No, Mr. Shane. You'd go after the writer, and that's exactly what I'm going to do.
02:21You think you know the person?
02:23I hope I know tonight.
02:25Mr. Shane, will you and Miss...
02:28Miss Knight?
02:29Will you and Miss Knight be at my home at eight o'clock?
02:32I'm having a dinner party, and I believe you will find the guests interesting.
02:36You may even find the person so intent on murdering me.
02:40We'll be there, Miss Spencer. Oh, may I keep this note and the envelope, too, please?
02:43Of course. And please, Dress, you're to be friends from out of town tonight.
02:48We'll endeavor to be presentable.
02:49And I trust prompt. Goodbye, Mr. Shane and Miss Knight.
02:53Goodbye.
02:56Mike, you didn't ask her any questions.
02:59Well, for the present danger, I'd rather she did the talking.
03:03I believe she was actually frightened.
03:05Oh, she's scared stiff, honey. Her chickens are coming home to roost.
03:09Half the people in San Francisco, the so-called better half, would like nothing better than to send flowers to her funeral.
03:15Yeah, I guess that's true enough.
03:18Now, you can't grow up on the right side of the tracks, tattle on your friends, and not get your fingers burned.
03:24Hey, isn't there a brother somewhere in the background?
03:26Mm-hmm. A bit younger than the old dame.
03:29Went through his money fast, and now they say he's going through hers.
03:32I believe he lives with her.
03:34Oh. Let's have a look at the note, huh?
03:38Envelope plain, business type. Dressed the old girl at her office. Mailed at six p.m. last night.
03:43You notice anything odd about the paper?
03:45Well, let me look at it against the light.
03:48Watermarked business stationery, Mike. It's been torn. The letterhead's been torn off.
03:53Right you are, Angel. Now, look at the typing.
03:56Well, it looks almost like a professional job to me.
03:59Could be. But, come on, let's do a bit of research on San Francisco's society.
04:04Oh, it won't be necessary, Mike. I'm one of Winifred's constant readers. Just ask me questions.
04:09I'll remember that when the time comes.
04:11Now, please, Mr. Shane, I'd like the rest of the afternoon off.
04:14We get a red-hot client and you want to play.
04:17No, dear. I want to get my hair done. We're stepping out in society tonight.
04:22Say, I wonder if I've got a black tie.
04:42It's an old mansion. Look at the iron deer on the lawn, Mike, and the bay window in front.
04:48Not as big as the Palace Hotel, but older.
04:51Anybody with iron deer on the lawn is just inviting murder.
04:55Yeah. Ooh, it gives me the creeps. Ivy all over the walls.
05:00Probably some growing inside, too.
05:02Anyhow, let's find out. Ring the bell.
05:04You mean lift the knocker.
05:06Oh.
05:12This way, please.
05:13Bring them in here, Henry.
05:15This way, please.
05:17Oh, I'm glad you came early.
05:19Nice to be here, Miss Spencer.
05:21What an unusual house.
05:23Oh, yes. This old house is filled with memories.
05:26The Spencers have lived here since 1850.
05:29Say, that's a fine old square rigger model on the mantelpiece there.
05:33My grandfather sailed the original round the Horn.
05:36He brought most of the furniture you see here with him.
05:39This desk was one of his prized possessions.
05:41Well, it looks like it's being put to use these days, too.
05:44Typewriter, lots of books. Is this your study?
05:47No, I do my work at the office.
05:49My brother, Seward, spends quite a bit of time in here.
05:52Seward likes to think of himself as a writer.
05:55Is your brother here tonight, Miss Spencer?
05:57Yes, with his latest conquest, a Miss Melody.
06:00You'll meet them at dinner.
06:02Oh.
06:03We'd better be getting back to the dining room. It's time for the guests.
06:06I think there's somebody behind that curtain.
06:09Of course there is. The curtains hide a service entrance.
06:13Come in, Henry.
06:15Pardon me, Miss Spencer.
06:17May I announce dinner?
06:19Yes, Henry. We're ready.
06:37Oh.
06:39Will you please stop boring one another and listen?
06:43I have a surprise for you.
06:45This is my broadcast night, and it's almost time for me to go on the air.
06:49You're going to do your broadcast right here?
06:51No, I recorded it this afternoon.
06:54We're going to listen to it on the radio.
06:56I thought it would be interesting to have the people I'm going to talk about as my guests.
07:01That's why most of you are here tonight.
07:03I'm sure you'll find what I have to say interesting.
07:07Mr. Davis-Hugh, please step into the drawing room and turn on the radio.
07:11I don't want anyone to miss a word of this broadcast.
07:16You might have spared us this, Winifred.
07:18I'm through protecting you, steward.
07:20Well, I'm not going to sit here and be made a fool of by my own sister.
07:23You'll remain right where you are.
07:25What's the station, Winifred?
07:26And for heaven's sakes, how do you turn this antique on?
07:29And for heaven's sakes, how do you turn this antique on?
07:32Oh, bother, I'll come and do it.
07:34I believe he was afraid to turn it on.
07:36What's this all about, Mike?
07:38It looks like she's going to tittle-tattle on Seward and her guests.
07:41Oh, Mike, look at Seward.
07:43He's ready to explode.
07:45He's not by himself, honey.
07:46Most of the guests seem to have high blood pressure.
07:49I don't know.
07:50There's Mr. Davis.
07:51He's standing there by the door laughing.
07:54It looks like the joke's on Winifred.
07:56I don't believe the radio will go to work.
07:58Well, what seems to be wrong with the radio?
08:00Well, that's what Winifred's trying to find out.
08:02She should have bought a new one years ago.
08:04Are you sure it's plugged in, Winifred?
08:08Well, I guess we're going to have to listen to her.
08:13And now, your society reporter, Winifred Spencer.
08:18Good evening.
08:20This is Winifred.
08:22Have I been gathering tidbits about people you know?
08:25The first item tonight concerns an immediate member of your reporter's family,
08:30my brother Seward.
08:32He has played with fire once too often,
08:34and I regret to announce that my brother has gone too far.
08:36I will stay and listen.
08:37Come on, Merle.
08:38She's gone all right.
08:39I'll talk to you on the phone.
08:40There goes Seward into the drawing room and Miss Melody right after him.
08:43Oh, come on, Bill.
08:44Let's get in there.
08:48Hey.
08:49Hey, what goes on here?
08:51It's Winifred.
08:52She's dead.
08:53She's dead.
08:55A knife in her back?
08:57She's dead all right.
09:10We'll return to Michael Shane and his adventures in just a moment.
09:18Friends, if your automobile engine has a habit of giving a death rattle
09:22when you step on the accelerator,
09:24the fault may lie with the motor oil you use.
09:27You see, most rattling and pinging in an engine is due to excess carbon.
09:31And contrary to popular opinion,
09:33nearly all carbon formed in automobile engines
09:36comes from the lubricating oil
09:38and not from the gasoline, as so many people think.
09:41Now, no two motor oils form the same amount of carbon.
09:45That's why we say your carbon troubles may be due
09:48to the brand of lubricating oil you buy
09:51because, and this is approved laboratory fact,
09:54Triton motor oil forms less carbon
09:57than any of the seven leading motor oils sold in the West.
10:00Yes, that's right.
10:01Triton cuts down carbon.
10:04The secret of Triton's superiority
10:06lies in Union Oil Company's exclusive propane solvent refining process.
10:11That means all harmful asphalts, waxes, and sulfur
10:15have been removed,
10:16leaving a pure 100% paraffin-based lubricating oil.
10:20An oil that will furnish hundreds of miles
10:23of safe, dependable lubrication.
10:26So friends, with parts and mechanics as scarce as they are today,
10:30why not take advantage of the unusual protection
10:33you can get from Triton motor oil?
10:36You can buy Triton at all Union Oil Minuteman stations.
10:40Just look for the sign of the big orange and blue 76.
10:44Thank you.
10:50The inspector is on his way.
10:52Mike has announced his identity and taken over.
10:54Ten minutes has elapsed since someone murdered Winifred Spencer
10:57in her drawing room,
10:58not more than 12 steps from where a dozen guests
11:01sat finishing their dinner.
11:04May I have your attention, please?
11:07Now I'm sure that you want to return to your homes,
11:10and there's no reason why those of you who were at the table
11:12when Miss Spencer met her death should remain.
11:16You may leave now before the police arrive, if you wish.
11:20Hey, the inspector isn't going to like this, Mike.
11:24You said yourself that there were ten people here
11:26who had reason to murder Miss Spencer.
11:28I said there were at least ten people who would love to murder her.
11:31Whoever killed the old aim had a lot stronger motive than Revenge Angel.
11:35I let them go because they were cluttering up the place.
11:37Now just the same, the inspector isn't going to like it.
11:40What's this I'm not going to like?
11:42No, Mike got big-hearted and let some of the guests go home.
11:45We can always bring her back, Phil.
11:47Who's left?
11:48It's Miss Spencer in the chair with a knife in her back, Inspector.
11:51I believe I told you on the phone that her brother Seward took a powder.
11:55The lady on the sofa is his...
11:57I'm Merle Melody, and I'm sticking around a little.
12:00Seward will be back.
12:01He just lost his temper and couldn't face the guests.
12:03Lost his temper? Oh, tut-tut.
12:06And the gray-haired gentleman who looks like a banker is a banker.
12:09Family friend named Hugh Davis.
12:11He's coming over to say hello.
12:13Glad you're here, Inspector. I'm Hugh Davis.
12:15Mr. Shane has told you...
12:16Yeah, that's why I'm here. I understand you're an old friend.
12:19I suppose I know Winifred as well as anyone in San Francisco.
12:22I've been the Spencer's banker for 20 years, Inspector.
12:25Did you handle Seward's financial affairs too, Mr. Davis?
12:28Yes, although I must say they became rather tangled.
12:31Miss Spencer mentioned something about his spending a great deal of money on his new girlfriend.
12:35The charming Miss Melody.
12:37None of us approved of that infatuation.
12:40All this might never have happened.
12:42Well, you'd better tell us all about it, Mr. Davis.
12:44I'd much rather discuss the matter when Seward is present.
12:47Mr. Spencer isn't here. He's flown the coop, so let's have it now.
12:50What about Seward and his money?
12:52It wasn't his money.
12:53Oh, Winifred was generous with him. Generous to a fault, in my opinion.
12:57Seward spent the last of his fortune more than a year ago.
12:59So he has been living off his sister, eh?
13:01Yes, Mr. Shane.
13:02Well, it's not a very pretty picture, but you can't hang a man for sponging.
13:06Something I'd like to know, Mike.
13:08Yeah, what, Angel?
13:09I'd like to know what Winifred Spencer said about Seward in her broadcast tonight.
13:13It ended rather suddenly here.
13:15I picked up the script on the way over, Phil.
13:17Just a lot of society gab and a sprinkling of sneers.
13:20Right people in the wrong places.
13:22What'd she say about her brother and his girlfriend?
13:25Let's see.
13:26Oh, yes, she said Seward had stepped out of bounds with a chorus girl.
13:30They were dropping his name from the social register.
13:32Then she said she doubted that Miss Melody would be able to support Seward
13:36in the style he'd been accustomed to.
13:38Oh, so his sister was going to cut him off.
13:40That right, Mr. Davis?
13:41Yes, they had a bitter quarrel a couple of days ago.
13:43Did Seward inherit Miss Spencer's money, Mr. Davis?
13:46I think the proper person to advise you on that matter is Miss Spencer's attorney.
13:49Maybe you're right, Davis.
13:50But as Miss Spencer's banker, I believe you can answer the question.
13:54Well, I'd much prefer that Seward was present, but...
13:57Well, I don't suppose this is any time to be guarding family secrets.
14:00You're right so far.
14:01Now, look, if you know anything, spill it.
14:03I doubt that there will be more than several hundred dollars in this old house
14:06for Seward to inherit.
14:08What?
14:09For what happened to the old lady's fortune?
14:11Well, I'd much rather wait...
14:13Well, it'll have to come out sooner or later.
14:16Winifred and Seward have had the same safety deposit box at the bank for years.
14:20Just three days ago, Winifred came to my office highly agitated.
14:23More than $200,000 in negotiable bonds were missing from the box.
14:28And just what has your bank done about finding the $200,000 in bonds?
14:32Mr. Shane, there are times when a bank has to use discretion.
14:35We hope to recover Miss Spencer's property without undue publicity or scandal.
14:39That's one reason I sent Winifred to you this afternoon.
14:42So Brother Seward raided the box.
14:44That is all too evident.
14:45There's another thing quite evident, sir.
14:47If you and Miss Spencer hadn't been so cagey
14:49ducking the very thing that little Winifred dished out,
14:51scandals, she might be alive right now.
14:54We thought we were doing the right thing.
14:56Well, that's water under the bridge.
14:58Mike, do you notice anything missing from the room?
15:01Well, sure, Ranger, the body.
15:02The police doctor just left a few minutes ago.
15:04Not that body.
15:05Merle.
15:06Merle Melody.
15:07Huh?
15:08Holy smoke, she has gone.
15:09We better search, Mike, where the murder is still on the loose.
15:11There's only one way she could have gone.
15:12Through here.
15:13If the door is open, try that room, Inspector.
15:14I'll try this one.
15:15Right.
15:20Here she is.
15:21On a bed.
15:22Is she alive?
15:23Oh, I don't know yet.
15:25Yeah.
15:26Yeah, she's breathing.
15:28Hmm.
15:29Now it's like a light.
15:31Oh, sleeping pills.
15:33I guess so.
15:34Pulse is slow, but regular.
15:36Didn't want to answer questions, eh?
15:38All right, let her sleep.
15:39Let's have a look around while we're back here, Mike.
15:41You read my mind, Inspector.
15:43Which way is the kitchen, Davis?
15:44Next turn to the left and down the hall.
15:52Here it is.
15:53Hmm.
15:54It's as big as a barn.
15:55And just as empty.
15:56The sergeant came back here when he searched the house.
15:58He probably sent the servants to their quarters.
16:01What's that?
16:02What have you picked up, Sergeant?
16:04I just nabbed the butler.
16:05Let me go in the back door.
16:06Bring him into the light.
16:08Wow.
16:09Look who's with him.
16:10The missing brother.
16:11Thanks, Sarge.
16:12I'll take him.
16:13All right, sir.
16:14Bring him into the drawing room, Inspector.
16:22Here we are.
16:23All right, talk.
16:25Where have you been all evening, Mr. Spencer?
16:27What are police doing all around the house?
16:30Where's Winifred?
16:32What have you done with Miss Melody?
16:33I'll have the answer to my question first, Mr. Spencer.
16:35Where have you been?
16:37I've walked for miles.
16:38I don't know where I've been.
16:40You were here when I lost my temper and dashed out, Mr. Shane.
16:43Winifred had no right to humiliate me before my friends.
16:47I hated to come back here.
16:49Then why did you come back?
16:50I don't know.
16:51This is my home.
16:53Where is Winifred Merle?
16:55Miss Melody's asleep, Mr. Spencer.
16:58Your sister is dead.
17:00What?
17:01Murdered.
17:02No.
17:03No, that isn't true.
17:05I saw her sitting in that chair when I ran out the front door.
17:07Yes, Spencer, she was there.
17:09It also looks as if you stopped long enough to stick a knife into her back.
17:12No.
17:13No, I didn't do it.
17:15I might have wanted to, but I didn't.
17:17Just a minute, Henry.
17:18Where were you going?
17:20To my quarters, sir.
17:21You'd better stick around.
17:23Say, where were you when Miss Spencer's broadcast began?
17:28Oh, yes, yes, I recall.
17:30I was preparing to serve the coffee, sir.
17:32I saw you going toward the side entrance to the drawing room
17:35when Miss Spencer left the table to turn on the radio.
17:37So you entered the drawing room by the side door just ahead of Miss Spencer?
17:41I did not, sir.
17:42The door was closed.
17:44I stood outside listening.
17:46I never miss one of Miss Spencer's broadcasts.
17:48Why did you lie to me about serving the coffee?
17:50I was frightened.
17:51You don't look like the type that frightens easily.
17:54Were you outside with Mr. Spencer?
17:56No, I heard someone at the back.
17:58It was Mr. Spencer.
17:59I let him in.
18:00Didn't the sergeant tell you to stay in your room?
18:02I have always answered the door, sir.
18:04That's probably the only truthful answer you've given me.
18:06Inspector.
18:07Yeah?
18:08Want to help me with an experiment?
18:09What are you going to do, Mike?
18:10I'd like to refresh my memory, Inspector.
18:12Let's all go into the dining room.
18:18Now, there's one thing I want to find out.
18:21All right, everybody, please take the places you had when Miss Spencer turned on the radio.
18:25I see.
18:26Mr. Davis, when I give the word,
18:28you are to get up and walk to the radio in the drawing room.
18:31Yes.
18:32Wait a few seconds and call just as you did at dinner.
18:34Very well.
18:35Phil.
18:36Phil, you be Miss Spencer and answer him.
18:37All right, Mike.
18:38Henry.
18:39Henry, you had better take your eavesdropping post by the side door,
18:42if that's where you really were.
18:43Yes, sir.
18:44Mr. Spencer.
18:45When Mr. Davis returns to the dining room,
18:48I want you to run into the drawing room.
18:50Do I have to go through with this again?
18:52Yes, you have to go through with it again.
18:54I can't...
18:55I...
18:56I can't...
18:59Seward.
19:00Seward is cleaned.
19:01Was that what you wanted to find out, Mike?
19:03No.
19:04No, that wasn't on the schedule, Angel.
19:19We'll rejoin Mike and Phyllis in just a moment.
19:25Ladies and gentlemen,
19:27an automobile radiator that's clogged with rust and scale
19:31is a menace to your gas coupons.
19:33Yes, that's right.
19:34You see, choked water lines block the easy flow of the water.
19:38That means your motor heats up more than it should.
19:41And that spells trouble,
19:42because motors, when too hot, can waste gasoline.
19:46Now, another thing which many people overlook
19:48is that cars driven around town with constant starting and stopping
19:52get hotter than those driven on the open road.
19:55So, even if you aren't planning any trips this summer,
19:59it's a good idea to drop in at a Union oil station
20:02and ask the minuteman to clean out your radiator.
20:05This service takes but a few minutes and works like magic.
20:09Union radiator flesh is harmless to metal,
20:12but its special solvent action cuts scale, rust and grease
20:15right out of choked radiator cores and water lines.
20:19Then, when this foreign matter is cleaned out
20:21and the minuteman fills your radiator with fresh, clean water,
20:24you can be sure it will really circulate with a fast, steady flow.
20:29So, for cooler driving, economical mileage,
20:32just drive in wherever you see the sign of the big orange and blue 76
20:37and ask for Union oil radiator service.
20:40Thank you.
20:46A couple of minutes has passed.
20:47Seward has been placed on a leather couch.
20:50Mike, Phil and the others are gathered around the couch.
20:55A rather cruel thing to do, Mr. Shane,
20:57pretending to make Seward go through with all that nonsense.
20:59It wasn't nonsense, Mr. Davis.
21:01Here, loosen his collar.
21:02Henry, is there any brandy in here?
21:03I'll fetch it, Mr. Davis.
21:05Oh, wait a minute, wait a minute, he's coming too.
21:07No, I can't. I can't.
21:10What?
21:11Oh, I fainted.
21:13Yes, yes, you fainted, all right.
21:15Now, maybe you'll tell us why you killed your sister.
21:17What you did with those bonds.
21:19I didn't kill Winifred, I tell you, I didn't.
21:22And I don't own any bonds.
21:25My glasses.
21:26I've lost my glasses.
21:28Mr. Shane, you've tried your methods, may I try mine?
21:31What are your methods, Mr. Davis?
21:32I'd like to talk with Seward for a few minutes, alone.
21:35I've known him since he was a boy.
21:36That's up to the inspector.
21:37Why not let him talk, Mike?
21:39My men have the place cocked up like a bottle.
21:41Well, okay, but remember, we'll be just outside the door.
21:49Oh, I don't like this, Inspector.
21:56But, Mike, all we got on Spencer is circumstantial evidence.
21:59In fact, he was the last one with his sister.
22:01Don't forget the $200,000 in bonds.
22:03I'm not, Phil, but with this kind of evidence, I need a confession.
22:06We'll get it, Inspector, from one of the three.
22:08Three?
22:09Yeah, sure, Seward, the butler, and Davis.
22:11Davis has a pretty fair alibi, Mike.
22:13You told me yourself he was back at the table seated before Winifred Spencer turned on the radio.
22:16Yeah, that's right, Mike, he was sitting on my left.
22:18Yes, yes, he was in the dining room, but he's still on my list.
22:21Now, let me see, I know it.
22:23What are you muttering about, Mike?
22:26Ten steps, 12, maybe 14 seconds.
22:30That's it, that's it, why didn't I think of it before?
22:33Come on, let's go, it's in the bag, Inspector.
22:35Maybe you got it locked up, Mike, but I...
22:37Oh, there you are, Inspector.
22:39It didn't take long.
22:40Well, Davis, the conference over?
22:42What's that you've got in your hand, Mr. Spencer?
22:44Well, you thought I should sign it.
22:47The bonds are...
22:48I'll explain.
22:49Seward wanted to make a statement after we'd talked a bit.
22:52All right, what about?
22:53Seward and I talked things over, and I typed a statement which he dictated to me.
22:57Yes, I wanted to clear up any...
22:59Let me see that paper.
23:02Did you read this before you signed it, Mr. Spencer?
23:04Well, I can't read without my glasses.
23:07Hugh read it to me.
23:08I thought so.
23:09Mr. Spencer, this is a signed confession to the murder of your sister.
23:12So you did get her, Davis.
23:14He tricked me.
23:15He told me to say Winifred took the bonds.
23:17I didn't kill her.
23:18Grab him, Inspector.
23:19No, no, not Seward.
23:20Hugh gave it to me.
23:21Come here.
23:22Hold him.
23:23Let me search him, Inspector.
23:25Well, here's a pair of glasses.
23:28This is outrageous.
23:29Those are my glasses.
23:30Like to try them on for size?
23:31You couldn't get them on with a pair of pliers.
23:33They're Seward's glasses.
23:34You pick them up when you help carry him in here.
23:36You're crazy.
23:37Davis.
23:38Davis, you killed Winifred Spencer when you found out you couldn't hoodwink her any longer
23:42about the theft of those bonds, the bonds you stole.
23:45Are you out of your mind, Shane?
23:47I was standing where you could touch me when Winifred was killed.
23:50You killed Miss Spencer.
23:51You tried to hang the murder and the theft of 200,000 in bonds on young Spencer.
23:55You stole his glasses, persuaded him to sign a confession he couldn't even read.
23:59You'll find such absurd surmises difficult to prove, Mr. Shane.
24:02I couldn't have killed Winifred, and all of you know it.
24:05Mike, I really don't see how it was possible.
24:08I was with you in the dining room when Winifred was killed.
24:11I was standing within plain sight of at least a dozen people.
24:14Can you answer that one, Mike?
24:15I don't have to, Inspector.
24:16It has nothing to do with the killing.
24:18I think you're all familiar enough with the radio set to know that after you switch it on,
24:21it takes a few seconds to warm up.
24:23A few seconds, yes.
24:24But I was in the dining room considerably more than a few seconds, Mr. Shane.
24:27Besides which, I was carrying on a conversation with Winifred in full view of you all.
24:31A one-sided conversation.
24:32Winifred didn't answer.
24:33Very convenient of you to think of that now, Mr. Shane.
24:36But hardly enough to charge me with murder.
24:38I'm afraid Mr. Davis has a point there, Mike.
24:40Mr. Davis has a point in that I was half asleep when I should have been wide awake.
24:44I heard the noise that was the clue as to who killed Winifred Spencer.
24:48All of you who were in the dining room heard it, too.
24:51But no one thought anything about it.
24:53You mean the snap of the radio switch?
24:56I heard Miss Spencer turn it on, too.
24:58But that's just where we were all wrong, Angel.
25:00We didn't hear the radio switch when Miss Spencer turned it on.
25:04Mr. Davis?
25:05Yes?
25:06This is what you did.
25:08You saw that the radio was plugged into a light switch.
25:11So you switched off the light.
25:13That meant that when Miss Spencer switched on the radio, nothing happened.
25:17You grabbed her, slapped your hand over her mouth, and stabbed her.
25:21Then you walked to the dining room door, stood there talking,
25:25and when sufficient time had elapsed, sufficient time that you felt you had an alibi,
25:30you slipped your arm behind the wall, pulled down the light switch,
25:34and about 10 to 15 seconds later, the radio came on.
25:39Anything to say to that, Mr. Davis?
25:42From the look on his face, you must have been right, Mike.
25:45Oh, I know I'm right.
25:47His efforts at blaming young Spencer will hold up in any court.
25:51Okay, he's yours, Inspector.
26:05THE END
26:11Am I being kidnapped?
26:13This isn't the way home.
26:14I've got to get that society clambake off my conscience, honey.
26:17We're heading for Fisherman's Wharf.
26:19Maybe a nice cold lobster.
26:22Jeepers.
26:23We forgot all about Merle Melody.
26:25Oh, the sleeping beauty?
26:27Well, she's young Spencer's problem now.
26:30Mike, what made you so sure Davis was the murderer?
26:33Oh, he kept tipping his hand.
26:34Yeah, but that radio business was a clever alibi.
26:37Not too clever, Inspector.
26:39He counted on the noise covering up the click of the switch.
26:42His timing was bad.
26:44It didn't.
26:45Yeah.
26:46We both heard the snap, but we weren't thinking fast.
26:50Well, maybe you can tell me one other thing, Mike.
26:53I'll make a stab at it, Angel.
26:54Oh, don't use that word.
26:57Hmm?
26:59I only wanted to know if they serve Crab Louie where we're going.
27:03When you look like that, Angel, they'll serve you anything.
27:08Oh.
27:09Oh.
27:10Ha ha.
27:29Tune in again next week at 8 o'clock for another adventure
27:33with Michael Shane, Private Detective,
27:36starring Wally Mayer and Kathy Lewis,
27:38with Joe Forte as the inspector.
27:41Tonight's story was written by Tom Petty
27:43and based on a character created by Brett Halliday.
27:46Music was composed and directed by Bernard Ketz.
27:50This is John Lang saying goodnight for the people
27:53who make 76 gasoline and Triton motor oil.
27:57Union Oil Company.
28:06This is Michael Shane with a message from
28:08Director of Fleet Maintenance, Admiral V.D. Chaplin,
28:11United States Navy.
28:13It reads, quote,
28:15To all welders, riggers, electricians, coppersmiths,
28:18and other skilled shipyard repairmen.
28:21Subject, fleet maintenance.
28:23There is a serious skilled labor shortage
28:26in all West Coast shipyards
28:28due to heavy battle damage suffered by our warships
28:31in recent weeks.
28:33For three straight months,
28:35Nip planes have hammered at our fleet off Okinawa.
28:39One day alone, late in May,
28:4111 of our ships were hit.
28:43Not every day is that bad, but every day is bad enough.
28:47Until these smashed ships can be patched up or rebuilt,
28:50they are as total a loss to the fleet
28:53as if they were sunk.
28:55This is an urgent appeal to all skilled workers
28:58who may be able to qualify as shipyard repairmen
29:02to apply at once to the nearest
29:04United States Employment Service office.
29:06Unquote.
29:08Well, that pretty well tells it, friends,
29:10except to say that if you can qualify
29:12as a shipyard repair worker, apply at once.
29:15You'll find the number of the nearest
29:17United States Employment Office in your phone book.
29:23This is the Mutual Don Lee Broadcasting System.