Remington Steele S03E18
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00I don't like being blackmailed.
00:04Blackmailed?
00:05You could use some more. I mean, we all could, couldn't we?
00:07He's dead, Miss Holt. He's dead because of you.
00:10Mrs. Sterling's pregnant?
00:12Three months.
00:13Check all flight and hotel accommodations to Cabo San Lucas, Rio de Janeiro, Hawaii.
00:18I think your husband was murdered.
00:20Oh my God, I can't take it.
00:22A man supposedly killed himself because of me.
00:26And you're prescribing a vacation?
00:28Have you ever been to the Fiji Islands?
01:59Miss Kelton, nice to see you again.
02:01Nice to see you, Mr. Majak.
02:03What is that?
02:04Ah, this little gem is a 12th century temple figure.
02:09Oh, it's beautiful.
02:11How much is it?
02:13$10,000.
02:15Excuse me, could you tell me something about these?
02:19Oh, certainly.
02:20Excuse me.
02:23Excuse me, could you tell me something about these?
02:26Oh, certainly.
02:49Nothing else I can help you with?
02:51Oh no, not today. Thank you.
02:56Don't lose her.
02:58Don't worry.
03:21Cabo San Lucas, Rio de Janeiro, Hawaii
03:52Grace Kelton?
03:54Yes?
03:55My name is Laura Holt. I'm a private investigator.
03:58May I have a word with you?
04:01I'm so embarrassed.
04:03I mean, I don't really even know how it got into my purse.
04:07I must have been daydreaming or something.
04:11Miss Kelton, this is a list of the items that were taken from Majak's in the last few months.
04:19I'm afraid you are the prime suspect.
04:22You make it sound like I'm a thief or something.
04:26Well, go ahead, look around if you don't believe me.
04:34Suppose I start with this cabinet here.
04:36No.
04:38Oh, I mean, why would I steal a bunch of antiques and toss them into a cabinet?
04:45Don't you think I'd want to sell them or at least display them?
04:48May I look into this cabinet?
05:05I'm sorry.
05:07I don't even know why I do it.
05:12I don't even know why I do it.
05:15I just can't help myself.
05:20Does Whit know about this?
05:23I mean, you don't have to tell Whit, do you?
05:27Please.
05:29I mean, please don't tell him.
05:34I'm afraid I have to.
05:37I'm Whit Sterling.
05:39Laura Holt. I'm sorry to interrupt you during dinner, Mr. Sterling.
05:42Oh, don't you worry about that. I needed a break anyway.
05:45I'm losing so much charm in there, my shirt's beginning to get damp.
05:50Please.
05:51I'm afraid I have some rather unpleasant news, Mr. Sterling.
05:56Grace Kelton is a kleptomaniac.
06:02I'm sure her mother is very disappointed.
06:05She has stolen over $50,000 worth of antiques from my client.
06:10I've recovered most of the items. However...
06:13Pardon my ignorance, Miss Holt, but I don't know what you're talking about.
06:17I've never heard of this Grace. What was her name?
06:21Kelton.
06:23Who the hell is she to me?
06:25Your mistress.
06:27My mistress?
06:31Excuse me.
06:34If you only knew how funny that is.
06:37Miss Holt, I am a happily married man.
06:50Mr. Sterling, please. We've been very discreet.
06:53There has been no police involvement as yet.
06:55And my client is a kleptomaniac.
06:58There has been no police involvement as yet.
07:00And my client assures me there won't be.
07:02As long as you make restitution for the missing items.
07:06Where did you get this?
07:08I told you. From Grace Kelton.
07:14And your client sent you here with it?
07:17That's right.
07:19Oh, you tell him I understand.
07:22I understand what he wants.
07:24And you tell him I'm the poorest sport in the world.
07:28And as soon as I find a way to cover my butt, he's going to pay.
07:32I don't like being blackmailed.
07:34Blackmailed?
07:36Now you get out of here before I do something I'll regret in the morning.
07:42And leave that.
07:44What?
07:46Oh, darling.
07:48Darling, our surprise guest was just leaving.
07:54Oh.
08:05Those were the only ones she had.
08:07I checked off the items she admitted taking.
08:09And Mr. Sterling, how did he react?
08:13Not very well.
08:15What did he say exactly?
08:19That he understood what you wanted.
08:22Good.
08:24He also said, um, he would get even.
08:30Impetuous man, our Mr. Sterling.
08:40Cash?
08:42Well, most discreet handling of a most delicate situation.
08:46I thank you.
08:49Hello?
08:51What did you say to my husband last night?
08:54Who is this?
08:56He's dead, Miss Holt.
08:58He's dead because of you.
09:02I told your husband exactly what I just told you.
09:05I know he was upset, but hardly suicidal.
09:12I'm sorry.
09:14I know he was upset, but hardly suicidal.
09:18All I know is I had a perfect life
09:21until you introduced yourself to Whit last night,
09:23and now he's...
09:25He's, uh...
09:27My husband never had a mistress.
09:28Lie! That's a lie!
09:30Get a hold of yourself!
09:32Go upstairs.
09:34Dr. Rumson will be here soon.
09:36I'll finish up with Miss Holt.
09:38I'll never forgive you as long as I live.
09:45Obviously, she's in shock.
09:47We had to break the door down. We found him.
09:50I can't believe I'm responsible for his...
09:53Of course you're not.
09:55The only one around here with blood on his hands is Whit.
09:59He pulled the trigger.
10:01I don't know why.
10:03You worked with him, Mr. Bigelow.
10:05Did you know he had a mistress?
10:07Miss Holt, with all due respect, I don't think now is the time.
10:10With all due respect, Mr. Bigelow,
10:12I have just been accused of driving a man to suicide.
10:14I think I have a right to ask a few questions.
10:17All right.
10:20As far as I know,
10:22Whit and Claudia had a perfect marriage.
10:24There was no one else.
10:26What about Leopold Majak?
10:28What was Mr. Serling's relationship with him?
10:30I don't know. He never mentioned him.
10:32Doesn't your company do business with Majak Antiques?
10:35Not that I'm aware of.
10:37Dr. Rumson, thank you for coming.
10:39Where is she?
10:41I sent her back upstairs.
10:43What was she doing down here in the first place?
10:45I told you to keep her in bed.
10:47Easier said than done.
10:49I realize Whit's death is a tragedy,
10:51but she still has the baby to think of.
10:53Unless she follows my instructions,
10:56she risks losing it.
11:00Mrs. Serling's pregnant?
11:02Three months, first child.
11:05She's not a young woman anymore,
11:07and this may be her last opportunity to have one.
11:11They were both incredibly excited about it.
11:25I must say, Laura, I can't understand
11:27why you didn't involve me in this initially.
11:29I thought it was just a routine tale,
11:31and you're hardly one to relish routine.
11:33Oh, did you just want to prove that you could do it without me?
11:36I don't have to prove anything.
11:38At least not to me.
11:41As far as I'm concerned, you're the perfect subordinate.
11:49I would like to speak with Leopold Majak.
11:51Yes?
11:57Well?
11:58I am Leopold Majak.
12:01Are there any other Leopold Majaks
12:04connected with this enterprise?
12:06Absolutely not. Only me.
12:11My name is Laura Holt.
12:13From Remington Steel Investigations.
12:16A Leopold Majak hired me to...
12:19I am Leopold Majak.
12:22Then a man claiming to be you
12:25hired me to stake out this store
12:27to catch a kleptomaniac who'd...
12:29Kleptomaniac?
12:30Yes.
12:31Yesterday, I was here.
12:33A woman came in, I followed her.
12:35I returned.
12:37I returned with some stolen items.
12:39Madam, please, I must insist.
12:41Perhaps you have the wrong store.
12:43No. No, I was here.
12:46Impossible. We're never open on Mondays.
12:49Never?
12:51Never.
13:06Would you care to do the honors, Mr. Steel?
13:09Oh, please, Miss Holt. Please.
13:11This is your case.
13:13Carry on. Carry on.
13:35Not much of a housekeeper, your kleptomaniac.
13:39The stolen antiques were right here, in this cabinet.
13:46Don't move.
13:48I'm new on the job. I'm just as scared as you.
13:50Please.
13:51Don't do it. I'm warning you.
13:53We're private investigators. This is my associate.
13:55She's merely trying to show you her identification.
13:57Please, Laura, will you?
13:59What are you doing in here?
14:01I was here yesterday. I came back to see Grace Kelton.
14:04Who?
14:07This is Grace Kelton's apartment.
14:09No, ma'am. This is the Diaz apartment.
14:12They've been in the Philippines for three weeks.
14:14No Grace Kelton ever lived here.
14:24If what you say is true,
14:27someone's gone to a great deal of trouble to set you up, Laura.
14:30If what I say is true?
14:32Does that bit of phrasing suggest you don't believe me?
14:35Look, Laura, we've all had our shoulders to the wheel lately.
14:40You obviously more than me, of course.
14:42But you could use some more, I know.
14:44I mean, we all could, couldn't we, Mildred?
14:46Hear, hear.
14:47Mr. Steele, my client has disappeared.
14:50I've got a kleptomaniac who doesn't even exist.
14:53A man supposedly killed himself because of me.
14:56And you're prescribing a vacation?
14:59Well, when in doubt, relax.
15:03Where are you going?
15:05To change clothes.
15:07We have to make a house call this evening.
15:13This is a priority situation, Mildred.
15:16You're telling me.
15:17In order to get Miss Holt out of this nasty predicament,
15:20I think we're going to have to do a little information-gathering ourselves.
15:24Where do we start, Chief?
15:26Check all flight and hotel accommodations
15:28to Cabo San Lucas, Rio de Janeiro, Hawaii.
15:34And the Fiji Islands.
15:36Let's go.
15:57Start looking.
15:59For what?
16:00The reason Sterling was murdered.
16:02Murdered?
16:05Well, if he didn't kill himself,
16:07and he didn't die of natural causes,
16:09it's the only logical conclusion.
16:11Laura, the man sat at this very desk,
16:13put a gun to his head and a bullet in his brain.
16:16So it appears.
16:18The door was locked from the inside.
16:24Suppose the murderer locked the door from the outside,
16:28and during the commotion raised by the discovery of the body,
16:32put the key back on the inside keyhole.
16:35The door locks from the inside only,
16:38with a bolt, not a key.
16:41How hard would it be to take the door off the hinges,
16:45lock it from the inside, and re-hang it?
16:48Well, these hinges are covered in paint, Laura.
16:51They haven't been tampered with for years.
16:53Maybe there's a hidden panel.
16:57Well, let's hope it leads directly to Rio de Janeiro,
17:00Copacabana Beach, the girl from Ipanema.
17:04Laura, will you listen to me?
17:06You're not responsible for Whit Sterling's death.
17:09The man committed suicide.
17:11The fact that you came into contact with him
17:13the night that he decided to do it
17:15is an unfortunate, unfortunate coincidence.
17:18Don't berate yourself over the fact, okay?
17:25See what you can do with that, Mr. Steele?
17:27Why do I get the feeling you haven't been listening
17:29to a word I've said?
17:30I have.
17:31You have?
17:32The girl from Ipanema.
17:38Come down.
17:57This is like the figure Grace Gilton stole from Majx.
18:04A purple heart.
18:10Seems your Mr. Sterling was a Korean War hero.
18:13Great.
18:15He survived the Korean War, but not me.
18:24Come on.
18:28Hey.
18:32I'll find out where this came from.
18:33You follow up on Marla Racoobian.
18:35From now on, I suggest we stick together.
18:37If we stick together, it'll take twice as long.
18:39We'll run the risk of losing him.
18:41Who?
18:42The murderer.
18:57Come on.
19:16Laura, can I ask you one question?
19:17What?
19:18Have you ever been to the Fiji Islands?
19:27Yes.
19:38Please leave me alone.
19:40I am still Leopold Majax.
19:42Do you recognize this?
19:44Are you insane?
19:46Get that away from me.
19:47Why?
19:48What is this thing?
19:4910 to 20, that's what it is.
19:51I beg your pardon?
19:53This temple figure would cost you a quarter of a million dollars.
19:57Minimum.
19:58That is, if you could get it.
19:59Which you can't, because it's of museum quality.
20:01And found only in the Beijing Museum.
20:04In China.
20:07You mean it's stolen?
20:08Undoubtedly.
20:09Worse.
20:10It's major contraband.
20:12You could go to prison just for having it in your possession.
20:15I hate to think what would happen if you were caught smuggling it into the country.
20:18The figure Grace Kelton allegedly stole from this store was just like this.
20:24That, young lady, did not come from this store.
20:27I believe you, Mr. Majax.
20:31Thank God.
20:32Now I can die happy.
20:39What do you want?
20:40Mr. Bigelow, may I have a word with you, please?
20:43Fred, don't talk to her.
20:45Get out of here before I call the police.
20:47Mrs. Sterling, please.
20:49I think your husband was murdered.
20:52Oh, my God, I can't take it.
20:55I can't stand any more harassment.
21:01Yes, get me security, please.
21:03I'll handle it, Claudia.
21:05Okay.
21:11Here's your boots, Mr. Bigelow.
21:12Cleaned up real nice.
21:14Oh.
21:15Claudia, would you take care of this?
21:17She'll take care of it. Just thank you.
21:23I'm telling you the truth.
21:24I had no idea Witt was smuggling anything.
21:27I find that difficult to believe.
21:29You were his partner.
21:30Oh, in name only.
21:31Witt was...
21:32He was the one with all the contacts.
21:34He did all the importing.
21:36And you?
21:37Oh, I did the selling.
21:39Jocularity and tolerance are my two biggest assets, Miss Holter.
21:43Witt needed somebody who could endure those endless lunches at the polo lounge
21:47and still look good in a three-piece suit.
21:50He paid me very well.
21:52Of course, my salary was nothing compared to what he made still.
21:56Beach-selling computer chips.
21:58How was your merchandise brought into the country?
22:01Oh, by boat.
22:02We have a warehouse in Hong Kong.
22:04Everything is shipped from there into Long Beach.
22:06Does the name Marla Rakubian mean anything to you?
22:11Why?
22:13I think your boss may have been having an affair with her.
22:41Harrington, customs.
23:00Just a minute.
23:02Why aren't you in uniform?
23:04D.C. office.
23:05Checking on my boys.
23:06I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:08No, I'm splendid.
23:09Carry on.
23:40I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:41No, I'm splendid.
23:42Carry on.
23:43I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:44No, I'm splendid.
23:45Carry on.
23:46I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:47No, I'm splendid.
23:48Carry on.
23:49I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:50No, I'm splendid.
23:51Carry on.
23:52I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:53No, I'm splendid.
23:54Carry on.
23:55I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:56No, I'm splendid.
23:57Carry on.
23:58I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
23:59No, I'm splendid.
24:00Carry on.
24:01I'm not harassing you too much, are they?
24:02No, I'm splendid.
24:03Carry on.
24:04You lose something?
24:13Good afternoon, gentlemen.
24:17Name's Harrington, Customs.
24:18DC office.
24:19We've got a tip to check this shit for contraband.
24:23Chester says let me see that ID.
24:25Oh, yeah.
24:27Ah!
24:28Ah!
24:32Ah!
24:58That's what I call unfair home-field advantage.
25:02Jester says you're dead.
25:04Ah.
25:05Very nice.
25:06Yes!
25:07Ah!
25:09Ah!
25:11Ah!
25:12Ah!
25:25Excuse me.
25:26I understand this ship's already been offloaded?
25:28That's right, lady.
25:30Any idea where the cargo went?
25:32Check with the manifest officer.
25:34They usually take everything over to CFS for customs.
25:41You haven't seen a tall, dark-haired man around here, have you?
25:46English accent, a bit overdressed?
25:51Nope.
26:10Oh!
26:16What were you doing on the Recubian?
26:24Who sent you?
26:28What's your real name?
26:32What were you looking for?
26:36Why are you staying around?
26:38Who are you working for?
26:40Do you really care for me?
26:42How much do you know?
26:44Do you know that I love you?
26:47Ah, no.
26:48No what?
26:52Do you love me?
26:55I think so.
26:56You think what?
26:59I...
27:01I love you.
27:02Oh!
27:05Oh.
27:08Oh.
27:10Oh.
27:11Oh.
27:16Anything?
27:17Yeah.
27:18He loves me.
27:20Chester will make him talk.
27:23Chester, dead men don't talk.
27:28When he comes to, try again.
27:39Oh.
27:42Oh.
27:43Oh.
27:45Oh.
27:54Oh.
27:59Oh.
28:08Oh.
28:11Oh.
28:13Oh.
28:19Oh.
28:22Oh.
28:27Oh.
28:28Oh.
28:35Oh.
28:39Oh.
28:41Oh.
28:43Oh.
28:48Oh.
28:53Oh.
29:01Oh.
29:09Oh.
29:11Oh.
29:13Oh.
29:15Oh.
29:17Oh.
29:19Oh.
29:21Oh.
29:23Oh.
29:25Oh.
29:27Oh.
29:29Oh.
29:31Oh.
29:33Oh.
29:35Oh.
29:36Oh.
29:38Oh.
29:40Oh.
29:42Oh.
29:49Oh.
29:51Oh.
29:53Oh.
29:54♪♪
30:04♪♪
30:14♪♪
30:24♪♪
30:34♪♪
30:44♪♪
30:54♪♪
31:04♪♪
31:14♪♪
31:24♪♪
31:34♪♪
31:44♪♪
31:54♪♪
32:04♪♪
32:14♪♪
32:24♪♪
32:34♪♪
32:44♪♪
32:54♪♪
33:04♪♪
33:14♪♪
33:24♪♪
33:34♪♪
33:44♪♪
33:54♪♪
34:04♪♪
34:14As you all seize a long, cool pina colada,
34:21and a wonderful young lady by my side.
34:24♪♪
34:30Anyone I know.
34:32♪♪
34:40That much of a letdown?
34:42This paper.
34:46What about the paper?
34:50It's not the same paper I saw on board ship.
34:55How do you know?
34:56Close your eyes.
34:58This is hardly the time.
35:00Just close your eyes.
35:02Okay?
35:06Close your hands.
35:12Which one's the dollar bill?
35:16What is this, a trick question?
35:17Which one's the dollar bill?
35:23Well, unless they're different denominations,
35:25they both are.
35:27Open your eyes.
35:37Are you telling me these antiques were wrapped in paper
35:40just like this aboard ship?
35:42Yes.
35:45So that's why we couldn't figure it out.
35:48It wasn't antiques.
35:50They were smuggling.
35:51It was the paper.
35:54It appears we're dealing with international counterfeiters
35:57here, Mr. Steele.
35:59What a wonderfully bizarre twist.
36:07Let's see what we've got.
36:09The phony Majak was using Sterling's shipments
36:11to smuggle in counterfeit paper.
36:13Sterling was smuggling Chinese artifacts.
36:15He found out what the phony Majak was up to
36:18and threatened to blow the whistle.
36:20Majak hired you to blackmail Sterling into silence.
36:22Only the game got a little dirtier than Majak expected.
36:25And Sterling ended up dead.
36:27Murdered.
36:28That remains to be proved, Miss Holt.
36:32Weasel?
36:34Steele, Steele, Steele.
36:36Who's the Catholic schoolgirl?
36:38This is my associate, Laura Holt.
36:40If I'd known we would meet in such illustrious surroundings,
36:43I would have dressed for the part.
36:45Well, hey, it isn't just anybody I invited to my home.
36:49You, um, live here?
36:51Yes, I do.
36:53I even have a summer home.
36:55It's the third Cadillac from the left.
36:57Oh, the El Dorado.
36:58Yeah, well, that's the only one to have, isn't it?
37:00Right.
37:01Come on, lay it on me.
37:08Okay.
37:09I've seen better paper on the newsstands.
37:12I've seen it.
37:13I've seen it.
37:14I've seen it.
37:15I've seen it.
37:16I've seen it.
37:17I've seen it.
37:18I've seen it.
37:19I've seen it.
37:20I've seen it.
37:21I've seen it.
37:22I've seen it.
37:23I've seen it.
37:24I've seen it.
37:25I've seen it.
37:26I've seen it.
37:27I've seen it.
37:28I've seen it.
37:29I've seen it.
37:30I've seen it.
37:31I've seen it.
37:32I've seen it.
37:33I've seen it.
37:34I've seen it.
37:35I've seen it.
37:36I've seen it.
37:37I've seen better paper on the newsstands.
37:40Hey, if it was perfect, it would be real.
37:44Now, all we need is a hearty soul to pass him.
37:49I can't do it.
37:51I just can't do it.
37:53Of course you can, Mildred.
37:55A little dab of eau de carp, and the disguise is complete.
38:00Can't I just do a computer check?
38:04You're the only one of us nobody's seen.
38:06You've got to do it, Mildred.
38:07It's got to be you.
38:08T-men, Mildred.
38:10Dennis O'Keefe, Alfred Rider, Eagle Line, 1948.
38:14O'Keefe and Rider set up their own push
38:17in order to smoke out a ring of counterfeiters.
38:21Okay, all right, all right, all right.
38:23If it's good enough for Dennis O'Keefe, it's good enough for me.
38:26Good. There you go.
38:28Oh, girl.
38:31Just remember, Mildred's cover was your idea.
38:35Oh, pungently put.
38:42All right, here he is.
38:53Okay, Mildred, in you go.
38:57Okay, Mildred, in you go.
39:01Oh, God, go.
39:04Oh, boy.
39:13Maybe we should go to plan B, boss.
39:15We don't have a plan B, Mildred.
39:18I could come up with one fast.
39:20Nonsense, Mildred. We'll be right behind you.
39:25Just don't get downwind of it, Laura. That's all I can say.
39:29All right, get those bets down.
39:32Here we go. Shooter.
39:34Shooter coming out.
39:37Keep those dice high.
39:39Here we go. Come on.
39:41Come on, man.
39:43Oh, six. Six, six.
39:45Who's the shooter? Him.
39:50Don't pass.
39:52I'll take that.
39:58What's the matter? Don't like big bills?
40:01Not much, I don't.
40:07Okay, here we go.
40:12All right, give me them cubes.
40:16Let's see your stuff. Come on.
40:18Six. Six is the point.
40:23Hold it. We got a wiseacre in here.
40:26Somebody's passing funny money.
40:29Like hell, man. We're all pals here.
40:32Are we?
40:52Justices, come with me.
41:22What is that stench?
41:24Her. She smells like tuna fish.
41:30Chester hates tuna fish.
41:32Once again, where did you get the money?
41:35I told you. This guy gave it to me. He told me to spread it around.
41:39What guy?
41:41Him.
41:43Easy, Chester.
41:45Oh, very clever. Very clever indeed.
41:485,000 workers within half a mile radius.
41:51I can't wait to cash their paychecks on a Friday afternoon.
41:54Counterfeit cash.
41:56You must admit it was a well-devised plan.
41:59Yes, it did have its subtleties, I must admit.
42:02Your admiration is gratifying, Mr. Steele.
42:05Whit Sterling is dead, Majak.
42:08No one admires a murderer.
42:10I had no reason to kill Mr. Sterling.
42:13You saw to that.
42:15She did a fine job of blackmailing him for us.
42:20However, I can see that blackmail is not going to work with Mr. Steele.
42:24Now, Chester.
42:26Chester, I wouldn't do that if I were you, mate.
42:29And why shouldn't Chester?
42:31You haven't got enough ammunition.
42:36We took the liberty of calling the Treasury Department this afternoon.
42:40Just a moment, gentlemen, please.
42:42I want to have a little word with Chester.
42:45Steele hit Chester.
42:49Chester in floor.
43:07Ah.
43:12Well, uh, so much for the window seats, eh?
43:17Oh, come now, Laura, they can't all be killers.
43:19I mean, like it or not, some things really are as they appear.
43:24Do you honestly believe Whit Sterling committed suicide?
43:27Look, whether I believe it or not is beside the point.
43:29The facts are there. The phony Majak and his cronies are behind bars.
43:32And we're going to miss our plane if we don't get a move on now.
43:35Here's the Sterling autopsy report.
43:37It took me a while to get it, but I finally convinced Keyes he owed us one.
43:40Keyes? Norman Keyes?
43:42Yeah. Insurance companies can sometimes get their mitts on medical files.
43:46He just pulled a few strings.
43:48Oh, yeah.
43:51Does that damn woman always have to be so diligent?
43:53She just wanted to double-check,
43:55see if Sterling had any medical history which might make suicide more palatable.
43:59Uh-huh. And?
44:00According to this, the official cause of death
44:03was a gunshot wound to the head,
44:05self-inflicted, deceased otherwise healthy.
44:10There you see. It's in black and white.
44:12The man was an absolute paragon of health.
44:14He was a...
44:18The Barefoot Contessa.
44:20Who?
44:21Humphrey Bogart, Ava Gardner, United Artists, 1954.
44:23Ava marries an Italian count,
44:25deliriously happy she wants to give him an heir.
44:27Unfortunately, the count is impotent,
44:29so she has an affair with the chauffeur.
44:31The count shoots them both.
44:33Huh?
44:35Ah, how life sometimes imitates art.
44:38The parallels between the Barefoot Contessa
44:41and your life, Mrs. Sterling,
44:43are uncanny.
44:45You're pregnant.
44:47Yet, according to your husband's autopsy report,
44:50a 30-year-old war injury had rendered him impotent.
44:56Enter Fred Bigelow, young,
44:59a young man,
45:02Enter Fred Bigelow, young, virile,
45:06a real comer.
45:08You and he have an affair, you become pregnant,
45:11and the two of you concoct a plan to murder your husband,
45:14making it look like suicide.
45:17Giving you the child you always wanted
45:20and you the business, all of it.
45:23I like her better in the movies.
45:25All right.
45:27Fred and I, yes, we're lovers.
45:31I decided the best way to handle it was to tell Whit the truth,
45:34but I was wrong.
45:36He became terribly upset.
45:38He locked himself here in the library.
45:41I felt horrible.
45:43I felt like I was to blame,
45:45and I couldn't bear that.
45:48So I tried to put it off on you, Miss Holt.
45:52Oh, excellent recovery.
45:54Excellent.
45:56Very quick thinking on your feet, Mrs. Sterling.
45:58Very quick indeed.
46:01Only there's a hole in your story.
46:07A very, very tiny hole.
46:17Voila.
46:20Consider this, Mrs. Sterling.
46:23You and Bigelow murder your husband,
46:26carry him into the library,
46:28place him at his desk,
46:30put the gun in his hand
46:32so it looks like he shot himself.
46:37Then, while Bigelow makes his way outside,
46:41you tie a string to the bolt with a slipknot,
46:45run it across the room
46:47through a tiny hole in the windowpane
46:49to Bigelow, who pulls it through.
46:55You leave,
46:57closing the door behind you
46:59as Bigelow carefully pulls the string
47:02until the bolt clicks,
47:04gives it a jerk,
47:06slips the knot,
47:08and pulls it through the hole in the window,
47:10making it appear as though your husband
47:12had locked himself in and committed suicide.
47:15You've been reading too much Ellery Queen, Miss Holt.
47:18Have I?
47:20You have exquisite taste in clothes, Mr. Bigelow.
47:23I especially admired those Italian boots
47:26the boy delivered to your store the day I visited you.
47:29So much so, she forced me to, uh,
47:31break into your apartment.
47:33If you check,
47:35I believe you'll find there's a very distinctive pattern
47:38in the heel that matches the prints in the mud
47:41outside that window.
47:43Where were you at precisely 2.15 a.m.
47:45the night Sterling was killed?
47:47Exactly 15 minutes after the murder,
47:49exactly the time the sprinklers went off
47:51outside muddy in the ground where you stood.
47:56I'd say the choice is clear, Bigelow.
47:58You can take the fall alone,
48:00or you can name your accomplice.
48:05Hey.
48:07I only pulled the string.
48:10She pulled the trigger.
48:15Locked room murder, Mr. Steele.
48:22I must admit, Laura,
48:24Hawaii was the perfect choice.
48:26Mm.
48:27Mm.
48:29Shame about all those planes being routed.
48:31Still, if Mildred ever gets back with the macadamia nuts,
48:35I suppose this might be the next best thing to being there.
48:40If you close your eyes, it's almost as if we are there.
48:51You seem to be sailing somewhere without me.
48:53You know, Laura,
48:55when I was being interrogated by that kleptomaniac,
48:59it was almost as if...
49:03Well, in my delirium,
49:06it was almost as if you were there asking the questions.
49:10What kind of questions?
49:13Disturbingly vague now, but...
49:17I get the uneasy feeling that the answers might frighten both of us.
49:24In that case,
49:27some questions are best left unanswered.
49:33And some answers best left unquestioned.
49:53© BF-WATCH TV 2021