 Good evening, friend. This is your host to welcome you through the creaking door into the inner sanctum. Come in. I want you to see the changes we've made around here. Very, very smart. Now, this new morbid motif was designed by those southern decorators, or topsy and evil. This three-part section of stuff was made especially for the wife of Harry the Hatchetman. You see, Harry left his wife in pieces, so naturally, we let the chip and jails fall where they may. Now, here's our new dropped living room. Just freshly dug. It's for rent, a real bargain. All you have to do is slap on the down payment. Tonight's inner sanctum mystery, death wears a lonely smile, was written by Ed Adamson and Bob Sloan, and stars Mr. Sloan in the role of Walter, with Mercedes McCambridge as Carol. Well, now let's get to tonight's torturous tale. Find your places and make yourselves comfortable before we begin. As Harry the Hatchetman says, we're not seating anyone before the first axe curtain falls. It's dust, and a cold wind whips through the burial ground, stirring the leafless branches into wordless whispers of dead, forgotten voices. Amid the gravestones, the big man with a bloodied gash and his forehead stands, hapless. His massive ape-like arms hanging limply at his side, his eyes set in a lost, vacant stare. The big man remains there, transfixed, as a young woman in black comes out of the shadows behind him. Can I help you? Well, where did you come from? I was over there putting flowers on my father's grave and I saw you. You were standing here and you seemed lost, so I... Lola. What? I've been waiting for you, Lola. Oh, I'm not... I knew you'd come if I waited, Lola. I knew you would. But my name isn't Lola. I waited so long. I waited every day. I told you I'm not Lola. You've mistaken me. My name is Carol. Carol? That's right. Carol Finley. But Lola said she'd come. She promised me. I need her. Who is Lola? Lola's my friend. She never made fun of me because I'm... I'm so big. Lola never laughed like all the others, like all those other ones who are so mean. What's your name? I told you it's Carol. What's yours? Walter. Walter, you better let me take you home. Home? Yes. Where do you live? Where? I don't know. There's something the matter with you. Yes, you're hurt. That cut on your forehead. Cut? Yes. Look, I'll take you to my place. My mother has a rooming house and you can stay there until you feel better. No, I can't go. I must wait for Lola. I promised I'd wait for her. Walter! Yeah? Was her name Lola Douglas? Yeah, yeah, Lola Douglas. There's no use in your waiting. Oh, you mustn't talk like that. She'll be here. She will. She's already here. That gravestone there, look at it. Lola Douglas died March 6, 1948. There you are, Walter. Now, that bandage will do for a while. You're nice to me, Carol. You're like Lola. You're not afraid of me, are you? Of course not. Why should I be afraid? Because I'm so big. I remember when I was in school, a boy made fun of me. I grabbed his arm and I told him to stop. He just laughed at me. I didn't mean to hurt him, but I broke his arm. I just squeezed a little and it broke. Then they were all afraid of me. They shouldn't have laughed at you. I like you, but I can't stay here. It's perfectly all right. I spoke to my mother and she said that you can have my room for a few days and I'll move downstairs. Oh, I have to find Lola. I promised that I... Walter, try to understand. Lola is dead. Oh, no. She was buried over a year ago. That isn't true. I saw Lola last week. I spoke to her. All right, Walter. All right. And tomorrow you can start looking for her again. But now you must get some rest. You just lie down here and I'll... Carol, why are you looking at me like that? This was on the table among the things you took out of your pocket. What is it? A newspaper clipping. I didn't have a clipping in my pocket. It's dated March 7, 1948. Woman found brutally crushed to death. Victim identified as Lola Douglas. Carol, I just stopped by for a minute. Oh, I'm sorry. I thought Carol Finley was here. Carol gave me her... Lola. Lola? I knew you weren't dead. Oh, my name isn't Lola. I knew they were lying all the time, Lola. Now, I'm glad it's hard. I live down the hall. They were trying to keep me from you. Come in, Lola. Come with me, Lola. I wouldn't hurt you, Lola. You know I wouldn't. Let's go! Oh, you mustn't talk so loud, Lola. They'll hear you. They'll think I'm hurting you. Please. Please let me out of here. Oh, don't try to get away from me, Lola. I might hurt you. I don't want to hurt you, Lola, but you might make me. You see, I'm hurting you. You're making me, and I don't want to hurt you. I was downstairs and I heard someone scream. Who are you? Carol's mother, Mrs. Finley. The scream came from this room. I'm sure of it. Oh, no, Mrs. Finley. Nobody would... Yes, she is. She wasn't here before. Lola was here, but now she's gone. Dennis, are you all right? Oh, Mrs. Finley. Who is she? Now you're all right, my dear. I'm here. He tried to kill me. Oh, no, I wouldn't hurt anybody. It's your pocketbook, Gladys. He probably wanted your money. I don't want money. There's money in it. How much did you have, Gladys? Well, I just cashed a check. Sixty-eight dollars. It was your rent. Twenty, forty, sixty, five... Sixty-eight. It's all here. Well, come on now, dear. Now I'll take you to your room. And you, I want you to clear out of here. No, I can't go. You're getting out, you understand? You're getting out. I can't go. Lola's coming back. I promised her I'd wait and I'm staying here until she comes. Mom, what's the matter? I can't find Gladys. Her bed wasn't slept in. Did you see her? No. At the moment she wasn't there. I had a feeling when you brought him home the other night. I had a feeling I should have turned him away. He's killed Gladys. Mom, stop it. Stop talking like that. Well, he tried it yesterday. No, he didn't. Mommy, he's just mixed up. You've got to try to understand him. Please take it easy. Gladys probably left for work early. No, sir. She didn't leave this house alive. I was in her room. He's done something to her. He's hidden her body. Mommy, I don't believe he'd do a thing like that. Then what about Lola Douglas? He was murdered a year ago. You told me about that yourself. All right, I did. But there's no proof that Walter killed her. Mom, I understand him. I'll go up and talk to him. No, you won't. You're staying right here. I'll do the talking to him. I've got to get him out of this house before we're all murdered. You've got to get out of here. Please, Mrs. Finley, don't make me go. Lola will come back. Lola Douglas was murdered a year ago. That's not true. Lola's alive. She saw her last week. She was murdered by you. No, I wouldn't hurt Lola. You killed her the same way you killed Gladys. You shouldn't say things like that, Mrs. Finley. You took Gladys out of here last night and murdered her. No, Mrs. Finley, I didn't leave. I was waiting for Lola. You're a monster, a horrible, crazy monster. You're saying mean things to me, Mrs. Finley. Well, I want you out of my house. I want you out right now. Like Carol. Carol's nice. Carol said I could stay here in her room. Yes, but not if you don't pay. Pay. Well, I know you have no money. You can't stay here another moment unless you pay. And I want a month's rent in advance. Now, what do you say to that? All right, Mrs. Finley. And the quicker you get out of here... And it's your money. But where did you... Is this enough for a month in advance, Mrs. Finley? It's $68 enough. $68, Carol. Here, look. He gave me $68. I don't understand it, Mom. Yesterday he didn't have a penny in his pocket. But don't you see what this proves? It's just as I told you. He's murdered Gladys. That's exactly what she had in her pocketbook last night. $68. Sergeant, this is Mrs. Finley, 529 Ilm Street. You'd better come over right away. 529 Ilm. What's the trouble, lady? Well, one of my rumors Gladys' heart. She's missing. Missing? Oh, we don't have a lot, lady. Oh, but listen... I'll switch you over to missing person. Wait, just a minute, please. Yeah? Well, this woman, she's not just missing. She's been murdered. Look, lady, which isn't. She's missing and murdered. Both. She hasn't been in her room all night. She had $68 in her pocketbook and... Ah! Hello. Hello. You! Good afternoon, Mrs. Finley. I'm sorry. I troubled you, officer. I made a mistake. That is hard to lie. She...she just walked in. Come in, Carol. Did I disturb you? Oh, I was listening to the music on the radio. It's...it's nice music, isn't it, Carol? Yes, Walter. Very pleasant. Lola likes music just like that, too. Walter? Yeah. I came up to apologize for the way Mom acted to you. Mrs. Finley said mean things to me. Well, Mom didn't understand. Mrs. Finley said I'd kill that girl. I didn't kill her. Yes, we know that now. Gladys came in a little while ago. She stayed at a friend's house overnight. Walter? Where did you get the money you gave Mom? Well, it was in my pocket. I found the $68 in my pocket. But it was more than $68. More? I was very excited when you gave it to her. She forgot to count it, but you gave her $85. Oh, I only had $68. You must have made a mistake. You had $85. You gave Mom $17 too much. So here she told me to give you back the $17. Oh, you keep it, Carol. You're nice to me. No, Walter, it's yours. Please take it. Carol? Yes? This money I, uh... Well, would you let me take you to dinner? Well, you see, I do. I came to go with me because I'm so big. Because people would look at me and laugh. Of course I wouldn't be ashamed. And you'll go? Yes, Walter, I'd be very glad to go with you. I'll just run downstairs and get my things. You'll meet me out in front of the house in ten minutes. All right, Carol, I'll meet you. We'll have a nice time. Yes, Walter, I'm sure we'll... They stopped playing the music. The music was so nice. They stopped playing it. How's for you? You're all right? Of course I'm all right. What? Why are you putting on your coat? I'm going out to dinner. Out to dinner? Yes, with Walter. Kevin's, I got here in time. Mom, what are you talking about? He's a murderer. Oh, you're not going to start that all over again, are you? Well, it just came over the radio. A woman was killed last night in Washington Park. That doesn't prove that Walter is a murderer. It does. The radio said the woman had $85 in her pocketbook. She had what? $85. Well, that's what he gave me this afternoon. $85. That's what he killed that woman for. Oh, Mom, I can't believe it. Oh, that's how he suddenly had the money to pay the rent. And the radio said the woman was crushed to death by a man who was big and powerful. Big and powerful. It's him. Oh, and you would have been the next Carol. Where is he now? I was supposed to meet him outside the house. I suppose he's out there waiting for me now. Oh, that man's a lunatic. A crazy, killing lunatic. Mom, what are we going to do? Well, you stay here in this room now and don't leave it. What about you? Well, I'm going downstairs to call the police. I'll be back in a few minutes. And remember, no matter what happens, don't leave this room. Operator, the police. Quick, get me the police. What? You're calling the police? No. You're going to tell on me. No. You're wrong. I was going to... She was waiting for you, Carol. Well, I... I'm not ready yet. You've got your hat and coat on. Well, can't we wait just a little long? You're afraid. You're afraid to go to dinner with me. No. Otherwise, you'd go with me right now. Well, I... All right, Walter, all right. I'll do just as you like. We'll go right now. Why did you change? Me change? I don't know what you mean. I don't think you like me anymore. Oh, but I do like you, Walter. You want to get away from me, I can tell. You don't want to be with me. I came out with you. I'm going to dinner with you. You don't want to. I can tell by the way you act. You keep pulling away from me. Wait, wait. What is it? Did you really want me to like you, Walter? Yeah, very much. Then I tell you what, this floor shop here, you go in there. You buy me some flowers. Some flowers? Mm-hmm. Oh, all right. Oh, what kind? Oh, any kind. And I'll wait here while you do it. No, you come with me. You pick them up. Oh, but I want you to surprise me. Oh, I don't want you to be alone. You might run away from me. No, I wouldn't do a thing like that. Oh, if you want some flowers, you got to come in the shop with me. All right, Walter. I'll go with you. What can I do for you? What kind of flowers do you want, Carol? Roses. Oh, yes, roses. Roses are very nice. A dozen? Yes. Well, I'll have them for you. Oh, Miss... Miss, I... I have to make a phone call. I wonder if I could... Well, there's a table. It's over there behind the first. Oh, thank you. I'll just be a minute, Walter. But, Carol... You wait here for the flowers. I'll be right back. Operator, get me the police. Oh, listen to me carefully. I don't have much time. My name is Carol Finley. And the man who murdered that woman in Washington Park last night is with me. Where are you? In Kramer's floor shop on 6th Street. But we're leaving here in a minute. He's taking me to dinner at the Black Grotto down the block. Black Grotto, I got you. Please, hurry. Oh, they're very pretty. Oh, Carol... Why, I... Called mom. You... Talk to Mrs. Finley? Yes, I just wanted to let her know where I'd be so that she wouldn't worry. You... Talk to her? Yes, I just... Oh, do that. I did. Come on, Walter. I'm hungry. All right, Carol. Wait, Carol. I'll call a taxi. We're just going to the Black Grotto. We don't need a taxi. It's just down the street there. I changed my mind, Carol. When I'd go into the Black Grotto, I'm taking you to a nicer place. Much nicer. Why did you take me out here? Oh, there's something in the cemetery I want to show you. Walter, please, let's go back to Tom. We won't be long. It's right here. This is what I wanted to show you. It's... It's an empty grave. Yes, Carol. And we have the flowers to put on it. But no one's in there. It's empty. You'll be there, Carol. Walter? It's for you. Oh, you don't want to hurt me, Walter. I'm your friend, remember? No, no, you're bad. You like all the rest of them. I thought you were nice, but you're not. Don't you remember? I tried to help you, look. You didn't call Mrs. Finley from the flower shop. Yes, I did, Walter. I spoke to Mom. That's not the truth. You couldn't talk to her. Mrs. Finley is dead. She's what? I killed her. She was going to tell the police about me. I put my hands around her neck and I squeezed and... She was dead. I put her in the cellar. Now I've got to kill you. No, Walter, wait. Wait. If you do anything to me, there won't be anybody left to help you find Lola. Lola. Yes. Lola. Yes, Walter. I can help you find Lola. I think I know where she's hiding. Lola's dead. No. She left. She laughed at me. She said I was crazy. A big, crazy fool. That's what she said. I thought she was my friend, but she wasn't. She was mean. She laughed at me. She was mean like all the rest. They all laughed at me. I wouldn't laugh at you, Walter. I wouldn't. I hate it when people laugh at me. I want to hurt them just like I want to hurt you because you're laughing at me now. I'm not laughing. I'm not. You are. Please, no. Let's go. Please. Stop laughing. Stop laughing. Walter, darling. Stop laughing. I wouldn't have to hurt you. But you wouldn't stop. Lola. Lola. Lola. Lola. Lola. Make them stop. Lola. Lola. Lola. Please make them stop there, hurting me. You all right, miss? Yes, officer. I'm all right. That was a close call you had. You didn't turn up at the Black Grotto. I checked with the florist. She saw him take you into a cab outside her shop. Lucky thing I got out here in time. Yes. He sure was a big guy, wasn't he? Yes, he was. A big guy who didn't want people to laugh at him. Well, that closes the lid on tonight's little coffin of curious characters. And Walter certainly proved to point the bigger they are, the harder they fall into a grave. Say, Carol certainly had a narrow escape, didn't she? Your girl almost died laughing. You know, that's the trouble with most people. No sense of humor. Some of them just can't take a choke. All right, so my gags leave you more of it. You didn't want to sleep tonight anyway. Or did you? Good night. Pleasant dream. The film was heard in the United States over CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System, and has been rebroadcast for service men and women overseas. This is the United States Armed Forces Radio Service, the voice of information and education.