 Family Theatre presents Danny Thomas and Jean Cagney. From Hollywood, the Mutual Network in cooperation with Family Theatre presents It Can't Happen Here, starring Jean Cagney. And now here is your host, Danny Thomas. Family Theatre's only purpose is to bring to everyone's attention a practice that must become an important part of our lives if we're to win peace for ourselves, peace for our families, and peace for the world. Family Theatre urges you to pray. Pray together as a family. And now to our transcribed drama, It Can't Happen Here, starring Jean Cagney as Linda. Yes, sir? I want to talk to you. You went exploring again, didn't you? Yes, ma'am. Come up here on the porch, Bob. I didn't really go far. Sit down. Now then. How far did you go? Not far. Beyond the mountains? Yes, ma'am. How far to the river? I don't see why you worry about me like you do. I'm... Well, I'm almost a man. You... you went past the river. I went all the way to the desert. There was the most beautiful place. One of the most beautiful things I've ever seen in my whole life. You ought to see it, ma'am. It's... It's like the ocean ought to look, but it isn't. Green glass. Yeah, glass. All green. As far as you can... You've seen it? Yes, Bob. I've seen it. Come into the house. Wasn't it about the most beautiful thing you ever saw? Green glass. As far as the eyes can see. Beautiful? I think... I think it's the most hideous thing in the world. That's the way I feel about it. But you didn't ride out onto it. Old Chigger's getting pretty old. I didn't think he could keep his footing. Your father will want to have a few words with you about this, Bob. Yeah. Do we have to tell him? Do you think he'd be right not to? I suppose we have to tell him, but... But what? As long as I can remember, he's been telling me not to leave this valley. We've both been telling you that. For a long time you said it was because... Because there just wasn't anything beyond this valley. It doesn't exist anymore. Are you sure, ma'am? How can you be sure? We're fairly sure. But you're not positive. Deep down inside. Is that what you feel you have to do? Make sure? Maybe someday. After all we've told you about the radiation. I know. I know what you told me about it. But it's pretty hard to be afraid of something when... Never mind. No, no, no. Go on. What are you going to say? When you can't see something or smell it or taste it. When you can't even feel it. It's pretty hard to be afraid of it. But we've told you about it. Yes. You've told me about it. But... But because it's never really hurt you. Because it seems far away, remote. You're having a difficult time being concerned about it, huh? You're not the first person to feel that way. If you were, well... Perhaps the war never would have come. What do you mean, ma'am? It's the way people think. We each felt down deep inside that we were really not vulnerable. We were immune to hurt. And if we had a feeling of personal immunity, we also had a little of that same feeling for our country. Too bad, we thought. Too bad about those little countries in Asia and the Middle East. Too bad about their wars. Aren't we lucky that such a thing could never happen here? We got complacent. And that was the first step down. First step down to what? Oblivion, you might say. Is that the way you felt about things, too? I'm afraid it was. Perhaps not as strongly as some, but it was generally the way I felt, even on the day it happened. It was on Thanksgiving Day 15 years ago. A day when customs called for most Americans to be at home with thoughts of war in the furthest part of their minds. But I wasn't at home. I was 26,000 feet in the air on a transcontinental flight from New York to Los Angeles. I remember I was a little afraid. I didn't know it then, but I was a thousand times safer there than I would have been almost anywhere on the ground. Oh, this is really your first trip by air, eh? Does it show that much? My goodness, no. I was having a little trouble believing it. I suppose that's why I asked you again. Look as calm as can be. Why, thank you. It's an effort, believe me. Actually, I'm almost ready to go and tell the pilot to fly a little closer to the ground. That's a good one. I wish they'd let you smoke cigars and these things. Oh, I can give you a cigarette. That wouldn't even feel like smoking to me. Oh, look. Up there, those white lines. Oh, contrails. Looks like skyriding. But I can't imagine anybody doing any skyriding way up there. Natural phenomenon has something to do with vapor. Air passing around the wingtip or something like that. Planes up there? Pretty high, aren't they? Oh, they must be. Oh, I see them. I see them. They look like specs. They're awfully high up. Quite a number of them, too. Must be, uh... See, must be easy 25. Heavy bombers, Air Force boys outspending the taxpayers' money. And there ought to be a law against it if you want to know what I think. Well, I suppose it has to be done. Always maneuvers. And a pig's eye, it has to be done. Do you know it takes 2,000 pounds of fuel in this size just from the hangar to the runway? And if you drive a car, you can figure the cost of a thing like that. Oh, what must it be costing them to keep all those planes in the air? A fortune. A hundred fortunes. It's criminal the way the government spends our money. I wrote my congressman about that last armed services appropriation. More money for that due liner, due pointer, whatever they call that radar system up north. Money for the missiles program for this and for that. Those people down there in Congress think money grows on trees. But still, don't you think we should have a good radar system? That's a bunch of baloney. But even if we did, can you tell me the sense in sticking it up there in the frozen waste just because they think the commies might start a war and if they did, they might come over the pole? Not even logical. Pound and money down a rat hole, that's all it is. Oh, look. Look, more contrails. That's what you call them, isn't it? Where? See? Hmm. Bigger formation than the last two. Government keeps this up, America will be one vast poor house. Then you don't think there's much chance of a war? Absolutely no reason to worry. Well, the conversation certainly took a doer turn, didn't it? I guess it did. All those Air Force bombers flying around, joyriding at the taxpayers' expense, kind of makes my hackles rise. What's everybody looking at? Oh, glow there on the horizon. What do you suppose it is? Some smelter running a little hot, more than likely. It might be a forest or a grass fire. Everything looks different from up here. 25,000 feet, isn't it? Pilots calling the stewardess up front. We'll probably be told about it in a minute or so. Isn't that another one? Another fire? There. Your attention, please. This is the flight captain. I've just been informed that... not until I have to. I have just been informed that conditions are unfavorable for our scheduled landing at Denver. But I have to be in Denver today. We will therefore be continuing to another field where conditions are more favorable. Please fasten your seat belts. We may be passing through some rough air. Rough air? There's not a cloud in the sky. I'd give a dollar to know what this is all about. Something big's going on. I know it. Here comes the stewardess. Maybe she could... Stewardess! Fasten your belts, please. Fasten your belts. Thank you. Stewardess! Please fasten your seat belts, sir. Hang the belt. Can you tell us what's going on? I've got to be in Denver today. A great deal depends on it. I'd like to be in Denver, too, sir. Fasten your seat belt, please. Is something wrong? Is it the fire? Please let go of my arm, sir. Not to you tell me why we're not going to land where we're supposed to land. My ticket says Denver. There isn't any Denver. Those fires are from atomic bombs. America's under attack. There isn't any more anything. When we heard it, we didn't believe it. But we believed it when the shockwaves began to bounce the plane around as if it were nothing more than a caulk and a heavy sea. We believed it when we saw crater after crater instead of city after city. We could see a thousand fires reflected against the sky. After a while, the pilot told us as much as he knew about what was happening throughout the country. And then for a long time, we just sat there listening to the droning of the engines and wondering about what was happening on the ground. It was almost dusk before the pilot spoke again. Your attention, please. The city you saw a few minutes ago was Nogales Juarez. I had hoped that its proximity to the Mexican border would mean that it had been spared. I had also hoped that if it hadn't, we could have gone into Mexico. I've been informed that Mexico too was under atomic attack. That was the last radio communication I've been able to raise and it was 20 minutes ago. It's possible that some of the buffeting the plane has gone through may have damaged our radio equipment. But as a captain of this ship entrusted with your safety, I must assume otherwise. And I must try to put you on the ground where we all might have a reasonable chance for survival. Such a place exists. I think our best chance would be in one of the mountain valleys of the Rockies where the chances of dust contamination would be small. I've selected a place 12 air miles just from Grand Lake since there is no airfield. We will have to make an emergency landing. None of us ever thought to question the ideas of the pilot. Perhaps because we were too stupefied at what we'd seen to think for ourselves. Let your seatbelts are firmly fast. But I'll always remember that last part of the trip. The sun was going down, but there was no darkness. The night was illuminated by uncountable fires on the ground reflected by the contrails of the enemy bombers. Half of the forest seemed to be aflame. Fortunately, not the valley 12 miles due south of Grand Lake. Hello. Don't you want to know where you are? That's supposed to be the first question you ask. It used to be in the films. Where am I? Blackfoot Lookout Station, sometimes known as Fire Watch Number 14. You were in a plane crash. Remember now? Oh. Oh, the bombing. It wasn't... It wasn't a dream, no. Oh, there were others on the plane. Yes, the plane burned when it hit. I probably wouldn't have found you otherwise. Am I the only survivor? There were nine of you. Were nine. The others took my station wagon. They're going to try to make it over What's that? It's a town, a little town. The bombers haven't noticed yet. Why didn't they take me? Two reasons. One, you have a broken pelvis, which probably couldn't stand the ride. And... And the other reason? There wasn't room for you in the station wagon. Not room for a stretcher case, anyway. You said a little town that the bombers hadn't noticed yet. Yeah. You think they'll come back? I think they're still coming. Why do you say that? This is a total war. And I think in this kind of a war, you throw everything you have with the first punch. There have been two waves. Well, how do you know that? I shot wave radio over there. I've been monitoring the military frequencies. The first wave was precision, military targets, industrial cities. The second wave was the city area bombing. The third wave will be mop-up. Oh, but surely the smaller cities, the towns with no military importance... And Fort Collins, a college town. Grand Junction, an agricultural community. Aurora, strictly residential. I can't get a call to or from any of them. Aren't we... aren't we doing anything? If all the enemy was across the Canadian border, our planes were on the way. Reports I've heard say that our interception has been 65% effective. Maybe if so many of us hadn't been hiding our heads in the sand, it would have been 100% effective. Less than 10 hours ago, I was talking to a man about something like that. He thought the taxpayers were pounding money down a rat hole. In a way, I guess that's what we were doing. We just didn't pound enough down. The rat got out anyway. The third and final wave came late that night. Just about the time our planes would have been over the enemy's homeland. The next day, John noticed that even the mountain around the valley had been changed. He pointed out where the flashes had started fires in the valley itself, fires which were automatically put out by the concussion that followed. The day after that, we heard our last radio transmission. I had it a minute ago. CQ, this is Butterfly 7 out of month. Hello? Hello? Hello, CQ, this is Butterfly 7. Do you read me? Over. I think that's a bomber. I think maybe he's looking for survivors. Only one way to find out. CQ, this is Butterfly 7. I'm losing altitude fast. Will somebody give me a fix? Over. Butterfly 7. Hello, Blackfoot Lookout. Do you want a long count? Hello, Blackfoot Lookout. I was beginning to think I was the last man on Earth. Where are you? Colorado Rockies, 12 miles south of Grand Lake. Oh, that's not close enough. I'm somewhere over Hudson's Bay. Did you say Hudson's Bay? Affirmative. I'm on a rescue mission. I have a woman who needs medical attention. Sorry, Blackfoot. I'm returning from a bomber mission. And I'm losing altitude fast. I have a report to pass this on, will you? I will. What's your message? Just tell them the mission was successful. We hid something in the Urals. Depot, maybe. Magazine, something like that. Took half the country with it when it blew. We'll, uh, we'll pass the word. Looks like I'm losing an engine now. Did you say there was a girl with you? That's what I said. Is she pretty? Yes. Yeah, she's very pretty. Can I talk to her? Just a minute. Push this button down when you talk. All right. This one? That's right. Hello. That you? Do you think you can make it all right? Oh, not a chance. I want you to do me a favor, huh? Anything. Push the button. Oh, that's good. Anything you want. Will you pray for me? We, we will. Anything else? A man and a woman. Adam and Eve all over again, huh? I, I guess you could say that. Another favor? What is it? This time, Eve, please don't take that apple. What happened? Stop transmitting. Then he's down. Very likely. We, we couldn't be the last two people left on Earth. No, but I think it'll be a long, long time before we find the ones who are left. About, about this Adam and Eve. Well, we'll wait till you're well before we talk about courting. Okay? Okay. It was about a month after that that your father and I exchanged vows. And a year after that, that you came along, Bob. And you never even saw anyone else? Oh, a few stray cattle and horses, and I don't know how they survived. But never any people. Once a week we'd ride the Ring of Mountains with that Geiger counter and always the same answer. Too hot for survival. But it's been a while since we checked last. Maybe things have cooled off a little. We'll talk to your father about it when he comes back from hunting. Maybe we can organize a small expedition. Find you someone to talk to besides parents. Why did it have to happen? It didn't have to happen, Bob. What could anybody have done to stop it? Oh, we could have been better prepared as a nation. But how could you, as individuals, how could you have done anything to keep the world peaceful? Something that I think that I'm sure would have worked if enough people had done it. What? We could have prayed for peace instead of taking it for granted. This is Danny Thomas again. When you think about it, there's nothing we have which isn't a gift. Friends, family, good health, each blessing we can count is something that has been given us by the author of all blessings, our Creator. That's an easy thing to forget when our lives are flowing along smoothly. And yet, if we want, there's a very simple method we can all use to remind ourselves of God's goodness and generosity. The method I have in mind is prayer. Daily family prayer. It only takes a few minutes. It doesn't have to be a big production. You can do it at bedtime just before the kids pile in for the night. It doesn't matter what words you use. Don't worry. Just kneel down. Look around at how much you've got to be thankful for and the words will come. And speaking of gifts, there's a special gift of happiness that comes from family prayer itself. Ask anyone who's tried it. The family that prays together stays together. More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of. Family Theater has brought you transcribed, It Can't Happen Here, starring Jean Cagney. Danny Thomas was your host. Others in our cast were Peter Voltrian, Lynn Allen, Barney Phillips, John Stevenson and Jason Johnson. The script was written and directed for Family Theater by Robert Hugh O'Sullivan, with music composed and conducted by Harry Zimmerman. This series of Family Theater broadcast is made possible by the thousands of you who feel the need for this type of program. By the mutual network which has responded to this need. And by the hundreds of stars of stage, screen and radio who give so unselfishly of their time and talent to appear on our Family Theater stage. To them and to you, our humble thanks. This is Larry Chatterton expressing the wish of Family Theater that the blessing of God may be upon you and your home and inviting you to be with us again next week when Family Theater will present Sylvia, join us won't you? Family Theater is broadcast throughout the world and originates in the Hollywood studios of the world's largest network. This is Mutual, the radio network for all America.