 The Equitable Life Assurance Society presents this is your FBI. This is your FBI, the official broadcast from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Transcribed and presented as a public service by the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States and the Equitable Society's representative in your community. Now I should like to introduce a representative of our sponsor, the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. Your future is his business, security in years to come for you, your home and your family. Tonight our equitable representative has a very timely message for the fathers and mothers of America. Mothers and fathers, as Christmas Day approaches, don't you find yourself thinking more of your children than in any other season of the year? The Christmas season is their season. That's why I think you'll be particularly interested tonight when Mr. Keating tells you in approximately 14 minutes about the Equitable Society's famous fact-finding chart for fathers and mothers. The facts this chart brings to light are vital to the future happiness of your family. Remember, it's the fact-finding chart for fathers and mothers prepared by the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. Tonight's FBI file, the innocent hostage. This year, now almost completely written into the pages of history, saw a number of new records established. There were, for instance, more automobiles made and sold than in any previous year of our history. The number of people gainfully employed in a single period hit an all-time high. Those are concrete accomplishments of which we may all be proud, for they represent unmistakable events. However, this past year, which saw the identification division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation celebrate its 25th anniversary, also saw it handle more fingerprint arrest records than in any previous 12-month period. A great number of the people represented by those cards were convicted and sentenced to pay for their crime by serving time in prison. The majority of those prison terms was less than five years, which meant that the convicted person regained his freedom still young enough to be active. He could then proceed to lead a decent life, or he could return to his criminal career. The choice was his and his alone. Of the arrest records handled this year by your FBI, the percentage of those with previous records was more than 50%. That suggests a discouraging number of repeaters. Suggests that perhaps the job of rehabilitation attempted in prison was a failure. But there are others, others who served their time and who then put crime behind them. Tonight's case from the files of your FBI is a story of both kinds of ex-convicts, of one who had enough of crime and one who would never have enough. Not as long as he lived. Tonight's file opens in a large movie theater. The last show has just ended and the house lights are on. The blank screen pours forth a babble of Ken music as the audience moves toward the lobby. Here, let me help you with that coat, Mary. Thanks. Good picture. Yes. Can I have my handkerchief back now? Oh, I'm sorry. Here. I'm gonna bring an extra one next time. Won't need one next week, Bob Hope. You'll cry anyway. Larry, it's not a good picture if you don't cry. You tell me one thing. What? Pop in your cry and eat popcorn at the same time. That's silly. Want to stop listening coffee? Uh, better not. It's almost 12 now. Okay. I'll see you in the lobby. Where are you going? Harder my nose. Oh. I won't be long. Okay. Keep walking. What? It's a gun in my pocket. Quick, make a wrong move and it goes off. Who are you? Walk. That's you. Where are we going? The car at the curb. What for? Somebody wants to see you. That's the car. All right, get in. Get in! What is this? All right, Smitty, let's get out of here. Yeah, sounds like it. Maybe you ought to tap him out again. I can handle him. Easy. What am I doing? Take it easy, pal. Huh? Just sit back and enjoy the ride. Oh. I remember. You're the one. The guy with the gun, that's right. What's this all about? Frankie wants to see you. Frankie? Frankie Gordon? Mm-hmm. Oh, look. He's wasting his time. I told him yesterday that I couldn't help him on the store job. I work at that store. I have a legitimate job. I live a legitimate life. We already took the store. What? We did the job tonight. Oh. Then why should Frankie want to see me? It was trouble. Trouble with cops. Frankie's brother got shot bad. He figures you're the one who tipped the cops. Oh, that's a lie. Tell that to him. Shall I take the river road for him? Yeah, okay. Can I have a cigarette? Sure. Got some right in here. Hey, Smitty! Jump! At the local FBI field office, special agent Jim Taylor is seated at his desk when Agent Roy Barrow approaches. Want a lift home, Jim? Oh, no, thanks, Roy. I just got in. At midnight? Yeah. New case. Oh, want a hand? Oh, sure. Sure. Grab a chair. Okay. Well, what's the story? Morgan's department store was robbed tonight by Frankie Gordon, his brother Charlie, and two other men. When? About nine o'clock. Two policemen just happened to be passing the store on their way home when the Gordon's came out. Nice timing. Oh, there was a gunfight. Charlie Gordon was hit bad, but Frankie hustled him into a car and they got away. Who made the identification? The department store Watchman. Anything on the other two? No, nothing. Well, what's our angle, Jim? Well, Frankie Gordon approached the Watchman at the store and flashed counterfeit FBI credentials. Uh-huh. He said the other man with him was an agent too, and that they were going inside to try and trap some thieves. Well, yeah, Gordon had a real good story. He said the phone company called the FBI office to report that an operator overheard two men cracking the safe in the store. How could she hear that? Well, Gordon claimed the phone was accidentally off the hook. And the Watchman went for it? Yeah, he opened the door. And when they got inside, they slouted. You talked to the Watchman yet? No, I got most of this from one of the police. The Watchman regained consciousness for a little while and passed out again. What was the loot? The day's receipts. Blue chips. All blue. A little better than 23,000. Hmm. How about the getaway card, Jim? Well, the police kept the license numbers. It pulled away. There's an alarm out on that now. There's also an alarm out on the Gordon Brothers. Well, if Charlie Gordon was badly hurt, Jim, we might get our lead alerting doctors. All right. Let's start calling them now. When I got home here, I called 51. Larry, I'll go to your place now if you want. I just came up with a new angle in this case. What's that? I think it was a five-man job, not four. But the Watchman said no. No, I know. He only saw four men. But I've just been to the store. And? And I went up to look at the safe. It hadn't been cracked. Well, that doesn't mean too much, Jim. Well, you were out. I've been going over Charlie Gordon's record. He's opened the safe before without using anything but his hand. That takes time, Roy. And the gardens were not inside that long. Yeah, there he is. It's an inside job. Could have been. I showed pictures of both Charlie and Frankie Gordon to all the clerks who work in on near the cashier's cage. Two of them recognized him. Positive identification? That's right. They said they saw him in the store yesterday talking to somebody named Larry Webster. Who's he? An employee there. Did you talk to Webster? No, he didn't show up for work this morning. So I got his home address from the store, and I went over there. He was gone. The superintendent took me up to his apartment, but it was empty. Not only that, the bed hadn't been slipped in. Does the store tell you anything about this, Webster? Yeah, but nothing that helps. He'd been with them nine years, worked his way up from shipping clerk, well liked, and thought of as a valuable employee. Well, all of which proves you can never tell who'll commit the next crime. Yeah. Did you send that alarm in, Webster? I called it in. Look, Roy, I'm going over to the hospital and see if I can have a talk with that watchman. When I finish, I'll see you back here. This all about. What are you doing in this hotel? I'm hiding. From who? Oh, a man who wants to kill me. Larry. He sent someone for me last night. He was in the theater lobby. He had a gun and forced me into a car. So that's what happened. How'd you get away? As we were driving through the outskirts of town, I took a chance, opened the car door, and jumped out. It was some miracle I wasn't hurt. Then I came back to the city and checked in here. But who is this man? Why should I want to kill you? Well, he's... He's someone I knew a long time ago, Marion. I haven't seen him in years. Came to the store yesterday. I went out to lunch and found him waiting for me. Yeah. This man is a thief, Marion. Oh. He wanted a combination of the store safe. He asked me to get it for him. I refused. Because of this, he wants to kill you? No. You see, they robbed the store last night without any help from me. What? In the getaway, this man's brother was shot by the police. He blames me. I think I double-crossed him. Oh, Larry, you shouldn't be hiding here. You should tell us to the police. I... I just can't marry him. Why not? No. I'd have to tell how I knew this man. I'd have to say what gave him the right to ask me to help him rob the store. You see, I'm wanted by the police myself. You? It happened down south when I was a kid. I thought then it was smart to drink and gamble. Even smart to carry a gun. One night with his man and his brother, I held up a gas station. They got $13. Oh, Larry. They were all caught, sentenced to five years in a chain gang. Served a year of that sentence. Then, well, chance came to escape. We took it. I still owe the law for big years. Larry, how old were you then? Seventeen. And you've played it straight since? All the way. Honest, Marion. Oh, please. Mary, I think you should still go to the police. Tell them the whole story. What you are now should be the thing that counts. Marion, if they would have sent me back to prison. You'd still be better than this. Please, Larry. Believe me, it's the only way. All right. I'll do it. You like or with you? I want you to. Get back inside. In just a moment to tonight's exciting case from the official files of your FBI. Now we're going to take time out for a few moments to talk to a man who looks as if he didn't know the meaning of the word worry. Is that correct, Warren? Wrong, Mr. Keating. I used to worry and worry fully. But that was before my Equitable Society representative brought me that fact-finding chart for fathers and mothers. And just what was it you'd worry about before you got this fact-finding chart? I guess it's a worry that few fathers of families escape. I've been watching my kids playing or sitting at the dinner table and suddenly the thought would hit me. What happens to them if I die unexpectedly? How much money would my wife need to keep the family together? Warren, not one father in 15, knows the answer to that second question. And that's the beauty of this fact-finding chart for fathers and mothers. Ten minutes after you sit down with it, you know exactly how much money your family would need to maintain a decent standard of living without you. In other words, you've got a sound and reliable basis for figuring up what the minimum expense would be until a youngest child finishes high school. Once more, this equitable chart is simplicity itself. Every step is made as plain as day by easy-to-understand pictures. Mr. Keating, my wife and I really enjoyed filling it in. And boy, what a relief when we finally got the final figure and our equitable man showed us how easily the whole problem could be solved. Would you mind telling us how much you've paid for this fact-finding chart, Warren? Pay? Why, it didn't cost a cent. Yes, this chart is just one of many services available from the Equitable Life Assurance Society. It costs you nothing and does not obligate you in any way. Just drop a hint to any representative of the Equitable Society and he'll be glad to see that you get a copy. Or send a postcard care of this ABC station to the Equitable Life Assurance Society. That's spelled E-Q-U-I-T-A-B-L-E. The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. And now back to the FBI file, The Innocent Hostage. Axioms about justice in almost every language. Axioms which attribute almost every known characteristic to the lady with the blindfold on her eyes and the scales in her hand. According to the tongue you speak, she is crafty, she is blind, she is truth, or she is fickle. The odd thing is that not a single one of the proverbs attributes to her what is certainly her greatest asset. Compassion. Justice in this country is not a white, cold, impregnable, marble statue. Here justice is the law. The law as written by human beings. The law as it is constantly being changed, modified, improved. Justice as we know it is a flexible instrument. And its greatness lies in its mercy. The ex-convict in tonight's case from the vials of your FBI would have been better off had he known that. Had he realized that in our courts any fact that is pertinent is weighed in those scales of justice. Any fact like the one that he had become a decent law-abiding citizen who had taken his place in society and maintained it for 15 long years. Many a criminal has tried to wrap himself in a protective robe of justice and has failed. But for those who are deserving, there is no more secure haven. If there is anyone within hearing of this program who faces a dilemma comparable to the one faced by the ex-convict named Larry Webster. Take the advice of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Advice which tells you that your metal and physical safety will best be served by doing one thing. One simple thing like calling your local police. Tonight's file continues at the FBI field office. Jim, we had some action while you were out on the alarms. On one of them. Police found the car that was used in the robbery last night. Where? In the park. There's blood on the floor on the back. Probably Charlie Gordon. Lab's checking on that now. Oh, how? Well, it seems Charlie Gordon was injured once before and a getaway and the police took his blood type. Oh, I can see it. Type A, B, M, N, R, H, negative. Yeah, it's pretty rare, isn't it? According to the lab, only about one person and five to six thousand would have that same grouping. I'll be good enough. Meanwhile, we've got two new alarms out. On whom? Maria Smitty and Floyd Crawford. The front of the car was loaded with their prints. Who were they, right? Police are setting up local records on both of them and I tell a type Washington to see if they could give us anything. That's fine. I don't think we should have as much to report on my interview with a watchman. Good job, Blank. Yeah. Well, he told me it was what we already know. How the Gordon's got into the store, what happened to him and what he told the police. We might be able to locate the Gordon's for something in Smith or Crawford's record, Jim. Well, that's her best chance at the moment, Roy. I'm going to tell a type and wait for an answer from Washington. What time is it, Webster? Hmm? Oh, 12.30. Big Frankie should be calling back. Hey, where you going? I thought I'd get the young lady some water. Sit down. Look, if you jump out of the car, you'll jump out of the window. Now sit down. Why can't you let us out of here? He didn't tell the police about the robbery. He's already told you that. Telling me don't mean a thing. He's got to see Big Frankie. I'll get it. And just remember, both of you, I got this gun. Hello? Roy? Yeah, Frankie. You called me? Yeah, I found Webster again. How? I hung outside his joint. A dame came in. He came out again carrying a key, so I tailed her here. Where's here? Central Hotel, First Avenue. What room number? 51. How's Charlie? Huh? When? Talk to those addresses, Jim. You checked both of them already, Roy? Well, it wasn't much to check. Last address and Floyd Crawford's arrest record is now vacant lot. That takes care of that. And Smitty moved from the address we had about eight months ago. Get more dead ends in this case. Well, we've got one angle that's alive yet. Like what? You remember me mentioning Larry Webster this morning? Uh-huh. Fellow from the store. Yeah, that's right. I took a chance in Wyatt Washington to see if they had anything on him. Well, it must have records on a hundred Larry Websters. Well, I sent them a description. This just came back. Uh, Webster escaped from a chain gang 15 years ago. That's the last entry? Yeah. Jim, 15 years is a long time. Maybe the description fit another Webster. Maybe it's not... No, I'll write one, Roy. Listen to this last line here. Uh, Webster affected his escape along with two of his fellow prisoners of Frank and Charles Gordon. How about a picture on Webster? The store didn't have one, but Washington is sending along the lineup photo from the files. I hope he hasn't changed a much since then. Well, we just have to take that chance. Have you talked to the SAC about this? Yeah, he says it's okay to give the papers, pictures on Webster, the two Gordon's, Floyd Crawford and Smitty. That ought to pin them down if they're still in town. Yeah. Roy, why don't you check the stores and saloons in Webster's old neighborhood? Okay, Jim. While you're doing that, I'm going to try and breathe some life into a lead on Frankie Gordon. Ain't luck running down Larry Webster, Roy? No, Jim. I think I checked every Webster except Daniel. Well, then we'll read them. I just finished combing through the records at police headquarters. I covered everybody who was ever arrested here with Frankie Gordon. Say, Jim... Yeah, why? Well, if Webster or Gordon was here 10 years ago, they'd have registered for the draft. Now, we could take... I checked that angle on the way back here, Roy. I also checked the railroad station. I checked the air terminal and the two bus stations. Maybe they're using a magic carpet. I'll get it done. Thank you. Special Agent Elder speaking. Atkins, sit up in the lab, Jim. Oh, yeah, Doc. At the blood we were working on for you. It's type A-B-M-N-R-H negative. Yeah, that means it's Charlie Gordon. Almost certainly, Jim. That robotic luteination test showed something else about Gordon. Oh, what's that, Doc? He was pretty sick before he stopped that bot. He's got a disease called Cetacosis. That's caused by... Yeah, I'm familiar with the disease, Doc. Anything else show up? No. Okay. Thanks very much, Doc. Come on, Roy. Where? The file room. Let's get some pictures of Charlie Gordon. We might have that lead we've been looking for. What did he say he'd be here? Big Frankie? Yeah. Getting anxious? I just want to get it over with. I think he'll take care of that for you. Think you'll let up a little on the crying ladies? Leave her alone. Look at her, old friend. Just stay quiet, both of you. Sorry to keep you waiting, Webster. I'm sure you are. Who's the dame? That's the one I followed you. Oh, yeah. What do you want with me? Didn't Floyd tell you? He told me you thought I double-crossed you, but it's not true. I don't believe you. I didn't expect you would. It's true. I know it is. Shut up. He had nothing to do with what happened. Shut up, I said. Boy, you take it easy. There he goes. Shall I finish him, Frankie? No. It's going to be my pleasure. See, Webster? My brother Charlie got shot in the getaway last night. He died this afternoon. No matter what you say, I know you hung it on him. No. So now I'm paying you back for it. Yes, I got him. Tell me a while. Got him both colored right. Take his gun. All right. You're from the police? Special agents of the FBI. We're taking you all down to headquarters. Crawford and George Smith, Alias Smitty, were turned over to local authorities. They were tried and convicted of armed robbery and each received a sentence of 25 years. Larry Webster was released on probation and allowed to return to his fiance and to his life as a decent law-abiding citizen. The phone call from the FBI laboratory which told Special Agent Taylor that Charlie Gordon had silicosis was the clue which led to the solution of tonight's case. Agent Taylor was familiar with the fact that the disease can be communicated to a human being only by an animal, by a parrot in virtually every instance. He and Agent Barrell, therefore, took pictures of Charlie Gordon and visited every pet shop in the city. At one, they were informed that Gordon had recently bought a parrot, a parrot which he had asked the shop to deliver. As the two special agents approached the address, they saw Frankie Gordon drive away accompanied by the man they recognized as Smitty. The two agents followed Gordon, followed him to the hotel central. And so, once again, the crime laboratory of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a lab which renders its services to every special agent and also to every local police department in the nation, was able to supply the vital clue which led to the apprehension of dangerous criminals. An even more important result in tonight's case, of course, was the fact that the lives of two innocent people were saved. Two people who owe their very existence to the tireless workers in the FBI lab who have made science perform the same function as every department of the Bureau, the function of protecting the lives and property of you, the American people. In just a moment, you will hear about next week's exciting case from the files of your FBI. But first, a few words from our Equitable Society representative on the fact-finding chart for fathers and mothers. Mr. Keating, right now, I figure that a lot of fathers and mothers are sort of on the fence about sending for the fact-finding chart. Well, all I've got to say to those folks is this, what have you got to lose? There's no charge, no obligation. On the other hand, there's a very good chance that this equitable chart can be of real and permanent benefit to you and your family. Phone one of us Equitable Society representative. Or send a postcard care of this radio station to the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. Next week, we will dramatize another case from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the story of a special agent's search for Santa Claus, its subject, the Christmas season, its title, The Return of St. Nick. The incidents used in tonight's Equitable Life Assurance Society's broadcast are adapted from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. However, all names used are fictitious, and any similarity thereof with the names of persons living or dead is accidental. Tonight's program was transcribed and the music was composed and conducted by Frederick Steiner. The author was Jerry D. Lewis. Your narrator was William Woodson, and special agent Taylor was played by Stacey Harris. Others in the cast were Ed Begley, Tom Brown, Sam Edwards, Purvella, Charles Maxwell, and Peggy Weber. This is your FBI as a Jerry Divine production. This is Larry Keating speaking for the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States and the Equitable Society's representative in your community. And inviting you to tune in again next week at this same time when the Equitable Life Assurance Society will bring you another thrilling story from the files of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Return of St. Nick on this is your FBI. This is ABC, the American Broadcasting Company.