 Hello, I hope I haven't kept you waiting. Yes, this is the crime club. I'm the librarian. Death never doubles. Yes, we have that story for you. Come right over. Take the easy chair by the window. Comfortable? The manuscript is on this shelf. Here it is. Death never doubles. The very exciting story of a past present that had no future. Let's look at it under the reading lamp. It was early evening, and Peter Woods, a young lawyer, was in his apartment getting dressed for his appointment with Hilda Ryan, his fiance. He was not expecting a phone call, but when it came, he answered it as if it meant nothing at all. Then, five minutes and countless palpitations later. Oh, sure, Mr. Jackson. Don't worry, Mr. Jackson, I'll be there. Yes, I know, not later than a quarter date. Yes, I've got the address. 1052 West 52nd Street. All right, Mr. Jackson, thanks very much. Bye. Wow. Hello? Hilda, honey. Yes? Oh, my sugar-coated Cupid. Guess what? You're going to be late again. You're drunk. I'm delirious. I just fell into a pot of gold. Did you say gold? Uh-huh. Mr. Jackson just phoned me. Steve Jackson. Who's he? I don't know, but he's going to do a big operation and he needs a lawyer. He promised me $5,000. $5,000? Who recommended him to you? Nobody. Just picked my name right out of the phone book. Uh-huh. What's the matter? Oh, nothing. I don't know. I've gotten several clients that way. Did they pay you $5,000 fees? Oh, Hilda, now look, I know it's a lot, but it isn't fantastic. After all. Yes, honey. After all, he may be a nut with a bolt loose. He sounded perfectly all right to me. So do you, when you're not listening. What time will you pick me up? What? Uh... Well, honey, I'm afraid I can't make it tonight. Mr. Jackson? Yeah, quarter to eight. And I've got to be on time. Of course. Would he mind if you brought your secretary along? Now, what's the idea, Hilda? You know I haven't got one. I have darling and a menu in sis from now on who's going to keep an eye on her man. Well, Pete. Don't say it, Hilda. I couldn't stand it. Are you sure Mr. Jackson said 1052 West 52nd Street? Yes. It wasn't West 57th Street? No. I repeated the address to him. This is the place. But there's no building here. Just a hole in the ground. I don't get it. Why should anybody ask me? Wait a minute. Why? They're excavating here. That hole in the ground is where they're going to put a foundation of a building. So anybody can see that. All right. Now, suppose Steve Jackson is the guy. You know, the builder. He'd have an office, Pete. I'm going to find out. Come on. Darling, can't we forget the whole thing? There's a bedroom on the second floor of this building next to the light. Pete, I'd rather have dinner and go to the movies. We'll go upstairs and we'll ask about Steve Jackson. Somebody ought to know him. I'm not going. Well, what are you afraid of? Trouble. Nothing. The sooner we get away. Hey, you're blocking the doorway. Huh? Oh, I'm sorry. We didn't see you. I walk like a cat. Now, if you don't mind, I'll just go inside. Duke. Duke Masters. What? Pete, is he talking to you? Gee, Duke, I didn't recognize you in this pair of light. He wasn't expecting to see you for six months. No, look, listen. When do they let you out? I'm Peter Woods and I'm looking for Steve Jackson. And no moniker, eh? Culture, too. Why, you're even talking like Park Erin. Okay, maybe it's a good idea. We can all start from scratch. I'll change wine for Marty Green. Pete, shall we go now? Wait a minute, sister. What's the rush? Marty. Sister's name happens to be Hilda Ryan. I'm tickled. Hey, Duke, what are you going to say to Trixie about this dog? Trixie? Yeah, she's still... Hey, what goes here? Just a couple of the wrong people. Come on, Hilda. Did you know I was waking all night and that dump upstairs or did you come here by accident? Marty, now it's you who's blocking the doorway. We ain't taking no trouble for us, Duke. We've been having hard times for the last year and a half. Oh, that's too bad. What do you want me to do about it? Okay, so you took the rap for all of us. Me, Flip Morgan and the rest of them out. You got two to five years in Leavenworth and we didn't. But you got caught and we didn't. Now listen, Marty... No, you listen. You got 200 greens soaked away some place that's going to be split. You ain't setting yourself up as no millionaire in our dough. Marty, when was the last time you were pushed through a wall? Yeah. Okay, pal. But I'm telling Flip Morgan and Trixie I've seen you. Yeah, I do that little thing. And brother, if you've got any real ideas about spending that dough yourself, I'm going to give a big chunk of it to some undertaker. Stop flipping that coin. You're driving me crazy. Well, what are you so nervous about, Trixie? I'm not nervous. All right. Will you stop it? Sure. You want me to go home to my mother? Don't be a dope. It's just that I'm... Oh, yeah, sure. I know. You'd like to see something green for a change. Flip. Well, it's my sickness, too. Duke, the wise guy. He don't trust nobody. 200 grand stacked away and we got a scratch that gets out of stir. What's going to happen when he gets out? What's that? He's got only six months to go and leave it to Duke. He's behaving. Won't be two to five for him. He'll get the diploma at the end of two. Well, what's wrong with that? I can't help it if I'm scared, Flip. He's not going to do anything to you. I promised I'd wait for him. So what? You changed your mind. He'll kill me. You're crazy. I know what I'm talking about. When Duke finds out, somebody hasn't tipped him off already. Relax. Duke's a dying duck. Huh? Only he don't know it yet. Nobody's going to tell him. What do you mean? You learned how to do arithmetic, didn't you? Flip. Uh-huh. The more numbers you got to divide by, the less everybody gets. You're going to kill him. First, he brings the dough out of hiding. I got a brain that gives me 24-hour service. But, Flip, suppose... What for? The day Duke steps out of Leavenwood, he's going to have an escort with them all the way to New York. And by the time we swing up Broadway, he's going to be all talked out. Oh, oh. And then we bury him. I'll get it, Trixie. Yep. Hello, Flip. Yep. This is Marty. The Duke sound. What? Yeah, yeah, Duke masters. I've seen him. Hey, now listen, Marty, if this is a guy... I tell you, I've seen him with my own eyes. I talked to him. And you should hear him, Flip. Like he went to college instead of Leavenwoods. Just a minute. Trixie. Yeah? Marty just saw the Duke in town. What? What? Yeah, what a break. Six months ahead of time. What are we going to do? Same thing. All right, Marty. What else? We're getting a double-cross. Hey. The Duke says he ate the Duke. He says he's a guy by the name of Peter Woods. Go on. And he's got some fancy dame with him. Hilda Ryan. A real cookie. Peter Woods and Hilda Ryan, hey? Where are they now? In the Beechoo Club on 49th Street. Spending our dough. Okay, Marty. Keep an eye on them. But I've got to go to work. Keep an eye on them and your working days will be over. I didn't expect it, Flip. I never figured on time off for good behavior. Get me the phone book, Trixie. What are we going to do? The phone book, baby. I'm going to take a look at the odds. I've got an idea. They're going to favor a quick killing. I can't help it, Pete. I've got to say I told you so. Yeah. Going haywire because somebody picked your name out of the phone book and offered you $5,000. Couldn't you smell a plot? Can I help it if I look like Duke Masters? You're a lawyer. You're supposed to be smart. Hilda, you see any gangsters, right? That name, Steve Jackson. That sure sounds like a phony. And now... Oh, well, I'm going to the powder room. All right. And then you're going to take me to the movies. All right. I'll be back in a minute. I missed you, Duke. Huh? Why didn't you let me know you were coming home? No, no, listen, miss, whatever your name is, I want you and your gang to get one thing straight. I'm not Duke Masters. So I heard. Is it on account of that girl? No, I'm warning you. If you don't leave me alone... What'll you do? Scream? Huh? Yeah. It shoots. The restaurant's full of people. There's nothing safer than a crowd. You ought to know that, Duke. Yeah. When you and the boys stuck up that mail truck, there was a big crowd all around. Didn't keep you from getting the money, did it? Oh, now, listen, you got me all wrong. It won't keep me from pulling the trigger. I've got my identification card. Look, if you give me until tomorrow, I'll get to my birth certificate. Why the double-cross, Duke? What's the use? Is it because you heard some stories about me and Flip Morgan? I never even heard of you. They're not true. I said I'd wait for you and I've been waiting. I don't care what anybody's been telling you, I've been on the level with you. Sure, I believe everything you say. Oh, Duke. Duke? But let's keep it strictly impersonal. Okay, I can wait until we're alone. Listen, Duke, I got an idea. That 200 grand. If you don't want to split it with the gang... My tricksy. By the way, that's your name, isn't it? You'd rather be a clown, huh? Maybe we better go now. Where to? Your apartment. The one I never saw. Are you serious? You don't hear me laughing, do you? But I can't leave now. Hilda wouldn't understand. Duke, did you ever see such a cute little gun? A few minutes ago. It disappears in the palm of my hand, see? Tricksy. Are you ready? No, and I'm not willing either. I'll overlook it, Duke. As long as you're able. All right, Duke. Stop fumbling and open the door. I can't help it, tricksy. I'm thinking of Hilda. When she finds me, go on. That door, sweetheart. Careful how you poke that gun in my bag. Get in there, Duke. All right, all right. At this age, you don't have to be so impatient. What's happened to my apartment? We gave it a thorough cleaning, pal. Huh? Who are you? Come in, Duke. Come in and stop kidding. Now, look. You've made a mistake. Give me a chance, will you? Yeah. You have to coax him much, tricksy. A little. He was pretty unreasonable, flick. It's too bad. What's the matter, Duke? Don't you want to meet your old friends again? I never saw you before in my life. I've never been to prison, and I've never been in any holdup. His memory's still bad, tricksy. It's awful. We might have to give him a treatment, huh? Remember the boys, Duke? Good grief. What can I do to make you understand? That's Tom, and that's Knuckles, and that's the bruiser. Yeah. They're all waiting to put their hands on you. I'm not Duke Masters. You're not sure. I know. You're Peter Wood. You even listed in the phone book. Nice going, Duke. You took the safap and hid the dough, then you took the wrap, but not for us. Now, where is it? I give up. 200 grand is in one of these rooms. Now, you go and make an X on the spot. You searched, haven't you? You didn't find any money. Well, maybe we're not as smart as you are. You pull the place apart. You're next, pal. What can I do just because I happen to look like some guy who's double-crossing? I'll give you a break. Tell us where you stacked the dough, and we'll catch you in. We'll let bygones be bygones. You can't let something be that never existed. I, uh... Hmm? Ah. You've become a philosopher, too, huh? I do great things at Leavenworth these days. Sit down, Duke. What for? We're going to give you something to think about. Come on, Trixie. The boys want to be left alone. Listen, Flep, don't you think... There's nothing to worry about, sweetheart. They're going to see how many times they can bounce the punching bag off the wall. Before the egg is out of it. Don't move, honey. Don't move, she says. Yes, if I could. Oh, if I could only get my hands on the men who did this to you. It's no use. Hilda, I'll have to leave town. Oh, Pete, how could they have beaten you up like this? Your face. Sorry about that, lady. Huh? I'm not Duke Masters. No, no, Mr. Woods. I am. You... Why? Yeah, yeah, I know how you feel. It's tough. You got born with the wrong face. But it's not only the face. You're not human, Duke. Okay. Maybe you'll change your mind when I pay you off. What? You're going to... After all you've done to me already? I promised you 5,000 bucks tonight. What? Hilda! I know, Pete. That's Steve Jackson. Yeah. I, uh, hope you'll excuse the masquerade. It had to be done that way. Are you trying to make us understand? I don't want you to consider me a bad guy, lady. When I got expelled from Leavenwick last week, I never thought my luck was going to change, but it did. So did mine. A couple of days ago, I spotted Marty Green going into a pool room on West 52nd Street. I found out he works there. It was always a second story, Mark. You ought to know your friends, Duke. Yeah, I know them. Well, yesterday was my big day. I was walking along Madison Avenue, when who should I see coming out of an office building? You, Pete. So I followed you all day. My head spinning with ideas. It's too bad it didn't spin right off. Shut up, lady, and let me talk to my lawyer. I'm not your lawyer, Duke. Don't kid yourself. You're either my lawyer or you're going to be my corpse. Well, that doesn't give me much choice, does it? It doesn't give you any. Would you like to know how I got your name? I'm sure you're going to tell me. The doorman of this house gave it to me. I walked in and he says, good afternoon, Mr. Woods. What was I going to do? Well, I did it. I went right to a phone book and looked up Mr. Woods at this address until I found one with a Peter in front. That was you, pal. Duke, you're almost as smart as the devil. Smarter cookie. I get what I go after. But what do you want? You got $200,000. No, Pete. What? I had it. Saw it away in a little cabana. I owned it at the beach. My own private getaway from it all place. Nobody knew. Not even Trixie. Well, you're planning to keep it all for yourself? I wasn't telling them where to find it, not until I got out of the stir. I was taking no chances. Look at you. Looked much I wasn't. What do you mean? A couple of months ago, Trixie wrote me about tough times. What was I going to do? Let her go hungry? So I told her to take a few grand and keep a trap shut about the rest. But she took the pile. And she never wrote again. Naturally. She's been too busy flipping with Morgan. I'm a cross in him, too. All right, all right. You don't have to get mad at me. I wasn't sure of it until tonight. Flip Morgan hasn't seen a dime of that $200,000. How do you know? Take a look at your face in the mirror. Oh, you mean... You get the idea. I see. Well, Duke, as your lawyer, my advice to you is to go to... Get out of your feet, Pete. Look, Duke, I was only kidding. Get him up, ladies. He's got a lot of work to do. Not for you, he hasn't. You go and get yourself beaten up for a change. Are we going to have an argument? There's no shortage of guns, is there? We're going over to Trixie's apartment. She lives in a rooming house on West 49th Street. What are we going to do there? Not we, Cookie. Him. He's going to persuade Trixie to part with $200,000. Oh, no. I've had enough of that woman to last me for a lifetime. Oh, no, Pete, Pete, don't irritate me. You'll lose a good client. You don't say. That ought to kill me for sure. Yeah. For sure. All right, here's the key, Pete. Don't we knock first? You'll never get the first base with Trixie being formal. What suppose she is? That's her tough luck. Go ahead. All right. But tell that gun to be gentle and move that spine. I got to live with it. Duke, why don't you go in there? You're not afraid of Trixie, are you? Not if she's alone, chicken. Oh, so Pete's going to find out. Back in Leavenworth, we used to call that strategy. Pete. It's no use, Hildon. Well, here I come again, fellas. Trixie. Trixie. Pete. Duke, we can't let her. Put on your old brass knuckles with the corkscrew buckles and then we'll have a little smoke. Duke, Hildon. What's the matter, Pete? Flip Morgan. Is he dead? Nobody could look like that and be alive. He was shot. Say, Duke, did you know about this when you... Hey, don't lock us in here. Well, what do you know? He did. I'm sorry, Hildon. I can't get it up. Oh, dear. Of all the windows to be stuck, it has to be the fire escape window. What are we going to do? I don't know. Those guys knock me senseless. But I do. We can stick our heads out of the other window and yell. Honey, have you gone berserk? We've got to get out of here. Sure, but don't call for help. There's a dead body in this room. How are we going to explain it? There's no law against telling the truth, Pete. Who's going to believe us? Pete. Shh. There may be Duke coming back. What are you going to do with that chair? Come on, quick. Behind that door. Hey, you two. Trixie. Put on that chair, Duke. No, while you're still behind the door. Okay, you can close it now. But how did you know we were... Look over there. Well, I guess it's nothing like a well-placed mirror, is it? But, Pete, darling, there certainly is. What? Hello, what are you talking about? A well-placed bullet. Have you forgotten? You know, in that corner. Flip. Never again, Trixie. Flip has flopped. You killed him, Duke. You and the dame. No, wait a minute. Let her rave, Pete. You sent me a phony telegram to get me out of here. Said you had something to talk to me about. I thought you wanted to make up. How did you get around Flip? He didn't see the wire. I read it in the hall. I told him I had... Hey, since when do I have to answer your questions? Where's the telegram, Trixie? I threw it away. I wasn't going to keep any messages from you to me. Uh-huh. I thought it was on the level, Duke. I was ready to go back to you any time you wanted me. But you don't want me. You killed Flip and you were waiting behind that door to brain me with a chair. We thought you were Duke. He was here. Sure, sure. You're still Peter Woods. You'll kill us one at a time, and then you've got 200 grand and no partners. Well, it's not working, Duke. Not this trip. Duke says you have the money. Did you hear what I said? I'm not even listening. What are you going to do? I'm calling the cops. You're through, Duke. All right. Call them. Let's sit down, Helen. I don't mind. It'll be a pleasure to see a blue uniform. No. No, never mind, operator. What's the matter, Trixie? Cold feet? Duke, how was Flip Morgan killed? He was shot right through the heart. You know, Trixie. Don't you dare. And you were going to let me... You didn't even try to... Hey, I'm getting out of here. Wait a minute, Trixie. No. No. No. I guess she means no, Pete. Yes. Well, let's call the police. They always like to be told when murder has been committed. Moneyball inside pocket. Marty. Hi, Trixie. I hear they gave Duke a facial. Did he come through? I've got to talk to you, Marty. Let's go someplace. Sure. How about the office here? It's built solid. All right. Hey, how come you're here alone? Where's Flip? In my apartment. The Duke too? No. Who figured Duke would turn out to be a rat? The most honest guy in the mob. The guy that took the rap for all of us. He's dead, Marty. What's that? Who's dead? Flip. Oh, you're kidding, Trixie. Then go see for yourself. Flip's in my apartment with a bullet in his chest. So that's how Duke's going to hold on today? He would've killed me too, but I wasn't there. Listen, Marty, we made a big mistake tonight. That man we thought was Duke Masters. What do you mean, sword? He isn't. Why? Now, don't tell me, Trixie. I see him with my own eyes. You saw. I saw. But we were wrong. Duke's around somewhere watching us. Well, what's the deal, Trixie? The what? The deal. The deal. You got any special reason for wanting us to think double? Marty, don't be a dope. I'm telling you we haven't seen Duke yet. Flip saw him and he's dead. Would I tip you off if I was working with Duke? Yeah. You wouldn't, wouldn't you? What makes you so sure about the other guy? When I came back to my apartment, he was there with his girlfriend. Then I saw Flip and I started to call the cops. Marty, he told me to go ahead. He didn't try to stop me. Hiya. Duke. Yeah. Tonight at Trixie, aren't you glad to see me? Yes. Sure, Duke. Well, you might show it. Take a walk, Marty. Well, anything you say, Duke. It's good to see you again. Don't go too far. I'll be here all night, Duke. That's the kind of a job I get. And don't send for any help. The boys are all downtown being questioned by the police about Flip Morgan. All right. But, Duke, I wasn't going to do nothing like that. Yeah. It's amazing what protection a nickel will get you. Go on, beat it. Well, Trixie. Duke, what are you going to do? Oh, no. Don't rush me, Cookie. I got a lot of looking to do first. Well, you're still in lockout. Oh, Duke. I've been waiting for you. You don't know what it was like, not knowing whether you'd be locked up for two years or five years, though at nights I couldn't sleep. I'll bet. I never dreamed you'd be out in a year and a half. Oh, Duke, darling. Hold me close. Like this? Closer. I want you to hurt me. Said how Flip used to do it. Flip, what's the idea, Duke? You tell me and the guy wants to know. You're crazy. Stir crazy. Like every man who goes to prison, all you can see is a woman cheating, lying, dancing around with other men. Oh, I said nothing about other men. Chicken, I only named one. Well, I suppose I did let him buy me a few meals. Did you leave me any money to live on? Didn't even answer my letter a couple of months ago. Didn't I? I begged you to let me know where you'd hidden the 200 grand. I promised I wouldn't take any more than I needed. Why didn't you answer my letter? That, uh, that cabana at the beach, Trixie. Nice place, huh? Cabana? What are you talking about? You must have thought it was beautiful when you found the dough there. Dude. I answered your letter, baby. I told you where to look. I told you what to do, but you had ideas of your own. Find his keepers. Why do a split when you can dance on a dime? Duke, I didn't know. You never told me about a cabana. I took the wrap and kept my mouth shut, but you were going to close it for good. You knew what the marba doof. I didn't come up with the dough, so you waited and played dumb. I didn't have long to live, did I? Duke, listen to me. I get knocked off of being a double-crosser and you inherit 200 grand. Fein clear. Nobody knows. Okay, Trixie, I know. Where's the dough? I never saw it. I never got your letter. I'm not asking for comedy lines, Trixie. But I tell you, what are you trying to do? How do I know you wrote a letter? Because you say so? Well, I say I never got one. Okay. Okay. From now on, the proceedings will settle down to a nice, quiet, roundtable discussion. Let me see your palm, Trixie. What for? I want to read it. I'll find out if you have a future. Okay, buddy. You take Table Six. Table Six, ready? Hello, Marty. Remember us? Huh? Sure. Gee, Mr. Woods, I'm sorry we topped your fiscal and bones, but you know an honest mistake. That's quite all right now, Marty. As long as Pete can be himself again. We ain't going to bother him no more, lady. But what brings you here? Want to shoot some pool? We're looking for Trixie. Oh, you're out of luck. Isn't she here? I left her in a duke in the office about an hour ago. You know, a long time now, we see. Are they still in there? What do you think? Come on, Hilda. Hey, wait a minute. You'd better leave him alone, Mr. Woods. The duke gets awful mad. He won't hit me, Marty. He'll be almost like hitting himself. Now, take my advice and be smart. Now, don't... I'll try to stop him, Duke, but they... Save your breath, Marty. You're talking into a vacuum. Pete! Yeah. Strangle with a piece of cord. Holy smoke. Close that door, Marty. Sure, sure. We don't want no riot. Marty, you said the duke was in here, too. Well, I didn't see him go out. If he had gone out, would you have seen him? Well, sure. I was out front all the time near the door where the counter is. Well, then, how did he get out of here? How? That's an open window, ain't it? Wide open. You mean Duke jumped out of there? He didn't have to jump, lady. This is the second floor. He could have dropped down. It's only about 12 feet. Is it? No, I can drop down from that window myself. You work here nights, don't you? Yeah, so what? Take a look out that window. Something's been happening next door. Next door is an open lot. There was, Marty. Now there's a great big hole in it. About 30 feet. What? For the foundation of a new building. 30 feet? Mm-hmm. Steam shovels work during the day. You see Duke's body down there? Oh, I didn't see nothing. It's too dark. If Duke went out that window, he should still be down there. Want to take a trip? Not with you, mister. Hey! Don't be alarmed, Hilton. I've been facing guns all night. How's it feel to be rich, Marty? Great. And I'm going to stay rich, see? That 200 grand is mine. I worked for it. One hold up and two meters. So what? Duke's going to take the rat? It's no secret he used to be nuts about Trixie. It's no secret she was double-crossing him with Flip. Marty, how'd you get the money? I watched the males at Trixie's house. I don't trust nobody. You watched the males? For almost a year and a half. Trixie lived in a Roman house. The male used to be left on the table in the front hall. And then one day a couple of months ago? Yeah. The pay-off. I let it at all where Duke hid the dough. And it said, don't tell a mob. I was in. You're smart, Marty. Yeah, but who are you going to tell it to? Marty, hasn't anybody told you that shooting makes a lot of noise? I've got that figured out, too. Turn on that radio, pal. It's different now, Marty. You're just learning one thing. Never take your eyes off the moving target. Drop that gun. Drop it or I'll twist your arm on a shape. Now, you weasel. Why, Pete, you knocked him out with one punch. Let me catch my breath. You're a bright girl, Hilda. You took an awful chance screaming that way. I had to, darling. It was now or never. And I figured if it had to be never, why not now? Oh, no, don't think now. Hilda, I need you. Hilda. Hilda. And so closes tonight's crime club story. Death never doubles. Steadman Coles wrote the radio script. Roger Bauer produced and directed. Tonight's cast include a Chet Stratton as Peter Woods. Larry Haynes as Duke Masters. Julie Stevens was Trixie. Arthur Vinton played Flip Morgan. Phil Cramer was Marty. And Charlotte Lawrence was heard as Hilda Ryan. Oh, I beg your pardon. Hello. I hope I haven't kept you waiting. Yes, this is the crime club. I am the librarian. Yes, come over a week from tonight. Good. We have the very unusual story of a flight into fancy that took off from murder. It's called Death at 7.10 by H.F.S. Moore. In the meantime? Well, in the meantime, there is a new crime club book available this week and every week at bookstores everywhere. Yes, it's available now. Fine. And we'll look for you next week. This program came from New York. This is the world's largest network, the Mutual Broadcasting System.