 The signal oil program The whistler that whistle is your signal for the signal oil program The whistler I am the whistler and I know many things for I walk by night I know many strange tales hidden in the hearts of men and women who have stepped into the shadows Yes, I know the nameless terrors of which they dare not speak Yes friends, it's time for the signal oil program the whistler rated by independent research the most popular West Coast program In gasoline, you know it takes extra quality to go farther and signal is the famous go farther gasoline So look for the signal circle sign in yellow and black that identifies signal service stations from Canada to Mexico And now the whistler strange story Dear Roger It was a strange meal late together that evening full of long awkward silences Both of them making useless attempts at light conversation trying to fill in the gaps Anne Martin looked across at her husband. She tried to smile to make this dinner like all the others She knew that the dread in the back of her mind had made the atmosphere tense that Phil had sensed it somehow 20 minutes of seven he put down his fork It's no use darling. I I guess I'm just not hungry tonight. How about some coffee? No Phil yes Is something bothering you darling? What makes you ask that? Well, I don't know dear you seem a little strange tonight and I just thought that what did you think? Well, I I thought you might be worried or something. I wonder what it is What Phil I wonder what it is that gives a woman the power to pull something out of the air like that I thought I could put it past you. I guess I should have known better Please tell me I am worried Anne. I'm terribly worried What's wrong? I didn't want to tell you until it was all over It'll probably be in the papers in a few days though Darling the next 10 days are going to be the most important days in our lives But I don't understand number one It looks very much like I'm going to resign as district attorney resign. Yes The governor's about decided he has a job for me in Washington What Phil you mean yes, United States senator dear since senator white passed away It's after the governor to appoint a man to fill out whites term Well that's wonderful darling I don't know what to say It's off the racket at the moment of course It'll be the beginning for us Anne or maybe not What do you mean maybe not Well there are people who don't want to see me get that appointment Anne Why? A lot of reasons all of them political Is that why you're worried Phil? Anne they've come to me several times now They've tried to bribe me buy me off threaten me They'll go to any lengths to ruin me unless I refuse to accept that appointment You see it's their next or mine and they know it They're powerful and got influence if they could find one grain of scandal in my past Or yours for that matter they What's the matter Anne? Nothing Phil no Nothing I uh I told them to go ahead Anne I told them to do that dandest We have nothing to hide have we No Phil We have nothing to hide And that's the second time you lied to him isn't it Anne? Nothing to hide Nothing except an appointment at eight o'clock you told him was at the dressmakers It makes sense now doesn't it Anne? The phone call from Roger Henderson this afternoon His insistence that you come to his apartment tonight on the other side of town at eight to talk over old times So now you know why and as you ring the bell of his apartment You know this appointment is going to decide everything one way or the other Well my dear Mrs. Martin how nice of you to be on time won't you come in? Thank you Roger You must excuse my apartment really a nice place of course good location excellent view of the river lacking only the woman's touch Please sit down Cigarette? I'd rather not thanks Oh you you don't smoke You've included that with your other reforms of course Please get to the point Roger why did you want me to come here? Don't be impatient my dear after all it's been so long since I've had the pleasure of your company Let me see it's nine years now Yes nine years next month In Switzerland wasn't it? Heavy snowfall that year You wanted me to teach you to ski I didn't come here to reminisce And you're married now A fine husband Politically ambitious too Tell me Anne does he love you as much as I did You're being awfully cruel Roger That's hardly the thing for you to say You see Anne for nine years now I've thought of you Remembered you as the cruelest woman I ever met in my life I tried to explain it to you Roger You wouldn't listen I tried to tell you I couldn't marry you I didn't love you that's all It wouldn't have been fair to either of us don't you see It was still cruel But it was just as hard for me I know how you felt but it was the only way You did love me Anne You told me I was young I didn't know what I was doing That's not what you said in your letters The letters? You kept them Of course I kept them That's why you called me here isn't it Roger where are those letters I'm planning another trip abroad Anne A rather long trip I dislike leaving loose ends behind me You'll return them to me Let's put it in another way I'll leave on my trip after I give you the letters I don't understand Oh dear Anne I did hope you'd grown wiser You want something for those letters What is it? You're so business like Anne dear Almost as much so as that man who came here this afternoon A very convincing chap who deplores the coming appointment of your husband to the senate It's also strange Anne He seemed to know about the letters too But Roger you wouldn't do that would you It's not like you You think too much of me Haven't changed a bit have you Oh please Roger it's not for myself believe me It's Phillip I love him If anything happened to him for his career I What would you do I'm interested I don't think I could go on living You do love him don't you He's the only thing in the world Roger I almost believe you Even though I seem to remember you telling me that once I can't say anymore I've tried to explain to you so many times You'd never understand All right Anne you'll get your letters Thank you Roger It'll cost you ten thousand dollars Ten thousand? In cash To arrive here by messenger not later than three o'clock tomorrow afternoon But where can I get I managed to check your personal account It comes to approximately eleven thousand two hundred dollars fifty-eight cents You should be grateful I'm generous enough to allow you the balance But how can I explain away all that money to Phil Don't you see I Perhaps you'd better explain everything to him No I'm sure you'll understand that the organization opposing him will pay ten times that price But he mustn't know Roger he mustn't know All right Roger I'll get the money for you Some way With the prologue of Dear Roger The Signal Oil Company brings you another strange story by the Whistler Since this is the first program of the new year It occurred to me you might like to look in and get a little better acquainted with the organization that brings you the Whistler And those fine signal oil products It all started not long after World War One When a small group of young Westerners got together to form their own independent oil company Signal Oil Company In the face of what seemed overwhelming competition Those determined young men succeeded in bringing to Western motorists the first anti-knock gasoline at regular prices Being independent themselves they naturally sold signal gasoline only through independent service stations Just a handful of them at that time But motorists like signal products like them so well that the signal organization grew and grew Until today independent signal dealer serves seven western states from Canada to Mexico Now obviously there must be good reasons why so many motorists have switched to signal And there are One at signal stations you find the tops in gasoline lubricants and fine quality automotive accessories Backed by signal sixteen year tradition of quality And two you enjoy more thorough more conscientious service Because signal dealers being in business for themselves have more incentive to serve you better And now back to the Whistler Yes Anne, you know there's only one thing to do now Roger must get his money The letters must be returned and destroyed And you must worry about explaining to Phil later There's too much at stake Anne Phil's career, your marriage Everything depends on the return of those letters At eleven the next morning you finish typing a note Roger, I shall be waiting for the messenger who carries this package to you to return with the papers from your collection You inserted in the package of bills you drew from the bank an hour ago Give it to the messenger waiting at the door There's nothing to do now but wait But there's no answer The messenger doesn't return At six in the evening the doorbell rings and you rush to the door to find Phil home early for dinner By nine o'clock you're sure Roger is double crossing you That's the one thing he wants more than money Direct your marriage But it's too late in the evening to do anything You make an excuse to Phil and go to bed By morning you've made a decision After Phil has left for work You slip his small automatic into your handbag Leave the house and hail a taxi It's nine o'clock when the cab turns a corner into Roger's street And moves toward his apartment That's the apartment right up there lady Riverside arm Yes I know driver Please hurry Gotta take it easy Look at that crowd up there Clear out into the street Why it's in front of the apartment What's wrong Not me lady Looks like an accident or something Hail you taxi Move along You're blocking the street Got a fare here officer Gotta pull down there out of the corner then What's the matter officer Man's been worded ma'am Murdered? Yeah Move along now Oh wait a minute please wait Who's been murdered officer A guy who lived in that apartment Found a name to Roger Henderson It's almost too much to take in The strain of yesterday A sleepless night Now the single terrible fact That Roger Henderson is dead That now the letters will come to light There's a strange dizziness in your head A half sick feeling in your stomach Things begin to fade The whole world gets dark Around the edges Well lady where to now Hey where do you want to go to now lady If you like we could go around By way of park street or even Hey what's the matter lady Something wrong You look kind of pale Like you're going to pass out Please wait A sniff of this ammonia I know it's nasty stuff But it does the trick Read deep now Now lean back and relax for a minute You're alright What happened It's alright Mrs. Mountain You just pulled a faint In that taxi cab Where am I In my apartment My name's Joe Burton How did you know my name It's my business to know People's names I'm a private detective Go on You weren't the only one This Henderson guy was blackmailing Mrs. Mountain I've been working on him for 14 months I got a nervous client It seems Mr. Henderson had some of Her stationery too All cluttered up With the wrong remarks That's how I happen to be Outside the apartment When I heard he'd been knocked off So you pull up in a taxi Pull that faint and press though here Why did you take me here What do you want Suspicious creature aren't you I have reason to be You better let down the bars You can use a guy like me What do you mean I think I can get your letters for you Where are they Funny thing isn't it I can get you off the spot And I think you can do the same for me You were in Switzerland In 1937 with Henderson weren't you What's that got to do with it He was blackmailing my client At the same time Someone was collecting for him Over here But he never told me anything about Think back Mrs. Martin It's important Believe me this dame is as desperate as you are Still don't trust me, huh All right Take a look at this Let's see I shall be waiting for the messenger Who carries this package to you The money $10,000 with Is that all it was Where did you get it In the valise Henderson checked last night Down at the railroad station A pal of mine runs the check room Go ahead take it Take it It's yours isn't it Yes it's mine Do you trust me now Yes yes I guess I do Good now I suppose you let your hair down Well you said you knew where the letters were I think so Let's try to find them If we fail I'll tell you everything I'll do anything to help you You've simply got to understand Mr. Burton I must have those letters All right There was a small walnut nightstand In Henderson's bedroom Brass lock on the front The cleaning woman says she's seen him Put papers in there I think they're the right ones We'll check with her again in the morning Why not now The place is crawling with police Oh yes of course it is What time 10 to be all right 10 o'clock Yes Anne you've got to trust him There's no one else to turn to now You arrive home to find the phone ringing It's Phil saying he'll be working late But it's not until after 11 When he quietly walks into the bedroom That you realize what he's working on Wake darling Yes Phil I'm sorry I'm so late That Henderson murders throwing the organization Into an uproar Henderson Yeah I thought you might have seen it in the papers The governor wants me to handle the case personally Says it'll make great publicity Just before the appointment Phil an ordinary murder case Well that's just it There's more to this one than meets the eye This guy Henderson was a professional blackmailer Mixed up with a wife of some political big wing We've got to report him in a mile long No names yet The guy's too careful But Phil darling I don't want you involved in this sort of thing It might be dangerous Don't you see Oh forget it This is going to be my last one I want to make this one big You started a teleman Caught yourself just when you felt you Couldn't hold it back any longer Somehow you know you've got to stand it for another day Long enough to give Burton his chance The next morning the two of you arrive At the apartment building Wait for an opportunity to slip around Through the corridor to the door With a brass name plate on it Mrs. Mooner manager A tight lift individual Mrs. Mooner Until Burton slips her a $10 bill Then it seems she can't say enough I do the cleaning up there occasionally And I'd remember a nightstand if there was one I know it was there Mrs. Mooner Black walnut with red plastic knobs Wait a minute It was on the side of the bed toward the door But that wasn't a nightstand That was a liquor cabinet He kept it locked all the time Legs loose Mr. Henderson always told me to be careful of it And what Our repairman came around to the door Yesterday I remembered the cabinet You gave it to him? Yes, he took it to his shop I've got the address right here A liquor cabinet? Who picked it up? I don't know who picked it up The black walnut, red plastic knob Brass lock on the front You sure the man left this address? Let's not go through that again I told you Wait, sure Sure that's what it is Red done it again The guy had red hair didn't he? I don't know what color hair he had I fired him last week He's been going around town Picking up furniture and selling it Where can I find him? Just a minute, I'll write it down Look, a redhead fella came in here yesterday And sold you a liquor cabinet I just talked to him Can we see it around the floor anywhere? Look, what about that one? Where? Right over there, next to the sofa See? Now we're getting somewhere Come on I'm awfully sorry that one's not for sale Why not? Well, it's locked And we've got to get a key man here to open it And we need some repair I'll worry about that Give me that paper knife, Mrs. Munn Oh, here you are Now Wait a second, you can't do that I'm paying for it, pal Now Empty Yeah I guess he was one to jump ahead of us Well, how much for it, pal? $20 Okay, here you are Thank you Aren't you going to take it along? I'll send for it later Well What do we do now? I guess we go back to my apartment Talk for a while Start all over again Yes, Anne There's nothing to do now But start from the beginning again But you know in your heart it's almost hopeless That somewhere someone has those letters And plans to use them against you But you've made up your mind to try To keep trying until you're sure there's no hope An hour later the two of you Are sitting over a table in his apartment He lights your cigarette Leans back, waiting Now you understand, Mrs. Martin Why you have to tell me all you know about Henderson Yes How's your morale? Not too high, I'm afraid Suppose you start from the first, huh? It won't take us long Who's that? I don't know You're in a hurry Get into the closet over there Well, Mr. Martin Hello, DA Mind if I come in? I'm a little busy It's important What's on your mind? A lot of routine stuff A murder mostly A fellow named Roger Henderson Know anything about it? No, why? I think you do I think you killed him Night before last at 11 o'clock Funny, I swear I was with a guy named Joe Rocker At the time So did he Until we broke him down He spilled it Right from the beginning Stop your hands, Burton Oh, a 38 The boys in the laboratory will be interested in this You back on the homicide detail, DA Not on this one, I am I was interested the minute I found out you Are hired by the mob that's after my neck They offered you a hundred grand, didn't they, Burton? You seem to know everything Why don't you answer that one? We can do an awful lot of close guessing Henderson was in the middle somewhere, wasn't he? Some woman he was putting the bite on A package of letters you were after on the night you killed him You made a mistake, though, Burton The woman had nothing to do with me I never saw in my life You can tell her to come out of that closet now What makes you think? Cigarette with lipstick in the ashtray They're still burning And another thing, unless I'm mistaken The table here Ah, dictaphone Recording machine in the next room, eh? You still say she isn't here? Why don't you take a look? All right, I will The whistler will return in just a moment With a strange ending to tonight's story Do you hear that? Just another New Year's resolution being broken But there's one I hope you won't break And that's the one we made on last week's whistler To try, just try, signal gasoline in your car Because seriously, friends, there are real advantages For the driver who powers his car with signal Not only because signal is the famous go farther gasoline But now that the government has removed its limitations On the amount of lead used in gasoline The quality of today's signal is at an all-time high You see, it's this extra quality The extra efficiency today's signal gasoline Gets from your motor It gives you those quick, starts, fast pickups And smooth, knock-free power Yes, and it's the same quality features a gasoline Must have for extra driving pleasure That also give you extra mileage Mileage you can measure with your speedometer For proof, just switch to signal for a few fillings Let the performance of your own car show you What more and more drivers are discovering In gasoline it takes extra quality to go farther And signal is the famous go farther gasoline And now back to the whistler You move like an automaton for the next hour, Anne Too confused and frightened to think clearly Following Phil's instructions to leave the building By the side entrance, take a taxi home and meet him there It's only after you arrive home and relax quietly For a while in a chair by the fireplace That your mind stops spinning You close your eyes and try to forget everything Phil is bending over you as you open them again Phil? Anne, Anne, how are you? I don't know, Phil I've been terrible I've done an awful thing Relax, darling, don't try to talk What can I say, Phil? Don't say anything Aren't you going to ask me any questions? No, no questions Did you find me in a murderer's apartment? In a black male? Everything? No questions, huh? When you... when you love someone like... Like I love you, Anne You don't ask questions I've got to tell you everything, Phil Right from the beginning That's it, eh? Yes, that's it I was only trying to protect you, darling I know it's hopeless now It's far from a hopeless angel We're stronger now than we ever were before They'll never open their traps with a number one boy Up on a murder charge And that doesn't matter now, Anne Nothing matters except you and me Not even your career Not even my career I almost forgot There was a note for you waiting in the mailbox when I got home tonight Oh, that's strange Look To be delivered January 6th Dear Anne By the time you receive this I will be well on my way out of the country I promised you I'd return the letters to you I'm sorry to say I can't return You see There aren't any letters I destroyed every one of them nine years ago When I first received Have fun with your charming husband, Anne It's such a short lifetime, isn't it? Fine Roger, Anne Let that whistle be your signal For the signal oil program, the Whistler, each Monday at 9 Brought to you by the Signal Oil Company Marketers of signal gasoline and motor oil And fine quality automotive accessories Signal has asked me to remind you To get the most driving pleasure Drive at sensible speeds, be courteous And obey traffic regulations It may save a life, possibly your own Featured in tonight's story Willerine Tuttle and William Johnstone The Whistler was produced by George W. Allen Robert Novens, music by Wilbur Hatch And was transmitted to our troops overseas By the Armed Forces Radio Service This is Marvin Miller speaking for the Signal Oil Company This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System