 The national broadcasting company presents Joel McCrae in tales of the Texas Rangers From Hollywood another authentic re-enactment of a case transcribed from the files of the Texas Rangers Rangers starring Joel McCrae is Ranger Jayce Pearson Texas more than two hundred and sixty thousand square miles 50 men who make up the most famous and oldest law enforcement body in North America Based on fact only names dates and places are fictitious for obvious reasons case for tonight the blow-off It is approximately 11 p.m. June 16th, 1947 Erin court right is watering the gravel apron of his mobile gas station at the intersection of a farm road and highway 75 a few miles south of Glenwood, Texas a car drives up to the pumps Yeah, howdy folks howdy fill her up Betcha hey, you got a telephone here. Yep over in the office there. I try that call again, Bill Give me a second coil up this hose and I'll be right with you Yeah, pretty night. Ain't it? Yeah. Yeah, sure is there we are Fill her up. You see yeah with special. Oh, sorry, mister Truck buster the handle off the hand pump on the special Regular be all right. I got no choice. Have I my cars about empty? Taking kind of a chance weren't you why what do you mean? Yeah, I was about to close up next station is better than 30 miles away You're heading well, we made it. That's what counts. Look. Can't you hurry it up? Oh sure sure Hey, what's she doing in there? Hey? Hey you get away from that cash draw never mind her Just hope this gun don't blow your head off. I'll shove that nozzle into the tank. You ain't getting my money Kill the car quick You dummy me. I've got the dough dinner. Why'd you go for it so soon for I didn't get a chance to get any gas in the tank You had plenty of time to get gas. I don't know you're gonna stand there gabbing instead Now what do we do try to make it through the next station? What a spot-dude vision the smart opera. I shut up. We'll do that don't help. I'll think of something That's the end of the gas How far we come ten eleven miles Let's flag us a ride and get out of here and leave the car wouldn't that be smart? Like leaving our calling cards pin to that stiff back there. This buggy's ours. Don't forget Can we take the license plates off and ditch them or something? Oh, what is a woman up to be so dumb as a motor number? You can't get rid of that Come on pile up Wait a minute. I got an idea What know how we'll get some gas. How diggers and all our way no no we're gonna play it smart We're gonna catch a ride back to that filling station and discover a murder Still all no cars ran and don't look like anybody's been here. Well, you can't tell it's been over a half hour Hey, we're in luck. It's working out. Just right Nobody has been here. He's lying just like we left him There's some gas can do let's put one full and get out. We can't do that Why not cuz the guy that picked us up and dumped us out across the highway would remember as sure But you said we were coming back to your dad. I said we're coming back to discover a murder We're gonna act like law-abiding citizens. I get in there telephone for the law You're deliberately trying to get us back. I'm trying to keep us out of the chair Get in there on that phone quick. Here comes a couple of cars. Go on. What are you doing here? Well, there's a dead man here. I I think he's been shot my wife's inside calling the police We've already been notified. I'm sure a prude of Glenwood man that car behind me just came into town to report it Oh, well, this is terrible sheriff a hold up. Do you suppose probably ask your wife to step out here? Oh, sure. Sure, of course. Oh bell to get the telephone the sheriff's here I say the sheriff's here Yeah, this is mrs. Bishop sure. Howdy, man. How long you two been here? Well, just a few minutes got here just before you did where's your car 10 11 miles down the line ran out of gas down there You get a lift up here. Yeah Charlie yeah, Charlie is everything here just like it was when you drove in and discovered the body Seems like sure years. I can tell any sign these folks around when you stop Nobody was wrong except poor Jim laying on his face and all that blood ever see these folks before No, can't say I ever did. Okay Did you touch anything here, mr. Bishop that gas hose hanging on hook there at the pump the body of course not sheriff We just discovered the body and tried to notify authorities. How about you miss Bishop? Oh, no, we're just the telephone All right, you can go back inside now to be more comfortable, ma'am. Thank you sure. I'm afraid I am a little shaky Look sheriff, there's been quite a shock to it. Couldn't we get some gas and ride back to our car so we can be on our way? I'm afraid not I'm gonna phone for the ranger. You'll have to stay till they get here In response to sheriff Pruitt's call ranger jace person was assigned to the case Within two hours. He had carefully gone over the available information and evidence All right, mr. Bishop. I guess that'll be all the questions for now Before you and your wife leave I'd like to have your full name and address in case we want to contact you later Oh glad to ranger here. It is how my driver's license John Bishop 980 West Pamela Street, Cosa canna That's a shady rest. We we have an apartment. You're headed away from Cosa canna now I wonder you'd be back. Well, I have got an appointment in Houston tomorrow about a job, but we'll be back home. Oh Day after tomorrow anything we can do rangers. Just let us know. Thanks. You've both been very helpful Sheriff had his deputy over there. Get your tin of gas. He'll run you down to your car. Oh, it's mighty nice of you Sheriff glad to help out. Bye, mr. Bishop. Bye Bye ranger. Thanks again. Good night Right decent folks sure seem to be but the nasty case nothing to go on not much apparently But maybe we can turn something up. Got any ideas Jays? Uh-huh first off I'm going to radio Austin for the lab crew have them scour this place from top to bottom Crew went over Jim court right station with a fine tooth comb while I waited for the lab report I spent most the next day searching the area for someone might have seen a car or suspicious action near the station the night before I Drew a complete blank and went back to the sheriff's office Hi sheriff. Oh, hello Jays thought you were never coming back find anything. No Nobody seems to have been traveling highway 75 last night lab boys didn't hit any jackpot either Here's their report just came in Lab figures like we did that there was quite a scuffle before the shots were fired, but don't mean much no But something in this fingerprint report might mean those matching prints found on the telephone receiver in the cash drawer Uh-huh Austin didn't have any record on whoever made them. So what good does that do the report says they were fresh These prints don't match the ones taken from the body so they aren't court rights Hey Wait a minute sheriff When you arrived at court right station, Mrs. Bishop was at the telephone wasn't she yeah, she was trying to call me Well, then she was the last person to use the phone before those prints were pulled Well, he suppose that's her print on the phone if it is I'd sure like to know what its duplicate was doing on court rights cash drawer. Yeah, and Bishop said himself he was on his way down to Houston to see about a job if he was unemployed and broke That sure be a motive. I think we'd better run up to Corsicana tomorrow and sort of welcome Mr. And Mrs. Bishop when they get back from Houston Late the next afternoon sheriff Pruitt and I rolled down a quiet Corsicana Street to the address John Bishop had given us Shady rest turned out to be a shabby rooming house set next to a wide weed grown lot I'll buy you a new Winchester if this deal pans out Jason. Let's hope it costs your sheriff and you better knock again Yes, good afternoon, ma'am. This is Sheriff Pruitt of Glenwood and I'm Ranger Pearson. Howdy I'm Ethel Hastings miss Ethel Hastings. I'm the owner here. How do you do miss Hastings? I wonder if you could give us a little information Well, maybe what you want to know we understand mr. Mrs. John Bishop or do back from Houston this afternoon We were wondering if they've arrived yet. You mean Duke and Vail Bishop. Huh, they have not arrived in there Not a gone to what makes you so sure cause I evicted them. That's what evicted them when they for yesterday morning Well, that's the morning the same day the court right thing took place James. Yeah, or why were they evicted ma'am? Well, I'm patient and I'm long suffering But I'm a woman alone in this world and I have to look out for my own interests That pair has been living off me half the winter and all spring and there just had to be an end to it No, I'm payment around there. Would you say they were broke? Well, if they wasn't they sure had it hid good Any idea where they were going to perdition? I'll guarantee that the way the two of them will all around all the time Drinking and turning down offers for honest work. Well, what I meant was did they leave a forwarding address? No, but they'll be sending me one soon as they locate you can count on that. You seem pretty sure ma'am. I am They only had one thing of any value beat up old trunk that they tried to sneak out to their car The way they hollered when I locked it up for the back rented must be worth something I told them they could send for it when they had my money. You mind if we look at this trunk? Well Now I don't want to do nothing wrong But with the law with me guess it'd be all right wouldn't it? I think so miss Hastings. Well, then come right this way with me Model rifle you want chase looks like I might be buying you one Just be dying to look at this truck myself What in the world those two that have that was that valuable? No, it's right in the storeroom here, that's it right there Open her up sheriff. Let's see what's inside There's nothing in the trunk except something wrapped in that old shirt. Let's see what it is You beat that now calm yourself, ma'am. It isn't what it looks like Looks like a jug of alcohol to me with a baby in it a baby with two head Oh my heart Hardware's my medicine. I gotta have my medicine easy ma'am. You're all right. That's a sideshow gadget Just a rubber doll made to look like the real thing. You mean it's a fake chase sure I've seen him in theatrical supply house catalogs All sorts and sizes mummies to fake Well, I might have known it Anything that pair had to be no good I Supposed they don't have much value. Does it ranger to you? I'm afraid not Not unless you want to join a side show side show Ranger I'll have you to know I'm a respectable woman And you've been a very helpful one too miss Hastings. Thanks. Come on sheriff that bottle is the blamest thing I ever saw Jayce. What do you suppose the bishops had it for? I bet they wish they had it now You in the mood for a few days of traveling anything that'll bring us up with the bishops Good thing. We know where to start looking for them. Do we? Living in a cheap room house running out of money towards spring refusing jobs that faked up exhibit They tried to sneak out with them Sheriff you and I are going hunting for carnivals In just a moment, we will continue with tales of the Texas Rangers starring Joel McCray as Ranger Jayce Pearson It is absolutely imperative that our armed forces have an adequate reserve of blood plasma at all times The only answer to this crisis is you the American people who have never failed in such an emergency The Department of Defense urges every one of us to contribute blood plasma blood cannot be manufactured or cultivated It must be given by human beings to save a life Make an appointment right away to donate a point of your blood then know in your heart that you have saved a life We continue now with tales of the Texas Rangers and tonight's case the blow-off an Authentic story from the files of the Texas Rangers Working from published carnival routes Sheriff Pruitt and I tracked down one show after another without finding any trace of Duke Bishop and his wife No showman's organization had ever heard of them We were beginning to lose hope by the time we arrived at Rocky Pass where a carnival company was working the annual Rocky County Fair Gully cheese, did you ever see such a jam carnivals are fun? That's what they're for personally. I'm about fed up with and it looks like we're gonna draw blank here, too No sign of a two-headed baby. Oh, we haven't checked that side show over there yet another one Do we have to get kind of old to me now, too? This looks like a pit layout Is that good it'll be the likeliest place for our pair to be working one of those fake baby exhibits Yeah, that's what they went back to What do you mean a pit layout? Pit shows they call them a lot of acts and exhibits under one top one admission for the bunch They use pits instead of platforms to separate the performers from the audience What a business come on. Let's see if this show's got anything to interest Hey mister You mean me range you mind stepping down here a moment I'd like to ask you a couple of questions instantly range of forthwith without delay All right, step right up to the window post a little lady would be happy to take your money It's only two beats 25 cents a quarter part of a dollar Yeah Now what can I do for you gentlemen of the law the sheriff and I are looking for a husband and wife team We have a reason to believe we're working a show like this Range it's one of the puzzles of my long and chicken career Why millions of the law insists upon hounding us hard-working conics? This is the first case I've ever had to investigate in the show business, mister I hope it's the last a commendable sentiment share a very commendable people We're looking for probably operate some kind of an exhibit of what they claim is a two-headed baby in a jar of alcohol Hopscotch's uh, what's that? Hopscotch's uh, not regular died in the world conics grip There's a keep switching from one show to another They'd be the kind to be using that ancient suck of eight anything like that with this show A fake you can order out of a supply house by the dozen with this show Absolutely not ranger. How about in this tent you've got a lot of freaks natural phenomena sheriff wonders if neat All right, all right Have you got a two-headed baby in there? Yeah, not even a one-headed one, but there are some husband and wife teams Now just step over here with me. You look them over for yourself. Go ahead sheriff. Follow him. You might as well be sure Right over here ranger. Excuse me folks. Excuse me now sheriff We have his error the world's heaviest human body. She requires the calorie intake of 10 normal adder I'm afraid she's not the one we're looking at. All right, right over here next is her husband the sword swallow We're not interested in him either. Well, I don't rush yourself sheriff. Don't rush be sure Look, but the bishops weren't performers. They operated an exhibit Who did you say Duke and bell bishop? Are you know him? Uh, why no no the name mean anything to you? No, nothing nothing at all Now this gentleman over here is serpentina the rubber woman. Wait a minute What's that over there? Oh, well through that doorway under the banner that says see and believe for that Uh, that's the blow off now if you just don't be in such a hurry mister What's a blow off? It's uh, well, it's an added attraction for which there's an extra admission charge kind of a come on, man I suppose you could put it that way sheriff. Just what is this added attraction? Kind of a shocker a woman without a head alive Uh merely a cheap illusion gentlemen, but we'll take a look just the same. Come on sheriff There he is sheriff, there's bishop. Well, I'll be darned Jesus that barker said this no head business was an illusion Look at them pipes and wires and stuff feeding into her neck and she's moving that must be bishops wife Don't think he's seen us yet. Come on Good guy in just about 60 seconds. Hey bell duck like the rangers keep clear folks They're ducking out under the tent jayce The canvas is loose here out this way sheriff Don't see him jayce. There they go sheriff into the crowd out in the midway. Come on Hold it bishop. Too many people here to risk gunplay. You gotta be careful. Yeah Watch it. He's going to fire jayce. We lost him jayce And they could hide in here all night with so many cars jammed together Our ears are better in our eyes in a spot like this Hear anything Not yet Hey, what's that? There goes a car, but it ain't the one they had you probably stole this one, but it's them. All right They're heading right for the fairground fence. Yeah, and they're gonna go through it Over to our car quit Time we drive through the auto gate. They'll be long gone. We aren't driving through the auto gate either Think you could hit that hole they made in the fence jayce. Watch me try brace yourself Oh, just like threading a needle keep your eyes open for him while I get on the radio unit 10 to ktx a unit 10 to ktx a ktx 80 unit 10 go ahead unit 10 Unit 10 is pursuing a green new model four-door nash sedan southbound on highway 285 Two miles south of rocky pass cars presumed stolen the occupants are wanted for murder Unit 10 requests roadblocks on all possible avenues of escape from this area Although we drove at top speed the pursuit ended at a ranger roadblock 50 miles south of rocky pass Units at the roadblock had not seen the described car So we knew duke and bell bishop had turned off on some tributary road before they reached the barricade We turned back on highway 285 to search for them There's a farm road. I was talking about up ahead jace. They could have taken it. Yeah pretty sparsely settled country out west of here Let's take a look sheriff Sit tight jace. I'll check it See anything sheriff. Well, this looks like a jace Fresh tire tracks somebody made an awful fast turn off the highway Direction of travel is right too. Maybe our luck's changing sheriff. Let's find out Road sure getting rough. Yeah, let's begin to get dark We don't get a line on that pair pretty soon jace. They may dodge us all together I don't think so sheriff They've been giving us a bad time and they may give us a worse one But the department's got this whole area isolated before we're through may wish we had your trailer in our horses Yeah, I was thinking of that too ktx a to unit 10 at susan ktx a to unit 10 Unit 10 to ktx a go ahead highway patrol unit 402 reports contact with subjects car 11 miles west of highway 285 Second dirt road to left off of farm road 971 Subjects maintaining excessive speed on nearly impassable road Unit 402 request backing We passed the second dirt road to the left yet sheriff. No wait wait looks like one at the bottom of this hill Yeah 10 4 unit 10 approaching turnoff to farm road 971 now relay to unit 402. We're coming behind him unit 10 clear 10 4 Hang on sheriff looks like a bad turn Now the dust is settled, but you can still smell in the air. Yeah The highway patrol car got to be just up ahead and he's right behind bishop and his wife How's your shooting? I pretty tolerable jay, but I could do with a little practice You're up to get it and reach my rifle out of the back seat. All right Get a shot sheriff try for the tires if they don't stop then try for the best targets you can get Okay, jayce have to smell the dust in the air now you can see it Jayce look out the road is dead ending tracks. Keep right on at the brush. So are we No, what are you stopping for you see something look that little gully the highway patrol car on inside Watch yourself sheriff keep that rifle ready No sign of the other car it's tracks keep right on through the brush here Give me a hand with this top door Got to get the patrolman out of there Let me get his feet easy now sheriff Lift him out flat. I give his owner stretcher down on this patch of grass Is he bad off jayce? Some abrasions and probably a mild concussion You got a nasty lump on the side of his head. Glad isn't any worse What do we do jayce? I'm going to radio for an ambulance to pick him up Then we'll have to stay here and wait for it. That's too dark to do much tracking in this brush Anyway, we'll night it here by morning. We're going to have us those horses. You were wishing we'd brought along The highway patrolman was not seriously injured during the night our horses were towed into us And by sunrise the sheriff and I were in the saddle working toward other mounted rangers closing in on duke and bell bishop from the opposite side We found their car and much later in the day followed their tracks to a small dilapidated ranch house Oh Oh boy There's somebody's home there smokes in the chimney. Yeah, but listen sheriff You mean that old cow talking? Yeah What's it sound like she's saying? She sounds like somebody forgot to milk her this morning. Yeah, would a rancher forget something like that? What are you driving at jayce? Suppose somebody put the rancher out of commission so he couldn't take care of the cow And a minute ago. I was ready to ride right up to that front door. Yeah, I lead the horses here We'll work the rest of the way on foot It's going to be ticklish business if they're in there, they probably got their hands on every gun in the house I gotta hunch they may try to bluff it out till we actually bust in on them. You take the front door I'll cut around to the back whichever way they break then we'll have them We better have a signal so I know when to rush the front jays make you rush if you hear a shot or if I holler Whichever's first try. Good luck. Same to you sheriff. We'll both need it Approaching that house without cover or real knowledge of what lay behind the doors Is the kind of work officers do only because it's part of their jobs Death is close and they know it I told you to stay by those back windows You take the back way both of you stay right where you are Hit bad sheriff Here you get your arms around this Cuffs will keep you out of mischief bishop hold up behind that water drop. Yeah, I'll flush them out I'm giving you a chance come out from behind there with your hands up You hear me come and get me ranger Okay I will afraid he did sheriff duly tried in the county courts at glenwood texas bell bishop was found guilty as an accessory in the murder of jim courtright Her sentence 50 years in the women's prison at gory sweet joe mccray and another authentic reenactment of a case from the files of The texas rangers Starring in the universal international technicolor production cattle drive The cast included tony barrett eddy mar jerald moore betty lou gerson et bagley and janette nolyn Technical advisor was captain mt. lone wolf gonzalez of the texas rangers This story was transcribed and adapted by tom blackburn and the program was produced and directed by stacey keech This is hal gibney speaking silver jubilee on nbc Today it's the big show with guest stars including mary mccarty dane clark martha scott Phil foster and your charming hostess to lula bankhead Then join in the fun on the sparkling phil harris alice fey show Later a theater guild on the air brings you the Broadway musical allegro starring jane paul john lond and kenny delmar Keep tuned to the nbc radio network Now entering its second quarter century as the leader in radio entertainment Next it's the big show all this and to lula too on nbc