 Hello, I hope I haven't kept you waiting. Yes, this is the crime club. I'm the librarian. The Grey Mist murders. Yes, we have that crime club story for you. Come right over. Take the easy chair by the window. Comfortable? The book is on this shelf. Here it is. The Grey Mist murders. By Constance and Gwynn Flittle. The very intriguing story of a pleasure cruise that became a floating horror. Let's look at it under the reading lamp. It was late afternoon and Robert Arnold's ocean-going yacht, The Grey Mist, was already eight hours out of San Francisco and traveling under full steam toward Honolulu. Two of his friends, Peter Condit and Phyllis Marsh, stood by the rail in the bow of the ship, absorbed as they watched the water go by. Then, a few moments later... Nothing to say, Peter? Oh, I'm sorry, Phyllis, I was just thinking. What about? We ought to get married. What? A triple wedding. Carla Bray and Bob Arnold, you and Chet Gordon and... And you and Kay Bailey? Today, Bob could get the skipper to do the honors. You're slightly off of being Peter. I know it sounds crazy, but why not be crazy for a change? Not with my life. I believe in waiting and watching. What for? You're going to marry Chet anyway, aren't you? Maybe. Oh, aren't you sure? I don't know. So, Peter? It's Kay. Now you can ask her how she feels about a double wedding. All right, stand by and watch the reaction. Okay, darling, come over here. I've got something to ask you. After me, sweetheart. Kay! Well, Peter, wouldn't you like to know what that was for? What's the idea, Kay? Don't you ever try to make a fool of me again? What are you talking about? Your ex-heartthrob, Peter, Sally Grable. She's on this boat. And wherever she is, she's doing a good job of hiding. We've been sailing for eight hours and I haven't seen her. Now where would she be, Peter? No, she isn't. You must have had a bad dream. She is and I didn't. But, Kay, if you didn't see her, how do you know? This handkerchief was where it shouldn't be. Recognize it, darling? Let me see it. Be gentle or you'll rub off the monogram. Where'd you get it, Kay? I found it on the other side of the deck. It was hugging the rail for dear life. Well, I'll be... Of course, dear, the sooner, the better. Wait a minute. Yes? Where's the rest of the crowd? Your life, mate. Cut it out, Kay. Where's Bob and Chet and Carla? In the lounge, I suppose, giggling over their brandies. Then you showed them this handkerchief, huh? Oh, yes, and they were so surprised. Thanks. I'll see you later. We'll soon find out who's kidding whom. Oh, it's not really so funny, get it? My laughing, Carla, did you? Oh, just to be reasonable, Bob. Well, I've got things to do. What are you doing here? Down to my cabin. Got an ocean I'd like to bathe in. She really means it, Chet. Oh, no, Bob, that's not what I'm laughing about. Every time I think of that look on Kay's face, would she held up that handkerchief? Oh, like murder. Poor Pete, what a beating you must be taking now. Sorry for it. Chet, did you plant that handkerchief? No, but I thought it was you. Oh, it wasn't. Carla? No, she doesn't go in for practical shows. Neither does Willis. Say... I don't believe it, Chet. She can't be on board the gray mist. But if she is... if she is... Give her, says Mr. Arnold. Did a young lady come on board this morning before I arrived at my party? Why didn't you tell me? Oh, very well. She's here, huh? He thought she was a guest. He told us stew it about her. All right, you lugs. Where is she? The voice of doom. Now listen, Pete. You and Chet and have got Sally stowed away on this boat someplace. Now bring her out. All right, but we'll have to find her first. Oh, now look, she... Shut up, Chet. I'm talking to the master now, the boy who handed out the invitation. Sally wasn't invited, Pete. I don't know how she found out about this trip, but she's here and we'll have to do something about it. Sure. Well, just do me one favor. Keep her out of sight. You hot-headed fool. Why don't you listen? Keep her in her cabin locked up until we get to Honolulu. Will you do that one little thing for me? Okay. Thanks. And after that, you can laugh yourself sick, because Kay and I are checking out as soon as we've got. Well... How about a song, Bob? Fool. Something like Old Lang Syne. Should old acquaintance be forgotten? Shut up, Chet. Let's look for Sally. Bob. I could do that with another song. Bob. Carla. What's the matter? Carla. She's in my cabin. In my cabin. Sally? Yes, in the closet on the floor. And there's a court around her neck. What? I opened the closet to get a dress for tonight. And I... Chet. Chet, stay here with Carla. I'm going downstairs. Yes, yes, Dr. Lang. Come down here right away. Carla, brace cabin. Bob. Chet. What are you doing here? Well, I thought I might be able to help. How's Carla? Oh, she's all right. The fillers came into the lounge, and I... Well, there's no doubt of that, is there? Ah, wind up like that. Who could have done it, Bob? You're asking me. Yeah, but why here? In Carla's room. Sally wasn't killed in here, Chet. What? She'd been dead for hours when she was planted in that closet. Hours? What are you talking about? Take a look at the body. Okay. Yeah. That could be rigor mortis. It is, Chet. I sent for Dr. Lang. He'll know more about the exact time she was killed. Ah, sure. But I got a few ideas of my own. Sally was dead before we pulled her out of the harbor. Say, wait a minute. You're going too fast for me. No, that's right, Chet. Somebody, one of our little crowds, saw Sally first, and that was the end of our Sally. Yeah, but why? And why park the body here after keeping it hidden for a whole day? Say, Bob, is somebody trying to frame Carla? That doesn't make sense. No, it's cock-eyed. Why, everybody knows that Carla and Sally were the best of friends. It was Carla who tried to keep the big romance going between Pete and Sally. That doesn't make sense. Hey, it's just an idea, so don't breathe fire. You didn't ask Sally to join the party. I said I didn't. All right, all right. But how do you know Carla didn't? I'll see you here, Chet. All right, just to get her friend and Pete together again. Some people call it loyalty, you know. Go ahead, go ahead, Chet. All right. Now, suppose Kay found out what Carla had done, and she had visions of losing Pete to Sally. You know how she worked to take him away from her. So she tied a cord around her neck, huh? Well, I don't like to be the one to say so, Bob. And then dragged the body from somewhere to this room? There's nothing a woman likes less than being outsmarted by another woman. Okay, Chet. Will you ask Carla to meet me in the library in 20 minutes? All right, sure. I'm going to wait here for Dr. Lang. Then I'm going to find out who started this thing and why. What's what it be? Carla! Carla, baby, what's the matter? I'm in the library for Chet. Holy. Somebody run for a doctor, quick. Who did it, Carla? I don't know, Kay. I was going to meet him. Did you, sweetheart? Kay. It just occurred to me that Carla's quite a finder. Cut it out, Kay. This is no time for comedy. No, Peter, just for murder. You're a fool, Kay. What reason would Carla have for killing Bob? One never knows, dear. There are so many reasons why a woman should kill a man, and one of them can be another woman. Oh, why don't you shut up and dry up? I'm only thinking about Sally. I wonder who took her along for the ride. Was it Bob? Let's get out of here, Kay. The boyfriend of the best friend. The oldest story in the world, you know. Pay no attention to her, Carla. Ever since she found Sally's handkerchief. Carla. I haven't heard a word she said, Phyllis. She only knew how little she means to me. Yeah. To pick on me at a time like this. Carla. It's all right. What's all right? Bob. Come here, honey. Bob! Oh, darling. You are all right. Well, you look quite... I still have a headache. Oh, darling. We've been so busy arguing about who killed you. I didn't think to look. That takes quite a lot to crack solid ivory, but somebody tried awful hard. Come on in, gang. You look pretty well, considering. Well, unless we'll all be together, even though it's not going to be a week. What happened, Bob? I'm glad to see you're interested, Pete. Now, look! I should have done that when I opened the door. I want to see him who was waiting behind it with the Empire State Building in one hand. Kay seems to think it was Carla, Bob. So I heard, and I was coming under the fog. The reasons were very interesting. Oh! Relax, Carla. They were just interesting, not true. Well, shall we play 20 questions now? We shall. Chad, when you told Carla to meet me here in 20 minutes, who was present? Everybody? Yes. And then everybody disappeared. Yeah, I went to the billiard room. Alone, Bob? I went to my state room to rest. Now, but you, Pete. I, uh, I went for a walk on deck with Kay. Is that right, Kay? You don't think he's lying, do you? It's possible that he isn't, but somebody is. How about you, Carla? You had 20 minutes to kill. I went to the game room, Kay. Well, of course. And the game room is right next to the lounge. Carla, are we able to see the stairway? I didn't see anyone go down, Bob. But then... Yeah? I wasn't watching it. I was walking around. But the game room, dear, is where you play games. I've had enough of you, Kay. And everything that goes with you. Now, wait a minute. Wait a minute. There's gonna be no hair pulling while I'm around. She's got no right to keep throwing mud at me, Chip. Yeah, I know. She killed Sally and tried to kill Bob. And the more she tries to put the blame on me, the more I'm convinced of it. All right. You're right at all. She's not going to call me a murderer. Stop it, Kay. Beat get her out of here. Nobody has to get me out. I'll see you all later. That means around dinner time, if I know Kay. I'm sorry about the rump is Bob. Okay, Pete. I think I'll go up to the bar and start drowning myself in the best liquor you've got. Neither I'm crazy or this boat is jinxed. We start out on a cruise the best of friends, and before the end of the day, we find out we're the worst enemies. Come on, Phyllis. Let's go up on deck and go haywire. I'm going to my cabin, chair. What? I'm very tired. Oh, okay. I'll go down to the boiler room and cool off. That's Kay. Ah, forget it, please. Carla, did you invite Sally on this trip? Did I what? You look surprised, honey. You're really beautiful. I'm not surprised, Bob. I'm angry. I had a lot of respect for Sally. I have to say another word. I'm convinced. But you thought of it. Oh, darling, I apologize. Now let's go and search all the cabins, including the empty ones. We might trip over something like a clue to the murderer. Then we'll know who's who and who paid her off. Where have you been for the last hour, Kay? Around. Pull up a deck chair, Peter, and make believe we know each other. I've been looking for you. How nice. I hope you weren't too disappointed when you peeped in my cabin. What was the idea, Kay? Oh, did I have an idea? That lousy scene you made outside the library. Why did you accuse Carla? I don't like her. Because the dirtiest thing I ever listened to. But I'm very fond of you, Peter. And I wouldn't like to lose you to the hangman. What's that? Oh, you're wonderful. Why don't we get married and end this beautiful romance? What did you mean, Kay, about the hangman? You killed Sally. Now listen. That's all right. I don't mind. I'm only sorry you didn't kill Bob Arnold, too. I don't know what you're talking about. But I do. After Chet told Carla to meet Bob in the library, we, um, didn't go for a walk on the deck. You keep your mouth shut about that, Kay. But you said we did. And that wasn't the truth, was it, darling? If you say one word to Bob or anybody else. Well, you do. Kill me, too. Good grief. There, there. I'll keep your secret. But I tell you, Kay, I have nothing to do with this business today. I didn't know Sally was on board until you showed me that handkerchief. Your piccolo's out of tune. What are you trying to do? That's what I want to know. What are you trying to do? Sit down, sit down, and keep your temper. Because if I start screaming, there, that's a good boy. I didn't kill Sally. No one will ever know from me. Would you like me to prove it? How? Well, a wife can't give evidence against her husband. You haven't got anything on me. Don't be silly. All I have to do is talk, and the only alibi you've got becomes a witness to the prosecution. Yes? Yes. Because whoever tried to kill Bob killed Sally. And for the sake of the record, the marriage record, I was with you on both occasions, protecting my future. Bob, we've been trotting around from cabin to cabin, and I'm tired. Only three more empties to go, Carla. Sally must have been in one of them. This is like hunting for a ghost. And when it happens to be the ghost of your best friend... This is it. ... luggage. Sally's luggage. It must be. No one was checked into this room by me. Bob. What is it, Carla? I don't think I can go through with it. Will you excuse me, please? Oh, sure. Honey, I should have thought of it myself. You go up on deck and get some air. I'll go around here, and if I find anything interesting... What's the matter? A handbag on the dresser. It's a funny position to leave a handbag in. Standing on end? That's a tip-off, Carla. There's something in it that Sally wanted us to find. What do you mean? She's a very smart girl, and she might have left her handbag this way, so it'd be noticed. Bob, just before she was killed? Maybe she didn't know she was going to be killed. But she was frightened. She did some quick thinking. What's that you're reading? Good Lord. This is one thing I didn't expect to find. Well, what is it? Well, I read it. I've made up my mind, so let's not mess things up. Stay off the gray mist. Chet. Chet? Yeah, of all people. Chet and Sally? Not a word to anybody. No doubt about it, Carla. That's his handwriting topped about him. Now, there's only one thing to do. But we won't do it now. What? Phyllis, not now, will we? Please give me that letter. I'll do nothing of the kind. Carla, don't be foolish. You're an old friend. And I'm very fond of you. You wouldn't dare use that gun. I would. I'm engaged to Mary, Chet. And if I have to shoot you to get that letter, I'll shoot you. There's no use arguing, Carla. Give it to her. But she'll destroy it. There's nothing we can do about it now. Give it to her. Well, all right. Thanks. I'll explain some other time. Bob, has she gone out of her mind? I don't know. Sticking by your man means that you're out of your mind than she is. Why, you sound as if you admire her. I don't even admire myself. Let's go upstairs. I'd like to have a chat with Chet. You know, Bob, this is the nicest bar I've ever been in. It's the cleanest, too. You ought to get a medal for it. Snap out of it, Chet. If you're playing drunk. Or I'm playing. You and Carla say I'm a murderer. That makes me want to play some more. Where's the letter I'm supposed to have written? Phyllis took it away from us. Phyllis? She's some girl. She's one in a billion. And you know, the days of the little millions are gone forever. Goodbye forever, goodbye forever. Bob will never get any better. Won't we? Give me that pitcher of ice water. Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye. Hey, that's cold. Not as cold as you're going to be if you don't start making sense. What's a big idea? We want to know about you and Sally. Me? What are you talking about? Don't you remember a thing we said to you? Well, you said it to... Oh, yeah. Yeah, a letter that Phyllis took. That you wrote to Sally, telling her to stay off this boat. Oh, no, Carla, I never wrote one word to Sally. Oh, you got to believe me. We found it in her handbag, Chet. And the handwriting was yours. You know what, Gidees? I think there's a lunatic on board. How about it, Chet? No, no, I mean it, Bob. Look, what happened? First, Sally's found in the closet of Carla's room. Then you're conked for no reason at all, and now then this letter of mine. Tell us about that. But I didn't write it. I haven't seen it. But I can tell you, it's a forgery. That's always convenient. No, Carla, I'm not lying. Honest. Look, Bob, you know me for a long time. You know my handwriting. Could you imitate it? That's not the point, Chet. Well, could you or couldn't you? Yes, if I wanted to. Well, so could Carla and so could anybody. It's the easiest handwriting in the world to imitate. It's like a schoolboy's. Well, will you get that letter from Phyllis? I'll try, if she still got it. And I certainly hope she has. Bob, did he put one over on us? I don't know, Carla. I wonder. Well, you want to be a detective. And you know a good detective has to take lessons. Good lessons. Huh? Would you like to have a lemon-fizz, darling? Or just a fizzle? Peter. Huh? Oh, Phyllis. Can you play billiards? I want to talk to you. All right. What about? I overheard what Kay said to you a little while ago. Snooping, huh? I didn't mean to, Peter. Let's go out on deck. I want you to understand one thing. When we get outside, Phyllis. Very well. Now, what do you want? The truth. You too. Bob and Carla found that letter in Sally's handbag. What letter? The one you wrote in Chet's handwriting after you killed Sally. Is this something new? There's no use denying it, Peter. You didn't want Sally to come on this boat. And when you found she was here, you killed her and tried to make it look as though Chet had done it. Who's got that letter now, Phyllis? I took it from Carla. I had to use force, but I took it. I'd like to see it. You can't. Why not? I destroyed it. Why, you dumb-cloak? What did you do a thing like that for? There was going to be no evidence against Chet. No evidence against Chet. Or against you. Have you got any idea what you've done? Only one person had a reason for killing Sally and wanting to kill Bob. It wasn't Chet. No, no. Who's talking about him? It was Kay. Kay? She thought Bob had invited Sally to make this trip. You saw what she did when she found that handkerchief. But she's not as smart as she thinks. She put on the mad act, but Sally was already dead and she killed her. But tonight, when she tried to put the blame on me... Peter, do you know what you're saying? What she said about me. Only this is the truth. I know it. All Kay wants is money, and I have it. She charmed me away from Sally, made me think she loved me. I fell for her like a ton of saplings. But all she was angling for was money. I always thought Kay was well. She hasn't got a dime. For the last two months, she's been gambling with my money. And I was going to ask her to marry me. Today. A triple wedding. Oh, stop it. Stop it. What's the matter with you? Don't you believe me? No. All right. Let's form a posse. We'll beat through this boat till we find Kay. And then I'll make her tell the truth about everything, including murder. She's got to be in her cabin, Phyllis. She's nowhere else on this boat. But she doesn't answer. No, that's just her way of being cute. Well, I'm not waiting. See here, Kay. We've got to get Bob. Remember, Phyllis, you were with me. Is she dead? Nobody ever looked like that and wasn't. Come on, let's get Bob. Thank you, Dr. Lang. You take care of the details. I'm going into the library to join my friends. If you want me to make any chemical tests. I'll call you, or I'll bring the murderer to you. I think we got all the evidence we need. I hope so, Mr. Arnold. Yeah. Sit down, Carla. Everybody sit down. Okay, he's been dead about an hour. Anybody have an alibi? No? Well, that's good, because I don't care about alibis this time. All I want is a show of hands. What do you mean, Bob? I want to see everybody's hands, Chip. What for? Have you got any reason not to show me yours? Well, no. Here, look at him. I just watched him 15 minutes ago. Both sides, Chip. Okay. Up. Do I pass? How about you, Pete? I don't mind if this is a new way to tell fortunes. It is. The kind of fortune that ends with, I now pronounce, sentence of death. Your next, fellas, may I see your hands, please? All right. I wish I knew why. Carla? Yes, Bob? Your hands. Here. Don't worry. You won't find any blood on mine. I wasn't looking for blood, exactly. What were you looking for? I don't understand. Someone in this room is a murderer, a strangler. And Dr. Lang found the evidence that should convict. What evidence, Bob? Pieces of skin, Pete, and her two of Kay's fingernails. She scratched her killer and she... I reach for your neck, fellas. Well, no reason. I was just going to loosen my scar. Why don't you take it off? Isn't it sort of warm in here? I'll just loosen it. What are you hiding? Darn! Hey, you got one heck of an herb. Give her back that scar. Okay, Chad. After she explains those two scratches... She doesn't have to explain anything to you. I'm afraid she does to all of us. How did you get those scratches on your neck, fellas? Bob, leave her alone. You've got them while you were twisting the cord around Kay's neck, didn't you? She reached up while you were standing behind her and clawed at you, trying to get hold of your hair so she could pull your head down. Isn't that right, Phyllis? You've got no proof. Well, that's what you want. All right? Dr. Lang has a skin that came off that neck. He's ready to make any test he has to. He's not going to make any test, Bob. You're a lick, Phyllis. That gun can't help you now. Why doesn't somebody try to take it away from me? Phyllis. Oh, no. Yes. Why doesn't somebody try? Because you all want to live. You too, Chet, even now. Oh, Phyllis, why did you do it? I hated them both. But Kay more than Sally because she was going to marry Peter. What? Are you kidding? No, Chet. I never love you. You just pestered me. And I... Did you know I tried to get rid of you, too? I wrote that letter to Sally right after I killed her. And then I fixed everything so that it would be found. That was smart of me, wasn't it? Phyllis. Don't be foolish, Bob. Don't come too close. I had everything planned. Kay was going to disappear tonight. And after a while, Peter, you wouldn't have cared. I was going to show you how much I loved you. Oh, we've got to do something. She'll kill us all. Sit tight, Pete. But I've made a mistake. And it was just as well. Bob told me to take Cabin G. I thought he said D. And there was Sally. Would you like to know what she told me? Of course, Phyllis. She said she came on board to take Peter away from Kay. Nobody knew she was there. I promised to keep her confidence. And when she turned round to one pass... Why did you put her body in my room? Sally couldn't be dead without being seen, Carla. And your room was so close. Just across the hall. But why did you try to frame me, Phyllis? I never did anything to you. Didn't you? You kissed me and I hated you. There was a mistake, too. I didn't realize it until I heard Kay talking to Peter. Accusing him of the murder. Then I knew that you had no reason to kill Sally. But Peter did. And if I could convince him the way that Kay was trying to convince him, that he couldn't live without marrying me. All right, Peter. Phyllis. She's killed herself. No, Carla. It's just a flesh wound. But she'll never have another chance to kill anybody, including herself. And so closes tonight's crime club book, The Gray Missed Murders, based on the story by Constance and Gwynn Flittle. Steadman Cole did the radio adaptation, Roger Bauer produced and directed. Sydney Smith played Robert Arnold, Helen Shield was Phyllis Marsh, Sherling Oliver was Peter Condit, Joan Alexander was Kay Bayless, Elaine Kent played Carla Bray, and Chet Stratton was Chester Gorton. Oh, I beg your pardon. Hello, I hope I haven't kept you waiting. Yes, this is the crime club. I'm the librarian. Yes, come over a week from tonight. Good. We have the very exciting story of a portrait in black that became a study in murder. It's called Death, Cuts a Silhouette, by D.B. Olson. In the meantime? Well, in the meantime, there is a new crime club book available this week, and every week it bookstores everywhere. Yes, it's available now. Fine. And we look for you next week. One more thing. Cancer strikes on the average one of every two families. Help strike back. Support the American Cancer Society's programs of research, education, and service. Give generously today. This program came from New York. This is the mutual broadcasting system.