 Box 13 with the star of Paramount Pictures, Alan Ladd, as Dan Holliday. I'm Mr. Box 13. I address you as Mr. because I assume you are of the male sex. If you're a woman, disregard this letter. Come to my home at 7546 Brandon Drive as soon as you receive this. I should be expecting you at once and I shall state my reason for writing this when I have satisfied myself as to your qualifications. Very truly yours, Mrs. Matilda Cortland. Mrs. Matilda Cortland. Now why should one of the richest women in the world and one of the least accessible be writing to Box 13? And now back to Box 13 and Dan Holliday's newest adventure, The Dowager and Dan Holliday. Mrs. Matilda Cortland. Impressed Susie? I sure am. Why nobody ever sees her. And practically no one knows what she looks like. She hasn't had a photograph taken in, come to think of it, I don't ever remember seeing one. Maybe she's a refuse. Susie, you mean recluse. Oh, why? When Matilda Cortland wants help, it's got to be something big. Okay, Susie, Mrs. Cortland's wish is my command. See you later. The Cortland mansion on Brandon Drive is the show place in the city. People trained their necks to look at it. All they ever saw was the dignified prem exterior. Ah, I was privileged. I saw the inside. Because when I rang the front doorbell... Yes, sir? Oh, how do you do? I'm the man from Box 13. Oh, will you come in, sir? Follow me, sir. I followed the butler down the hallway. The house was just as I expected. It was the 19th century refusing to believe that the 20th had ever rolled around. Then... One moment, if you please, sir. Yes? I beg your pardon, madam, but the gentleman you were expecting has arrived. Shall we? That will be all, Jesse? Yes, madam. Stand there for a moment. Huh? I said, stand there for a moment. The room was darkened. The shades were drawn over the windows, and the heavy old-fashioned drapes led in very little light. Then my eyes became more accustomed to the darkness. And I saw her. Mrs. Matilda Cortland. Practically a legend. She was about 75. Her white hair was drawn tightly back over her head and was covered by a jet-encrusted scarf. Her dress was a museum piece, and it fell to the floor in heavy folds. Now you've seen Matilda Cortland. That's an accomplishment, young man. Yes, I know it is, Mrs. Cortland. Come closer. That's enough. Now, turn around. Turn... turn around? Yes. Are you a sample of what this modern age has produced? It's very nice out there, Mrs. Cortland. A matter of opinion. How old are you? 32. You may sit down. Oh, thank you. Why didn't you come sooner? I only received your letter this morning. I ate lunch. I've developed that bad habit. You could have had lunch with me. Well, the letter didn't invite me. No matter. This is your advertisement in the Star Times? Yes, it is, Mrs. Cortland. I saw it by chance. I never read newspapers. I form my own opinions, political, social and moral, without aid from the press. Some of us, Mrs. Cortland, like to hear other sides of the questions that may come up. Stop arguing with me. Mrs. Cortland, I came because you asked me to. I assumed you had something in mind when you wrote to box 13. I didn't know it would be a discussion, which neither of us... That's enough, young man. Do you have a name? Oh, yes, yes, Dan Holiday. Daniel? Only when I'm being formal. Why did you put this advertisement in the paper? Well, I told her she listened without changing expression. When I finished... Then you don't accept payment for your services. No, I don't. Very well. You're going to help me. Oh, just a moment now. I haven't heard what you want me to do. Does that matter? You advertised that you would go anywhere, do anything. Well, maybe what you have in mind won't interest me. Mr. Holiday, I want you to do this for me. All right, then tell me what it is. Come here this evening for dinner. Oh, I'm sorry, but I have an engagement. Cancel it. Well, I... I can't. Nonsense. Anyone can cancel an engagement. Look, Mrs. Cortland, this is the 20th century. I know there were days when the word of Matilda Cortland was law to the society of this city. When engagements were canceled, right and left to leave room and time for your dinner parties, but I still have an engagement I intend to keep. You're unreasonable. No, correction. Independent is the word. No matter. But it does matter, Mrs. Cortland. Now, if you'll excuse me. Oh, wait. Yes? Tomorrow night then. I think I can make that. Seven o'clock. Please be prompt. Do I dress? Of course. And meanwhile, I'm supposed to guess what you want me to do. I know the dinner isn't all of it. That's quite right. You will meet my grandson and a woman. And then? And then, no matter what I say, you're not to act surprised, astonished, or give the least sign that anything is strange or new to you. No matter what you say. You think you can manage that? I'll try, Mrs. Cortland. I'll try. Remember, what I say or do may startle you, even shock you. But under no circumstances are you to betray your feelings. Now, Jessup will show you to the door. I shall expect you tomorrow evening at seven. Well, Box 13 has brought out some pretty fancy routines. But this one was different. I found out what it was all about that evening at dinner. I met her grandson. He was about 25, and a girl who was, well, maybe a little younger than he. I was still wondering what it was all about, and so was the grandson Peter. The girl seemed nervous, ill at ease. Matilda Cortland wasn't making it any easier for her. That's right. Yes, Mrs. Cortland. Did you say your father had been an engineer? Oh, please, Grandmother. Peggy's told you he was five times. Peter, I am speaking to Miss Wright. Sorry. What sort of an engineer, Miss Wright? Well, he... Sivu, mining, chemical. What? He was a locomotive engineer. Oh, really? On what railroad? Grandmother, please. Peter, do not interrupt. Peter, I'd like to go now. But my dear, we were to spend an evening together. I'd had so much about you from Peter that I'd feel that I'd like to know more. Yes, Mrs. Cortland. We really got to go, Grandmother. We're expected somewhere. Oh, where are you going? Does that matter? Yes. Where are you going? To the Club Pierre. What's that? Dan, you'll do now? Oh, yes, it's a very nice club. Dancing, dinner... A cabaret? They don't call them that anymore, Mrs. Cortland. Very well. That'll go along. What? I shall go along. But... Stop sounding like a motorboat, Peter. Well, Daniel, would you like to go? If you would. But, Grandmother, you can't go. Would I be barred because of my age? No, of course not. Then why can't I go? Well, I... I guess there's no reason, but... you'd have to leave the house. I didn't expect to carry it along like a turtle with his shell. Of course not. That's a very good reason I want to come along. Isn't that right, Daniel? Yes, yes, there is. I've decided that I'd be knocked away from the world too long. Now I have a reason for getting out into it. Renewing an old acquaintance, so to speak. Moreover, since I'm going to be married... What? What did you say? Yes. Daniel and I are engaged. Mr. Holliday, are you all right? I never felt better in my life, I think. You must be more careful, Daniel. Yes, I can see that. Well, Peter, you and Miss Wright run along then. Daniel and I will join you later. Yes, Grandmother, come on, Peggy. Excuse me. I've reserved a table. You can just ask for me at the club. Very well. Look, Mrs. Cortland... Quiet. Now, what were you going to say? Why did you say that? That you and me, Daniel? Yeah, then that's it. You saw that girl. Miss Wright? Yes, yes. What about her? What's she got to do with this? That girl's a fortune hunter. She's after Peter's money. My money right now. And what do I fit in? I think when she realizes Peter is not liable to inherit my money, we can forget her. In other words... Exactly. You would inherit my money as my husband. Now, wait a minute. Wait a minute. You don't have any intention of keeping on with this, do you? I never start what I cannot finish. Well, I'm sorry, but you can count me out. Why? Because it's ridiculous. I love my grandson. I would do something ridiculous to make him happy. Well, go talk to him then. I've tried. He's infatuated with that girl. All right, forget that. What kind of a reputation do you think this will give me? I'll be the fortune hunter. Not at all. You earn a very good living from your writing. Yeah, I know, but... I have enough influence to keep this out of the papers. I promise you, this will be between you, Peter, that girl, and myself. No. No, I can't. I... Daniel, I'm an old woman. I have nothing in the world but that boy whom I love dearly. When I die, I want to be sure he's happy. I'm lonely, Daniel. Very lonely. The only comfort I have is Peter, and that comfort would be taken away if I thought for even a moment that his happiness would be ruined by a woman who cares nothing for him, but for what money he'll have when I die. Please, Mrs. Cortland, what you're asking is... I know a great deal. It might cause you embarrassment. But believe me when I tell you that it cost me a great deal in pride just now to confide in you, a stranger. I know what people say about me. Matilda Cortland, tyrant, money bag, reckless. All those and more. Let me finish. Then you can decide. I'm afraid to leave this house. Afraid? Why? Because I'm afraid of the outside world. When my husband died, I went on. Then my daughter died, my son-in-law died. Peter has all that's left. I want him to be happy, and I'm willing to sacrifice anything to see that he is. Mrs. Cortland, you're making it tough on me. It'll be just as tough on me as you put it. How long does this go on, if I agree? Until I find out. Well, I'm a sucker, Mrs. Cortland, but all right. Thank you. Now, Daniel, please take me to the club pier. So we went to the club pier. I don't remember much about what happened, except that I felt like a goldfish in a bowl without water. Well, I played my part, and went on for two days more. Then am I a partner. I've come to see you holiday because I want to talk with you. All right, Peter, sit down and talk. You can't be serious about grandmother, I mean. What makes you say that? Well, you just can't. She's old enough to be your grandmother. She's charming, gracious, and rich. Money isn't everything. It must be to you. Now, wait a minute, Peter. What your grandmother does is none of your concern. She does this when she makes a fool of herself or when someone does it for her. Meaning me? Meaning you. I don't think I have. Besides, I'm having fun. I've learned to drive her electric runabout. It's a little slow. I'm not even serious now. How do you know? Because it's ridiculous. Maybe she thinks your romance is ridiculous. That's none of your business. All right. All right, it's none of my business. And what I do is none of your business. And you insist on going on with this? Why do you say that? You do. I'll find a way to stop it. Oh? How? I don't know, but I will. Is that a threat, Peter? No. That's a promise. All right. As long as we're playing, oh, promise me, I can promise you that I'll take care of myself. Well, we'll see about that holiday. And I warn you, you're going to get into trouble. And now back to The Dowager and Dan Holiday, another box 13 adventure with Alan Land as Dan Holiday. Well, it all looks so simple. We'll go along with the game until Matilda Cortland call it off. Yeah, sure, that was all. Then one night at her home. Tonight, Daniel, you're taking me to the opera. Oh? Look, Mrs. Cortland, don't you think this has gone far enough? I'm not finished. Oh, we're getting no place. Peggy Ryder says... I'll see the drudgery when we stop, Daniel. Now, hand me that case on the table there. Oh, this one over here? Yes. Here you are. Have you ever heard of the Cortland Emerald, Daniel? Oh, who hasn't? Oh, you're going to see them. Beautiful, aren't they? Well, I won't argue with you. They were to go to Peter's Bride as they came to me. Nice little trinkets. Each one is perfect and perfectly matched for the next. 20 of them. Uh, you're going to wear that necklace? Yes. Fasten it for me, Daniel. All right. As I fastened the clasp of the necklace, I got a funny feeling. Maybe it was the jewels themselves, green, glowing in the yellow light of the room. Then, when I finished... Thank you, Daniel. Now, if you're ready... All right, let's go. Oh, wait a moment. I think I hear Peter. Hmm? Grandmother, are you just about ready to... The emeralds? Yes, Peter. The emeralds. I'm wearing them tonight. But... But you can't. Why not, Peter? Well, I mean, it's... it's dangerous, isn't it? Why? Well, all I meant was... Are you sure the clasp was tight? It won't come loose or anything. Of course not. Come along, Daniel. Yes, sure. And, Peter... What? You can close your mouth now. I hear much of the opera because I kept thinking how strange Peter had looked when he saw the necklace. How Matilla Cortland had looked. As if warning her grandson to be quiet and say nothing more. Then, the opera was over. I drove her home. I went home to bed. Yeah? Who is it? Holiday. Uh-huh. Open up. Who is it? Police. Police? Wait a second. Hey, what's up? You're Dan Holiday. That's what the name on my mailbox says. Why? Move over. Sergeant, stay out here. Now, wait. What's the big idea? Got a warrant to bring in. Me? What for? It's worn out by Mrs. Matilda Cortland. What? Let me see that warrant. You like the way it's written, Holiday? Well, what's the charge? Robbery. This is insane. What are you talking about? I can't talk any plainer than I did, Holiday. Robbery of what? Oh, of about 20 emeralds. Almost immediately after I came inside this house. It was just after I'd left Mr. Holiday. No one else was with you. You know as well as I do that I didn't take that necklace. It was missing? Then look all over the house. The insurance company has already done that. Well, Holiday? You said that once. Did I? Well, you didn't answer it. I can't. Will you need me any more, Officer? No, I don't. Excuse me. You can hang up, Jessup. I've taken it here in the library. Yes, of course. It's for you, Officer. Thank you. Hello? Uh-huh. Oh. Okay. Stay there. Got any good answers, Holiday? Answers to what? How the necklace got into your apartment? Oh, this was her beauty. I was looking out of a frame that crowded me, but good. I knew Mrs. Cortland had that necklace when she had left me last night. I saw it, yet how could it get in my apartment? And why? So I saw Kling and he pulled some strings and I was out on bail. I had to get some answers fast and I thought Peter could give them to me. I'm sorry, Holiday. I can't do a thing. Listen, you saw that necklace when your grandmother and I left for the opera last night and I saw it when I brought her home. Then how did it get into your apartment? Maybe you've got an answer. No. Listen, your eyes popped out of your head when you saw your grandmother wearing that necklace last night. Why? I knew something would happen. How did you know? What gives you the right to question me? I'm doing it. All right, go ahead and ask. I was with your grandmother all evening. And I wasn't. If you want to check, go ahead. But it looks as though you're in a mess, Holiday. Nothing I could add to that. Sure, I checked. Peter was in the clear. He hadn't been near his grandmother from the time he saw us until the next morning. Yet someone had to take that necklace and plant it in my apartment. And it looked like a frame up between Peter and his grandmother. But why? Why frame me? Why go through this whole elaborate fix just to fasten a crime on a guy they never seen before? And I got an idea. I went to the insurance company. Of course, Mr. Holiday. Now that the necklace is recovered, we have nothing more to do with the case. But if it hadn't been recovered, you'd have paid the claim, right? Certainly. But it's not the insurance money they were after. Mrs. Cortland? Certainly not. She's enormously wealthy. Yeah, yeah. But you know it is a little strange come to think of it. What's strange come to think of what? Probably nothing, but, uh, we were due for our routine check-up in just two days. Check-up? Of what? Well, you must know we make a check-up on insured objects every so often. And one was due in two days? Yes. Oh, I see. I beg your pardon? Oh, nothing, nothing. Well, thanks very much. But it still didn't make sense. It still came back to the necklace being found in my apartment. Then... Then I figured out another angle. And my next stop was to see Miss Peggy Wright. What do you mean? What are you talking about? I asked a simple question, Miss Wright. And that was, when were you and Peter planning to leave? Leave? Leave where? I cut it out. You know what I'm talking about? I say you and Peter plan to elope. We didn't. We never even thought of it. Are... are you telling the truth? Of course I am. Why should I lie about that? I don't know. Look, Miss Wright, are you in love with Peter? Yes. You want to get married? But if I'm Maria's grandmother, then you wouldn't get the money. Oh, I don't care about that. Well, I could swear she was telling the truth. At first I'd thought Peter had taken the necklace so that he and Peggy could get away from Mrs. Cortland. But it was a dead end again. And there was that other thing bothering me. Why frame me? Then I went back to see Mrs. Cortland. I can give you ten minutes, Mr. Holiday. That's all I want. Just a couple of questions. Wait. If I promise not to prosecute if I drop the whole thing, will you forget it? No, wait a minute. Let me get this straight. You're willing to forget all this? Yes. Why? Because perhaps I like you. Oh, no. That's not it. Then I have nothing more to say. Yes, but I have. Why did you decide to wear that necklace to the opera last night? It's mine and I wear it when I please. But why last night? And why was it missing this morning? It's a little too much of a coincidence that you wore the emeralds last night. And that they were found in my apartment this morning. Please leave, Mr. Holiday. And Peter almost fell over when he saw you with that necklace that night. And... And what? And this morning when you heard it was found in my apartment, you almost fell over. Come on, Mrs. Cortland. What's going on? Do you want money to forget all about this? No, I don't want money. I want the truth. And maybe even then I won't forget it. Jessup will show you out. Jessup will find himself on the end of a fist if he tries it before I find out a few things. I'll call the police. Go ahead. Go ahead. I'll wait. Well, why don't you call? I have no wish to harm you. Mrs. Cortland, I... What were you going to say? Nothing. Nothing at all. I'm just getting an idea. That's all. An idea. Fantastic, but it made sense. I lined up my facts. Peter's reaction when he saw the necklace. Second, the insurance checkup was due just after the necklace disappeared. Third, Peter hadn't had a chance to touch the necklace between the time I saw it last and when it appeared at my apartment. Unless he and his grandmother were trying to frame me. That didn't make sense because there was no reason in the world for them to do it. So I called a cling another chase around the city and I found the man I was looking for. Okay, I had everything I needed. And I called that evening at the Cortland mansion. I made sure Peter and his grandmother were there. And I took Peggy with me. And in the library... This is the last time we'll see you, Mr. Holliday. I don't think so, Mrs. Cortland. Not after the little game we played. What do you mean? When we first started this twister, you said you'd do anything for Peter. What are you getting at, Holliday? And you, Peter, you said you'd get me in trouble. Listen. No, you listen. You planted that necklace in my apartment. Silence after that, huh? But it's true. You wanted to frame me. But you, Mrs. Cortland, you suspected he took the necklace, didn't you? You're quite mad. Oh, no. With the insurance check upcoming, you wanted to avoid a scandal because you thought Peter had taken the necklace. You had a paste one made. I checked and found out. The paste one was the one you wore to the opera. And Peter, what? That double take you did when you saw the paste necklace almost floored you. Because you thought you had the necklace. You didn't mean to steal it, did you, Peter? No way. Holliday's right, Grandmother. So you reported the missing necklace, the paste necklace, Mrs. Cortland? Never thinking the real one would show up. Peter, you owe Mr. Holliday an apology. And there is the understatement of the year. Mr. Holliday, I... what can we do? Peggy. Yes? Come here. You too, Peter. All right. Peter, you wanted to protect your grandmother by showing me up as a crook. Mrs. Cortland, you wanted to protect your grandson any way you could. It seems to me a lot of energy was wasted that could be used to good advantage. What do you mean? Why don't you stop trying to run other people's lives, Mrs. Cortland? Let Peter and Peggy get married. I'm sure it isn't his money. She's after... If you don't, this would make juicy reading in the papers, I'm afraid. You wouldn't. Oh, yes I would. Very well. Okay, Peter. You and Peggy run along, huh? Holliday, I... Ah, that's good enough. So long. And I, Mr. Holliday? You and I are going to the club pier. You're very chivalrous, Mr. Daniel. So you admit chivalry still lives. Okay, let's go. I'll get the electric runabout and we... No, no, no. Let's go in your car. The runabout's a little slow. And so everything's all right now, Mr. Holliday? It sure is, Susie. Oh. What's so funny? I was just thinking. She couldn't have lost the pace, necklace. All right, all right, I'll play straight, man. Why not? Because... Because it would have stuck to her neck. See? Oh, I'll go get the mail for box 13. Good night, Mr. Holliday. Next week, same time, through the courtesy of Paramount Pictures, Alan Ladd stars as Dan Holliday in box 13. Box 13 is directed by Richard Sandville with an original story by Russell Hughes. Original music is composed and conducted by Rudy Schrager. The part of Susie is played by Sylvia Picker. Production is supervised by Vern Carstensen. This is a Mayfair production from Hollywood. Watch for Alan Ladd in his latest Paramount Picture.