 The story you are about to hear is true. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent. Fatima cigarettes. Best of all, long cigarettes brings you dragnet. They're a detective sergeant. They're assigned the juvenile bureau. The high schools in your city have been flooded with obscene literature. You stamp out one source and a dozen more spring up. Your job, stop them. If you want a long cigarette, smoke the best of all long cigarettes. Smoke king-size Fatima. Fatima is the long cigarette, which contains the finest Turkish and domestic tobaccos, superbly blended to make Fatima extra mild. And that's why Fatima has a much different, much better flavor and aroma than any other long cigarette. That's why Fatima has more than doubled its smokers coast to coast. So enjoy Fatima, the best of all long cigarettes. It's wise to smoke extra mild Fatima. It's wise to smoke extra mild Fatima. The documented drama of an actual crime. For the next 30 minutes in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department, you will travel step by step on the side of the law through an actual case from official police files. From beginning to end, from crime to punishment, Dragnet is the story of your police force in action. It was Monday, October 21st. It was cool in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch out of Juvenile Bureau. My partner's Ben Romero. The boss is Inspector Lester, Commander of the Juvenile Bureau. My name's Friday. It was 10 a.m. when we got to the auditorium of Canfield High School. Stage door. Guess we go right out onto the stage. There's a better way to work called, though. You're the man from the police department? Yes, sir. This is Sergeant Romero. My name's Friday. How do you do? I'm Paul Fish as the principal here. Come right out onto the stage and get the meeting started. All right. Just have a chair there. Thank you. There's a microphone on. Ladies and gentlemen of the Coordinating Council, members of the Parenting Services Association. As you know, this meeting has been called for the purpose of discussing ways and means to bring about an end to the distribution of the filthy and obscene books and pamphlets that have been littering every high school campus in the city of Los Angeles. We've tried every means at our disposal to clean this matter up, and they all seem to fail. On the advice of the Coordinating Council, and this is Randall to the PTA, we've called in the authority here to discuss the matter with us this morning our two officers connected with the Juvenile Bureau of our police department. Sergeant Romero and Sergeant Freyke. And now, may I turn the meeting over to Sergeant Freyke of the Los Angeles Police Department. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, the only way we're going to get to the bottom of this thing and put a stop to it is to get all the information we can on where this lascivious material is coming from. You people as parents and teachers of the children who are buying and reading this stuff might be able to give us some help. So if it's all right with you, Mr. Fisher, I'd like to hear from some of the people sitting out there if I may. Certainly, go right ahead. Thank you. But if any of you people have anything to say or any information, any questions, why don't we be glad to listen to you and do our best to answer your questions. Yes, the lady out there, go right ahead. Ma'am, I think I'd better make it clear now that there's only one way a police officer can arrest anyone for possession of lewd literature. The officer has to prove that the party who possesses this literature does so for the purpose of selling it. Sometimes it's difficult to prove. You mean you can go to this place and buy a book from him? Yes, ma'am, that's just the point. Now, I don't know offhand about the one in your neighborhood, but I can assure you that we've cracked down on hundreds of such peddlers in the past few months. You can see for yourselves that this doesn't put a stop to it. You've got to get to the source. I have a question for you. Yes, sir? My name's Fred Scott. I'm the director of the Square Jewelers Boys Club. Yes, sir. At least he's seen one. Yes, sir, we're aware of that. Yes, sir, there is such a law. Then why isn't it enforced? It is. Well, how do you mean, sir? Well, I mean, what happens when somebody's found together you're selling these books? What's the penalty? Oh, well, the law states that an offender is liable to fines, a jail term of six months, or both. That's not much of a law, is it? Well, I wouldn't know that, sir. The point I'm trying to make is we have good laws in the state of California for the most part. It's true that we're weak in some cases, but you can say that about most states, I think. Well, you may be satisfied with the laws, but I'm not. I'd say stronger. No, I don't think it is, Mr. Scott. Passing a set of new laws isn't going to make this city a cleaner or a safer place for your boys to grow up in. Laws don't decide how moral a city's going to be. People do. Laws don't mow a character in young boys either. But parents and teachers do that. I don't think I know what you're getting at. What do you mean? Just this, Mr. Scott. It's our job on the police department to keep filthy junk like these books from falling into youngsters' hands. Now, on the other side of the fence, the youngster has to be taught to recognize this obscene material for what it is, filth and garbage. And the youngsters have to be taught that in the home, in the school, in the church. Now, they can be made to understand if the kind of dirt and filth these books represent. Now, that'd be worth more than any new set of laws, wouldn't it? But what about these men that put out their books? The men who sell them. How do you reach them? Through the youngsters, they seem to know the way. The next morning, at 8 AM, after meeting with Inspector Lester of Juvenile Bureau, Ben and I went on stake out of Camfield High School. From past experience, we knew there was little hope of a quick end to the case. It was going to be a long haul. Tracing the source all the way up the line from the high school kids who bought the filthy books to the small fry pushers, the wholesalers, and finally, we hoped to the top, the man who printed the books. We had no illusions on that score, generally with the arrest of his pushers and other small timers who worked for him. The top man gets the alarm and clears out before the police officer can apprehend him with evidence that they'll stand up in court. During the first two days at Camfield High, Ben and I found out nothing. The obscene literature was being bartered and exchanged between students, but the main source of supply was still a mystery. We had one slim lead to go on. Mr. Fisher, the high school principal, helped run it down. We've been watching that boy down in the yard since yesterday, Mr. Fisher. Seems to have quite a bit of spending money, expensive clothes, carvers on. I don't know that boy's family. They could be wealthy. We saw him with a stack of those dirty books in his notebook. He must have had a dozen of them. We're showing him around to his crowd. Travers? Are you sure? Go. Take a look down there. Yeah. That Travers is showing him something. I can't see what it is. Come over to this side of the window. Small books. He's giving them to one of the other folks. They've got their wallets out. They're giving Travers money. Come on, Ben. You better come too, Mr. Fisher. This way out to your... No, to the left. That's it. What's hurrying, huh? This door, Sergeant. Right here. Travers! Travers! Hello, Mr. Fisher. They like to talk to you. Yeah? Now, these men here are from the police department. They want to ask you some questions. Shall we go inside? Yeah, sure. Come on. What's the matter, Mr. Fisher? I haven't done anything. We'll see. Come on. What is it? What's it all about? It'll be a lot easier if we have the truth now, son. Did you just sell those boys out there some dirty books? No, I... I mean, it's only a gag. They're funny books. Have you got any more of them on you? Yes, sir. Can we see them, please? I didn't steal them. Only books, funny books. Here. Thanks. Almost a dozen. Mm-hmm. Do you think these are funny books, do you, Travers? Well, some of them. I guess not. It's only a gag, Sergeant. Where'd you get them? I didn't steal them. I bought them off a guy. Who? I can't tell you. Do you have any more of these books? No, sir. Will you show us your locker? I can't remember the combination. It's a new locker. Could you open the locker for us, Mr. Fisher? Yes, but I'll have to get the maintenance, man. All right. I'll show you. Come on. Down here, sir. This one. The 412. I've only got a couple. All right, we'll see. Come on, open it. I haven't done anything. Here's a sample, Joe. Lockers loaded down with them. Rotten self? You can't arrest me. I don't sell the books. I only rent them. Somebody's been briefing you, huh? You're only making it hot on yourself, boy. You can't prove anything. These are my books. I don't sell them. Where do you get them? Who sold them to you? Nobody. I got them, that's all. All right. We'll have to talk to your folks. You can't. They're away. No. No, you can't. Don't. We'll have to, son. Please don't tell them. Please don't let them know I'll do anything. All right. Let's have the truth then. Who are you selling the books for? My name's Barney. That's all I know. I meet him at a cigar store downtown, Fifth and Harrison. Does he sell you the books? He gives them to me. I sell them and then give him the money. I get ten cents for every one I sell. How much do you sell them for? Twenty-five cents. Somewhere a dollar, I get thirty cents for those. The boys in this school have been paying that kind of money for this film. Yes, sir. This man who gives you these books, you know where he lives? No, sir. I have any idea. When are you going to see him? Well, this is Wednesday. I was going to meet him downtown this afternoon. The cigar store? Yes, sir. But I don't want to get by in trouble. He's been okay to me. Sure. He's done a lot for you. Four p.m. Wednesday. Ben and I drove downtown with 16-year-old Eddie Travers. We parked the car near the corner of Fifth and Harrison. We kept an eye on the cigar store. We waited. No sign yet, Travers? No, sir. Barney usually waits by the newsstand there. I haven't seen him yet. How long have you been selling for this man, son? About three months. Maybe four. Any idea where he gets the books? Well, just a minute, sir. Well? I think... Yeah, that's Barney, the one going up to the cigar counter. The man in the gray suit then? Yeah, that's him. He's going into Juanita's cafe. Is that where you usually go after you meet him? Yes, sir. You better take the boy back to the office, Ben. I'll tell this guy and see what I can find out. Okay, well, I'm going to pick you up later. I'll call you at the office. Oh, have you got any matches? No, I'm out. I'll pick some up at the cigar stand. All right. See you later. Yeah. Box of matches? Oh, yeah. And a pack of experiment, too. All right, sir. Got a special on an old, typically new bourbon today. $2.69 a fifth. No, no thanks. Hi, Rosie. Rosie, another tamale when you get time, huh? All right, Barney. Go come in. Yes, sir? Uh, let me have a chicken tacos, a side order of fried beans and cup of coffee, huh? Chicken tacos on Juan. Side up beans. Another tamale. Anything else, Barney? Yeah, some more coffee on Rosie. Tamale on Juan. Slide the ketchup down there, will you? Yeah, here you go. Thanks. Got good tacos with a lot of minibus, fresh stuff. Yeah. There's the sugar. Oh, thank you. Hey, Rosie. Hey, Rosie. Yeah? Got some new ones in just a day. Whole stack of them. What are you talking about? You know, the picture book. Good ones. You can make some money on the side. They sound good around here. Listen, Barney, I told you once, no. Oh, come on, here. Look, I'm over here. I said no, that lousy junk. The next time you bring that stuff in here, I tell the boss, understand? Now eat and get out. Well, that's a real funny day. Looks great, but I don't want a cold potato. Yeah? Come on. Come on. Eat and get out and take that junk with you. Ah, cold potato. I don't like to chow in here anyway. Oh, coffee's certainly cold. Yep. You probably get a big boot out of here. Take a look. Pretty good. Yeah, it's good quality stuff. Give me that little book, then. Let me show you one. Wait a minute. Yeah? Would I kill you? Come on. How about, sell me one of them. Okay. Four bits for the small ones, buck for the big one. Wait a minute. Let's see, I got... I got 14 of them out there. I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll make a deal and you can have the whole works to ten bucks. Okay. You got any more? Why do you think you're going in business for yourself? No, I got a new stand out in Riverside. Books, I guess, ought to go fast. I think I can probably handle another 25 bucks for it. Ah. I'll get the rest of them back at the hotel. Some will bring color. You want to meet me there tonight? Around there. Seven? Where's the hotel? Well, you go straight up 6'3 from here. It's just one block on your left. Call the Denver House. I'm in room 337. You going up there now? Uh-huh. I was supposed to meet some guy, but... Yeah, we can go now. I've got to check, Rosie, huh? Yeah. Hey, you're probably wanting more of these. I can put you on my mailing list. Okay. The prices are right. I don't want to pay retail. Yeah, we can work out a deal. Come on, let's go. Okay. Rosie, huh? She's really quick together. Yeah. Real cold potato, though. Summer like that. Yeah. No sense of humor. We left one at his cafe and walked up Harrison Street to 6th. We turned left and went down one block. It was five minutes to five when we got to Barney's room in the Denver House, number 337. He dragged out a steamer trunk from under the bed and counted out a stack of books and pamphlets covering the general topic of degenerate filth in stories and photographs. Okay, Mac, there you are. It's 25 bucks worth. With the money, the bucks are all yours. Okay. There you go. Yes. 10, 15, 18. I have to give you a check for the rest. How do I know it's any good? You could take off. I'd never see you again. You'll see me. You're under arrest. Huh? Hey, you're kidding. Hey, let go of me. All right. Let's hold it right here. Hey, wait a minute. Oh, look, look at it. We can work this thing out. We'll work it out downtown. Wait a minute. I can set this thing right for you. Well, you're getting this junk. Who's supplying you? Why not use your head? You'll never get the top, man. Not in 10 years, you won't. We got lots of time. Come on. You are listening to Dragnet, the case history of a police investigation presented in the public interest by Fatima Cigarettes. If you smoke a long cigarette, it will be in your interest to listen to a typical case history of a Fatima smoker. It's the case of Mr. Joseph G. Hertzberg, city editor of one of New York's great newspapers, and this is his actual signed statement. I recommend Fatima's to anyone who likes a king-sized cigarette. In my business, long hours really put smoking to the test. Working over time means smoking over time, and that has sold me on Fatimas. No matter how often I light up, Fatima gives me an extra-mile smoke, and Fatima flavor, it's much better every time. I found out it's wise to smoke extra-mile Fatima. And more and more smokers are discovering this every day. Actual figures show Fatima has more than doubled its smokers coast to coast. So enjoy Fatima yourself. The long cigarette which contains the finest Turkish and domestic tobaccos superbly blended to make it extra-mile. You will prefer Fatima's much different, much better flavor. You will agree. It's wise to smoke extra-mile Fatima. It's wise to smoke extra-mile Fatima. The best of all long cigarettes. The filthy literature racket feeds on the curiosity of youngsters and the stupidity and ignorance of adults. It's an all-season business, and in its own quiet way it has reached a market which the other heavy rackets never hoped to reach. Your home and your children. 6 p.m. Wednesday, October 23rd. We checked the records, and the makesheet showed the book peddler's true name to be Barney W. Timpson, 38 years old. He had a past record of one previous conviction for peddling lute literature in Dodge City, Iowa in March 1948. We had him brought to the interrogation room. Sit down, Timpson. Let's make it easy, Barney. Where are you getting the books? I told you, Sergeant, they deliver them to me. Different guys, I don't remember them all. I send different guys every time. How often do they make the deliveries to you? Once a month. When? Around the first, usually. Sometimes maybe the second and the third. They bring the books to your hotel? Yeah, they leave a pack up in the lobby addressed to me. Do they ever use the mails? They never do. They're not that dumb. So you've never seen the men that you do business with? Not so I'd know, no. You have no idea where they're operating? I don't know. You expect us to swallow them? I'm telling you, I don't know. Oh, don't push us. That kind of a story, Barney. I'm giving it to you straight. Now, what else do you want? Who's the supplier, man? Look, we found this notebook in your hotel room, Barney. There's a list of names in it. It's your customer book. Right. Okay, okay. That gives us enough to land on you. I know that. I told you everything. You still don't know who you're working for? No. Look, there's a phone number in this notebook. No name to go with it. Yeah. Now look at it. This one right here. I don't know. Must be another customer. Yeah. There's a blunk, the boss. I don't know the boss. You don't know me. Then who do you buy the books from? Who says I buy them? You must owe somebody a lot of money. Don't worry. I don't owe him nothing. You don't owe me nothing. He does now. What? You're going to jail for him. Barney Timpson was booked into central jail for violation of the penal code, section 311.3. We contacted the telephone company and they traced the extra phone number in Timpson's notebook to a private residence on Wonderview Drive in Laurel Canyon. A detail of men was assigned to stake out on the place. During the next week, mainly from information obtained from Barney Timpson's customers, seven other peddlers of obscene books and pamphlets were taken into custody and questioned. Five of the seven told us they picked up their supply of books from the Laurel Canyon Address. We moved in on the place and found thousands of loot books and pamphlets stored in the garage. Three men on the premises were taken into custody. They identified themselves as John Alexander, George Kelleher, and Raymond Kester. We brought them downtown and interrogated them for two hours. They refused to admit anything. They were booked in, but by noon their lawyers arrived and they were released on rits of habeas corpus. 2 p.m. Ben and I met with Inspector Lester of Juvenile Bureau. They got a call from the men on stake out of the Laurel Canyon place. They've just been over the garage with the books restored. They get any things, Jim? A couple of things. It might be fairly... What's that? Three stacks of books. They found a wrapped in proof letter heads from the Havenbrook Hotel. Yeah. We checked with the hotel. They get all their printing done at Rudolph Brothers, placed out in West L.A. That name's not familiar to me. It's a big layout. They're especially religious books. Bible, things like that. That doesn't add. That's a sure. How do you mean? Be a perfect cover for the racket. Printing the Bible one day and a flock of filthy books the next. Could be the setup. What kind of a name does this Rudolph's place have around town? They've been here long. Fifty years. Good reputation. Oh, if you give it a look. Where is the place? Well, one-third just below Athens Street. All right. Check the place over, but don't make them suspicious. Is anything wrong? No use tipping until we're ready to move. Right, giver. They've got to reach the presses, turning out this jug, and choke off the supply where it starts. Do that and we've got to beat. All right. Just a minute. Do you want to go or I'll let you. Can't have. I don't wear. Okay, I'll be right out. Rose and Patelio, they spotted one of the delivery cars. Where? Downtown. They followed it out to West L.A. Yeah. Rudolph's printing shop. 4 p.m. Ben and I, together with two other men from Juvenile Bureau drove out Beverly Boulevard to Athens Street and down one block to the corner of West 3rd where we picked up grossing for celli on stakeout. The Rudolph Brothers printing company covered almost half a square block on the corner of West 3rd in Athens. The front of the plant had display windows featuring expensive leather bound bibles and other religious literature. While the other men remained on stakeout, Ben and I crossed the street and entered the plant. We introduced ourselves to the clerk in charge of his potential wholesale customers and we asked to be shown around the shop. It was more than a bludgeon. I'd be happy to show you our plan, gentlemen. The most modern religious publication company in the West. That's our claim. Would you step this way, please? Thank you. Those are three of our new level machines. Excellent mechanisms, needless to say. You must employ quite a few men in here. 65 full-time. Enough to meet any emergency rush jobs you might want done. Now over here are Bush, Emerson, and Han presses. You handle only religious books then, nothing else? That's right, sir. We specialize exclusively in that. You don't take in any small contracts, school journals, things like that. No, our steady customers take up all of our time. Here on this stone you see the pages of a new prayer book we're getting together. Very ultra. An entirely different kind of tight face. Oh, is that so? Yes, and back there along the wall are new line of types. The very latest, monotypes. Then the proof presses. Next to them are proof readers. And the flatbed press low press beyond that. Seems like lots of activity. Business is pretty good, I guess, huh? Oh, yes, we kept pretty busy. Quality printing is always in demand. Yeah. Well, thanks very much for joining us around. Not at all, gentlemen, anytime. Here, this way out. All right. I'll get you one of my cards here. There you are. Oh, thank you. And when you're ready to do business, why, just give me a call. I'd be glad to take care of you. All right, sir. Thanks. We'll do that. Good afternoon, gentlemen. All right. All right. What do you think? You got me. Yeah, whatever system they're using, they've got it down past. Bible, scribe book, church announcement. That's all I saw. Hey, Ben, look. Hmm? That man getting out of that car going into Rudolph's there. Alexander, the guy we picked up this morning on North Canyon. Yeah. What's the answer? I don't know, but it's got to be somewhere in that print shop. We went back to the car and waited. The stakeout on Rudolph's printing plan continued. 6 p.m. The lights in the display windows went out. The shades were drawn. We watched the employees leave. 6 30 p.m. The lights in the plant were still burning. Gross went down to the corner and picked up some hot dogs and coffee for our dinner. We ate in the car. 7 30 p.m. A black Cadillac convertible pulled up across the street. Two men got out and let themselves in through the front door. We waited. Between 7 30 and 8 p.m. We caught a 21 man entering the plant. That printing press. Starting up. Okay, let's move. Yeah. Gross, you and Pacheli want to go through the back and Ben and I will take the front. Right, let's go, Mike. It's a neat setup. I had it all figured. Yeah. You didn't spot any side instances, did you? No. Here we are. You want to try the door? Yeah. Yeah, it's no good. All right. Police officers, open up. All right, come on, open up. All right, let's hit it quick. Come on again. There we are. There they are, Joe. They're trying to smash the plates. Come on. Watch it, Ben. The plate's off the press, will you? All right, hold it, you two. I'm going out the door. Come on, head them off, will you? Okay, for this, I'll sue you down your last nick. Yeah, come on, simmer down. Hey, Joe, we got Rudolph going out the back. Right. Call the office. We're going to need a chance for taking him. Okay. Take those two with you, huh? All right, come on. We got enough evidence against him? Yeah, we're going to need it. Two old pages of the junk right here. Now, look, right next to it. Yeah, page from the Bible. The story you have just heard was true. Only the names were changed to protect the innocent. On January 9th, trial was held in Superior Court, Department 94, City and County of Los Angeles, State of California. In a moment, the results of that trial. It's amazing how many long cigarette smokers are changing to Fatima. Here is the actual report. From coast to coast, King-sized Fatima has more than doubled its smokers. Yes, more and more smokers every day are discovering that Fatima is the best of all long cigarettes. Long cigarette smokers find Fatima has a much different, much better flavor and aroma. Long cigarette smokers find that Fatima is extra mild because it's the long cigarette which contains the finest Turkish and domestic tobaccos superbly blended to make it extra mild. So enjoy extra mild Fatima. Best of all long cigarettes. It's wise to smoke extra mild Fatima. It's wise to smoke extra mild Fatima. Frank Rudolph and 16 of his accomplices were tried and convicted of possessing lewd and lascivious literature for the purpose of sale. They received sentences as prescribed by law and are now serving their terms in the county jail. Remember this Saturday because that means Dimension X on NBC.