 The Clyde Beatty Show. The world's greatest wild animal trainer Clyde Beatty with another exciting adventure from his brilliant career. The circus means fun for both young and old, thrills, excitement, snarling jungle beasts. But under the big top where Clyde Beatty constantly risks death in the most dangerous act on earth, you see only part of the story. Much of the real drama takes place behind the scenes of the circus or in faraway places of the world where this master of the big cat's journey hunting down his beasts in their native jungle. All of this is part of the Clyde Beatty story. Here is an adventure entitled, Ghost Cat of Guatemala. Oh, while the circus was wintering in Florida, my wife Harriet and I had an opportunity to combine business with pleasure. The business part was putting 34 lions and tigers through their faces inside the steel arena twice a day for a week. And the pleasure was in visiting Havana, Cuba, where the theater we were playing was located. I had just finished the final performance of our engagement and as I ran off stage I could see Harriet and Norman Carroll, our business manager, standing in the wings smiling. Listen to them, Clyde. They loved every second of it. You better go take another bow, Clyde. Okay, don't go away now. Boy, I bet we could pack this house every night for six weeks if Clyde wanted to stay. Ah, Norman, remember? A week of work and a week of pleasure. Yeah, sure, I was only thinking. Come on, kids, let's get to my dressing room. Oh, Hank, make sure those cages are all checked before you leave tonight. I'll say I've arranged to have the cats taken back to the ship at noon tomorrow, Clyde. Good. Hank and Jimmy can look after them all right on the trip back to Florida. Is this for us? A wonderful week of Havana hospitality. What could be nicer? Interamigos? Ah, it will be wonderful just to be lazy and have fun for a week. The people are all so wonderful. I'm looking forward to it myself, honey. Company already? Come in. Senor Batey? That's right. What can I do for you? My name is Carlos, Senor. I have come in urgent business in the name of my master, Senor Ronaldo. Oh, the man that sent me the message the other day. See, you did not visit him as he requested, Senor Batey. He has instructed me to extend his invitation once more. What is all this, Clyde? I don't know. I got a curtain note from this Ronaldo character the other day. He practically demanded that I pay him a visit. And I don't even know the guy. Another one of those crackpots, huh? I guess so. Look, Carlos, the answer is still the same. If your boss wants to see me, he can come to my hotel. That is impossible for him to do, Senor. Well, that's tough. But I don't intend to go to his house, and that's final. You understand? Senor, you make it most difficult. But I was told to return with you, and that is what I must do. Perhaps this will change your mind, no? Clyde, he's got a gun. We return to Clyde Batey in just a moment. And now, back to Clyde Batey's adventure, Ghost Cat of Guatemala. Assuring Norman and Harriet that I'd be safe and warning them not to follow, the Cuban ushered me to a large black limousine parked at the rear of the theater. A uniformed chauffeur was at the wheel, and soon we were speeding through the outskirts of Havana. At last, we arrived at a large mansion and I was shown into the library. Senor Ronaldo was a quiet, dignified man whom I guessed to be in his 50s. It was apparent why he couldn't come to see me. He sat motionless in a wheelchair. My apologies, Senor Batey, and my thanks. It was good of you to come. I didn't have much choice, I'm afraid. Your man, Carlos, has a convincing way about it. Carlos knows how unhappy I am when I do not get my way. I'm afraid he's spoiling me. Well, now that you've had your way, maybe you can tell me why my visit was so important to you. Of course. Do sit down, Senor Batey. No, thank you. Nice music. See, see, my Pablo, he plays for me. As you can see, I was unable to come to you. Now I tell you why it is so imperative that I speak with you. You see, I wish to engage you to either kill or capture a jungle cat for me. Well, that's sort of an odd assignment, Senor. What kind of a cat is it you want, a tiger, a leopard? It is neither, Senor Batey, and bull. I'm afraid I don't get it. This cat is half tiger and half leopard. It has both stripes and spots. To the best of my knowledge, there has never been another like it and probably never will be. Half tiger and half leopard, stripes and spots. Such an animal is of interest, do you know? Interest. Why, I'd practically give my eye teeth for a cat like that. Where is it? The animal is in the jungle near the village of Hualan in Guatemala. Guatemala, oh now, wait a minute. Guatemala is in Central America. There are no tigers there. That is quite true, but let me tell you a story. Perhaps then you will understand. I am the owner of a large banana plantation in Guatemala, near the village I have mentioned, Hualan. I lived on this plantation until my illness forced me to retire to Havana two years ago, see? Time grows heavy on one's hands at such a plantation, Senor, and being interested in animals, I decided four years ago to amuse myself by creating a small zoo there. I went to great expense to build up suitable quarters for many varieties of animals. It then arranged through an animal exporter in New York City to stock the zoo. Rather an expensive hobby, wasn't it? Indeed, in more ways than one, amigo. You see, the final shipment of animals was not to reach the confines of my zoo. The truck which was hauling the cages from Puerto Barrios, the small port on the east coast of Guatemala was wrecked. It slid off the side of the mountain road only two miles from the plantation and the animals escaped only two, a male tiger and a female leopard. Their cages were broken open, they disappeared into the jungle. I'm beginning to see it now. Of course it was useless to look for them and they were soon forgotten, never seen again. But two months ago, one of the native workers came running into the plantation, torn and gashed in a dozen places. Before he died, he told of being attacked by a large cat which had both stripes and spots. It's unbelievable. But through Senua, since the animal first attacked, four more natives have been killed all within the boundaries of the plantation. They are all crazy with fear. I can't blame them, but why doesn't somebody shoot it? Unfortunately, there are no experienced hunters near my plantation. I have authorized my foreman Gomez to hire somebody to kill this animal but he is unable to find anyone who will undertake the job. And I here in Havana have had no success either. That is why I wanted to speak with you. You mean you want me to go after that cat? I would pay you well, Senua Betty. As things stand now, none of the workers will leave the plantation compound. They are superstitious and afraid. They think this strange cat is an evil spirit. Come to destroy them. They have named it the ghost cat. And they won't do any work until it's destroyed, huh? Exactly. This animal has cost me a small fortune already. Of course, my personal problems do not concern you, Senua. As I have said, I would pay you well to dispose of this ghost cat. Well, I don't know. If I went after it, I'd much rather take it alive. If you could do that, Senua, I would be most happy. But if it cannot be captured, then it must be killed. The only thing that bothers me is the time element. We'd only have a very few days to do the job. Perhaps I can expedite things. I will charter a plane to fly you to Puerto Barrios. It is only a matter of a few hours. And I will wire Gomez my foreman to have you met on your arrival and take you to the plantation without delay. When I returned to the hotel, I told the strange story of the ghost cat to Harriet and Norman. Their relief at seeing my safe return changed to amazement as they heard about this killer in the striped spotted coat. And they were as eager to go after it as I was. Early the following morning, we took off in the plane which Senor Ronaldo had chartered and arrived at Puerto Barrios about noon. Gomez, the plantation foreman, met us at the little airport. I must apologize for the roughness of the road, amigos. These are little reused, as you can see. Not many cars in Guatemala, eh, Gomez? Oh, sí. This is a poor country compared to Los Estados Unidos. It's certainly beautiful enough. Everything is so green. Yes, senor. Getting close to the plantation? We're only about an hour's drive from it now, sir. Good. That'll give us time to scout around a bit before dark. Sí, if you wish. But let me caution you, senor Betty. The ghost cat has strike in many places. It's not wise to go far from the plantation buildings. We'll watch it. We've brought our rifles, you know. You intend to kill this cat as soon as possible? No. We're going to try to capture it. Take it alive. Oh. Oh, my bueno. How you plan to do this? Well, the quickest and easiest way I know is to put out some fresh meat for bait after putting some dope in the meat. Dope? What is this dope, senor? It's sort of a king-size sleeping pill. I have some capsules that I got in Havana. They're full of a powerful sedative powder. If this cat eats a chunk of meat that has one of the capsules hidden inside, it'll knock him out for several hours. Long enough for us to track him down and get him caged. Oh, you'll comprehend it. That's very clever. Well, it works now and then anyway. In the case of this particular cat, I've got a hunch it may be just the trick. He doesn't seem to scare when people are around, so maybe he'll go for some dope bait. If he does, the Clyde Betty circus will have a new star performer. Your workers will be able to go back in the job and not worry. See? It's verdad. Welcome to the plantation and all, da amigos. Thank you, senor Gomez. Wonderful. That is my house across the way. And this will be your bungalow. I hope it will be comfortable. Looks fine, Gomez. Roberto! Ringo, Franco! Roberto, he will serve you, senor. It is for you to command. Thanks. I don't think we'll need to bother him much. Thanks, Roberto. I like a bunion. You will wish to change, no? We'll wait a later, Gomez. First I'd like to talk to some of the workers, find out where this ghost cat's been seen, then we'll look around for likely places to leave the bait. You are not one to waste the time, senor. We may not have enough time as it is. By the way, while we're talking to the workers, could you have fresh meat cut up into five-pound chunks? We'll want to fix some and take it along. Yes, senor. I will have it done. Good. Come on, Harriet, Norman. Let's go. Our talk with the workers wasn't too successful. We did learn of a few trails where the cat had been seen, but our efforts to persuade someone to accompany us in our excursion through the jungle-bordered plantation were in vain. Finally, we returned to our bungalow, got our rifles, the fresh meat baits, and the all-important capsules. Then we set out following the directions given us by the workers. Oh, boy. Clyde, I hope you know the way back from here. I think I can find it all right, Norman. I never imagined a banana plantation would look like this. It's almost as thick as a regular jungle. I know. That cat must feel right at home here. Hey, that looks like the water hole they told us about right ahead there, see? That must be it. That should be our best bet to... Wait a minute. Look. Cat tracks and big ones. And from the looks of them, the natives haven't been exaggerating. Looks like you'll weigh 400 pounds. Oh, brother, it's a lot of cat, ghost, or otherwise. These tracks look pretty fresh, too. I'll tell you what, Harriet, you and Norman fix a couple of baits. I want to scout up ahead for a little way. I'll be right back. I skirted the water hole and followed the trail for 100 yards or so. The big tracks were clearly visible in the damp earth, even though the light was dim under the trees and jungle vines. I stopped deciding not to follow any further when... I whirled in my tracks at the sound which came from behind me. Then I saw the ghost cat standing not more than 20 feet from me and realized he had doubled back and was now trailing me. He was clearly marked with both stripes and spots and his cold, green eyes blazed a murderous warning, hateful, sinister, and beautiful. I stood hypnotized knowing only that somehow I had to have that animal and then, like a shot from a cannon, he charged straight toward me 400 pounds of fury. Clyde Beatty will continue with his story after this message. And now back to Clyde Beatty and ghost cat of Guatemala. Clyde and Harriet Beatty with Norman Carroll, their business manager, were in Guatemala trying to capture what the natives called a ghost cat, a strange animal, half tiger and half leopard. Clyde discovered the animal's tracks near a water hole and followed them. Suddenly hearing a roar behind him, he turned and faced the vicious cat which was standing only 20 feet away. Then it charged. As the strange cat hurtled toward me, my ears inside the steel arena paid off. I dropped flat on the ground. A ghost cat sailed over me and bounded off down the trail. I got to my feet. Thankfully, he hadn't been able to sink his razor sharp claws or teeth into me. Clyde, Clyde, are you all right? I'm all right honey. We heard the roars. Did you see this ghost cat? Yeah. I saw him all right and he's well named. Hey, you act like you've never seen a jungle cat before. I've never seen one like this before, that's a cinch. Oh, I wish I'd been with you. I'd love to see that animal. I have a feeling we haven't seen the last of him. His eyes. If you could have seen his eyes. What about them, Clyde? This will probably sound silly and I don't exactly know how to put it, but... Remember the popular theory that animal trainers can make a lion or tiger back down by looking them in the eye sort of hypnotized? Well, that's so much who will you tell me that yourself, Clyde? I know. That's why I know it sounds silly for me to even mention it. But that cat I just saw practically had me hypnotized. I just wonder... If what, Clyde? If the natives who've been killed were affected the same way, held spellbound by those eyes, unable to move until it was too late to escape. Now, Clyde, isn't that a little far-fetched? I don't know. I wonder. That was a delicious dinner, Sr. Gomez. I'm sorry we were so late in getting back for it. Oh, then others, sir, Your Honor. It is quite understandable. We got further from the compound here than we realized, Gomez. And you came across the ghost cat near the water hole, no? That's right. Son up, Gomez. We're going right back to where we left the bait and see if our ghost cats had breakfast. And if he has eaten the meat. Then we start trailing him. And unless I'm way off, we'll find him within a half a mile of the place, sleeping like a kitten. Clyde? Yeah. He's still going strong. I don't understand it. Oh, we must have gone two or three miles from that water hole, Clyde. Thought you said he'd be pretty close. I did. That's what I can't figure out. He ate the meat there that much, I know. Oh, is it possible he could have eaten the meat without swallowing the capsules? No, no. I had him stuck inside the meat in such a way he couldn't have missed swallowing some. And any one capsule had enough sedative in it to put him to sleep for hours. Should have knocked him out almost immediately. The baby's turning out to be more unusual all the time. Well, there's no use following any longer. We haven't gotten ourselves lost. We might as well go back. Oh, but Clyde, what can we do? I don't know, honey. There's only one thing I can think of that might be the answer to that cat's getting away. Oh, what's that, Clyde? Those capsules I had made up in Havana. Maybe the clerk that put them up for me didn't put in the right dope. But you had two different boxes of them, Clyde. I know. From two different drugists. But I only used some of the capsules that were in the little box in my suitcase. I still got the other box in my jacket. Well, either the pills were the wrong kind or that cat just isn't human. I mean... We know what you mean, Norman. Let's get on back to the compound. We'll set out some more bait before it gets dark because I still want that cat. Did you find the box in my suitcase? Oh, yes. This is the one, isn't it? Oh, yeah. Thanks. Well, let's have a look at one of these that's left. What you need is a chemist to analyze the things. Well, I'll be. What's the matter, Clyde? We don't need a chemist. We need a detective. Look at this one I took apart. The capsule's completely empty. But how? I'd like to know the answer to that myself. No wonder that big cat didn't get knocked out. There was nothing inside these things to do it. Oh, how about the ones in your jacket? Are they all right? I'm checking on that right now. Sure. These are chock-full of powder. Well, maybe the drugstore you went to in Havana was just a jip joint. Maybe. And then again, maybe not. Do you think someone might have tampered with those capsules? It's possible. Well, yeah, I suppose it is. But everybody around here knows we came to get rid of their ghost cat for them. Why would they want to interfere? That's another question I can't answer. By the way, where's Roberto? Oh, he was around just a few minutes ago when we came in. Why? Well, I just wondered. Nothing important. Well, so what do we do now? We set out some more bait at that water hole. Only this time it'll have something more potent than air inside it. Well, of course in your baby I can get more fresh meat for you. But why you want to keep feeding that ghost cat? Well, maybe I'm just stubborn. But we had a little tough luck with the other bait we set out, Gomez. Tough luck? Yeah, the dope capsules we put inside the meat weren't quite powerful enough. But I've got some more that should do the job this time. I see. Well, I will have the meat for you immediately, senor. If you do not mind, I will send Roberto for it. That'll be fine, Gomez. We want to set it out and get back here before dark, so tell him to hurry. See, amigo, as you wish. I'll put this chunk right over here. Is that all you're going to put out, Clyde? Yeah, I think that'll do it all right. Did you notice the new tracks over there? I did, Clyde. It looks as if that cat comes here often to drink, doesn't it? Yeah. Let's hope he decides to eat again. Clyde, it'll be dark in an hour or so. Hadn't we better get back? It's time you and Harriet started back, and I've got a surprise for you. I'm not going yet. If you're staying, so am I. Norman, I want somebody to go back and make sure everything's okay at the compound. Looks like you're elected, pal. Well, of course, if you think I should, I will. You better get started right away. You wouldn't want to get caught on the trail after dark, would you? You can bet your sweet life I wouldn't. I'll see you later. As to what you see when he shows up. Look, not the trail there. Something's moving. What is it? I can't make it out yet. It looks like a man. It is a man. Don't you recognize him now? Senior Gomez. What would he be doing out here? Watch. He's going straight toward that gate. He's kneeling beside it. Sure. Now he's taking those dope capsules out of it. Clyde, you knew he was going to come here all the time, didn't you? I thought so after I put two and two together this afternoon. Then he must be... Oh, Clyde. Clyde, look behind him. Holy smoke, the ghost cat. Clyde, it's leaking out behind him. It's going to attack. Gomez, Gomez, get out of there. Clyde, you'll be killed. Not while I've got a rifle. Come on, Harriet, that did it. He's been hurt, Clyde. Let's see. He's all right. He wasn't touched by the cat. I think he's only fainted. Come on, come on. Snap out of it, Gomez. Snap out of it. You're okay. You're the ghost cat. He was spied behind. And take it easy. Oh, the ghost cat... There's your ghost cat. Dead is last week's headline. Oh, oh, senor, you have saved my life. Skip it. Come on, let's get back to the compound. You've got some explaining to do, Gomez. I swear it is the truth, senor. I did not mean for any harm to come to somebody, but... Well, it is to my advantage for the ghost cat to remain alive and free. Go on. This wasn't your own idea, was it? No, senor. Who was behind all this, Gomez? No, no, no. I can tell you that senor would only lead to great trouble. Look, Gomez, you're in plenty of trouble already. And if you're smart, you'll tell the whole story. I've got an idea that senor Ronaldo may make it pretty rough on you otherwise. Oh, she probably all right. That's better. Go on. Well, I was approached about a month ago by a wealthy planter from Zahap. A long one, this plantation. And he promised that I would be well rewarded if he was able to buy it. I thought so. And this schemer figured as long as that cat was alive to scare the natives, his chances got better. Oh, see. He knew that if the workers refused to bring in the crop, senor Ronaldo would soon be forced to sell. And then we plan to kill the ghost cat and get the natives to return to their work. What an awful plan, Clyde. Yeah. And it almost worked, too. Oh, it's a shame you had to kill that animal. If only we could have captured it and taken it back with her. Well, maybe it's just as well, honey. What? Remember the old expression, there ain't no such animal. Yes, but... I'll bet two to one that most people wouldn't have believed it if they'd seen it. Clyde Beatty will return to tell you about his next adventure after this message. Once more, here is the star of our show, Clyde Beatty. In our next show, we'll dramatize a story about one of the most fascinating departments of the circus, the joys. A joy for those of you who may not know is a clown. The clowns are an integral part of the circus like peanuts and pink lemonade. There have been many tales about the broken hearts beneath the costumes of those painted, laugh-provoking people. And in The King of the Clowns, we tell the unbelievable story of one of them. All stories are based upon incidents in the career of the world-famous Clyde Beatty and the Clyde Beatty circus. The Clyde Beatty show is produced by Shirley Thomas. Ghost Cat of Guatemala was written by Robert T. Smith. All names used were fictional and any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. This is a Commodore production.