 Now, the Roma Wine Company of Fresno, California presents... Suspense! Tonight, Roma Wines bring you a play of suspense and smiles, starring William Bendix and Alan Jocelyn. Suspense is presented for your enjoyment by Roma Wines. That's R-O-M-A, Roma Wines. Those excellent California wines that can add so much pleasantness to the way you live. To your happiness and entertaining guests. To your enjoyment of everyday meals. Yes, right now a glassful would be very pleasant, as Roma Wines bring you a remarkable tale of suspense. And with Raymond Chandler's satirical suspense tale, pearls are a nuisance. And with the performances of William Bendix and Alan Jocelyn, Roma Wines hope indeed to keep you in suspense. It's quite true I wasn't doing anything that morning, except looking at a blank sheet of paper in my typewriter and thinking about writing a letter. It's also quite true that I don't have a great deal to do any morning. But I like not doing anything. It gives me something to do. And I don't like telephone calls, then they're fair with it. That's why I have two telephones, one a public phone that I can ignore and the other a private phone, which I better answer if I know what's good for me and I do. What did you say, darling? I said good morning, dear. How are you, darling? Busy? Yes and no. Mostly no. Why? Somebody has stolen Mrs. Penrodick's pearls and I want you to find them. Uh, possibly you think you have the police department on the line. This is the residence of Walter Gage. Walter Gage speaking. If you aren't out here in less than half an hour, you'll receive a small parcel by registered mail containing a diamond engagement ring. I'll tell Mr. Gage when he comes in. No, I went naturally. I even hurried. Ellen's voice has that effect on me. I think it's the way she says... Walter, darling! Yes, Ellen? Mrs. Penrodick's pearl necklace has been stolen. So you said on the telephone my blood pressure remains normal? It's a string of 49 matched pink pearls that Mr. Penrodick gave his wife on their golden wedding anniversary. Only 49 pearls for 50 years of marriage? Wonder which was the bad year. Oh, shut up, darling. Yes, dear. The worst part of it is the pearls are false. False? Well, evidently they're all bad years. Don't be silly, Walter. The pearls were real enough when Mr. Penrodick gave them to her. The fact is she sold them and had copies made. Those copies have been stolen. We've got to get them back, Walter. What does it matter if they're false? Well, she's terrified that the thief will blackmail her when he finds out their own imitations. If Mr. Penrodick ever hears that she sold the riches... I begin to see what might be described as daylight. But where do I start looking for these baubles from which your elderly employer is so loath to be separated? Because I know who stole them. The chauffeur we had here a few months, Walter. A horrid big bruiser named Henry Eichelberger. He left suddenly the day before yesterday for no reason at all, without a word. I'm sure he stole the pearls. How big did you say he is? About six feet. In that case... Three. Three? Six foot three? Three. I'm sure he didn't take them, dear condom. He tried to kiss me once, Walter. Oh, he did. Tried to kiss you. Where is this big slab of meat, darling? Here's the address he gave me when he first came here to work. Sounds like an unpleasant neighborhood. Not half as unpleasant as it'll be for Eichelberger when I arrive. Tried to kiss you, did he? The pearls are the important thing, Walter. And be careful. He's six foot three, remember? Uh, I find it difficult to forget. Eichelberger's address proved to be a seedy-looking hotel upstairs over a Chinese laundry. But the head of the stairs was the doormark manager. I rang the bell. Full up, bud. Roll. I'm not inquiring for a room. I'm looking for one Henry Eichelberger, whom I'm informed lives here. If he does, he ain't registered. That, as of course you know, is contrary to the law. Why's guy hey? Down the hall, Jack. 218. Have the kindness to show me the way. Huh. What do you know? A duke no less. Okay, your lordship. Pick up your feet, hey? This isn't it. He's out. Have the goodness to unlock the door. I wish to go in and wait for this Eichelberger. And a pig's valise. Who do you think you are, Jake Boyle? I wouldn't call me names if I were you. You wouldn't, hey? Well, that just shows the difference between you and me, because I would. You want to make something out of it, hey? Yes. What? Oh. Hey, that wasn't fair. You've got 20 years on me, hey? Well, open the door, hey? I have no time to argue with you. A buck. Two bucks, and I won't even tell Eichelberger when he comes in, hey? That is a deal. Brother, you can head. I'll save that for you, hey? Thanks, hey. Here's your money. If you hear any noises later on, ignore them. If there's any damage, it'll be paid for generously. I hope you know what you're doing, hey? I searched all the likely places where he might have hidden the necklace, and then I searched all the unlikely places. No necklace. Then I heard approaching footsteps. How did you get in here, sonny? The explanation of that can wait. I'm looking for one Henry Eichelberger. Are you he? Get you, a real comedian. Wait till I loosen my belt before you make me laugh. My name's Gage, Walter Gage. Are you Eichelberger? Give me a nickel, and I'll tell you. I'm the fiance of Miss Ellen McIntosh. I'm informed that you tried to kiss her. I mean tried. I hit him rather severely on the left eye. Then the right. And I gave him a crushing uppercut to the jaw. He looked at me with an air of patient resignation, and then hit me. I bent over and took hold of the room with both hands and spun it. When I had it nicely spinning, I gave it a full swing and hit myself on the back of the head with the floor. I believe I lost consciousness at about this point. At any rate, I was no longer aware of the time of day. For Suspense, Roma Wines are bringing you as stars Mr. Alan Jocelyn and Mr. William Bendix, whom you are hearing in pearls or a nuisance by Raymond Chandler, which is Roma Wines' presentation tonight of Suspense. Between the acts of suspense, this is Truman Bradley for Roma Wines. We quote now a brief word from the famous hostess, Elsa Maxwell. The delicious flavor of tender broiled chicken. The succulents of spring lamb garnished with mint leaves deserves the matchless flavor complement of Roma California sautern. This delicate wine, pale gold in color, delightful in bouquet, is a delicious flavor mate with fish or foul. Yes, just as the musical conductor blends the tones of different instruments, so the knowing hostess can combine the flavors of food with wine. Each glassful of Roma sautern is a light with Roma's rich heritage in winemaking. Here is a masterpiece of the wine grower's age-old skill, and all Roma Wines, you'll find, are always unburyingly good. The result of carefully selected grapes picked at the peak of perfection in sunny California's choicest vineyards and gently pressed. Then the natural juices are stored and guided with the ancient skill of Roma wineries to full goodness. Roma Wines do not vary, are always high in quality, yet cost only pennies a glass. More Americans enjoy Roma than any other wines. R-O-M-A, Roma Wines. And now Roma Wines bring back to our Hollywood soundstage William Bendix as J. Henry Eichelberger and Alan Jocelyn as Walter Gage in pearls or a nuisance, a muscular drama replete with situations well calculated to keep you in suspense. While I was thinking about the possibility of getting back to my feet in the very near future, a wet towel began to slap at my face and I opened my eyes. The face of one Henry Eichelberger was close to mine and bore a certain appearance of tender solicitude. You'd be all right, but I thought maybe you was killed, Jack. You got a stomach as weak as Chinese tea. What happened, as if I didn't know? You tripped on a itty-bitty tear in a carpet. You feel like getting up? Here, give me a hand. Thank you, Henry. May I call you Henry? No tax on it. You look okay. Why don't you tell me you were sick. Eichelberger, you swine. That doesn't. Cut it out. You'll musk my hair. I wish you'd fall down when I hit you, Henry. Just once it would do wonders for my morale. Ah, you know, you and me could get along, Jack. I never kissed your girl, even if I ain't saying I wouldn't like to. Is that all it's eating on you? Well, no, there's another matter. Sit down and tell me the score. Only, uh, no more haymakers. They give me a headache. Promise? I promise. Tell me, why did you leave the employ of Mrs. Penredoc? You tell me. Am I what you might call a good-looker? Well, Henry... No, then. I wouldn't call you handsome, exactly. But unquestionably, you ate your spinach as a child, if that's a consolation. You're a real comedian. Wait till I loosen my belt. Look, suppose you fell for a doll with stars in her hair. A guy like me that looks like a taxi going down the street with both doors open. Then suppose you get a job where you see this doll all the time and every day and you know it's no dice. What would you do, Jack? Me, eh? Just quit the job. Ellen? Yeah. Henry, I'd like to shake your hand. Go ahead. Now, there's one more thing, one rather insignificant detail. I'm honored to arrange for the return of Mrs. Penredoc's pearls. $50 reward and no embarrassing questions. You got nerve, Jack. So you think I stole some marbles and am sitting around here waiting for a flock of dicks to swarm me? The police have not been told, Henry, and you may not be aware, but the pearls are false. False? You don't mean they're false? Exactly. You think I'd bother myself to hook some phonies? You mean you didn't steal the necklace, Henry? Now, look, if they were ringers, I wouldn't be bothered. And if they were real, I wouldn't be holed up in no cheap flop in L.A., waiting for a couple of carloads of junk to put their sneeze on me, would I? That's exactly what I thought, Henry. Well, as long as you didn't steal them, how'd you like the job of helping me recover them? Are you kidding? No, Henry. It's obvious that if you didn't snatch these marbles, I believe that's the expression someone else did, and you can help me find him. How about it? Why not? Why not indeed? Well, you got any ideas of where to start? Yes, I have. I feel that we must, as they say, tap the grapevine. When a string of pearls is stolen, all the underworld must be seething. Oh, maybe you got right. But this underworld that's doing all this seething ain't gonna sieve much over a string of glass beads, or am I punchy? I am thinking, Henry, that the underworld probably has a sense of humor. And a thief who went to the trouble of stealing some worthless trinkets would be the butt of considerable coarse jest. Oh, there's the knuckleess of an idea in that. I would say something like that could get around the pool rooms and start a little wholesome chuckling, all right? Yes. All we need to do is to locate a reliable crook. Let's see. Oh, there's a key named Lou Scandisi that runs the Blue Lagoon downtown. Might be interested in some marbles, but he don't like being asked questions. He sounds dangerous. We'll turn him inside out and take a look at his liver. Very well. Let us go and beard this Scandisi character in his malodorous den. Yeah, let us go and leave us do what you said. Mr. Scandisi's Blue Lagoon wasn't difficult to find. It was a rather soiled establishment bathed in unpleasant blue light. Henry and I went through a small, dim dining room to a door marked private. You Scandisi? Ah, who wants it to know? Me and my friend here want to talk to you. So? I'll talk. I'm listening. It's about some pearls. 49. Is that right, Walter? Quite right, Henry. A pearl necklace that's so beautiful. Go on and get out before I have you thrown out. You'll do what? I'll do nothing. That's better, dough face. What about them pearls? I don't think I heard about it. That's right, I remember. Maybe if I pulled off one of your ears, it might help. Henry, you seem to be doing all the work. Do you think that's quite fair? Well, okay. You work them over. These fat guys grew something lovely. Take it easy. I ain't heard nothing. You, uh... You guys insurance a man, huh? Now you're cooking with helium, dough face. What insurance company you boys work for? Give him our card, Walter. No, this is my personal card. How's my phone number on it? Okay, okay. You may be surprised. You may get a call. What do you think, Walter? You think this musler is leveling with us? I dare say he wouldn't be above telling us an untruth. Get you a real comedian. Wait till I loosen my belt. You've given us the straight good Scandisi. Great goods, absolute. We'll cooperate. I bet you got a call. Okay, so long, Scandisi. And keep your schnozzle clean if you don't want to be looking for it under your desk, hey? And that goes for your cat, too, Scandisi. Hey. What now? I think we've done adequate days work, Henry. The procedure would seem to be for me to go home and wait for the telephone to ring, bearing glad tidings from the underworld. What about me? I would suggest that you end your way homeward also. Here's my private number. Call me in the morning. Okay, sir. See you tomorrow. I went home and waited for the phone to ring. I must have fallen asleep after a while. It was quite dark when the call came through. Well, here goes. Walter Gage speaking. Acme Insurance Company. When did you become an insurance company? Oh, hello. It's you, Ellen. Why didn't you call on the private phone? I didn't have the number handy. You haven't found the pearls yet. How'd you know? We just got a telephone call. From whom? He wouldn't say. All he said was he heard from somebody named San, something. Scandeezy? That's it. That we were looking for the pearls. Has he found out the pearls are false? No, and I didn't tell him. All right. Don't worry. We have no idea how to get them back. We? Who's we? Henry and me. Henry? Henry who? I go burger. I've hired him to help me find the pearl. Are you out of your mind? Didn't Henry take the pearl? Of course not. He only left because he was in love with you. Oh, Walter, that's a big brute. How could you say such a thing? Ellen, I thought you'd be flattered. Flattered? I never want to speak to you again, Walter Gage. Goodbye. Ellen, ouch. Oh, honey, I'm so glad you called back. Listen, darling, I... Who are you calling honey, sweetheart? Uh, who's this? Never mind. Your name Gage? Yes. A guy named Scandeezy says you're looking for some oyster fruit. A frail named Macintosh says you're the guy to talk to. Possibly. Well, I got 49 of them, pal. Pink ones. Five grand is a price. Well, that's absurd. Those pearls happen to be false. Quit your kidding. You heard me. Five Gs. I'll give you the mor-afternoon to scrape it together. Then I'll call you and let you know where to meet me. Ellen, this is Walter. I told you I never wanted to speak to you again. All right, I won't speak to you. Just tell me the name of the man who sold Mrs. Penrodic's pearls for her. Galamor. Roger Galamor. He has a jewelry company downtown. Thank you. Walter! How do you like it, darling? I was beginning to see the light the next morning. I went to see this, Mr. Galamor. He was a tall, pink man of about 70, and he listened to my narrative of events with considerable interest. Hmm. Five thousand seemed like a good deal for a string of false pearls. Yes, indeed. And you know what I think, Mr. Galamor? What, Mr. Gage? I believe that the pearls are in fact real. You're a very old friend of Mrs. Penrodic. Perhaps even a childhood sweetheart. When she gave you the pearls to sell, you didn't sell them, Mr. Galamor. Instead, you gave her $20,000 of your own money and returned the pearls to her, pretending they were imitations of the original necklace. Son, you think a lot smarter than you talk. I try very hard, Mr. Galamor. And I'm correct. Embarrassingly so, Mr. Gage. The pearls are real. Now, what would you like me to do? Give me $5,000 with which to get them back. Mr. Galamor felt much better after he'd had a glass of water, and some hours later I managed to convince him that I knew approximately what I was doing. He gave me a check for $5,000. This check, Henry. You mean he gave it to you? $5,000 fish, just like that? You have said it. Well, I'll be a Mickey Finn at a woman's club lunch. Kid, you got something with that daisy chatter of yours? Thank you, Henry. At any rate, all that remains now is for the phone to ring. Uh-huh. You can say that again. Very well. Uh-huh. Hello? Gage? Yes, who's this? Yes. You got the dough? It's in my pocket at this exact moment. If I have any assurance of honorable treatment, I'm prepared to go through with it. Oh, you get the marbles, okay? We're in this business a long time, and we can't afford the wealth. If we did it, it'd get around, and nobody would play with us. I understand. What are your instructions? Tonight at 8 sharp, you'll be at Pacific Palisade. You got that? Yes. At the end of the Dight Road, corner Sunset and Corona Delmar. Be there at 8 sharp, and come alone, and no guns, no funny business, no smart work, and no slip-up, nobody get hurt. That's the way we do business. Very well. Oh, uh, one last thing. Where did you get my phone number from Scan DC? Who else? Eight o'clock then, and no tricks. That is very interesting. What? What? A telephone? Yeah, hooray for Alexander Graham. What's his name? But what did the guy say? Oh, oh, yes. It's all arranged, Henry. I'm to meet them tonight, all by myself, and give them the money. All by yourself, huh? Get you a real comedian. Wait till I loosen my belt. They'll take the dough and leave you laying there, bleeding all over yourself, and they'll still have the marbles. I ought to go with you. Henry, it's my duty, and I must brave these monsters and human guys, alone and unattended. Of course, I do have a big car, to hide on the floor under a rug. It's a cinch. But maybe... Walter, the only thing wrong with you, as far as I can see, is you got holes in your head. All I'm trying to do is keep you from getting another one. I'm going with you. So it was settled. Henry was to go with me. That afternoon, I stopped at the bank, where I cashed Mr. Gallimore's check, and changed it into $100 bills. You counted as all for your own. $5,000? And now a roll of quarters, please. Seems to be an echo in here. Leave them in the wrapper. Ooh, quite heavy, aren't they? Yes, aren't they? And so late that evening, I found myself out on the Pacific Palisades, with Henry Eichelberger Boy, in the back of the car. I was very nervous. I think Henry was also. Neither of us were any too sure of what was going to happen that night. Pull me back! What's the matter, Henry? Aren't you comfy back there? I'm comfy all right. Only my heater keeps digging into me. Ain't we there yet? Well, we're getting close. Stay down. This is business. This is the end of the line, Henry. Be careful. They're probably watching me. I need water. My gun is breaking my back. Well, stop sitting on it. I did. Anything stirring? No. Keep quiet. I'll make like a little mousy. Don't you think we've waited... I mean, don't you think we've waited long enough, Henry? We've only been waiting 15 minutes. Are you sure this is the place? Yes, of course. Well, let's get out of the car and see if anybody shoots at us. Then we'll know if somebody's around. Well, that seems to be the difficult way of finding out, but let's try it. I personally feel sure that there's no one here, but you and I. Suck it. You know what happened, Walter? What do you think, Henry? Well, it was just a tryout. That's all. Tomorrow this guy calls you on a... again in a phone and he says, sorry, but they had to be careful and they'll try again tonight, maybe. Maybe out in San Fernando Valley. And the price is now 10 grand on account of their extra trouble. I ought to go back and twist that scant easy so he spends the rest of his life looking up his left pants leg. Well, Henry, what's the next move? Beat it home, I guess. Anyhow, I won't need this gun anymore. My back is sore enough from it. We stood there and looked at one another, Henry and I. He doubled his hands into fists and shook them slowly in his sadness. I, too, was melancholy. In the brief time I'd known Henry, I'd grown very fond of him. Yeah, yeah, that's it, all right. Nothing else to do but beat it on home. That's all is left to us. I took my right hand out of my pocket. I have large hands. In my right hand nestled the roll of quarters I'd gotten from the bank that morning. My hand made a large and heavy fist around them. Henry didn't notice. What are you looking at me so funny for, Walter? I just wanted to say good night, Henry. You had two strikes on me. This is the big one. I don't get it. He got it then. My fist with nearly a pound of metal in it caught him squarely on the jaw. For a moment he wavered back and forth on his feet and then... Henry Eichelberger lay motionless on the ground as limp as a rubber glove. I found the pearls twined around his ankle inside his left sock. Well, Henry, I said, although he couldn't hear me, you're a gentleman, even if you are a thief. You could have taken the money a dozen times today. You could have taken it a little while ago when you still had the gun. But even that repelled you. You threw the gun away and we were man to man, but still you hesitated. In fact, Henry, I said, for a successful thief you hesitated just a little too long. But as a sporting man, I can only think more highly of you. Goodbye, Henry, and good luck, I said. I put a hundred dollar bill in his chubby little fist and withdrew end of story. But how did you know it was Henry Dowling? You told me so, little lemon cookie. You were quite sure of it. I know, but you must have had proof of some kind. The finer detail that convinced me Henry was the guilty party. I gave Scan DC my phone number, but I have two telephones. One's a private line. Only two people had that number. You were one of them, Henry was the other. When Henry's accomplice got in touch with me, he used the phone number I'd given Henry, not the one I gave Scan DC, you see? Oh, darling, you're so clever. Of course, you may kiss me if you like. A few months after Ellen and I were married, we received a letter postmarked Honolulu. It was from Henry. My dear, dear Water, I have only just received the joyous tidings that you and Ellen are embarked upon the happy tide of holy matrimony. I am so glad for you. I often think of you, Water, particularly with an overwhelming curiosity as to what it was you struck me with that night. Ah, well, I daresay it can only be conjecture on my part now. A hammer, perhaps. That I allowed my jaw to be exposed to your weapon while I stood there meditating as to whether to take your 5,000 then or wait for ten the following evening was a human error of judgment. At any rate, I entertain no feelings of ill will toward you. On the contrary, I am indebted to you greatly. The ease with which you talked Mr. Gallimore out of 5,000 dollars has changed my life. I have been taking English lessons myself, and I'm now practicing on a wealthy widow woman, not without financial success. Ah, to joules sport. Devotedly, Henry. P.S. Was it perchance and anvil, I wonder? You know, Henry wasn't such a bad fellow. All I really disliked him for was his barbaric English. Now he's changed that. Maybe I should have married him. What do you think? Oh, I'll get you a real comedian. Wait till I loosen my belt. And so closes, pearls are a nuisance in which Roma Wines have brought you William Bendix and Alan Jocelyn as co-stars of tonight's study in... Suspense. Suspense is produced, edited and directed by William Spear. Before our stars return to the microphone, let me say a word for Roma Wines, the sponsor of suspense. Elsa Maxwell's hospitality is always simple and unaffected. The other day she said, a few old friends, some comfortable chairs, a glass or two of good Roma California sherry, and there you have the perfect combination for a pleasant evening at home. In fact, you'll find the light, nut-like flavor of this glorious amber-golden Roma sherry is delightful any time. A delicious prelude to dinner, a gracious note of hospitality whenever friends drop in. Best of all, Roma Wines are so reasonably priced, any family can afford to serve them regularly. The benefits of Roma Wines can add a lot to the joy of your daily living. Always delightful, always unvaryingly high in quality, yet cost only pennies a glass. And the next time you use Bermuth, sweet or dry, use Roma Bermuth. Zestful, herb-flavored Roma Bermuth is blended, mellowed, developed, and bottled in California with all the traditional wine-making skill of Roma Wineries. Try Roma Bermuth soon, won't you? This is Alan Jocelyn, one of the most famous suspense fans who are accustomed to somewhat heavier meat on these Thursday dramas who weren't displeased with our efforts in the interests of gaiety and insouciance. Do you concur, Mr. Bendix? Get you a real comedian. Where did I lose in my galluses? Courtesy impels me to tell you that Mr. Bendix here is being heard weekly on his own radio show, The Life of Riley, and Paramount impels me to say that he will soon be seen in their production two years before the match. Permit me to return the favor. Hey, Alan Jocelyn is soon going to be seen in the 20th Century Fox 30th Anniversary Production, Colonel Effingham's raid. Thanks, Bill. Next Thursday you will hear John Payne and Stuart Irwin as stars of Suspense. Presented by Roma Wines, R-O-M-A. Made in California for enjoyment throughout the world. This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.