 Personal notice, dangerous my stock and trade. If the job's too tough for you to handle, you got a job for me, George Valentine. Write full details. Land and Oil Company of California invites you to let George do it. Before we join George Valentine, here's some good advice for car owners. New RPM motor oil doubles engine life between major overhauls due to lubrication. Compared with premium type oils as designated by the American Petroleum Institute, new RPM actually cuts in half the wear rate of critical engine parts. Good reason why you should get new RPM for your car at standard stations and independent chevron gas stations where they say, and mean, we take better care of your car. And now tonight's story, a crime too simple, another adventure of George Valentine. Look at that fog. Great night to play post office. Shut up. Least you can see the next pier. This morning you could last night. Shut up. Oh, look, you got to keep talking to keep him going to sleep on this watch. Join the Coast Guard to see the world. I tell you, who's your favorite movie actress? Oh, shut up. Can't you never say anything but shut up? Right at the end of the pier for the fence. Yeah, I see. Currying a rolled up sail or something. No, no, it's not. It's something on a light overcoat. All right, you. What are you doing out there? Well, he threw it in. Stop. Hey, you! Holy cogent! Out. Were you asked for it, brother? What was in the overcoat? Well, the man. This guy was tossing in a body, all right. Shot, too. Only sailor, we didn't do this one. What am I supposed to do about it, Lieutenant Johnson? Be patient, my friend. You're like riddles, don't you? Like puzzles? Well, not always in the middle of the night. Miss Brooks, pity those poor newspaper men over there. They have to do this every night. Man throws a body off the end of a pier, then shoots it out with a couple of sentries. Yeah, that was his mistake. Pick the spot too close to the Coast Guard section base. That's all? Sure, sure. And it may be a story, all right, but it's nothing that exciting. Collar, my boy. The feature story. Romance. The thrill of mystery. You sound disenchanted, too, Lieutenant. The body in the water corpse, say, was somebody named Peroni. He was a cook on the boat. Sounds ordinary enough so far. Well, the whole thing is. Just so happens, Peroni only got in a few days ago. He was working on the tub that brought back the Upperson expedition. The what? I don't know. Some bunch of characters just came back from Venezuela. But that's all the newspapers need to climb up on their Sunday supplements. Who is the other corpse, Johnson? Ah, now we get warmin'. Come here. Ever hear the rumors about a guy in town called Three Grand? You mean that's a name? Yeah, I have, vaguely. Don't really know anything about a name. Do you? I don't need to, my friend. That's him. Corpse, too. Oh, but George Three Grand. His price for murder, Miss Brooks, a hard killer. Hmm, nice guy. Maybe those centuries deserve a medal. Sure, it wasn't their fault. I can't blame them. But what's wrong, then? Here, look. Found this letter with a killer's identification. Read it. Thank you for getting in touch with me. From your reputation, I know you're the man to handle my job. Fan letter to a killer. I have recently involved myself in a partnership where there's plenty of money to be made if I play it smart in dealing with my partners. I have a plan, but there's a man named Feroni, a cook who knows about it. He wants me to pay him to keep quiet. I guess you understand how to earn your Three Grand. Feroni is coming to my place tonight. Instead of me, you'll meet him. Not so. Type note, naturally. No signature. Man's not crazy. And the bullet from the killer's gun there killed a cook. Yeah, one shot. Neat and efficient. Toss him in the bay and forget him. Certainly simple enough. For once, you have all the facts. Of course, it's simple. One, two, three. But, Valentine, don't you catch on why I thought you'd be interested? Yeah, Johnson, yeah. I'm beginning to get the idea. Your name, Johnson? Huh? My name's Apperson. Apperson. Well, well, I suppose they woke you out of a sound sleep. Out of a mug of beer, you mean. All right, so you need Apperson to work out your little problems. Dead people or typhoons. All the same to me. Hold on, will you, please? You mean you're the head of that Apperson expedition, whatever it was? Expedition. Just some guys that brought back from the jungle on my boat. That's all. Never met each other until then. I worked for a living, Mac. But what kind of an expedition was it? I just owned the boat, ma'am. Don't ask me nothing. You got the wrong man. You just owned the boat and employed the cook. Yeah. Yeah, he couldn't fry good hotcakes anyway. Death makes you real sad, huh? Come here. How about this guy? He worked for you, too? Never saw him. Who is he? Captain Apperson. Whom do we ask about this so-called partnership, this expedition that, of course, you don't have anything to do with? Well, I'll try Boyle, Frank Boyle. He was a long, big-shot lawyer, I think. He was a handyman with words. I can imagine. Who else? Well, that boat of mine's only a tub, you know, chief. Only three of us come back together besides the cook and a couple of deckhands. So what's all the fire? Your problem ought to be simple. Whatever it is. Okay, okay. Get back there with the sergeant and wait. Oh, sure, mate. Now look, Valentine's Day. Skip it, Johnson. He won't tell you anything. Let me see that note that was on the killer's body again. Yeah, here it is. Yeah, yeah. The London Place, whoever wrote it was working on something against his partners, all right? That's what you want to know, isn't it? Oh, even I'm beginning to get it. A crime that's too simple. And that you can't solve. Sure, I know who murdered the cook, all right, and who shot down the killer. But the riddle is, who hired the killer? Some man has a secret. He's double-crossing his partners, maybe. But the only one who knew the secret was the cook. Check. So he hired the killer to kill the cook. Now the killer's dead, so we can never tell who hired him. I guess now you won't blame me for getting you down here, huh? Ever hear of one like that before? No, no, Johnson. From here on, there won't be a single clue, will there? This is the overcoat that the cook had on, the light one, isn't it? Yes, right, but... Let me see that gun you still got in your pocket, the killer's gun? Sure, all right. No, no, you don't need to worry about fingerprints. And he killed the cook with one shot and I guess squeezed off another at the centuries. What are you driving at? Those newspaper men inside. Why not let them help you solve your crime for a change? George, what are you doing with that gun? Nothing. Take it easy, Johnson. Take it easy. Now you can show the gun around to people. Let them draw their own conclusions. George, you're... Valentine, come back here. You got me into this, friend. OK, that's my answer. When a crime's too simple, mix it up. Make it complicated. What's your conception of a big shot lawyer, Mr. Valentine? Well, it's generally not of a man who hangs his shingle outside of his own house. Captain Apperson's a fool. So am I, probably, for talking so much. But at least it's nice to pretend you're a big success once in a while. Mr. Boyle, this isn't exactly what I wanted to talk about. And since my time's a little short... All right then, killers. Let's talk about killers. Do you think I'd have enough money to hire one, let alone the good sense not to? Well, why is it called the Apperson Expedition? What sort of a partnership is it that ties you with a man like Apperson and this third party over here? Oh, that, Mr. Eilers. He's the third one. Live down Venezuela. Several years, I believe. Rather a sleazy character, too, in case you're interested. We will be, but right now it's you. Well, what about it? They don't have a legal partnership or anything. They're just two people I happened to meet down there. Went up country together and came back home together. That's all. What were you doing in South America, Mr. Boyle? My health. And I mean the kind in physiology books, not mystery stories. You can ask my doctor if I'm not... All right, all right, all right, take it easy. Found something together, isn't that it? What? Down there, the three of you. Word expedition means you plan to go back there together, isn't that it? Such a brain. You're doing very well. That's pretty obvious. What is it, a mine, steel, oil, gold? Or maybe some kind of a land swindle that you... That's enough, young man. I'm quite familiar with the law, remember? And you're only to inquire about murder. Any business plans I have for the future are quiet out of you. Time's up, Valentine. Mr. Boyle, if you don't mind, we'd like to take you down the headquarters for a few questions. I know, I know, I'm familiar with the procedure. But don't worry, Valentine. They have no right to find out any more than you have. Oh, I'm happy. Oh, is that so? Well, come on, come on. You won't be happy when I get through with you. Johnson, why don't you let your driver take Mr. Boyle down? You come with us, huh? Oh. So nobody likes to ride with a lawyer. All right, all right, sure. Go on, go on, do you mind? It might be mutual. I'll see you there. Well, Lieutenant? Oh, Valentine. Valentine, look what you've done to me. You and your tricks. Newspaper says mystery bullet. Oh, sure. Somebody noticed the extra bullet missing from the gun. All right, Valentine. Come on, come on. They're around the corner now. Huh? Yeah, come on. Window in the hall looked like it wasn't locked. Yeah. There we are. You're going back inside, George? Sure. Come on, Brooks, come here. Okay. Okay, Johnson, let's go. Now we're going house breaking up. That does it. Valentine for the love of Pete. You're not going to find anything here. This birds a lawyer. What kind of clues do you expect to find laying around? Give me your gun this time. Hey. No way. What do you do as I tell you please? Of course, there aren't any clues in this case. That's the trouble with the two simple. Simple, he says. All right, all right. There you are. Now, Johnson, listen. This would be a good place to shoot a man, wouldn't it? What? All the way, sure. And the caliber is near enough the same. Can't tell any way from the slug. Now look out. Hold your ears. Oh. Am I crazy? You just shot a hole in the wall. Sure. That's number one. What's the matter? Haven't you figured what I'm doing yet? I'm just fixing it so that you for once will have a crime solved by itself. In just a moment, we'll return to tonight's adventure of George Valentine. But right now, I'd like to talk about memory. You know, lots of us have a difficult time remembering things like the number on this plate or social security number. Even anniversaries and other important occasions have a way of slipping by forgotten. I'll bet you'd be surprised at the number of people who forget their own birthdays. And I'll bet you'd be just as surprised at the number of people who forget when the oil in their cars is due for changing. The best way for anyone to solve that problem of remembering is to have the oil checked every time you buy gas. Car savers at independent Chevron gas stations and standard stations check not only the amount of oil in your crankcase, but they'll remind you about oil changes and oil filter service, too. To keep your car running longer, be sure that your oil is checked and changed at regular intervals. There's no finer engine protection than the new RPM motor oil and new oil filter replacement element that you can get at any independent Chevron gas station or standard station. Where they say, and mean, we take better care of your car. Someone hired a killer, one of three men. Well, the killer did his job all right and disposed of the only person who might have known whatever secrets there are. But unfortunately, the killer, a mysterious man known as three grand, is dead, too. So who hired him and what are the secrets? Well, if your name is George Valentine, you know that when a crime is too simple, the only way to get clues is to make your own. George, someone's coming. The man just got off the streetcar. Well, probably this island himself. He's been on a police headquarters. Did you check the other cabins in the motel? Yeah, nobody in. Wouldn't make any difference anyway. Cabins are so spread out. Hurry up, Ken. Take it easy, will you? Take it easy. There we are. Any place will do. It doesn't make any difference. Here, strike a match, will you? No, no. You might see it. Hurry up. There's enough light. He'll be here. He'll hear you. All right, all right. Here goes. George, listen, what's that? A little piano over there. Hit the side of it. That's all. Now, come on. Bullet number two is taken care of. Get back outside. I didn't see you there. Are you Mr. Eilers? Yes, that's right. Frank Boyle gave us your name. I'm George Valentine. Oh, well, I guess I might have known. That police lieutenant told me about you. I suppose you'd like to come inside. No, no. This is all right. You've lived in the jungle country for some time, I understand. A little trip to Bogota down the river for shopping once in a while was about my limit. Oh, but I'm an American, all right. See here, I really answered everything I can think of for that policeman fellow. Well, I was just curious what you were doing here. You're apparently not visiting friends. I guess I don't really have... You know what I want, that expedition stuff. I don't have to tell you that. Some way or other you guys struck it rich came up here to organize a cell stock. I get equipment. I don't have to tell you that. I worked hard for a living all my life, Mr. Don't you understand? We understand there must be something a little crooked about this whole thing or you'd be willing to tell us. No. Look, I'm not the lawyer. Don't talk to me. Sure, there's lots at stake, but I can't... Why do you band together with a bunch of guys when maybe one of them hired a killer? Why? Why stick together? What are you afraid of? I don't know anything about that murder. I don't know anything about those things. I'm just a planter. I've worked hard all my life. All right, all right, skip it. By the way, I noticed a piano in there through the window. That yours? What? Oh, no. No, belongs to the man who owns this place. My, I wouldn't know one note from an... Why? Good night, Mr. Reilly's. I can imagine, Captain. Yeah, but you wouldn't believe them, huh? All right, now how about a glass of beer? No, no, thank you, Captain Apperson. Besides, Mr. Valentine will be back in just a moment. Oh, sure, they're snoop. Now, there's an unpleasant job. What are you bound to me for? I've got an alibi. Imagine everybody has an alibi. Okay, Angel, let's go. Oh, no, no, sit down. Sit down, Valentine. How'd you like my ship? That's where you've been snooping. Oh, it's a trouble. Of course it is. But you didn't find anything, did you? Yeah, dirty dishes in the galley. That's all. Nothing to find. Now, get off your horse and act like a human. Not tonight, sailing. Huh? All work and no play. You heard me wrong, either. I'm all through work. What? Yeah, you heard me. For further details, read the newspapers. The reporters have saw that gun the killer used, aren't you? Notice that an extra shot had been fired. Yeah, that's right. My paper had a story out of mystery bullet stuff. Only we don't like to draw conclusions. Sure, sure, understand. Here we are. Lock at 317. How come they give you the run of the marg like this? So you'll draw the right conclusions. Police said make myself at home. Friendly thought. What's the matter? Nothing but clothes. That's all. Oh, sure. Stuff that cooked for only was wearing, huh? Yeah. Something occurred to me. I wanted to check. Hey, wait a minute. There's a hole in that light overcoat. Yeah. Yeah, there is, isn't there? Well, let it explain the extra bullet. Killer took a shot at him, missed, then hit him with the second one. Hmm, try again. Huh? Well, from the location, the bullet would either have been found in him, or at least poke a hole in his shirt underneath, wouldn't it? Hmm, yeah. No hole in his shirt, is it? Not except from the one that really killed him. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Light beginning to dawn? Just means the overcoat wasn't on him when it got that extra hole. That's what I want to make sure of. Looks that way. But then it means... Listen to this. Killer murdered the cook at a place unknown, but it had to be a place where he wasn't wearing his overcoat. Aha. Gives us a new lead, doesn't it? Put the guys overcoat on him afterwards when he carried them out to toss them in the water. But inside, don't you see? Indoors. Some place where his coat could be hit separately by a first wild shot. Proves the cook was murdered indoors, huh? Well, it was a cold, foggy night. What else? A note was found on the killer's body. I think the police will give you the exact text of it now. Hey, Will, eh? Well, it's great. Only, uh, that wasn't quite what I meant, huh? How come you're handing me all this on a platter? Or is it on a slab? Look at these stories. Where did the murder take place? A news home or a hotel was a little blackmailing cook met in surprise with a gun of the mysterious three grand. Oh, it's all there, all right, Johnson. Hook, line and sinker. But, Valentine, if anybody ever finds out that you fired that extra bullet through the coat, I'm liable to be. Oh, I don't know. Promoted, maybe? Hmm. Hmm-hmm. It's neat, all right. The guy hires the killer to take his place when the cook shows up to be paid off. Well, it's where the guy lives, naturally. Or the guy doesn't know where the actual murder happens. Why would he? He's out setting himself up an alibi. All three at least pretend to have alibis. So now, he starts getting panicky. The murder was indoors. He must have done it right here in my house where he met him, he says. How to make a crime solve itself. Valentine, maybe I love you after all. Come on, what are we waiting for? A chance to read the newspapers? Sure, sure. My friend, one of those three men has had a chance to try to cover up what he thinks was the killer's what. That is the idea, Johnson. One of them has covered up a bullet hole. I don't understand. What are you doing there? I told you, I don't play the piano. There it is, all right. I'm not surprised. What? Well, where'd that come from? Bullard, Mr. Eilert splintered the finish, too. Well, I don't know how it got there. I've never noticed it. I've only been in from Venezuela a couple of days. I don't even understand what's going on. Take it easy, Eilerts. Relax, relax. You just got crossed off the list. Sweatshields ain't those. All right, cut it out, stop over here. Two down, Johnson. The bullet hasn't even been touched. And it was there where Apperson would have found it, all right. What bullets? What kind of a frame are you guys trained in? It's a nice black one, friend. Only, apparently, it's going to fit a lawyer instead. Mr. Boyle? Mr. Boyle? Find the bullet? No. He's putted up the hole where it was. Well, that's it. Simple crime, and we finally got a simple answer. Only, what do you suppose he got to... Shh! I heard someone. I was out back in the garage, getting my car. You won't need it. You're right in ours. What? Oh, I see here. Put that gun down. Oh, no, you don't. Boyle, it gives me great pleasure to tell you that you're under arrest for... What? No, stop it. I was just on my way to see you. Huh? Yes. Look there. On the wall. You see that putty? Oh, yeah. I just put it in. I think someone must be trying to kill me. Here, look at this. I found a bullet in my wall. Valentine, I'll murder you. Make a crime simple, huh? Now look what you're done with. Johnson, I know, but don't blow your top. Shenanigans all over the place, and now what happens? Not one of them, suckers. Not one of them tries to cover up for what he thinks is the work of his killer. Oh, Valentine... Better change your opinion if I told you I just not really worked. Huh? Yeah, sure. Get them together. I'll show you. So now you all understand that this whole bullet business was really just a phony. I've never heard anything so irregular in all my life. Oh, now don't get righteous, Mr. Boyle. We had to pull it to make sure one of you didn't try to cover up. All right, so we didn't. So what? Well, we're firmly convinced that in the circumstances, if one of you hired the killer, he would have covered up. So it's quite simple, isn't it? None of you hired three grand. Valentine for the love of... Take it easy, take it easy, everybody. One of you is going to go to jail all right for murder. But you see, something else has been bothering me. That's why you've all kept quiet. One man out of three was a double-crosser. So why won't the innocent ones help us? But we don't know anything about that. Oh, there's a good reason, all right. I can tell you, that expedition scheme they've got must be as crooked as a corkscrew. Oh, it is not. Oh, a little irregular perhaps. Sure, I thought of that, Johnson, and apparently a lot of money's at stake, too. Those reasons help, but they're not the big one. And what might that one be? Fear. Well, from now on, two of you have nothing to be afraid of. The killer's going to hang. Killer, killer, what are you talking about? Captain Apperson, as I said, one man was a double-crosser. He hired three grand to kill that cook. But of course, it's none of these men because the man who did the hiring is now dead. Yeah, yeah, that's right. Shunt down by a couple of centuries. Little identification jar for you, Johnson. So, uh, anybody ready to talk now? Well, well, see you later. What else, Valentine? Okay, okay, point one. Two of you were afraid of the third because he's the professional killer. He's the mysterious three grand who decided this looked like a good little group to join, I guess. Oh, how about the murder? Probably killed a cook, all right. Then waited for his employer to show. Said, here's a body. You'll get rid of it. Poor guy had to. But a professional wouldn't choose a place like the pier next to the Coast Guard base, would he? Unless he sort of hoped his employer might get shot down. But how would he know that? How would he know that? He wouldn't, Johnson. He wouldn't. But it was worth a try. Slip his identification of stuff into the guy's pocket. Well, it paid off, that's all. If it hadn't, he probably wouldn't have taken the next step. Wouldn't have slipped into the personality of the man who hired him. Hey, Valentine, you're pretty bright. Shut up, Happerson. You want point two, Mr. Islayz? How difficult it would be to assume the role of a lawyer or a sea captain? But on the other hand... Oh, thank heaven. He said he'd shoot like that, if we told. He said he'd do the same to my family. He said... Take it easy, take it easy, it's all over. Nobody's hurt except him, Islayz three grand or whatever you want to call him, but... Oh, Valentine, are you lucky? Pulling that one out of her head. Why, Johnson, you mean you still don't know what the clue was? Huh? Let's see if Brooksy got it. She went to grammar school. Next time you need gasoline, remember this fact. Chevron Supreme gives you all eight necessary high-performance qualities in correct balance. Power, mileage, starting, warm-up, anti-knock, vapor-lock prevention, acceleration, and area blending. Not one, not two, but all eight. Yes, for the kind of driving you do, where you do it, fill up with Chevron Supreme gasoline at standard stations and independent Chevron gas stations, where they say and mean, we take better care of your car. Well, of course, George. I knew there was something wrong about that man when we first talked to him. Well, he had kind of a wild plan, but it might have worked, you know. Once the real Alice was dead, the other two guys went too hard to keep quiet. I wonder if they'd ever really let him be a partner in that expedition, whatever it is. Maybe. There was plenty at stake. Now, look, I don't care about that expedition, sir. What it is or why. How did you guess? Well, Johnson, the explanation had to be something like what it was. Once I realized the man who lived in the jungle was a fraud. Yes, the real Alice lived in Venezuela for years, remember? And yet that guy told us he did a shopping down the river at Bogota. Well... Oh, Lieutenant, really. Anybody knows that Bogota is clear across the mountains? It's the capital of Peru. Oh, Bruxy. Tonight's adventure of George Valentine has been brought to you by Standard Oil Company of California on behalf of independent Chevron gas stations and standard stations throughout the West. Robert Bailey is starred as George with Virginia Gregg as Bruxy. Let George do it was written by David Victor and Jackson Gillis and directed by Kenneth Webb. Ken Christie was heard as Lieutenant Johnson. Kenny Ray as Apperson. Stephen Chase as Boyle. Parley Baer as Eilers. And Forrest Lewis as the reporter. The music is composed and presented by Eddie Dunstetter, your announcer, John Heaston. Listen again next week, same time, same station, to let George do it. In one minute, a child will be born who needs a community chest home. In one minute, you can help. It's easy. Pledge a minute out of every working day for a full year. Support your community chest with one gift for many services. Let George do it as heard overseas through the worldwide facilities of the Armed Forces Radio Service. This is the mutual Don Lee Broadcasting System.