 More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams are. The Mutual Broadcasting System, in cooperation with Family Theatre Incorporated, presents The World of David Lee, starring Ronnie McDowell. And Blythe is your hostess. Tonight we bring you a story of a boy. A young boy growing up in a world that is searching for peace and happiness. Before we present this picture of home life in America, I'd like to leave this thought with you. This fundamental conviction upon which Family Theatre is founded, that home life, our family life is the most important influence on us as individuals and on our nation in general. More than anything else, it has been a weakening of family ties that is responsible for much of what has been called juvenile delinquency. But there is no problem of juvenile or parental delinquency in homes where families gather together daily for family prayer. Because God's blessing on a home brings a wonderful peace and happiness. We will hear from our hostess and Blythe later in the program. Now Family Theatre presents, Ronnie McDowell in The World of David Lee. And the voice of that fitful song sings on and is never still. A boy's will is the wind's will. And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts. I've heard a lot of people say that the youth of today is confused and bewildered by the world. Now, I don't know about that. It seems to me that most kids get a lot of fun out of life. And if they are bewildered, maybe it's a way grown-ups often act and leave so many things unfinished for the kids of today to untangle tomorrow. Yes, David Lee, how very true that is in your own world, which is the world of other boys and girls your own age. Perhaps the best way for us to find out more about that world is to meet you in a most important segment of it, at home. We'll have a chance to meet the other members of your family, your mother and father, and your younger sister, Susan, as we find you now together at the breakfast table. It's a Saturday morning. Dad? Yes, David? How important is circumstantial evidence? Very important at times, son. I've tried many cases where it has been decisive. Well, I think it's contrary to the whole American way of life. Why do you say that, David? Because, well, isn't this country's legal system set up on the idea that a man is innocent until he's proven guilty? Yes. Well, that's what I thought. Why this question about our legal system, David? I know why, Mom. I doubt that, Susan. I do too, because a lot of the kids are saying you and Mary Taylor are stuck on each other. How about that, David? Can you refute the testimony? It's not true. You went out with Mary, and it made Bud Landis mad, because he and Mary were going together, and he said he'd punch you in the nose. Oh, good heavens. David, is that so? I thought he was a good friend of yours, dear. He didn't say it to me, mother. Maybe we're still good friends. He's a pretty husky kid, that Bud Landis. Think he can handle him, David? I don't know, Dad. I wouldn't want to try unless I had to. But I don't think it'll happen. Why not, David? He's in jail. In jail? Bud Landis is in jail? In jail? What'd he do, David? What'd he do? Well, they say he robbed a floral shop yesterday. Well, I never liked his looks. He's been in lots of trouble, hasn't he, David? Quite a bit. Well, his environment hasn't been the best. Then if he's in jail, he can't punch you in the nose, can he, David? Not for years and years. Well, not unless they let him go. Then he might try. I think it's silly for him to be angry at you, David, simply because you took Mary Taylor to the school dance last week. Why didn't he ask her to go with him? I don't know. Well, I'm going out for a while. I'll be at the office until noon, mother. Back in time for lunch. Oh, where, David? Don't you think we ought to cut the lawn today? We? Well, change that to you. All right, Dad. But I'll have to do it later. I'm going to be pretty busy. Busy doing what, David? Well, fixing it so that Bud Landis can punch me in the nose if he thinks he wants to. Yes, sir, what can I do? Oh, it's you, David Lee. Hello, Mr. Badger. Uh, here your shop was robbed yesterday. Yes, it was. The thief ended right through that backdoor, David. Oh, uh, did you leave it unlocked? Well, I, I did. Yes, I'm forgetful, David. But you should have seen this place. Flowers and pots overturned, vases smashed, and over two dozen of my best American beauties missing. Two dozen, David. Uh, was there any money taken, Mr. Badger? Money? I never keep any money here at night, David. But you know who did it, of course, that Bud Landis young thug. Well, he hasn't confessed that he did it, has he, Mr. Badger? Confessed? Confessed? He won't confess anything. But isn't it a fact that several people saw him last evening walking down the street with a bundle of American beauty roses? Isn't it a fact? I don't know. I didn't see him. That girl, that, that, that Mary Taylor admitted he brought her the roses to the house and gave them to her brazenly, huh? But why would he smash up your shop, overturn things, Mr. Badger? Ah, because he couldn't find any money. See? Oh. Well, uh, could I look around out back of your shop, Mr. Badger? Look around anywhere you want. I'm busy. Flower thief. Oh, David, won't you come in? Thanks, Mrs. Taylor. Um, is Mary home? Well, yes, David. She's been up in her room. She doesn't feel very well, David. You know, the juvenile authorities were here last night. They asked her about Bud Landis. You, you heard about Bud. Oh, yeah. Well, it's kind of important, Mrs. Taylor. Maybe she'd see me for just a few minutes. Well, go into the living room. I'll tell her that you're here. Thank you. Hello, David. Hello, Mary. I, um, I wanted to talk to you. Oh, David, it's so terrible. I'm, I'm sorry for Bud. I can't help being sorry for him. Mary, was he kind of mad at me? Yes, he was, David. Now, I'm sorry because you and he were good friends till you took me to the school dance. He, he said you took me away from him. We know that's not true, don't we, Mary? Yes, but, but I couldn't keep going with him, David, because, well, he's so, so resentful of everything and of everybody. Well, he was always threatening to, to punch any other boy who even looked at me. But you still kind of like him, don't you, Mary? Yes. That's good. But they've put him in jail, not because of me, David, and when maybe they'll even send him to reform school. Well, um, tell me something, Mary. When he came to see you last night, what did he say? Well, I thought he came to make up, David, because, well, you know, we had a quarrel last week. Bud, I'm so glad to see you. Hello? Won't you come in? No. Oh, please do, Bud, I want to talk to you. Look, I ain't got much to say to you but I guess the same goes for you. There's nothing you can... Oh, but I have, Bud, lots to say to you. Won't you please come in? Not a chance. I'll say what I have to say right here. What are you holding behind your back? I ain't forgot that Mr. Fancy Pants Dave Lee took you to that dance trying to beat my time. Believe me, he's got a sock in the nose coming for it, too. Oh, but honestly, David and I are just good friends. That's all. And he bought you a gardenia, too, didn't he? Well, yes. If it's flowers you want, I can give them to you, too. Here, take these. Oh, Bud, how beautiful. He gave you a cheap gardenia. Well, I'm giving you three dozen red roses. How do you like it? Goodbye. Bud, Bud, don't... Goodbye. Then later on the police came here to ask you about him? Yes. And, oh, David, I was frightened to death. Now they've got him in jail and he won't tell them a thing. Well, uh, know what I'd do if I were you? What? Maybe kind of tough, Mary, but if I felt that way about somebody, I'd go down and see him. In the jail? Uh-huh. Why, I bet he hasn't seen anybody that looks like a friend since he's been there. But what would I say to him? Well, uh, well, you tell him that you don't believe he's guilty and that... But, David, what if he is guilty? In this country, Mary, a man's innocent until he's proven guilty. And he really needs somebody, Mary. Yes, he does. Oh, David, I'm so glad you came over to talk to me. Did you tell your dad he's a lawyer and does he think Bud isn't guilty? He doesn't know much about it, but why don't you go and see Bud? Should I tell anybody? I wouldn't, Mary. Not yet, at least. All right, David. I know you're trying to do something, aren't you? Oh, just blundering around. David, there's nobody on earth who could help Bud like you if he can be helped. You've done other things, David. Everybody knows. Oh, I don't know, Mary, but you go and see him. I'm gonna talk to his mother and dad. Oh, David, they're not supposed to be very nice, and they live in such a bad neighborhood. So did Abram Lincoln when he was a boy. I'll see you later, Mary. To think he threatened to punch you in the nose. My name's David Lee. All right, so what? Well, Mr. Landis, I'm a friend of Bud's. Oh, well, he's no friend of ours. Get it? He's a tramp. Well, I knew he was in trouble, and I thought maybe if I talked with his parents... Hey, listen, what's the idea? And we've got enough trouble with a bunch of cops barging around this place about Bud, huh? Tell me, kick the flower shop apart and store some roses. How do you like that? Roses. You wanted to make a good job of it? Why didn't you knock off some dough flowers? But maybe he's not guilty. Maybe pigs have wings. He's been no good to us. How many times have I told him to quit school and go to work? I want some money for his keep. Think he'd do it? No. Tramp, that's him. Big ideas about school. Won't work. Now get out of here, will you? Um, there's only one thing I'd like to ask you, Mr. Landis. What? Your... Bud's father? Hi there, Solomon. Well, David Lee, hiya, boy. Hello, Solomon. How's business? Business is bad. Ain't shined anybody's shoes for over an hour. But that's all right. Give me plenty of time to practice on the mouth-op. You're getting pretty good at it, Solomon. Hey, I'll take a shine. How about it? Show, man. Get on the stand. You want the plane or the wax? Oh, plane, I guess. Um, Solomon, you know Bud Landis? Show. Landis didn't trouble that boy, didn't he? Uh-huh. Reckon they throw the book at him. Reformed school at least. But he's not such a bad guy, is he? Oh, he all right. Bud been pretty good to me a couple of times. Last week, uh, you know Butch Curtley? Yeah. Well, Butch Curtley got mad at me for something. He gonna beat me up. He started pushing me around on the sidewalk. You know how much bigger than me he is. Well, I was sure taking it when Bud Landis come up and he stopped it. He did? Yes, sir. He say to that Butch Curtley, he say, Choose somebody your own size, brother. And Butch say, you my own size, I choose you. Well, man, he shall make a mistake. Bud Landis trim him down and doesn't put a shadow in a few minutes. Man, oh, man. You mean he fought for you? I'll say. Maybe they got him in jail, Davey. And maybe he guilty, too. But ain't nothing so wrong with a boy who stand up and fight for the underdog. Not in my book anyhow. Well, I don't blame you for feeling that way. He mad at you, you know that? Well, that's what I heard. He say you steal his gal. Well, he ain't gonna have no time for gals where they put him now. Um, Solomon. Who's that kid that lives back of old man Badger's flower shop? You know, the family that has the yellow house. He named Peter. Beat Caswell, I think. He come by here once in a while. Went by a little while ago on his way to the grocery. Will he go by this way again? Always do. Well, uh, will you tell him I'm looking for him? I want to talk to him. Show up. Tell him why. Well, just because. I'm sorry I disturbed you during, well, just now, Mr. Lake, but you can see I had to talk to you. Of course, David. I heard that Bud was in such trouble. Of course he works here only from 7 until 9 each evening, so I don't see him until those times. But what I mean, sir, is, well, if you had to testify, you'd be perfectly willing to tell the same thing you told me. Why, naturally, if it would mean anything. Oh, I think it would mean everything. Uh, what time is it, Mr. Lake? Uh, 3 o'clock now. Oh, gosh, late afternoon. I'll have to be getting along. Uh, and I, uh, I'm much obliged. Are you calling me? Who else? You're that Lee kid, David Lee? That's right. Got a long nose, haven't you? Have I? Yeah, too long, maybe. How'd you like to have a pushback in your face? Why, what's the matter? I don't know what you're talking about. Who are you? Kim Caswell. I hear you're looking for my little brother, Peter. I wanted to ask him some questions. Well, I wanted to see him. Well, forget it, C. He's not answering any questions. Oh. Well, maybe you can answer some. Listen, smart guy, I saw you poking around in back of Bladger's flower shop this morning. That's right. That's why I wanted to talk to you or your brother. I don't answer questions either, except sometimes with a punch in the nose to the guy who asks them. Is that clear? Yeah. But if you want to answer questions, I'm still going to talk to you little brother. And you're going to get knocked right on your ear now. Oh, I wouldn't try that if I were you. Well, you're not me. I told you, Lee. I warned you. Keep away from my brother. Or I'll knock you on your ear again. Maybe you will, Caswell. But I'm still going to talk to you little brother. Now, Peter, let's see. Oh, here's a hole in the fence. And the tracks are right there where everybody can see them. Uh-huh. We don't have to follow the tracks. I told you already what I saw. Well, if you saw it, Peter, why didn't you tell somebody else? Because you know what they do to him. He's been in trouble before. But you wouldn't want to see somebody who was innocent be blamed. Maybe even go to jail. Oh, nobody would. You're wrong, Peter. Somebody is going to be sent. Maybe to reform school, unless you tell what you know now. But, Cas, how can I? I'm his best friend. Yes, I know you love him a lot. But, Peter, it's got to be done. Now, will you tell? I guess so. But I don't want to. Now, wait a minute, son. Your name is Lee, David Lee. Yes, Sergeant. My dad's a lawyer here, Harry Lee. Oh, sure. I know him. Whatever started you out on this case. Well, I wanted to see Bud Landis get a decent break, sir. It's too bad a lot of kids don't have somebody like you around, instead of parents like this Lendis boy here. Now, tell me this. You can get statements from everybody you've talked to. Yes, sir. They've all promised to tell. Only, I kind of like to see Mr. Lake's story kept sort of quiet. Why? Well, you see, sir, there's a girl. Well, that Taylor girl, Mary Taylor? Uh-huh. Well, it would be better if she didn't exactly know how he wrote. Yeah, sure. I see. Maybe it wouldn't embarrass her, but it might make young Landis feel kind of cheap. I think it would. You say you want to go in and see him now? If it's all right. Sure it is. Hey, Pat. Take this lad into that Lendis boy, will you? Okay. Let's race, son. I'd like to. You can have a few minutes with him. Um... Hello, Bud. What are you doing here? Well, I, um... I wanted to talk to you. I don't want to talk to you. I thought you did. I thought you wanted to punch me in the nose. At least, that's what I heard, anyway. You think I can't do it? Oh, I... I guess you could. Only, um... Why? You know why. Because I took Mary Taylor to the dance? Because you're horned in. I know plenty of dough, a car, your folks live in a nice house. You can show her a good time. So can you, Bud. Are you kidding? Oh, I don't mean with money or a car, or even with a nice home. Why, Mary isn't the kind of girl who would like anybody just for those things. Seemed to know a lot about her. I know she likes you, Bud. A lot. Didn't she come here to see you? Here? Well, she was going to. What are you trying to do? Kid somebody? Listen, you better get out of here. Before I can tell you, they're going to let you go. Huh? They are. Because you're not guilty. You didn't break into old man Badger's shop. You know all about it, I suppose. Sure I do. Want me to tell you? All right. Well, people saw you walking down the street with some roses last night. Then you gave them to Mary. And when Badger discovered his shop was broken in two and some roses stolen, why, they blamed you. Is that news? I, um... I don't think you should have been ashamed to tell them where you really got those roses. Where did you find out? I found out from Mr. Lake, the undertaker. I know you work evenings for him, Bud. Well, he told me that he let you have those flowers when you asked for them. They always have flowers left over. You're not going to tell anybody. Because you think Mary would laugh if she knew. Or she wouldn't, Bud. But I won't tell. Gee, I... Then Mr. Lake phoned here at the station and told them. And now they really know who did break into Mr. Badger's shop. So they're going to let you go, Bud. They are. When? Any time. Now I guess. Um... Bud, we used to be good friends. Yeah, so what? Well, why is it different now? I already said why. Because I took Mary out. Why she doesn't like me, Bud? I mean the same way she likes you. How do you know? Well, she told me that night of the dance. Why she didn't talk about anybody but you. She'd much rather have been with you than me. Why didn't you ask her to go? I got no clothes. And I... I couldn't buy her a flower. Was that all? All. Listen. How'd you like to live in a house where your old man's drunk five nights a week and where your mother doesn't care whether you keep going or not? How'd you like to see other kids with money and cars and good clothes and all that? Would you ask a girl about the dances with you? I guess not. But I bet it can be different from now on. Yeah. How? Because nobody's going to be scared of you, Bud. What? I'm not at least. Because you want the same things as most kids do. And if you quit acting like you'd rather fight with kids and get along with them, why, you don't have to worry about your clothes or the other things. I already know two pretty fine people who think you're really tops. Who? Well, they're pretty different. There's little Solomon and the boot black and then there's Mary. Oh. And I think you're all right too, Bud. How did you find out about me? I mean about the roses and that I'm not guilty. Oh. Just by accident. They're right in there, Miss. Mary. Hello, Mary. Hello, David. Bud, Bud, did he tell you? Oh, I heard they're going to let you go. Yeah, yeah, that's what he said. Oh, Bud, I'm so glad. I knew you weren't guilty anyway. You did? Oh, certainly. And when David went to work to prove you weren't, well, then... Bud. Huh? Oh, David. I guess he left. You say he went to work to prove I wasn't guilty? Well, he did every bit of it, Bud, every single bit. Holy smoke. And I think it was amazing how he found out who did break into the flower shop. Well, who did? A goat, Bud, an old billy goat that belongs to a boy whose family just moved, you know, in back of Badger's flower shop. The door was open and the goat walked right in and knocked everything over and he ate those roses, Bud. A goat? And then some Mr. Badger's dropped the charge against you and, and Bud, you can walk out of here right now. Oh, gee. But Bud, will you tell me something? Sure. Where did you get those lovely roses? The ones you gave me? Well, I, I'll tell you sometime, Mary, but, oh, there's plenty more where they came from. Enough for me to wear at the annual picnic next week? Oh, would you go with me, Mary? Oh, Bud, don't you know? Oh, what, then? You better hurry if you're going to finish that lawn before supper. Oh, yeah, yeah, I know. Uh, David, I don't like to keep hopping on things, but if you'd started the lawn earlier, it'd be finished by now. Yeah, Dad, I know. Son, don't you think it's time for a boy your age to begin to turn his time to something constructive in the afternoons? Yes, I, I guess it is. Suppose I just let things slide every time I had to assemble material to try an important case? I had to be pretty tough on my client, wouldn't it? You bet. All right, let's remember that. Now hurry and finish in time for supper. Oh, by the way, I hear they let that land his boy go. He wasn't guilty. Uh-huh, yeah, so I hear. Well, I, I'm glad. I'll be right in, Dad. Before we hear again from Miss Anne Blythe, tonight's family theater hostess, here's the star of this evening's performance, Roddy McDowell. Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you like tonight's play. I enjoyed being in it because the world of David Lee is actually my own world, and the world of many other boys and girls my own age. It's not a madcap irresponsible world where a dance, a party, or a weekly allowance are the only thoughts in our heads. We're constantly being told that the responsibility for the world of the future rests with us. We think that the true picture of us makes it believable that we have the seriousness, the character, and the ability to meet that challenge. What do you think, Anne? Roddy, I think that most young people feel confident about the world of the future, and we look forward to making it a good world, a happy world. I think we are in the right direction in looking forward first to making our homes and our marriages happy, permanent and lasting. We believe that home life is the most beautiful thing in the world, and it's up to us to make it a success, to make it permanent. I know you'll agree with me, Roddy, when I say that God plays an important part in a happy marriage, and daily family prayer is the strongest foundation upon which a happy home can be built. That is why we hope that all families in America will gather together for family prayer every day, because a family that prays together stays together. Before saying goodnight, I'd like to thank Roddy McDowell for his performance as David, our thanks to Carol Coleman and Ted Maxwell for writing tonight's play, especially for Roddy, and to Max Tur for his music. This production of Family Theatre, Inc., was directed by David Young. Next week, our Family Theatre stars will be Otto and Otterly Krueger in No Man is a Stranger. Your host will be Bob Hope. This is Anne Blythe saying goodnight, and God bless you. This series of the Family Theatre broadcast is made possible by the thousands of you who felt a need for this kind of program, by the mutual broadcasting system which has responded to this need, and by a friend of the New York Foundling Hospital, who cares for homeless and motherless babies without distinction of race, creed, or color. Tony LaFranco speaking. This is the Mutual Broadcasting System.