 My name's Regan. I work for Anthony J. Lyon, International Detective Bureau. They call me The Lion's Eye. Wednesday at 9 and CBS brings you Jeff Regan, investigator starring Frank Graham as Regan with Frank Nelson as Anthony J. Lyon. So stand by for mystery and suspense and adventure in tonight's story of the lady who wanted to live. Trouble comes cheap in this town. It's one item that's always on the market. You don't even have to go shopping for it. Somebody knocks on your door or dials your number and you've got all you can handle. I found that out when I met Amy Goodrich, a long low blonde with lots of speed. One look at her and you knew you'd been friends too long. We met last Friday afternoon. I'd been out of town two days looking for a guy who turned up in jail in Reno. I was home counting the lumps in my mattress trying to catch up on some sleep when the phone began jumping around on the hook. I thought it might be somebody with Rose Bowl tickets. I was wrong. It was The Lion. Hello? Regan, is that you? What do you want? Oh, it's a beautiful afternoon. The sun's shining. There's a tang in the... The season's over. Oh, but this is a new season for you. I haven't had any sleep in two days. I know myself. Get to the point, Fatso. Well, something very... This isn't Berlin. Say something. Still here. Drop dead. Stuck my head under the pillow again and waited for him to call back. He didn't. He was playing at Koi. Well, I tossed around for another half hour. The mattress got worse and then a fly started buzzing against the window shade. About that time, the blonde next door decided to leave her husband and it got real noisy. So I rolled out of bed, threw on some clothes and climbed in my car. I drove over to Sanse Boulevard and headed for Santa Monica. 18106 Coast Road turned out to be a bundle of flagstone and glass brick piled up against the ocean. Had a lot of angles, like a shyster lawyer. Figure whoever built it never heard of the FHA. Front door was open. Inside a skinny little guy with a complexion like dried codfish was catching up on his music appreciation. His eyes swung around when I walked in. It looked like they'd been hurting him all his life. He turned the record player down, but those elevator shoes brought him up to my chin. I'm listening to music. Whatever you're selling, we don't want any. How do you know? We never want anything. So long. Aiming around? Who are you? My name's Regan. What do you want? You, her? She's around. All right, she's out back on the patio, taking a sun bath. You didn't tell me what you want with her. I don't. She wants me, okay? Okay, sure, okay. Why should you be any different? Traffic problem, huh? We need stop lights. Go right on through the dining room. Just in case I want to write this up, who are you? Felix. Felix Beethoven. Well? I didn't say anything. When I saw her on the patio by the beach, I knew why Felix was hurting. Amy Goodrich was the kind of blonde they put on those resort hotel calendars in Las Vegas. No matter what month it was, she'd always start you looking around for spring. There wasn't enough material in her sun suit to make a good pen wiper. And once she smiled at me, I began to feel warm inside. Like a radio with a broken coil. I know it's warm for this time of year, but you aren't wearing a sheet skin. It wouldn't fit in this crowd. You're from Mr. Lion, aren't you? How'd you know? Well, he said he was sending me his best man. So, Mr. Regan, come over here and sit by me, hm? Sure, I won't crowd you. Mm-mm. Your party, lady. I always drink scotch. How about you? Maybe. Later. Well, so you're the lion's eye, hm? Very nice. Depends on how you look at it. I have to crawl out of bed to come over here. Oh? You haven't been sick, I hope. You work for the lion, you just don't get much sleep. Oh, I see. I thought you looked nice and strong. I'll tell my tailor. And quick, too. Look, you can relax, Regan. This job is going to be easy. What is the job? Protecting me. If you're gonna wear that all the time, I'd better send for reinforcements. I think you'll be able to handle it. You'll do just fine. If I know who I'm protecting you from. Yes, I suppose you do have to know that. Have you ever heard of Tim Conover, Mr. Regan? Yeah, yeah, he runs an upholstered cigar box downtown. Diamond Club. He plays for keeps. I've heard. And apparently I... I interest him. Good figures. I worked for him two years ago singing. He became very interested in me, but I turned him down. Conover wouldn't like that. He doesn't. He has another girlfriend now, a Helen Lesser. I thought she'd take his mind off me, but she hasn't. You still so? He's been around half a dozen times this past week casing the place. I think he's got some nasty ideas. Like? I don't know. But he might not be very gentle. So, um, I hang around until he shows up, huh? Mm-hmm. You protect me, Mr. Regan. I want you to stay real close to me. I, um, could go to the Diamond Club and talk to him. You could, but he doesn't impress easily. And, uh, I'd still want you around. I see. You don't want me to talk to him. There'll be time for that later. But right now, um, let's you and I get acquainted. Your boyfriend isn't gonna like that. Felix? He's only my arranger. He writes better if he's jealous. He must turn out a couple of operas a day. He's got a bad ticket, hasn't he? He's got a bad heart. But let's talk about us. Conover, remember? Oh, Regan, don't go. I hate to be alone. I'll be back. Why don't you stay for dinner? I'll, uh, send Felix out to a double feature or something. I'm hired. I have to see Conover. All right. Kiss me goodbye. No thanks, lady. I got a drive. But it figured Amy never read the vehicle code. I didn't mind when her arms went around me, but I could feel something else on the back of my neck. Eyes. Somewhere in that house Felix was watching, and I knew he wouldn't like the kind of music we were making. Hurry back, baby. I could still feel him watching when I broke away and walked back through the house. He wasn't in the dining room, so I went through the archway to the living room. I didn't find him, but he found me. The guy with the bad tickery was faster to speak. He had a letter open on his hand, but I didn't see the afternoon mail. I grabbed for him and he stood away. Then he came around again. This time I got my hand around his wrist. Drop it, Buster. Take it easy. You got small bones. You know, bill for Ruff-Word. Leave her alone, Regan. You leave her alone. Felix got his idea across all right, I tried some questions, but got no answers. I figured Conover might do better, so I got in my car and drove back into town. It was just getting dark when I parked on Figueroa near Olympic, in front of a diamond club. Things were slow when I walked in, too early for the jindalya spin crowd. When I asked for Conover, the bartender blinked a couple of wet stones at me and jerked his head toward the rear. I got as far as the shuffleboard table when a brunette eased out of the shadows. She wasn't wearing a coat, and it figured she was there to stay. May I help you? I'm looking for Tim Conover. I'm expecting him. Come on in. Sit down, Mr. Regan. Oh, so you're Jeff Regan. Ring a bell? I've heard the name before. It fits you. You're a private investigator. Yes, yes, of course. Tim's not in any trouble, is he? Not yet. What do you mean? Maybe, uh, maybe I better talk to him about it. Well, if it's that important, I better find him. Make yourself at home, Mr. Regan. If you like scotch... Thanks. I helped myself to that, waited around for about ten minutes. The phone rang once, and I let it go. A guy in a blue suit stuck his head in the door, said something about getting the wrong room, and backed out. I was just catching up on my music when the door opened. Through the mirror I saw Conover, a gray suit with a bulge in the front of his coat. I didn't know you played, Regan. Hello, Conover. I was having dinner. Helen tells me you've got something on your mind. That's right. Do I unload it now? In front of her? Why not? She's my baby. This is about another baby of yours. Do I go on? It's your show, Regan. Amy Goodrich wants you to know she's got protection. Paul? You did your job. You told me Amy's got protection. See you somewhere. She wants to be left alone. All right. She wants to be left alone. Anybody bothering her? You are, according to her. This guy's working in a weed field, Angel. I got over her a long time ago. I haven't seen her in two years. I believe you, Tim. All right, Regan. She believes me. This is where you get off. Amy says she's seen you hanging around her place lately. Makes her nervous. I don't know what your pitch is, or Amy's, but I'm not buying any. You may change your mind. You know, you've been in business too long, taking too many rabbit punches. You've got to start taking care of yourself. You, ring boss? Yeah. Get rid of this bum. They were a real pretty pair of muscles. One of them had a nose that looked like he'd been dipping it in an ink bottle all his life. The other one had an ear that could have passed for a golf ball. Well, they walked me out a door that opened onto an alley in back of the club. That's when the one with all the nose frisked me. Man, just in case, man. Just in case. Get your hands off me, punk. Easy, easy. We're just... Dussy says take it easy. Hey. Look. State of California. Gun and all. This guy's a gumball. Max. What? You're a gumball. Gumball's worse than a bum. Yeah, that gumball. Dussy says a gumball is worse than a bum. You don't talk? Gumballs. How tough are you? Still don't talk. Hey. Dussy asked you. How tough you are, huh? Are you tough? Tough? Tough? Not so tough. My turn. Hold it. Now, gumballs. Here's what we get on the answer. Very nice, cousin. Thank you. Come on, Max. We'd be late for dinner. What about him? Don't you hurt? He don't feel like eating tonight. I don't know how long I was away, but when I came back, I felt like I'd been sleeping on the wrong side of the world. I was still in that alley, and it was still dark. My head was rattling like it was full of broken glass. The yellow cap with an inferiority complex was sitting there looking at me. All of a once he started running. Regan. I didn't try to catch it. Regan. Can you hear me? Wake up. Have you been drinking? Oh, shut up. I sent you out on a simple little job. Wined up in an alley, drunk. Nuzzled up to a garbage pail, bleary eyed with melon seeds in your hair. Stop blowing steam fat so you're not a locomotive. No, no. Don't get so excited. You're getting seeds all over you. Give me a hand. How'd you get here? Amy Goodridge called. She was getting worried about you. Since you went over to see Conover, she wanted me to stop you. I figured she would, but she's too late. A couple of his boys played beanbag with my skull. Who does Conover think he is anyway? Pushing my boy around. Just who does he think he is? There's the door. Go in and ask him. Well, now I couldn't do that. Well, tell me. What's this all about? That's what you're going to tell me. But I don't know anything. Amy Goodridge must have told you something when she hired me. If you're holding out on me... But I'm not, Jeff. Well, then start checking. Find out about Conover. Conover? What do you want to know about him? Everything. Find out, for example, if there's anything Amy Goodridge could be blackmailing him with. I told you, I don't know. Well, then make a guess. It looks like everyone's in love with Amy. I left the lion standing there. He looked worried. Like an elephant with a skin rash. None of it made sense. I knew I'd have to get some answers before long. I drove over to my place and straightened myself out with a shower and some Johnny Walker. Half hour later, I was back out in Santa Monica. The fog was closing in over the house when I rang the bell. Nobody answered. But somewhere in the back, there was a light, so I walked around in the sand. The patio was empty. Inside, Amy was sitting on a zebra-striped couch. She was wearing a white strapless thing with a splash of red on one shoulder. She had a movie magazine in one hand and a drink in the other. But she wasn't having a very good time. She was dead. This is CBS and you are listening to The Lady Who Wanted to Live, tonight's adventure with Jeff Regan, investigator. Well, the lion wasn't going to like it. His client, Amy Goodrich, was dead and she wasn't in the market for protection anymore. I looked around for a gun, but didn't find it. And I picked up the phone and put in a call to homicide. But I never talked to them. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Felix standing out on the patio and he saw me. I hit the floor and pulled the rat with me. I hit you! Even after the gun was empty, he stood there pulling the trigger. Then he threw it down and began running toward the ocean. I went after him. Hold still. I don't care. I love Regan. I couldn't stand it anymore. I couldn't stand it anymore, so I killed him. It doesn't make sense, does it? Sure, sure it does, but you're not going to kill yourself. Oh, the police. What about them? I told them everything. Come on. Yeah, that's why I said, come on! I dragged him out of the surf and got him into my car. He kept mumbling all the way into town. It was two minutes after ten when we got to my apartment. Three phone calls turned up the lion in a Turkish bath. He kicked, but when I told him what happened he said he'd come right away. Twenty minutes later, he walked in. He still had a towel wrapped around his head. He looked like sitting bull in an Easter bonnet. Yeah, where is he, Regan? Where is he? In there, asleep. Just like that, he can draw up both to sleep after what he's done. What about Homicide? But they'll be looking for him down at the beach. We've got to stay clean, Regan. Pick up that phone and I'll ram it so far down your throat you'll get a busy signal out of your hip pocket. This is murder! What's gotten into you? You're not going to toss Felix to the wolves. Regan, you'll find the girl dead. Felix has the gun. He admits killing her. What are you saving him for? He's a foul guy, a passy. He didn't do it. He didn't... he didn't kill her? He was carrying this gun. He took six shots at me tonight. That's all it holds. There's one bullet in her and he didn't have any extra slugs. Now, what did you find out about Tim Conover? He's clean, Regan. Absolutely clean. Unless you want to count a court martial, he celebrated V.E. Day by poking a major in the chops. What else? He kicked him, too. All right. All right. Hey, where are you going? Out. Look, you stay here and keep Felix company. Oh, of course, Regan. I'll do that. Run along. You needn't worry. I'll watch over Felix like a father. You'd better. But the cops will be here. It won't take them more than an hour or two to find him. Yeah. And I've got just that long to find out who really killed Amy Goodrich. All right. All right. I suppose I'll have to go along after all we're working hand in hand in this thing. In that case, I'll hide my ring. I didn't like the idea of leaving the lion there with Felix, but there was nothing else I could do. Besides, I still had to do business with a guy named Conover. I was just getting into my car when I felt a gun in my back. And right away, I knew Conover had business with me. All right, Regan. We got things to talk over, and I just keep walking straight ahead, the black sedan. Now, Regan, you sit in front with Helen. I'll take the back seat. Okay, Helen. Where to, Tim? Nowhere. Regan and me can do our talking right here. It's quiet. Tim, are you sure you're doing right? Please let me handle this, baby. All right, Regan. What's the play? I know Amy's dead. Now let's just take it from there. Who told you? I was there tonight. Tim, you shouldn't. He'll involve you. He'll tell the police. I said I'll handle this, baby. So you were there. I know. Don't tell me. She was already dead when you showed up. No, not quite. All I got out of her was the name of some guy, Dolan, and something about Lake Tahoe. She seemed to think I know what it was about. And you didn't? No. Kind of figured you'd tell me. All right. Blackmail. Amy? Blackmailing me? You didn't know her very well, did you, Regan? She said she needed protection. I think she wanted a strong arm boy. No, it doesn't fit. She was no good, but not Blackmail. It doesn't fit at all. Maybe I can make it fit. Don't try. I'm not going to be tagged for this thing, Regan. You know some answers. Maybe you better start talking right now. I said start talking. I didn't know if Conable was just looking for information, or if you wanted to find out how much I knew about a guy named Dolan and Lake Tahoe. Well, I had a 50-50 chance. I could get the butt of that gun across my face, or I could try walking away and take a chance of getting a bullet in my back. And then I saw an old coupe, Oklahoma licensed, living along the other side of the street. I opened the door, stepped out onto the sidewalk. I kept on going into the middle of the street. Con over yelled, but he didn't fire. And then the coupe slammed on the brakes. Get yourself bashed up, standing out in the middle of the street. Why don't you get yourself all bashed up? We ran out of gas. We're going to another club. Pay your dues. There's no phone. Could you give me a lift? I wouldn't go to any help. Well, climb in, climb in, and do it the bowling alley. Hey, what are them two going to do? Sit there, Nick? I didn't answer that. When we pulled away, Conable was just sitting there staring. But there was nothing to stare at. Dolan was different. She registered one look. Fear. 15 minutes later, the Oklahoma license dropped me off at Vermont and Franklin, where I got a cab. All the way downtown, I kept wondering about Conable's play. He could have stopped me, but he didn't. That could mean he hadn't shot Amy. It could also mean he had shot her, but he knew about Felix confessing over the phone to the police. At the examiner morgue, I found Ned Fuller looking at a girly magazine. I told him what I wanted, and 10 minutes later, he spread out a file dated May 9th, 1945. Is this it? Wealthy Playboy shot to death. Willard J. Dolan, San Francisco socialite, found dead at Lake Tahoe Cabin. That's it. Oh, well, they never did solve it. Is there some stuff here about a mystery woman? I can read. They think she might have done it. Somebody's seen her come out of the cabin that night. She's tall, blond. First name, Amy. No, no, they never found out who she was. Somebody did. Oh, well, there was witnesses here. Let's see here. Mr. and Mrs. Franklin James, San Diego people, they saw them come out. They couldn't give a good description of her. Want a bet? A bet? Sure. I'll take note of them. Who'll you take? I'll take a guy named Tim Conover. Reagan. Hello, Conover. You're staying up late tonight. You work awfully hard for a buck soldier. That's for what your boys did to me out in an alley. I wonder what makes a guy walk into trouble three times in one day. You got a lot of nerve, Reagan, in the wrong places. I'm just getting started. All right, make your play. What's next? You talk. What about... Dolan Willa J. I told you... Lake Tahoe, May 9th, 1945. Talk, Conover. All right, then I'll talk. A tall blonde named Amy Goodrich, an unsolved murderer at Lake Tahoe. But there was a witness. When I first came over here, I guess she was blackmailing you. I was wrong. You were blackmailing her. You stink, Reagan. I told you you wouldn't tag me for this. Well, you're wrong. No, he isn't, Mr. Reagan. Oh, so that's it. Thanks, Helen. Give me the gun. I'll run things from now on. I don't know what you get out of this, Reagan, but you got your engine switched. Look, a mixed up guy named Felix Beethoven actually thinks he killed Amy, and he didn't. I've got him on ice, but the cops will get him. When they do, he's on his way to the gas chamber. Oh, Tim, please, let's get out of here. Let's not just... Wait a minute. Wait a minute, baby, wait. So I was blackmailing Amy. I had a good thing, but I shot her. And I was the mystery witness at Lake Tahoe. I thought you were a better gumshoe than that, Reagan. What does that mean? The date was May 9th, 1945. You mean you haven't looked me up? All of a sudden, it hit me. Something the lion had said about V.E. Day and a major who got hit in the chops. And the whole thing came apart at the seams. Conover couldn't have been the witness. He was in a guard house in Germany. I began to feel helpless. Like a glassblower with pickups. For the first time in my life, I really wanted to talk to the lion. I looked at the gun in Conover's hand, then I reached for the phone and dialed. Slow. He didn't stop me. Lion, the cops. Oh, Reagan, they're not here yet. Felix, we'll get him out of there. Reagan, I can't do that. Get him out of there. We broke our pick. What? I've been working the wrong angle. We've got to have more time. Now we'll be seen. You must have something. I have. A guy named Willard Dolan was killed at Lake Tahoe. A Mr. and Mrs. Franklin James were the witnesses. But Conover isn't. Reagan. Hold it. Yeah. Damn. Mr. and Mrs. Franklin James. Hang up. Reagan, what's going on? Hang up. Ellen's got something to tell you. Oh, Tim, please. Go ahead. Go ahead, baby. Tell him. Tim. Wait a minute. Mrs. Franklin James. Yeah, Mrs. Franklin James. All right, all right. I was, Mrs. Franklin James. I was a witness. I did blackmail, Amy. And you figured me to be the fall guy. You've hung around just so you could use me if the heat ever came on. No. No, I swear, Tim. I love you. I never meant to get you involved. But I used a piece of your stationary one. Amy had it traced. Oh, she figured it was Conover all the time. Yes. No, I went crazy trying to cover it up. Because I love you, Tim. I couldn't let anything happen to you. No. No, but you set me up for a murder act. No, I wasn't. I was trying to protect you. Don't you see, Amy was going to kill you, Tim. She was going to kill me. Yes. Oh, she wanted Reagan for us to set up that story about your threatening her. And then she could claim self-defense. But it didn't work that way. No. You came around. I couldn't let Tim find out. I couldn't let anybody find out. You killed it, didn't you? Yes, yes, I killed her. For you, Tim. I killed it for you. We can get away, darling. Reagan's the only one who knows. Sure, sure. And a kid with a bum ticker takes the rap. Except that somebody might ask questions about what happened to me. We'll have to take that chance, Tim. Reagan's the only one who can make trouble for us. Us, baby. What? We don't have any troubles. You have. Oh, Tim. You're joking. Listen to me. You're wasting your time. Tim. You won't help me? No. You won't help me? No. But if you let them arrest me, I'll die. They'll convict me. Oh, please, please. You have the gun, Tim. You can save me. I don't want to die. You better get her out of here. Oh, Tim. Reagan, I said get her out of here. Well, that's the way it wound up. The headquarters, Tim went back to his club. I went out of town for a few days. When I got back, I put it into the office. The lion gave me the wind-up. A report on Felix. Yes, Reagan. Those doctors worked on Felix Beethoven three days. Psychiatric medicine's a profound study. Profound. They finally convinced him he didn't kill Amy. Yeah. It's sad. He loved that woman as cruel as she was to him. He loved her a great deal. I suppose life will be lonely for him now that she's gone. You're wrong. What do you mean? I saw him in Hollywood today. He's got a new friend. One with red hair. You mean to tell me he's willing to do it again? To accept abuse from another woman? Why, that man's a natural for any woman's dominance. He hasn't got a thing to worry about. But you said she was a redhead and I know redheads. Yeah, but Felix is bigger than this one. Besides, the new one's a cocker spaniel. Jeff Regan investigator was written by E. Jack Newman and Adrian Jondo directed by Sterling Tracy. Frank Graham is starred as Regan with Frank Nelson as Anthony J. Lyon. Original music is by Dick Aram. This is CBS The Columbia Broadcasting System.