 Wheaties presents Joel McCrae and tales of the Texas Rangers. On stage tonight transcribed from Hollywood another in the Wheaties big parade of exciting half-hour presentations. Tales of the Texas Rangers starring Joel McCrae as Ranger Pearson. Texas more than 260,000 square miles. And 50 men who make up the most famous and oldest law enforcement body in North America. Texas Rangers come these stories based on fact. Only names, dates and places are fictitious for obvious reasons. The events themselves are a matter of record. Peace for tonight, the White Elephants. It is January 16th, 1950. The time, 628 p.m. A freight train just outside of a west Texas town gained speed and rolls through the gathering dust. Inside a gondola car, a hobo crouches in a corner as the breakman comes toward him. Oh, this is where you get off. Now listen pal, just let me get to the next town. I said this is where you get off. But we're moving. Now you get on where we was moving, you can get off. Now come on around just the top of your head. Now listen, don't, don't, don't do it. Get on your feet like this. Don't let me alone. Slug me with it. Tales of the Texas Rangers will continue in just a moment. You take a nice ripe plump kernel of wheat and you roll it out flat and you toast it a little. And what have you got? A wheatie. Do that over and over and over again. Do that enough times. And pretty soon you have a whole bowl full of wheaties and you can sit down to breakfast. Now of course, you and I know not many people go to all that work to get their breakfast wheaties. They just tip up that big wheaties box and let those crisp little flakes tumble into the bowl. And you know what? When you do that, you get the very same 100% whole wheat goodness and energy that you would get if you rolled out your own wheaties flakes kernel by kernel. And the best tip I can give you is to tip the wheaties into your own bowl first thing in the morning and see how wheaties at 7 can help at 11. At 2.55 a.m. of the morning following the freight train incident, a rancher named Banker noticed a small coupé parked on the shoulder of the road. It bore Oklahoma license plates. Banker turned his spotlight on the car so a man slumped down on the driver's seat. A half hour later, Sheriff Caldwell, notified by Banker, began investigation of the murder and called in the Texas Rangers. Ranger Jase Pearson was assigned to the case. And a few hours later, Pearson, Banker and Sheriff Caldwell stood at the scene. Pearson listened to Banker. It was just about 3 this morning when I saw it, Ranger. How come you were driving along this road that late? I've been to a rancher's meeting in Elmiras. I was going to spend the night there and change my mind. Did you take this road when you left for Elmiras? Yes, sir. What time? Yesterday morning, about 7.30. Then this car came here sometime between 7.30 yesterday morning and 3 this morning? I guess so. You never saw the dead man before, huh? It was the first time I laid eyes on him. All right, Mr. Banker, you can go. Hey, if you need me, I'll be home. No identification on the body at all, huh, Sheriff? Nothing in the pockets. Pick clean as a whistle. Anybody else been around the car? Nope. Deputy kept his eyes on it. Car's facing west. Going west when it was stopped. Tire tracks on the shoulder tell that. Blood on the seat. Yeah, 38 bullet on it. 38. Might be a police special. Banker got one? Banker, but... Just asking. For now. You see I... You see something? Look here, Sheriff, huh? Set of tracks leading up to the car. Ordinary shoes, not boots. Heal marks are too broad for boots. Yeah, it looks like it. Look at this one. Soul print with a hole in it. Now look. The prints lead from that way, north, up to the car. A little scuffle. Then the prints turn back north. In other words, Sheriff, somebody walked up to the car, stood there, then turned and went back north. Oh, and here's something else. Grease. Looks like grease. Smirred on the car door. Same side footprints are on it. Grease might be from the car. Looks too stiff and heavy for that. Yeah. What about it coming from a freight train, Jason? Why? Well, there's tracks about a mile north of here. Freights use a side and a pull on when passengers got a pass. Hmm. Maybe it all ties in, Sheriff. A shoe with a hole in it, grease, freight siding. Yeah, might be worth going after. Where do we start? Here at the car first. I'm gonna check it over inch by inch. Meantime you get hold of a freight schedule. I'll meet you at your office. When I checked the car inside and out, I found a few things that were interesting and a little puzzling. I sent a sample of grease to the laboratory for analysis and took plastic casts of the footprints. Then went on to Sheriff Caldwell's office. He had the information I'd requested. Here it is, Jace. Schedule of freight's went through yesterday. How many? Three of them. You can check those, all right. Of course, we might be sending the dogs up the wrong tree. Looks like a hobo to me. Let me see the dead man's fingerprints. Sure, here you are. These match with some of the prints in the car. See? Closed delta. Yeah. How about those others you got? Pick these up on the door that had the grease on it. Smeared all over. A couple clear enough to use only. Only what, Jace? You know, there wasn't a single print on the steering wheel. Seems like the dead man's prints ought to be on it. Gloves? I didn't find any gloves on him nor in the car. Yeah. Oh, by the way, I got a call out if any hobo picked up or seen on those trains. Good. Now, I found these tucked under the sun visor in front of the driver's seat. Gas lean receipts made out to Carl Thompson. Oh, that'll save a lot of checking. Move forward with the dead man's prints, anyway. That steering wheel bothers me. Excuse me, Jace. Sheriff called, won't. Oh, yeah. Good. Hold him. We'll be there as soon as we can make it. Something else, Jace. Breakman in one of those freight we've been checking has a story. Some hobo slugged them and jumped. OK. Let's go. The breakman took us to the approximate spot the hobo jumped off the freight. Sheriff Caldwell and I picked up the trail and followed it by horse. We hoped to apprehend the suspect before he could reach a town and lose himself and us. After six hours, we stopped. What's the matter, Jace? Tracks are different. Come here and take a look. Different? Yeah, look. Right prints a little deeper. Favoring his left a little. Heard himself, huh? Must have twisted his leg when he took the jump off the freight. Kept getting worse. Sat down here, smoked a cigarette. Here's the butt. He ain't going to make such a good time with a bum leg. We've been traveling at a steady trot. Uh-huh. OK. Let's get going. The suspect's trail showed increased favoring of his left leg. His progress became slower. More and more often, he stopped to rest and the trail became fresher and fresher. Evidence in the deserted shack showed suspect had rested there for quite a while. We picked up the trail again. We're getting close, Sheriff. How do you know? Notice something just now. Take a look at these prints. Same as the ones we've been following. Not quite. Hole in the right shoe. Not that. I'm talking about this ant hill he crushed. Well, what about it? Quite a few of the prints had ant hills in them. Crushed and rebuilt. So? Ants start working on a new hill when the old one's been trapped down. This one's so fresh they haven't had time to rebuild. Hey, that's right. He can't be far off. Yes, we better leave the horses tied up here, Sheriff, and start moving on foot. He was asleep. He gave us no trouble and he denied anything and everything about the crime. We took him back and I kept questioning him, but he stuck to his story. I never was there. I didn't do it. Ever owned a gun? 38 police special? I told you a hundred times. I never owned no kind of gun. How'd you take all that skin off your arm? I don't know. Fairly maybe. You got that while you were running away. When you jumped off the freight, after you slugged the brake... No, no. Grease on your jacket. How'd it get there? Maybe, maybe off in the freight. Sure. That car we showed you, the one you said you never seen before. It's a truth. Is it? Hold up your right foot. What? Hold it up. Hole in the right shoe. Whatever. Here's a plaster cast. Cast at the print of the scene of the murder. Take a good look. But I wasn't there, I tell you. Ever hear of fingerprints? Oh, sure. Here are yours. And here's a set found at the crime. They match. You still say you weren't there? I didn't kill nobody. Let me see your hands. When'd you wash them last? I don't know. Maybe a couple of days ago. You know we can tell if you fired a gun. I never had no gun. Did you rob the man in the car? No, no. Look at me. You were there, weren't you? We can prove it. The way... Oh, hey. All right, it was there. But I didn't kill him. Why'd you lie? I was scared. If you're innocent, you don't have to be scared. I got a couple of wraps, bag wraps. That all? Sure. We can check that, too. All right. I got a couple of wraps, pinching stuff. Nothing big. Now, look. Tell me exactly what you did. Well, coming off afraid. I was walking across when I seen the car. I figured it was funny, something funny. Why? A car parked like that. Then I walked over, seen the fella in there. He was dead. I beat it, hopped the freight. That all? You know what else? Hopped now. Did you get in the car at all? No, sir. No, sir. Did you touch the body or take anything from it? I swear, Ranger. Didn't I? Did you touch the steering wheel and then wipe it off? Wipe it? No, no. What for? Look, I'll tell you. Jayce? Yeah, Sheriff? Come here, will you? Sure. You stay put. I got no place to go. Here's all the dope on the murdered man, Thompson. Come in just now. Carl Thompson, resident Tulsa, Oklahoma, traveling salesman for Prince Extract Company. This checked? Double. Tally's with a gasoline receipt. What about him? The hobo? Yeah. I think the only crime he committed was failure to report what he saw. His fingerprints were all over the outside of the one door of that car and none inside. Seems to me if he thought of cleaning up the inside, he'd have done the same outside. Yeah, looks like it. We'll give him the paraffin test anyway and see if he's fired a gun lately. And if he didn't? Start all over and start with that clean steering wheel. In just a moment, we continue with tales of the Texas Rangers starring Joel McRae as Ranger Jayce Pearson. I guess nobody gets much of a taste treat out of taking their calcium and iron and phosphorus or their vitamins straight. But you simply have to have all those things to keep feeling good. And you should have them first thing in the morning, too. Because morning's the time you do most of your big day's work. That's when you really need the energy. You see, morning is the time when you really... Wait a minute, Frank. Why don't you just tell them this? See how Wheaties at 7 can help at 11. Well, you took the words right out of my mouth, of course. Wheaties at 7. Because Wheaties have all those vitamins and minerals. That's how Wheaties give you the zip it takes to feel eager and ready for anything all morning long. Whether you drive a truck or plow a field or if you're just plain busy with a multitude of household duties. And Wheaties do you another big favor. Wheaties wrap all those vitamins up in a wonderful, sunny, toasty, nut-like flavor that fairly hollers, give me some more. Wheaties are crisp. They're munchy. They're all fun to chew on. Tastes as good going down as they make you feel when they get there. So do this, will you? Not for me, but for yourself. Hurry on down to the Wheaties tomorrow morning and just see for yourself how Wheaties at 7 can help at 11. The result of the paraffin test was negative. We held the hobo pending further investigation. I reported back to my captain, Stinson, at company headquarters. I told him I was pretty sure that the hobo story checked out. Yeah, it looks like it, but somebody killed Thompson. Killed him and then drove him in his own car to where that rancher spotted it. There wasn't anything on Thompson, huh? No money, no papers, only these. Gasoline charge account receipts. Somebody went to an awful lot of trouble to clean him, but they overlooked these. On top, this looks like a plain case of murder with robbery as the motive, but if that was it, why go to all the risk of being spotted in a car with Oklahoma plates? Why not just kill him and leave him? I don't know, Jase. What's your thinking? Well, Thompson was a traveling salesman, traveled a lot in a few days. Now, suppose the killer realized that with Thompson far enough away from the scene of the crime, we'd have a pretty tough time finding out just where the murder was committed. Yeah, that could be. But why? Well, maybe the killer couldn't leave the spot. So he did the next best thing, took Thompson's body away. And maybe it wasn't just robbery. Well, what else? I don't know yet, but I got some more checking to do. It'll take maybe a couple of hours, and then I might have some answers. Who's Jase? You getting anything new? It's more dope on Thompson, Captain. He never carried much money, never was known to have picked up a hitchhiker, and I got a pretty good idea of where he was killed. These gasoline receipts tell a fair story. Yeah, how? Well, this one, for example, dated the 15th day before he was killed, made out in Bannon. He got 16 gallons of gas there. Oh, did you ever think somebody else might have been using his credit card? Yeah, but Thompson traveled that route pretty often. Chances are he was well known at the service stations. Yeah, that's right. Okay, go on. I ran a mileage test on his car. He got about 17 miles a gallon. Now his tank holds 16. I did a little figuring. Just about enough gas was used to get him from Bannon to where his body was found. But he could have been killed anywhere between Bannon and where he was found dead. Sure, I know that. But it still looks like my next stop is Bannon. Hey, Ranger. Howdy. How many? Whatever she'll take. Ah, sure thing. You the owner here? Ah, yes, sir. How long? Oh, a couple of years. You work alone? Well, nights, yeah. Take a look at this, will you? One of my receipts. Credit card stuff. You know this Carl Thompson? Yeah, I see him ever, oh, four or five months. When'd you see Thompson last? The evening he bought that gas. Why, anything wrong, Ranger? Was Thompson alone that evening? Uh, yeah. I never remember him ever having anybody alone. What else do you remember about that evening? Oh, one of the worst sleet storms we ever had. Hit like a... I'll be tough for him to drive, then, huh? Oh, sure. Hey, he was asking about some place to stay. He never stayed in Bannon before? I don't know. Least ways, he didn't know much about the places. I told him to try the hotel. He said it was full up. He said the motels were jam-packed. He knows where he went. He said he was going to try and find a place along the highway. Why, anything wrong? Plenty. Here's for the gas. I might come back and ask you some more questions. Thanks. I began a check of every possible place Thompson might have stayed that night. But I drew one blank after another. Then I got a lead at a motel on the outskirts of Bannon. Sure, Ranger, I remember that night. Sleet was an inch thick. We was full up here, but I sent him to a place down the highway, the Star Motel, been closing up for sale for quite a spell, but I heard it was opened up again. I went to the Star Motel. It was closed tight. Every cabin was locked. The windows boarded. There wasn't a soul around. I was just about to leave when I noticed something. The electricity must have been on somewhere in the place because the little wheel under the dials of the meter was spinning. It was enough to send me back to the town to ask a few more questions. Now, let me see you, Ranger. Star Motel. Yes, sir, here's what we want right here. Are these all electricity bills? Yes, sir. Let me see. Up to three months ago, the bills were just for meter installation, minimum service charge. That's right, Ranger. But for the last three months, 475, 389, 560. Kind of funny, isn't it? The place is closed, but for the last three months, the bills have averaged over $4 a month. Didn't that seem peculiar to you? Well, Ranger, we just... Sure, sure, I know. Now can you give me the name of the person to whom these bills were sent? Get it for you right away. Why, yes, Ranger, Mr. Kalson's here. I believe he's on the phone right now, but if you come in... Thank you, ma'am. You miss us, Kalson? Yes. I hope I'm not bothering you any, Miss Kalson. Not at all, Ranger. My husband's here. I see. Well, I think that can be raised. Yes, sure. Tell you what, I'll come out a little later. I'll bring the client with me. Sure. Thanks for calling. Goodbye. Andy, this is Ranger Pearson. Oh, hello. Sorry to barge in like this, Mr. Kalson, but I got a few questions. Questions? Sure, what about it? You own the Star Motel, don't you? Yes, I do. Star Motel? Oh, that white elephant. White elephant? Yeah, I've been trying to get rid of it for two years. Why? Well, like Basie said, it ain't been worth the hoot since the new highway went in two years ago. We have the traffic that used to pass it. It hasn't been used for two years? Well, I guess I didn't mean exactly that. What did you mean? I tried to keep it going for a year after the highway went through, but couldn't rent enough rooms. It wasn't worth trying to save. You got the keys to it? Keys? Sure. Is there something wrong, Ranger? Might be, ma'am. Can you take me through the motel, Mr. Kalson? Anytime. Right now, suit you. Couldn't be better. Let's go. I ain't been out here for close on three or four weeks. Did you go through the cabins then? No, just take a look. See, kids sometimes fool around. That's why I boarded up the windows. Want to take a look in the office? Yeah. Go ahead, Mr. Kalson. Sure. Nothing in here, Ranger? No, there's not. Anything in particular you're looking for? Yeah. You have this floor washed lately? Oh, heck no. Ain't no use paying for something like that. It's been washed recently. Huh? But why? How do you know? Scrubbing wood with hot water always raises the grain, and hot water isn't as good as cold to wash out blood stains. Blood? Blood? Reach! What's wrong with you? Get away from the cons, Ranger! Pull the air! Sit down! What the devil is this? Who are you, fellas? My guess is a couple of men I want from murder, Mr. Kalson. Let's get the telephone wire. Everything okay? Yeah, of course that guy. Me, why? I never carry a gun. Well, we just make sure. Yeah, he's clean. All right, now strip the Ranger's gun, Belk. Wait a minute. You've got the drop on me. Maybe I'd have to be a fool to draw. But if you don't want me to be a fool, don't touch these guns. You try and take them off me, and I'll go down using them, and I might get lucky. All right, Locke. Let him alone. He's too smart to start anything. Go get the panel truck out and start loading our stuff fast. Well, what about them? We can lock them in. Fix their car so they can't get out of here for a while after we leave. If they try to come out while we're still here, we'll blast whatever door or window they try to come through. Get that, Ranger? I get it. Okay, I'll be outside, Chuck. So your name's Chuck, huh? What is any? What are you and that other fellow doing in my place? Go ahead, Chuck. Tell him. It's another time, friend. Now you two listen, because I ain't gonna say this twice. Try to bust out before you hear us drive off and you'll get it good. Now stay put. Oh, they got us locked in. Yeah. Oh, don't go near that window. You heard what he said. A little crack in the boarding. I'm just taking a look. What are they doing? Come here and take a look for yourself. Oh, I should have watched the place more. I never knew anyone who's used it. Then use plenty. Look what they're taking out. Furs, all kinds of stuff. Let's begin it to make sense. Closed-down motel made a nice storage bin for stolen and smuggled goods till they could run it to the markets. Oh, they'll get away. You said there was a murder. Take it easy, Mr. Carlson. We'll get them. Oh, they'll be across the border in a half an hour before we could even reach the phone. Maybe you better take a chance and get shot down in cold blood. No, but we'll get them all right. Okay, Mr. Carlson. Why? Because you'll help. I pinned Carlson with a quick headlock and then got one arm up high and even applied pressure so I could keep him still while I had a free hand. I reached into his jacket and found what I was looking for under his shoulder. Then I pushed him away. Oh, you crazy. He almost broke my arm. Shut up, Carlson. Don't you think I saw this gun bulging under your coat? And they deliberately missed it when they frisked you? You played it real smart, almost. I don't know what you're talking about. This gun and the electric bills. You paid them. Paid bills that were being run up in a place that was supposed to be shut down. It seemed kind of funny you never complained to the power company. So what? So you got a phone call from your friends out there. They tipped you because they saw me nose and around here earlier, right? No. Okay. Okay, take a look out there. They're almost finished. In a couple of minutes, they'll be gone. In half an hour, they'll be over the border. How about you? You want to stick back here and face a murder charge? There's nothing you can prove. There's plenty we can prove, Calson. And you're holding the bag. You'll have a tough time explaining those electric bills and them missing your gun. I didn't kill that man. Did this chuck do it? Yeah, yeah. That sails him come in. He saw what was going on. Chuck killed him. Then drove him away. All right. Now listen real careful to me. I'm going to fire this gun of yours. Then you hammer on the door and holler for him. Get it? What do you want to do then? Just listen. When they come up, tell them you had to kill me. Tell them to open the door. Tell them to open the door. Then, Mr. Calson, step back and out of the way fast. They'll be gone in a minute. Make up your mind. All right. Go ahead. I'll do it. Any funny tricks and you get it first. Now, ready? Hey! Turn that door and holler. Chuck! Rock! Give me a pen. Open the door. Now, when it's open, step back. What's the matter? Calson! Open the door. I had to kill him. He was making a break for it. Reach! Hey, what's a bigger idea? We'll come back for him later, Calson. Meantime, let you and me get back to town. I got you a deal for this white elephant motel. You can trade it for a jail cell. And now, here is the Wheaties Man, Frank Martin. All right, sound effects man. Ring the alarm clock. Yeah, I used to grow into when I heard that sound. But one morning I said to myself, now look, Martin, you gotta get up. Why fight it? Think about something pleasant. And right away I thought, Wheaties, that's about the pleasantest thinking a man can do. Why, when you figure you can sit down to a bowl of good, crisp Wheaties and then feel like tackling the world, when you know a bowl of Wheaties and milk and fruit can help you work good because you feel good, why it almost makes you want to shake hands with your alarm clock. And when you hear it come morning, roll out happy, reach for the big orange and blue box and see how Wheaties at 7th can help at 11. Next week, Joel McCrae and another authentic re-enactment of a case from the piles of The Texas Rangers. Joel McCrae will soon be seen starring in the Universal International Technicolor production, Saddle Tramp. Tonight's cast included Tony Barrett, Paul McCrae, Lou Krugman, Jeff Corey, Robert Bruce, Byron Kane and Jeanette Nolan. This story was transcribed and adapted by Russell Hughes. The program was produced and directed by Stacey Keese. And this is Hal Giffney speaking. And this is the Wheaties man, Frank Martin, inviting you to listen Monday night to Frank Lovejoy and Night Beat on the Wheaties Big Beret. See you then. Listen tomorrow for The Summer Symphony. Now it's Basin Street time on NBC.